MS150 plans

No, I am not riding in the MS150 in June. I am however going to be a volunteer helping out with intersection safety. I get to sit at a bunch of intersections during the ride and help the riders watch for traffic. Once they have all cleared an intersection, I hop in my Bug and drive ahead of the riders to the next assigned intersection.

If you are not aware of what the MS150 is, it is an annual fundraiser for the Multiple Sclerosis Society. The bicyclists ride from Duluth to Hinckley the first day and from Hinckley to Blaine the second day. They cover about 150 miles during that run, hence the name MS150. My sister will be one of the riders. You can donate to the MS Society and help her reach her pledge goal at her website.

Semester complete

I just turned in my final project for the Spring semester. The school year is now officially complete for me. Just the wait for the final grade is left. The professor gave us a choice between a paper and a project. I choose the project option, but I feel that I straddled the line a little. I approached the project somewhat as a paper and made use of the web to format that paper. You can view the completed project at my project website.

I do hope to make enhancements to this project including figuring out how to randomize the quiz using only client-side tools.

It's so much fun living in a Microsoft world

I installed Office 2008 for Mac today. Yes, I know that is a type of oxymoron but we live in a Microsoft world. It does give me entertainment value to read their installer messages. A case in point is this one. Are they yelling at Apple? Is it in Spanish? To what degree? It even seems to be radical.

Circle the Square - Session 10 - April 15

I got the shirt!
I couldn't leave it at only two punches left on the card for long. After class tonight it was time for dinner. I started with the Big Sky Seasonal, in this case the Winter Ale was in stock. So it finally gets warm and I get the Winter Ale. I poured it down the middle of the glass and ended up with a large head. The head didn't take very long to go down. In fact, the entire bottle didn't take long to go down. It reminded me somewhat of a Newcastle.

After the final beer on the card, it was time to move to the hard cider. The last punch on the card was the Strongbow. This is the only can on the card and clocks in at 16.9 ounces and 5.0% alcohol. Very tasty but I had waited for nice weather to get this one as I think of it as a summer time drink.

Then it was time to get the shirt. Turns out that I was the first to get a shirt through this promotion. I had most of the staff tell me that as I was drinking the Big Sky. I took a photo of the fully punched card. As you can see it was getting difficult to carefully put in my wallet. Now I won't need to. I'll save you all from a photo of me in the shirt since Rheanna did a much better job modeling at the beginning of this series of blog entries.

Now as a reader of this blog, you have one thing left to do. Go and get your own shirt. The Square is located at 4736 Washington Square in downtown White Bear Lake, Minnesota. It's just a block off of highway 61 and the patio is starting to open as our winter finally seems to be ending. I'll see you there!

Circle the Square - Session 9 - April 14

Coming in to the final turn! I dropped the taxes in the mail and went to the Square for dinner. The Abbey Prima was a good start with it's anise and orange peel flavors. To finish the left side of the card, I went from Belgium to Prague with the Staropramen. It was a little plain for my taste or overwhelmed by the Abbey and the nachos. I am down to only two beers and still have a chance to be the first to get the shirt. Technically, I only have one beer left, the other is Strongbow hard cider.

Circle the Square - Session 8 - April 10

Double triple night! I had the two triples on the card tonight. I started off with the Abbey Triple that actually says Floreffe Triple Ale on the label. The Floreffe Abbey has been brewing for centuries and they are good with it. This is a Belgian beer with about a 7.5% alcohol content. Very drinkable but not as good as the Konings from last night. Maybe I was just in the mood for the Konings last night. I mentioned that it was a double triple night. I followed the Abbey with the Triple Karmeliet. This was a little more to my liking. The part I have noticed as I do the circle of the square, I haven't really found a bad beer. There is definitely a wide range of them out there. I also found out tonight that I might be the first to make it around the circle. The manager didn't know of anyone completing the card so far. Only 4 left to drink - it's a tough job but someone has to do it.

Circle the Square - Session 7 - April 9

Dinner and beer time! I have two more punches on my Circle the Square card. I now have 14 out of the 20 punches. The first beer, that was consumed while I was waiting for dinner, was the Capital Brewery Island Wheat. This was very drinkable and normal. The second beer was delicious! It was also 10% alcohol. The Konings Hoeven Quadtupel is a Holland brew that is served with a tulip glass. I will definitely have another one of these after I get done with the card. Oh, by the way, the card is getting a little ragged. I am certain I will make my goal of having the shirt by summer.

Circle the Square - Session 6 - April 5

Saturday lunch time was a good time to get two more punches in the Circle the Square card - it is starting to look a little ragged with so many holes around the edge. I am now over halfway to that coveted t-shirt. Ok, I really just want to try the different beers and this is an excuse. Today I started fancy. I had the Kriek Lambic. This is very syrupy and cherry flavored. It does come in a wrapped bottle that has a champagne cork top. This rated two photos before and after opening. As the meal progressed I decided to go in a completely opposite direction and ordered the Left Hand Milk Stout. Both of these beers were very good and I will have to have them again -- after I get the t-shirt.

Circle the Square - Session 5 - April 3

It has been a busy time since the last post. I did get back to the Square tonight for dinner. Of course, a couple of beers were consumed and more punches on the Circle the Square card. Yes, I remembered to take photos. The first beer was a little on the large size but very tasty. My father-in-law was along and also had a Fat Tire as his second beer. My second beer was the one on the card that I have been avoiding since I don't care for hoppy beer, the Hopped and Infuzed. It wasn't as bad as I expected. Oh, what's that? It's Hazed and Infuzed? Still very hoppy.

Circle the Square - Session 4 - March 28

I love my wife. She came home from a conference in Minneapolis and said "Let's go to the Square for dinner". So I got to work on circling the square some more. We perched on the corner of the crowded bar and I was able to have two more punches added to my card. For those of you keeping count, this is 8 total. The first one was from Oregon, Dead Guy Ale. It went great with the shredded beef quesadillas, but was mostly gone before the food arrived. Ok, so I was thirsty. I then told Ef to get me something else on the card. He first wanted to have me go with the Fat Tire but I looked at the size of the bottle and decided that was not a second beer choice. It will wait for a single beer choice session. He then read my mind and brought me the Bells Porter. I am a big fan of porters and this one does not disappoint me.

Circle the Square - Session 3 - March 27

How better to follow-up lunch at the Square, then to return for dinner? This turned into a 3-brew session thanks to Ef insisting that I needed dessert. The first beer was the Paulaner Hefe-Weizen. I am not a fan of beers that are served with fruit but I was able to avoid the lemon stuck to the glass. Since I was having Mexican for dinner (don't miss the Mexican section of their menu - the food is great!), I had a Bohemia. Very light and tasty with my mole enchiladas. Then the bartender decided that I needed dessert, so he brought me a Duvel. It is a little sweet but read the label carefully. It is a 8.5% brew. I also found a drawback to taking these photos with my iPhone. As I was lining up the shot of the Duvel, one of the waitresses (Jamie) came by and picked up the bottle and said "Oooo, I love the shape of these bottles, don't you?"

Circle the Square - Session 2 - March 27

Ok, I snuck down to the Square for lunch and couldn't resist having one beer. My choice was the Bell's Amber Ale. A good lunch brew!

Circle the Square - Session 1 - March 22

Ok, I promised beer postings so here is the first session. I was surprised by my first selection. I was looking for the worst one to get it out of the way, but I found it a decent beer. I had the Negra Modelo as my first punch on the card. I followed that with a completely different beer, the Lucifer. I am already starting to believe that they only choose good easy drinking beers for the card.

Circle the Square

My favorite little bar and grill, Washington Square, has started a new promotion. All you need to do is get one of their "Circle the Square" cards and get all of the names punched around the edge. Simple enough, right? The catch is, of course, that all the names are bottled beers that they stock and to get the punch you have to purchase and drink the beer. There are 20 beers on the card and some are better than others in my opinion. I started last Saturday, March 22nd with my card. That was after one of the T-shirt model and bartenders accosted me with "You have got to start one of these cards" as soon as I walked in. I did get photos of the shirt. I like the quote on the back of the shirt, "A fine beer may be judged with only one sip, but it's better to be throughly sure."

I plan to post photos of the beers as I 'Circle the Square' and in fact have 8 to post already. Stop by Washington Square Bar and Grill at 4736 Washington Square, White Bear Lake, MN 55110 and get started on circling the square.

It's a quiet evening

I am finally taking some time to just sit and enjoy the quiet. As I look around the room the lights are off and the main light in the room is the glow of the laptop screen. I have that dimmed as well. I know that the hustle and bustle of the weekend will be starting soon. My daughter is coming home for the weekend and my son returns from Europe on Monday. I feel like I should be doing something but then I realize that I am - I am enjoying a little peace and quiet - we have not run out.

Our son is ready for Europe

I am jealous - we are sending our son to Europe for his final spring break as a graduation present. Now he will have to graduate when he returns. It seems that he is ready. He just had a birthday and his wish list included Euros. His grandparents came through!

Got my ducks in a row

While walking between casinos in Laughlin, NV I was able to find that I had my ducks in a row.

Finally posted Trivia Weekend photos

Doing trivia for 50 hours straight is very hard on a person. More photos on flickr

Who said the lunar eclipse didn't affect things?

I think I found an after effect from the the lunar eclipse. Or is this beer just that powerful?

College town coffeehouse - Cup or Bowl?

It is a different atmosphere trying to study in a coffeehouse across the street from a college campus. It isn't even the school I attend! I got through the reading but it was difficult. I think we sat too close to the counter. Banging those shots and the steamer and the shouting between the workers. The coffee however was very good. I am not sure if I got a cup or a bowl.

We are in Winona, Minnesota and came down yesterday to attend A Prairie Home Companion. Yes, it is normally a 20 minute drive from home but where is the fun in that? We have not attended APHC at it's home at the Fitzgerald in downtown St. Paul. Instead, it is a 2 1/2 hour drive to Winona. This way we got to attend with our daughter. Today, the coffee shop while our daughter is in a rehearsal for the Winona Symphony concert later this afternoon. After that concert we get the 2 1/2 hour drive back home.