War on Christmas

Why is it that every year I have to put up with hearing people get so upset that stores and companies have "holiday" parties and greet you with "happy holidays?" I was always under the impression people were asked to say that because, and this may come as a shock, not everybody celebrates Christmas. OH MY! Yes, it is true. Of course a lot people in this country do celebrate something this season so why no include everybody with your greeting and wrap it up with happy holiday? And of course New Years is in there as well. I have my opinions on why this is such a big deal. Mainly it is the pundits and spiritual leaders ruffling the feathers of their flock because if you feel you, or your faith in this matter, is threatened you will become more vigilant to stand up and fight for it. Or maybe they really do feel or believe that it is under attack. I mean the recent events of Nativity scenes and Ten Commandments being taken out of public places would be seen as something they are not pleased with. But they are not meant to exclude them but to include other faiths in our country. But it is probably a mixture of both. It took an event like 9/11 to get a lot of people back into the churches. Maybe a whole slew of mini "crisis" would help galvanize them into place so they don't stray too far.  

Whatever the case is, christians should not at all feel threatened. Because, after all, christianity is the number 1 religion in this country. Probably 90% of its leaders are of some demonation of that faith and there is no way in this modern time that a person can become president without believing in god. This country is run by rich, white and christian conservatives.

Christmas time is many things to many different people. I remember, as I kid growing up in a agnostic, secular household me and my mom and grandma went christmas lights searching up in my hometown of Duluth. We had a map of the best place to look at lights and there was this one street where every house was lit except for one. My mom and grandma said they must be jewish and I asked why does that make a difference and they said because jewish people don't celebrate christmas. I felt sorry for them but then I came to learn that they celebrate hanukkah and they still got presents (remember I was still a kid then). And now I look back at that moment and wonder, if we were not christian or faithful for that matter, why did we celebrate christmas? Well, I think this time of year is different for a lot of people, yet almost identical. It's a time for families to get together. It is a time for giving. A time to reflect on the year and welcome the new one. A time for feast. A time for presents. A time for children getting that school break. It is a time for everybody to cherish this time of year. Nobody wants to take that away from anybody, but then again, nobody want to feel like this time of year is strictly for those who worship the same as them either.

Have a good time.

Hockey and a Head Cold

After years of not dropping the puck my cousin Joel and I hit the rink on Saturday. Of course when I woke up that morning I was feeling rather ill, but I went out anyways and now I feel even worse so tis will be a short post because my thinking is not very sharp. You would think my legs would be in great condition due to my daily commute but biking uses different muscles that skating I am rather sore today. Personally I dont think I did too bad seeing that I have not played hockey since I was 13. Of course we were playing with a bunch of kids and they took us to the shed. But it was fun anyways. Here is Joel.


I also have to throw in a couple of beer updates. St. Paul's own Flat Earth Brewery has a few of their beers in store. Element 115 and Belgian Style Pale Ale. Both are great but I prefer the Element. Of course due to my cold I wont be drinking either any time soon. So have one in my name.

The Commute

Here I am after my day. Lets see, it was about 8 degrees when I woke up, about 5 when I left for work. I bike about 3 miles to my Park and Ride, which is not so bad but they dont reallt clear off the shoulders on the road so I either ride on the white line or I trudge through the snow, which I dont really like to do being that it is rather compacted and a bit glazed. But once I get to the park and ride and put my bike on the bus rack that is in the front of the bus (I will take pictures of that soon). People always ask me if that is safe and so far, no problems (knock on wood). It's about a 15 minute drive to downtown Minneapolis where I get off there and about another 3 or 5 miles till I get to the U of M where I work. I used to get off alot closer to my job but since the bridge collapsed we have to go about 10 or so miles around, but it is still not too bad, I like to read and it is the perfect time to do so.

I usually dont bike when it snows. I find it to be too dangerous, especially in downtown Mpls, and the snow is too much of a pain to see through. Plus my bike, as you can see, is not much of a rugged truckster. My bike is a Redline 9.2.5 single speed and fixed gear (fliphub). I have big plans for it so I will keep you all updated on when I retool it.

So far I still go just about everyday. I missed all last week due to the daily snow dumps we got but other than that the only times I miss are when it pours or snows. This spring I plan to just bike straight to work, it is about 10 miles one way, I know I can do it, I just have to do it, know what I mean.

Old School Gift

Remember back in the day when you were a child and you made your presents from scratch. Usually the macaroni christmas tree or a dradle. Not that I am pining for the days of old but last spring I painted this and my mother in law really liked it.

Of course I like it very much (the camera doesnt do it justice) so I decided that, being the great son in law that I am, that I would paint her one quite like it. I went with a bigger canvas for this one, about 36 x 48, because she has a huge wall and I never painted a picture this big before, I plan to go bigger in the near future. I used colors that would match the room it will be placed in and went to town. First try I did not like, I tried to match the style of the one above but to my dismay it was not working out so I brought it back into the studio and tried a second time, this time, perfection.

Again, the photograph doesn't do it justice. I need to find a way to get better photos of my paintings. With these painting I use a mixture of acrylic paints, some glossy varnish, lots of water and some coarse pumice. I first lay a coat of white over the whole thing then I lay the pumice down in random spots. When that is dry I dump on the colors that are really diluted near the other colors so they blend psychedelically. The first draft of this had the green go up to the top left corner but the color of the green didn't work well for me and the placement of it seemed forced. It had the look of a land and sea so I brought it back in the studio and layed some more blue, a different shade of green and some brown in the middle to act as a separator, and give it kind of a beach look for the sea. When the colors are still wet I use a straw to move it around or I pick it up and let it flow off the canvas. The pumice gives it a texture that the colors form around and makes it look sort of mountainish Of course with abstract art like this it is almost a crap shoot and trying to get it the way you want doesn't always work. But I find that once I start painting the image forms in my mind with the paint, like it is not just me painting but the paint and canvas as well. Part of me wishes that it stayed in my home but after all I am a great son in law and I have to keep up the position.

Huckabee Hearts Quarantine

Ah yes, the Arkansas governor was confronted this weekend about comments he made way back when about AIDS, way back to 1992 where he said about AIDS "we need to take steps that would isolate the carriers of this plague." He also said that celebrities like Liz Taylor and Madonna pony up their millions to fund AIDS projects, I am assuming because celebrities push the homosexual agenda and force out children to have sex. Now of course he tries to spin this to clear himself of any wrong doing because he says at the time "There was still to much confusion about HIV transmission in those early years." Of course my favorite quote in this link is "My concern was for safety first and political correctness last." PC, that little thing that prevents movement conservatives from calling minorities, homosexuals and other people they don't like what they really want to, but I will get on that in another post. Too much confusion? In 1992? What's the confusion? I also find it frightening that in the same questionnaire he said about homosexuality that he felt it's an "aberrant, unnatural, and sinful lifestyle and we no know it can pose a dangerous health risk." A bit of a connection here? a few years before '92 lots of social conservatives felt that AIDS was strictly a gay disease, hence Ronald Reagans refusal to do anything about while he was in office and alot of social conservative politicians used, as they do today, homosexuality as  vote grabber. I suspect that what ole Huckabee was doing was using hardline tactics to do something about the homosexual agenda.

And I came across this today. An old article about Huckabbe from '98 while he was governor responding to a school shooting in a baptist church. Here he blends anti-government and religion into something he wants this country to be, a theocracy. 

This Weekends Beer

Friday night I usually have a tradition of getting a six pack and grilling a steak and I usually get something different. Last night I got a six pack of Victory Breweries Hop Wallop. And hoppy it is, I guess it has like 5 different hops and the ABV is 8.5% and this morning I could tell that it was, a bit foggy my head was. I am not sure of the IBU but I am guessing it is around 100.

I also today tried out Scaldis Noel. I Belgian seasonal ale, very dark but not too thick. Carmel malts with a hint of berries. ABV is 12%. I only got a 12 oz bottle of this but that was all I needed. There are 750's still at the store but for 15 dollars. It didnt have too much sediment which I kinda like, if anything for its appearance, it make me feel like I am drinking something organic. I will probably have to get a big bottle fothis before the season is over.

Also I had some Corsendock Winter Ale (sorry, cant find a picture online). Alright, along the lines of the Scaldis but cheaper. I would say boney up the extra 5 dollars for the Scaldis.

First Post

Well, I finally went and done it, started a blog. I t took me all day to decide what I should call it. I wasn't going to talk on one specific topic so I decided to simplify it as much as possible because I am, after all, a guy in Minnesota. This blog is going to reflect my everyday life. In this you will read about my days as a bike commuter, beer connoisseur, hockey fan, artist, leftist political junkie and best of all, father of one baby who currently is 3 months old. In Minnesota I live in Mounds View which is a suburb of the Twin Cities, close to Minneapolis but considered St. Paul so I guess I get the best of both cities. I work at the University of Minnesota running a print shop at the Coffman Union. I am happily married to a great wife who I have been married to for 5 years. I bike practically everyday except this week because it snowed almost everyday. I love beer but not your typical corporate swill but micro and Belgian stuff which I will be posting every so often what I get (you'll be getting a post tomorrow about the ones I drank this weekend). I have Center Ice and watch lots of hockey, of course I am a Wild and Gopher fan but I enjoy the sport and dont try to get too down on every other team. I paint abstract pictures and take photographs which I will be showing off (yeah, you'll get baby pics). And of course I am sure when things in the world happen you'll get my lefty rants. Some say I am a liberal but I would like to think I am a social progressive, or a blood red communist ;). And of course my darling little girl Delia. Still very young but the personality and smiles are coming out.

So there we have it. I hope you all enjoy it and frequent it. I will try to make my life more interesting than it actually is.