USA! USA! USA!

"Earlier this evening, President Obama called to inform me that American forces killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of the al Qaeda network that attacked America on September 11, 2001. I congratulated him and the men and women of our military and intelligence communities who devoted their lives to this mission. They have our everlasting gratitude. This momentous achievement marks a victory for America, for people who seek peace around the world, and for all those who lost loved ones on September 11, 2001. The fight against terror goes on, but tonight America has sent an unmistakable message: No matter how long it takes, justice will be done."
President George W. Bush
May 1, 2011

This Day in History

What happened on July 7, 2010?
What happened on January 8, 2010?

My Favorite Beers In Jacksonville

Four of my five favorite beers are all able to be found in Jacksonville, though it might take some effort.

First is Miller Lite. It is easily available at Gate, Publix, Daily's, Broudy's, Costco, etc.. Affordable. Union Made. Taste's Great. Less Filling! I think the only place you can't buy Miller Lite in Jacksonville is at my daughter's Day Care.

Second is Yuengling Lager (Light). Yes, I prefer the Light version to the original, but Yuengling is fairly easy to find. Same as above, pretty much where they sell beer in JAX, that store will have it in stock. Ever since America's Oldest Brewery SOLD OUT about a decade ago and went to a national distribution, it is easy to find here in JAX. I remember when I first moved to FL from PA and saw Yuengling and how "cool" that was to buy it, and now you see it everywhere.

Third is Iron City Light. Gotta drink Iron City, especially during the fall football season in Jacksonville. Now finding IC Light in Jacksonville is a bit more difficult. You can find Iron City at Fresh Market, and occasionally at Broudy's, but the only place I have found IC Light is Whole Foods. Yes, Whole Foods! Seems strange to me as well, but you can buy both Iron City and IC Light at Whole Foods. Didn't realize the hippies that shop there drink it!

Fourth is James Boag's, Tasmania's Finest. My favorite beer from one of my favorite cities, Melbourne, Victoria. Brings back memories from Down Under. I searched for it for years in JAX, until one day I found it at European Street. I was excited and every time I ate there, would pick up a six pack, until they stopped carrying it about a year ago. Then while at Outback earlier this year I discovered they now serve James Boag's much to my pleasure. Supposedly they have it at Total Wine, but I haven't been to that place in over year to check it out.

Fifth is New Belguim Fat Tire. Now this is one of my favortie beers from my trip to Vail, CO in 1998. Ever since then, I have been searching high and low for this favorite, waiting over 12 long years until finally I found it this summer! I have still yet to find it in JAX, but hope one day to come across it somewhere, somehow. By a minor miracle of God, while in Atlanta this summer, we ate at TacoMac late one night and Fat Tire was one of their over 225 beers on tap. So after a few pints, it was a well cherished drink, after waiting over 12 years since the last time I had a Fat Tire.

A Fair Trade Sundae???

So I treated myself to my yearly Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream treat at this year's US Open. Figured why not drop $7 of my hard earned money on overpriced ice cream. It is for a good cause, like a 450% mark-up and profit to a company who makes $500 million in yearly revenue from ice cream sales (now I know why when you can charge $7 and get away with it). So I walked to the Food Court and came across the Ben & Jerry's booth and felt like I was walking into an Obama campaign office decorated with an Andy Warhol art exhibit. I should have turned around right then as I knew this wouldn't be good, but the options for Ice Cream are limited on-site and since I already ate a chicken/green bean/mashed potato & chocolate chip cookie dinner and an 8 piece chicken wing plate for a mid-evening snack, I said to myself, why not finish the day with some ice cream! So while waiting in line (actually randomly standing in front of the counter b/c there was no actual line and no one actually "working" behind the counter would tell you where to stand or help you) I noticed a bunch of posters touting Fair Trade this and that and peace signs and bunch of other hippie, liberal proganda crap promoting B&J ice cream products. There were pictures of cows and fields. Sunny skies and green pastures. Good old Mother Earth and groups of people holding hands, singing Kumbaya and eating B&J ice cream. It made me feel good that the .04 cents that they use from my $7 Ice Cream purchase was going to projects to end global suffering, the war in Afghanistan and Sarah Palin's Presidental Bid in 2012. At the same time I thought to myself, I just want some damm Ice Cream, and I don't need it to be made of organic milk from vegan cows, that graze on pesticide free fields, milked by members of Code Pink who happen to be dairy farmers. So after careful consideration of the menu, I selected a Fair Trade Caramel Sundae. With a name like Fair Trade, I figured it must be good for something to save the planet. My $7 was not only getting me overpriced ice cream, but I was probably supporting some farmer in Columbia who saved enough money to buy a parcel of the rainforest and save it from being burned down, so I figured the extra cash will be worth it. Anyway after a 10 minute wait to make the damm thing (4 minutes which was for the highly skilled, trained and motivated B&J staff to put whip cream on my "Sundae"), I finally got my treat. Of course as expected, it tasted more like Ice than actual Ice Cream. Your in New York and everything is overpriced and tastes like crap (besides Mammas, Mings and Carmines). On top of that, when do you ever get to eat a "Sundae" that is scooped into a blender, mixed with milk and ice and then blended for 30 seconds and poured into a cup. Last time I went to McDonalds or Friendly's that was knowed as a Milkshake, not a Sundae. A Sundae is a few scoops of ice cream in a cup, with a few toppings and eaten with a spoon. Not blended and poured into a cup and sucked through a straw. My only thought why B&J rebranded a traditional milkshake into a "Sundae" was that Fox News must have done a report how GW and Rumsfield must have liked Milkshakes back in the days after 9-11 and BHO mistakenly read off his teleprompter one time how he liked Sundaes (when he was actually supposed to reference a Milkshake). I digress. But anyway, to enjoy Fair Trade it has a price, like taste, value, quantity and quality! But in the end, that didn't stop me as I slurpped my Sundae in a cup down knowing I did my part to save Mother Earth. I want to thank Ben and Jerry's for being such a great steward to the universe, without their efforts, I probably would of had a cheap air compressed ice cream cone, topped with some hot caramel and peanuts. That would have been bad, as it would have probably cost half the price, come from a diesel powered ice cream machine dispenser (like the kind they have at the Golden Corral or any other respectable buffet restaurant) and covered with "normal" peanuts, which accidentally could have contaminated the next person in the line order. Wouldn't want to have that couple from California get peanuts into their 17-year old child's (who still has a peanut allergy and only eats lactose-free, soy rice, organic frozen dessert) order. My only redeeming moment from this whole experience was after I was finished, I put my emply plastic cup and straw into a normal trash can and not the blue recycle bin. I am hoping that all the time, effort and money wasted by Ben and Jerry to tout their wonderful ways will go to waste, as my one cup will now be a small piece of a landfill that will fill acres of land and will be unusable over the next 250 years or the time it takes that plastic cup to fully combust into Mother Earth's crust. Until next year, I will do my part in not saving the planet by going to DQ, Steak-n-Shake or Carvel.

** To read more about Ben & Jerry's Fair Trade and other useless, idiotic, meaningless policies, read the following link at www.benjerry.com/activism (Personally, I would rather give myself paper cuts and pour lemon juice on them then waste my time reading this, but if you really want to learn more, than read the link)

Rankings

If there was an Offical Tennis Stats Rankings, Chalmers V. Smith would be ranked #789 in the world. Do you think that rank is worthy of his skills? Or would you take the over or the under on #789?

SCREW THAT

http://www.news4jax.com/video/24376428/index.html

I don't think I would "just eased through them and went fishin" in a john boat. I would be turning around getting the heck out of Dodge!

MISS ME YET?

George W. Bush, 43rd President of the United States.