Tonight's beer is a delicious Scottish Style ale IN A CAN! Its called Old Chub and is from the Oskar Blues Brewery in Colorado. Its not just any can, its a totally cool looking can. Yeah, I'll admit it - I bought it because the can looks cool, but its also got a totally cool name. (but the beer is excellent too).
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Tonight's Beer - Old Chub
Tonight's beer is a delicious Scottish Style ale IN A CAN! Its called Old Chub and is from the Oskar Blues Brewery in Colorado. Its not just any can, its a totally cool looking can. Yeah, I'll admit it - I bought it because the can looks cool, but its also got a totally cool name. (but the beer is excellent too).
Monday, March 19, 2007
Old Local TV Commercials
In my previous post, I ended up searching for "Dean's Home Furniture" to see if I could find some sort of link to the furniture chain's old TV commercials or tag line. Lo-and-behold, they don't exist anymore, and my quick search turned up almost nothing.
So, in my infinite wisdom, I scoured the web for some old TV commercials from my homeland, back in flyover country. All I can say is that I struck GOLD!
The jingle for this first commercial has been implanted in my brain since I first started watching cartoons on TV. To make things better, one of the funniest local TV hosts appears.
I'm pretty sure there's not many people that read this part-time blog of mine, but I will personally buy a beer for the first person who can name the comedian in this commercial. (I'll take his real name, or the name of the TV show he hosted. 2 Beers if you can get both).
Who says local commercials are crap?
Does anyone remember this?
P.S.
If you recognize that commercial, you'll probably remember this one, this one, this one, and this one too.
So, in my infinite wisdom, I scoured the web for some old TV commercials from my homeland, back in flyover country. All I can say is that I struck GOLD!
The jingle for this first commercial has been implanted in my brain since I first started watching cartoons on TV. To make things better, one of the funniest local TV hosts appears.
I'm pretty sure there's not many people that read this part-time blog of mine, but I will personally buy a beer for the first person who can name the comedian in this commercial. (I'll take his real name, or the name of the TV show he hosted. 2 Beers if you can get both).
Who says local commercials are crap?
Does anyone remember this?
P.S.
If you recognize that commercial, you'll probably remember this one, this one, this one, and this one too.
Tales From the T - Red Line Slow Zones - UPDATE
As soon I blog about slow zones on the Red Line, they seem to be corrected! Over the past week, I've noticed that the T has finally fixed the rail problems northbound between Harvard and Porter. It seems to me that the trains are back up to speed, instead of crawling along at 6 m.p.h. until halfway to Porter.
In addition, it seems the T has fixed the rails just outside of Harvard heading toward Central Square. For about the past 2 years the trains have crawled up the incline out of Harvard up to the crossover. Finally, though, we have been relieved. It probably saves a total of 30 seconds of commute time, but it feels so much faster.
One question remains though: Now that trains are back up to speed, will we see a return of the advertisement along the wall heading towards Central?
As they once pronounced on the ad for Dean's Home Furniture: "I Doubt It!"
[I found one Youtube link for Dean's Home Furniture, but its missing the good ole "I Doubt It!" audio. Apparently they were a shady, scamming furniture chain and closed shop in 2003. No wonder I haven't seen the commercial in years!]
In addition, it seems the T has fixed the rails just outside of Harvard heading toward Central Square. For about the past 2 years the trains have crawled up the incline out of Harvard up to the crossover. Finally, though, we have been relieved. It probably saves a total of 30 seconds of commute time, but it feels so much faster.
One question remains though: Now that trains are back up to speed, will we see a return of the advertisement along the wall heading towards Central?
As they once pronounced on the ad for Dean's Home Furniture: "I Doubt It!"
[I found one Youtube link for Dean's Home Furniture, but its missing the good ole "I Doubt It!" audio. Apparently they were a shady, scamming furniture chain and closed shop in 2003. No wonder I haven't seen the commercial in years!]
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Tales From the T - Red Line Slow Zones
This is neither a rant, nor a rave about the Red Line. For a lack of better terms , I'll call this an Info-Post.
If you're a regular rider of the Red Line between Harvard and Porter, you've probably noticed that the T crawls along the tracks at 6 m.p.h. just outside of Harvard northbound to Alewife. I think they may have found some fractures in the rail and have reduced the speed to prevent further damage. In the subway section between Harvard and Alewife, the rails are bound to concrete, instead of your typical wooden ties. As a result, its a bit more cumbersome to replace the rails than the rest of the Red Line.
On the other hand, there have been a number of slow zones lifted from the Red Line! Over in my neck of the woods, inbound trains are back to 50 mph between Central and Kendall, plus the Longfellow Bridge limit has been raised back to 40 mph. Plus, south siders can enjoy a 50 mph ride between JFK and North Quincy.
Many thanks to my fellow railroad pals posting on this thread over at railroad.net for the info.
If you're a regular rider of the Red Line between Harvard and Porter, you've probably noticed that the T crawls along the tracks at 6 m.p.h. just outside of Harvard northbound to Alewife. I think they may have found some fractures in the rail and have reduced the speed to prevent further damage. In the subway section between Harvard and Alewife, the rails are bound to concrete, instead of your typical wooden ties. As a result, its a bit more cumbersome to replace the rails than the rest of the Red Line.
On the other hand, there have been a number of slow zones lifted from the Red Line! Over in my neck of the woods, inbound trains are back to 50 mph between Central and Kendall, plus the Longfellow Bridge limit has been raised back to 40 mph. Plus, south siders can enjoy a 50 mph ride between JFK and North Quincy.
Many thanks to my fellow railroad pals posting on this thread over at railroad.net for the info.
Tales From the T - Porter Maintenance Spree
This morning, Thursday, it seemed as if the MBTA was on some sort of "surge" of its own - a maintenance spree at Porter Station. There were about 5 trucks parked all around the sidewalk and there were about 10-15 people working on random things. In my disbelief, I saw:
One question remains: will the camera actually be connected to anything? Or, in classic MBTA style, will it be purely for show?
I'll admit it - I'm convinced they're actually going to use it and monitor it. In the past few weeks, thanks to the security cameras, we've discovered a former T employee cashing in tokens for CharlieTickets and we've had suspects in the Back Bay Station stabbings apprehended.
Wow. That's 2 recent posts from me praising the T. I feel great!
- 2 escalators actively being repaired
- 4 fare gates actively being cleaned and repaired
- Installation of a new 360 degree security camera
One question remains: will the camera actually be connected to anything? Or, in classic MBTA style, will it be purely for show?
I'll admit it - I'm convinced they're actually going to use it and monitor it. In the past few weeks, thanks to the security cameras, we've discovered a former T employee cashing in tokens for CharlieTickets and we've had suspects in the Back Bay Station stabbings apprehended.
Wow. That's 2 recent posts from me praising the T. I feel great!
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Crime in Porter Square
One of my co-workers who lives in Porter Square let me know today that someone broke into his apartment last night. Apparently there was a "rash of break-ins" yesterday on the Cambridge side of the commuter rail tracks. So be on the lookout - and LOCK YOUR DOORS.
Just hearing that has kinda put me on edge all day today. Its one of those events that I'm constantly worried about. I've always thought that the Porter area is generally pretty safe. One of the reasons I moved from Boston over to Porter Square was the crime rate in Boston steadily rose over the 7 years I lived there.
So, after a bit of searching today, I found some links to the Cambridge and Somerville Police Logs.
This is just a reminder for me not to fall into a false sense of security. Make sure valuables are hidden and you've got renter's insurance.
Anyways, I need a beer now.... Well whaddya know - its Wednesday - and Wednesdays are for drinkin' at the People's. How convenient.
Just hearing that has kinda put me on edge all day today. Its one of those events that I'm constantly worried about. I've always thought that the Porter area is generally pretty safe. One of the reasons I moved from Boston over to Porter Square was the crime rate in Boston steadily rose over the 7 years I lived there.
So, after a bit of searching today, I found some links to the Cambridge and Somerville Police Logs.
- Cambridge: http://www.townonline.com/cambridge/police_and_fire_log
- Somerville: http://www.townonline.com/somerville/police_and_fire_log
This is just a reminder for me not to fall into a false sense of security. Make sure valuables are hidden and you've got renter's insurance.
Anyways, I need a beer now.... Well whaddya know - its Wednesday - and Wednesdays are for drinkin' at the People's. How convenient.
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Jackhammer
Ugh! Jackhammering going on outside here. I can't see it - but I can sure hear it! Thanks Somerville or Cambridge - I can't tell who's doing it!
Finally Kicking the Cold?
Thank goodness my company has VPN and allows its employees to work from home. I was still hit hard by my cold this morning - but I was suffering from cabin fever and really wanted to go into work. However, I stepped outside, and thought better of myself. I decided to stay in the warmth of my apartment, drink some more OJ and tea, and work from home. I felt awful for not going into the office - we're hitting crunch time on our project. But, its really best I didn't go in -- there's no reason for me to get more people sick. This cold has been going around the office for the past week, and we had a few more people drop off today too.
So, after all my verbosity above, my point is that I'm having a few more glasses of my Bushmill's tonight. Sure, I'm getting a little hammered, but I feel 10 times better than I did this morning, and 100 times better than I did yesterday.
I'm convinced that the best way to beat a cold is to get some old-fashioned rest, and some glasses of some old-fashioned whiskey. Lemme tell ya, it does the trick.
So, after all my verbosity above, my point is that I'm having a few more glasses of my Bushmill's tonight. Sure, I'm getting a little hammered, but I feel 10 times better than I did this morning, and 100 times better than I did yesterday.
I'm convinced that the best way to beat a cold is to get some old-fashioned rest, and some glasses of some old-fashioned whiskey. Lemme tell ya, it does the trick.
Speaking of the People's...
... did you know that they were closed last Tuesday for the filming of a movie? How awesome is that!
Seriously - there's a new movie in the works called 21. Its the story of one of the MIT Blackjack teams that took Vegas for millions of dollars.
How cool is it that my favorite bar will be front-and-center in a movie?!?!
I rolled by the People's after work on the day of the filming, but I think they were pretty much finished. There were tons of trucks around and wired running all over the place, plus some random tents set up in the driveway next door and the adjacent apartment building. I was kinda hoping that they'd pick one of their regular patrons to be an extra (I'm a pro at hanging out in a bar drinking beer). But hey, no dice. They've got professional extras for that stuff.
The good thing is that they didn't change anything at all in the bar, except for one small thing: the digital clock has been replaced with a neon red hammer and sickle clock. I was worried that the movie set people would have screwed everything up. Thank goodness, its still the same old People's.
Sigh of relief.
Seriously - there's a new movie in the works called 21. Its the story of one of the MIT Blackjack teams that took Vegas for millions of dollars.
How cool is it that my favorite bar will be front-and-center in a movie?!?!
I rolled by the People's after work on the day of the filming, but I think they were pretty much finished. There were tons of trucks around and wired running all over the place, plus some random tents set up in the driveway next door and the adjacent apartment building. I was kinda hoping that they'd pick one of their regular patrons to be an extra (I'm a pro at hanging out in a bar drinking beer). But hey, no dice. They've got professional extras for that stuff.
The good thing is that they didn't change anything at all in the bar, except for one small thing: the digital clock has been replaced with a neon red hammer and sickle clock. I was worried that the movie set people would have screwed everything up. Thank goodness, its still the same old People's.
Sigh of relief.
Tales From the T
Mr. Robo-Voice Made My Day
Last Friday I took the T from Kendall one stop over to Central to meet up over at my favorite watering hole - The People's Republik. Unfortunately, when I arrived at Kendall, I had a feeling that this could be a long ride - there were already tons of people waiting on the platform. There were no robo-voice delay announcements, so I figured it was a typical slow train.
After waiting for about 15 minutes and watching 3 trains go by in the other direction, I finally heard Mr. Robo-Voice begin to announce "Attention Passengers: The... next red line train to Alewife..." So, I eagerly stood up and squeezed toward the platform edge.
But then, Mr. Robo-Voice didn't complete his sentence with his usual "...is now arriving." Instead, he actually said something rather astonishing - "...will not stop. Please stand behind the yellow line." I was shocked! Mr. All-Knowing-Robo-Voice actually knew the next train was expressed to Harvard and wouldn't stop at Kendall. Sure enough, the next train was jam-packed and meandered through the station without stopping. And, to my delight, the operator didn't blare his horn once on his trip through the station!
All my disgust for the T delaying my trip to the bar vanished. Thanks Mr. Robo-Voice - you made my day. I've never been so pleased to be delayed be the T.
Last Friday I took the T from Kendall one stop over to Central to meet up over at my favorite watering hole - The People's Republik. Unfortunately, when I arrived at Kendall, I had a feeling that this could be a long ride - there were already tons of people waiting on the platform. There were no robo-voice delay announcements, so I figured it was a typical slow train.
After waiting for about 15 minutes and watching 3 trains go by in the other direction, I finally heard Mr. Robo-Voice begin to announce "Attention Passengers: The... next red line train to Alewife..." So, I eagerly stood up and squeezed toward the platform edge.
But then, Mr. Robo-Voice didn't complete his sentence with his usual "...is now arriving." Instead, he actually said something rather astonishing - "...will not stop. Please stand behind the yellow line." I was shocked! Mr. All-Knowing-Robo-Voice actually knew the next train was expressed to Harvard and wouldn't stop at Kendall. Sure enough, the next train was jam-packed and meandered through the station without stopping. And, to my delight, the operator didn't blare his horn once on his trip through the station!
All my disgust for the T delaying my trip to the bar vanished. Thanks Mr. Robo-Voice - you made my day. I've never been so pleased to be delayed be the T.
Monday, March 5, 2007
Wicked Cold
No, I'm not complaining about the weather - that's way too easy. (Granted, it is wicked windy and cold outside). I'm annoyed that I've caught a wicked cold. It hit me pretty bad on Saturday, and I was pretty much out of commission on Sunday, so I tried to go into work this morning. What a mistake.
I was there for about an hour and promptly headed back home. I think I just had some cabin fever and needed to get out of my apartment, and be around some REAL people.
My office is completely open, so if one person gets a cold, everyone's getting it. Hence, I got it too. I did work from home this afternoon, so I'm finally feeling a little better. I've had a gallon of OJ today and about 1/2 bag of cough drops. But, now I'm onto my final cure-all: a few glasses of Bushmill's Irish Whiskey. Sometimes a good glass (or 2 or 3) of whiskey will kick the cold. We'll find out tomorrow! Cheers!
I was there for about an hour and promptly headed back home. I think I just had some cabin fever and needed to get out of my apartment, and be around some REAL people.
My office is completely open, so if one person gets a cold, everyone's getting it. Hence, I got it too. I did work from home this afternoon, so I'm finally feeling a little better. I've had a gallon of OJ today and about 1/2 bag of cough drops. But, now I'm onto my final cure-all: a few glasses of Bushmill's Irish Whiskey. Sometimes a good glass (or 2 or 3) of whiskey will kick the cold. We'll find out tomorrow! Cheers!
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