12/30/13

Carnival of Journalism: Letter to My Younger Self



David Cohn wrote us November 12 to let us know that Shaminder Dulai would be  December's host, after the revived carnival covered the topic of modernizing college journalism organizations in November.  This months prompt was to write a letter to your younger self.

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Dear Beth,

Don't worry.  Things will work out.

You'll do fine with your career.  You won't always seem to have a plan, but if you pursue what engages you, your resume will make sense and if someone seems like they wouldn't want to hire you if you were truly yourself, you wouldn't want to work there anyway.  Your gift will be the abilities to connect the small daily details to a larger picture with the patience to pursue it and to entice folks to work with you, not for you. That's because you are neither a follower nor a leader n the conventional sense.  If your family fear for your path or others belittle it, lovingly ignore them.

You will be able to make a home anywhere.  You'll be able to be frugal with style.  You'll love to travel, even solo.  But it's worth it to have a base of operations, be it a tiny house or a modest shared apartment with someone companionable.

I only found this out lately, when I moved earlier this month into a new apartment in downtown Blacksburg. I feel at home for the first time in years.  (The apartment is one of 5 or six owned by a local man--not a real estate conglomerate--in an older building.  It has wood floors and interesting details:  a built in bookcase in the living room and a Spanish arch leading into tiny kitchen that features  built-in spice shelves, plenty of cabinets and a wall of windows and windowed-door out onto a small landing which will be fun for eating out come warmer weather.  It's around the corner from the natural foods grocery and a few blocks from the college library and our not-for-profit movie theater and concert venue.)

The former occupant left me the most comfortable queen size bed in a room that fills with light each morning. I've bought my first orchid--a rescue from Kroger's manager's special section. The remaining roommate is a pleasure to be around.  The last time I lived with someone whose company I enjoyed, it was a boyfriend who traveled for work and wanted no more than he could load into his Ford Ranger truck.

That boyfriend and I spent our last four years together in a furnished apartment in a problematic neighborhood in Roanoke.  I wanted to buy a bargain of a house next to my friends in Gainsboro or at least move to an unfurnished apartment and buy furniture--I knew I could find something cheap secondhand and told him we could always give it away or donate it back to the Habitat Home Store or the Thrift Shop.

He vetoed all this and eventually moved on.  I used to miss him for little things, like the pleasure of buying him a bag of pepper and sea salt kettle chips I knew he'd enjoy.  Ironically he now has bought a house near where I took him to see the Baby O's play for their fortieth season in Bluefield before the team moved 13 years later to Sarasota. I like to think I got him started on his way to this domestic bliss by introducing him to an 8" Lodge cast iron skillet as an alternative to Teflon and a Pyrex covered casserole instead of those disposable aluminum foil baking pans.  (He did buy me a Vitamix blender which I still have)

All these years later, I've bought that second-hand furniture from the YMCA Thrift Shop (a place with some great finds that makes TJ Maxx prices look like Macy's.).  It panicked me when the apartment before this one didn't work out and I had to move.  But you know what? I found the much better place where I live now and two friends helped me move the lilac-upholstered armchair, the two vaguely art-nouveau dining room chairs, the two oak desk chairs, the full-sized file cabinet, the white student desk with the delft china knobs, the Galloping Gourmet convection roaster and the twin size bed.

One of those friends is invited to dinner with her husband as soon as they get back from the holiday trip to visit family.  She already gave me a duck to keep in the freezer to roast for them (they run a local CSA farm and I think she might have bartered it for  the chickens that they raise.)

I've got goat sausage and stew meat I bought from another local farmer to feed the other friend when he gets back from his travels out west.  He's got lots of tools and he's promised to help me modify the twin bed frame, so it can be a trundle day bed and we put up company in style.

The little desk fits perfectly in the kitchen as a workspace with a third of the surface dedicated as a stand for my roommate's microwave.  The fridge is filled with homemade soups and various cheeses and the freezer--besides that duck and goat--is filled with frozen fruit to make sorbet and grains to grind to flour in the Vitamix.

And I even found a comfy upholstered loveseat more to scale with the living room when I was in Roanoke AND a kind stranger from the town next to mine who offered to deliver it in his van if I would ferry his bicycle in my station wagon. And, yes, he liked the idea of coming over for dinner with his wife after the holidays are done.

In some ways you'll be there with us, too.

Love,
Beth






12/19/13

Beer Tasting in Blacksburg: Vintage Cellar, December 20, 3 - 7 p.m.

Looking forward to the beer tasting!
 
 

Photo from Patrick's blog post of 11/16/13  (Alberta, Canada)

De Ranke Père Noël
11.2oz

Père Noël is a Christmas ale, though very different from many other Christmas ales you might know. While most Christmas ales are rich & sweet, this one is amber-coloured, 7% vol. Alc. strong and has a pleasant hop bitterness. The complex taste is completed with the addition of liquorice. In the recipe we can also find pale malt, Munich malt, Caramel malt, Brewers Gold hops and Hallertau hops.

7% ABV


Photo from review at RateBeer.com

Gouden Carolus Noël
11.2oz
4 pack
750ml

Gouden Carolus Noel is a strong, dark ruby red beer with character and contains an alcohol percentage of 10.5 % VOL. Brewed in August, the beer rests a few months to reach an optimal balance. Three kinds of hops and six different kinds of herbs and spices define the rich taste of this Christmas beer. World-class!

10 % ABV

Perennial Artisan Ales Fête de Noël
750ml

Our inspiration for this beer was the bread served during Christmas time in West Flanders called Volaeren. This beer uses a Belgian dark strong ale recipe and adds fresh orange zest and raisins as well as a hint of fresh rosemary. It has a complex dark fruit and chocolate character from the dark Belgian candi syrup and a rummy note from Turbinado sugar. We think the fruit and herb additions will make it a great fit for the holidays.

10 % ABV

Scaldis Noël
11.2oz
750ml
Scaldis de Noël was born in 1991 to satisfy consumers seeking a hearty beer for the Christmas and New Year celebrations. A product made exclusively from malt, hops, candy sugar and water, Scaldis de Noël is a high fermentation, filtered beer and has an alcohol volume of 12%. The substantial use of caramel malt gives it a coppery red colour and an exceptional roundness. Particularly carefully studied hopping gives Scaldis de Noël a consistent, fruity flavour with a delicately hopped aroma. A limited edition beverage, Scaldis de Noël is an indispensable reference among the end-of-year beers.

12 % ABV

12/1/13

Lindsay Lou and the Flatbellys at Monkey House 12/1

Tour poster (photo by Michael Erlewine) of  Lindsay Lou and the Flatbellys: (l to r) Mark Lavengood on resonator guitar and dobro, Joshua Rilko on mandolin, Lindsay Lou Rilko on banjo and guitar, Keith Billik on banjo, and Spencer Cain on bass.

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I'm looking forward to the Monkey House concert tonight at Robyn and Jim Dubinsky's: Michigan blue grass band Lindsay Lou and the Flatbellys from 6 to 8:30 preceded by a potluck dinner at 5.  It's sold out, but you can email Jim about the waiting list for any last minute cancellations at rhetoric73@yahoo.com.

Lindsay Lou has a bluesier voice than what you might be expecting, which gives her band a unique sound.  Here are a couple of samples.  First a video of  "The Fix" (recorded July 29, 2013 at Bending Sickle Farm in Stockbridge, MI by John Hanson) adds Patrick M'Gonigle on fiddle.



And from the latest (second) album, Release Your Shrouds, here's a video of the eleventh cut, "Lemon Squeezy" recorded at WYCE Radio, 



The entire playlist is as follows:

1. Hat's Off
2. My Side Of The Mountain
3. Tied Down to You
4. Leaves And Pods
5. Pass Me The Whiskey
6. Querida Tierra
7. The Leaves Are Changin'
8. Wonderful You Are
9. Barbarossa
10. The Power
11. Lemon Squeezy
12. All Day

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Upcoming concerts at Monkey House include:

April 5, 2014:  Kelley McCrae
June 6, 2013:   Lipbone Redding

UPDATE:  What a show!  Actually Salem musician P. J. Brown was on bass and Keith Billik was MIA.  Here's P.J. playing Lemon Squeezy, but on piano:


P.J. George