Brew fans rejoice!!

Portland and certain other Oregon cities (such as Hood River and Bend) are well-known for their beer. It is often said that Portland is the home of the microbrew revolution in the United States. Some illustrate Portlanders' interest in the beverage by an offer made in 1888, when local brewer Henry Weinhard volunteered to pump beer from his brewery into the newly dedicated Skidmore Fountain. However, the renown for quality beer dates to the 1980s, when state law was changed to allow consumption of beer on brewery premises. In short order, microbreweries and brewpubs began to pop up all over the city. Their growth was supported by the abundance of local ingredients, including two-row barley, over a dozen varieties of hops, and the pure water from Bull Run and other drainage basins of nearby Mount Hood.
Today, with 33 breweries within the city limits, Portland is home to more breweries than any other city in the world. The McMenamin brothers alone have over thirty brewpubs, distilleries and wineries scattered throughout the metropolitan area, not including the outlining areas, several in renovated theaters and other old buildings otherwise destined for demolition. Other notable Portland brewers include Widmer Brothers, Bridgeport Brewing Company and the MacTarnahan's Brewing Company. In 1999, author Michael "Beerhunter" Jackson called Portland a candidate for the beer capital of the world because the city boasted more breweries than Cologne, Germany. A popular nickname for the city in beer appreciation circles is "Beervana."
Portland hosts a number of festivals throughout the year in celebration of beer, including the Oregon Brewers Festival. Held each July, it is the largest gathering of independent craft brewers in North America. Other major beer festivals throughout the calendar year are: in April Spring Beer and Wine Festival, in July Portland International Beerfest and in December Holiday Ale Festival.

See ya!!

The other day Emma and I noticed a very large yellow truck parked next door to us at our neighbor’s house. We joked that maybe they were moving and how nice it would be that they would move out. The landlord, Kermit King, mentioned that he was thinking about selling so that really sparked our hopes. Keep in mind this is the family with the condom throwing little hooligans! We got very excited and so I decided to peek around a bit. Turns out lots of empty boxes were stacked outside in the backyard but the moving truck was gone so my hopes had faded until yesterday. Sure enough when we left the house to go out to eat last night, the truck was back and they were moving all there stuff up the ramp and in the truck. WOOOHOOO!!! Maybe we will get some cool neighbors. Maybe they will fix up the place and make it look nicer and less run down. But then again they were really quiet at times and kept to themselves. Here’s hoping for the best!!!

Blazing HOT!!!

Well yesterday was a record day for Portland. It got up to 101 but felt like 110 without AC in the house. Luckily it wasn't actually that hot in the house but it sure felt like it. We decided to go out to dinner since cooking would have heated it up more and we wanted at least an hour or so of AC to cool off. Turns out eating in Portland and trying to find a place that actually has AC was a bit harder then we thought. We stopped by a few places to eat but with no cool air to be found we continued on. We ended up at the Laughing Planet (http://www.portlandblog.com/05-09/laughing-planet.html) on N Mississippi. The place was pretty cool and the food was cheap and yummy. They serve lots of healthy food and have a nice selection of local brews.

Just before bed I decided to hook up the window air conditioner that come with the house in our bedroom. I had to brace it in the window with the window itself, a towel, and a piece of wood to prop it up. Turns out it really works well. The room really cooled off well and we all slept nicely. Of course its not a permanent thing so it has to be taken down each day but it's going to be much cooler today and the rest of the week and will most likely not need it.

Oregon State won the "College World Series" last night in Omaha against North Carolina (3-2). Didn't watch it but sounds like it was a good game. Go Beavs!!

It's OVER!!!

The trial has finally come to an end and I would have to say that it was a nice change to do something other then work but it was almost like a second job. It really consumes you. After 3 days of trying to decide on a sentence we came to a decision. Don't really want to mention it on this site but you can ask me directly if you like. Just happy it's over and can get back to my normal life.

So last weekend we went to a great ballgame in Seattle. Mariners played the Giants and won. The game was exciting and had lots of hits and home runs. The weather was perfect and was really relaxing. Emma and I went and met up with Kari and Clarissa for dinner afterwards. It was nice to catch up on family stuff and to hang out for the short time that we had.

The next day we of course went to Ikea to return some shelves we bought in September of last year and took the credit to buy some more goodies. Emma picked up lots of containers and other fun stuff for the kitchen. We also bought all the candles we needed for a large candle holder that we bought for our bedroom. I will have to take a picture to show what it looks like and how it looks in our room.

That's all for now. No more bad images and scary stories to listen to!! Why are people so nutty!!!!!

Court Drama

Not sure how really to describe some of the feelings that I was feeling yesterday in court when the verdict was read. We all came to a guilty verdict and which was easy to give taken into account all the facts but it was the moment when we all walked back in to the courtroom that really set the mood. I was really fine and so was everyone else when they came to get us and bring us in but once I sat down in the spot I had spent for the past 3 weeks, my heart started to pound. I could almost hear it myself. The judge went over all the counts and read each one off carefully and that was it. It was over. The defendant didn't say anything or make any quick movements even though there were 3 extra officers in the court for the reading. He didn't even look up at all. We all thought it was over but then we got the rest of our instructions that the sentencing section was about to begin. This meant 2 more days of testimony and the one more time deciding the fate of the defendant. I am not sure what it will entail but we will soon find out.

Update issues

Not sure why but the Blogger website has been having problems so I couldn't update it recently. I wanted to post a quick note that my friend Todd has created a blog of his own. The link is to the right but you can also go here http://toddndave.blogspot.com I grew up with Todd and he is now far far away but we try and keep in touch when we get a moment. But of course I am bad about calling people a times and besides that I work for a living talking on the phone so it can be hard to speak at any length on the phone.

Oh and we managed to pull all the grass out in the front yard. Was much harder then we thought and I would not recommend doing it by hand. We also removed the front walkway that went from the driveway to the front door. We plan on putting in one that goes to the road instead. We will see.

Our guest Pauly and Jury Duty

So this week and next we have a guest in our home. His name is Pauly and his parents Noah and Jen are getting married tomorrow so we are watching him while they are gone. Puma and Pauly really like to play and at first would pick on each other but now they are hanging out like old pals. Of course sleeping on the bed was interesting at first since they both wanted to be as close as they could to Emma and I but they are now sleeping together and sharing the space.

This week I have been in Jury Duty which isn't all that fun but I do get paid for it so that works out. I can't say what it's for but it's supposed to last for 3 weeks. Some details of the case are a bit gritty so to speak but it's not as bad as I thought. It's actually pretty interesting to see the entire process.