Wine me Dine me

We went out wine tasting today.  There's a decent chance this will be the last time we go out wine tasting this year.  Fortunately, we went to a couple places we hadn't been for a while, but we also went to one of my favorites - Abassador Wines of Washington. 

I've found that I like earthy wines - dark fruits, some tobacco or leather, maybe even some licorice or cigar smoke.  I don't like the really tannic, bold reds that will smack your jaw and leave you withing you had something else.  Heck, even for steaks, I prefer a good merlot to a cab, unless it's a very marbled ribeye. 

At any rate, Ambassador has easily my favorite grenache in the state.  I do recommend it.  Tasty, approachable, not too overt.  It's exactly what I look for in a red. 

Thus ends my free advertising for Ambassador Wines of Washington.

Goodbye Father Mulcahy

I can't say that he was my favorite character on MASH, but I did enjoy his contribution to the movie.  Rene Aubernonois was a very talented actor.  He will be missed.

Now the world is without either Father Mulcahy.  That's a shame.

Churrascarias

We have been to all of the Brazilian steak houses in the Puget Sound area now, and two in the greater Houston area.  In my experience, it's no argument that Fogo de Chao in Houston is the runaway leader in overall quality and experience.  Fogo in Seattle (well, Bellevue) is a close second.  It just doesn't quite have the same ambiance.  If you find yourself in Pierce County, and don't fancy a drive up to Seattle, Texas de Brazil is a fine alternative.  Those are the ones I'd primarily recommend.  If you want something a little less "chain," then Novilho's is an option, though their lamb chop tasted fishy (like, actual fish).  Grill from Ipanema had the best name, but the quality has dropped each time we've gone, which is a little disappointing. 

Regardless, I am a fan of all you can eat steak places.  I do recommend, unless you're a vegan.

Christmas Time is Here

And I really have done nothing.  I haven't put up the tree, I haven't started shopping, I don't even know what anybody wants. 

Bah.  Humbug. 

Rivalry Week

Michigan State's biggest game of the year is against Michigan, and they didn't show up.  But, I grew up rooting for the Maize and Blue, and frankly, I still like watching them beat the Buckeyes.

Yesterday, I went to the Apple Cup with a friend of mine from work.  The Huskies definitely had a disappointing year, but it was a fun game.  I do like Husky Stadium.

Go Blue!

Happy Thanksgiving

Yesterday I tried apple pie with cheddar cheese on top for the first time ever.  The cheese was scarcely noticeable, but not bad. 

Just, FYI.

Two Posts in One Day?!

But I think it's interesting, that anytime anybody right now is critical of the current President, he or she is dubbed a "never trumper," even when that individual is an advisor to the current Vice President.  This embarrassment of a President needs to go.

Read in the Comment Section of Balloon Juice

And, so, so apparently accurate:

Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition …There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect.

Busy Week in DC

I've been busy with my Master's Program, so I haven't been writing as much, but I have definitely been paying attention to he hearings on impeachment, the Roger Stone conviction, and the President's pardons of three soldiers who have no business being pardoned. 

I can't believe that this is where we have progressed as a country, that one party is so desperate to hold power that they would abandon their claimed sets of principles to prop up a guy who is so obviously, painfully inept at the job and who so clearly is more interested in advancing his own interests than those of the country.  It's shameful, and I don't understand how any of their personal sets of ethics allow for them to do so.

Freaking Spartans

That is all.

Oh Dear Lord, No

The NFL should not move a team to London.  This is a bad, bad idea.  I know that you want to increase your international footstep, but if we have seen anything, it's that Europe is disiniterested in American-style football. 

Oh, and Gordon Sondland had his memory jogged by other testimony that he read.  He now confirms that there was a quid pro quo.  This, of course, is a surprise to nobody who has paid any attention to the evidence available to the public, but it's an important moment because it undercuts the President's and the Republican's arguments that there was none. 

It'll be interesting to see the spin for the rest of the week on this.

Home Brew

It turned out!  It's supposed to be an Irish Red, but I used the wrong yeast, so it's more like a Belgian amber.  i'd show pictures, but I haven't loaded any onto my laptop. 

In other news, Huskies are having an off year. 

And the Gordon Ramsey AT&T commercial is the best of the year ("Use the cocktail stick!")

Fair does not necessarily mean balanced

One of the objections I've heard about the impeachment inquiry is that it's not been fair to the President.  This is bull, of course, but it's what the Republican party has to hang its hat on.  The Republican party set the rules by which the House has been operating (but they hope you don't recognize that).  The Republican party has also complained about the vote establishing the more public hearings, assailing them as partisan (because they didn't vote in favor of them in bloc). 

Here's the thing - there are Republicans on the committees hearing testimony.  These congresspeople are entitled to call witnesses.  They haven't, either because they elect not to, or because they cannot come up with witnesses who will testify under penalty of perjury that the President did nothing wrong/impeachable. 

This is the key.  The Republicans are complaining that the inquiry and the hearings are unfair, but this is a false statement.  The hearings are not unfair.  They are unbalanced.  They are not unbalanced because of anything the Democrats have done, rather they are unbalanced because the Republicans don't have a defensible position, which is why they don't bitch about the substance, instead they gripe about the process - quite the tell.

Perhaps, instead of bitching about the president the Republican candidates in the 2016 election complained was unqualified and untrustworthy not getting a fair shake, maybe they should not support a mendacious Oval Office occupant's actions. 

I Wish I had the Patience and the Time

To demonstrate the fallacy of the President's position on virtually everything. 

There was no witch hunt.  There was an investigation into whether the Russians interfered in the U.S. Election to aid one party over another.  The evidence collected in this investigation demonstrated that there was a coordinated effort by the Russians to influence the U.S. Election.  There is considerable evidence that the President is either compromised by the Russian head of state or is at best a useful idiot.  No other President would have a closed door meeting with an adversarial nation's leader with no translator or record (and, the opposing part absolutely does, which means we can only rely on what they provide).  The President has surrounded himself with toadies and yes men.  His "independent" Attorney General operates as an arm of the President.  He seems to operate based on what Fox News morning hosts say, which means a cable channel is essentially responsible for foreign and domestic policy. 

The impeachment inquiry is an inquiry.  It is the collecting of evidence, information, that can demonstrate whether Congress should continue with a formal impeachment, at which time evidence will be made and the President has an opportunity to defend/represent himself. 

Asking for a favor from a foreign government (investigating a political rival) and conditioning Congressionally-approved defense funding release on the agreement to do so (and to go on CNN to announce the investigation) is a tit-for-tat, a quid-pro-quo.  It is immaterial whether the President says the words "quid pro quo." 

The Republicans set the rules about the rules under which Schiff is operating in 2015.  There is nothing untoward. 

This man is an embarrassment. 

There is no Bottom

I can't believe I find myself in a world where members of my Nation's government determines that it's necessary to storm the impeachment hearings of the President.  It's quite the tell - if there was no evidence, the Republicans in the hearings would be leaking that information all over the place.  That we aren't hearing it, combined with Matt Gaetz's clown show, I think it's fair to say that the evidence being collected is pretty damning. 

Stupid Football

This was an absolutely lousy weekend for football in my world.  First, Florida benefitted from some SEC Refs knowing it can't let the middling schools in the conference win twice in a row and got some beneficial calls en route to an inexplicable win over SC (not that I'm a gamecocks fan, but it drives me batty that Florida gets as much positive press as it does).  Then, the Huskies faded against the Ducks, and Michigan found themselves behind three scores early against the Nittany Lions and weren't able to recover.  Fortunately, Michigan State was on a bye week, so they didn't lose. 
Today, Detroit found a way to lose to Minnesota, which is awful for a Lions fan, but great for my novel idea (I'll hopefully actually write it at some point).  Houston found a way to lose at Indianapolis again, despite likely being the best team in the AFC south, they are looking up at the Colts, and finally, Seattle gave up two touchdowns off turnovers in an ugly loss to the Ravens. 

At least the Astros made it back to the World Series.  If it can't be the Tigers, may as well be Houston. 

Stupid Watergate

I just can't believe this country has this administration.  I particularly can't believe how wedded to their choice so many Americans are that they choose to dig in to their choice rather than see the absolute train wreck of corruption, self dealing and ignorance that comes from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. 

We are supposed to be better than this. 

And When I Die

I just hope that my last thought is one of peace, contentment, and love. 

Got propane

So, I fired up the Weber and grilled hamburgers tonight. 

I grew up in the PNW for the most part, so growing up, we thought barbecue was a verb that meant "to cook outside."  It wasn't until I moved to Texas in the AF that I learned the truth - barbeque is a noun.  It's something you have.  Slow cooked, over low heat, usually with some smoke to add extra flavor.  In Texas, brisket is king, but I've had some outstanding turkey breast, ribs, ham, you name it. 

At any rate, I've moved back up north, and I've had to explain to several folks the difference between  northern barbecue and "real" barbecue.  There are a couple good places up here, from what I've heard, yet I sadly have not hit any of them yet. 

Perhaps I need to start talking wine again.

It's Been One Week

Since unplugging from Facebook.  I don't miss it.  There are things I miss, but I find that I'm not vacation-jealous, and I'm not nearly as annoyed as I've been recently (I'm still rather annoyed, but that's my default setting). 

I also miss being able to keep up with my friends - FB was really our method of planning anything, and it's basically been radio silence since then. 

And, as you've no doubt (as if anybody reads this), I've been much more active on blogger.  Maybe the only real live person still on blogger...