Ode to Kettlehouse

I am a girl who enjoys good beer. In fact, I try to limit myself to only drinking good beer. If beer is mediocre, I don't waste my time. When I moved to Madison, Spotted Cow and the Great Dane rocked my world (they still do). That being said, in Montana, in my very hometown, I discovered the best brewery EVER.

I now lament the fact that I lived in Missoula for years and never frequented the Kettlehouse Brewery. During our time in Missoula, Pete and I were there many times. It is small and totally unpretentious. Unlike many breweries, it is a place that real locals go to hang out and throw back a few pints. When you settle up for those pints, you'll discover that Kettlehouse uses the pint honor system and they will ask you how many you had. The line to fill up growlers in the evenings is insane, and it was packed like the weekend on a Wednesday night. All their seating is clearly from thrift stores, and they even have some sweet bikes hanging from the ceiling (something for Pete to look at).

All that aside, I must say that their beer is exquisite. From their Hellgate Honey Hefe to Cold Smoke Scotch Ale to their Al Pils, all of their brews are exceptional. There is no weak link in their lineup that I could detect, and believe me, I investigated. Even cooler, their beer is only sold in stores in cans like Surly does out of the Twin Cities. You can't get their stuff outside of Missoula, so I will be requesting shipments anytime my parents head to the midwest.

Kettlehouse, I love you. Cold Smoke is one of the finest beers I've ever had.

Back in Black

Alright, not in black so much as Minneapolis. Peter and I have returned from our two week Montana getaway. It was glorious. I would post pictures, but Peter is currently holding them hostage. It was so nice to see my Mom and Dad and Huckie and Tom. It was good to be back in Missoula. I enjoyed some of the things that I missed and even discovered something I didn't appreciate when I was there. I'll post about that soon. The drive back was beautiful but LONG, and I celebrated my 26th birthday on the road. Thank you Peter for making it special nonetheless :) And also thank you for my professional grade Kitchen-Aid mixer. I'm pretty sure I'm out of my league, but I'm going to have fun with it anyways. Although I may not be making 8 lbs of mashed potatoes anytime soon.

Des Jolies Fleurs

I have pretty flowers at my house now. It's so exciting to finally have my own garden. Not that all my gardens look this nice, but the one in the front of the house is lovely. See Exhibits A and B below.

Exhibit A: Zinnias




















I saw a hummingbird buzzing around them this morning. They have also become a favorite of little yellow birds that Pete says are finches and lots of butterflies. :)

Exhibit B: Sunflowers



















Yes, my eyes are closed in this picture (I blame Pete), but my sunflowers are HUGE. Pete picked out the seeds, and apparently they are of the "California King" variety. Which translates to being almost as tall as my house. They're just starting to get heads on them. They make me happy :)

I have big plans for the gardens next year now that I have more of an idea what's there already and what grows well.

Predators

I have an axe to grind. This particular axe has to do with the media in our country. Watching "journalists" descend like locusts on the scene of a tragedy (like the one in Minneapolis) makes me wonder how they live with themselves. It's just sick the way they flock to misfortune. Could Katie Couric have made it here any quicker? Does her presence here really contribute anything to the story?

The questions they ask and the way they report on these events is disgusting. They try to press doctors for information on injured/deceased people before families have even been notified. Then, as soon as families do know, the media is there sticking microphones in their faces asking inane questions. "How did you feel?" "Did you ever think something like this might happen?" It makes me sick. Not to mention the fact that events are reported from every angle that creates maximum paranoia. Our media don't report the news, they sell fear.

I know that not all journalists are this way. I know that there was a time when this mercenary style didn't define the profession. I do think, however, that the majority of mainstream journalists should be ashamed of themselves.

So there.

35W

Also known as the road we take to visit Pete's Mom or Dad. Now it's the road we're really glad we weren't driving on tonight. How terrible for those people just driving home from work at 6:00 today. I'm so glad that Pete, Pat & family, Pattie & family, Amanda, are all Derek okay. I guess the good thing is that the rescue operation seemed to be really on the ball and everyone is getting very good medical care (HCMC comes through again). If something really bad were going to happen to me, and I hope that it doesn't, Minneapolis is a pretty good choice of location.