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Author Archives: admin

2012-04(Apr)Hanami
Quadcopter BeerLift
2012 Takao Fire Festival
2012 Skiiing in Shiga-Kogen with my Mom

Check out the video.

Rolling Blackout

This beer was a kit that I bought on ebay from XXXX.  I brewed on an afternoon with my family during a scheduled power blackout scheduled by TEPCO**.  This is the first taste after waiting 1 week after bottling.  There is not much aroma except for maybe a hint of dark-maltiness or is it malty-darkness.  There is a little bite on the tongue as priming (3/4 cup of light malt) is starting to kick off.  There is no head to speak of, but hopefully that will develop in a few more weeks.   I was a little concerned because this particular bottle had some yeast (or something) inside the bottle on the neck, but it tastes to be ok.

Ingredients:

  • 4 L water
  • 2 lb. Muntons Dark (Dried Malt Extract)
  • 3.3 lb. Muntons Hopped Dark Bitterness (40-45)
  • 1 oz. German Hallertau Hops (pellets, Alpha 3%)
  • 6 oz. Muntons Crushed Crystal 2-Row Barley (not much!!)
  • 11.5 g, Saflager S-23 Dried Yeast
  • 1/2 Tsp. Irish moss

**Rolling Blackouts: The theory was that because of the earthquake and damaged Fukushima nuclear powerplant everyone would have to endure months of power outages where each city or grid was on a different time so that no one would have more than 4 hours of outage time.  And that the times were rotated so that no one had to endure a very inconvenient time all the time ex. 0600-1000.   Blackouts would be announced on the TEPCO website and on the “big voice” a network or loudspeakers strategically placed throughout each city and prefecture.  unfortunately this was in Japanese so it was just eerie-echo voices that were no help at all to whether the power was about to go out, it was going to go out in the morning, or it was not going to go out at all.

Here is a Google map I have been working on.  We wanted to put things into perspective geographically.  It shows our location in the bottom left, near Zama Train Station, and then the earthquake affected areas.

Here is a link to a very good google map that will show lot’s of points of interet if you toggle things on and off on the left hand menu.


View Japan Quake and Tsunamis – March 11, 2011 in a larger map

Really nice hiking area in the Chubu Sangaku National Park.  Nagano prefecture!

Yes it was time to clock out of work, and primp and prep for a night out on the town(s). For Melissa’s birthday we wanted to celebrate with some of her closest friends. Even Melissa S. made the commitment to leave her baby under the care of a baby sitter for the first time.
Click here for pictures After much deliberating the planning committee agreed on Creekside for a venue for dinner and drinks. One reason for the selection is that they have live music and they take reservations. I enjoy Creekside every time I go and this was no exception.

After a nice dinner, the DD’s were ready key in hand to take us to Shannon’s (thank you Jennifer, Chrissy and Melissa S.) Shannons was nice and another band was playing here, they were quite good actually. Especially the Beasty Boys song, they sounded like the real thing. If anyone remembers the name of the bands let me know and I will fill them in. We also met old-guy-“Don” who always seems to be celebrating his birthday at Shannon’s the same night. Perplexing…

We hope you had a Happy Birthday Melissa!

There is a new site where music as free as its artists’ imaginations.
Click on the play button to hear the song below.


Keys House 2006

Check for new photos here.
This is a new photo gallery I am trying. We can password protect it.

Right now I have Keys 2006 photos there.

Cheers,

James