Cheap Beer

Why is it that cheap beer holds such nostalgia for grown men? When involved in a discussion of the beers men grew up on, there is such fondness, nay, celebration of the poor quality beer we drank. Is it the pivitol role it played in so many coming of age experiences, its accessibility, its unmistakable smell from old dorm rooms and apartments? I think its definitely a combination of those with one other factor. Cheap beer is one of the last conglomerate owned consumable products that maintains a strong sense of place.

Slate lists America's greatest cheap beers by region, who owns them and how they got there. Find your favorites here.

Long live Grain Belt, Milwaukee's Best, Olympia, Old Milwaukee, Blatz and Hamm's.

Celebrity sighting of the day 8.11.08

Don't know Antonia? Click here.

Thanks pmo!

Physics fun

The Large Hardon Collider (or LHC as the scientists call it) began tests this weekend in prep for a Sept. 10th lift off. This may not mean much to many people, but the conspiracy theorists are all over it. According to the best ones, the first collision will produce a mini-black whole and suck most of Europe into it (oh heavens!). But on top of that, its a pretty interesting step forward for the science community and will be very exciting for scientists to be able to study things that they haven't been able to see before, ever! There are some great stories at i09 and Popular Mechanics.

But today, the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) has announced that the LHC will go online on September 10. On that day, researchers will activate particle beams within the 17-mile-long ring, and the world’s most powerful—and most talked about—particle accelerator will begin collecting experimental data. The LHC’s research potential is staggering, with physicists hoping to use the accelerator’s extremely high-energy proton collisions to generate a range of theoretical particles. Some of those particles could help us to understand the nature of mass, including the as-yet-undetectable dark matter that accounts for so much of the universe’s mass. Other particles might prove the existence of extra dimensions, or lead to entirely new theories or physical laws.

See?! Told you it was exciting!

Cars

I was not feeling the traffic this morning.

X-Files - The Reality Show

I Want One 8.07.08

Vinyl Rules

I hear about the comeback of Vinyl almost yearly it seems. But it is good to finally see a reputable paper, The Washington Post, write a well researched story (well researched by today's blogging culture standards) on a marked change in popularity. The reporter talked about kids who appreciate the sound quality that comes from analog records. I have had episodes where I painstakingly compared sound quality on my records vs. my Cd's on my better-than-average-but-nothing-special stereo and granted Vinyl a very slim victory. But I suddenly get it, because to kids today who grew up on iTunes songs and pirated mp3s, the uncompressed sound of vinyl should be amazing.

Though I have severely cut down my record shopping habit and increased my savings in the process, I found somethings pretty interesting in the story.

Turntable shipments topped 32,000 in April, one-third higher than the 19,000 record players sold the same month a year ago, according to the Consumer Electronics Association in Arlington. That's less than 1 percent of total music-player sales, but the increase has not escaped the notice of store managers. CD sales declined 15 percent in 2007, but sales of vinyl recordings are on the rise, according to Nielsen SoundScan, a research company that tracks music sales. Year-over-year sales of vinyl records increased 70 percent in March and could reach 1.6 million by year's end.

Long live vinyl, maybe I can count it as a long term investment.

The Hungriest of Cats

One of my favorite restaurants in LA happens to be within walking distance of my house, tucked away in the corner of a new but rather comely strip mall/condo development sharing a small patch of concrete with the most unoriginal of retail outlets, Borders.

Its a fantastic place focused on seafood (a great raw bar) and small portioned, incredibly tasty morsels. Running a close second to the tasty eats is the unique and brilliant bar. The spirits are all from lesser known (even to my Riley's Wines of the World honed knowledge) bottlers, many are organic and/or all natural, the mixers are as well and the juices are all fresh squeezed.

I was pleased to see that Angeleno Magazine just recently ranked it LA's restaurant of the year. What was a special treat (it's expensive), especially before its expansion, is now going to be booked solid!

Cheers to The Hungry Cat!

Jupiter

Ran across some stunning images of Jupiter and her moons on the Boston Globe web site today.

Ghetto Blasters

Kids these days...
In a trend coming out of Queens, a subculture of youth from Trinidad and Tobago have pimped out their BMX bikes with homemade stereo systems. Its a new embodiment of what brought hip hop and DJ culture onto the scene back in the 70's. At that time local DJs and gangs would roll up carts of stereo equiptment in NYC parks, plug into the lampposts and face off to see who had the loudest sound system (Kool Herc was the first).

I really want to hear what these things sound like and am not sure that I can wait until the short documentary on the kids and the culture, comes out.