Movies and mobility

Rainy days are great times to go see a movie. Dylan and I were spending some quality time together last Sunday, and while I really wanted to see "V is for Vendetta," I thought "Ice Age: The Meltdown" might be more up his alley, especially for his first movie.

The whole experience got increasingly better for him. He was really into the marquee "with the lights that go around." Then after every preview he said "oh, there's another one!" When the movie finally started, I thought it might be a little loud, but I have to put in a plug for the Highland Theatre as far as kid-friendly theatres go. The noise level was perfect. And Dylan sat still for the whole thing; granted, he didn't get the fart jokes or not-so-subtle environmental message, but he laughed at the silliness and only asked for popcorn once.

In other kid/family news, Adrian started crawling last week! Which is great on several fronts, but also means we now have TWO mobile kids.

Mmmm, Neko (and Guinness) (and peanut butter jelly)

Readers of Capitol Brew-haha are probably aware of my, um, infatuation (obsession?) with Neko Case. I went to her show last week at First Avenue and the in-store performance at The Electric Fetus the night before. I won't bore you with my gushing reviews of the shows, only to say that they were amazing, especially the in-store. Arriving a hour before paid off dearly, as this picture, taken by the Rev. Kevin Gregorius, Esq., who was standing in front of us, shows:

Yes, we were that close. Love the guitar strap! G-R-R....

Lots of beer has been drunk since my last beer-related post on St. Paddy's Day. The holiday set off a stout-infused couple weeks. I've gone from Beamish to Murphy's to St. Peter's to Summit and to Guinness. While a friend had lamented that Beamish was the "Miller of stouts," I actually found it pretty solid. Murphy's seemed a little watered down to me, but then again, it's owned by Heineken, so that could explain it. St. Peter's shouldn't really be in the same category of these other stouts, as its about 7% ALC, super-bitter and meant to be drank over a longer sitting. And they have cool bottles! Summit has an amazing stout--thick as hell, with a nice bitter finish that leaves you smacking your lips. Too bad it's only on tap.

But nothing stands up to a Guinness for drinkability and all around greatness. Every stout I've drank since March 17, except for maybe Summit, makes me wish it was a Guinness. The only bad thing about 'em is that its easy to drink 6 or 7 in under an hour. (If you want to try something different, pour a can of Guinness in a blender, add one egg and a couple tablespoons of sugar and mix thoroughly. Trust me. It's amazing. Kudos to J and T for introducing me to this.)

Finally, a beer to stay away from, at least for the price. I bought a couple bottles of Traquair for about $4 bucks a piece. The flavored ale was alright, and the house ale was just boring. I know Scottish-style ales aren't my favorite, being heavy on the malts, and maybe I was expecting more, especially at 7.2% ALC, but c'mon. These were some of the more disappointing beers Ive had in awhile. But now I know, and knowing is half the battle.

I'll leave you with this little bit of wisdom about peanut butter and jelly. It's apparently been out there on the 'Net for awhile, but I cant stop laughing everytime I see it.