BEEEEEEERRRRRRRR…
So I have been thinking about beer lately. Been trying to drink it a little more often (being a water shortage and all it means i have an excuse) but looking around i miss a few yummy brews i tried in the US but definately cant find them over here. Don’t worry neither will be Bud or Millers Genuine Draft as you can get them over here. But in the USA they are good for a swilling beer. So here is a couple of the ones i miss.
Shiner Bock – Found this one in Amarillo, actually recommended to me by Keith (IRISH!) Pretty nice beer, native to Texas, never saw it outside of texas, only really had it those few nights while I was there but a pretty nice tasting brew.
Abita – Found this one in New Orleans when I was at the cooking school. Started by a teenager in his bedroom making beer without his parents knowledge. When they found out, they apparently liked it and decided to back him brewing it properly. Turns out its a big hit in the south. Loved it, really wish i could get it over here, definately one of the beers that i could just constantly drink.
Pacifico – Another beer recommended to me, this time by kenna. First try was at the Baseball in Anaheim. Picked up a Pacifico Bomber (24oz) for $12… such a rip off but such an awesome beer. Its a mexican beer but much nicer taste than Corona in my opinion. Really popular out on the West Coast states so had it for a bit through the first part of the tour thankfully, and a bit on the east coast but not much. Very nice beer, loved it!
Blue Moon – Similar to Hoegarden White, but not as citrusy, very filling and very cloudy. Biggest memory of this beer was buying a pitcher (like 2 litres) in Raleigh and not even finishing the pitcher it was so filling!
So those are the beers from the USA i miss the most. Unfortunately all I am going to be able to get over here is Budweiser (which is not to bad but for the prices you pay over here its a rip off), and Millers. Might get the occasional corona but yeah still not the same. I saw they have just recently bough Michelbob out to Australia. Thats like the VB of the USA. It is SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!
so yeah. I miss my US beers, guess ill have to go back to my Coopers Sparkling Ale and my Cascade Light.
Farewell 2007.. you were good to me… kinda
Well it is new years eve. The end of the world.. i mean 2007 is nigh. As today draws to a close so does this year of big events for me. It will be a sad time (yeah right) but the future for next year is bright and the horizon looks clean (apart from the smog?).
Some of the past achievements and highlights of my life for 2007:
* My first Anzac Day with the 2nd/2nd Machine Gun Battalion Association
* Meeting plenty of new friends and spending time with them
* Constantly winning work awards for top performer
* Winning Top Performer of the year
* Going off to my first ever All Stars (big work trip where its all luxury) thanks to my own work and not cause someone was away
* Plenty of travelling during the early parts of the year to sydney and the whitsundays
* My worst birthday ever.
* My first trip overseas on my own.
* Getting plastered in Vegas to make up for my birthday
* My first American Football and Baseball games
* Seeing my friends Michelle and Kenna in Orange County and being driven around in a Hummer
* Going to Disneyworld’s Epcot Center. Something I have wanted to do all my life
* Getting so blind drunk at the christmas party i was throwing up (thankfully afterwards in the hotel room).
* Catching up with old high school friends.
There has been so much that I have done over the last year but typical of me my brain has not been working that great. So feel free to suggest some of the good times we have had together over this year to bump up my memory.
Here is to a good 2008 and for those who are going out tonight, stay safe, drink lots and don’t forget to party HARD!
Food Glorious Food!
Food, Glorious, Food, there is nothing quite like it!
Yeah my singing sucks but food is awesome. We all know I love my food but I also love to cook. So this weekend in preparation for Christmas I have been slaving away!
Saturday I spent a very frustrating morning trying to buy from the Farmers markets at New Farm. Took me over half an hour to find a parking spot and then over 10 minutes to walk from the parking spot to the markets. Should of parked near Tennerife and gotten the ferry! But i digress.
So with food in hand I made my way home to spend the next 5 hours prepping, mixing and then boiling my first ever plum pudding. It looks HUGE! Dunno how it will taste yet as we won’t cut it till tommorrow. Also did some baking yesterday of some Bread for the food day today and also some caramel tarts for mum.
Tonight though I will be cooking up a storm once I get home of Potato Salad & Coleslaw in preparation for tommorrow, and then just before lunch on Xmas day I just have to prep the green salad and the christmas feast is ready to go!.
There will be some more photos I might throw up but there are some of the Plum Pudding up already at the below link.
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| Xmas Food 2007 |
I am never drinking again…. this week.. ok today…
Oh my god (i would of written zomg but half the people who read this blog don’t know what that means so i wont) I drank WAY to much last night. By way to much I mean way to f#$king much!. I am not exactly sure how much it was. I do know I had a couple of beers at Jade Buddha, that was nice and slow and easy and then after that Once I got to vino’s for the xmas party.. well thats when the wine started getting consumed… quickly. I am not exactly sure how much I drank but I know that it was at least 4+ bottles of white wine, just to me.
It was definately a good night, I was happy, mucking around, had some fun and drank myself stupid. Took lots of photos (what else is new) and then somewhere around 11 (i think not quite sure) i somehow walked to a cab, jumped in and then next thing I know I was in my hotel, chatting with the porcelain king.. everywhere.. it was eww
But by 11am this morning I was fine. Its amazing what 2 panadol at 5am and lots of sleep can fix. But yeah. Lots of booze, nice people, my friends, a good time, what more can you want…. well being able to remember the night would be nice.
Today was good. Just hung out with Yena had a very late breakfast at Alibi room. I had the “Truckers Breakfast” and it was awesome! Although I did miss out on my eggs and my chips but hey, who cares I still had savoury mince, spinach, baked beans, hash browns, bacon, toast, coffee, steak, sausages, mushrooms and tomato. It was great, but I didnt finish it all.
Photos from last night are up in the usual spaces.
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| AOT Xmas Party 2007 |
Change of direction
Ok its about time i released my plans from what has been happening the last few weeks. Since I returned back from the States I have wanted to go back, to work, to live, to travel, to explore and experience more of the country. So since returning once I was settled in groups (which I am now) I decided it was about time to start focusing on my next portion of my life. I had already contacted HR & the Inbound manager about this position and was getting it all ready, working on my NZ knowledge, planning to go over and visit NZ so i got some experience. actually in the country. But all of that changed on Wednesday. The Job ad came out earilier than expected. A LOT earlier. So its now all real.
I’ll explain a bit about the job. I would still be part of the AOT Group, working with Tourplan (damn) but working in San Diego in the office of one of inbound’s partners. This is something I have wanted for a while and although the short lead time seems daunting (2 months) I should be ok. The position would start in Feb and at present thats about as much of the info I can get. I will try and get more during the interview process and I will keep everyone up to date. I have had a look online at the company and where its located (its near Quallcomm stadium home of the San Diego Chargers and close to a couple of Airports) and also at the history of the company.
At times it all seems to good to be true but then also my brain does its usual self doubt as well and also the overthinking things that I always do to myself. I have to try and make sure that I clear my head often and not think about it to much. I don’t even have the job yet so I need to make sure I just take it as it comes. If i do get the job though…. Its gonna be one big ass going away party 😀
Anwyay its early and im bored already… i hate it when my body decides to wake up at 630am.
Donkeys, Strings and Sun Tans
Wow.. what a big weekend. The one thing I love about living in Queensland is the ability to go from the Big City to the relaxing feel of a Beach town in around an hour (less depending on where you live). Its great to be able to have this change, to get out and away from the big city to the relaxation of the beach and just relax. It’s good. I mean the Gold Coast is by no means the perfect beach area (well Surfers isn’t but Burleigh is getting pretty close). But its close enough and to my tastes.
The Federal Election was on Saturday and that saw me having to work out who to vote for. In previous years I have donkey voted and this year seemed like a great time to keep up the tradition. Now I don’t mean the illegal kind of donkey vote where you draw your own box or just write stuff or maybe draw a penis or two on the voting form (not that I have done that!). I am talking a throw away vote. I didn’t care who I have voted for in the past (apart from the occasional local election) and this year was no difference. I mean I didn’t care who ran the country as both options seem pretty good (despite what my parents, the staunch liberal if labour gets into power the sky will fall kinda people they are, say). I mean it’s not really going to impact my life to much so I never care.
But then the problem was this year. What way do I donkey vote this year. I have in the past always chosen the dumbest sounding party for the senate (i think i voted for the fishing party once, although had I had a person from the What Women Want party up here I would of voted for that straight away). So that was the big white sheet taken care of. But what about the all important Green sheet. Do I vote the idiots in (Family First, Greens etc) or do I take on a previous approach of voting for the person with the dumbest name (did that for a council election back when Tamara Tonight ran and she came 3rd!). But no being in a new electorate I decided a new approach was in order. We had a few female applicants for the electorate. So the vote was going to the hottest female applicant! I won’t say who I vote for but just be sure… she was the hottest of bunch, although that Greens candidate for the senate would of won had she been on my green ticket 😉
On saturday night I finally got to the concert that I had booked for almost 6 months ago. Back when the tour of the Whitlams was only a rumour. I have waited 6 long months for this and the day was finally here. Finally got to see the Whitlams with the Queensland Orchestra. Realised on Saturday morning I had booked a cheap seat up the back rather than down the front in one of the boxes like I had though I had booked (idiot!). The concert was phenomenal though, some very good old school whitlams songs not much of the new stuff (what I am mostly familiar with). Only one song I did not like but that was mainly cause they had to much orchestra in it and not a more prominent mix of the two but overall… AWESOME!
Sunday I spent the day, away from the hustle and bustle of the city, I escape with Ang, Suz, Brendan and Ross to the Gold Coast. Returned to an old stomping ground of mine, The Burleigh Heads esplenade. Now the esplenade has changed a lot since I was a child. It used to be a raggity pathway/footpath along the grass between the road and the beach. Not anymore. With BBQ’s, shelters, toilets, play areas, fitness equipment and a beautiful meandering path, it looks so different. What a few years away can do to a place!.
It was good to escape and spend time with my friends, enjoying the sun, frivolity, stupidity and the just down right fun!
Protected: Just to annoy bianca :P
must get more sleeeeeeeeeeeep
O boy I tell you what. I don’t know how I did it on holidays. Had the first night out on the town fully drinking last night since i returned in country. And today I am just shattered. Slept till 1pm this afternoon. I really don’t know how I did it. I was always up within a few hours of going to sleep, always managing to be awake all day. Today I have just been a walking non sensical blob (nothing much different there).
In other news, the mo has been shaved due to a bad trimming accident, where a botched job meant having to shave the whole thing off, although I probably look much better without it. Haircut, mo shaved, I hit the town looking good. Didn’t pick up though (on par there).
Been invited to sydney for new years, unsure if I am going to go yet, dunno where to stay and dunno if I will be working or not as roster has not been released that far in advance (i think im like halfway through december at the moment). So not sure what to do. I would love to catch up with some of the people from the states trip but not sure if i can afford to or even get down there etc.
anyway photos from last nights shenanigans.
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| BTC's Birthday |
I heart Planes.
There is a reason I love nothing more than going to the Airport and taking photos. Yesterday morning was a good example of that. I went out really to get a photo for my friend Katherine of her check flight with the Airline she is working for. Was going to be a quick stop at the airport. Well when i woke up things didnt go that way to begin with. I was planning on getting the new Etihad flight as well while I was there as it was around the same time. Except yesterday it was almost an hour early. So I dashed off to the airport quickly to make sure I didn’t miss out.
Luckily it happened as a hell of a lot of aircraft I had not shot before came in. To mention a few:
* Virgin Blue Embrarer E170
* Freedom Air Warner Brothers Scheme
* Jetstar Titans Scheme
* Eva Air
* Japan Airlines 747-400
* OzJet
And lots of other goodies. If only the Pink Dash 8 had of come in then I would of been in heaven (turns out it was in Tassie).
Thats one of the reasons I love this hobbie. A simple trip to the Airport can bring me lots of good photos but also allows me to possibly see things that I have not seen before or will rarely see. I love it! I don’t care what other people think. It may be nerdy, it may be silly to some, but its what I love.