Homebrew Me

Welcome to the first edition of Track Tuesday!  I will post a new track that I: recently discovered rediscovered (I.E.  I totally forgot about it and am now rocking out to this song like I am a 12 year-old again, see below) generally think it is awesome These may be from any genre of music, it will all depend on what my mood is on any given Tuesday. Today's track is: From Out of Nowhere - Apocalyptica I had a huge obsession with Apocalyptica when I was in middle school/early high school.  I used to listen to them all the time.  When I did my homework (if I did do it at that age), while I played video games  Starcraft, even while I mowed the lawn.  It was a completely new sound to me, and I could not get enough of it. Apocalyptica for those who don't know is a band from Finland who use cellos to create music within many of the subgenres of rock and metal.  The song above is probably my favorite of all of their music however as a bonus I really like

Curiosity Rover. Image from JPL/NASA. An exciting time is soon approaching.  The latest rover mission from NASA Curiosity will arrive at the red planet on August 6th 2012.  Curiosity is a mobile laboratory and is also much larger (5x massive) than the previous rovers (Spirit and Opportunity, launched in 2003).  It will be equipped with 10 science instruments in order to analyze the soil, and the atmosphere of Mars.  Curiosity will be searching for evidence of the habitability of Mars in the past.  I am excited for the landing and the start of the ground mission! Want to watch the landing live? NASA JPL Live (landing is scheduled for 1:31 AM EDT 08/06/2012) NASA TV UStream Sources: JPL Curiosity Website Mission Brief

I currently work for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, and I feel it is necessary to point out a safety tip or two for people who drive through construction zones.  I read earlier last week in the news that people travelling through the highway 65 project are moving or stealing the markers that are used to direct traffic at the work site.  I can not stress enough how incredibly dangerous and stupid that is.  The markers are there to improve safety on the job site and to direct traffic.  If something is moved it could cause injury or death.  If you see anybody doing this do as the article says and report them to the police. Also, a few weeks back I went up to Superior to do road survey.  My main job was to walk along the road and measure the lengths of the painted lines all up the highway.  There were several occasions where I was alongside the road with proper signage to broadcast my presence yet people would not change lanes and ended up driving two feet away from me at 7

Picture from the book listing on Amazon. I just finished reading this book.  I must say I was unable to put this book down, Like all of the other McDevitt books I have read have been addicting.  This might be due to the fact of Science Fiction == crack for my brain.  I could be exposed to it night and day and still want more.  Brief synopsis below. I am getting side-tracked now.   Firebird is the sixth book in the Alex Benedict series, the main characters being Alex Benedict and Chase Kolpath.  Benedict is a wealthy antiquities dealer who attempts to locate long lost relics and frequently solves some mysteries while more questions arise.  In Firebird  a famous physicist known for his off the wall theories about multiverses and alternate realities disappears.  Forty-one years later his estate and possessions are to be sold.  Benedict becomes involved in order to sell the artifacts and becomes interested in the disappearance.  He and Chase begin the search for answers and the tr

In June I had a chance to go to Las Vegas for the first time.  I wasn't really sure what to expect as I had never been so far west before.  The first thing I noticed getting off the plane was how hot it was there.  It was 105 degrees when I arrived.  I have since learned to enjoy the dry heat of that part of the country. The first day was spent mostly inside the hotel as I was adjusting poorly to the heat.  At night however it was time to wander the strip.  I saw the Sirens of Treasure Island show that night.  It was very interesting to watch the skit.  It involved a lost pirate who found himself in the company of some very beautiful women who had a fight to pick with his pirate crew.  There was a little bit of acrobatics but nothing too intricate, still I recommend seeing it once. The next day we went out to see the Hoover Dam.  We rented a 2012 Mustang convertible to drive there.  I must tell you that I really want to purchase a Mustang now that I have driven one around.  Th

Some of you may not know, but I love electronic music.  A few of my friends disagreed however, my friend Kate especially so.  I told Kate I would convert her into an electronic music fan from across the Atlantic.  I posted a new electronic song or remix to her Facebook wall everyday for 134 days, I was successful enough to where she doesn't dislike it anymore.  I will count that as a win in my book.  My list of songs has been sitting around since she returned from Spain, I decided it would be a good list for anybody who is not familiar with electronic music to anyone who enjoys electronic music.  Make sure to crank your speakers and enjoy. Here is the link to the PDF: Crash Course in Electronic Music Or if you would rather read it off this blog here it is:

I was looking at my alcohol selection last month and I realized it would be much cheaper if I could make my own liquor like coffee liquor and such.  I decided to give it a go and with a little trip to the local grocery store I had all of the ingredients I required.  The recipe advised that I let the finished product sit for a month but I feel a month of infusing was long enough.  For my first attempt I am satisfied, next time however I am going to tweak the recipe a bit and see if I can balance the flavors more.   Here is the recipe if anyone is interested in a little experiment. 2 cups water 4 cups sugar 1/4 cup instant coffee 2 cups of vodka 1 vanilla bean Coffee filters (to strain the grounds out of the final product) Boil the water and sugar, when boiling add the coffee and remove from heat.  When cooled add the vodka and the vanilla bean store this in a half-gallon bottle.  Age until you are satisfied with the flavor.  I had an empty wine bottle laying around which m

Hello, Right now there is not much to this blog.  Hopefully later this will be full of lots of interesting posts and pictures.  Until then enjoy this first post!  As a bonus here is a picture from my vacation to the city of Sin: Las Vegas in June.