My blog n'at

I don’t know why this irritates me so much but last night while watching pre-game coverage of the Steelers game I finally had enough and Lushie said I should blog about it.

Sports fans of this country, when you attend a sporting event that is televised, please STOP going behind the on air talent while talking on your cell phone and…

• waving – we see you and yes you’re on the phone.  Do i see you now? yes because you’re the only one doing it. Along with that guy, that guy and oh THAT guy. If you do it for more than 10 seconds you deserve to be sacked. Even more annoying are the people behind home plate at baseball games who do this ALL GAME LONG. Subcategory would be the people at events that call someone else and say “Can you see me now? I’m over here! over here! no, over HERE!” all freaking game.
• tugging your jersey – We get you’re proud of your team but if you’re at a home game and the channel you’re on is local YOU’RE NOT ALONE! You’re not making a message besides possibly you smell and need to air out. Same thing with the guy who holds up a terrible towel. You’re in Pittsburgh, we are all given one at birth. Go do that to a Baltimore guy.
• drive by screamer – Usually some drunk guy walks past the TV and starts a chant or a train WOOOO WOOOOOOOOO! YEAAAAAAAH!  Happened a few times last night

Look, I’m all for having a good time at a game but this has been something that’s been building up over time (mostly from watching Pirates games) so please, keep that in mind when the studio lights come on. Hey maybe this is the only chance you’ll ever get to be on TV so why not make it a good one besides calling up Johnny’s brother Buddy down at the VFW to check if he sees you… talking on the phone… to him.

This should be a rant for SIDT…

I’m not into writing the whole Friday 5 thing but I do enjoy reading those of my friends. Dawn suggested a brief 3 question one for the upcoming Podcamp Pittsburgh 3 and since I can’t resist anything podcamp related (and love when The Papuga pushes me around)  here is my PCPGH3 List:

1. What brought you to Social Media and what keeps you hanging around?
   I’ve been involved with social media (who remembers Text America when it was free and fun!) as a fan for years but it wasn’t until 2006 when “Should I Drink That?” started up and I was sucked into becoming a steady media creator. I have been making media since high school but nothing on a regular basis until SIDT took shape. I stick around because I love creating content which people all over the world are downloading and it allows me to develop my creative side without any restrictions besides what I put on myself. The ability for instant feedback has been a huge plus also for me when it comes to writing and recording new shows. I have to give props to the new/social media community in Pittsburgh which has become a great group of friends to me. We’re one big dysfunctional, sexy and usually intoxicated family. I wouldn’t expect Yinz Team to be any other gloriuos way

2. Which social networking tool gives you the shakes when it’s not updated or is experiencing down time? (Podcasts, Blogs, Micro-blogging, etc)
   I’ve grown away from Twitter but still use it and Plurk is just there to give everyone OCD who doesn’t already have it. The one thing I couldn’t live without is my gmail. I’m checking email constantly on my phone. Gmail is my crack. I could probably live without blogging for awhile… like a weekend.

3. What kind of insight could you offer to others on a topic at PCPGH3? If none, then what do you most want to hear more about?
   Want to start a vid/podcast on a very limited budget and worried about the rimjob state of our economy? Join me at the 2pm session in the Hub with the Wrestling Mayhem Show and Should I Drink That guys. We’ll show you how to make a good show for dirt cheap. Bring us free beer though. We get thirsty by 2.

   Stay for the afterparty. It’s where legends are made!

Want to know more about Podcamp Pittsburgh 3, the schedule and what to expect? Go to the Official Podcamp Pittsburgh website!

The story behind the Dogfish Head 120 Minute Chug
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PodCamp Pittsburgh is a FREE community UnConference, run by and for people who create, enjoy or are interested in learning more about:

* blogs
* vlogs (video podcasts)
* audio podcasts
* web video
* social and content networks
* new media monetization
* more!

PodCamp Pittsburgh 3 will take place on October 18 and 19, 2008, with a meet-and-greet the evening of October 17.  SIDT will be providing and serving the craft beer   Make sure you attend the after party Saturday Night. It’s where legends are made!

Register today!

See the PodCamp Pittsburgh 3 schedule. Add a session you’d like to give, or request one you’d like to attend.

I like to consider Pittsburgh a “big city” when it comes to sports. We have professional teams in 3 of the big 4 sports (Please stay away NBA) and multiple nationally recognized sports programs amongst our universities. Why is it that with 2 newspapers we can’t read decent coverage of hockey? Not since Dejan Kovacevic have hockey fans had someone reliable to turn to for news that truly cared about the sport and it’s fan base.

In today’s editions of The Post Gazette and the Tribune Review we have 2 writers who cover hockey. Rob Rossi, who gets thrown under the Free Candy van on a regular basis, and Dave Molinari who writes as much as he needs to get by to collect a check. The story was on Ryan Malone playing for Tampa this season after spending his career in Pittsburgh.

Trib: Malone says Penguins showed ‘no love’
Post Gazette: Malone has no harsh feelings

Dave: “He doesn’t hold it against the Penguins that they didn’t offer him a contract rivaling the seven-year, $31.5 million deal he signed with Tampa Bay in late June, but he also doesn’t have any misgivings about the chain of events that led him to the Lightning.”

Rob: “I’m sure a deal could have been done a long time ago,” said Malone, who in late June sent a two-word text message to the Tribune-Review that read “no love.”

“To me, that’s what I think,” Malone said yesterday. “Being from (Pittsburgh), you have a lot of pride pulling that jersey on. To not get a serious offer was kind of weird. I just figured they had other plans. It was easier to move on then than if something was closer … to happening.”

WTF? Are you freaking kidding me? Either Ryan has a severe personality disorder or someone wasn’t doing their job and my money is on Dave for that one. We have 2 articles on the same topic telling 2 completely different stories. Dave’s piece reads as a quick blurb thrown together of all quotes while trying to catch a plane. Rob’s article is packed full with Malone stats and quotes from various members of the Penguins. In other words, Rob put in an effort and Dave, a graduate of the Bob Smizik School of Bullshit, half assed it. I probably wouldn’t be so critical if this wasn’t a common occurrence between the 2 papers.

I get that Pittsburgh is a “football town” and WPXI can’t start a broadcast without an update on Hines Ward’s emotional state but people we have the greatest hockey market in the NHL! The Pens sold out every home game last season and yet local print media doesn’t seem to care as long as a picture of Sid appears with a Steeler close by. Don’t get me wrong, I love the Steelers, but there needs to be balance to the insanity of Yinzer Nation.

Sites such as The Pens Blog and Faceoff-Factor are engaging hockey fans who are fed up with bush league reporting and are ready to call you on it. The days of just showing up for a period or 2 and catching the rest on TV are gone. The groups who write for these sites are passionate and knowledgeable about the sport. They don’t care what Sid is looking for in a woman, they want to know why Max may be walking with a limp and who’s going to man the 3rd line.

There is absolutely no reason Pittsburgh can’t produce a national authority on hockey. It’s time our local bloggers get respect for doing the jobs that print is failing at.

I’ve been at my company for 10 years this December and over that time I’ve received many certificates for good work and yada yada yada but this is the first piece of hardware that I’ve come home with.  It’s the Operational Excellence – Spirit of Doing Things Better award. I received this for a video I created for an IPTV demo that was going to be aired at a company fair. I had 3 days to get it done from the time I was asked. I filmed over 2 days and stayed up a total of 38 straight hours to have it shot, edited and finalized. everyone loved it that morning and I loved my bed when I finally got home. This is the type of work I wish I could do more of but with a better timetable of course. Special thanks to sickpuppy for helping me out when my machine tanked in the editing process and feeding me Great Lakes products to keep me awake. Now maybe I can get the company to purchase some decent equipment that wasn’t made in the 90’s.

I can’t go into the writeup that was sent out since it’s for internal purposes only but I thought I’d share this news because it’s cool and hey, it’s my blog

prost!

I really can’t stand Talk Like a Pirate Day. I think it’s cheesy and annoying as all hell. I say the hell with it and if you have to deal with people speaking like pirates you might as well drink like one! Here are my suggestions on how you too can Drink Like A Pirate Today!

Rum
Sailor Jerry – Step away from the commercialism of bottle shelf quality Captain Morgan’s and get yourself a quality rum. Sailor Jerry will not only make a man out of guys but a wench out of you ladies. Trust me, it’s a state of bliss that can only be compared to liquid love.

Beer (you’re only getting overviews this time kids)

1. Anything from the Heavy Seas collection at Clipper City. 2 of my favorites are:
   • Peg Leg Imperial Stout – 8% ABV. Dark, medium body and tastes like coffee and chocolate.
   • Loose Cannon IPA – 7.5% ABV and my session IPA. Perfect blend of hops, decent head and that perfect little twang to make you remember who’s boss
2. Piraat Blonde – 9% ABV Belgian Strong Ale from Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V. Great head with a golden body and flavors of citrus and banana. Also causes you illusions of pimp appeal to the opposite sex.
3. Shipwreck Porter – 7.8% ABV from Arcadia Brewing. Punch you in the face and steal everything you have craft beer. For the last 3 years this has been in my top 5 of favorite all time beers. It ferments in whiskey barrels so the character will absorb some of that flavor. Like beer? Like Whiskey? Try them both together and find out why you can only drink 2.

There is your list. Go out and drink like a pirate today but remember, even modern medicine can’t cure everything. Be responsible.

prost!

I know, it’s not hump day so I had to add one but for good reason! Today we released the audio and pictures from the Steel City Big Pour which took place last weekend. Over in this space I’m going to give you a recap that you won’t hear on SIDT.

Download SIDT EP44 | Photo gallery from the 08 Big Pour

This was the second edition of the SCBP and once again the organizers put together the best event of the year. I know that you hear that from me a lot about festivals but all around experience this is the place to be. Not only were there over 20 brewers but also local restaurants joined in. I had the chance to sample foods from establishments that I either hadn’t heard of or is “on the other side of the world”, leaving me to eat closer to home. Sounds off the wall coming from a guy that will drive 45 minutes for a Red Onion sub in Bethel Park.

I’m not a fan of muscles but I had 5-10 on the half shell and loved every single one. Vegan foods has always been cardboard to my taste  but a couple of these new dishes appealed to me. (note: see I’d mention names. If you don’t offer business cards or handouts, I wont rememebr you).

If you didn’t order your tickets early enough then you weren’t getting in. Both sessions sold out faster than a Hannah Montana concert and I was one of those screaming fans with a golden ticket. Brewers are my rockstars. I stayed for both sessions and sampled many, many, many *hiccup* many beverages over the course of 6 hours and even witnessed both special tapings of East End Brewing’s treats. (want the details on the beer, listen to the show).

One of the memorable moments came in Session 1 when the hype behind a custom made tap handle that was being poured at the event almost fell through. Mother nature started to rain down on the metal workers and time was running out. Brian Sprague (Sprague Farms), who happens to be and excellent wood carver, stepped up and within 5-10 minutes had a custom made tap all ready for Scott. Crisis averted and beer flowed.

The only downside to the day for me was the weather. Host company Construction Junction held the event,as with last year’s, in a warehouse. Typically this isn’t bad because there is air flow however, it would rain, warm up, rain, cool down, rain, warm up to give us some ungodly humidity. I felt like an old man by the end of the day with sore feet and lower back.  One thing I’ve noticed at all of the festivals I’ve attended is that the beer geeks and fans tend to come to the early session while the drunks, rookies and 2 beer drunken ladies come to the second. It’s just a fact of beer fest life. We stayed for both so I guess that makes us…

Overall my favorite beer of the day was the Stone Levitation which was on tap for the first time ever in PA and will not be seen again unless a special occasion.

Next year make it a point to get your tickets early for this event. $30 gets you great food, incredible craft beer and a buffet of artsy eye candy. Something about a woman throwing around a chain saw that gets your blood movin.

cheers!

That would be the oil lamp lit in our bathroom this morning around 5am. Heading into night #2 without power we found that every perishable item in the fridge and freezer needs to be replaced. I still haven’t turned on the grill to see if that’s functional but I have high hopes.

Last night we went out to dinner since our stove is electric and actually came up rather disappointed in the Chinese buffet place. We usually have pretty good meals at Dynasty International but the Lo-mien was chewy, the chicken seemed tough and the fried items seemed over cooked. Not to mention the price went up. There can only be one reason for this change.  Mike Seate. He tries to ruin everying good with this world.

After a few games of cards and the light too dim to read with we decided to go to bed… at 8:30pm. A first for me since probably grade school. We woke up around 3:30am and thought it was 6 until I finally knocked over my cell phone to read the time. Managed to get 2 more hours in before I said the heck with it and got ready for work.

Fingers crossed for power to be on tonight. Lushie needs her Big Brother fix and I’m itchin for net access at home. Almost went into shakes without my social networking last night

Apparently the Steelers won last night. I wouldn’t know. Half way through the 2nd quarter my power went *poof* was was gone. Myself and 140,000 other people around the area lost power as the winds from Hurricane Ike beat down on PA. Lushie and I were actually fine with this as we pulled out a deck of cards and played for awhile until the last of the central air went bye bye.

Winds in our area were hitting 80MPH. The grill I have took a ride (it’s rather larger so you can imagine the force), we lost a few tables and that was about it. We had no idea the storm was even approaching until it hit in full force. Trees were falling down, neighbors lawn furniture was being tossed as far as a block away and the rocket scientists that live around me thought it would be smart to let their kids play outside. Yup, while the wind was at it’s peak we saw little johnny trying to ride a scooter down the street.  Little Johnny didn’t make it very far before a branch almost took off his head. He was OK but his parents could be heard bitching about the wind.  Seriously, MENSA wants to move into my neighborhood.

There is one thing people should invest in and that we swear by.  We bought LED candles. Battery powered and they flicker like real candles. Not only did this help reduce the heat being generated but also seconded as a portable light while walking around. I’ll have to ask Lushie where she got them from.

As of 11:14am the power is still out and now we have to think about all of the lunch meat we bought. The fridge will only stay cold for so long and if it’s not on by the time I go home then I will have an irate wife looking for blood.  As long as my Hop Devil is still cool I’m fine

Steel City Big Pour 2 update coming this week. Still recovering from the best beer festival ever.

cheers!

On September 11th PA started enforcing a statewide smoking ban to the cheers of some and jeers of others. Personally I think the smoking ban is a joke and this post is going to tell you why.

The smoking ban should be the decision of the business owner and not of the government. Until the day comes when cigarettes are illegal the government should have no say in this freedom. The government is not here to spoon feed you healthy decisions it deems fit, it’s to maintain the stability of the state… well try to I guess.

You say you have a right to breath clean air. I say that guy over there has a right to smoke. Why do your rights overpower his? Yes smoking is bad for you but it’s up to each individual person to make that choice. If you don’t want to be around smoke you don’t go to that business. It’s as easy as that. No one should have to change for YOU. It’s the owners decision. It’s the workers decision to work in an environment that has second hand smoke.  If you want to smoke you go to smoking businesses. If you don’t, you go to non-smoking. Why is this so difficult to understand? Oh that’s right, you have the right to go wherever you want. The world doesn’t cater to you so quit trying to force it.  Not everyone can be happy. I’m all for dining in a smoke free establishment but I knowingly make that decision to go someplace which is non smoking. Most restaurants were smoke free before the ban so why not let others make these same educated decisions. Come on, you’re really not going to visit these place you say “I can go to so many more places now.” You never were before hand and you wont start now.

I’ve noticed the most vocal supporters of the smoking ban are the ones who feel entitlement and ironically are over the top supporters of Obama (notice i said not ALL). The causeheads! Those who would rather blame others instead of taking responsibility. How much more of your ass does society have to wipe for you to be happy?

Now here’s the kicker. It’s not a smoking ban in ALL places. Apparently if you’re in a casino or a bar/restaurant with less than 20% food sales you’re invincible to second hand smoke. Again, if you’re going to make a ban on something it needs to be 100% and not half assed.

This is just the start of something more evil coming down. First we’re going to ban smoking and trans fats to see how far we can push it. Next up will be alcohol, obesity and stupidity because all of which are killers right? Don’t forget water because even that in excess will kill ya. You’re annoying and your presence gives me high blood pressure. You should be banned.

I don’t like where this is going.

Last night I was invited by my friend Lindsay (cheers to iheartpgh.com for winning Best Blog) to attend Pittsburgh Magazine’s 2008 Best of Pittsburgh party down at Heinz Field. I was allowed to bring 1 guest so I couldn’t leave my partner in crime behind. Sickpuppy came with

At first we weren’t sure what to expect. Besides Lindsay we weren’t going to know a soul excluding folks that we’ve only heard or seen on air. Cocktails were martinis so I was already loving it while sickpuppy was itching for a beer.  We had our picture taken for PM and had the pleasure of meeting Jim Cunningham from WQED. I’ll admit, we looked out of place at first. Our name tags didn’t have a corporate logo and most probably thought we crashed the party.  We get that a lot as beer guys but we were dressed nice.

Jim made a great first impression on us. Very polite and interested in what we do as podcasters. Very quality gentleman! He was also nice enough to spread the word that Pittsburgh’s beer guys were in attendance which proved beneficial later.

We moved further down the suite for food and beverages which made sickpuppy a happy man as the beer taps were open. Food was fantastic and we enjoyed meeting new people before the ceremony started. Mayor Lukey started things off and was in & out faster than teenager on prom night. Jim and the dynamic duo Dave & Dave then stepped in to announce the winners of the 08 Best in Pittsburgh (on newsstands now).

Following the ceremony we met 3 extraordinary folks. Dave & Dave from Excellent Adventures fame and Sean Brady from Venture Outdoors. Sean and I talked our ears off about craft beer, the styles that interest him and what we can do to make more people aware that there are alternatives. He told us about his hikes, bike rides and hella cool outdoors activites he plans (which may or may not have beverages involved. mmm hmmm). He had us sold to the point that sickpuppy was ready for a trip! Sean’s a great guy (as is his wife!) and look forward to working with him in the future.

I don’t know what more could be said about Dave & Dave. These are the guys who you want to have a drink with, play cards, watch a game, celebrate a bris, honor America, play corn hole with. If you want a great time these are the guys to have with you. We spent a good part of the final hour chatting them up about craft beer and things we like about Pittsburgh and what we think need work (*coff*drink tax*coff*). Many thanks guys and I hope we can work together soon or at least have a beverage!

The night ended as fast as it started and in typical SIDT fashion we were the last ones to leave. Our goodie bags were well stocked with vodka, coupons and misc. items that will take a while to go through. It was an incredible experience which I hope you get to witness someday. So now some thoughts…

• I respect that there wasn’t Bud/Coors/Miller products on tap but when you’re celebrating the city try to have a few local beverages on tap. Call us, we’ll help you out.
• Business casual in Pittsburgh means jeans and polo/dress shirt will fly. I love this city!
• Beer drinkers were exiled to the other side of the room while the wine/spirits bar was right next to the food and stage.
• Traditional media needs to embrace new media. Most bloggers and podcasters would be happy to work with you to understand this new form of communication. There’s no reason to scoff or look down at us. We’re about promoting Pittsburgh so lets help each other.

PROST!

sickpuppy                       inside the suite             outside Heinz Field