My blog n'at

You’re seeing that correctly. In what could be labeled as our worst kept secret ever, we grace the pages of the March 2010 issue of Pittsburgh Magazine. I was flattered when I first learned that Jonathan Wander wanted to talk to me about the show and since it was around Podcamp Pittsburgh time I figured he was a curious fan. That’s when I found out about his intentions to write the article which left me stunned. We’re talkin USA scores with 26 seconds left in regulation of gold medal game Canadian stunned. I’ve done many interviews with beer trade magazines but never with anyone outside that realm and I honestly didn’t know how their readers would take to us.  We do carry an explicit tag but also we’re genuine on there and not some corporate bullshit. People tell me they dig that so that has to put some odds in our favor. This past January Jonathan and I talked over the phone for a solid 2 hours about the show, my life, growing up in Erie and followed it with a photo shoot at Bocktown on a Sunday afternoon. The rest was up to his creative hands.

The article is incredible and I admit, when I first saw it in print at Giant Eagle, I blushed.  Oh hell I was glowing. Only a few select people know how much work I really put into this show behind the scenes and to see it on a stage like Pittsburgh Magazine just blows my mind, even more than when we appeared in national publication DRAFT. In a way it seems like the show was validated. When you hit local there’s something even more meaningful about it. Now if someone back in my hometown of Erie calls, oh lord I’ll never shut up.

The magazine will be seen by over 250,000 readers in 10 counties (Erie included). If you can’t find it at your local Giant Eagle, Borders or Barnes & Noble you can read the online version here

Thankfully with the show I have been able to develop skills that I never thought twice about and it turned into getting my butt employed. Should I Drink That has treated me well and with the plans that I have in mind for this year, should make the experience even more amazing.

Creatively I know where I want this to go and how the whole process should flow. Does it happen that way? Hell no. In fact getting an episode of SIDT together is a huge pain in the ass but one I like to have. When we started it was “lets go to the store and see what we can buy” and now there is a dry erase board that I plan out the next few shows on. Multicolored markers too cause I’m spiffy like that. I think once Studio B is purchased and wired I’ll have a better understanding of what it is I want but until then we’re going with what’s worked.

I want to thank everyone who has supported the show.  When I was starting college I wanted to get into radio and that dream was quickly shot down by my fam. Then again they also said I would never make a living in computers and look how that turned out  Without you, my kickass friends, I would never have moved forward with long lost dream and this thing would have been over with years ago.

Thanks everyone!

cheers!

July
Began the month with recording at the BeerDependence Day celebration at Bocktown. Attended the Penguins Stanley Cup DVD Release Party. Started a contracting job at EDMC that would become the longest month of my life and that’s all I’m going to say. Enjoyed my first ever bowl of Pho. Rocked the Beer on the Bay festival in Erie which the videos are epic and may never be released. End the month being interviewed by KDKA for the Craft Beer Summit.

August
Won a 2009 Mustang! Bees invade our bathroom (landlord still has yet to remove the dead bodies). I got a full-time job in social media/web dev that has turned out to be freaking cool plus I’m on a rockstar team. Threatened Lushie with divorce after she gets rid of the Back to the Future marathon channels.

September
Attended “Best of the Burgh” at the Warhol with sickpuppy, PittGirl, Woy and Rachel. Go big time and hosted Beer School at the Cabaret downtown to a sold out crowd. Teaspoon hits 17lbs.

October
Hosted 2 sessions at Podcamp Pittsburgh 4. Should I Drink That passed 500,000 download mark. Pens start defending the Stanley Cup. Revised Google Maps errors. Celebrate 4 years of marriage with Lushie. Lay the smackdown on poor fact checking by the Post gazette about Erie. Teaspoon goes pumpkin farming.

November
I blogged the whole month. Seriously. Bought a X-box. Teaspoon’s first Thanksgiving. Wonders of fatherhood and a kid who grows like a weed. Craft Beer Dinner with Lew Bryson, Education on the Pittsburgh Potty. Making your own Bacon. BEER AT GIANT EAGLE! Yinz Bowl 2.o

December
Still living it for 5 more hours. Remembering dad on his anniversary. Hosted a Christmas beer sampling at Bocktown. Saw KISS in concert. Teaspoon’s first Christmas. Finished the school year with a 3.65GPA. SNOW!

So what do I have to look forward to in 2010?  Come back tomorrow and find out!

I have to admit that this has been the most life changing year of my life. Some good, some bad and some mind blowing kickass. Here’s a quick recap as I reflect before tonight’s festivities start. I’m splitting this up into 2 sections because lets be honest, no one will scroll through 12 months.

January
Reflected on the first beer I EVER drank and yes, I kept the bottle. Prepare for the end of my 10+ year employment at ForeSystems/Marconi/Ericsson. Bitched about the weather and yinzers inability to drive in snow plus dumb ass snow removal by my neighbors. Both of those still hold true today. Got ready for an unbelievable run to the Super Bowl

February
Steelers won the Super Bowl and became the first ever 6 time champ thus giving every knock off t-shirt maker starry eyes at the potential of “6 pack” shirts. Punxy Phil said 6 more weeks of winter. I was officially laid off, was interviewed for a Post Gazette story on unemployment moments after i was laid off (that never was published), Pens started to turn it around and the biggest shock of them all… Teaspoon arrived 2 months early making me the happiest and most terrified dad. Came in at 4.1lb, dropped to 3.2lb and would leave at 5 in March.

March
It was the month of Teaspoon. Lushie and I spent every minute we could at the Mercy NICU while he got healthy in an incubator. 28 days later he came home. Also witnessed the stupidity of some Hill District parents who think its a hotel in there and the joke that is unemployment system in PA.

April
Went to my first ever Rugby match and got addicted to watching Claire and the girls kick ass. Missed my first opening day of Pirates baseball since 1984 (watched it on TV with Teaspoon and started a new tradition with my boy). Bought a Wii. Enjoyed the greatest comeback in Pens Playoff hockey that I have witnessed as the Pens turned the series around with 1 fight and the Max Talbot shhhhhhh! Saw Beer Wars the Movie with hundreds of other craft beer fans around the world and baked an incredible beer ham for Easter.

May
Should I Drink That turned 3. Pens defeated Washington and Carolina to earn a second trip to the Stanley Cup Finals for a 2nd year. Bought a Blackberry. Joined Sadie’s Soldiers and took some Great Strides. KDKA reads my “tweet of the day” which I WISH they would bring back. The great personalized jersey debate. Meatshield welcomed his first child (i swear it was the year for kids to be born) and we had a cookout with some family. Bowling league ended and we were the undisputed champs.

June
Teaspoon’s first trip to the ER. Coming out of golf retirement after 3.5 year for a day with Yinz Teamer’s Woy, Lokay and Shireman at Cranberry Highlands. The Clarks release Restless Days after 5 years. Pens win the Stanley Cup in 7 games vs Detroit. Pittsburgh floods… again. Unemployed Utensil makes his first appearance as a way to help me get through not working. My first Father’s day and Pirates waste of talent Ian Snell cant take negative people.

up next… July through December.

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To most of you outside of Pennsylvania this may seem like a normal thing but here in the fine SW corner of the commonwealth this is a first. For the first time we are able to buy beer in a grocery store and Giant Eagle’s Market District is the place.

Nestled in the corner of newly christened Settlers Ridge the mansion of foodie heaven opened its doors this weekend. You’re here for beer though, and quite frankly that’s why I went.

Layout
There are 2 coolers. The one pictured above and then around the corner from it that is 4x’s as long. There was also a display of Christmas beers at the street entrance to the cafe. I would loved to have taken more pictures of the beer layout but there were so many people in there you wouldn’t have seen anything. If you’re familiar with Wegman’s on Upper Peach in Erie the coolers are similar. No rows of bottles though.

Selection
One worker told me they have 250 different beers which, from a bottle shop standard, is on the lower end of the spectrum but I do give them credit for going above and beyond the Bud/Miller/Coors. The cooler pictured above is for single bottles. I was pleased to the gang from Ommegang (avg price $7.99) going top shelf and joined by Brooklyn’s Local 1 and 2, Chimay, Orval (for $5! wooo) and a class from Lindemans.

Unfortunately this is the only section with freestanding bottles. Everything else is 4 , 6 or 12 packs. Overall display and appeal of setup was pretty high and everything was clearly marked with a price which is great when you’re there for a quick pickup.

Price
This is where the knife will be plunged into the heart of most bottle shops who rely on carry out beer sales. I like using Arrogant Bastard as a price gauge. That’s pretty much a staple of any craft beer store and if they stick you on that then you’re in for an expensive trip.  Market District price was $4.50, avg. bottle shop $7, restaurant price $11. Based on prices I’ve seen recently, Market District offers beverages $1-3 cheaper than most bottle shops on the singles and almost $5 cheaper on the 4 and 6 packs.

Rules

Overall
This is a huge step for craft beer in PA. I don’t see a lot of the bottle shops losing too much business since its 2 different levels of service you’re getting… for now. Market District is too new for us to know what they’re going to do in terms of events or how educated the staff will be. Local bottle shops are usually staffed with beer geeks and have a wider selection meanwhile if you need a beer in a pinch and want convenience odds have it you’ll hit the supermarket. Now with Wine and Spirit stores in many Giant Eagles you really can have a one stop shop. Local breweries who are getting their beers into these stores will now have unremarkable visibility and the BMC drinkers will hopefully get a better understanding of the varieties out there. My wish for now is that they get some aisles for single bottles and 6packs that aren’t already chilled in the coolers.

Here is the beer list for Market District.

cheers!

P.S. Oh yeah my shopping. I picked up 3 Philosophers, Sierra Nevada Harvest Ale and Orval for $19.

Sometimes trivial things piss me off but when you’re writing an article for a major newspaper such as the Pittsburgh Post Gazette I’d think that some things would be checked if your story is front page news.

Case in point…

As I opened the paper this morning I saw a story on Mad Anthony Wayne and how today is the 200th anniversary of his burial in Chester County. If you’re from Erie you know his story and most likely touched the kettle his body was boiled in which still is on display at the Erie Historical Museum. Anyway, the article states “his body rested for 12 years in an oak coffin at Presque Isle, a peninsula off Lake Erie”. It SHOULD read “his body rested for 12 years in an oak coffin at the flagpole next to Wayne Blockhouse.” Don’t believe me? click here to listen to the mp3 from the Erie Historical Society.

If you’re not from Erie or are not familiar with the area let me Google Map this bad boy for you with “A” marking the FORT Presque Isle’s location.

A little father to the right of the A is the Blockhouse which can still be visited. As you can see these are different locations. In fact there is a big ass body of water separating the 2. Most people would probably say “eh quit nit picking” but honestly this is a careless error. It took me less than 2 minutes on Google to double check stories. Now if the argument was to be made, which it shouldn’t but we’ll say it is, that the area itself was named “Presque Isle” but then that would have been noted.

If his body wasn’t boiled I bet Anthony’s ass would be chapped over this blunder.

You see that screen… that was the present Lushie gave me. It was the ripping out of my souuuuullllll! *UUGGGHH*  KHAAAAAANNNNN!

Our Starz/Encore package is gone because she wanted HBO/Cinemax to watch True Blood (and eventually Big Love). The problem? Encore is in the middle of a Back to the Future trilogy/That Thing You Do twin bill that comes around every few months. Since it’s Encore you can count on these being shown 5 times a day and yes, I watch them every single time they’re on. Doesn’t matter if I ever own these movies, if they’re on, I’ll watch. Yes, I have an unhealthy obsession with watching Marty, Doc and The Wonders.

Lushie thinks I need to seek help, I think she doesn’t appreciate the classics. First off, if you don’t appreciate Back to the Future you’re un-american. You’re a commie. This movie will stand the test of time as not only a great family movie but a fantastic guy flick. It has a sweet car, hot ladies, fights and everyone’s wish to time travel but the whole seeing our parents as youth is creepy. For the fam it has a love story, the soulful lyrics of Huey Lewis and how you can make your own future. It’s inspirational! Teaspoon LOVES watching this with daddy and every time he’s fascinated. You can be whatever and whomever you want.  See… its educational.

That Thing You Do is more of an Erie thing that I have ties to. First off it was filmed in Erie during the 90′s close to where I lived. Actually close to where everyone lived because honestly Erie isn’t THAT big. I can get from one end of town to the other in 10-15 minutes max. Secondly, I was working at Tinseltown when the movie debuted and all of the stars were coming to the theater. I spent a solid month at first annoyed hearing the music from the movie to gaining an obsessions. You get subjected to a movie 5 times a day 5-6 days a week eventually you start to lose it. It would be a good 8 years before I finally watched it again and the obsession started all over.  We’re pretty crazy in Erie, Penn   BTW, my fantasy football team is Captain Geech and the Shrimp Shack Shooters.

What should I do now? I could get the movies on DVD but why, it’s not the same. I have a few movies already that I never watch but if they come on TV I can’t turn them off. Universities should spend some time studying this instead of why people get angry when punched in the face. *sigh* I think I need a moment to mourn this loss.

HBO, help a brother out… how about a marathon.

You’re reading that right. I won a 2009 45th Anniversary red Ford Mustang. Every year the parish I belonged to in Erie gives away a new car to the person with the lucky raffle ticket and this year it was in my pocket. Kinda.  Since I moved to Pittsburgh in 1998 I haven’t had many chances to return for the festival because of obligations in town so Mom will buy tickets for myself, my brother and all of our kids. The running joke with many of us from the parish is that it is never anyone young or local who wins the car so I’m proud to be the one to end that tradition. Well the never young at least.

My phone rang Sunday night around 10:20pm with a frantic mom on the phone. I forgot that the festival was going on and thought something serious had just happened.  Here is how the call went:

Mom: Douglas, are you sitting down? (great way to start a call eh?)
Douglas: ummmmm yeah. what’s wrong
M: You will NOT believe who won the car
D: Don’t really care but who? I’m watching TV.
M: IT WAS YOU!!!
D: STFU! I did not! No one ever wins that thing!
M: You did and you need to come to Erie and get it!
D: OK but mom… what car is it? (Seriously, I didn’t even know what car it was this year)
M: 2009 Mustang!  Here talk to Bill (member from the church). He’ll give you the details.

From there the dream quickly began to change. I had the choice for $10,000 or the car. The catch, the Mustang is a coupe and has NO room for a baby seat. There I sat speechless, father of a 5 month old and in dire need of a new family car. I would call Bill back in the morning and tell him my decision. Before I was even off the phone Facebook and Twitter was already buzzing from people at the festival announcing I was the winner. Calls and txt messages started coming in faster than when Teaspoon was born.

I can already sense everyone reading this going “oh no…”

After much debating, calming down and thinking logically we had made the decision. We have to trade in the car. If I this was even 1.5 years ago it would be a no brainer to keep the car (even store it) but the responsible father in me says “trade it in and get something for the family” and that’s what we did. We have 2 cars already with high mileage that we dumped a good chunk of change into this summer (nice when you’re laid off, huh) so we thought this was the sign.

This past Monday I drove up to the dealership with Lushie, told them I was trading in the car and needed to find something new. We spent the next few hours car shopping and test driving before we settled on a vehicle. (Now I’m not telling you what we’re getting cuz I know you crazy ass stalkers will get all “OMG! it’s spoon’s car! Hurry up get a picture and add it to our shrine because we crazy ass”. Yeah I don’t need that.) We would trade in the Mustang and one of our cars, which we owed on, for a new ride. Now it will be a couple weeks for the title transfer but until then its sit and wait as I know the anticipation will kill me. The way we saw it was “We got rid of the old high mileage car which we owed on for a newer vehicle and long kickass warranty and no car payments.” Besides, I won a car!

While it’s bittersweet to make this trade I did have to laugh at this fact. My dad worked that car booth at the festival for over 30 years and was the voice of the festival which could be heard for up to 5 blocks away. Now 3 years after he passed, his son wins the car.

That’s me on the day the Pirates clinched the 1991 NL East title at 3 Rivers Stadium.

I love today, opening day of baseball. All of that hope for a winning season but unfortunately here in Pittsburgh we haven’t had that enjoyment for 16 years. Dejan, whom I think is the best sports writer ever to grace this town, wrote about things that have happened since the Pirates last had a winning season. On the verge of setting a major professional sports record of consecutive losing seasons at 17 I thought I’d put together a list of my own things that have happened since October of 1992.

• I had 1 niece at the time and she was 2. She’s now in college.
• I was 16 then, I’m 33 now.
• I stopped listening to Boyz II Men when I picked up a CD from this new band called Pearl Jam.
• Dallas Stars played in Minnesota, Colorado Avalanche were the Quebec Nordiques, Phoenix Coyotes still skated as the Winnipeg Jets and the Hartford Whalers never expected to be in Carolina.
• I averaged 15-20 Pirates games a summer while I lived in Erie. Living in Pittsburgh it’s 2.
• I hated computers unless I was playing Oregon Trail. Now, well you can figure that out.
• My best friend Tom and I would watch baseball games with the volume down and record ourselves on cassette tape doing the Play-By-Play. Now I have an internet radio show with over hundreds of thousands of downloads.
• In 1992 I drank my first beer, Golden Anniversary. Today I co-host a craft beer podcast and write beer reviews.

Teaspoon is only 5 weeks old. I hope that I can take him to see a winning team before he’s in high school. Then again I bet my brother said that after is oldest son was born too… 16 years ago.

So far I have:

• Started the gym thing again
• Stayed offline as much as I could while on vacation (not including job searches)
• Got the layoff (as in unemployment, not a typo’d playoff) beard started
• Watched a lot of Welcome Back Kotter
• Had a vision of how this site will be redesigned
• Made the rough sketch of a business idea that I’ll probably never do because it’s so badass the world couldn’t contain its awesomeness. Srsly.
• Created a baby registry and will have it public shortly.
• Registered for baby CPR classes
• Came up with another idea for a blog, just need a name for it.
• Kept my promise of 2009 being a bigger year for SIDT

OK that last one is vague but it has to be for now. How do we top being in national publications? You’ll find out shortly. Somehow I have been sucked into the enjoyment of new media marketing and pushing SIDT further. Sponsors maybe? exclusive road trips? bigger contests? Subscribe and you can have the next 11.5 months to find out

Here are some more random things…

• My bowling still is the sucketh. Maybe if I actually bought a decent ball and had time to practice I would be better. Maybe I could bring world peace but I don’t see that happening either.

• All of my in-laws are Penn State fans. I grew up loving and attended PITT. You can imagine what my holidays are like. 80 million vs one. Lushie eggs them on.

• We had an incredible meal at a new local restaurant. Manager asked me to suggest a new craft beer menu. That’s right, hell hath frozen over.

• Listening to Pearl Jam’s 10 and VS right now. I’m not kidding. There hasn’t been a greater band since.

• Bitch all you want that the Pens are the sucketh right now but they’re only 7 points out of first in the Atlantic or 3.5 games to you baseball folk. Beating Atlanta last night was like Kramer fighting kids. You’re expected to win and all it does is build confidence for playing Nashville, the “How did you get invited to the party?” of the NHL.

Escape is never the safest place. A dissident is here.

A few people asked me about this video over email so I thought I’d post the link to it. The tribute was made by the funeral home and a nun from his parish.

I had this ungodly long post recapping my last 10 years here but though you’d be sleeping by the second paragraph. Maybe I’ll post various stories throughout the year. Onward with the brevity version!

10 years ago today I packed up the U-haul and left Erie for the last time and made my way down I-79 in my beat up 84 Cavalier with studded snow tires to a new city and new job. Ironically both of which I’m still at… well for a few more months at least (*HA*). I was 22, making stupid choices and living carefree while drinking Franzia with Griff. Yeah, life was good. Now I’m 32, married, my first child on the way and a responsible adult. OK, I try on that last one at least.

Last weekend my mom asked me, as I was driving her home, if I would ever move back to Erie. There have been times I’ve thought about it but the job scene is non existent for my field of work. The cost of living is hella cheaper than Pittsburgh but what is there for me to do? Work retail again? Yeah idontfreakingthinksobob. I’ve had business ideas for Erie but honestly with the little guy coming in a few months entertaining such an idea is crazy insane. Looking back, moving was the best thing I could have done at that time. Sometimes you need to take time away to see how things really are.

I like the city. No, I LOVE this city. When I was moving in at 22 I was all about living in Oakland, going to the bars and house parties with my girlfriend and playing Frisbee. Now my interests are learning the history of the region, tasting the local cuisine, feeding my addiction to the hockey and involvement in the local craft beer and new/social media scene. Pittsburgh has made me who I am today and for that I’m thankful.

Here are random things I’ve learned over the last 10 years:

• How to speak Pittsburghese and what a “gumband” is.
• Fries and slaw are essential for a sandwich
• Pittsburghers may be blue collar and tough people but once there is moisture in the air they freak the hell out.
• People are terrified of driving over bridges or through tunnels unless it’s for work.
• There are still more mullets per square foot here than anywhere below the Mason Dixon line.
• The whole belt system is to screw with the newbies in the area. If you get lost look for the Cathedral of Learning.
• I think most people cheated on their driver’s exam. See this video for proof
• I can now pronounce and spell Monongahela
• WDVE = WRKT. No wonder Randy made an easy transition.
• Plenty of Erie transplants to joke around with about the snow and yinzer inability to drive in it.
• There is no East Side/West Side rivalry. Instead everyone gets along unless they have to drive on your parkway.
• Fireworks will occur on a random Tuesday because someone has a hinkerin for some BOOM BOOM… in the middle of the day.
• Yinzers tailgate EVERYTHING. No kidding, check out this lady at the hospital!
• Gas is always a couple cents more per gallon down here so please quit asking what the price is.  It’s also warmer. We have an invisible wall at I-80
• The reason why we pay $5 Miller Lite whereas Erie pays $1.50 at the bar is due to the fact… people are fools. Seriously, $5 for a Miller Lite? Both of you still drink Corona with a lime so we’ll call it a draw. That’s lame, not fashionable and is worthy of a bitchslap. *sigh* tragic
• Cars randomly catch on fire every morning on any parkway.
• Pittsburgh has traffic reporters with 3D maps. Erie has “Peach street is jammed for a 10 minute wait… back to you.”
• Pittsburgh has more hi-tech weather equipment and reporters to tell you there is a quarter of a half of an eighth of rain on the ground. In Erie all we needed to do was look out the window and see if we need to shovel or get the blower. You got in your car and drove.
• Loyalty. No matter where you go, if you say you’re from Pittsburgh you will always find a friend.

Could I give all of this up? Would I?

I dont think so.