DAMN!!! Sorry y'all... been a while!

Good Afternoon Ladies & Gentlemen,

Alright, finally getting a few minutes to blog… and tell you about my favorite time of year… CHRISTMAS!!! Well, at least my adventures in Utah during Christmas!!! Basically, the day that I flew in, I showed up early, it was really cold… and it was going to warm up the next day so that it could snow for 2-3 days straight… then go back to really cold. That’s weather in Utah in December, back to you Melissa!!! (“Thanks Steve, unrest in the Middle East as…”)

The first day, I stayed in Salt Lake City area… but my mom came and joined me, so we went to see some of the sights… like the Christmas Lights at Temple Square…

The next morning, we went to the fairly new Loveland Living Planet Aquarium, which is a LOT better than what the aquarium used to be in Utah… here are some pictures but… definitely check it out if you’re in the area…

Then we headed to This is The Place Memorial up in the foothills. This is the located where Brigham Young, leader of the Mormon party of pioneers that were cast from Missouri basically decided to set up shop for a new State of Deseret back when NOBODY was in the area, except maybe some Native Americans. Basically, after their long journey across the Rocky Mountains, they found a stream, saw a barren salty desert ahead of them as far as the eye could see (Western Utah & Nevada) and said, “This is the Place!” Probably followed by “F**k it, we’re done! Unload! I ain’t going any further!” Anyway, the Memorial is pretty cool and has a LOT of buildings that were built exactly as they were back in the day in surprising detail… and there was a cool train that took you around…

The next day, there was the Family Christmas Party with… I don’t know, probably 200 in attendance… kind of a small turnout this year… my mom is one of 17 children… and they’re all (grand)parents-plus now…

Then there was my brother introducing me to Playstation VR… and I was skeptic. I’ve used VR machines in the past… and it was pretty cool… but eh. HOWEVER!!! This Playstation VR setup… was pretty f**king awesome!!! My brother had no hesitations in putting me RIGHT INTO the freakiest stuff too… like an Underwater Shark Encounter, being part of a Saw-like scenario, open-heart surgery, all kinds of stuff. It was pretty cool! I highly recommend checking it out… but be prepared for some eyes adjusting headaches and stuff like that…

Christmas Morning was at my brother’s house…

Christmas Day was at my Aunt Pat’s house…

Christmas Night was at my Mom’s house… and Izzy & I got a GoPro Hero Session, a Christmas Ornament, some drinking glasses, and a horrifying unicorn mask. However, the snow was really coming down, so it was just me, my mom & my stepdad (sleeping) so we watched some movies…

 Then a few days later, back home with my lovely wife...

The next days after that, I was pretty sick (as was everybody around me leading up to it) so not much else to tell… but Christmas is amazing! I love spending time with my family! I miss those little sh*ts like all the time… and I’m sure they miss me too… but yeah, I was also glad to be back home to my wife after a week away! I kinda love & miss her too! CHRISTMAS!!! Anyway, love & miss y’all as well… and it’s among my resolutions to update this more often… but if you’re missing me, follow the Everything I Learned From Movies podcast(eilfm.podbean.com) and you know how to find me on Facebook. If not, reach out to me!!! I’ll get you connected on the latest info. Until then, have a great day everybody!!! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Grandma Cruise 2016

Good Afternoon Ladies & Gentlemen,

 

Day 1 – Disneyland

 

Well, we drove down Thursday night and got to our hotel in Anaheim around 2 AM, taking a quick nap before venturing into the Happiest Spookiest Place on Earth – DISNEYLAND!!! Our first stop was apparently the most popular attraction this time of year… the Haunted Mansion, redone to be Nightmare Before Christmas…

 

Here are some other pictures from our adventures at Disneyland, we also met up with my brother & his family who had been in town a day earlier…

 

By the way, did you know that Disney owns Star Wars now? And Marvel? And… I think just about everything that you love?

 

Day 2 – Knott’s Berry/Scary Farm

 

The next day, we got a good night’s sleep & headed out to Knott’s Berry Farm, also draped for the spookiest holiday of the year. I love Knott’s, even more than Disneyland. It’s just… well, less ridiculously expensive… but also a lot more rides (yes, I know Disney’s California Adventure has a lot to compare) and just a pretty cool vibe to it. Anyway, here are some pictures…

 

 

After the park, we headed back to Anaheim and had a drink at Noble Ale Works… pretty good stuff they’ve got brewing there… I really liked their “The Festbier Ever” and “Irish I Was A Little Bit Taller” selections…

 

Day 3 – Boarding the Ship

 

The next day was basically meeting up with about 30 of my closest relatives for a wonderful three-day cruise!!!

 

Day 4 – Catalina Island

 

Beautiful morning on the quiet island of Catalina (I assume eerily quiet when there aren’t cruise ships in port)…

 

Wandering around the main drive, we stopped by Catalina Island Brewhouse for a quick beer (it was close enough to noon, so don’t judge) while we waited for our snorkeling excursion…

  

Unfortunately the tide was high due to a Supermoon & the waves were pretty choppy, so snorkeling was cancelled… but we saved money with the difference & still were able to catch a Glass Bottomed Boat so we could still see some fishies…

 

Then it was back to the boat for family time…

 

Day 5 – Ensenada, Mexico

 

Our Mexican excursion started with a drive from the port out to their wine country and a stop at Ochentos Pizza & El Chivo Grunon Brewery, which is a pretty awesome place. They’re first & foremost, a popular pizza place that guys from San Diego/Ensenada started on their family’s land… and even started a craft brewery in their grandmother’s former home (it’s pretty small as you’ll see). The guy showing us around had a super hipster moustache… but seemed pretty cool… here are the pictures…

 

Next stop was a slightly larger brewery called Wendlandt Cerveceria where they had a tap room, distribution channels, and all that stuff… but still pretty little known. We had tasters of all their beers on tap… and they were all pretty good…

 

  

Next up was a LEGIT street taco place called Taqueria El Flamazo, where they had some great tacos with Cabeza (head meat) & a giant spit of marinated pork (al pastor) that they just shaved the meat off into the taco & it was just heavenly… here are some pictures…

 

On the way back on the bus, we took the scenic route to get an overview of Ensenada…

 

Basically from there we did a little shopping downtown for souvenirs, my cousin Alicia learned about poverty secondhand, and then we made our way back to the ship to celebrate my Grandma’s 80^th Birthday Dinner!!!

 

Day 6 – Day at Sea

 

The day at sea was pretty low key… and involved Izzy & I taking down a 101 ounce Beer Tube in… about thirty minutes… and we even paced ourselves.

 

There was a lot of chilling in the sun, eating entirely too much, relaxing in the room, and we spent the evening watching comedy shows & hanging with the family… great times with great peeps!!!

 

Day 7 – Back on Land

 

The next morning, Izzy & I went to see the Queen Mary, a former British warship / luxury cruiseliner that Winston Churchill used to transport himself during WWII across the Atlantic… and is now a sunken hotel / museum there at the port. It was incredibly interesting… here are some pictures…

 

 

We also had a nice six-hour drive back during a heatwave (100+ in the Central Valley in mid-October) so we headed home… and apparently the heat or something caught up with me & I was sick the next day. It sucked… but it was also on a Friday so, work got pushed back a few days. No complaints there.

 

We also got a barrel for potting plants…

 

We also brewed our entry for the Iron Brewer Competition that is going on with one of our favorite breweries, Ferment.Drink.Repeat! This competition presents brewers with a  secret ingredient a la Iron Chef… and our secret ingredient is… (whooshing noises from the Chairman’s nephew)… FENNEL!!!!!!! So with that in mind, we brewed… Extinction Fennel Event!!!

 

Anyway, busy time, I know that I’m not keeping up on this thing… but I’m trying. Blame my job… it’s cuckoo bananas busy… all the time… and they’ll never hire enough people to help… because why would they when they have the greatest employee EVER!!! Have a great day everybody!!!