Reflection in Photos
Image via Wikipedia
I am sure there were many great photos of 2011 and many not yet discovered. Everyone seems to have a camera these days due to technology. We all have begun to reflect on the year that’s almost behind us. I remember these captured moments that spoke volumes. No need to caption or analyze by the media, the picture says it all. My favorite was the Vancouver Kissing Couple. A powerful piece that demonstrated good things can happen in the worst of situations. Is the photo staged, doesn’t matter to me. It reminds me that every once in a while the media gets it right, instead of focusing on what wrong they focus on the positive things in our world.
My second would be the female Pearl Harbor firefighters working together putting out a fire. Even though the event was many years ago, it got highlighted in 2011. The photo reminded me that regardless of our demographics we can work together, do what we know must get done. I think we really need to get to that point in our world, dump the labeling and focus on the common goal.
My third was President Barrack Obama and the National Security Team watching Seal Team 6 conduct the raid on Osama Bin Laden‘s compound. Regardless if you like the president or not, his team of advisors and direction of the nation, you can put your eyes on this photo and read the expressions on the faces in the room. You cannot say that some of the heaviest decisions rest on the shoulders of these people, they make the decisions that result in life and death. Harry Truman spoke about his decision to drop the atomic bombs on Japan, its something he lived with the rest of his life. Future generations looking back will decide if we made the right choices for sustainable development. We make decisions based on the information that’s present, President Truman and the Scientific communityhad no idea the effects of radiations sickness at that time. I’m sure President Truman would have liked to have known what President Barrack Obama would like to know now, What are the consequences for my decisions and how will they impact future generations? There is no crystal ball.
Image via Wikipedia
The fourth photo of the year that captured my attention was two lights from the former site of the World Trade Centers shine for the 10th anniversary of 9/11. Extremely powerful as we look back on the past ten years. I only can a little more closure with the dedicated memorial, the death the terrorist behind the attacks and one of the two wars have come to a close. Each time I see these lights shining it takes me back to where I was at when I saw live on the news the second plane crash into the towers. That event changed my life because I was in the then and serving abroad in Egypt during the terrorist attacks. It also reminds me of all those I have lost over the last ten years and the things that I take for granted living in the land of the free.
The fifth but not the last is a protester stands in front of a burning barricade during a demonstration in Cairo January 28, 2011. Regardless of where, who or when, in 2011 people all over the world to include the United States stood up for themselves time after time, some triumphed. You cannot repress the will of the people.
Related articles
- Pearl Harbor Female Firefighters Mystery Solved (huffingtonpost.com)
- Vancouver’s ‘Riot Romeo’ heads home (cnews.canoe.ca)
- Pictures of the year: The best photos from 2011 (theglobeandmail.com)
- Six months after Vancouver riot kiss: Where are those crazy lovebirds? (seattlepi.com)
Home Brewing
Home brewing is something I’ve wanted to experience for the past year because I enjoy being a beer scout, always searching and tasting new beers. This gives me a step up and will be a new learning experience along side that I’ll be a little more in tune with the different types and styles of beer. I began to explore craft beer about two years ago and tasted the large labels less than a dozen times once I started, I was immediately hooked. Before then I only drank large labels switching back and forth among the Anheuser-Busch product line. I was a loyalist being from the edge of the Greater St. Louis area. I enjoyed it so much that on Christmas my girlfriend gifted me a Mr. Beer kit.
The process is simple and didn’t really take but an hour for the first batch. I really wanted to take my time and understand what I was doing and follow everything to the T. Sanitation of the keg and utensils is the mot important step in the process. You want to kill any microscopic bacteria, yeast and molds that may throw off your beers flavor. Brewing is the cooking part and where you end with starting the fermenting process. In the brewing process you want to attempt to use bottled spring water or charcoal-filtered tap water, avoid using water from reverse osmosis or water softeners. You begin the brewing by adding water and the Booster slowly as you mix. I prefer using the whisk and not a metal spoon, either is acceptable. Ensure your utensils are metal and don’t use wood or plastic. After the Booster dissolves you bring the mixture to a boil, remove the pan and mixture from the heat and add the West Coast Pale Ale, stirring it as I added. This becomes the wart. I poured the wort into the keg and finished filling with cold water as I stirred. Then you sprinkle the yeast and wait five more minutes before you stir. This is pitching yeast and begins fermentation. I placed the top back on my keg and placed out of direct sunlight and in an area that would be about 68-76 degrees, while I wait 7-14 days. The closer you get to 14 days the better the flavor you will receive.
Just a brief summary of the first couple steps but we are well on our way to having some home-brewed Pale Ale. Check back in two weeks for the bottling and carbonating blog. Meanwhile, check out the articles below to tie you over till then.
My First Home Brew
Related articles
- I am a Homebrewer II – five more reasons to become a homebrewer (52beers.wordpress.com)
- Top Two Breweries of 2011 (waituntilnextyear.com)
- How to Make Beer At Home For A Great Tasting Beer (kitchenmall.wordpress.com)
- Brewing and Bottling (nmichaelhawe.wordpress.com)
- Mr. Beer Premium Edition Home Beer Kit – $19.99 (woot.com)
Gentleman Three-Sixty-Six
Gentleman Three-Sixty-Six is a guide to becoming a gentleman. You and I will embark on this journey and find the lost art. Together we will overturn the habits of being shrewd, loose, obnoxious, and uncivilized world. Taking the knowledge we gain and apply it to the 21st century, learning from the examples of gentleman of the 19th and 20th centuries. A gentleman is civil, educated, sensitive and well-mannered who demonstrates honesty and respect. He should attract people, success and be a leader. Being a gentleman isn’t just about dueling, opening doors and taking your hat off at the table. A gentleman holds himself in the highest state regardless of the situation he may find himself. We will discover etiquette, dress, events, writing, education, people, food, liquor, cigars, and relationships among many other items that come our way. Why three-sixty-six? The year 2012 is a leap year so of course the first entry will post on January 1st, 2012 and continue everyday as I discover the lost art of being a gentleman. Everyday we will learn a new tip or trade to becoming the greatest gentleman. The goal is to discover everything gentlemanly, to take after those like Theodore Roosevelt and other gentleman that came before us, learning from the examples they set, and placing ourselves in the league of gentlemen. Take advantage of the opportunity that is in front of you. Reclaim your career, relationships and your life. Stay tuned or check back January 1st. To make life easier, click the follow button to get updates as new material publishes.
Related articles
- How to be the Perfect Business Gentleman (beatruepro.wordpress.com)
- A True Lady or Gentleman (gregghake.com)
- “A Gentleman Deserves Better” (gentlemanscanteen.wordpress.com)
- Bereolaesque:The Contemporary Gentleman & Etiquette Book for the Urban Sophisticate (jacksonspeeks.com)
- Gentleman Three-Sixty-Six (gentlemanscanteen.wordpress.com)
- I Beg your Pardon…A New Dawn. (gentlemanscanteen.wordpress.com)
- Gentlemen Please! (gentlemanscanteen.wordpress.com)
- Three Steps to be a Gentleman (gentlemanscanteen.wordpress.com)
- The American Gentleman Magazine (gentlemanscanteen.wordpress.com)
- Skills of a Gentleman: Small Talk (gentlemanscanteen.wordpress.com)
- The Love Letter Challenge (gentlemanscanteen.wordpress.com)
Learning to Write Again
Image by Ken Whytock via Flickr
Starting the blog made me realize that I need to brush up on my grammar skills but then I realized as I began my research it’s not necessarily the grammar. The common person generally has decent grammar ground into them that requires a little tidying up. I decided over the next few weeks to re-engage my composition book from a college class, The Modern Writer’s Handbook, Fifth Edition, by Frank O’Hare and Robert Funk. The first four chapters deal with the writing process. Deciding to start there I began to read and not even past the first page I realized the biggest problem isn’t with grammar, it’s the writing process. The first paragraph talks about writing and jumping around to different topics without keeping focus. For example: I start writing about a vague topic, relationships, then as I write my topic gets more focused on Nuclear Family, then transitioning to the relationship of the couple. As we write we transition in our writing and by the time we finish reading an essay or article we are not reading what we started. How do I fix this, read Chapters 1 through 4 of The Modern Writer’s Handbook. Just kidding, keep reading.
I outlined just some of the topics in the book and plan to elaborate a little more as I apply the same techniques. Everyone will eventually develop their own writing style and writing process. This is one method that may help you as you go forward.
I. Prewriting
A. Find a Topic
B. Generate Content
C. Determine the Purpose
D. Identify your Audience
II. Plan and Draft
A. Write a Thesis
B. Plan and Outline
C. Write your First Draft
III. Revisions
A. Revise Top Down
B. Revise your Style
C. Get a Peer Review
D. Edit and Proofread
IV. Build a Coherent Paragraph
A. Unity
B. Organizational Strategies
C. Patterns of Development
D. Transition
E. Introductory Paragraph
Conclusion Paragraph
As I begin to regurgitate this information again and begin the writing process I’ll elaborate on each on of these topics and clarify those that may spark an interest. Just from making reading and writing the outline above, I’ve already realized what I can do to make my writing better. This writing process applies to any form of writing, blogging, essay, book, papers, articles, etcetera. I hope you find it as useful as I do and your composition becomes organized and stronger.
Other Sources
The Writing Process - DailyWritingTips.com
Starting the Writing Process - Purdue Online Writing Lab
The Writing Process - Cleveland State University
Stages of the Writing Process - The University of Wisconsin-Madison
