.Sasha of the Day

. Sasha of the Day

. Favourite Things of the Year

Favourite Album 
Adventures in Your Own Back Yard by Patrick Watson

Dreamy folky rock pop.  Like Jeff Buckley or Rufus Wainright or Antony and the Johnsons without the histrionics.

Favourite Movie
Sleepwalk With Me

Mike Birgbiglia's one-man show transformed into a movie about a struggling stand-up comedian with doubts about his relationship and a sleepwalking problem.  It's not Batman.

Favourite Book 

Fairy Tales frrom the Grimm Brothers by Philip Pullman

A new translation by the guy that wrote The Golden Compass.   Read these stories out loud to each other before bed.  Stop when one of you falls asleep.

 

Favourite Video Game
Journey

Float around the desert in a poncho with no arms and an ever-expanding scarf.  If you play online you may be joined by strangers, so don't play online.

Favourite Co-op Video Game
Borderlands 2

Kill the bad guys, steal their stuff, sell your old stuff, kill more bad guys, steal more stuff, etc.  If you play online your friends may distract you from the pointlessness of it all, so do play online.



Favourite Card Game
Cards Against Humanity

Apples to Apples for mean drunks.

Favourite TV Show
Andrew Marr's History of the World
 

An eight part history of civilisation, dumbed down for idiots like us, with low-budget dramatisations of key historical events.  It could have been awful, and maybe it was.  But we loved it.  Especially Andrew Marr's ears.

 

Favourite Christmas Special 

Dr Who - The Snowmen

 

New Tardis, new side-kick, Ian Mckellen, Richard E. Grant, and an army of killer snowmen.  Best episode in ages.

 

Favourite Christmas Card
Bigtop Design

We didn't get around to making Christmas cards this year due to several unforseeable events and generally being a bit crap. Sorry.  The one above is by our old (really very old) friends James and Amy (left and centre right).  Go here to see previous years.



Favourite App
Find My Friends

Make sure your friends are where they're supposed to be at all times.  Watch as they move from place to place.  Hours of fun.

Favourite Comic Book
Goliath by Tom Gauld
 

The story of David and Goliath from the giant's point of view.  Tragic and darkly funny.  Not a lot of action, but plenty of pensive waiting around.  

Favourite Podcast
Stop Podcasting Yourself
 

Still the very best podcast to listen to while you're cooking Sunday dinner and having a beer.

 

Favourite Beer
Pliny the Elder.
 

Still the very best beer to drink while you're cooking Sunday dinner and listening to Stop Podcasting Yourself. 

Favourite Bar
Southern Pacific Brewing
 

A big warehouse with trees inside, and lots of seating, and crispy brussel sprouts with apricot and orange glaze.  And good beers.  And whiskys.

 

Favourite Whiskey
Glenfarclas 30 Year Single Malt
 

This was our favourite Drink by the Dram from the whisky advent calendar.  Rich, dark, spicy, and rubbery on the tail, apparently.

 

Favourite Whiskey Shop
Cask
 

To be honest, I've never been.  But Nif says this place is great, and I believe her.  Lot's of whisky and whiskey cocktail stuff.  And a ladder.

Favourite Olive
Castelvetrano

Milder than your average olive.  Buttery, maybe?  Apparently 2009 was the year of the Castelvetrano olive.  So I'm only three years behind the curve.  That's pretty good for me.

Happy New year!

.Sasha of the Day

. Advent 3

December 4th - The Macallan, 21 year old single malt.  I don't remember what this one is like, but I have been taking comprehensive tasting notes.  For the Macallan I wrote, "Yum."

December 5th - Lagavulin 16 year old single malt.  For this one I wrote "Smokey."

December 6th - Pikesville Straight Rye.  "Clean, simple, delicious."

December 7th - Caol Ils 12 year old single malt.  "There's something about really smokey whiskey that reminds me of urinal cake."

17 days to Christmas.

. Blintzes

Hanukkah has begun, so I am making blintzes, not to be confused with blinis, which are thicker and more Old Testament.

I think you can put whatever you want in them.  Mine are potato, onion, mushroom, caraway seeds, and vegan cheese, from a recipe by top Jewish vegan Isa Chandra Moskowitz in the fantastic Veganomicon cookbook.  Buy yours today.

. Advent 2

December 2nd - An 8 year old blend from Ian Macleod, not the Tory politician, or the Brummie science fiction writer, or the South African football referee, or the Coronation Street Story Editor who killed Jack Duckworth, but the Ian Macleod who makes whiskey on the Isle Of Sky.  Smooth, and slightly smokey, but not too smokey.  

December 3rd - Aultmore 5 year old single cask.  This one is super strong - 67% abv - and tasty.

. Adventure

Christmas is coming, but how fast is it coming?  The best way to keep track is with a whiskey advent calendar.

It's December 1st already, so we'd better get started.  What's behind door number one?

A Dalmore 12 year old single malt, matured mostly in old bourbon casks, and briefly in old sherry casks.  Sweet, light and just a bit spicy, says Nif.

The Dalmore distillery is in Scotland, 20 miles north of Inverness.  It is owned by an Indian conglomerate that also makes beer, airplanes and fertilizer.

. Pop-up Holiday Art Thingy

Pip-pip in on one of those impromptu pop-pop things...

  

Artists   ::    Susan Belau  *  nif hodgson  *  Eunkang Koh  *  Eileen Macdonald

Date        ::    Sunday December 2nd, 11am-5pm

Place          ::    Hunters Point Shipyard  ~  Bldg 101, Studio 2410 

Directions      ::    http://www.shipyardartists.com/maps/maps.html

. Doodles 9

. Some pictures of Sasha

Here are some pictures of our cat Sasha.  She's pretty great.