the Thoughts of Dennis Gerik

Archive for the ‘Random Thoughts’ Category

“Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.”
- Benjamin Franklin

That quote might a bit of a stretch, but there’s no doubt that beer is indeed popular. Now, while beer has nothing to do with the Internet and Internet Marketing, it is something that I do enjoy from time to time. And after a rather LONG hiatus, I began to once again brew my own beer.  The Brewing Kit that I use for my homebrews is called Mr.Beer® Ultimate Brewing Package and I thought I would tell you about it, just in case, there are other home-brew enthusiasts out there that don’t know about this cool like brew system.

So why would I brew my own when it’s just as easy to head to my favorite store and pick up a 6-pack?

Because it’s fun, it can taste better than store bought, and it’s potentially cheaper than the six pack from my favorite.

I also look at it the same way as I do building my own PCs: I could buy a PC from any number of PC makers, but I’d rather build my own PC exactly the way I want it. It certainly takes more work walking into Best Buy and saying “I want that one”! But I know exactly what I’m getting and I don’t have to subject myself to BloatWare or CrapWare.

Well, I feel the very same way about brewing my own beer!

I actually have to thank my Father-In-Law for introducing me to this fine hobby.  As, before he told me about Mr.Beer®, I thought it was difficult, complex and something best left to the pros. Mainly because, with most homebrew setups, you have to produce 5 gallons at a time. Which is great if you like a LOT of the same beer.  But you’ve got to have some place to do all this, not to mention where the heck are you going to store 5 gallons worth of bottled beer. Besides, who wants to drink the same beer day in and day out? Which is exactly what you’d be doing with 5 gallons of beer laying about!

But, now I have my Mr.Beer® kit, and I’m a Home Brewmiester-Extraordinaire.

This little brew kit makes darn good beer and I love tinkering and coming up with new recipes.  I particularly love making fruit-based brews, like Blasted Apricot Weizen and Raspberry Ale…(two of which are currently fermenting in the closet).

So, if you are the least bit interesting in Home Brewing, I wholeheartedly recommend you check out this kit (and buy you a couple of kegs to get started).

Below, you see the kit that I got, and its a PRETTY GOOD deal.

MR.BEER Ultimate Beer Kit Brewing System

This Ultimate Beer Brewing Kit comes complete with everything you need to brew and bottle 7 great-tasting batches of beer — this Brew Kit also contains all of the necessary brewing tools and lots of extras. This kit is designed with simplicity and ease of use in mind.  And, it provides great, reliable results every time you brew. With over 650K kits sold Mr.Beer¨ is the most popular home beer brewing system in the world! AND IT MAKES A GREAT GIFT!  Get one for yourself and give one to your best buddy.

I just met someone that I felt I had to tell y’all about…

Her name is Kathleen Gresham… she’s gotta blog called

Talk Like a Texan (http://www.talklikeatexan.com)

There, she lets everyone in on the meaning of some of our favorite sayings.

Check it, I think y’all will like it.

I got to thinking the other day about what it is that I like about being an “At-Home” parent…

And boy…they are numerous, here are a few:

• Waking up when you want (sorta)
  (you just swap an alarm clock to the sound of little feet running down the hall.
• Having morning coffee and eating breakfast with the boys.
• Being there to put ‘em down for naptime.
• Going to the park, just because we feel like it.
• Taking off in the afternoon for no particular reason.
• Going to pre-school.
• and… most importantly… remembering what it was like to be a kid

So, what do you like about being an “At-Home” Parent?