My Favorite Place to Buy Beer
Next week is American Craft Beer Week, and in anticipation I thought I’d highlight my favorite local liquor store: Miller’s Liquor.
Not only have their customers called me a tall drink of water, on one occasion, but I’m always sure to find the exact beer I’m looking for (save Austin Beerworks. Sigh). One time, I picked up three 6-packs in Austin, thinking I wouldn’t be able to find those beers in Beaumont. I dropped by Miller’s and saw all three prominently displayed on an end-cap. I vowed never to doubt Miller’s again.
I hear they have St. Arnold’s Icon Series on sale… so it’s worth stopping by for a peek at their selection.
Stay tuned… my May 9th review covers all of the local bars that offer a worth-while craft selection, including a few surprising finds!
The Reality of Charity and Geckos
The other day, as I pulled out of my apartment complex, I noticed something moving on my windshield. Suddenly, a little green face poked out from between my windshield wipers. It was a gecko, who had taken a sun nap on the hood of my car, only to be rudely awakened by his bed accelerating to 60 miles per hour.
As I reached halfway to the speed limit, I saw his increasing frustration, trying helplessly, legs sprawled out and flailing, to find a less windy position.
Then, he looked straight into my eyes and, I blame Geico commercials for this, gave me the saddest look. As if to say, “Why are you doing this to me?”
It broke my heart. Watching his little feet try to grasp at my windshield, shooting me dirty looks as if I was a monster, silently lamenting his life choices and praying to his gecko god to save him. As soon as I could manage it, I pulled over onto the side of the road.
Now, while I was frantically checking my mirrors to find a safe retreat, I pictured the rescue scenario. Me, giant sunglasses and all, cupping the little gecko and releasing him into a field of green grass. I’d wipe a tear from my eyes, and head on to my meeting with a story of Christina the Great Humanitarian to share with my more-charitable friends.
And then, reality.
I exited my car and rushed to the other side, where I could grab the gecko out of reach of cars going upwards of 60 miles an hour, probably more. Only, every time my fingers grazed the gecko, he escaped my grasp.
At this point, I was alternating between laughter and scorns at the gecko. “I’m only trying to save you!” I screamed into the wind as he ran away thinking, “Eff you random giant stranger who probably wants to eat me!”
I imagined what I looked like to the passersby – a tall girl with a bun and flowers in her hair, rocking Daft Punk-esque sunglasses and a lace vest. Trying to save a gecko from the roof of her car next to a busy highway.
Soon I’d unwittingly pushed the gecko to the other side of my car. I braved traffic only inches from my exposed body, on my tiptoes still reaching for that stupid lizard.
When I’d finally, clumsily, pushed him off the roof of my car and onto the ground, he scattered quickly to a shady spot – right underneath my tires. I sighed and got back in my car, waited for a few minutes, hoping the gecko would take the head start to remove himself from the path of my wheels, and drove off, listening carefully for any sound or squish that would indicate all my efforts were in vain.
I didn’t feel bad – I’d done all I could to help the thing, and with no audible thank you.
A few minutes later my finger began to itch. I pictured all the things that gecko had probably stepped in -poison ivy, no doubt. I saved a gecko and all I had to show for it was a rash.
Give your mind a joyous vacation.
“Give your mind a joyous vacation,” a friend said to me over drinks recently.
At that moment, I sat in a funk, unable to catch the bartender’s attention to exchange my currency for an ice cold beer. A friend walked over, ordered my drink, and sat across from me.
What Does Planned Parenthood Really Do
In light of recent issues regarding the Susan G. Komen Foundation’s decision to cease funding for Planned Parenthood, I asked my Aunt (a Nurse Practitioner and former employee of Planned Parenthood somewhere around the 1980′s-90′s) what her primary duties were when she worked at Planned Parenthood:
HIV Counseling, pap smears, and gynecology exams. My big job was getting Planned Parenthood ready for government inspection. My other job was that no one else wanted was to sit with these poor women who were HIV positive, tell them the news, and make sure they didn’t kill themselves.
Keep in mind this was just as AIDS was becoming a medical issue, and people didn’t know what the disease was or how it was spread, only that it was most likely a death sentence. Just something to think about the next time someone describes Planned Parenthood as a place for abortions. Turns out, they do a lot more than that. They are a great resource to people, especially women, who can’t afford a doctor to get medical advice on general health issues, including breast cancer and cervical screenings.
Memoirs of an Austinite in Beaumont
Trying to keep myself writing, I’m relating some of my experiences as a newbie to Beaumont. This paragraph keeps making me laugh, so I thought I’d share:
Occupy Pig Stand
Today, I read an inspiring story. It was about the famous Paramount Theater located in the heart of Austin, Texas, just blocks from the Capitol.
Local Beaumont Family Needs YOUR Help
What could be worse than losing your job during the holiday season? Losing everything in a fire.
Fun With Craft Beer: HEB Pick 6
One benefit to the boyfriend being out of town means being able to try HEB’s pick 6 without having to buy two of everything (curse sharing!).
You see, at HEB (a local awesome grocery store if you’re not lucky enough to have one near you) you can pick 6 beers of which they sell one-offs, giving you the option to try 6 different beers without the full commitment of buying a 6-pack you may not end up enjoying. Now, you can do this anywhere where they sell lone beers, but at HEB they give you a cute, cardboard holder.
