YES WE CAN

November 4, 2008 at 11:00 pm, it was announced that the next president of the United States of America would indeed be Barak Obama. Our nation will never be the same again.

For those who do not know me, I am an eighth grade teacher at an inner city school. Most of my students are poor and "minority." Wednesday morning, I was filled with a sense of National pride in which I have never felt before when I saw the hope in each of my students eyes. One of my students was overwhelmed with pride when she said, "Now we have a president who looks like me." I am sure this same sentiment is being shared by many Americans this very moment. I am particually proud for the older generations who lived through the dark period of the American experience when it was legal to discriminate becuase the color of their skin. Many of them believed they would never live to see this event every transpire in their lifetime. Now when a young black or Hispanic children tell their moms and dads that they want to be president of the United States--these parents will not have to tell them to try for different aspirations--they will be able to tell their child that they can honestly be whatever they strive to become.

Through out Obama's campaign he has been repeating his mantra over and over again, "Yes We Can." On tuesday night, he proved that he could.

Podcasts

Recently...actually for about the last six to ten months...I have been listening to Podcasts. If you have not joined this phenomena, I highly recommend them. Basically, they are radio shows, but the big attraction to them is that you can listen to them whenever you like and they are commercial free.

I am going discuss the podcast which I have been listening to lately.

This American Life

This is currently ranked as the number one podcast on itunes and for good reason. This is an NPR podcast which covers pretty much all topics of American life. The topics are usually about things which currently affect Americans of late. Each show has a theme and they break the show up into shorter sections, where each section talks about the theme in a different way.

I really like this show because they tend not to give any types of partisan view of whatever topic they are discussing that episode. The shows are also very entertaining and thought provoking.

MSNBC: Countdown with Keith Olberman

Basically, if you like the show, you will like this podcasts. They simply take the show and rebroadcast it as an audio podcast.

SMODCAST: Kevin Smith & Scott Mosier

I just recently been listening to this podcast. This is particularly fun because the show is taped inside Kevin Smith's house and he is yelling at his dogs to shut up half the show.

If you are a fan of Kevin Smith, you will like this show. It is basically him and Scott Mosier talking about whatever is currently on their minds.

10th Wonder

This is a Podcast dedicated to the show Heroes. If you are a fan of the show, I highly recommend this podcast. The hosts discuss the current weeks show and make predictions for the future episodes.

NPR: Fresh Air

Another Public radio podcast, but this one is an interview show. These interviews can be anything from movie stars to politicians.

The Ricky Gervais Show

This podcast is no longer being broadcasted. They are available to purchase through itunes as audio books. Nevertheless, if you have never listened to them, I recommend that you buy them. They may be the funniest thing I have ever listened to.

It's Business Time

It is only two days until D-day...or rather I should say V-day. It is hard to believe it is finally here, especially since it has been over two years since the candidates initially announced they would be running.

Well, if you know me at all, you would know that I have been a huge supporter of Obama every since his inspiring speech at the Democratic National Convention back in '04. Honestly, I cannot fathom how anyone with any sense of morality could even consider to support the McCain, Palin ticket. If you have been watching the attack strategies for both of sides, you will notice a very consistent trend. McCain always goes below the belt. He attacks Obama's character, while Obama will attack McCain on the issues. It is two days until the election and no one seems to know McCain's economic plan, which is because he does not have one. He is using the old way of doing things, which is to take cheap shots which have nothing to do with the issues. Yes, it did work for Dub-Yuh for the last eight years, but it is very clear that most people are tired and want to move on. The only thing this tactic accomplishes is it shows how out of touch McCain is and how close Obama is connected to the pulse of this nation.

Last week at work I was discussing the the upcoming election with a colleague and they made the statement, "I am voting for Palin because I was a Hilary supporter." Of course, I was at work and therefore I had to hold my tongue, but what was this person thinking? Using this same logic, this person probably goes to an auto mechanic needing new brake pads, but leaving with a new battery and thinking to themselves, "They are both car parts, so what is the difference." This is how ignorant SOME of the American voters are, and that is exactly what McCain was trying to bank on. Why else would his VP candidate be someone who no one in the "lower 48" has every heard of? Why would he pick someone who's experience consists of heading the local PTA? Especially since his most compelling argument against Obama was his lack of experience. McCain was betting on the fact that the voters would not notice this blatant pandering to the people who initially voted for Hilary Clinton. The only common trait between Clinton and Palin is the fact that they are missing their "y" chromosome, because politically they could not be any different.

Hopefully, this will all be water under the bridge, because in order for McCain to win, he would basically have to win every single undecided state. Or he would have to win states which appear to be already going Democrat. I hate to count my chickens before they catch, so I will not. All I can do is hope that all the latest polls are accurate and that on Wednesday morning, the state of Illinois will lose one of its most beloved the civil servant, and the country will be better off for it.

8-Ball Stout

Lately, I have been trying to get into sampling a variety of beers. Not to go out to get plastered, but to really try and become somewhat of an aficionado. The First beer I am sampling is an American Stout by the name of 8-Ball Stout. Which, according to beeradvocate.com can be described as:

Inspired from English & Irish Stouts, the American Stout is the ingenuous creation from that. Thankfully with lots of innovation and originality American brewers have taken this style to a new level. Whether it is highly hopping the brew or adding coffee or chocolate to compliment the roasted flavors associated with this style. Some are even barrel aged in Bourbon or whiskey barrels. The hop bitterness range is quite wide but most are balanced. Many are just easy drinking session stouts as well.

When you are tasting beer, there are several things you need to pay attention to:

Appearance - Note the beer's color, carbonation, head and its retention. Is it clear or cloudy? Does it look lackluster and dull or alive and inviting?

Smell - Bring the beer to your nose. Note the beer's aromatic qualities. Malts: sweet, roasty, smoky, toasty, chocolaty, nutty, caramelly, biscuity? Hops: dank / resiny, herbal, perfumy, spicy, leafy, grassy, floral, piney, citrusy? Yeast will also create aromas. You might get fruity or flowery aromas (esters) from ales and very clean aromas from lagers, which will allow the malt and hop subtleties to pull through.

Taste - Take a deep sip of the beer. Note any flavors, or interpretations of flavors, that you might discover. The descriptions will be similar to what you smell. Is the beer built-well? Is there a balance between the ingredients? Was the beer brewed with a specific dominance of character in mind? How does it fit the style?

Mouthfeel - Take another sip and let it wander. Note how the beer feels on the palate and its body. Light, heavy, chewy, thin / watery, smooth or coarse? Was the beer flat, over-carbonated?

Drinkability - The beer's overall ease of consumption and your overall impression of the beer. Would you have another?

So here is my review:

Appearance: To me, it seemed awfully carbonated for a stout. Than again, I am new at this and most of my experience of drinking stouts are from drinking Guinness Draught. The head was almost none existent. The beer was very dark, which, of course, is a defining characteristic of a stout.

Smell: The strongest Smell I had, was of; malts, nuts and oats

Taste: It tasted sweet and well-balanced.'

Mouthful: I enjoyed the carbonation. The flavors seemed to linger and it was a little thin from my experiences with stouts.

Drinkability: To most important category in my book. This beer was excellent. I could have tossed them back all night long.

So, there it is, my first beer review. Next week, I Will be tasting--Young's Double Chocolate Stout.