The Weatherman

So, wiki’s are gaining popularity. This has been an effective method for collaborative information gathering - see the most popular setup at wikipedia. Beyond that, they have shown that it works for news also.

Now we are seeing organizations like CNET News utilize wiki and the LA Times - Wikitorial use it for creating/updating editorials.

I wonder how well this will play out in the long run. Once this catches on, it could be messy. Remember the old days of message boards where people would bounce on each others’ postings - I see the same thing happening here once it hits critical mass.

In any case, this is definitely an interesting use of technology. Maybe I’ll write an article for wikinews

Update: Well, I guess the wikitorial has already seen problems.

My wheat beer is one week from complete carbonation. I opened up a few bottles this last weekend - it’s definitely good. I’m pretty stoked to have some homebrew - it’s been a while. I transferred my steam beer to the secondary fermenter and I’ll bottle that this weekend. This last weekend I made a scottish ale (called the skull splitter). This last beer will probably be my favorite since I’m a huge fan of scotch ales.

The wheat beer will come in around 4.5% ABV. While I estimate the steam beer will fall in the 5.5% ABV range (I won’t know till I bottle). The Scotch Ale should be a hefty to 8% to 8.5% ABV :-).

So, the last two nights Z Man has gone 7 hours between feedings (10pm to 5am and 9:30pm to 4:30am)…Not too shabby. He’s definitely understanding the difference between night and day…since he never sleeps more than a few hours at any stretch during the day.

As for food, he’s a good eater like daddy :-). He’s packing away up to 6 oz a feeding. Last
Tuesday he weighed 10 lbs 11 oz at the Dr…we suspect he’s up over 11lbs now. We are almost to #2 diapers - what a big step. I wonder if we should hold a mini graduation ceremony :).

Lil’ Zach made his first trip to Gordon Biersch. We went for lunch today. It was a beautiful 85 degree day on the peninsula. The front windows at GB were completely removed so it seemed like we were eating outside. Zach was a perfect gentleman at GB. Steph had eggs/bacon/potatoes and I had a grilled ham and cheese sandwich. Steph had the Hefeweizen…of course. While I enjoyed the MaiBock

After lunch we took a stroll along University Avenue. Zach was good for the first part but then he got pretty fussy. So we grabbed a bench in the shade and fed him a bottle. He drank up like a champ and was only distracted once by loud sirens from a firetruck going by. We also changed him on the bench…his first public nudity!

Yesterday we took Zach to Sneakers Pub and Grill for lunch in San Carlos. Once again he was a champ. Steph had her usual cobb salad. I had the tuna melt with a Red Hook. We strolled along Laurel Street with Zach-man. He slept the whole way. Later in the day we took Zach over to my parents for dinner where he got plenty of attention.

All in all, a very successful weekend with our lil guy.

Around 10 years ago, I tried my luck at home brewing. I made a pale ale similar to Sierra Nevada. It turned out pretty good. Over the next 2 to 3 years I made a few batches of pale ales and a stout. Since then my equipment has been lugged from home to home (I even tried to dump it off at Salvation Army…they wouldn’t take it). I assumed I would never make another batch of beer since the bottling process was a pain in the rump.

Never say never. Last Thursday I brewed up an American style wheat beer. I researched recipes online but ultimately used the ingredients recommended by my brew store. Once I dig up their business card I’ll post the brew store information online. The store exists in Hayward and they were very helpful on getting me back on track.

Here is the process I followed.

• Cleaned existing equipment
• You have to pick up the yeast at least 24 hours in advance so it can sit at room temperature for that length of time.
• Filled my boiling pot with around 2.5 gallons of tap water (we have very good tap water here)
• I filled a grain bag with 1 lb Crystal malt 20L and placed in the pot. I tied the bag to the pot handle to keep the grains off of the bottom
• I cooked the grains for 30 minutes. I kept the water temperature around 160 degrees F.
• I removed the crystal malt and brought the water to a boil.
• Once boiling I removed from heat and added 6 lbs pale wheat extract
• I returned the pot to heat and brought to a boil
• Once boiling I added 1.5 oz Hallertau hops
• After boiling for 58 minutes I added .5 oz Hallertau hops
• After boiling for 59 minutes I added .5 oz cascade hops (this was not part of the brew stores recipe)
• I cooled the wort to the low mid 80 degree range in the kitchen sink.
• Poured the wort into the 6 gallon fermenter and added water to bring it to the 5 gallon mark
• The temperature dropped to 76 degrees F. I took the specific gravity reading.
• Added American wheat yeast and aerated.
• Closed off fermenter and attached vent

It has been sitting in a closet since Thursday. This weekend I’ll siphon it over to a glass carboy for secondary fermentation.

Ok…so I’ve been quiet for a while. Well, there has been a lot going on. On Tuesday, May 17th at 7:56am, Zachary Anthony Arthur was born at Sequoia Hospital via c-section. He weighed 8 lbs 4 oz and was 20″ long.

Steph was in the hospital until Saturday morning. I stayed at the hospital on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights to help out with diaper changes, crying and the like. Steph was ecstatic to get home since her hospital room, while private, was very small.

Zach eats, on average, once every 3 to 4 hours. Sometimes he’ll go as long as 5 hours between feedings. He can take anywhere from 10 minutes to 90 minutes to fall asleep after feedings…those 90 minute fuss sessions usually happen in the middle of the night…argghh!

Zach has had two pediatrician appointments, one for circumcision and the other a general check-up. He’s slowly gaining weight (he was last at 8 lbs 0 oz).

I return to work on Monday, June 6th. Arggghhhh! I’m definitely not ready for that…I’d much rather hang with my son. Oh well.
You can check out photos at paulandsteph.com