Beer Goggles: May 2012

Beer Goggles: May 2012   

 

As part of my 'Random Nerdness' Blog I have included a monthly update I am calling 'Beer Goggles' where I will share a brief outline on what I am drinking, reading, viewing and listening to for the month.

 

Beer: I am drinking some 'Old Milwaukee'. It's cheap and it's not half bad. I'm also drinking me some Traditional Ale from Calgary's Big Rock Brewing Company. Also on the non-beer side of things I am enjoying Sanpellegrino's 'Blood Orange' sparkling fruit beverage. 

 

Comics & Books: I am almost a year behind in reading 'Hulk' from Marvel Comics. I keep ordering it every month and the pile keeps on getting bigger so this month I intend to get caught up on the adventures of the Red Goliath, also known as Thunderbolt Ross. 

I bought the first 2 novels in Peter David's 'The Hidden Earth Chronicles' at the Calgary Expo, from Mr Peter David himself and I even had them autographed. I'm not a big fan of fantasy novels but given that this is written by Peter David it should be an enjoyable read. I'm starting Book 1 in May. 

I'm also still reading 'The Great American Cereal Book'. Awesome history about breakfast cereals that Canadian consumers share with our American neighbours. 

 In March I bought and continue to read the 'Compendium' of the comic book series 'The Walking Dead'. In March I finished the first trade and I was blown away by what I read and saw. I loved it so much I went out and ordered the first Compendium of this comic series, and I will buy the second one when it is released. Robert Kirkman is perhaps one of the greatest comic book writers in history!

Viewing: I'm a little behind in my DC Animation viewing so this month I will be watching for the first time the 'Batman Year One', 'Wonder Woman' and 'Batman/Superman Public Enemies' DVD movies. DC has done an excellent job with their movies that I have already seen so I'm sure to be pleased. 

Listening: Having a long drive to work every workday I tend to do a lot of listening. 'The Atomic Geeks', 'Nerd Lunch' and 'Classic Film Jerks' are all great podcasts I love to listen to. Some other great podcasts I listen to are: 'iFanboy', 'Comic Geek Speak' and 'I Sell Comics'. I've also downloaded some great audiobooks I hope to crack open this month: 'Bradbury 13', radio-like drama's about some of Ray Bradbury's classic sci-fi tales. Also 'World War Z: An Oral History Of The Zombie War'. I also have William Shatner's and Leonard Nimoy's autobiographies to listen to. 

 

Well that is all for May's 'Beer Goggles'.

 

Cheers!

On The Menu #4: Breakfast Cereal Time!!

Last month on the 'Nerd Lunch' blog CT wrote about a book he received and it got me so intrigued I went out and purchased it for myself. It is called 'The Great American Cereal Book'. Canadians and Americans love their breakfast cereal, which believe it or not is second only to milk and soda in supermarket spending. Cereals and their cartoon spokes-characters (Tu-can Sam, Tony The Tiger, Snap Crackle And Pop, etc)  are some of the most enduring pop-culture icons of the 20Th century. This book is the definitive compendium of breakfast cereal history, showcasing recognizable brands and packaging, such as Cheerios, Cocoa Puffs, Frosted Flakes, Grape-Nuts, and Trix. The authors of this great book provide behind-the-scenes stories about the creation of these iconic kitchen-table companions, with 350 images of cereal boxes, vintage ads, and rare memorabilia. Although this book has 'American' in the title we Canadians can identify with this book too. Canada does not really have any of its own cereal brands, as far as I know all our brands are American brands so this book applies to us in the Great White North too. Reading this book has definitely renewed my interest in the breakfast cereal, because to be honest the last few years I've only been eating Raisin Bran. But seeing all these cereals again in this book I went out and have been munching on some of my favourites including:

Lucky Charms: As a kid I loved this cereal. The colourful little marshmallows, they truly are magically delicious.

Honey Nut Cheerios: This is still a classic and my kids love eating this cereal too.

 

As I continue to read 'The Great American Cereal Book' I'm going to continue to buy some of the cereals of my youth and sample them again. This book really has renewed my love for these sugary-goodness foods. If you are a fan of cereal be sure to check this book out, and watch for future follow-ups on the subject on this blog.

 

Till next time!

Beer Goggles: April 2012

As part of my 'Random Nerdness' Blog I have included a monthly update I am calling 'Beer Goggles' where I will share a brief outline on what I am drinking, reading, viewing and listening to for the month.

 

Beer: I just purchased some 'IPA' India Pale Ale from Calgary's 'Big Rock Brewing Company'. I also have some Rickards Red's that I am finishing. Although not a beer I have been enjoying 'Orangina' sparkling orange beverage. 

 

Comics & Books: My favourite comic book right now is 'Batman' written by Scott Snyder. His 'Court Of Owls' storyline is reaching new heights and is just getting better each and every month. I'm also enjoying Fantastic Four, FF and The Ultimates, all written by Jonathan Hickman. 

I bought several 'Star Trek: Titan' books at the Edmonton toy show last Sunday and I am very excited to read the further adventures of Captain Riker and the USS Titan. 

I'm also still reading 'The Great American Cereal Book'. Awesome history about breakfast cereals that Canadian consumers share with our American neighbours. 

Last month I bought and continue to read the 'Compendium' of the comic book series 'The Walking Dead'. In March I finished the first trade and I was blown away by what I read and saw. I loved it so much I went out and ordered the first Compendium of this comic series, and I will buy the second one when it is released. Robert Kirkman is perhaps one of the greatest comic book writers in history!

Viewing: I am watching season 2 of 'Game Of Thrones' on HBO and season 5 of 'Mad Men' on AMC. But I recently bought season 1 of  'Game Of Thrones' on Blue-Ray which I will be re-watching. I also bought the newest DC Universe animated movie 'Justice League: Doom', which I intend to watch shortly. Look for a future review on 'The Cola Dog' blog. 

'Commander' Shelby assisting me in this hard photo shoot. 

Listening: Having a long drive to work every workday I tend to do a lot of listening. 'The Atomic Geeks', 'Nerd Lunch' and 'Classic Film Jerks' are all great podcasts I love to listen to. Some other great podcasts I listen to are: 'iFanboy', 'Comic Geek Speak' and 'I Sell Comics'. I've also downloaded some great audiobooks I hope to crack open this month: 'Bradbury 13', radio-like drama's about some of Ray Bradbury's classic sci-fi tales. Also 'World War Z: An Oral History Of The Zombie War'.

 

Well that is all for April's 'Beer Goggles'.

 

Cheers!