My Favorite Game Ever.

After the Holidays Bobbi and I were putting all our Christmas stuff away. We decided that since were were already going to be crawling around in storage it would be a good time to go through our stuff.
Every couple of years we go though our belongings and decide
if we really need it or not.
I'm so glad I didn't marry a pack-rat! The way I'm wired is if we haven't used it 2 years we are probably never going to use it. I'm so grateful to have a wife with a similar mindset.
We separate our stuff into three piles. Keep. Toss. Donate.
It amazes me every time we do this how much stuff a person can accumulate in such a short amount of time! I don't consider myself a big consumer but I still can't believe how much stuff there is to part with every couple of years.
One of the items that has survived the many purgings is my Nintendo Entertainment System.
Oh yeah. That's right. Wii... Schmii. I'm talking square wired remotes with A and B buttons. Old School.

I used to have an Atari 2600 but after a number of years I just couldn't resuscitate it.
I've kept my NES since 1991 for one game and one game only.
It's been my favorite game and my adversary for sixteen years.
Mike Tyson's Punch-out!!

Glass Joe | Von Kaiser | Piston Honda | Don Flamenco | King Hippo | Great Tiger | Bald Bull | Soda Popinski | Mr. Sandman | Super Macho Man | Any of those names sound familiar?
I hadn't pulled the NES out of storage for eight years. I plugged it in, put in Punch-Out, hit the power button and first try, ding-ding-ding!, ding-ding-ding! The bell rang, the crowd cheer'd, and the music started . I was instantly in a nostalgic rush of adolescence. I was amazed. The sucker fired right up first try. No blowing on the cartridge. No blowing in the machine. No taking the game in and out a ton of times. First try baby!
There he was. The man himself looking at me.

In the Sixteen years of playing this game I fell into a vicious cycle every time.
I could blow through all the contenders getting TKOs or KOs in the first round for all of them.
Save for Super Macho Man. For some reason I could never get the timing down for dodging his super spin punch. I always knew what I had to do. I just couldn't execute.
He'd wind up and I'd dodge out of the way too early and step right back into the swing of his fist.
I fell right back into that cycle. I was so annoyed that I still couldn't beat him.
I took a break from the game and composed myself. I told myself "alright. slow down. ignore the sound effect and wait for the blink." AHH CRAP! I did it again! I dodged too early!
I gave myself a break from the game for a couple of days and then tried to pick it up again.
First try I finally beat Super Macho Man! Okay so now that I have the timing down I could beat him every time. Sometimes in the first round. Then it was on to the man himself. I'm not going to lie, I got nervous over a video game. I saw myself getting the crap pummelled out of me and getting my little digital ear bit off. After a few days of having the crap kicked out of me I finally got the timing all worked out and beat the game. It took me sixteen years. It just goes to show that with patience, hard work, and fast thumb-eye coordination you can be the heavy weight champion of the world. Now if I can only find my second favorite game. Rampage.
Below are some great Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! videos. Enjoy!

O'Gara's Garage 01-27-2007

We had a show at O' Gara's Garage on Saturday night.
It was a ton of fun! We played with Auto Body Experience.
They were awesome! Scott Yoho created the band 15 years ago.
They were amazing musicians and had very entertaining songs.
My favorite was their "highly political tune" about how sad
Scott was when he found out that they banned the pipe from
Mr. Potato Head.

We had a pretty good turnout of people considering we got the show on Monday and promoted it on Wednesday. We even made the City Pages at the last minute. Look hard...

All-in-all we were extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to play such a great venue.
If you every stop by O' Gara's I recommend the Classic Grilled Cheese Sandwich with Provolone and Pepper Jack cheese. Good Eats!

Rooibos Orange

A Rooibos | Red Tea
Contains 0% of caffeine content in relation to an average cup of coffee.
Rooibos Orange is a refreshing combination of Rooibos , citrus peels and orange blossoms.
According to Teavanna: improves digestion, good for skin and allergies, high in vitamins and minerals, high antioxidants.

Review:
MMMMMmmmmnnn. That's good.
Reminds me of an earthy version of an orange creamsicle.

With this tea it's all in the aftertaste. This team smells absolutely delicious.
However it's a little deceiving. When brought up to your mouth your nose pulls in a strong sweet orange smell. Your brain tells you that there will be a mouth watering orange flavor.
Then when you take a sip for one second the tea tastes nothing like orange.
It is an earthy flavor that I attribute to the rooibos. Then the citrus peels and orange blossom flavors connect with the back of your tongue as you swallow. Ah. Your brain is now being sent the signals it was looking for. Wow. That's strong. In a good way. This tea is like the Lemon Green & Rooibos Vanilla tea where it's a hanger. The flavor lingers on your tongue for quite a long time. It's quite unlike the Strawberry Kiwi & Rooibos Peach. Because the flavor lingers longer, you could slowly enjoy this tea until it went stone cold. This is something at I really enjoy about this tea. It has potential to last the entire commute to work and maybe a little longer. Or throughout the better part of an evening. Re-heating my be a necessity.
The recommended process is 3 tsp with 32 ounces of water steeping at 208º F for 5-6 minutes.
I recommend that as well if you are looking for a strong cup of tea. Depending on your flavor-richness-scale you may only need to steep for 3-4 minutes.
This tea is a deep orange-brown. It takes on the exact color of the dry tea leaves.

Strawberry Kiwi & Rooibos Peach

Strawberry Kiwi
A Herbal Infusion Tea
Contains 0% of caffeine content in relation to an average cup of coffee.
Strawberry Kiwi is a delicious combination of strawberry and kiwi pieces, rosehip, hibiscus, and apple bits.
According to Teavana: High in Vitamin C and antioxidants; naturally caffeine free.

Rooibos Peach
A Rooibos | Red Tea
Contains 0% of caffeine content in relation to an average cup of coffee.
Green Rooibos and safflowers with sweet peach pieces.
According to Teavanna: improves digestion, good for skin and allergies, high in vitamins and minerals, high antioxidants.

Review:
I love this tea! This is the tea that got me addicted the instant it hit my taste buds.
This is a tea that everyone and their brother would like.
I sampled this as a cold tea in the store. I've not had it hot before and I have no intention of trying that way.
The recommended process is 3 tsp with 32 ounces of water steeping at 208º F for 5-6 minutes.
This is my recommended process: 3-4 tsp with 32 ounces of water. Place into refrigerator overnight and enjoy the delicious tea on the commute to work the next day.

This is mother nature's version of red cool-aid. It is sweet and refreshing.
There must be some non-listed magical element in this tea. It contains zero caffeine and somehow gets me going like it's loaded with it.
It is light to the pallet at introduction with traces of peach and kiwi. It then ramps up to a nice strawberry with a hint of apple after taste. It is the kind of flavor that on reflex you immediately lift you cup for another taste. This is the kind of tea that leaves you making multiple attempts to have more after you've finished it. Many times I can be caught with my head tipped all the way back, my cup completely vertical, and I'll be tapping on the bottom of the cup to have every last molecule.
When this tea is ready it will be a rich red color with the fruit pieces and rooibos on the bottom and the safflowers open and floating at the top.

Lemon Green & Rooibos Vanilla

Lemon Green
A Flavored/Scented Green Tea
Contains 5-10% of caffeine content in relation to an average cup of coffee.
Lemon Green is a refreshing blend of Sencha with lemongrass and lemon peels.
According to Teavana: may help to prevent cancer, lower cholesterol, regulate blood sugar level, good for digestion, prevent cavities and aging.
While some of that my be true and some wishful thinking,
I do have to say it smells incredible!

Rooibos Vanilla
A Rooibos | Red Tea
Contains 0% of caffeine content in relation to an average cup of coffee.
Rooibos Vanilla is Rooibos flavored with authentic Madagascar Bourbon vanilla beans.
According to Teavanna: improves digestion, good for skin and allergies, high in vitamins and minerals, high antioxidants.
This is easier to believe than the what they claim for the Lemon Green.

Review:
This is a boldly flavored tea. I wouldn't suggest it to someone who isn't a strong tea drinker.
This, quite literally, would not be their cup of tea.
It's made with 2-3 tsp for 16 oz of water.
(I couldn't imagine drinking more than that in one sitting with this stuff)
Steeping 5-6 min at 175ºF
This tea is most enjoyable at a warmer temperature. It's a little assaulting on the taste buds if drank too hot and less enjoyable if you let it get too cold.
This is a wonderful stand-alone hearty tea. The flavor is still lingering in my mouth an hour after I drank it. It's very much a one-two flavor punch. At first you clearly taste a strong earthy vanilla then after you swallow you get a smooth cool lemon. It's a great tea to drink after dinner while you are sitting next to the fire watching a movie.
The Rooibos leaves give the tea a rich red color and the Sencha gives an earthy brown color.

Concert Mad Libs

We decided to have a fun little experiment at our exclusive
New Year's Eve show.
A Group Mad Lib with audience participation.
The video below shows our results:

Should we make this a semi-regular part of our shows?

An Introduction To My New Addiction

I have a new addiction. I'll give you some hints as to what it is:
1. It comes from dried plant leaves.
2. It's typically sold by the ounce.
3. It make you feel good.

Got it figured out yet?

It's fresh loose leaf tea. What were you thinking?!!

This is my supplier:

www.teavana.com

Like Crash Effect, Teavana is socially conscience.
"In a desire to help the world community where our premium teas are grown, Teavana annually donates 1% of all profits from teas sold to CARE International. CARE International, in a partnership with Teavana, then allocates those funds to projects that will benefit the people of the countries where our teas are grown."

All Teavana teas are a part of the Teavana EquaTrade program.

This past holiday season Bobbi and I had been out at the Mall of America frequently where Teavana has a storefront. I had walked past the store many times and always thought that it smelled good but had never ventured in.
I knew I was in trouble the instant their tea hit my taste buds.
(The little buzz I caught wasn't bad either)
I've always liked tea since I was a kid. My mom was a tea drinker and she used to let me have sips of her tea.
This was not my mom's tea. This was something different. I realized that there is a world of difference between fresh loose leaf tea and that bland, weak crap that comes in a white bag that tries to pass itself off as tea.



I have been enjoying a few different teas over the last month.
I'm going to create a series of blog entries as I journey into the exploration of the ancient world of tea. I have to admit, I'm a little intimidated since there are thousands of teas, each having a rich history and a wide variety of flavor.

I know this will not be as established and complex as Michael's Beer Blog but it should be fun none-the-less. Please stop by to enjoy a spot of tea.

Crash Effect Biography: Winter 2006/2007

It's said that rhinos can't see much beyond a hundred feet and can run up to forty miles per hour—bad news for anything in its path. When a crash of rhinos have a target—regardless of whatever it may be—they'll barrel toward it full on without fear, hesitation, or reserve.
Crash Effect is a gritty, greasy acoustic rock band with an objective to create great rock-n-roll and make the world a better place—and like the rhinos, they aren't holding back.

Formed in August of 2006, they've quickly assembled a large arsenal of quality original songs, completed their first EP and have already achieved substantial recognition with music lovers across the Twin Cities, around the country, and across the pond.

But what sets Crash Effect apart from other bands is their core values behind the music. From day one, the band decided that ten percent of all their earnings
(i.e., merchandise sales, concert earnings, and royalties) would go straight off the top and into the hands of humanitarian charities—local, national, and around the globe.

Mahatma Gandhi was right when he said, "you must be the change you want to see in the world." The boys of Crash Effect are doing just that—taking their gritty, greasy acoustic rock and becoming agents of positive change in their world. Now that's a band worth supporting—music with heart and conscience.

www.crasheffect.com

CrashEffect.Paul

So if you are at least as cleaver as a walnut you may have guessed
that I'm in the band Crash Effect. I am the drummer.
Translation: I beat things rhythmically and play music
with three other guys who actually know what they are doing.
Music theory? uh... what?
The guys speak in a language that is foreign to me at times.
Sometimes it's a series of letters put in non-alphabetical order.
Sometimes it's number patterns that don't go in an order I'm familiar with.
If it's Kris giving his input in the songwriting process
there are words that I didn't know existed .
Yup, it's pretty cool. I get to be in an a amazing band without
knowing what is going on on a technical level.
All I do is lay the greasy funk down and everyone is happy.
Rock on.



www.crasheffect.com