Random Brain Activity

28 Oct 2009

Europe's The Final Countdown...for Three Cellos and Orchestra

Yeah, you'll recognize this song. Quite popular in the 80's, assuming you were born then. One of my favorite rock tunes from that era for sure. Enjoy!

28 Oct 2009

Congressman Steve King takes on Roger Goodell on his comments towards Rush Limbaugh

I guess it's ok for Fergie and J Lo to use offensive language. Rush's quotes get fabricated from his enemies and it's his fault. Craptastic.

27 Oct 2009

Graycliff 1666 Cigar Review

Cross-posted at The Cigar Spy. Check it out.

Target Name:

Graycliff 1666

Target Vitals:

Wrapper: Jaltapec Maduro

Binder: Ecuadorian Sumatra

Filler: Mix of Brazilian, Columbian, Mexican and Peruvian Tobacco
Vitola: Presidente (Churchill 7x48)
Strength: Medium Bodied
Average Price: Around $100-140 for a bundle of 20

Background Info:

Enrico Garzazoli, owner of Graycliff Cigars, brought aboard Avelino Lara to complement his five-star restaurant (1st in the Caribbean) and second largest wine collection. Avelino Lara is better known as the former personal cigar roller to Fidel Castro and the man responsible for the creation of the Cuban Cohiba brand.

This cigar was named in honor of the first building located where the restaurant and wine collection are located today. It is estimated that this first building was one of the first structures developed for the city of Nassau.

Mission Debrief:

I found this cigar by simple accident and chance, rummaging through my secondary humidor containing a large cache of various cigars purchased from a family member. Buried somewhere near the bottom is where I came upon the Graycliff 1666. Not having had the opportunity to smoke any of these cigars in the past, I felt this would be a nice candidate for immediate interrogation.

Appearance-wise for this cigar, I found a couple of small chips in the veiny, maduro wrapper. Nothing else of fault. I felt that the copper and blue hued band, while nothing elaborate or elegant, completed the overall look of the cigar. No overly packed or soft spots were detected in the length of the cigar as well.

Moving away from my punch and using my favorite Xikar cutter and a butane lighter, I gave the cigar a couple of firm draws and took in the flavors presented to me. This is one of those Maduros that looks worse than it is, as it's a bit milder than you would think. The persistent flavors I found were a dark coffee/espresso and a touch of spice and earthiness. Nothing overpowering here but pleasant to the palette. I did find in the last third of the cigar that I felt it was burning a bit hot, as the flavors pushed towards a harsher, side.

Expect a nice, even burn overall. I did have to relight the cigar a couple of times throughout the two hours and change smoke time. In the last third of the cigar, the wrapper was starting to unravel a bit from the cigar. I think this is because of the status of my secondary humidor and not necessarily from the cigar. The finish for this cigar was slightly longer, most likely because of the maduro wrapper but it is nothing out of the ordinary.

Recommendations:

This is a enjoyable, medium bodied maduro. It has a nice complement of flavors, won't bog you down in terms of strength and the price point is agreeable to most. While it didn't have the "wow factor" from the La Traviata in my last review, the Graycliff 1666 is certainly one I'll be looking for in the future.

Click here to download:

Graycliff_1666_Cigar_Review_Ta.zip (2699 KB)

23 Oct 2009

Opening of the Microsoft Store

Let's see...same layout, same type of employee uniform, same type of "welcome" when a new top product comes out. Seriously Microsoft, can you not think on your own? Windows 7 is supposed to be Vista/Longhorn. Only took 8+ years to get it right from XP. And this is why the company continues to fail on the PC/OS end.

23 Oct 2009

Andy Hunt's Mindmap on Pragmatic Thinking and Learning

A cool, visual way of seeing how we approach and learn an idea.

22 Oct 2009

A video about a video

Merlin Mann speaking on household hacks, make-believe help, and how to figure out who you are.

Confused yet? Ok - watch THIS, then watch THIS. Take some time and watch both of these. Bad language can happen, so watch at the appropriate times. But Merlin knows what he is talking about, so pay attention.

Seriously though, I've watched a lot of his movies and he is always quoting the temperature in his office. In our office, it's frigid. All the time. Enough for all of us to have space heaters under our desk. All year round.

21 Oct 2009

Thought for the day

19 Oct 2009

A Great Joke

A gynecologist had become so fed up with malpractice insurance and HMO paperwork and was burned out. Hoping to try another career where skillful hands would be beneficial, he decided to become a mechanic. He went to the local technical college, signed up for classes, attended diligently, and learned all he could.

When the time for the practical exam approached, the gynecologist prepared carefully for weeks and completed the exam with tremendous skill. When the results came back, he was surprised to find that he had obtained a score of 150%. Fearing an error, he called the instructor, saying, "I don't want to appear ungrateful for such an outstanding result, but I wonder if there is an error in the grade."

The instructor said, "During the exam, you took the engine apart perfectly, which was worth 50% of the total mark. "You put the engine back together again perfectly, which is also worth 50% of the mark." This equaled an A. After a pause, the instructor added, "I gave you an extra 50% because you did it all through the muffler, which I've never seen done in my entire career.