Gotta 5 year old Fantôme here so you know today’s extra special. Been sitting on this one a little while and had intended to crack it for “Christmas in July” but I been busy. Wonderfully fragrant and malty yet dusty and dry. Don’t think I’ll be drinking this well again for a while.
So I set out to grow mushrooms the first time and ended up with an extra syringe of Starry Night so that’s why I chose it first. Figured if I screwed it up I’d at least get another shot at it. I’ve learned a lot and here’s where I’m currently at.
So many pictures of beautiful grows around this sub and I thought about not even posting anything but figured I’d keep it real. At least next time I can show what I’ve learned out to good use. Lots of side pinning as you see; my substrate was under hydrated and I was late to get light involved. There’s already a second grow in the works about 10 days younger with hydration and light adjustments made for better results. Batch 2 showed its first pins yesterday and I’m pretty excited about it!
I’ve included a close up of some of the better mushrooms with their veils still intact but also the couple beat up guys with open veils. I’m going to hold off on harvesting the pretty boys a little longer but I’ve never been one to be patient and it doesn’t seem like it would hurt to take a little taste! Never have had these kind of mushrooms fresh and to my surprise, they just taste like typical grocery store mushrooms. Don’t really know what I was expecting, but something different was the assumption. Been a fun ride and I’m sure I’ll enjoy the trip.
I have a small 6 watch Citizen collection but this has emerged as my favorite. Perfectly wearable size and just unique enough without being gaudy. The lume is fantastic for night shift too.
Had this bag since 2019 and it’s seen some stuff. Road rash can be spotted easily enough from where I got rear ended 5 years ago but compared to the damage the bike and protective clothes took I think it looks pretty good. Washed it a few days ago and figured I’d snap some pics.
I was in bed when I got the text late last night. Alan had passed. Few “celebrity” deaths bother me as much as this one. And he was a celebrity in every sense of the word from my perspective.
I grew up in Southeast Tennessee with a legal ABV cap at 6 point something percent. I literally didn’t know beer could be brewed above 7%. At 17 in 1999 I met a brewer at a house party who had brought a keg of “strong golden ale” and had a whole song about beer and gushed about brewing. It was a transcendent experience. He recommended Michael Jackson’s beer hunter books if I wanted to learn more. I read them and learned about Oregon and the exciting things happening at breweries like Rogue, Bridgeport, McMenamins, and Hair of the Dog. Between that house party and through college I grabbed every different new beer I could find. Sierra Nevada, Stone, Rogue, and Bridgeport were available in a small section of just a few liquor stores and cost three times Miller and Bud but I paid the premium even though I bought expired spaghetti at Big Lots to save money.
I met my wife in college and she was from Beaverton, Oregon. A few years after college she had a job opportunity in Portland and asked me if I wanted to go. Without hesitation I said yes and we planned the move. The trip to Oregon included a stop at Horse Brass Pub first thing when we got to Portland. At Horse Brass, at the other end of the bar, I saw owner Don Younger, writer Fred Eckhardt, and Hair of the Dog brewmaster Alan Sprints. When I say star struck, I mean it. I was completely in awe and incapable of approaching any of them. This was 2010 and they were already beer gods. Immediately upon arrival this simple southern redneck saw the men who had shaped the beer Mecca of the moment and were instrumental in my willingness to move there.
It was 8 years full of beer dinners, Fred Fests, Holiday Ale Fests, International Beer Fests, Oregon Brewers Festivals, Brews for New Avenues, Fresh Hop Fests, bottle shares, overnight beer release lines, and visits to the Hair of the Dog tasting room on SE Yamhill. A great time for sure, defined by the passionate beer scene and the people I met along the way. As much as I loved it, I still don’t think I fully appreciated what was happening. It was a hell of a time to be alive.
I moved away in 2018 for work and ended up in Florida. I worked the COVID pandemic here as a respiratory therapist and got totally burned out during that year and a half. This past winter I had a chance to work a travel contract in Oregon and jumped at it with excitement to drink great PNW beer again. Hair of the Dog had closed of course, Don Younger and Fred Eckhardt were long passed and The Holiday Ale Fest hasn’t been held at Pioneer Courthouse Square in almost a decade. But there I was perusing the shelves at John’s Marketplace and I spotted this 2021 vintage bottle of Cherry Adam. What excitement! It got me wondering if I could find more Hair of the Dog beers despite being out of production. A quick search led me to the information I needed. Alan was selling old stock himself! I bought a bunch of beer — I should have bought more. When it came time to pickup, Alan himself emailed me his number and we setup a meetup at Yamhill. I was 20 minutes late and embarrassed for wasting his time but he was gracious and couldn’t have been nicer. It was before noon and he had an open bottle of Doggie Claws keeping him warm. It was the week of Christmas after all.
It cannot be stressed enough how big a giant this man was in Portland. His donations to charity raffles and just being present when it mattered was unparalleled. The golden renaissance of Portland beer doesn’t happen the same way without him. I consider myself so fortunate to have experienced the window of time I was there and will never see the like again. RIP legend. He’s clinking glasses with Don, Fred, and Michael, the men he named beers after, tonight for sure.
First grow, all 5 bags are from the same batch and were inoculated with 2mls each from the same culture syringe but 2 didn’t take. Why? What can I do different next time? I’ll be pitching the 3 good ones with coco coir tomorrow that’s currently pasteurizing in a bucket overnight so I’m excited to be onto the next stage!
She was about to cruise past section 8 housing largely populated by people of color and made sure they know she supports the USA, USMC, US Navy, and Confederate Army. White privilege at its finest on display here.
If there’s one day I can skip the date feature and rely on memory, it’s the first of the month. Love this 43mm Easy Reader BOLD!
https://imgur.com/a/ZEokufv#BHvVMi3
https://imgur.com/a/ZEokufv#GOfAPdb
https://imgur.com/a/ZEokufv#b6HDt4L
Up for sale are a couple heavily sharpened discontinued knives. I bought these used years ago with heavily damaged edges. I’d just acquired an EdgePro at the time and went to work making them sharp again. Haven’t carried them much so it’s time to send them elsewhere.
A lot of steel was taken off and there’s some EdgePro rub on the pivot end of the handle on the Benchmade. The hilt of the handle has a ding as well exposing the aluminum under the black coating. The tip of the blade has been sharpened into the grind lines but the design of the knife keeps it closed deep into the handle with no chance of a proud tip. Lots of fine surface scratches, decent centering leans toward the handle side, smooth action and typical Benchmade Axis lock has no structural problems. No box or papers with this one. SOLD
The Caly 3 also has had quite a bit of steel removed and the tip still fits in the handle but is getting closer to being proud. Very smooth action for a lockback with good centering and lots of fine scratches on the blade — especially on the 420J cladding. The carbon fiber handle is exceptionally smooth and the pivot is an Allen screw as was the design in 2011 when this knife was built according to the included box.
Shipping Monday, USPS Priority, PayPal F&F, CONUS only. $100 each or take them both for $175.
https://imgur.com/a/fHPX6bw#6lne7Xs
https://imgur.com/a/fHPX6bw#Rr3a6tB
Knife Center Native 5 Smooth G10 in DLC Cruwear has been carried, cut with a little, and honed on a ceramic rod. Maybe I tuned up the action a but I truly don’t think I did. No obvious markings on the pivot screws. The smooth G10 has some slight scuffing as these knives show it easily. Typical rock-solid Native lockup and nearly perfect centering with nice action rounds out a well made example of a Native 5. All original paperwork and box included.
CONUS only, USPS Priority Mail shipping tomorrow morning, PayPal F&F. $165 $PF
It’s embarrassing how often I mess up military time. Hopefully this helps!
https://imgur.com/a/ZDZ0IU8#eY8uABO
https://imgur.com/a/ZDZ0IU8#CSbrvmj
https://imgur.com/a/U7pRY5R#UKr58hW
https://imgur.com/a/Rhctw8Y#H26QKLu
These are 100% authentic knives bought by me from licensed dealers and come with their originals boxes and paperwork. I don’t think I’ve ever carried these knives and doesn’t appeared the edges have cut anything. I’ll call these like new in box.
Military is of course the St Nick’s exclusive 4V. Never been taken apart or cut anything. It’s a perfect Military with nice action and close to center blade centering. $200 Sold
Fluted Carbon Fiber Native in S90V is a great example with virtually no play when open. No torx screws have been touched on this one and I don’t think it’s been carried and doesn’t appear to have cut anything. Nice action with good centering. $175 Sold
Ships USPS Priority — CONUS only and payment through PayPal F&F. Sending them out Monday morning You can expect tracking immediately after.
After spending 6 months in the Columbia River Gorge I’m back in Florida for the foreseeable future. Kings & Daughters really are an amazing brewery. I didn’t have a bad beer by them and I drank a lot of their beer during my stay. This was one of the cans I drove back along with a t-shirt of the label. There aren’t many other XXLs in the wild. It’s about two months since the canned date and I don’t think it’s drinking radically different than fresh. Big sharp bitter upfront with the full tropical body in the middle and a surprisingly clean finish for such a big beer. It’s a real treat! Now hold my beer and watch this.
https://imgur.com/a/4HxC07n#Li4vNdc
https://imgur.com/a/4HxC07n#l8ZiCDS
https://imgur.com/a/4HxC07n#tuVj7Cw
https://imgur.com/a/4HxC07n#t88HYdN
https://imgur.com/a/4HxC07n#ngROmfg
https://imgur.com/a/4HxC07n#qDcsijt
https://imgur.com/a/4HxC07n#Vp5QAuu
https://imgur.com/a/4HxC07n#8MdzcFJ
Thinning the herd and these are the Spydies on the sales block. They’re all authentic, were bought directly from an authorized dealer by me, and come with their original boxes/paperwork. They’ve all been carried and most of them have been sharpened a bit. The Police is currently wearing some aftermarket G10 scales but come with the OEM FRN scales as well. Everything ships USPS Priority — CONUS only and payment through PayPal F&F. Sending them out Monday morning — you can expect tracking immediately after. Also, take $10 off the total for each additional knife you take off my hands. Take $70 off if you take all six in a single swoop.
Police 4 LW K390 SE with G10 scales and original OEM FRN. Knife’s had the scales changed but hasn’t been used to cut. Blade leans to clip side when closed. Good condition overall. Clean painted clip. Slight surface scuffing from minimal carry is noted in general but nothing that photographs well. $100 Sold
Endura Wharncliffe PE. This one has been used and sharpened. Blade leans toward clip side when closed. Good condition overall. Chipping on the painted clip from carry is noted but nothing that photographs well is obvious on the handle and blade. $60 Sold
Endura Teal S30V PE. This one has been used and sharpened. Blade leans toward clip side when closed. Good condition overall. Slight surface scuffing from minimal carry is noted in general but nothing that photographs well. Painted clip is clean. $60 Sold
Endela Wharncliffe SE. This one has been used and sharpened. Blade leans toward non-clip side when closed. Good condition overall. Chipping on the painted clip from carry is noted but nothing that photographs well is obvious on the handle and blade. Withdrawn
Delica Wharncliffe PE. This one has been used and sharpened. Blade leans toward clip side when closed. Good condition overall. Chipping on the painted clip from carry is noted but nothing that photographs well is obvious on the handle and blade. $60 Sold
Dragonfly H2 Hawkbill SE. This one appears to be handled but not used or sharpened. Blade leans toward clip side when closed. I’m not sure this was handled much. It’s very clean overall with no wear to speak of. $50 Sold
https://imgur.com/a/U7pRY5R#dnGPJVH
https://imgur.com/a/U7pRY5R#elRpLAf
https://imgur.com/a/U7pRY5R#UKr58hW
https://imgur.com/a/Rhctw8Y#H26QKLu
https://imgur.com/a/Rhctw8Y#uafFFAh
https://imgur.com/a/PHOqbKQ#hhPriRq
Got some pretty special stuff up tonight. These are all 100% authentic knives bought by me from licensed dealers and come with their originals boxes and paperwork. They’ve probably all spent some time in pocket but I think only the Cruwear Native has cut anything and has had its edge honed on a ceramic rod.
Military is of course the St Nick’s exclusive 4V. Never been taken apart or cut anything. It’s a perfect Military. $275
Fluted Carbon Fiber Native in S90V is a great example with virtually no play when open. No torx screws have been touched on this one and it’s been carried but doesn’t appear to have cut anything. $250
Knife Center Native 5 Smooth G10 in Cruwear has been carried, cut with a little, and honed on a ceramic rod. Maybe I tuned up the action a little but I truly don’t think I did. No obvious markings on the pivot screws. The smooth G10 has some wear as these knives show it easily. I think $200 is fair.
Cutlery Shoppe Orange G10 Tenacious has been carried but hasn’t cut anything. No screws touched. I expect this to move easily at $70 Sold
Everything ships USPS Priority — CONUS only and payment through PayPal F&F. Sending them out Monday morning — you can expect tracking immediately after.
This green was screaming for a bracelet so I made it happen. Really happy with this one! Only needed to remove a single link and placed the micro adjust at the center of the 3 settings for my 8 inch wrist FYI. I might go to the largest micro setting — still debating that one though.
Got it in my head that this had to be a thing. Sicker than I could’ve hoped. Spent the day topping off the charge in sunny Florida and reflecting the clouds off the crystal. BN0150-28E
https://imgur.com/a/y3CytVp#UCRGtJ9
https://imgur.com/a/y3CytVp#L1sMd76
Up for sale is a Stretch XL Cruwear with gray G10 handles. I bought the knife directly from Spyderco online store three years ago. This one has come out of its box for some pictures and wiped down but otherwise it’s dead stock. I tried to show the belly in the vid so you can see there’s no flattening from hitting the liner tube. Some of these had that problem but this example doesn’t seem to be afflicted. The centering is impressive for an almost 4 inch folder too. In my opinion this one is as close to “A” quality as these knives come and the price is pretty good as well. Comes with all original box and paperwork.
Ships USPS Priority — CONUS only and payment through PayPal F&F. I’ll pack it up tonight with the expectation of shipping Monday on my lunch break. $180
https://imgur.com/a/p6RCGIV#ilZhyGk
https://imgur.com/a/p6RCGIV#FOT7u4x
First off, never take on someone else’s projects. That was my mistake and how I ended up with this. If you don’t want my advice have I got a deal for you! I bought the 52100 some years ago but the pivot was wonky. I thought it might have been a scale problem so I replaced them with these Allen Putman made G10 scales from BladeHQ 4 years ago. That’s not the solution. It’s the pivot, and I wouldn’t advise using the knife without replacing it. Spyderco pivots can be hard to come by but I’ve held onto it for a while but am finally ready to give up on this project. You get a well sharpened 52100 blade, the afore mentioned scalloped OD scales, and the blackwash clip. I’d be willing to pack it up for $75.
Ships tomorrow/USPS priority mail/PayPal F&F/CONUS only