Tasty Cigars!

Smoke, Smoke, Smoke!!

I couldn't decide on whether to post a long, depressing piece on the State of El Capitan, or just run some funny pics gleaned off of the web.

So, I'll do neither.

I will recommend a few cigars, if you're of the type to indulge.  I tend to drink only rarely, and the threat of a random pee-test keeps me away from the marijohoonie, so my chief means of relaxation is a big comfy chair, a big glass of Diet Dr Pepper, and a big ol' stick of rolled tobacco.

You can drop your blood pressure by several PSI by spending an hour outdoors contemplating the evening and slowly reducing dried leaves into smoke & ash.

Here's a few I really like:

Quesada Oktoberfest - This is year #3 of the small batch Oktoberfest, an all-Dominican cigar blended to mate well with the barrels of beer brewed for the season.  There's several sizes available, but I prefer the Uber, a big 6 x 65 ring gauge monster of a stick.
I've got a handful of the 2011's left, they're starting to show some bloom and I'm torn between wanting to smoke them and wanting to save them to see if they improve further.  I haven't even cracked the box of 2012's yet, and I'm going to get a box of the 2013's in the next week or so.


CLE Cigars - I've tried the Cuarenta, the Connecticut and the Corojo, all in the 6x60 ring gauge size.  They're all great sticks, and taste like they ought to cost about twice what they really do.

They're all made from Dominican filler & binder.  The Cuarenta has a Habano wrapper, and the Connecticut uses an Ecuadorian wrapper.  The Corojo is a puro.

Worth looking for!


San Lotano Oval - I've probably blogged about this one before.  One tasty, tasty stick.   Smooth draw, impeccable construction, and clouds of creamy smoke.  The newest vitola uses a Connecticut wrapper for a slighty lighter taste as compared with the Habano wrapper.  It's OK, but I'll stick with the Habano.  There's also a Maduro-wrapped version for y'all that like a more powerful smoke.

Available in several sizes.  Try 'em all!


Perdomo Reserve 10th Anniversary (Champagne) - A light-bodied smoke, this one is my fallback when I just can't decide what cigar looks the best. It never disappoints.  Well made and even burning, my only quibble would be the somewhat fragile wrapper and the vegetal/chemical tang of the fermented tobacco before you light it.  Once it's burning, it's all good.

Many sizes available, I like the (what else...) 6x60 version in both Connecticut and the Noir.

The Urge To Create

Wishful Thinking!

As if scribbling on a blog every so often isn't enough of an outlet...

I'm being poked & prodded by my subconscious to get off my lazy arse and start creating things.  I've got about 2 dozen unfinished projects laying around, everything from leatherwork to plans for a street-legal Viking longship.

Where to begin...  where to begin...

Well, let's make a list of the realistic projects and see where we go with it in 6 months or so.

1) Finish knife sheath

2) Small mill/lathe for turning out oil filter suppressor adaptors

3) Old 70's land yacht for fixing up and weekend cruising.

4)  Buy single stage press for rifle calibers

5)  Buy lead molds for bullet casting/start collecting wheel weights/lead scrap

6)  Work on unfinished fiction projects

7)  Consolidate trio of humidors into something manageable, and retire small "Igloo-dor"

8)  Clean out home office, set up for having guests occasionally

9)  Complete haft on Cold Steel knife.  (Note: buy Dremel or belt sander!)

10)  Organize library


OK, that's a good start.  Now, I'll be lucky to do 2 out of the 10.

Back To Work!!

Tuesday Already?

Two tiny days off and the universe just falls apart...

OK, maybe not the entire cosmos, just this little section of it.  I got enough emails stacked up in my Inbox to keep me busy until November.

I was feeling a little squirrely, so I took off last Friday and yesterday.  Friday got spent in deep hibernation, and if it wasn't for a complete lack of foodstuffs that forced me out to scavenge on Sunday, I might not have left the house until Monday.

All the things that needed to get done Friday got done Monday.  Oil change, pharmacy trip, various odds & ends...

I did make a run up to Tomball.  A buddy had endorsed Tomball Pawn & Jewelry as a prime source of retail boomsticks, so I made the 20 miles trek to see for myself.

Nice selection, but mostly new stock.  I was hoping for some bargain bin selections, particularly of the 12 gauge pump flavor.

I left with a bag full of ammo.  They had really good prices on .40 S&W and .32 ACP, so my stock increased by a couple hundred rounds.  I got 50 rounds of Black Hills .223, but the price was just fair on that.

My new obsession is a Colt Commander in .38 Super.  BBO (Back Before Obama) you could get a nice used .45 CC for 8-900 bux.  Now, it seems that $1500 is about par for even a hard-used Lightweight Commander.

Anyway, if y'all run across one in Texas that's in decent shape and hasn't been blinged out for use south of the border please drop me a line!!

Muchas Gracias!

NFL Team Hierarchy

This Is How Fights Get Started...

God's Chosen Team
Dallas Cowboys

Worthy Of Carrying The Cowboy's Luggage:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Green Bay Packers

Can Watch With Grudging Respect:
Oakland Raiders
New Orleans Saints
Minnesota Vikings

Do Not Actively Despise:
Houston Texans
Cleveland Browns
Detroit Lions

Completely Ambivalent About:
Miami Dolphins
Cincinnati Bengals
San Diego Chargers
Atlanta Falcons

Still Too New To Matter:
Baltimore Ravens
Jacksonville Jaguars
Tennessee Titans
Carolina Panthers
Arizona Cardinals

Just Don't Like For No Apparent Reason:
St. Louis Rams
Chicago Bears

DamnYankees:
Buffalo Bills
New England Patriots
New York Jets
Pittsburgh Steelers
Indianapolis Colts
New York Giants

Would Not Piss On Them If They Were On Fire:
Seattle Seahawks
Denver Broncos
Kansas City Chiefs

Would Dance As They Died In A Fire:
Philadelphia Eagles
Washington Redskins
San Francisco 49ers

Bookends, Of A Sort

Alpha, Omega, And All That Jazz...

I don't know if the Almighty has a sense of humor, but his timing is impeccable...

So, on the same day that a good friend posts this:

(It's a boy, if you're wondering...)

Another friend posts this:

Living & Dying

Talk about getting emotionally yanked in two different directions...

Another Week Begins...

401k?  Isn't That The Temperature That Freezes Interest Rates?

I can't quite bring myself to count the remaining days & weeks until I'm eligible for retirement.  The Man's Retirement Plan kicks in when I'm 57, or in 12 more years.  Still, that's not enough to live on, unaccustomed as I am to cat food cuisine and bridge overpass accommodations.   I still need to work until I can draw SocSec and that's assuming it's still solvent in 18 years when I hit 63.

Of course, things will change, I'm sure.   My current "You can quit now" number is 75, which equals age plus years of service.   I can easily see that jump up to 80 in the next 10 years, and no doubt the minimum SocSec retirement will go from 63 to 67 or higher.

Sigh.  Might as well plan on working until they cart me out in the big recycle bin...

Out Of The Hot Grease, Then Tossed Under The Bus

Some Days I Really Hate This Place...

I ranted a few days ago about getting a nasty-gram from The Man's Geheime Staatspolizei.

Turns out I was included mostly as a formality, being part of the process, but not the primary fucker-upper that began the investigation.  A letter to my Director actually endorsed me as the person to step in and correct the issue in the future, as well as bitchslap the aforementioned effer-uppers so they learn their lesson.

So, that was nice to find out.

Nothing goes unrewarded, though.  Yesterday yet another nasty-gram wended its way to the Director, accusing my whole section of mopery, dopery and assorted acts of bureaucratic bumbling.

A bit of digging traced the problem to a brand-new employee, who did indeed stick his foot deep up his heinie.  Still, it was a problem easier fixed by a phone call and a deep breath, not a call for flogging and a stint on the rack.

Y'know, if they'd just let me use my warhammer on one or two skulls every year, people would tread a lot more carefully...

Know Your Pistols?

Actually, Do You Know *My* Pistols?

Here's a pic from the recent shootin' iron census done at Casa Capitan.

Can you name them all?

Hint:  #1, 2, 6 are of European design or manufacture.

#3,4, 5 are from the same US maker.

UPDATE:

No one except Heath J wanted to play!

From L-R
Steyr M40 in .40 S&W
S&W made Walther PPK in .32 ACP
Ruger Single Six in .22LR
Ruger Blackhawk in .357 Mag
Ruger Speed Six in .357 Mag
Uberti Thunderer in .45 LC

(Click pic to embiggenate!)

Bend Over, Here It Come Again...

With Extra Bureaucratic Ribs For Your Pleasure!

Do your job well, and you will surely be rewarded...

Let me give you a condensed recap of the past several months:

Last October - Employee requests transfer, cites medical need for alternate shift, work location.

Last November - After a month of stonewalling, Angry Employee contacts me to grease the wheels, citing Federal regs regarding request.  I find Angry Employee to be a whiner and a PITA, but he does have a point.

Last December - After 4 weeks of tail-chasing and fruitless negotiations with Angry Employee's department,  advise Angry Employee that department is unwilling to negotiate.  Advise that he needs to either suck it up, or take it to mediation, or outside agencies.

Last January - Informed by Department to butt out, situation is well in hand, Legal is on board with Department's decision, and all will be well.

Last February - Another set of rounds with Angry Employee.   Convince department to seek alternate employment for employee.  Angry Employee refuses to attend job counseling.

Last March - Pow-wow with Department & Legal, all agree that Angry Employee is being a butthead and needs to STFU and get back to work.  Convince them to continue alternate job placement, just to cover all the bases in case of discrimination complaint.

Last April - Wash my hands of the entire affair, do my best to forget about it.

Last May - Angry Employee files discrimination grievance.

Last July - El Capitan called on carpet to give deposition to Investigative Body.  Explains that employee was a whiny PITA, but was given all options.  Department had made decision, and El Capitan had not the traction, pay grade or legal authority to override it.

Last week - El Capitan given the following letter:

"Dear El Capitan,
     The Office of Investigating Stuff has completed its anal-probulation in Angry Employee's complaint.  The OIS *SUSTAINS* Angry Employee's allegations that the accommodation process and decision making was (1) Too Lengthy; (2) Unclear; and (3) Poorly communicated by you.
Go talk to your boss about straightening it all out.

Love, the OIS Crew."

WTFUCKINGFUCKINGFUCKINGFUCK???!!?!?!?!!?!?

The department won't budge and somehow this is *MY* fault???

I DON'T FUCKING THINK SO!!

I am so not going to be tossed under the bus for this fuckup...

Sigh.  The drinking begins early this week...

'Scuse Me While I Whip This Out...

When In Doubt, CRAPBLOG!!!

Sigh...  Just can't quit with the movie quotes...

Hoping for a short & painless week.  The 4 day workweek after yesterday's holiday helps, but today was already slagged via an emergency trip to the house after driving all the way downtown.

I had pulled into the parking lot when my guts started acting up.  The kind of bossa nova easing into merengue motion of the colon that lets you know you're about 10-15 minutes away from an Old Faithful eruption.

I kinda took it personally, having already dropped a deuce early this morning.  So, park the truck, ride the shuttle in, and gamble on making it to a shitter in time?

Nope, wasn't gonna happen.  Put Big Red back in gear and skedaddled for the suburbs.  That way, if I blew a gasket I'd at least have easy access to a shower & a clean pair of skivvies.

It took some deep breathing and tiptoe walking, but I made it with naught worse than lost hours.

Ah, well.  The drive downtown was so nice, I made it twice.