My Bookshelves

January 12, 2010 at 9:38 pm · Filed under Just Stuff

Ever since I was a kid I’ve kept my books. From Lord of the Rings to James Bond, to Chomsky, Rushdie and Kundera I still have them all. Actually, my James Bond books were lost but that wasn’t on purpose. Even as recently as this winter, when I find a book that I think I will be interested in reading I will buy it instead of taking it out from the library. I guess I have some kind of romantic idea about books which goes back to seeing foreign flicks like Blue, where some dude would have a small apartment packed with books from floor to ceiling. I thought it was the coolest thing to have that many books. However, the reality of it is that I almost have never read the same book twice. I still like looking through my shelves and seeing what I have. Sometimes I get to lend a good book out to a friend. Lately I’ve been wondering if it’s all worth the effort. Books take up a lot of space in the house, and there’s no purpose in storing them in boxes somewhere. Box storage is the kiss of death. Moving forward, I’m resistant to purchasing new books because of the cost involved. As well, there is the whole notion of eBooks which are a lot less expensive and really don’t take up any space at all.

For the time being I plan on keeping my books. I think there is some intrinsic value in owning them, and maybe one day my kids will want to read them. Whether or not I continue to purchase books (instead of using the library) or purchase ebooks, remains to be seen.

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Good Old UPS

January 8, 2010 at 7:46 pm · Filed under Just Stuff

Awesome! UPS is laying off 1800 but they have increased profits. That’s fantastic, I think everyone in North America, if not the world, was concerned about UPS’s profits. I mean, who needs jobs as long as the big companies are making bigger profits?

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True Essence of the Underground

December 22, 2009 at 9:41 pm · Filed under Just Stuff

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Favorite Espresso Beans

November 29, 2009 at 10:03 am · Filed under Just Stuff

I’ve been brewing espresso at home for a couple of months using a Krups 964 which was given to me from a friend. The machine isn’t fancy but it does what’s required. However, it didn’t take long to find out that the keys to good espresso are bean quality and quality of the grinder. I was originally using a whirly blade grinder but it’s results were uneven and I couldn’t get the grind small enough. Trying to make espresso on the cheap, I opted to get an old refurbished hand grinder. With the equipment set, all I had to do was find my preferred espresso beans. Luckily Vancouver is coffee crazy and there are a number of local roasters producing quality beans. Here are my favorites so far.

49th Parallel. Maybe my favorite tasting bean, although I haven’t had it for month or more now. My biggest gripe? It’s a pain in the ass to get there (Kits) from here (the Drive). Second biggest gripe? The beans are a lot harder to grind than the others I’ve tried.

Cafe Artigiano. Taste is fine. I find that the beans are really unstable though. Every grind I make results in a slightly different shot. I’ll make an espresso with a shot time of 28s and then the next one will have a shot time of 20s. This results in really different tastes.

And now my favorite….
Milano La Futura. Easy to grind, consistent shots, and of course very tasty.

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