I mentioned in a post at the beginning of the year that I wanted to start doing more blog posts. One of these ideas was to create a post of me rambling about whatever I feel like talking about. This is the first installment of that concept.
What Have I Been Smoking?
First, I figured I ought to include some cigar stuff in these posts. So I wanted to just highlight some cigars that I have smoked so far this year that are great, memorable, unique, bad, whatever!
- Julian Sued Tabac Shanghai Express - Love these short little cigars. A lot of earthy, herbal flavors in a 4 x 46 Connecticut Wrapped package.
- Stolen Throne Cigars Phantom Queen - This new LE definitely hit my palate well. Loads of creamy, sweet vanilla, spices, earth, and pepper. Great stuff.
- FQ The Proper Toro Gordo - This cigar was the first FQ I have had and I want more. This oily, leathery cigar had a lot of nice full flavors that balanced sweet and savory perfectly.
- Crowned Heads Mil Dias Limited Edition 2022 - Absolutely one of my favorite cigars of 2022. Check out my review from last year to read more about this banger.
I have smoked some other things, but these were the current standouts that first came to mind and that’s good enough for me.
What’s on the Bench?
I have been working on building a Joiner’s Mallet with only hand tools (less the use of a drill for one hole) out of some freshly felled Red Oak firewood. It’s been quite the learning experience. I will have a post coming out that documents that, so be on the lookout.
Right now I have a list of “Shop To-Do’s” that consists of varying builds and tasks. I have to fret and finish a couple necks I have built for two guitars I am building. So that will probably take precedence once the mallet is finished. The guitars are going to be a pair of Featherfoot Classics - one two pickup, one single pickup - that are being painted with custom artwork by a relative. Check him out on Instagram at @dirtyflip_ and his site www.envoriginal.com.
What’s New?
So some new things have hit the Shop recently. These include a restock in Crowned Heads Juarez OBS and the addition of the Chihuahua vitola, a restock on some Azul Y Oro, and the addition of the Le Careme 2022 Belicosos Finos LE. I also am happy to announce the arrival of some more Stolen Throne cigars, including the very limited Phantom Queen, the Crook of the Crown, Call to Arms, and 3 Kingdoms Robustos, and a Company Spotlight Sampler.
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Other Ramblings
So my Boston Celtics seemed to have pulled it together starting with the blowout over the Mavericks. The Spurs game was closer than I expected, but you shouldn’t sleep on any team in the league - they’re all filled with talent (I say to make sense of the blowout loss to OKC). I was happy to see a win over the Bulls this week, and the Pelicans game was a fantastic one to watch, with my boy Jaylen Brown dropping 41 with 12 boards. Jayson Tatum gets most of the attention, but I love what Jaylen Brown does on both ends of the court and when he gets hot, watch out.
Shifting topics here, my musical interests are vast and my focus shifts often. This week I got the random urge to listen to “Rosalie’s Good Eats Cafe” by Bobby Bare off the album Sings Lullabys, Legends, and Lies. This lengthy song, written by Shel Silverstein, tells the tale of a late night seen at a cafe run by Rosalie. I hadn’t listened to, or thought about, this song in quite some time, but it used to be a go-to when I had a phase of listening to the “storyteller” genre of country music mastered by the likes of guys like Bobby Bare and Tom T Hall. Thinking of this song again sent me down a nostalgic YouTube rabbit hole of listening to the full Sings Lullabys, Legends, and Lies album - which is a great casual listen - and revisiting some of my favorite Tom T Hall classics like “A Week In A Country Jail”, “Ballad of Forty Dollars”, and “Homecoming”, for example. Though this style of classic country music may not be forever, I think that it is some of the most entertaining music to listen to, and I am always impressed by the writing.
Lastly, I read a fantastic book on wood recently, With the Grain: A Craftsman’s Guide to Understanding Wood by Christian Becksvoort, that covered many topics related to identifying trees, managing tree lots, processing trees, drying trees, and working with wood after processing. There was a lot of interesting information in this book and it inspired me to tackle a little wood drying. Fortunately, my in-laws have plenty of hardwood trees that have fallen or been felled. My father-in-law rough cut me some nice pieces of White Ash that they had. There is also some nice, wide Red Oak coming my way at some point from their property. I am going to try my hand at air drying some of this timber, and hopefully build some neat projects in the future. I think it would be quite special to build a piece of furniture or something for my daughter one day with lumber that came off of her grandparents’ property.
Well, I think that’s all I really have on my mind right now. Thanks for reading, and please comment below if you have anything to say!