News of my World
“Trieste,” a novel by Daša Drndić
It can be daunting, perhaps even crippling, to consider the immensity of what remains unknown about the wider world. What we as individuals know...
Archipelago Travels
Technically Challenged
Seeing is believing — right, Zuckerschmuck?
This essay originally appeared at NA Confidential on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2011. Then, the pretext was Moammar Gaddafi's finale. Today, contemplations on a theme...
Miscellany
Shane’s Excellent New Words: Hagiography — or haggis?
Welcome to another installment of SHANE'S EXCELLENT NEW WORDS, which was a regular feature of the now defunct NA Confidential blog.
But why new words? Why not the...
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40 Years in Beer (Book II), Part 72: Mitch Steele attends a F.O.S.S.I.L.S. meeting...
Previously: 40 Years in Beer (Book II), Part 71: A-B, Molotov cocktails, Mitch Steele and me (G.A.B.F., 1997 & 1998).
On November 8, 1998, something...
The 40 Years in Beer Compendium: links, previews, and coming attractions
(Updated on October 26, 2025)
40 Years in Beer is a memoir of my life and times in the beer business. The first of these...
The Songs for a (P&u) Departure (2): “Empty souls will leave their homes”
Previously: The Songs for a (P&u) Departure (1): “These cameras never lie”
We're told that Nov. 15 will be the last day for Pints&union in...
A big damn guide to downtown New Albany (in 2010)
No, not a "dam" guide to his Gahanic majesty's litigation, but a weekend preview of dining, shopping and events in downtown New Albany from...
Diary
The book that wasn’t, why it won’t be, and really, that’s all right with...
Today’s bullet point is borrowed from Groucho Marx in Animal Crackers (1930): “Hello, I must be going.”
Regular readers will recall that earlier this year, I...
Diary for 1 June 2021: Constructive criticism is seldom tolerated at the grassroots
If there is any one surefire takeaway that springs to mind from my lengthy period of civic engagement — the grassroots era, those "localism"...
Diary: Brief reflections on professionalism, perception, arrogance and respect
“Professionalism” probably means different things to different people. The Internet yields this checklist, which I find reasonably accurate:
“The eight core characteristics of professionalism are:...
Diary for 27 July 2021: I really hate having to drive a car to...
The point of these "diary" entries is to write as the mood strikes me, in the moment.
The past few weeks I've made many, perhaps...
Them ominous vultures
Last week we went for a walk to the pharmacy on a day with clear skies and warmth in the air, too early for...
Recipes for Chaos
Not Hip & Fewer Hops: Christmas beers, real or imagined, then...
Originally published at Food & Dining Magazine on 14 December 2020.
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“My goodness”, muttered Claus, recalling his visit to the Institute, “the restrictive outerwear, the...
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The book that wasn’t, why it won’t be, and really, that’s all right with...
Today’s bullet point is borrowed from Groucho Marx in Animal Crackers (1930): “Hello, I must be going.”
Regular readers will recall that earlier this year, I...
R.I.P. Barry Sears, a friend since kindergarten who changed my life over lunch
(There is a story behind the featured photograph, and it comes at the end, so please read or scroll.)
My lifelong friend Barry Sears died...
Diary: The story of the Sladek (brewer/maltster) stone at Fairview Cemetery
We bought our house in downtown New Albany in 2003, and by the following spring casual neighborhood walks had become a regular weekend feature...
