Missives from the 6th Floor

We had a great time - admission for the drinkers was $20, including a glass and 10 sample tickets (4oz beer samples ranged from 1 to 6 tickets, with 2/3 tickets being the average). Admission for designated drivers was $5, and included complimentary non-alcoholic beverages.

I had a double IPA that was a bit over-the-top, a really nice Barleywine, a Mead (yea, I know, not beer, get over it), a Chimay varietal I'd never had before, a Scotch Ale that wasn't spectacular, but not bad, and a gawd-aweful lambic that tasted like stale sweat. The four of us nibbled on a cheese plate, listened to some live music, and generally enjoyed the day.

Afterward, we went back to their place and took the dog for a walk - up to a local game store (reminded me of Game Castle sans RPG materials) and past a local video store that was organized like Dawnise's mind (scary thought). We had a bite to eat at a local ale house where Chris had even more beer. The man made me feel like a rank amateur. We walked back to their place and took our leave - heading home to lounge around and turn in early.

Lots of fun.

Oh, and the BBQ on the 4th went off pretty well. We ended up with 8 for dinner - and 6 of us walked down to the park to check out the fireworks at 10. The display was better than any of us anticipated. I brought the camera with, so once I have time to sort through the couple hundred shots I took (drive mode's a great thing) I'll post some on flickr.

The 50mm f/1.8 lens did well in near dark - but I'd like something with a wider field of view, especially given the 1.6 multiplier on my 450D. The 18mm end of the kit 18-55mm lens is better, but sooo sllllooowwww. I'm thinking about the Sigma 28mm f1.8.