DDT: Revolutions!

Right, it's time for the glorious return of Drwhyn's Drink Time (DDT, for short)! Today, we have a small assortment of very interesting beverages indeed!

First out is the Mackmyra; swedish single malt at an ABV of 46,1%
Now, this doesn't have the distinction of being smoky, or ridiculously strong, but it is quite a competent whisky. It has a fairly powerful and rich flavour, and if I were to try and sound like a pompous twat I would be going on about how it is complex and displays notes of berries, chocolate and marmite, or whateverthefuck. Not by any means the best I've ever had, but for a new distillery it's not a bad product. The above-average ABV gives it a bit of a punch that I find is lacking in other, more mainstream, brands.

Serve at room temperature, with perhaps just a small drop of water to release all the flavours.

Second, we have an obscure one; the Mannochmore Loch Dhu Black Whisky, at an ABV of 40%. This one, I didn't even know existed until we tried it this weekend, and it is seriously weird! It's very very dark red, and tastes of wood. Now, I have described a couple of other beverages as tasting of wood, but this one takes the proverbial cake. Add to that the fact that it is actually surprisingly sweet, it leaves you with a feeling of "What the fuck was that?!". I found it to be absolutely horrible for the first few sips, then it improved, probably as my brain got less picky with the sources of ethanol at that stage. You might like it, if you're not a fan of traditional whisky, but anyone who frequently drink regular old Famous Grouse or the likes thereof will most likely vomit.

Serve at room temperature, and also with a small quantity of water.

Thirdly, we have the alcohol-free version of the quite ordinary Chapel Hill wine. As you might not recall, I have earlier mentioned Chapel Hill, describing it as the kind of utterly insipid drink that you tend to forget about three seconds after drinking it. Thing is, and this is why this one deserves a mention, the non-alcoholic version is actually quite a lot better. Of course, ethanol is supposed to be a flavour enhancer, like sugar or salt or Michael Bolton, but in this case it seems to just fuck things up. It has a fuller taste with more longevity and overall a stronger flavour than it's alcoholic cousin. So, by all means, this one is good.

Serve chilled in a tall glass during summer.

Children!

Sometimes I get the impression that the children at my favourite kindergarten are being suspiciously friendly and adorable. Maybe they are planning to take over the world...

Yesterday, one of the kids wanted to sit and bounce on my foot, but I told him that he was too big for it. Then another of the kids runs in and goes "I'm smaalll!".

And today, as I was going home, one of the children gave me three hugs and a kiss on the cheek. I mean, I know I'm not supposed to play favourites, but how can you not do that when they do stuff like that?!

Antiques Roadshow!

See, I've been watching the swedish version of the Antiques Roadshow (Antikrundan) for quite awhile now.

Now and then, people bring in paintings that turn out to be made by Picasso, and are worth umpteen hundred thousands.

That got me thinking, what if I were to suddenly find myself in posession of a genuine Picasso?

Well, I think I'd sell it. Honestly, I couldn't really appreciate such a painting. I'm no expert on paintings, and they don't really appeal that much to me. Quite frankly, the money would be much more useful than the painting ever could.

A fine bottle of whisky, that I can appreciate. An exceptional electric guitar, very much so. But a painting? Nope

Also, the problem is that having quite an average home, looking pretty average in all regards would look ridiculous with a genuine Picasso on a wall somewhere. It'd be the tackiest, most tasteless display of wealth, very "The Great Gatsby", no matter how queer or oblique that reference is.

So, I'd sell it to someone who can really appreciate it, and I'd get the money which I can most certainly appreciate!

Lucid Dreaming...again!

See, I'm trying my best at sharpening my skills at this, but, even though I'm getting better at it, there are still a few things that stand in my way.

Firstly, achieving a lucid state while dreaming is difficult. It's not even close to something I can do with any reliability. It's more of a random treat that randomly pops up.

Essentially, the brain is wired to trick itself while dreaming, to prevent the person from realizing how weird everything is. Thusly, in order to achieve lucidity, you have to trick the brain back. You have to somehow push it into registering that something is going on that can't go on unless it's a dream. My favourite one is covering my mouth and nose with my hand, so I shouldn't be able to breathe. If I can still breathe, I'm dreaming, and I can realize it. Of course, this doesn't always work, as the brain is quick to come up with explanations, like that I'm not covering my mouth and nose well enough, but at times it does the trick alright.

Secondly, I have only ever managed completely lucid dreaming once. By that I mean that I was fully aware of that I was dreaming. What I have achieved at other times is being lucid in the second layer of dreaming. For those who've watched Inception, you'll understand. I can be lucid, but I'm actually just dreaming inside the dream.

Thirdly, it's rather hard to decide what to do. Lucid dreaming is the purest freedom one could possibly have. You can conjure any item or person, move to any location, do whatever you want. Also, perhaps most importantly, you can do anything without repercussions or any moral considerations, as none of it is real. So, what do you do? You can satisfy any desire, experience any thrill, and you know that all of it will be gone once you wake up.

What do I do when that happens? That's my little secret. But, suffice it to say, only your imagination sets the boundaries for what can happen. You are completely and utterly free to do whatever you want, and able to do it.

Maybe you should read up on lucid dreaming, and attempt it yourself. It'll take lots of practice, but it's possible. There are even people who have interviewed characters in their own dreams, to figure out things about their own psyche.

Guilty pleasures!

I'm sure we all have them, but I'm the only one stupid enough to actually list them.

I'd just like to preface it with that I'm not actually ashamed of the things listed here. I'm actually quite proud of them, as they are evidence of unique a unique blend of characteristics. That said, I know that I'm not supposed to like these things, as if I give a shit.

I'll just list them in no particular order. Oh, and it's all music.

¤ Barry Manilow. I find that he's got a wonderful singing voice, is a really good pianist and a great entertainer. Mandy is a really good song, and some of his covers of other people's songs I enjoy just as much as the original, or, as in the case of Unchained Melody, more, as I feel he's made the very best version of the song. This is doubly a guilty pleasure because one of my favourite songs by him is "Can't Smile Without You", which is what could be considered "Dansband" in Sweden.

¤ Westlife. Now, now, don't beat me down over it just yet. There's a lot of shit to be had here, but they have a number of great songs, my big favourite of which is "Flying Without Wings". Sure, they are a bunch of pretty-boys making sweet-as-sugar songs, but there are quite some good ones in there.

¤ "Jag Tycker Om När Du Tar På Mig" by Per Gessle. I can't hide it, I love that song. It's silly, corny and some other adjectives ending with -y, but I love it. The whole feel of the song is just so ridiculously romantic, and those words happen to be the best description you'll find of my approach to love.

¤ Michael Bolton. Pretty much the same reason as the one above; his songs are corny as all hell, but that's fine, because they are so bloody romantic!

¤ The Osmonds...nah, just kidding, I'm not THAT stupid!

Boobs!

No, it's not something grati...gratut...visual going on here, it's a serious topic, dammit!

Anyway...

Breasts. Love them or loathe them...oh fuck it, we all love them, and if you say otherwise you are a FREAK or a liar!

To be more specific, I'll be looking at looking today, and to be even more specific; I'll be looking at cleavage. In fact, we'll all be looking at cleavage!

Now, cleavage inevitably accentuates and draws attention to the breasts. Everybody knows this. However, that doesn't mean that the female wearing attire that enables this is by default asking for ogling. It's just what happens.

I'd wager that most guys who do sneak a peak at that particular bit of the female physique in some way feels guilty about it. It doesn't have to be that big a deal, just that we're aware that it's something you're generally not supposed to do. If nothing else, it's just slightly impolite to observe a girl's breasts when having a conversation with her.

Problem is, we can't bloody help it! If a woman sports a cleavage, it just draws our attention! There is nothing we can do about it!

Thing is, I don't really think looking at a cleavage is a bad thing, or checking out a hot chick in general. Let's liken it to a book. Let's say you have "The Count of Monte Christo", and the cover is inlaid with precious gemstones. You will end up looking at the cover. The book is excellent in every way, but you still can't help but look at the cover.

Just because you look at the pretty cover it doesn't mean that you appreciate the story any less, it just means that the cover is attractive. So, you look at it.

Of course, you shouldn't be staring slackjawed at her breasts when speaking to her, that's just ridiculous. But there's really nothing wrong with your eyes wandering momentarily to her boobage, because breasts are wonderful things. They are pretty, sexy, smooth and simply appealing, and we all love looking at pretty things, don't pretend otherwise.

So, be considerate, but don't mind sneaking a peak, surreptitiously, because breasts are great!

Dick metal!

Today's topic is dick metal.

What on earth is dick metal? you ask.

It's heavy metal, with a boner, primarily represented by KISS, and perhaps to a lesser degree Whitesnake. Telltale signs are songs entirely about sex, catchy phrases made up of euphemisms for lovemaking, and quite simple lyrics.

What is the problem with KISS, though? Well, they aren't really that great.

See, I went to a concert with them in Stockholm a couple of years ago, and they were quite good. They are brutal, charismatic and have a singer with some genuine talent, but apart from the singer, they are just so mediocre.

Really, Gene Simmons has nothing on some of the truly great bass-players, apart from his tongue, and the other members of the band don't fare much better. Eric Singer has his moments, but he's no Cozy Powell or Ian Paice.

It's basically the singer, Paul Stanley, carrying the whole band, and he is quite excellent. If they just had more than two great songs, they could be great, but they're just pushing the dick metal thing all the way in (pun intended), while Stanley could pull off some of the best hair metal achievements ever.

Requiescat in pace, Gary Moore

Seeing as how he was probably my greatest hero, his death came as a great shock, and made that day one of the most depressing in recent memory. These last ten days I have been thinking a great deal of how to put into words what a terrible tragedy this is.

Gary Moore was a man who kept busy throughout his career. You'll find his name alongside some of the very greatest in the industry; Bob Daisley, Cozy Powell, Bob Dylan, George Harrison and Neil Murray. He covered every possible genre, from jazz with a swing to ruthless heavy metal, and excelled at all of them. At one point, he even incorporated elements of techno beats into his experimental album "A Different Beat".

I have strong memories from the time when I was first introduced to his music. I was exposed to it by my elder brother, who used to play Lost in Your Love and Wild Frontier on his huge stereo. At this point, I should mention, I had scarcely heard more than a few bits here and there, but I absolutely loved it.

Thus, one day, when we were ordering CDs from Ginza, as we would always make joint orders for the family to cut down on shipping charges, my brother bought a limited edition of Blood of Emeralds, the Very Best of Gary Moore Part 2, that featured an extra CD with special versions of some of Gary's top songs. Now, that record had some great song,s and the bonus CD had the one I loved the most; a live version of Wild Frontier.

But somehow, I felt that something was held back, as if I was just standing at the edge of a great lake, ready to dive in. So I ordered the CD I really wanted; Out in the Fields, The Very Best of Gary Moore Part 1.

I remember vividly when I got it. We were on vacation in Småland, and we celebrated the birthday of my grandfather, if memory serves. My father and elder brother were coming by train, and the CD I ordered had just arrived back home, so they were bringing it.

I got permission to sit in the car and listen to it, and it was the most awesome thing ever! I must've listened to Out In The Fields and Wild Frontier fifty times over the course of that holiday!

If it weren't for Gary, I would've never come across Thin Lizzy or Iron Maiden, and whatever part of me that is a rocker I owe entirely to him.

In the lyrics of the song "Hero" by Europe, we find this line of text that I'd like to dedicate to him:

"You're still my hero, my friday night
You wrote the soundtrack to my life
You give me something to hold onto
As I'm still growing up, you are the rock in my life"

Rest in peace, and know that we love you!

World of Warcraft!

In World of Warcraft, this evening, I had an exciting experience, that pleased me enormously!

First, some backstory: In the latest expansion, Cataclysm, all of Azeroth was remade. The old quests were mostly thrown out and replaced with new ones.

For those who had played the game before the great cataclysm, there was nothing odd in finding a character called First Mate Fitzsimmons in a flooded town on the coast.

He was involved in a storyline that consisted of the player bringing him some mead, then hearing his tale; how the fleet he was sailing with was ambushed by dragons and sunk, but the sailors were doomed to forever walk the earth as ghosts, because of an artifact called the Cursed Eye of Paleth, that was carried by one of the ships.

The player then retrieved the eye, and gave it to a priest who cleansed it, thus supposedly lifting the curse.

But still, after the great cataclysm, the player would find Fitzsimmons asking for help. He said he had given up drinking, but he was itching for another drink, so you were told to fetch some from a keg in the cellar of the local inn. The keg was dusty and had clearly been left alone for a long time.

When given the drink, Fitzsimmons told of the curse, and how his shipmates were doomed to haunt their sunken vessels. Then, he sent the player to put them to rest, and recover the Cursed Eye of Paleth, so that it might be cleansed.

It's worth noting that, for any player of World of Warcraft, doing a quest that has been completed before by other characters is nothing out of the ordinary.

Anyway, the player retrieves the Eye and brings it to the priest.

But, dear reader, when you hand it over, the priest, at first, doesn't know what you are talking about.

Then, he tells you that the Cursed Eye of Paleth was retrieved and cleansed by an adventurer several years ago.

Stranger still, Fitzsimmons died not long after...

The priest says said that, from time to time, adventurers had said they had talked to him, and been asked to recover the Eye.

So, it would seem Fitzsimmons couldn't escape the curse after all...

He will forever be sitting outside that inn, waiting to talk to another adventurer...

Perhaps you'll see him there some day...

And he'll say "I gave up drinking long ago..."

Lazy Sunday!

Today I'll just be really lazy and write down a few lines from songs that I am especially fond of!

"I swear on tomorrow if you take this chance
Our lives are this moment, the music the dance
And here in this labyrinth of lost mystery
I close my eyes on this night, and you're all that I see" - Not What You See by Savatage

"I never wanted to know, never wanted to see, I wasted my time 'til time wasted me
Never wanted to go, always wanted to stay 'cause the person I am are the parts that I play
So I plotted, I planned, hoped and I schemed, to the lure of the night filled with unfinished dreams
And I'm holding on tight to a world gone astray as they charge me for years I can no longer pay" - When the Crowds Have Gone by Savatage

"You've been fighting for your soul and sometimes it takes a toll
Hope one day you'll understand what it means to hold in hands
What we call a fantasy, it is nothing but a key to the world that now you're in, that they call a wicked dream" - The Seven Angels by Avantasia

"Too much love will kill you, just as sure as none at all
It'll drain the power that's in you, make you bleed and scream and crawl
And the pain it will make you crazy, you're the victim of your crime
Too much love will kill you, every time" - Too Much Love Will Kill You by Queen

"I can make the runner stumble, I can make the final block
I can make every tackle at the sound of the whistle, I can make all the stadiums rock
And I can make tonight forever, or I could make it disappear by the dawn
And I could make you every promise that has ever been made, I can make all your deamons be gone" - Making Love Out Of Nothing At All by Air Supply

Enjoy, and good night!

Assassin's Creed...

Here's the deal: I've recently thought quite a lot about the foundation of the philosophy of the assassin's in said game.

In essence, the thought is "Nothing is true, everything is permitted".

Now, I don't take this to mean that literally anything goes, but rather that it is a bad thing for mankind to get stuck with dogma that strangulates the minds of the people.

Why are we still stuck with views on homosexuality and marriage from thousands of years ago? It's really quite absurd, and to a great degree simply disgusting, but it's all due to dogma.

And really, the major churches are incredibly fucked up when a mainstream videogame from France offers a more reasonable philosophy than the church has managed to work out in two thousand years!