The Ball Wasn't Dropped, It Was Dropped

I'm a big fan of the Civil War. While I certainly don't know everything about it (who does?), I know a few things. Among them, I now that one of the best ways for 21st century people like us to really get a handle on the 1860's is to travel there. No, you can't really travel there (duh), but you can visit a re-enactment. There, you can get a feel for wool clothes in July. You can smell the campfires and gunpowder. You can see how they ate and where they slept. Make sure you visit the doctor's tent. You will never complain about your doctor's visit again.

So, I sat shocked when I read this story. Anytime someone gets shot, it's serious stuff. But, with this line, spoken by a Sheriff investigating the incident, I couldn't stop laughing-

"I can't say that anybody dropped the ball," he said.

If you know anything about civil war firearms, I suspect you understand the dark humor here. Early Civil War weapons didn't fire a bullet. Yes, you guessed it - they fired a ball. So, no, it doesn't appear that "anybody" "dropped the ball". Instead, he "dropped the ball"...

...right down the barrel.

With a modern firearm, the lead projectile, powder and primer are basically one. We call it a bullet. Pull the trigger and bang. The pin hits the primer, which lights the powder which moves the bullet.

With many older firearms, like those from the early Civil War, for example, it's different. The cartridge is a paper square folded to hold a lead ball (which does not have to be round, like a marble, by the way) and some powder. You tear it open with your teeth and dump the powder down the muzzle of the barrel. After placing the ball and the paper at the end of the muzzle, you push like hell with the ramrod to seat the ball at the end of the barrel. After placing your percussion cap, you aim and fire. The hammer hits the cap, the cap drops the spark into the barrel, the powder goes off and pushes the ball down the barrel and towards its target.

Yes, all those steps. You might even hit your target, too!

Sure, accidents happen. By how does one fulfill a lengthy, multi-step process on accident? Can you say "Felony" or "Assault?"

I knew ya could, boys and girls.

I'll be watching this story......

Chili with #511

Further inspired by chilly weather and cold rain (which, by the way, is far worse than snow, in case you were not sure), I got into another chili recipe tonight. I had a new beer to go with it (Wow! I'm trying a new beer! No way!).

The chili, which I prepared last night actually, was far better than the stuff I had a few days ago. Plus, you have a ton of it when you are done. With bread and butter or nacho chips for dipping, you can easily get 4 meals out of it. Plus, in the grand tradition of good chili, it is better the second day!

3 tbs olive oil
1 1/2 cup chopped onions
8 large cloves of garlic
2 lbs ground chuck
1 envelope taco seasoning(!)
1 tsp basil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp thyme
15 oz tomato sauce
3 cups chicken broth
6oz tomato paste
2 15oz cans kidney beans (drained)

Brown the onions and garlic. Add the meat and brown. Add taco stuff and dry spices; cook 2 minutes. Add sauce broth, and paste. Simmer for about 90 minutes. Add beans (from the can, Lora!) and simmer for another 5 minutes. Done. Easy. Easy. Easy. Good. Good. Good.

The only thing that can make a great chili better is washing it down with a good beer. The Railbender Ale is the second beer from my 6-pack sampler of Erie Brewing Company beers. I admit, with a train on the bottle (very cool!), I was worried the Railbender Ale (#511) was going to be a trainwreck like the drool they called Presque Ile Pilsner.

I was solidly mistaken.

The color was a medium brown or amber (it struck me as being a darker apple cider, actually). The tan head was easily two fingers high and dissapated to about 1/4 inch in a few minuters (totally gone shortly thereafter). It was here that I noticed the particulate, too; little flecks like cinnamon. After a brisk swirl, I could immediately smell the sweetness with malty undertones. On the palate, the malt/caramel combo was perfect. The finish was smooth and sweet, giving way to a dry, slightly hoppy finish.

Unfortunately, I can't give this beer a solid 5 out of 5. The massive head was an early indication of what was to come. The beer was clearly over-carbonated and ultimately botched the balance of the beer. Perhaps you have accidentally taken a slug of Coke that is too big? You can feel it burning your tongue and the linings of your cheeks? Well, it was similar to that. Once the beer had a few minutes to breath, the carbonation smoothed out a bit but it was still noticeable.

One this is clear: if they tone down the carbonination this beer is a solid winner in my opinion. For now, a 4 out of 5.

Good chili and good beer. What more could you want?

Above and Behind

Compared to the machines of today, combat aircraft from the early 1940s were pretty simple, while the pilots were simply awesome. No heat-seeking missiles. No laser-guided anything. No radar or chaff to confuse it. It was a simple machine with some simple firepower (by today's standards), the pilot's senses and skills, and lots of training. There were no time outs, no "Oh, that's not fair!" and the rules were very straightforward: fly or die.

The single safest place a pilot could find himself was above and behind his opponent. This gave the "higher" aircraft the opportunity to react to actions of the "lower" craft. At no point could the disadvantaged plane maneuver without the advantaged plane seeing it and reacting accordingly. If the enemy turned left, he turned left. A hard right was followed by a hard right. If the enemy dove and went right and then quickly came back to the left, the advantaged pilot could follow. Assuming the advantaged plane was more maneuverable and it's pilot was at least good, the disadvantaged plane was totally at it's mercy.

Above and behind the opponent is a safe place to be.

Birds know this, and do the same thing.

I was heading to the hawkwatch yesterday and found myself witnessing something I have seen too many times to count: a "ball" of passerines above a hawk. In this case, it was a mob of Starlings trying to maintain position over a Red-shouldered Hawk. (Looking for these masses of small birds is a standard trick for hawkwatchers. If you see a wad of birds on the horizen, look below them. They are likely reacting to the danger.)

While I don't think the hawk was a threat to the starlings, I gathered that the starlings were not going to take any chances. No matter what the lone bird did, they responded. At every opportunity, they shifted and twisted and flapped feverishly to get to the safe position. Above and behind. The neat part was that all the birds were reacting the same way and they were all trying to jockey for the same position. Above and behind. The shimmering of their wings was quite cool in the bright sunshine. ( I have seen this effect with thousands of blackbirds. Awesome.)

Did they talk to their wingmen? Did they get the latest and greatest information on enemy tactics from their intelligence officer? Did they spend countless hours in flight school? Well, no, no, and , yes, depending on how you look at it, I guess.

The flight school would be Mother's Nature Flight School. Eventually, all "pilots" are trained to get themselves into that sweet spot. If it worked for them the last time they encountered the enemy, it might work again. Don't screw around and don't get caught out of position. Do it quickly and efficiently or it might be the last thing you do. Over time, all the graduates that survive "Flight School" pass along their knowledge to future "pilots." Not so much by training and classwork, but by gene flow.

It's all the same, really, with combat pilots or birds. There is the one place to be - above and behind.

Greater White-fronted Goose

Here is a photo of of the Greater White-fronted Goose. It was found today by Walt Pawloski.

All the key marks can be seen clearly:
- pinkish/orange bill
- white band around the bill base
- smaller than a Canada Goose
- white line on the flank

Any key marks seen in the field but not visible in the photo? You bet. Pumpkin orange feet (observed when it was "tipping up") and a very white belly. Hmmm, white, orange and brown during the Halloween season. Its like a defective candy corn!

Interestingly, this is my first fall record. I have a few spring records from southeast Michigan and southwest Ontario. I also have a few winter records. I suppose for the purposes of migration timetables, the birds recorded in Barrow, Alaska don' t do me much good (though they certainly help pad the 'ole AK list!).

Any way you look at it, today's bird was only my second LEMP record.

Kudos, Walt.

#509 and #510

After watching an Osprey rip Hal to shreds and sounding like a 10-year old with a fly-by of a Pregnant Beast, I capped off a great day by heading to the Fort Street Brewery for dinner with some friends.

An entire series of beers had been brewed just in time for the cheesiest of all holidays: Sweetest Day. FSB took a mediocre holiday and did something cool. Some proceeds from the meals went to Homes for Our Troops, a non-profit organization that builds specially adapted homes for severely injured veterans. It works out pretty well: I get a good dinner and some great beer and they give money to organization to help those who are paying a heavy price.

Trust me. The beer did not disappoint.

#509 was the "Flowers For My Love." Guess what Doug put in it? Yeah, okay, a flower. You probably figured that out. But would you believe it was Hibiscus? Wow! A very well done beer, in my opinion. The beer was certainly red; to me it almost suggested a red wine. The flowery aroma was very obvious. Overall, it was very, very dry (again, much like a wine) with a light-to-medium body and solid fruity palate. The finish had a "puckering" kind of quality to it. All in all, a fine beer. I would highly recommend it with a fruit appetizer or a fruity dessert of some sort. A solid 4 out of 5.

#510? "Wine N Dine". If there was ever a beer/wine concoction, this might be it. I must tell you: the color was a bit of a turn off. That funky, watery, brown was not the best way to start things out. But the taste, largely a result of a large dose of Concord grapes, was very good. As you might expect, it was very sweet (in the nose and on the tongue). Balance was good. Sure, it was a bit try, but like the Flowers For My Love, you would expect that. Pretty decent stuff. Easily a 4 out of 5.

These two beers, by the way, bring my Fort Street Brewery list to 26 beers...