I can’t come up with post titles anymore. God help me in the future if I ever need to find shit on here.

Anyway, Saturday was alright. I woke up in A BAD MOOD but I went for a walk, did a GrowwithJo cardio workout and then felt OK enough to be in an amenable state to leave the house with Henry. We are fully in the process of refurbing an Ikea wardrobe and dresser set and it requires trips to antique shops to find some accoutrements for it. Namely: rosaries and small crucifixes. Just…you’ll see. If we ever get it finished.

The antique shop I wanted to go to wasn’t open yet because dumbo Henry didn’t check the times so instead, we drove to Coraopolis and hit the motherlode of rosaries at some place there:

This is my collection as of Saturday. The two on the end are from eBay (the last one glows in the dark!).

The older women behind the counter didn’t ask what our deal was with all the rosaries (members the MYOB club, I like it) but I was prepared to answer honestly that the Devil appointed me to his Catholic Relic Eradication Committee.

“Can I have a paper receipt for reimbursement? Thanks.”

By this time, the antiques place on 65 was open. We’ve been here numerous times and have had success in the past (I know I’ve bought treasures here but for the life of me, cannot remember what) but I don’t think we’ve here since during the pandemic when we were renovating the kitchen and I got super pissed that people weren’t wearing masks.

I forgot how vibey this joint is. It is an eyeball feast for someone like me who appreciates antiques juxtaposed with kitsch.

I took this picture specifically to send to Chooch and instead of being disgusted in his dad, he was like, “SEND ME A CLOSER PICTURE OF THAT SHIP PAINTING.”

He really imprinted on it for some reason but ended up telling me not to get it because he won’t be able to hang it in his dorm room next year. I think I might go back and get it for him anyway though.  He’s not going to be living in a dorm forever, after all??

I wanted the light-up angel underneath the ship painting but Henry looked at the price tag and hit me with his I DON’T THINK frown.

GOOD THING MAMA BEAR* HAS CREDIT CARDS.

*(I’ve been watching way too much Jake Webber, sorry.)

Dude come on now, seriously. I could live in this room. It is so aesthetically pleasing and makes me wish we had more blank walls in the house to play with.

There was one room that had a bunch of original art from Jeff Bertrand and I was SALIVATING over them and Henry was like DO WHATEVER YOU WANT, YOU HAVE CREDIT CARDS but in the end, I couldn’t decide which one I wanted the most and spent so much time ruminating that all of them stopped speaking to me. So, I got nothing. I was in full-fledge pout mode at this point, so I told Henry to just put back the WHO’S THAT GIRL* soundtrack record I was “so excited” to buy 30 minutes prior to this. I get very overstimulated when shopping and experience shopper’s pre-remorse which results in me panicking and buying nothing.

*(I had this on cassette when I was in elementary school and used to blast it on my dad’s stereo while roller-skating in the basement. Very good memories associated with this soundtrack. Ugh. I hope it’s still there?!)

I left with nothing but an allergic reaction from all the dust.

The rest of the day was pretty chill. My bad mood went away after I ate lunch. Shocker.

Henry went out later to get craft supplies because He’s So Crafty, and also came home with two beers from Duffy’s. We haven’t been indulging in that anymore but since he only brought home two and not a whole six-pack, I allowed it. He was able to procure this one that Penn Brewery did with Sarris Candies, which I guess I was kind of excited about because it was a hot commodity when it was released and sold out, but it’s a stout so I also didn’t have high hopes.

OMG it was so bad. I took two sips and gave it all to Henry, who also didn’t like it but he’s one of those WASTE NOT WANT NOT types and drank all of it with his facial muscles frozen in sheer disgust.

I tasted nothing even remotely reminiscent of Sarris. Not even a whiff. Tastes more like a box in the next room over from a Sarris meltaway.

AND THAT’S ALL I HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THAT.

After the highway museum (which I’m still so geeked about, to be quite honest – PIE AND POSTCARDS. ‘Nuff said), we drove a few minutes away for lunch at Unity Brewing in Latrobe.

Right off the bat, the Crosby art was giving good vibes.

I got a:

• LEMON CREME COOKIE something. I don’t know what kind of beer it was – a wheat maybe? Whatever it was, it was my favorite. Subtle lemony sweetness without tasting like Pine-sol!
• Another Dimension IPA – just a solid, refreshing IPA that I liked very much
• Peach Ring Sour – remember when we went to that brewery in Youngstown last month and I was like, “I guess I don’t like sours after all?” Nope, wrong, scratch that. This was my redemption sour. It was SO DELICIOUS and fun.
• Vanilla Bean Blonde – apparently this is touted as the “undisputed pub favorite” and I can see why! It was so nice.

I legit loved everything. If I wasn’t a lightweight, I’d have probably gone back to the bar and asked for a full pour of….the lemon creme, I think. Any of them really!

Henry got the Maibock (a German spring lager), the Here’s the Dill! Pickle sour (LOVED THIS, so refreshing! I could have probably had a full pour of this if we were sitting outside with friends or something), the River Goat! West Coast IPA (decent) and….the Willie’s Reserve which I ordered for him and since I have bad eyesight I couldn’t see the smaller words on the menu which said that it was cannabis inspired. Hoo boy, was it ever. Henry and I aren’t like, NARCs or anything but we are both pretty averse to pot – I can’t stand the smell of it and haven’t smoked it since probably my late teens/early 20s because I have so many mental problems that it has the complete opposite affect on me and it AIN’T A GOOD ONE. So this was not our fave. You could smell the skunkiness without even holding it up to your nose.

MY FAULT though – I would not have  told him to get that if my eyes worked better, lol.

We were seriously having such a great time here, I can’t explain it (don’t worry, it was the calm before the storm, lol).

I had whatever “sweet flats” is – OK, I’ll tell you what it is: roasted rounds of sweet potatoes topped with black bean, corn, and two dollops of goat cheese. It was exceptional!! Filling without making me feel like sick, we love to see it.

Chooch called Heny’s phone when Henry was at the bar ordering our food, so I answered and without even letting me say hello, Chooch immediately demanded, “Dunkin.” That’s the only time he ever calls Henry, when he wants him to order (a/k/a “pay for”) his Dunkin lol.

Anyway, I was like, “Wow, hello, we’re at lunch.”

“With who?” he asked.

“No one…just us.”

“WOW. I didn’t know you people did that,” Chooch said, mind blown that his parents do date-like activities together I guess.

The post-lunch plan was to go down the street a bit to Ligonier so we could walk around and not have to be in the car for 60+ minutes after eating lunch. First, we used the gross “outside, needs a key” restroom at the local GetGo gas station. I liked my outfit that day so I took this picture but I did not feel cute that day at all, to be fully transparent. I am in a very low, low, low self-esteem cycle currently.

We took these dumb pictures of each other. Chooch said we were “Wow so cool” when I sent them to him later haha.

Anyway, Ligonier just pissed me off. I hated everyone there, it wasn’t my vibe, I rejected every store we passed, I got outrageously babyish at a cafe over a chai latte that was made with whole milk because I forgot to ask for almond milk and declined their offer to remake it and said, “No this is fine” in a monotone because at that point I was trying to be difficult while pretending like LOOK HOW EASY I AM BEING. As soon as we walked out, I thrust the latte at Henry and said IT’S ALL YOURS and he was like, “?????” because now he was double-fisting iced lattes. I don’t know, I was feeling uncomfortable in my skin, it was kind of hot out but I refused to take off my sweater because I didn’t want to show my arms, Henry was NOT LISTENING TO ME AS USUAL. It was a perfect storm. The last time we were in Ligonier together was before Chooch was born it was also a really bad day. Henry has declared a travel ban on Ligonier and I can’t say I’m going to argue with him on that one.

We drove home (in a big traffic jam) in silence, me listening to Johnnie Guilbert and scowling out the window while also silently crying and wanting to die. It gets easier until it doesn’t. I just don’t know. The day was so great and then….that. Can’t even blame it on hanger because it was after lunch. Luckily, once we got home everything was fine. I exercised. Ate dinner. It was a normal Saturday night.

Grow up, Erin.

(Henry tried to blame it on me revisiting my emo roots but I have been this bad if not worse for over a year now, not to mention since I was born. So.)

I’m a big advocate of post-meal walk-abouts, constitutionals, digestive jaunts – whatever you want to call it. I like to walk after eating. Especially after having been in the car for 4 hours. So, after our so-so Batch Brewing lunch, Henry suggested the Detroit River Walk, as if I would ever say no to that. Right away, we saw a carousel, but it was closed. :(

I begged him to please wear the BooSeokSoon hat that I got him for Christmas, which he has worn NOT ONCE, and he was a big baby about it because he’s ashamed of his Kpop heritage, I guess. Finally, he agreed but said the moment I started being mean to him, it was going in the river. LOL ok, sure, Captain M.T.Threat.  I love this hat so much! I specifically got in a color other than black because ALL OF HIS HATS ARE BLACK, so now he uses the “it doesn’t match anything” excuse. Looks pretty complementary against his burnt orange shirt, if you ask me.

In case you care, BooSeokSoon (a/k/a BSS, a/k/a the gag trio) is a sub-unit of the Kpop group Seventeen. They actually started out as a joke but the fans loved the combo so much that they’re a legit sub-unit now with albums and music videos, and we love them in this house.

Boo = Boo Seungkwan

Seok = Lee Seokmin (his Seventeen stage name is Dokyeom / DK)

Soon = Kwon Soonyoung (his Seventeen stage name is Hoshi)

Here’s a compilation of clips from when they got to hang out with THE LEGENDARY G-DRAGON recently, and it made my Carat/VIP heart swell to abnormal, undocumented sizes.

OK now that I got that out of my system, here are more pictures of the RIVER WALK which is right across from Canada! (Windsor, I believe? I think that is what Jessi told us the next at breakfast.)

Some buildings.

Some mural.

For as many times as we have been to Michigan in general, visiting Bill & Jessi, going to concerts, etc., this was the most amount of time we have spent *in* Detroit. I really want to spend more time there sometime and maybe GO ON THIS BOAT??? It looked so cool. I love river stuff.

Henry is so annoying. BUT ALSO DOESN’T THAT HAT MATCH WELL WITH HIS SHIRT??? I am a big color theory expert.

Then we joined that pro-Canada, Fuck Trump rally that I previously posted about from our hotel room last Saturday night. 

I don’t know what this pose is and I look like trash, but I’m leaving it here though because of Canada <3 looming behind me like the big, beautiful sovereign country it is.

After this, we drove about 20 minutes out of the city to check into our hotel, a Hampton Inn near the Detroit airport, specifically in Romulus. The first time we stayed in this area, I made a joke about how maybe the next time, we could stay in Remus, but it bombed, as Biblical jokes usually do.

This particular Hampton was actually a pretty decent hotel, good job, Henry. It was nearly 4PM by this point, and doors opened at 6PM for the Onew concert so I was in a big hurry to get back downtown and find real food before that, since our lunch was more of a snack than anything else. I didn’t want to be Big Hungry after the concert and needed to eat something sustainable. When you’re an old person, you start pre-planning the types of meals you need to have based on the events you’ll be attending later. Love this for me.

I started screaming when we came up on the Fillmore!!

Little did we know that not only was a baseball game JUST letting out, but it was a double-header so it was a chaotic flux of crowds coming and going. Luckily, we pre-paid for a parking spot in a lot right between the baseball stadium and the Fillmore, so we had that going for us. However, it made it miserable trying to find a place to eat because all of the people leaving the game had teh same idea. I am now super-familiar with three or four blocks of downtown Detroit and it’s much nicer than Pittsburgh, BTW – so lively and lots of cool & fancy shops. Pittsburgh could never. Detroit definitely does not live up to the bad rap it gets.

The original place we were going to eat was Detroit Beer Co. but there was a wait of course, so we kept walking in circles, with no back-up plan, me getting hangrier and hangrier. AND it was kind of chilly and I didn’t have a jacket so I was Mrs. Miz about that too. Then I got very mad because some older man walked by us and he was also complaining about the cold, so his wife goes, “Oh, it’s not that cold. Look, THAT guy is wearing shorts!” and gestured bigly toward Henry. Henry of course gloated about this and that did NOTHING to boost my morale.

We were going to go this fast-food looking place called Mister Dips in a super trendy alley. We were actually standing in line to order when my stomach started to preemptively cramp up on me – the thought of eating an Impossible Burger and then going to a (seated!) concert was making me have hives. In the end, I decided to leave and find something else, but I am keeping this place in mind for the next visit because it looked totally my style!

At the very least, I want one of their shakes!

I thought I did a pretty good job not “throwing a fit,” but I was definitely grumpy. We even went back to the parking lot and sat in the car for a bit before deciding to try Eminem’s Mom’s Spaghetti which is right next to the Fillmore. There’s a walk-up window so we were going to do that and just eat in the car like a pair of hungry, de-homed rats, until we realized that the line we thought was for the Onew concert was actually for the walk-up window. (Oh don’t worry, the Onew line was also long, but it was on the OTHER side of the Fillmore.)

We ended up roaming around again and this time, the Detroit Beer Co has no one waiting in the entrance! We got a table almost immediately and I silently thanked the good Onew for sprinkling the town with his Jinki magic dust.

I was so happy and content. I ordered vegan pasta which was light and just the right amount of filling. And I had this seriously delicious IPA from actually some other brewery, not Detroit Beer haha. It was M-43 N.E. from Old Nation Brewing Co. and now I would like to go visit their establishment sometime!

I really liked the vibe of this place. We were seated by a busboy who reminded me of a younger, nerdier version of Henry’s son Robbie. He was really nice and I felt so bad for him when these two SPORTS DUDES came in, sat at the table behind me, and asked him to PUT THE BASKETBALL GAME ON. The remote / cable / TV in general was really giving this kid a tough time and I sat there helplessly watching him. The TV was right behind Henry, who was in the bathroom, so it was just me and this kid locked into an awkward scene together while the SPORTS GUYS sat behind me and talked SUPER LOUDLY about their SPORTS KNOWLEDGE even though we were the only two tables in this corner – there was no one even remotely within ear shot for them to be trying to impress. I hate white men so much, truly I do. I glanced over my shoulder a few times and they looked just as I had imagined – a few years out of college but still hanging on to the glory years, bearded, big outdoor voices for no reason. The one – the loudest – kept  talking about when he was in Turkey.

WHEN I WAS IN TURKEY.

MY TURKISH FRIEND IN TURKEY.

I know, everyone reading this is like, “OK Erin but replace TURKEY with KOREA—” but I would just like to note here that at least I use my indoor voice when I am constantly reminding everyone around me that HEY GUYS REMEMBER HOW I WENT TO KOREA.

Been a while since we were treated to a COLESLAW MASTICATION shot. I wish I had more of these so I could make a “60 Photos of Henry Slawin’ Down” commemorative book for his upcoming 60th birthday. :(

Henry also ordered a beer as an afterthought, and it took our server (who was great if not slightly flustered) an extremely long time to bring it, and I was doing the big foot-tapping song & dance because it was almost 6PM and I wanted to leave and get in line for the concert. She finally brought it over around 5:50 and I was trying to make him chug it.

“This is not chuggable!” he borked, so I tried it and it immediately burnt the tip of my tongue which is probably a good indication that Henry had the right call there. I went back for another sip and I actually liked it so I kept stealing more sips to “help him.”

Overall, a decent place for pre-concert food and drinks! The pasta was very light and flavorful (and it had artichokes, which I love in pasta when it’s done right) and did not lay in my belly like a load of bricks so I was able to comfortably enjoy Onew and his heavenly vocals. (That will of course be another post!)

It’s currently 9:18pm and the electricity in large swathes of Pgh has been out since around 5pm when some tornado-esque storm blew through and I am sitting here in candlelight bemoaning my new pioneer woman status while blogging from my phone. I’m also dying a little because when we were cleaning out my pappap’s house in 2016 I found an old transistor radio in a kitchen cabinet and brought it home – sometimes I turn it on in the 1980s dream kitchen for the lofi vibes but now Henry has it on because we literally need SOUND in this house right now. Ugh, knock knock electric company. Let’s gooooo.

I dunno is that what a transistor radio is?

In the meantime, here are some pictures of our brewery lunch in Detroit on Saturday! I was really excited for this but it was kind of a let down. The beers were ok but the vibes were off, fam. Unlit, just like my house right now.

Apropos of nothing, I was wearing my SHINee Obama pin on Saturday in honor of Onew <3

Lil baby pours. I think we got all IPAs and a Pilsner. Everything was just fine but nothing made me slam my fists on the table and feel inspired to, I dunno, lift my shirt up.

The fuck, Henry…

I hate ordering from QR codes. All of the “veg” options for the tacos were “out of stock” so I ended up with a side salad and mushroom soup. I didn’t finish either. The soup was really good for the first two spoonfuls then I started to hyper focus on the taste.

Henry got cauliflower wings and I usually love me some cauli-wings but these had a…taste. I can’t explain it but my tongue was like no thank YOU.

The beers, in case I need to reference them at some point in the future. You never know.

A tasteful Untappd snap.

Yeah I don’t know. I probably wouldn’t return here but it wasn’t AWFUL. We did up end up getting a soft pretzel to share and THAT was good.

Well on that note I better go and conserve my phone battery because who knows how much longer we’ll be in the dark over here. Cries in pitch black.

A big reason why I wasn’t too torn up over that Easter Lane thing being lame is that we had planned a little mini daytrip around it by scoping out some places in nearby Youngstown, Ohio for lunch. We settled on this brewery called Noble Creature because “Viking” was thrown around in descriptions of the vibe and that seemed like something for me. I was really HUNGY (r removed purposely, OK, I learned this from Chooch) by the time we got there but luckily not to HANGRY proportions yet.

I really liked the atmosphere of this joint, even from just the outside!

BIG YES to that welcome disclaimer.

Right off the bat, I felt good here. The bartender was super down to earth and helpful. I’m not trying to act like someone who is knowledgeable about beer and have no qualms being an open n00b about it, and he was patient and happy to answer my questions. (“IS ANYTHING HERE COMPARABLE TO A BELGIAN?” is usually my only inquiry, lol. Sadly, not really but he did steer me toward an ESB called Basement Darts and complimented me on my OLD WORLD tastes hahahaha.

I had no idea what an ESB was (Extra Special Bitter allegedly??) and it was OK. English. I was able to finish my little glass of it but would probably never get it again.

Henry got two tasters of the only IPAs they had and I was pissed because I don’t like ordering the same thing as him, so to finish my flight, I chose a sour called Jelly because I used to like sours way back when I didn’t like beer and I haven’t really been drinking those anymore. I also got a Flemish Red which I thought was going to be like an Irish Red. Nope, not even close. Hated this one so much. So sour, like way sour-er than the actual sour. I never want to even think about this one again.

Lastly, I got my first Gose after mths of asking Henry, “What is a Gose? Do you think I’d like it?” Turns out, nope, no I do not like Gose. Not even when it has a cool name like Mother Shover.

Full disclosure, I have to admit that the only reason I wanted to like it is because Seventeen, one of my favorite Kpop groups AS YOU MIGHT KNOW, have a show called Going Seventeen but it’s shortened to GoSe so I associate that beer with it. Bummed that is not for me.

(Reading about Mother Shover on Untapped now – because why would I do this before ordering – and apparently it has table salt in it too??)

Henry’s IPAs were both really good :(

Basement Darts. Since it was English, it made me think of the band Basement. I used to really like that band!

A really good mushroom and black bean burger! With asparagus! That burger was really good. The portions were on the small side so I was still hungry when we left but it was for the best because usually I get so full that I become sick when I eat out these days.

So-so sour. No, it was fine. I could never drink a full pour of this but let’s be real, there aren’t many beers I could drink a full pour of!

Mother Shover.

Before leaving, we decided to split one of the seltzers, called CASUAL CORSAGE. We were eyeing it up because it was billed as “a purple seltzer with juniper, lemon, elderberry, butterfly pea flower, and honey simple syrup.

ALL THINGS I LOVE.

And before you ask, yes, even butterfly pea flower – I love it when cafes have butterfly pea matcha.

Oh, damn, did I strike out across the board here! It just tasted like sour nothingness! I thought it would be crisp and sparkling?? Semi-sweet?! It was not any of these things. I truly can’t describe it but it did not inspire me to go wading barefoot in a bubbling brook, which is what ALL OF THOSE INGREDIENTS FEEL LIKE THEY WERE MADE TO ACCOMPANY?!

It was a struggle for us to finish this, especially since Henry had to chug the last dregs of my FLEMISH RED, brotha ew is all I can say to that one. It felt like a sinister, ancient and sacred religious ceremony in a candle lit cellar playing out on my tongue. Just…old and scary and like some possessed monk’s liquified sour breath rolling around in my mouth, daring me to swallow it while my gag reflexes where in overdrive.

I know, it sounds like this was a terrible time but I really enjoyed our visit! I chalked it up to a learning experience because I still am figuring out what I like and don’t like, but also it was just really nice to be in a different “city” on a day-date thing while texting Chooch annoying pictures of ourselves.

DON’T WORRY THOUGH BECAUSE OUR DATE DIDN’T END THERE.

Last Tuesday evening, Henry and I went to Crafthouse to see one of my old favorite bands, Cold. I was wavering on buying tickets for this because I knew it was going to be an emotional rollercoaster – it had been FIFTEEN YEARS almost exactly since I last saw them. Two mths before I started working at The Law Firm, actually! Sometimes it’s hard to believe that there were pre-Law Firm times in my life.

I finally sucked it up though and bought us tickets and I am so glad that I did. Yeah, it’s a drag to do these things on work nights at this age, but really it was so worth it.

I had to laugh though because as we were standing outside waiting for the doors to open, the people behind us were talking about health insurance. “The conversations happening in line now are wayyyyy different from when we used to go to see Cold back in the day,” I laughed and Henry did too but I don’t know why because he was old back then too??

Once we got inside and settled into a table, I started giggling which always makes Henry scared.

“I just realized that I didn’t change out of my NCT shoes,” I cracked up, raising my legs up and wiggling my feet. Henry groaned.

“AND I HAVE MY G-DRAGON LIGHTSTICK ON MY PURSE!” I pointed out. “And my Seventeen credit card!”

I had to get a picture of the full trifecta and Henry mumbled, “You’re so dumb.”

I am really leaning into the Empty Nester Lifestyle. I mean, not that this isn’t something we would have done with Chooch still in the house, because obviously we were still going to concerts back then too but it just feels…different somehow? Like, fresh? Like almost as though we ARE DATING? I dunno man, it’s weird.

Also, it felt kind of wild being around this certain demographic again. Cold is hard rock (actually they were even considered nu-metal adjacent there for a time) and I haven’t been in this scene in A LONG FUCKING TIME. I mean, this was my pre-Chooch life, really. This predated the Warped Tour and screamo and post-hardcore season of my life.

I have to say, on one hand I felt very comfortable and confident in this environment, it felt natural and familiar, I felt like my old out-going self. And it’s probably the only type of man that still CHECKS ME OUT, lol. I came back from the background and bragged to Henry about that. He just frowned.

But on the other hand, looking around at the majority of these people – especially the women – I am very thankful that I got out of this scene. I was always getting drunk back then off gross things like Smirnoff Ice and chain-smoking Camel Wides. I can only imagine how gross my voice would be today, how old I would look, how FUCKED my health would be in general. Hard Rock Erin was not it.

Literally, though, this one “rode hard & put away wet” woman came falling into the bathroom and Skeletor’d, “DO YINZ KNOW IF I CAN VAPE IN HERE??” Calm down, sis. Also, NO????

I took this to send to Chooch. He lowkey hates that his parents go out together I think, lol.

That guy’s face, though lol.

I just want to say that this was only our second time at Crafthouse and both times we had wonderful servers. I enjoyed my food a lot more this time – I went with the margherita flatbread and it was just right. Also, I Like Beer Now^TM and their selection is pretty good. Henry and I both had two different IPAs and both were good. Specifically, I had an Aslin Clear Nights and an Appalachian Brewing Co. Hop Offering. I don’t remember what Henry had because he refuses to update Untapped.

Good music aside, I just want to say that I really enjoyed this night so much. It was a tough decision to come out, but I’m glad I did and that Dumb Henry was with me. JUST LIKE OLD TIMES when it felt like we were seeing Cold several times a year for a while there. But be prepared for the show recap because it’s going to be so stupid-emo.

The weather was so blah over the weekend, BUT! It was still such a nice one. Mostly because on Saturday, we had plans to meet up with some friends at Golden Age, a brewery in Homestead. Way back at Chingumas, our friend Sean was telling us about it and we did the whole, “Oh, we’ll have to make plans to meet up there!” song and dance. But you know what? No more excuses! I followed up on this and then when our friend Todd found out and mentioned he hadn’t seen Sean in years, I said YOU SHOULD COME TOO BUT YOU HAVE TO BRING YOUR GIRLFRIEND. Todd had mentioned that his gf Brittany loves going to concerts and watching K-dramas so I was like, “I need to be her friend!”

I’m not desperate. I swear.

Anyway, I felt like a secretary going back and forth between text and Teams, but we eventually locked in a date and I felt so accomplished.

Henry and I got there first. I had emphatically said that I was only drinking one (1) beer. I get way too overzealous when we’re with Amy, wanting to sample everything, and then I don’t realize how wasted I am until it’s too late and then the rest of the day/evening is shot! But this time, I said, “One beer, with food.” And I held myself accountable! Actually, drinking one full sized pour pretty much does me in, anyway. There was no way I could drink anything after this Belgian thing, especially because it didn’t WOW me. I am learning that just because I like “Belgian beer” does not mean I like “all Belgian beer.”

Henry got something that tasted like smoke. I didn’t like it. But I did sip his next beer and I liked that a lot. I don’t remember what it was. I’m so great at blogging. Hire me to be the historian of your next event.

Sean arrived next, and then Todd and Brittany! I practically shoved Todd out of the way in my effort to greet Brittany – you know how sometimes you just get A VIBE from someone and know it’s going to be good? It was that for me. Brittany has this confident and friendly air about her and we (after I assigned Todd a seat at the end of the table so that Brittany could sit next to me haha) settled into easy conversation right away. Do you how awkward I can make introductory meet-ups? Very. But because Brittany was so cool and casual, it set the precedent for the rest of our drinking lunch.

Sean and Todd gossiped like little girls about ancient Law Firm things* while Brittany asked Henry and me about my favorite subject – Korea!

*(I failed to mention that Sean worked there when I first started and then left around three years later I think, so Todd and I both got to work with him long enough to actually care and be sad that he left.)

We also talked a lot about music – yes, I was also engaging in the work gossip but hello that was boring for Henry & Brittany so I kept trying to steer the conversation away from work. Brittany likes trip hop! And she was also talking about a concert that she and Todd went to at the Warhol, where they were in the FRONT ROW and Todd fell asleep – what a Henry move! Anyway, Brittany explained that it was extra embarrassing because the singer was talking about her time working with Diddy and the abuse she endured. “She was in one of his groups,” Brittany clarified and I cried out, “DANITY KANE???”

“Yes!” Brittany said, and Henry and I were like !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! because Danity Kane has come up in conversation at least 3x for us in as many months, to the point where we I was going down the Wiki rabbit hole a few months ago to see who’s where doing what, and then on our drive home from Philly two weekends ago, it came up AGAIN because Henry said that one of Jennie’s new solo songs sounds like Showstopper, so we ended up listening to their whole discography (I probably included that in my liveblog!). I just thought it was so wild that here they were, coming up again.

Then we had a moment of silence for them, the girl group that could have been SO BIG.

Meanwhile, Todd was at the end of the table frantically trying to defend his concert snoozin’.

“She had a HARP!” he said. Henry and Sean were like, “Oh! Say no more.” But I was still on Brittany’s team for this one. It was DAWN RICHARD!! Up close and personal and Todd’s over there snoring in her face.

Things not related to our company that I want to remember:

• Golden Age has super friendly staff
• They have complimentary Chex Mix that one of them makes themself and it was so buttery and inexplicably delicious. I thought about it all weekend, which is no surprise considering my penchant for latching on and obsessing over the random side characters
  • (in this case, homemade Chex Mix)
• Bomb seitan wings
• At Chingumas, my friend Cara said that some guy we went to high school with owns or co-owns this place. The name sounded familiar but I don’t have any memories of him. That’s all.

I made Henry take a group picture before we left because you know how synonymous Henry is with “group selfie” lol:

Sean already has the next place picked out and said his wife Ines is going to come that time too! I kind of want to leave it up to the guys to schedule this one but then it could be like 9 years from now.

Henry and I met Amy and Dick at Coven Brewing for our March Brewery Meet-Up. For as much as I had been enjoying trying new beers after discovering that I actually like beer now, I recently decided that I will only drink in social settings now because if there is one thing about me, it’s that I will go ALL IN when I like something and I was actually afraid that I was on the path to addiction. Yes, I know that it was mostly excitement but when I was finding myself eager to log off work so I could try a new beer in the fridge…well. To me, that’s a prob. So now, it’s weekends only AND it has to be if we’re going out with friends. Not just me and Henry sitting at home watching Kpop content and drinking.

(I think a lot of this is also akin to a midlife crisis, if we’re being honest with each other, Peggy.)

All of this is to say, I was looking forward to not only seeing Amy & Dick, but also having my first beer in over a week.

There were only two other patrons there when we arrived, which was good because that joint is TINY.

I don’t have much to say about this place. The vibe itself was fine, but I am an IPA snob now and I was not wowed by any of their offerings. I did have a strawberry & peanut butter sour that was rather delightful though, and then I let Amy talk me into the stout (porter? I never know) that tasted like thick, syrupy alcoholic coffee. I actually liked it but there is no way I could ever imbibe a full serving of that sludge. I should have stopped after my one IPA and sour (they were all in those glasses above – Coven doesn’t do flights but you can get tiny glasses which seemed like they were the same size you’d get with a flight), but I ended up also having that stout and something else- a lager or something. I just get so excited to hang out with Amy that I don’t pay attention to what I’m doing and end up going overboard. :/

A large group of bronzered women came in, looking like they missed the exit to Nashville, and the vibe was immediately turned on its end. I don’t know if it was a bachelorette thing or what but they were rowdy and 100% not my type of peeps. They did simmer down after a bit, or maybe my ears had just acclimated to the noise pollution, but when Amy asked if we wanted to get another round there, I suggested that we abandon ship and go down the street to Lolev.

OK not to toot my own horn, but what a great suggestion by yours truly! This place is a gem! Much larger yet somehow more welcoming, it wasn’t too crowded but the people were there all had their dogs in tow and I just felt immediate happiness. The girl behind the bar was super friendly and I had no ordering anxiety except that I thought a half-pour was going to be way smaller than it actually was and we’ll just say your girl was already halfway to wasted and Lolev easily carried me over the finish line.

But can we just talk about the MATCHA LAGER I got??

It was called IROH and for someone who loves matcha like I do, this was a great beer. It was so refreshing and the matcha somehow blended perfectly with the beer taste. I don’t understand it but I loved it. Amy also got it and loved it!

I also got the PRISCUS which is a double IPA – much better than the ones I had at Coven!

Sorry, Coven. I didn’t HATE you, but I just never want to drink your beers again.

I think this was the EPOQ which is a Flanders Red and I reallllly liked this one but in full transparency, Papa H should have cut me off way before this because I was fucking trashed.

I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT BEER THIS WAS?! I think I took this for Untapped.

I mean just look at me, someone take me home and put me to bed…

…which is exactly what happened after we left – got home around 6pm and passed out in my bed until 10:30, waking up once to puke. \I came downstairs and posted on Instagram only to see that I had already posted the same pictures on Instagram hours before and DO NOT REMEMBER THAT HAPPENING. Presumably in the car on  the way home!? It was at that point that I started to question my life choices, lol. Ugh, this was all too much for a Sunday, you guys. At the time of this writing, I have actually just returned home from another social outing but I limited myself to ONE BEER and guess who is stil fully functional and able to enjoy the rest of her Saturday evening? Your girl Mrs. G-Dragon, that’s who.

Oh, I forgot that we also staggered into Butterwood across the street for some on-the-road baked goods which I don’t even remember eating in the car.

Also, I said on the way there that I wasn’t going to talk about G-Dragon and then I talked about G-Dragon, lol. I can’t be silenced.

never forget that I was already on to him and have felt that he was a shitty person for yearsI wanted to get out of the house on Saturday and into the actual sunshine if you can believe the sun was shining in January.

(Lol came here a day later to say it was actually February now that I think about it! Calendars are cool.)

It was pretty cold – for a while we didn’t see any other walkers and it was kind of creepy. Not to mention icy. Dangerously so. I kept hoping Henry would fall hahaha.

This place is actually quite boring if you ask me BUT it’s dear to my heart because this is where the infamous VAMPIRE THING happened which I kept referencing that day and Henry was getting so annoyed and then after I called him a cunt for the 87th time, threatened to push me into the frozen lake.

We both said simultaneously that that kid in a hoodie and shorts reminded us of Chooch. :(

I was talking about how disgusting it is that people actually go out on frozen lakes to fish. “How do they know the ice won’t crack??” I cried and Henry was like, “Well, considering there’s a big crack right there, I wouldn’t go near it” and for some reason this was so funny to me, Henry being an ice crack inspector suddenly.

GOSH WHAT CAN’T THAT MAN DO.

#eyeroll

Sickening.

Anyway, that’s all that really happened. We just ranted about Trump and I probably also threw in some Blake Lively hate because I AM OBSESSED with following all of the It Ends With Us legal drama ever since it started, being a Forever Anti. I stand by the fact that she was THE WORST part of Gossip Girl – insufferable, untalented, had the most boring scenes. And I am LOVING the fact that her precious husband RYAN REYNOLDS is now showing his true colors to the rest of the world and never forget that I was already on to him and have felt that he was a shitty person for years, thank you very much. I hope they both just go away.

Um, what else. Then we went to Sheetz so I could get a hot bev because that area doesn’t believe in cafes I guess, and then we stopped at some place called AUGGIE’S BEER WAREHOUSE where I got a 4-pack of a Voodoo IPA that was on sale for $12.99 but the guy rang it up as $26 or something and Henry just…paid it? Without question?

I was like, in my best non-Karen voice, “Um, excuse me but I think that it was marked down to $12.99” and the guy immediately saw that I was correct (it wasn’t his fault anyway – he scanned the barcode and didn’t see the BLACK ON BLACK MARKER that had the sale price written on it. So, he refunded us and I made some lame joke about I WAS GONNA SAY, WOW THAT’S SOME OUTRAGEOUS TAX HAHAHA ugh to really try to diffuse any lingering scent of KAREN that might have been hanging in the air. When we got to the car though I was like WOW YOU WERE REALLY JUST GOING TO PAY DOUBLE AND TAKE IT!

And Henry was all, “I wasn’t paying attention…”

Oh, even better. Glad I was there to be his shopping advocate?!

But yo, this is one of my new faves and I would gladly go back and pay full price for another 4-pack!

Well, that’s all I have for now. I had to reschedule my therapy to today because I was asked to come into the office yesterday for this crazy long and intense meeting that I was very appreciative of being included in but between that, a work post-holiday get together at a bar on Mt Washington, and then an EMDR session today, I am so wiped out. My therapist knows me so well now and when I was telling her about yesterday, she was like, “Oh wow, that is A LOT for you, that’s really an atypical day” and I was like, “YOU KNOW THAT’S RIGHT.” More on all of that later, it was actually a good day just overwhelming, and I have to cuddle with Peenlop now.

My sister Amy and I have been staying vigilant with getting together more often over the last year or so and I am honestly loving it. I can’t remember if I ever really talked about it much on here but Amy didn’t come into my life until I was about 30, I think? She is my older sister and our mom was forced to put her up for adoption by our grandma. Anyway, despite having completely different upbringings, we keep discovering more and more uncanny similarities that make Henry actually guffaw (literally, it’s an inspired guffaw!) and Amy’s husband Dick frown in disappointment. Everything from us being brats about the dinners they make us to our refusal to put away our clothes that THEY have laundered for us. It’s just too good.

Anyway, Amy is also one of the catalysts behind my recent beer awakening. She and Dick enjoy going to breweries and yeah, I know I can go and either not drink or get a seltzer or a cider if available, but I wanted to hang with the big dogs, you know? So, every time, I would get a flight and end up saying, “That was OK but I never want to drink it again.” LOL. But now I can not only drink BUT ALSO ENJOY pretty much all types of beers except for stouts and porters! I’m also kind of a snob about it, but this should not come as a surprise to anyone.

We met up at Voodoo Brewing in Houston (PA, not TX!) and I was so stoked because my options have greatly expanded since I last went to a brewery. The girl working did not like me one bit. First of all, Henry and I were THE ONLY PEOPLE THERE so it’s not like it’s super chaotic and she was trying to serve 100 people like some glorified German bar maid. She just stood there and watched us as we looked at the options, never once asking if we needed help, offering suggestions, or I DON’T KNOW POINTING OUT THAT THERE WERE SEPARATE MENUS which I didn’t  know and only selected from the seasonal list which meant that I had just 3 from Voodoo and the other 3 from rando’ breweries and then when I was like, “Wait, what are those behind you?” and she monotoned that they were the ones that are always on tap, I asked, “Oh no, is it too late to change my picks?”

She said no, but she said it with an air of exasperation and annoyance. I said, “I’m sorry, did I screw this up?”

“No,” she said with a clipped edge. “This is just my last sheet of paper, that’s all.”

OK? AND? Use a napkin to write down Henry’s?? Also, why was that the last paper for flights when it was only 2:30pm?? That sounds like a Voodoo supply management problem not a me problem.

So far, we have established that I of course love my Belgians (the tripel-ier the better), IPAs (but not all – it takes a lot to WOW me though I do really have a taste for that stringent grapefruit rind essence), and THIS JUST IN, I have a crush on red ales now too.

I don’t like how Henry is leering at my beers.

LOLOLOL I posted this on Instagram too. I was only taking it for UnTapped purposes but this deserved to be enjoyed by all.

DON’T POINT AT ME.

My OG BESTIE CAT Marcy hated being pointed at. This just reminded me of that. She would growl and lunge at jutting phalanges and she was paws out / claws out all of the time, in case you were wondering. The only one she never maimed was Chooch and I still don’t know why because I don’t think she actually cared for him.

Amy and Dick are big football people and we are definitely not but we still always have so much to chat about and this is why I love hanging with them. I LOVE TO TALK. Amy and I were in tears at one point when Dick and Henry were comparing notes on us and I thought to myself, in that moment, “THIS is what I needed.” Real connection.

According to my Untapped app, the winners of the day for me were:

• Don’t Leave Me Edith – IPA
• Wynona’s Big Brown Ale – Brown Ale (this was Henry’s and I only had a sip which made me immediately regret not including it in my flight selection)
• Voodoo Love Child – Belgian Tripel
• White Magick of the Sun – Witbier

Next! We walked next door to Helltown Brewing and even though it was less trendy/flashy/artsy, the vibes were immaculate from the start. First off, it was way cozier and packed with friendly people – two of whom were Dick’s niece and her husband! We sat with them and they were wonderful, super down to earth and easy to chat with so I felt very human, like my old self.

Henry and I went to a haunted house last fall and Helltown actually had a little stand set up. I was like LET’S GET A BEER LIKE ADULTS, WE ARE EMPTY NESTERS and he immediately said, “YOU WILL NOT LIKE A SINGLE ONE OF THEIR OFFERINGS, WOMAN OF MINE” and I was like, “OK hold my future beer and let me be the judge of that.”

Jackass.

I got the Oktoberfest only because at that time, I was certain I wouldn’t like anything else (it was a small sampling of what they have – an IPA-heavy lineup). Anyway, we got one can to share and I liked it so much that I ended up drinking most of it.

So, I was pretty excited to come here and try some more! They actually have waaaay more of a selection than I thought.

Dick’s niece recommended the Mischievous Brown Ale to me and it was one of my favorites of the whole day.

I also really liked:

• Willow Hazy IPA
• Belgian Wit
• Red Eye Red Ale (WHO AM I)

LOL so…my whole flight basically.

But then Amy got a second flight for us to share and of that one, we got my favorite of the whole day – the Headless Wylie pumpkin/yam beer. FINALLY, a pumpkin beer that tasted like pumpkins to me! I was so impressed. And I also really liked Idle Hands – IPA. The other two were a lager and blonde / golden ale which were mid but drinkable. I for sure know what I like now though!

I made this face on purpose and Henry was annoyed.

I was hammered. Henry said I had the equivalent of 2 full beers, maybe 2.5 LOL.

HAHAHAHA.

I took this picture on purpose because Amy made Dick start talking to that guy down there about some football player and then he ended up being really cool and reminded me of my brother Ryan brother (Henry immediately co-signed when I mentioned this on the way home).

Stil fully daylight and I was practically sliding off my stool.

And then we made not-Ryan take our picture because it’s tradition.

I am so happy that this happened and can’t wait for next month!

(Normal people go out and it’s not some big PRAISE BE, SO GRATEFUL event but I am truly half dead inside because every iota of human contact I get is like, news alert, Erin made a connection with a person and now an ordinary trip to a brewery just became some major OMG U GUYS tale for the blog. I fucking hate myself lol.)

It’s so funny how all these years we all thought I was just born to hate beer but here it was because people kept serving me swill. Now that I know I have a SOPHISTICATED PALATE it’s like a new level to my life has been unlocked. I’m having such a fun time with this! I like also that I’m not drinking to get drunk. I usually only have the equivalent of one or two beers which I split with Henry because I don’t like drinking full beers – I get bored and want to move on to something else.

Henry said this is probably just my latest phase and he’s probably right but let’s just enjoy it while it lasts because I’m still in the “ooh that’s a cool can let’s get it”‘ phase.

We procured some Korean craft beer from an H-Mart outside of Detroit yesterday and sampled two of them last night to make sure they’re good enough for our Chingumas guests. We liked both! Unforch, we are not rich people so we only got about 4 cans of everything we saw. (There wasn’t much to choose from. Maybe someday k-beer will be as easily accessible here as k-everything else.)

(The one I really wish I could find is from a Korean brewery called Magpie. Henry had one of their beers at our favorite vegan restaurant in Seoul – Plant – and I really liked it too which was a surprise because this was prior to my beer identity reveal.)

I recently dove headfirst into IPA-ville and some of my friends have been shocked snd awed over the speed of my advancement. I’m telling you – I just didn’t have the right people holding my hand down these hoppy paths all these years.

Chooch just came home from Philly tonight and as he walked by to immediately leave again, I cried, “chooch! Mommy likes IPAs now.”

“Great,” he said drily.

Belgians still have my have heart though. This my 2024 collectors Duvel glass! I think part of the reason why I like Belgian beer so much is the GLASS COLLECTING ELEMENT.

Ever since the bartender at Aston taught us about triple IPAs, I have been obsessed with trying more. We got this one last weekend at Duffy’s and I was actually really mad that I had to share it with Henry, it was THAT good.

Apparently, Smiling Moose has IPAs! The Smiling Moose is a local bar and at one time, in my pre-Kpop era, was one of my favorite music venues. I used to see so many shows there, solo, that I became on friendly terms with the bouncer. Wow, so cool, Erin.

Anyway, not surprising but this was great! I know the grapefruit bitterness is why people who don’t like IPAs, you know, don’t like IPAs but I’m obsessed with it. I mean, I also love grapefruit in general, just digging right in with a spoon, so…

And then a trio of more Belgian notches to the belt. I loved all of these! Janna is supposed to get me the St Bernadus gift shop for Xmas so I can have another glass for my collection – WE WILL SEE IF SHE COMES THRU.

the end.

Wow what a fucked up week. I have so much anger inside of me that I feel like I could power…a small appliance at the very least. Maybe a toaster or a power drill.

Anyway, I am TRYNA relax tonight but Henry already pissed me off because I went to put away a mixing bowl from the strainer and he has the whole set COMPLETELY FUCKED UP and not in PROPER FORM like how I keep them (they are like the Russian nesting dolls of mixing bowls, you know?) which is LARGEST AND THEN ANOTHER ALMOST AS LARGE AND THEN A LARGE AND THEN SMALL ETC. And then the rubber lids go beneath the stack ALSO BIGGEST TO SMALLEST.

WHY IS THAT SO FUCKING HARD. I DON’T EVEN USE THE FUCKING THINGS BUT EVEN I KNOW HOW TO PUT THEM AWAY.

Then I sat down with a small glass of LANCASTER BREWING CO Milk Stout and it is OK but it’s also a STOUT and I am still not quite to having a stout palate yet –  I think I need to grow hairs on my tongue first.

Or does that come AFTER growing a test for that shit?

I don’t know.

This one tastes like coffee and then I remember that the last stout I tried also tasted like coffee and I think that is probably why I keep coming back even though I don’t LOVE these – it’s like sipping cold, syrupy coffee somehow. I asked Henry if all stouts taste like coffee and he said, “I don’t know.”

(Ew, I just took another sip and now it has a vegetable taste, I don’t know.)

Anyway, then I was perusing Untapped and I kept seeing “IMPERIAL” so I asked Henry if that was a type of a beer and he said, “I don’t know.”

TWO “I DON’T KNOWS” IN A ROW. I snapped.

“WHY DON’T YOU KNOW?? ISN’T THIS WHAT YOU FUCKING WHITE MEN ARE SUPPOSED TO KNOW ABOUT??? BEER, AND HOW TO BE BIGOTS AND MISOGYNISTS???” and then I lunged at him with my teeth snapping and he had to hold me back with his hand pushed against my forehead.

I can’t help it, I have always been a biter ever since I got in trouble for biting some bitch on the face when I like 3 or 4 but she fucking deserved it because she left me stranded in her tree house!? BUT ALL TEH ADULTS TOOK HER SIDE AND I WAS THE BAD SEED?!?

I have other things to recap on here but SHOOOOOO, I just can’t stop to collect my thoughts at all yet. I am so disgusted and side-eyeing EVERYONE now.

LOL Henry just came back in the room after I kicked him out and quietly said, “The difference between stouts and porters is that stouts are stronger” – LOL I forgot that I asked him that and he told me, “You have your phone in your hand, Google it” and I SCREAMED, “MY PHONE IS IN MY HAND BECAUSE I AM BLOGGING YOU DIP SHIT – GO SOMEWHERE!!!”

I’m going to make Henry drink the rest of this and unwind with YouTube videos of Seventeen’s encores because they are literal joy and we need all of that we can get right now. I hope everyone is being kind to themselves. Do something nice for yourself this weekend!!

It’s Wednesday night. ALL HALLOWS EVE if you will. Here are some things on my mind etc. because to be honest all I have been doing is obsessing over that Seventeen concert and Belgian beer. What a life I lead.

Henry and his designated beer drinking glass from Bon-Bon Land. It cracks me up every time!

In my therapy session this week, I somehow swerved into the Psycho Mike lane and my therapist was like OK YOU HAVEN’T MENTIONED THIS BEFORE ON YOUR TIMELINE, THIS FEELS SIGNIFICANT and I was like, “Well, I do have occasional nightmares that he finds me and kills me, is that important?” so we spent almost the whole time talking about him and wow, HAHAHA, that really was a shitty situation and even though Henry is soooo annoying and breathes so heavily and whistles through his nose and snores and chews loudly and calls Helsinki “Helinski” even after being there and is always looking at boring shit on his phone and never wants to have fun and isn’t rich enough to be my sugar daddy and has been lacking in the cooking area lately and is completely resistant of cultivating personal style and doesn’t let me pick up hitchhikers and can’t pronounce even basic Korean after 10 years and takes forever to start/finish my projects and starts watching TV shows halfway through a season and then asks me a million questions about it and won’t let me invite the squirrels into our house and then won’t build the squirrels their OWN house and has an annoying limp years after having his foot run over by a pallet jack (he blames all of his probs on this) and dropped a bowling ball on my foot once and doesn’t correct his mom every time she talks about how great he is for climbing a tree to get Chooch’s stuck drone which even Chooch said never happened amongst lots of other things I’m forgetting right now but don’t worry perhaps I will reprise this in the future, at least he is not a fucking abusive maniac like Psycho Mike.

Megan got me this cutie LED sign as a wedding gift last winter (it says I Love You in Korean, btw) and I knew I had to give it a proper backing before hanging it on the wall. It’s just too perfect to hang on the wall as-is.  We are finally in “project season” (i.e. Things Are Kinda Calming Down Around Here) so I started thinking about what I wanted to do and settled on a background of Korean snack wrappers. Henry had this frame that he got from his dumb auction site thing figuring that someday we would find a use for it – it originally had a mirror in it he took it out, painted the frame, and here we are!

Here it is with the neon turned off:

I have no idea where to hang it though, LOL. Henry is going to add plexiglass to it first to keep the wrappers flat and he also wants to add a strip of neon around the edges of the frame too – I THINK BLUE, WHAT DO YOU THINK.

In IMPORTANT NEWS: Renjun is back, baby! I think I might have mentioned this but it was announced the night of Stephanie so while I was super stoked at the mo’, it kind of got overshadowed for a bit. Anyway, we watched the NCT Dream airport arrival the other day from when they were flying out for the Europe leg of their tour, and he still looked very worrisome to us. Almost shell-shocked. I’m so fucking worried about him. We did watch some videos from their Rotterdam show and he looked good, and even happy at times to be on stage again. I’m in mom-mode over this though. Honestly, I feel like NCT Dream’s vibe in general feels off and I’m sure it’s because of SM’s bullshit and also the fallout from Taeil’s scandal (uh, more like CRIME, not scandal).

I have said this a million times in the last nearly 10 years, but being a kpop fan is so heart-breaking and just emotionally trying in general!!

FOR INSTANCE, IS G-DRAGON’S COMEBACK REALLY GOING TO HAPPEN TOMORROW?!

WE HAVE WAITED 7 FUCKING YEARS.

In Beer News, I got a special Chimay glass to drink Baby’s First Chimay from!

I thought it was OK! Maybe a different kind of Chimay would be more my style, I dunno, I am learning here people! BABY STEPS.

I liked this one but felt I was committing a crime by drinking a non-Chimay from this glass.

THIS WAS SO GOOD. Henry said it was just “OK” but I was a big fan and want to have it again.

I did not drink all of these on one night. I can barely drink one beer without collapsing. I usually make Henry split one with me although tonight I drank an entire can of Deliria because I’m off tomorrow and work has been so annoying this week / month / year / etc.

What else. I remembered that we had Hulu now for some reason so I have been trying to binge Only Murders in the Building before Henry decides to cancel it. We also watched the first episode of Hysteria on Peacock but apparently Henry canceled that too after the Olympics so we could only watch one episode for free – I thought it was OK but not sure if it’s worth re-subbing to Peacock!?

OK I know I just had an entire essay up there about all of Henry’s shortcomings, but I have to say that it is really cool that he likes kpop too and we send each other reels and news all day long like two little teenagers lol. Years ago he was like I WILL NEVER LEARN ALL 13 NAMES re: Seventeen and now he is showing me videos and saying things like, “LOL Mingyu was in the crowd and no one knew.” I think Henry is the CEO that the kpop industry desperately needs, honestly. Kpop Dad to the rescue!

Here is a random SVT performance to end this on a high note. I’m hoping tomorrow I can get myself to sit down and finally crank out my thoughts on last week’s concert before I start forgetting things! Ugh. I used to love recapping concerts and now I’m not like, “OK but let me watch some more videos real quick” and then it’s like 3 weeks later.

This week was actually so good, you guys. I can’t remember the last time I was able to say that. I’m still on a really weird emotional high after seeing Seventeen – in a good way, mostly, but I have also been sporadically crying so fat, hot tears because of Drew and it’s OK though. I know that now, that this is part of the process, I’m healing and sometimes scabs are pulled off too early and we have a little set back, right? SHOULD I BE A THERAPIST. SHOULD I WRITE AN ADVICE COLUMN. SHOULD I START NEEDLEPOINTING MY DUMB SAYINGS ON PILLOWS.

Anyway, here are five things that I want to remember from this week / life lately.

1. Henry’s Haunted Basement

When we were just getting into Chicago on Tuesday, we saw a big billboard for a haunted attraction called the Haunted Basement.

“I wonder where that is,” Henry murmured.

“UP YOUR BUTT,” I blurted, the violence of the words shooting out of my mouth somehow not knocking out any teeth.

Henry frowned deeply while I was fisting the air in victory. I love it when my answer-to-everything lands!

I posted this on Instagram AND ***SURPRISINGLY*** NO ONE SIGNED UP FOR MY MASTER CLASS IN COMEBACKS.

2. SEVENTEEN SWAG

I got so much stuff this time because we got there extra early to get in the early mech line (all for naught because everything was sold out before we even got to the front). The weird thing though is that everyone always passes me up and I have to follow them and ask pathetically, “Can I have one too?” IT IS NOT MY AGE OK because trust me – there are tons of broads at these shows that are grandmas. I don’t know what it is about me?? Is my RBF that bad?! Is it because Henry is standing next to me, glowering?!

Anyway, I was happy because I got some Seungkwan stuff :)

Also, I had to swap out my Dreamie pocas for SVT ones beforehand and I put Minghao in the window in honor of Bambi :/

And my SVT credit card was on the other side lol. I’m 16. It was especially peak when I paid for my Bambi SVT tattoo with it lol.

3. My Jerk Son

Just gonna leave this here.

I mean where’s the lie though honestly.

4. Late to the Game, or Early to the New Wave???

My Belgian beer obsession is going strong. Why am I like this? I can’t ever just moderately like things like normal people, I have to be so fanatical and obnoxious. OH WELL THAT’S WHY YOU LOVE ME.

I was lamenting the other night that this one restaurant we used to go to occasionally isn’t around anymore. It was called Sharp Edge and specialized in Belgian beers. There were a few locations but we always went to the CREEK HOUSE (Kristen if you’re reading this, it’s where we went when you and Matt were in town when Chooch was a baby!). I 100% wasn’t drinking beer when we went there, but I went for the ambiance, the vibes, the LAMBIC which I now know actually is beer and I never knew that.

Inspired to find out why they closed all locations, I googled and wound up on a Reddit page about it where 9 out of 10 comments said it was because no one cares about Belgian beer anymore LOLOLOL this is the story of my life! Always late to the game!

THAT’S FINE. Maybe there will be a revival and I can say that it was because of me.

Today at work Megan was telling me about a pumpkin beer she recently had and OK MEGAN BUT I DON’T DRINK PUMPKIN BEER ANYMORE THAT’S FOR BABIES! It’s Belgian or GTFO, OK?! #NOTLIKEOTHERGIRLS

Here is a picture of Baby’s Fourth Delirium! Still #1 in my heart. I like designer beer, don’t forget it. (A hostess gift to consider for future parties I may be hosting.)

We went to a bottle shop tonight and they did not HAVE ANYTHING BELGIAN and I walked out of there like a fucking snob, I’m not even kidding you, and then I shouted in the parking lot, “IT’S NOT MY FAULT THAT I DON’T LIKE ANYTHING AMERICAN THIS COUNTRY IS DUMB!”

Hello, welcome to the Beer Snob Erin era.

(I will tell you that I have also enjoyed every beer of Henry’s that I sipped while in Korea but it is harder to obtain that shit here in Pgh. Don’t worry, we acquired some in Chicago but I’m saving it for Chingumas the Sequel!)

5. Collegiate Chooch Being Involved

Chooch sent me this story from the Drexel Honors College Instagram and said, “YOU’RE WELCOME” because he knew I never would have seen it otherwise.

I just love seeing him thrive and participating in college things! I miss him lots but seeing stuff like this makes it all worth it.

He’s not even going to know who I am when he comes home for Thanksgiving and I’m walking around with a chalice of Trappist beer.

I was really thinking about my beer journey over the weekend and I truly think that the reason it took me so long to develop a taste for it is because I didn’t go to college (well, in the conventional sense) so when my friends were at frat parties, pinching their noses and choking back Solo cups of Bud Lite until one day they didn’t have to hold their noses anymore, I was living a cozy lady-of-leisure life in my apartment at age 18, making my mom buy my cases of wine coolers and other fruity sparkly fancy things for my classy house parties.

(LOL classy. Mm.)

I didn’t need to learn to like the taste of cheap beer because I had a mom who was buying me cases of those cute little Spumanti thingies.

And then when I was 21 and going to bars, I was naturally gravitating toward mixed drinks and—Lord help me, my waistline, and my teeth—Smirnoff Ice.

Then as I got even older, it was wine and cider. I didn’t care about beer until dicks worldwide were being Q-tipped over PUMPKIN BEERS. I tried so har but every single one just had that jolting BEER taste that I couldn’t stand.

I don’t know what exactly the pivotal point was for me, maybe it was taking baby steps through the dessert / milky beers, but I am suddenly OK WITH THE BEER TASTE ON MY TONGUE. Yes, there are still some where I’m like, “This was fine but I never want to drink it again.” But after I had that Delirium and the Duchesse Red last weekend, I was like, “IS IT BELGIAN BEER, THEN???” Disclaimer, both of those beers I had were very sweet and fruity, lambic-esque varieties. So Henry was skeptical.

Then I watched a YouTube video of this couple drinking a variety of Belgian beer and they were like DISGUSTED and spitting out a lot of them, including the OG Delirium which I had been excited to try prior to watching this video. Now I was SHOOK. This couple seemed like they were beer people and they were like legit gagging and saying horrible things about the beers from my second homeland (speaking of my first homeland, Korea – I liked every local beer I tried in Korea, just putting that out there).

Anyway, we stopped at Duffy’s on Saturday and I was like a fucking kid in a candy store. (OMG am I an alcoholic now….no. No, this is still hobby-levels. Don’t worry.) I snatched up the OG Delirium, and also a fun pink-canned one called Deliria. I also had Trappist beers on the brain, so I grabbed one of those too.

Yo, I was was scared to try this after watching that video BUT OK! OK HELLO! I SEE YOU, TREMENS! This was AMAZING. Like, I actually clapped my hand over my mouth after it hit the back of my tongue and Henry looked VERY CONCERNED, time stood still, like he was waiting for me to spit it back out like a fountain fish.

But shoooooo — this was so good. Like, I can’t even explain it. It had a crazy bite to it but it was also SO REFRESHING!?

“THIS IS MY STYLE!” I cried, and Henry unclenched and exhaled.

YES. YES YES YES YES. I am at “PUT THEIR NEON SIGN ON MY WALLS” levels of Delirum obsession. I can’t wait to try the other ones and the CHRISTMAS ONE TOO!!!

I NEED THE SPECIAL DELIRIUM GLASS!!!!

And obviously I can’t consider myself a Belgian girlie if I don’t like TRAPPIST BEER so I tried a bit of this one after work and OH HO HO HO HO HO, I”m just your regular monk groupie, over here. This was so good! Not Delirum-good, but I genuinely liked it!! I don’t even know who I am anymore?!

I was watching a video about this beer while I was drinking it and they said it smells like bananas AND IT DOES. I never can taste/smell the “notes” that people claim to be in wine. But it’s easier with beer.

I guess.

I don’t think Henry believes me.

Honorable non-Belgian mentions:

This was OK!

This was OK! (Henry hated it though. I think my palate is clearly just more masculine than his.)

Oh holy shit, what even was this? It did NOT taste like beer, it was liquid dessert. I loved it. 10/10 would recommend but too bad it’s not Belgian.

(I loved the foam! I actually love all beer foam and it makes Henry mad because I “don’t pour the beer right” on purpose because I want the foam to happen. Anyway, this beer had REALLY dense and sweet foam and I was scooping it up with my fingers. Now I want to try their Rainbow Sherbet one!!!)

OK, off to learn Flemish and add Trappist beers to my Untapped wishlist. I’m not like other girls.

L-O-L.

(But no srsly if you ever need a hostess gift for me – Belgian beer, babe. Bring it.)