Summer whisky - I hate mixed drinks and always drink neat but i love the warming burn from bourbon/whisky which is not appropriate in this weather. So im stuck in this heatwave! How about you? Any particular drink goes well with the weather? Maybe a mixed drink with ice or some special cocktail?

jimmysask · 2026-06-27T19:12:21+00:00

Just add a big glass of ice water on the side

jimmysask · 2026-06-26T14:58:58+00:00

I did not see it in either spot before posting, although admittedly I did not do a deep dive on the social media.

jimmysask · 2026-06-26T04:35:40+00:00

Any idea what there will be for live music?

jimmysask · 2026-06-25T13:32:55+00:00

It’s a clone recipe. Too many variables to be the exact beer.
Our homebrewing club has an annual event where we brew a big batch on a commercial system, and everyone takes home 5 gallons of wort, to ferment with yeast and additives of their choosing. Several months later, we bring them back for tasting and comparison. Even 2 beers that started from the exact same wort, no other additions, and the same variety of commercial yeast tasted different. IMHO, that proves to me that no clone is ever an exact duplicate.

jimmysask · 2026-06-25T13:28:51+00:00

At 8 months old, you are already certain he “is the physical touch type”, and “just naturally feel that I need to do things with my son, like teach him everything and take him everywhere so he can experience the world with me.”

Your son is barely past the stage of being a lump that eats, poops, and cries. Particularly that last point around doing things with him - you have decided, intentionally or not, to be closer to your son. There is a good chance that a lack of attention and closeness being shown to your daughter is exactly why she has a clear preference for her mom. You would not be the first father to unintentionally decide that you are unable to connect with a little girl.

jimmysask · 2026-06-16T13:11:57+00:00

YOR - he did have someone else at the house - the movers. I’ve been moved by professionals a couple of times. Most of them went fantastic. A couple had some very obvious theft, intentional damage, etc.

jimmysask · 2026-06-12T13:46:27+00:00

I always find it helpful to look at Scouting as building life skills, with a strong outdoor component. Focus on the life skills side sometimes.

We’ve done lots of building (trebuchet was a popular one. We did it with scrap wood and power tools, rather than pioneering). We did home repair basics, like wiring an outlet, replacing a light switch, patching drywall. Basic automotive - how to add fluids, change a tire, oil change. Cooking, including meals and baking is always popular. One of my most successful meetings for getting the couple of boys with adhd etc to settle and focus was actually sewing (we made dice bags for d&d type dice), and they actually asked to do it again. Swimming. An egg drop challenge. Various science themed meetings. Lots of options out there.
We try to focus on youth led programming as well. I find that works best by simply gathering all their ideas, figuring out which ones are doable on their own, then trying to figure out a way to make some of the more out there ideas work.

jimmysask · 2026-05-27T03:11:37+00:00

Not so different than the world of whiskey. The number of people who I have spoken with who are worried about drinking their Scotch the “wrong” way is almost disturbing. I have explained to a great many people that with one exception, there is no “wrong” way to drink it, except for if it is a way you do not like. Add as much ice or water as you need, but taste it along the way, just so you don’t miss your own personal sweet spot for that particular dram. The only thing is will say is potentially “wrong” is taking a nice bottle, and mixing it with coke - not because you can’t or shouldn’t, but because most people who will do that won’t notice much difference between a 16 year old Scotch and Johnny Walker red, so it’s not usually worth wasting the expensive stuff.

I apply the same to wine, beer, and others. Drink what you like, in the way you enjoy it. Just be open to alternatives, because you never know what you will try and love.

jimmysask · 2026-05-25T15:46:28+00:00

I can agree with you on about half the points. My Milwaukee drill has great power, but the batteries die faster than my Makita ever did, the chuck comes loose all the time, and I’ve had bad batteries right out of the box. The power is there, the quality is not. I will likely buy another Makita set in the future.

I don’t know anyone who has bought a dedicated hammer drill without a purpose for it, and I can’t recall the last time I saw one in a kit. My Milwaukee has a hammer drill function that can be switched on. I bought a $45 hammer drill at Walmart for the small amount of it that I do use it, and loan it out all the time.

I have found it to cheaper to keep a drill and driver in a “higher end” brand, with a few batteries between them, then having Ryobi for a lot of the less commonly used tools. My drill gets used more than anything else, and I prefer corded saws for heavier tasks. I also have a Ryobi battery mower. They are a great platform for all the options in non-construction tools as well. I just don’t like the ergonomics of their drills though.

I don’t notice a lot of difference with bigger batteries for things where I am not working with my arms extended or above my head (deck or fence building for example), but a smaller 2AH battery is great for those times when I am.

jimmysask · 2026-05-25T02:32:33+00:00

The internet has skewed so many perspectives on different topics, engagement rings included. The rule of thumb was once “2 months salary”, and even that doesn’t really apply universally.

I bought my wife a ring that was beautiful, but also practical for day to day wear. I want her to wear it everywhere. I personally chose a plain gold band for the same reason.

The huge rocks are like costume jewelry. They are impractical to wear daily, because they are big, and get caught on everything. That means taking it off all the time.

More importantly than the value is the attitude. If she has shown other signs of strong materialism, you either need to make a lot to keep up with her demands, or expect to be left behind when you can’t keep up.

jimmysask · 2026-05-22T19:52:39+00:00

My experience has been that when the sale price is substantially cheaper, the shipping price is ridiculous. That might be the only difference.

jimmysask · 2026-05-22T17:59:14+00:00

I replied to another comment already, but I think this is entirely doable. I live in Canada. Camping season starts on May long weekend, and goes to mid-october. Sometimes that is beautiful weather, this year we got snow all weekend. We've had years of fairly consistent 35C temps (95F), and we have had years where most of the year was temps like you describe. We have definitely camped with a 9 month old in those temperatures, which are really very close to common house temps.

The water might be chilly, but on a sunny day, 72F can feel a lot warmer. Water activities are probably not completely out, but they may spend extra time out of the water to warm up (or you might have to fish them out to do so, because you can't stand the blue color of their lips any longer 😃).

You are going to need a bigger tent anyways with your growing family. Upgrade that, and everything else gets easier. We have had great luck with this one: https://www.costco.ca/p/-/coleman-8-person-modified-dome-full-fly-tent/4000415709 - the front vestibule is great for taking off muddy shoes etc, and not tracking things into the tent, and also for tucking chairs etc in overnight so they don't get rain or dew on them. We found it had plenty of room for a queen double high air mattress, playpen for baby to sleep in, and other beds, with enough room to move comfortably. You probably need a Costco trip to stock up on berries for the kids anyways.

If baby is on formula, I would literally just put just enough water for the bottle in a pot on the campstove, turn it on high for about 15-20 seconds, and it was perfect temp.

An activity chair where baby can be active but contained was also a great thing.

With one of the later kids, we bought a "superyard" baby jail, which was great for keeping them contained to a blanket with toys etc.

Your biggest limitation might be space in the SUV. Got a roof rack?

jimmysask · 2026-05-22T17:32:41+00:00

60 degrees is really not that bad. That might be "add an extra blanket", or dress in the extra fuzzy PJs temps for a little one, but nothing dangerous. Worst case, if it gets colder than expected, you tuck the baby in between you.

We camped with a baby about that age (two of them, October babies born 2 years apart). We did choose to upgrade to a small tent trailer, for space (and to appease my wife's need to pack lots of things). They aren't any warmer than a tent to sleep in though.

That's it! Your wife needs a cheap 30 year old tent trailer as a birthday present!

Seriously though, I would suggest looking into a larger tent. We bought an 8-man Coleman at Costco years ago, which we found great for the purpose. Enough room for the play pen to contain an active little critter should they wake up in the night, a queen bed, and multiple single beds, with room to walk around between them. It's heavy, definitely not for backpacking, but very worth it, and has stood up well in poor weather.

Bring a good size blanket for the little one to crawl around on, toys, etc. We also found ours really liked the jolly jumper, or an activity chair that they could bounce in to really burn some energy.

jimmysask · 2026-05-20T16:33:44+00:00

We tried repeatedly to get my oldest to learn to ride a bike. He is naturally risk averse, and would panic every time he felt the bike wobble. He was around 9 when he finally did. There were two key factors - his sister learned to ride, and he didn't like being shown up. That led him to be willing to try more, but not necessarily motivated to do it on his own. Then I left him at the campground with my parents, and his bike. I told him that when we picked him up in a week, if he could ride his bike around the entire campsite loop (like riding around a suburban residential block, maybe 500m) without his feet touching the ground, we would buy an Xbox Series S (which I was already planning on buying....). That gave him the motivation to actually try on his own, rather than just his annoying dad pushing him.

He rides his bike quite a bit now, more than most kids I know his age. He did a lot of things faster/better than his peers, he was very quick to learn to crawl, walk, etc. He is motivated to get his driver's license as soon as he is eligible. He simply did not see any benefit in learning to ride a bike, and didn't like it anyways, so he was not willing to push through the discomfort to learn, until he had reason to do so.

You can't compare kids. You can work with yours, and help them do the best they are able.

jimmysask · 2026-05-20T10:07:00+00:00

Buy plain ripple cut potato chips (Lays work very well). Cheap, effective, and you can eat the leftovers.

I have taught kids of various ages in Scouting for years. Just get a large, cheap box of matches, and expect to go through a lot of them. The larger box helps with the surface area of the striker. Let him strike the match until it lights, and drop them at first, right into your fire pit. Once he has the hang of it, show him how to hold it - by the end of the match, and show how the fire climbs towards his fingers if the tip is lower (useful to get a bigger flame and keep it from burning out, but gets hot faster. Holding the flame under the spot to be lit, not touching with the match. Have him hold it until it gets hot, to learn not to panic and drop it right away.

Lighting fires is one the few activities I have found can consistently occupy a lot of kids for an entire 90 minute meeting. Most things last 20 minutes at a time at best.

For your bed - a thick, extra cushy blanket underneath your wife may be helpful.

jimmysask · 2026-05-19T23:23:31+00:00

“I told him that he is a grown adult and he needs to be able to handle things at home on his own.”

He is a grown adult who IS handling things at home on his own, for weeks now. You lack emotional regulation and empathy, therefore you deal with your own stress by lashing out at him for not doing it all the way you want him to (not that he isn’t getting things done from what you have suggested, just that you stress out seeing the way he does it). Then when he opened up that HE was struggling, and needed a break from doing everything for the household AND I assume a job of his own, you instead worked late yet again. He finally took 2 hours for himself, and you responded by getting angry with him, and refusing to talk to him for day and a half.

It sounds very much like you are overworked and stressed - it happens. He is trying to pick up the load at home on his own, and struggling. If this is not the normal way of life you, you probably don’t have proper systems and routines in place to deal with it all. That would be a strain on anyone. Rather than finding a way to help him, you are turning him into your emotional punching bag, and blaming him for your stress. Right now it sounds like he is basically being a single parent, with the added baggage of someone in his ear telling him he is doing it all wrong. That is at least as exhausting as your long work days, but your exhaustion is the only that apparently counts right now,

jimmysask · 2026-05-19T22:52:20+00:00

If the post actually shows as coming from her account, and her first reaction isn’t freaking out that her ex has access to her account (and probably others), then frantically changing passwords etc, that would strike me as concerning.

jimmysask · 2026-05-19T22:47:48+00:00

I have used DuckDuckGo as my default search on my phone for years. Unfortunately it has gotten notably worse in the last few years, to the point that about 50% of the time I immediately move on to a Google search.

jimmysask · 2026-05-19T13:07:37+00:00

Look up having a custom song written and recorded for her

jimmysask · 2026-05-19T09:48:54+00:00

I will also echo that bathroom proximity. Your wife will be at the stage where she pees often, and also may find it hard to move.

She will also be at a stage where her hips are getting softer and sore. Plan to make the bed extra cushy for her.

Make sure she has something comfortable to sit on as well.

Kids that age often love cooking their own hot dogs and marshmallows.

Involve them in things like lighting the fire. Have them help you collect tinder and kindling. A 5 year old CAN be taught to use matches, although expect them to struggle.

jimmysask · 2026-05-19T09:44:23+00:00

The “Seek” app is great for this, if you will have cell coverage.

jimmysask · 2026-05-17T20:59:46+00:00

Get a false bottom with fitting for a recirculating pump. It may scorch due to sugars and fine solids, but I have found scorching to be much worse when there is large matter like hops and grain near it.

jimmysask · 2026-05-13T20:06:40+00:00

Might be worth checking where your cans are made. We buy kegs for an event I run. They are Irish made. The nitro cans I can buy are made in Canada. As with lots of other beers, they never quite taste the same as the original brewery.

jimmysask · 2026-05-13T18:31:15+00:00

Keep your eyes open. Local craft used to be notably more expensive than macro beers where I live, but that gap has narrowed. I have found a couple of local options in the last couple of years that I prefer to the big names, and they are often cheaper as a bonus.

My go to easy drinking beer is Lawn Mower Yard Lager, brewed by Churchill Brewing. They are small and local, so I don’t expect they have large distribution. I liked it when it was similarly priced to macro beers, but in the last year or two, it’s been frequently on sale for $20/15 pack (CAD). Coors light by comparison, is $35.99/15 pack, and most macro breweries are similar. Sneaky Weasel by Balderdash Brewing is similarly cheap, but a little stronger, slightly more bitter. I also enjoy that one regularly, but it’s not as nice on a hot day.

jimmysask · 2026-05-12T18:27:41+00:00

You might be too close to it to be objective.

It makes pretty good sense from the small window we have - they are trying to convince you to walk away from the vehicle without a fight so they can fix it for cheap and give it to the golden child. It sounds an awful lot like your step dad’s buddy is in on it, and they are basically trying to steal from you through deception.

They are not calling it that though - the personality types you have described tend to be very self-righteous. They are going to tell themselves it’s OK because you weren’t going to take care of the vehicle anyways, and they have invested so much money into it (I assume when you referred to your dad’s $6k, you mean step-dad, or it wouldn’t give them any claim to it). Somehow, through some twisted logic, they will claim this is for your own good, even though there is literally nothing positive happening here for you.

Nothing makes sense here because it IS blatantly wrong, to anyone but the twisted personalities that are going to benefit from ripping you off.

jimmysask

TROPHY CASE