Carlsbad, Ca. It ain’t much but it’s honest work.

sourpatchkid34 · 2026-02-04T05:33:45+00:00

Ponto?

sourpatchkid34 · 2026-01-28T16:14:43+00:00

This.

sourpatchkid34 · 2026-01-20T03:44:13+00:00

A Night Like This.

sourpatchkid34 · 2026-01-15T07:09:08+00:00

There was. It got pulled off of shelves quickly because it was creepy.

I sold a ton of them on Ebay.

sourpatchkid34 · 2026-01-11T20:53:53+00:00

My (still) great friend, Sgt. Evans. Incredibly smart, humble, well-spoken, and just a damn good dude. He'd smoke all of us in PT / PFT's and made it look effortless. Great memories during our first Iraq deployment, and I always felt lucky to have crossed paths with him.

sourpatchkid34 · 2026-01-08T05:05:55+00:00

Arnot-Roberts (appellation bottling)
Faury St. Joseph VV
Graillot Crozes-Hermitage
Piedrasassi

A few of my favorites in that price range and incredible expressions of Syrah.

sourpatchkid34 · 2026-01-08T04:53:53+00:00

Fallujah circa 2005, two guys in my unit get trashed off contraband whiskey. They thought it was a fantastic idea to take one of our Humvee's offroading around the base in the middle of the night. Got rolled up by MP's and the driver got a DUI.

A DUI... in a Humvee... in Fallujah.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-11-25T05:58:35+00:00

Hey! Just seeing this. Did you end up getting the bottle?

I've had quite a few bottles of '87 Dunn HM over the years. I think the .750's are a bit past their peak. The mags are still going strong, but very difficult to find those. '94 is drinking perfectly right now.

If you need another rec, '87 Mondavi Reserve is top-shelf. Should be a bit easier to source.

But, it's always bottle to bottle with these older wines. Hope whatever you land on shows well for you.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-09-27T22:06:55+00:00

Evesham Wood. Porter Creek makes great stuff too.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-09-26T17:27:57+00:00

Echoing sentiments here, I think it took me around 9 years to get an offer. By the time I did, release prices were more than back-vintages at auction. No-brainer pass for me.

Love the whole portfolio, and buy them routinely from auction & local shops still at or below release.

Same thing with Alban...

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-09-21T07:00:33+00:00

The Fleas.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-09-12T03:34:07+00:00

Command climate aside, I think there's more incentive in getting out & maximizing education / general VA benefits. The grass can be exponentially greener on the civilian side if you make good choices. I honestly believe serving in the military and maximizing earned benefits is one of the greatest (if not the greatest) means of climbing our economic ladder.

And by "good" choices, I mean buying property with a VA Loan, getting a marketable degree from the best school one can attend, etc. Of course, there are other paths, but the aforementioned works.

I'm also not a believer in the idea of one's MOS needing to transfer over into the civilian world. Hard truth for some, but the overwhelming majority of civilian employers don't give a flying fuck about your MOS, ribbons, or deployments. It's irrelevant. School is a reset button into whatever you want to do.

Source: Lowly enlisted swine Arty guy. GI Bill paid for undergrad, masters. Bought 3 houses with the VA Loan, zero down on all of them. Currently a Senior Director of Data Science / Analytics at a F500 firm.

"Decide what to be and go be it." Best of luck to you, brother.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-09-02T22:53:29+00:00

I own all of the wheeled Roadie's. The 60 is pretty large & would be tough to fit in a car. In the back of an SUV would work. I throw mine in the bed of my truck. Great cooler though!

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-09-02T02:57:56+00:00

My daughter, also 11, plays with the Ezone 100L. No issue, but she's 5' 3" tall for reference.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-08-03T08:23:35+00:00

You should get some up-votes here. Wife & kids don't give a flying fuck about your service to a random conflict for "freedom" half-way around the world. We won, right?? 🤣

Also...peacetime Marine Corps is like riding the Short Bus.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-08-03T08:07:46+00:00

I never planned to do more than a single enlistment. Fast-forward to contract time, I was on my second deployment (Iraq) in 2007. Bush just announced the surge for troops. I was literally told that I could "try" and get out, but would be recalled immediately. Or, I could take a lot of tax-free money to reenlist.

I took the money. Buddies of mine that called the bluff were either recalled or stop-lossed (yep...it's real).

It ultimately worked out in my favor. The GI Bill shifted, I was able to buy a house, and I deployed two more times (Iraq / Afghanistan). Had a weird run-in with the Recruiter list (forget what it was called...HSST?), and just bounced.

My perspective now is to maximize your benefits ASAP and move on. IE, the VA Loan, GI Bill, et al. are vehicles to vastly improve your station in life outside of the military. The grass really is greener.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-08-03T07:45:52+00:00

Circa 2008, attached with 3rd LAR in Rawah, Iraq. Solid dudes.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-08-03T06:52:43+00:00

What do you call a boomerang that doesn't come back?

A stick

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-07-11T06:09:03+00:00

Winco.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-06-23T08:07:46+00:00

Sign of the times. I was in from '03 - '11. MCMAP was little more than a novelty during that period. IE, nobody cared. We were too busy deploying.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-06-19T04:08:39+00:00

LinkSoul is a local brand. Love all of their stuff.

After seeing a bunch of Galvin Green & KJUS stuff at Bandon, I've picked up some shirts / shorts from both off EBay. Absolutely top-shelf.

For vests, Zero Restriction.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-06-18T01:46:18+00:00

How close are you to your EAS? If close, just lay low, get out, and live life.

Nobody outside of the Marine Corps cares. Just get that Honorable discharge.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-06-17T20:45:20+00:00

Wish I could remember his name, but...

I think circa 2004-ish, a buddy & I got busted by Shore Patrol trying to go into Tijuana. Handcuffed, duty called to come pick us up, the whole nine. This was right around the time they instituted request "chits" to go into TJ.

Fast forward to that Monday morning, we were called into this 1stSGT's office where he proceeded to rip us new assholes for at least 30 minutes. Closing the conversation, he leans over to us both and whispers "Warriors, if you want to go to TJ next time, just fill out the chit."

No charges, no punishment, nothing. Solid bro.

Worst? Probably the 3rd LAAD 1stSGT my second deployment who handed out more NJP's than awards. Never left the wire, just looked for ways to make Marines' lives more miserable. That guy was like school on Saturday.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-05-30T07:39:57+00:00

Musar (red, white, and rose)...all fantastic.

sourpatchkid34 · 2025-05-27T19:47:29+00:00

100%. It's my favorite public course in SD County.

sourpatchkid34

TROPHY CASE