Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 7/13/2010

7/13/1996:
The Cleveland Indians bat around in the fifth and sixth innings and thrash the Twins, 19-11, at the Metrodome. Albert Belle goes four-for-four with three RBIs for Cleveland; Jeromy Burnitz accounts for five RBIs and Kenny Lofton adds three doubles for the Tribe. In all, the Indians pound out 22 hits, including an American League record-tying 12 doubles. They'll lead the AL in hits, team batting average and on-base percentage this year.

Birthdays:
Jack Kemp b. 1935
Bob McKillop b. 1950
David Thompson b. 1954
Michael Spinks b. 1956
Spud Webb b. 1963

Packers Fact:
In 2007, the Packers became the first NFL team in 11 years to open the season with two rookie starters in the backfield (running back Brandon Jackson and fullback Korey Hall).

http://www.bigthings.ca/
Big Things in Canada
Even if you're not planning a road trip to Canada, you should still visit some of its greatest man-made wonders at this site, which showcases huge monuments like a nineteen-foot potato, a 205-foot hockey stick, giant flowers and fruit, a whole herd of giant moose scattered across the country, and the world's largest Easter egg in Vegreville, Alberta.

A BANANA WITHOUT A REPUBLIC

A terrifying real story of a tiny, hip political consulting firm named Sawyer Miller that started out in the Pepsi–Coke wars, which it won with Miller’s catchy “Coke is it” campaign, and ended up amid the rubble of governments and campaigns it had helped ruin for its clients, in part through its GNP-size fees. A surprising number of political news stories over the past two decades involved these men (and one woman), and the tightening noose around their bloated self-image gives increasing piquancy to the thought of how many of these stories could have turned out differently.

ALPHA DOGS: THE AMERICANS WHO TURNED POLITICS INTO A GLOBAL BUSINESS, by James Harding (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008)

OLD VISCOSITY

Port Brewing Co., San Marcos, California

Old Viscosity is the sort of beer that turns traditional styles on their heads. It’s not really an English Old Ale, but it shares the caramel-malt tones and the aging process. It’s not really an Imperial stout, but it definitely has the black color, the brown foam, and a bit of roastiness. It’s not really a barley wine, but it has the imposing 10%/vol. strength, and some pruney, fruit cake malt notes. And then there’s the viscosity, a velvety texture nicely balanced with hop and roast malt bitterness, ending with enough alcohol to leave a slight impression of dryness after all the engine-oil thickness. Lots of paradox here, and all of it good. Surprisingly, bourbon-barrel aging doesn’t contribute any tartness, but it does add a mellow vanilla tone to the roast malts.