| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Appholes | ||||
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Police obtained a search warrant to seize property at the home of Gizmodo’s Jason Chen, who had obtained an iPhone prototype. The search is a test of California’s shield law for journalists. And it gave Jon Stewart a chance to tell us how he really feels about Apple. And Steve Jobs. And AT&T. And Paul McCartney …
I wish I could embed aroma in this video about Brown Coffee Co., where owner Aaron Blanco has created a following by unlocking the pungent, fruity flavors of the coffee bean.
Aaron is going to compete in a national barista contest, and Brian Chasnoff wrote a nice feature story about Blanco’s approach to brewing a good cup of coffee:
Aaron Blanco is the sort of barista who describes a particular coffee bean as “brooding” and “mysterious” and another as exuding a taste of “candied strawberry and red berries smothered in milk chocolate.”
And that’s without any cream or sugar added. In fact, at Blanco’s homegrown coffee bar, Brown Coffee Company, you won’t find any milk or sweeteners for your morning cup, the better to accentuate the bean itself.
If that sounds like a bitter cup to swallow, consider this: Blanco, 38, recently roasted and steamed his way into the U.S. Barista Championship, having advanced beyond the South Central Regional Barista Competition in Austin.
He’ll travel to Anaheim, Calif., next week to compete against 49 other baristas from across the nation.
He defines himself as “a purist.”
“Coffee’s a fruit,” Blanco said, “so it should taste sweet, like a fruit, if you do your job right.”
Brown Coffee Co. is in my neighborhood near the Deco District, and every time I visit I learn something new. On that note, here’s an instructional video about the Chemex coffee maker Aaron uses.
OPERAPALOOZA!
San Antonio artist Gary Sweeney has created a sarcastic advertisement for the Hills of Rivermist, a neighborhood built by Centex Homes that has seen better days:
In case you’ve been out of the country lately, Rivermist is the Northwest Side neighborhood where people saw huge cracks open in their backyards and a retaining wall collapsed Jan. 24.
Sweeney’s artwork is part of the Urban Landscapes exhibit on view at Palo Alto College Art Gallery through the end of the month.
Don’t worry, Centex. Sweeney has also made fun of President Bush. And he once created a postcard to Sam Houston from Davy Crockett on a fantasy vacation to Cancun: “Dude — This place is awesome .. met some chicks … Bowie puked in the lobby … Travis says hey.”
NSFW, and funny as hell.
God, I love the Onion.
I got a telemarketing call last week from a friendly woman offering me a “free” cruise. All I needed to do was give her my credit card number to pay $118 in port taxes up front.
I’ve always been fascinated by these kind of sales tactics, so I took notes while she made her pitch. Here’s how the phone call went.
Cute video and story by Vianna Davila, who is covering the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo:
Mutton Bustin’ has become one of the most popular events at the rodeo, organizers say, garnering 479 applications this year from children who want the honor of riding an adult sheep until it throws them onto the arena ground. Of those, 220 were chosen.
I like the crowd’s reaction to the kids clinging for dear life to the running sheep. “They get more applause and cheers than even the bull riders,” said Tinker Kelso, a hospitality volunteer who helps take care of the children once their sheep ride is complete.
Crazy? Or sheer genius?
