Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Pick-up Trucks and Hefe Weissbier - Random Thoughts or Not so Random

Had a guy in a white pick-up truck almost run me over yesterday as I was crossing the street. I would have sworn he was stopping for the stop sign but when the grill of the truck was inches from where I would have been had I taken one more step I suddenly realized he was drunk as a skunk and wasn't trying to stop but probably had just hit the brake pedal and thought he already stopped and now was accelerating. He had no clue I was in the street nor did his female passenger, that is until I hollered "whoa"! Man that truck would have put a hurting on me for sure. After that he drove off a block, stopped about 40 feet before a stop sign, went through the intersection, backed back into the intersection, went forward again, turned the truck around, came zig-zagging back, tried to pull into a parking garage and did not make it on the first try or two, then disappeared into the garage. That happened when I was out for a walk for exercise. I took a nice 3 1/4 mile stroll through downtown Phoenix to a not so nice area and back toward my apartment.

Of course, having been almost run over put me in the mood so I stopped for a bier before going back to my apartment. At the bar, only a few blocks from my apartment, I decided to have a Franziskaner Hefe Wesssbier. What a treat to find a bar in Phoenix serving genuine German Hefe Weissbier. The barmaid, a lass of about 22-24 years old by my estimation, asked me if I wanted a glass. I said yes and she produced a glass that held every last drop in the bottle perfectly with just the right amount of head. As I poured she commented, and seemed quite surprised when doing so, that I knew how to pour that type of beer properly. I was rather surprised she knew how to properly pour one - barmaid or not. I did not tell her that. What I told her was that I had been drinking it for about the last 25 years. Somehow that got me to thinking and I realized that I had legally been drinking Hefe Weissbier for 36 years and a few months now. No that does not make me 57 plus - back in the day the legal age was only 18 not 21. I was probably drinking them for at least a year or two before that. Wow, I am getting old but I did not mention that to the barmaid - she already thought I was old enough to be considered an old man when I told he I had been enjoying them for only 25 years.

You know what though, I don't mind be as old as I am, in fact it isn't bad at all and I prefer and hope to live even longer - a good deal longer to enjoy those biers. I'll just have to keep my eyes open for drunks in pick-up trucks.

All the best,
Glenn B

No comments: