I'll Never Forget 9-11 ( Part 1 )

Grand Central Station

I’ll Never Forget 9-11 

Part 1: 

Engine 54
Ladder 4
Battalion 9

By J.B.Blocker

Late September 2001:  
The van that carried our team of Disaster Recovery Supervisors carried us to 45^th and Madison and the Roosevelt Hotel which would house dozens of us for several months.  As we drove through the streets, I was fascinated by the ‘missing signs’ that were plastered on walls, post, fences, and anywhere else a piece of paper could be attached.

  It was early in the evening by the time I had settled into my room and my shift would not begin until noon the next day. It gave me some time to wander over to Grand Central Station just down the street to figure out my route to get to the ‘Red Zone’ where I had been assigned.

  I passed a lady with her dog and both of them were wearing small posters with the picture of a man and a few words like little miniature billboards. The lady stopped just in front of me and solemnly stapled a poster to one of the many plywood construction barriers that are prominent in Manhattan. This sheet of plywood like all the others was covered with not dozens, but hundreds of similar pages. Pictures of families, couples, and individuals would blanket the city for months. I was amazed at how many included home addresses and lists of personal phone numbers. Such was the desperation of those left behind.

 After she blew the picture a kiss and slowly walked away, I had to see what she had posted. The photo of a man in his 30s was followed by a description and contact information including address and phone numbers. The caption read. “Have you seen my husband? Please contact me.”

The Bucket List Coffee

Sumatran Kopi Luwak

By the Caffeine Cowboy

  I had an entertaining few days with some plantation owners from Indonesia at the Seattle Specialty Coffee Association Convention. I made friends with several gentlemen who produced Kopi Luwak along with their traditional coffee crop.

  Their plantations are large and secluded. Their crops are highly graded coffees even without the help of the wild civet cats that raid their fruit.

  They gather enough from their own surrounding forest to be considered a significant amount. Because of this, they can guarantee the coffee from the cherry to sellable beans.

 This is not the same all over. There are thousands of small batch growers who only gather enough to sell to a cooperative buyer.  In this case, the seeds are not uniform, they come from various varieties of coffee, and all ranges of ripeness.

  These co-ops make up the largest suppliers for this prized coffee processed by a nocturnal Raccoon-like, Lemur related fruit-eating machine, the Luwak.

  I would not call this a bad product but it’s certainly the second tier to the purist. 

Sumatran Batak Kopi Luwak will take you to my direct source.

  The purist wants to know where the bean was grown, what altitude it grew at, what was the seed stock, how does the base crop rate out, and who is accountable. 
  

 Third tier Luwak would be that coffee produced by feeding caged Luwaks with only cherries during harvest and forcing out as much product as they can during the growing season. 

  This is a prominent and growing practice in some countries and Robusta cherries are used to turn a coffee that is the cheapest on the market into the most expensive! The coffee is infinitely inferior.

  How many other crops if any, can you feed to birds or beast and make a fortune by selling the by-product!  They should at least put those animals up in luxury digs! Consider this: that Robusta might have normally have sold for $1 per lb! However, as much as can be eaten by Luwaks and discharged now might bring from $50 to $100 to unsuspecting buyers.

  The final and lowest tiers are those that only use a small amount of the true Luwak coffee and blend it with whatever they want to create a profile.

As I bring you great coffees from around the world, I don’t know which ones you will love, not care for, or truly enjoy for specific pairings or occasions. Try Flor de Colombia, or Pearls of Sheba, or Mystical Blue Maui.  Who am I to know what flavors, character, and content rings your bells. 
What I can do is purchase clean distinguished coffees that can be compared and enjoyed like fine wines.

You might absolutely love Kopi Luwak. It is truly special. I can promise that if you are a coffee lover, you will appreciate the big body, depth, and range of delicate flavors. I know that our Kopi will be a distinguishing and adventurous taste of coffee at its best.

Check this culinary treat off your personal Bucket List. Sharing it with your coffee loving friends will send them off with a singularly memorable experience.

One of my great pleasures has become sharing this coffee and its story!

Good Luwak, Bad Luwak? 

Very few places sell Luwak in the U.S. But because of social media culinarians and many world travelers, the experience is demanding attention. Selling for averages of up to $30-$50 per cup at the most exclusive restaurants and hotels, it is truly a Bucket List item for the coffee/wine enthusiast. If you are going to pay for the most expensive, exotic, and exclusive coffee in the world, you really want to know where it was grown when it was roasted, who roasted it, packed it, and delivered it to you.

Naugan Simanungkalit, Bean Broker

The Caffeine Cowboy solemnly swear that I will:

Buy private stock of Kopi Luwak from certified plantations growing only the highest grade of Arabica.
I will personally attend the manicure, roast, and packaging. I will sell only to direct consumers with limited purchase ceilings for all. 
Because of the rarity I must impose maximums per month, per customer including restaurants and other food services.

  
  Kopi Luwak is a delicately balanced mixture of the same coffee varietal bean. The certified beans are flown directly to Dallas from Sumatra. We hand manicure the beans before and after roasting.

  The roasting process includes a combination of specific roasting temperatures and timing to bring you a memorable and symphonic experience. No filler coffees will be used to dilute your adventure nor my reputation!

  We only have a limited allotment each year for U.S. consumption.

- J.B. Blocker is a media consultant based in Collin County in North Texas. Advertise with J.B. by calling 469-334-9962.

Signs, Signs, let your Signs Shine!

What Is Your Sign?

jb blocker

There are real people behind those signs! Do you get to know them before you vote?  How do you do it?
  In today's electronic era, it is not that hard to study up candidates and find out when they will be locally available for public viewing.

  Many get started Surfing for Candidates very early in the campaign cycles. They want to be part of the system. They want to project their voice. They want to find someone who motivates them, who listens to them, who hears them.

You can google, yahoo, bing, linked-in, facebook, twitter, etc.etc. 

  

It is an honor, a pleasure, and a challenge for me to help you know that person behind the sign. 

  Your responsibility as a concerned citizen is to take the time to know the candidates and then speak up for the ones you believe can be a dedicated voice you trust.

 

They come in all sizes. They are on hats and shirts and pins. On the highways and byways, private property, personal property, and automobiles.
  Some say that they are distracting, or that they are a nuisance, or even a driving hazard. Are they necessary? I say YES!

And if you don't eventually have any signs in your yard, on your vehicles, or even worn on your shirts, hats, or luggage then I say 'You haven't become passionate about your leadership! And let me add, you have no right to complain!'

  

Sgt. James Stratton, 94 years well lived!

A Cowboy for Life

by J.B. Blocker

James Carter Stratton was born May 22, 1920 to J.C. and Hattie Stratton in Clovis, New Mexico. He grew up near Tucumcari where his family raised cattle and grew wheat. 

After serving in WWII, he met Miss Lila Miller at an Army dance in Lusk, Wyoming. They began their lives together on Oct. 20, 1945 in Lance Creek where they raised cattle for 60 years.

He is survived by his wife Lila of 68 years, son Ted of Lafayette, Ga., daughter Nona of McKinney, grandsons Dale, Sam, and Logan, granddaughters Sarah, Regina, Jennifer, Amy, Cara and 10 great grandchildren.

James Stratton is my friend. The 94 year old cowboy lived a couple of blocks from me in McKinney. I first met him at a Veterans Day celebration where he came dressed in his full WWII uniform. He was a devoted American Patriot who was still holding hands with his Lila in his last days. He was a historian of the era of cowboys and the military. His legacy is carried on by his devoted children and all who saw the sparkle in his eyes that drew you in and captured your heart.

Over the past 6 years, I tried to drop by as often as possible for an afternoon taste of Glenlivet and to hear cowboying stories going back to the 1930's. 

  
  Since James has been an avid historian and collector of Cavalry memorabilia most of his life, his mind and his house are historical museums just waiting for me to tour.

  It has been an awesome honor and responsibility for me to be one of the last personal friends and confidants of a man who has traveled the world and made so many friends all along the way.          I have many of his stories bouncing around now like friendly ghost. God blessed us all with men like James Stratton.

Somewhere outside Clovis, New Mexico 1936. McGregor Cattle Company chuck wagon ready to feed.  “We would pick out the fattest calves and butcher them next to the supply wagon. Cowboys would ride in, cut off a favorite cut, and eat all the beef and beans you could hold.” Photo by James Stratton.