Michael:

Read. // This has been a pretty big story in Lubbock lately. KCBD has an update on Kevin Foote and how his company is accused of withholding paychecks from employees and not paying contractors. It appears to be a continuing problem, as he faced similar charges in Colorado and Amarillo years earlier. His company owns Ruby Tequila’s and Twisted Spigot in Lubbock. All open locations were closed without warning and construction on a new Twisted Spigot location on 82nd & University halted indefinitely.

Look. // This video is shocking. Who in the blue hell does this to a perfectly good piece of fruit? Watch what started out innocent enough on how to slice a watermelon but took a stomach churning turn in the last 10 seconds.

Devour. // Hats off to my wife for ordering Lakewood’s The Temptress this past weekend at World of Beer. She let me try it, and I am so grateful. The head in the snifter looked thick enough to hold up a quarter. This may be one of the best stouts I’ve ever tasted, and at 9.1% al/vol, you’ll want to pace yourself. Lakewood is located in Garland, TX.

Brian:

Read. // I feel we’re approaching a time in the cultural zeitgeist where nostalgia is turning the corner from welcoming distraction to instant anathema. While I do experience a bit of fatigue with how lauded the past can be at times, nostalgia does have a place and can be good! There’s nothing wrong with a little escapism and warm fuzzies, especially if there’s some heart to it. And then there’s Ready Player One. Jeb Lund was assigned the task of reading the book before the upcoming Speilberg adaptation, and I think he absolutely nails it. Lund’s writing never fails to entertain me, especially when he gets to let loose on sports & pop culture, and I think he’s spot on here. The book is entertaining enough, but it really is a bunch of references strung together with some impressively bad dialogue.

Look. // Football season is a scant few weeks away, which means that I’ve started to crank up work on this year’s posters. To get the wheels turning, I always look towards my favorite artist, David Aja. One half of the creative team for one of the best comic runs ever, Hawkeye (2012), Aja’s clean, elegant, & expressive panels often times don’t even need the sharp writing provided by Matt Fraction. In fact, an entire issue is told from Hawkeye’s dog’s point-of-view (as the dog solves a murder). Last week, somebody made some videos breaking down how Aja creates movement & interest in his page layouts & artwork. It’s fascinating to me, and it’s always good to be reminded of how it’s best for me to keep my day job as I’ll never be close to this level.

Devour. // This is something I’ve been wanting to dig into more here, and we’ll definitely do it sometime, but one of the hobbies I’ve picked up the last few years has been infusing liquors. It’s pretty simple to do, and the hardest part is waiting the 3 or 4 weeks for it to be ready. My gateway was this apple pie bourbon from the great website Boozed & Infused, which has plenty of other great ideas. Once you get a feel for it, the possibilities are endless. Clementine Bourbon? Peach Rye? Hatch Green Chile Tequila? It’s a great way to shake up your cocktails & night caps, and they also make great gifts. BONUS: you can use some of the boozy fruit in other recipes. I’ve diced up some of the bourbon apples to add to a kolache filling.

Dan:

Read. // I was really puzzled at the Bob Stoops retirement. Talking to other Sooners, they all had their theories on what had happened. In the end an article on ESPN made the most sense when I read it.

Look. // Last week we took a trip to Negril, Jamaica. It was amazing! As Jess and I went all over the coast we snapped a few pictures. Words cannot express what we saw, as the Caribbean coast was absolutely stunning. I highly recommend if you take a vacation to Jamaica, make it in Negril. Here is just a taste…

#GunsUp from Negril, Jamaica!!! 🇯🇲 #TexasTech #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/pvhjBwGMoK

— DanSwany (@DanSwany) August 3, 2017

Devour. // The place that we stayed in Negril was created and owned by a very interesting man. His name is Chris Blackwell, besides him being the record producer who gave us Bob Marley or running Jamaican resorts he also owns his own line of rum. It is called Blackwell Black Gold, and it is all I sipped while in the Caribbean besides the occasional Red Stripe. It was a very good rum with some sharp edges of spiciness to it. Yet, had enough sweetness over ice to give you a cozy laid back feel. I brought a bottle back to Texas with me, and will indulge myself from time to time throughout the summer with it.

Seth:

Read. // This is one of my favorite things and maybe soon I’ll post highlights in Look one day, but you should get to know American soccer star Christian Pulisic. He’s an amazing soccer player and may be the savior of U.S. soccer.

Look. // I don’t know how I found this movie, but I’m glad I did. I watched it with my wife one night on Netflix. It’s a movie about a husband and wife, Aamion and Daize, who are professional surfers and they have a son, Given, and they welcome another child, True, into their life. It’s more documentary than movie, but it is told from the perspective of Given as his parents go on a year long journey. It is cinematically a beautiful film and you could watch it with your kids. Before you dismiss this as a movie about a bunch of hippies with their kids, yes, but Aamion is a helluva fisherman and he provides for his family, just like you do, just in a different way. Again, it’s beautiful to watch and you could watch this with your kids I think. They’d get a whole new perspective of life.

Devour. // Up next in my series of lone beers left in my fridge is Samuel Adams Wee Heavy, which is a scotch ale and it’s got a nice 10% ABV. Prior to having this, I don’t think I’ve ever had a scotch ale before, so it was an entirely new experience. This was one of those situations where I was thinking I was going to be drinking one thing and then when I tasted it, it turned out to be another. I thought it would be more beer than scotch and that’s not what happened (at least for me). The scotch aspect of it was strong but ridiculously smooth and a bit sweet, but very good and very different than anything I’ve had before. If you like scotch, give this (or another scotch ale) a try. Would drink again.