Why do Starbucks employees always misspell our names on the coffee cups?
Chron.com talked to past and present Starbucks employees about why our names always get so mangled at the world's most popular coffee shop.
These are just some of the names I have gotten on my Starbucks cups over my years of paying more money than I probably should for caffeine.
Starbucks shops are by and large loud and busy places, with machines going off non-stop, doors opening and closing, team members hard at work like submarine crews in the Atlantic Ocean during World War II.
It's a fun game for Starbucks devotees to show off the misspelled names on their life-giving soy latte or pumpkin spice whatever. According to current and former employees, they're in on the joke.
Former employee Lex Entwistle spent three years in management at Starbucks working at shops on Houston's southwest side. He said that the name all depends on the barista and their connection to the customer.
"If I know the person, I might spell their name horribly wrong on purpose to mess with them or even give them a nickname, Entwistle told Chron.com. "We once had a customer we called "douchebag" and he loved it."
And yes, things are rushed and loud and the hectic nature of a coffeehouse during its busiest hours means that your name sometimes comes second to getting a cup of coffee in your hand fast.
A New Yorker carries a Starbucks cup and and McDonald's bag. Starbucks earnings have been under pressure from gourmet coffee offerings from McDonalds and Dunkin' Donuts.
"I think other times the barista might just be in a rush and do their best to keep the flow going in a rush," Entwistle said. "And of course there is always just mishearing the person or not having a clue how to spell a certain name."
With a wink Entwistle said that baristas like throwing us for a loop too.
"There is definitely a small joy in messing up a basic name sometimes. Joe might become Jo or Bob might become Bobb or Bobbert," he said.
Sometimes lagging or defective touchscreens leave random letters in names and that leads to some entertaining mistakes. Imagine trying to take someone's name down correctly next to a busy Houston street or highway.
A Starbucks media representative told Chron.com this week that the tradition of writing names on cups began at the company's founding as a way of fostering a community within each store.
"Writing names on cups is a fun tradition born out of the relationship and interaction between our partners and customers," the representative said via email. "Our partners aim to do their best when it comes to spelling the names of our customers, though at times it can be tricky. "
One Starbucks employee told Chron.com that sometimes a store's touchscreens are the culprit behind funny or weird names.
Over time and with familiarity the names begin to suss themselves out. There have some reports of customers being offended by the names on their cups too, which usually leads to someone facing disciplinary action. Don't be that guy, or girl.
"Our partners pride themselves on the genuine connection they have with the customers who visit their stores. It's part of what the green apron represents," the rep added.
Customers, meanwhile, like to have fun too.
"I always give the most ridiculous fake names I can think of at Starbucks," Starbucks customer Marsha Roberts said this week. "Spanky McBanks, Corn, Alyoisius Gerbil. I also use Liza Lott, Hester Pringles, Dorcus, Candida. really just anything that pops in my head at the moment and I want to watch them have to shout out to a crowd."
There could also some interoffice play at hand too, according to Entwistle.
"The barista taking the order just wants the person handing out drinks to look like an idiot when they call out the name," Entwistle said. "I'd definitely do that to some of my baristas."
Which likely leads to your reporter here walking out with a fresh, grande cold brew meant for Creeg.


Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2017 Nov;37(11):2204-2212. doi: 10.1161/ATVBAHA.117.309548. Epub 2017 Sep 7.
Qi L1, Ma W2, Heianza Y2, Zheng Y2, Wang T2, Sun D2, Rimm EB2, Hu FB2, Giovannucci E2, Albert CM2, Rexrode KM2, Manson JE1.
1 From the Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA (L.Q., Y.H., T.W., D.S.); Department of Epidemiology (L.Q., W.M., E.B.R., F.B.H., E.G., J.E.M.) and Department of Nutrition (L.Q., Y.Z., E.B.R., F.B.H., E.G.), Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA; and Channing Division of Network Medicine (L.Q., E.B.R., F.B.H., E.G., J.E.M.) and Division of Preventive Medicine (C.M.A., K.M.R., J.E.M.), Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA. lqil at tulane.edu jmanson at rics.bwh.harvard.edu.
2 From the Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA (L.Q., Y.H., T.W., D.S.); Department of Epidemiology (L.Q., W.M., E.B.R., F.B.H., E.G., J.E.M.) and Department of Nutrition (L.Q., Y.Z., E.B.R., F.B.H., E.G.), Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA; and Channing Division of Network Medicine (L.Q., E.B.R., F.B.H., E.G., J.E.M.) and Division of Preventive Medicine (C.M.A., K.M.R., J.E.M.), Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
To comprehensively evaluate the independent associations and potential interactions of vitamin D-related biomarkers including total and bioavailable 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD), VDBP (vitamin D binding protein), and parathyroid hormone (PTH) with risk of coronary heart disease (CHD).
We prospectively identified incident cases of nonfatal myocardial infarction and fatal CHD among women in the Nurses' Health Study during 20 years of follow-up (1990-2010). Using risk-set sampling, 1 to 2 matched controls were selected for each case. The analysis of 25OHD and PTH included 382 cases and 575 controls; the analysis of VDBP included 396 cases and 398 controls. After multivariate adjustment, plasma levels of total 25OHD, bioavailable 25OHD, and PTH were not significantly associated with CHD risk.
VDBP was associated with a lower CHD risk with an extreme-quartile odds ratio of 0.60 (95% confidence interval, 0.39-0.92; P trend=0.02). When examining the biomarkers jointly, a significant, inverse association between 25OHD and CHD was observed among participants with higher PTH levels (P for interaction=0.02). The odds ratio (95% confidence interval) comparing the highest quartile of 25OHD to lowest was 0.43 (0.23-0.82; P trend=0.003) when PTH levels were above population median (35.3 pg/mL), whereas among the rest of participants the corresponding odds ratio (95% confidence interval) was 1.28 (0.70-2.36; P trend=0.43).
Our data suggest that higher 25OHD levels were associated with a lower CHD risk when PTH levels were high, whereas no association was observed for participants with low PTH levels. VDBP but not bioavailable 25OHD was independently associated with lower CHD risk.
Observational studies have mostly found a strong association of low plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), usually used to measure vitamin D status, with increased risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, and cardiovascular death.1–3 However, recent Mendelian randomization studies and randomized intervention trials do not support a causal association of 25(OH)D or vitamin D supplementation with cardiovascular disease. 4–8 This discrepancy has been ascribed to failures to account either for confounding or reverse causation in observational studies or for the nonlinear relationships in genetic studies and inappropriate recruiting of vitamin D replete individuals to vitamin D supplementation trials.
In this issue of Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, Qi et al 9 present a comprehensive report on the association of 25(OH)D and other biomarkers of vitamin D status on coronary heart disease. Using the Nurses' Health Study in a nested case–control design with 382 cases and 575 controls and 20-year follow-up, they show independent associations of VDBP (vitamin D–binding protein) with coronary heart disease and an interaction of 25(OH)D with parathyroid hormone on risk of coronary heart disease (Figure). However, 25(OH)D was not independently associated with coronary heart disease. In essence, this report claims that reality may be more complex than claiming that low 25(OH)D is a risk factor for coronary disease (Figure). The main limitation of these findings is that this is an observational study that cannot escape residual confounding; therefore, causal claims cannot be substantiated beyond reference to biological plausibility. Other limitations include the modest sample size and the relatively high mean levels of 25(OH)D in the population studied. In addition, there are no immediate consequences for clinical practice. Nevertheless, this study also underlines the strengths of observational studies: the ease, with which complex hypotheses can be tested, and generation of new testable hypotheses that may be evaluated in superior designs to improve clinical practice.
Proposed models for the association of biomarkers of vitamin D status with risk of coronary disease. 25(OH)D indicates 25-hydroxyvitamin D; PTH, parathyroid hormone; and VDBP, vitamin D–binding protein.
This study 9 adds to the growing literature indicating that biomarkers of vitamin D status beyond 25(OH)D may have an independent role in cardiovascular disease. Previous studies have shown that VDBP is a carrier for actin, and VDBP may be important in regulation of inflammatory responses. Inflammation has been shown to be important in causing coronary heart disease,10 and in experimental studies, actin metabolism has also been linked to cardiovascular disease. 11,12 Such data indicate that VDBP could be a confounder in the association of 25(OH)D with coronary heart disease. However, several large studies, using genetic variants in VDBP that are associated with VDBP levels,13 have failed to show an association with cardiovascular end points, decreasing the enthusiasm for pursuing this as a potential therapeutic target.14–17 Furthermore, genetic variants associated with VDBP levels have been present on arrays (metabochip and exome chip) used in large consortia investigating cardiovascular disease but have not shown up as a hit in any of them. In contrast, the interaction of 25(OH)D with parathyroid hormone has been sparsely investigated. Despite the number of statistical comparisons presented in the modestly sized case–control study by Qi et al, we think, as the authors also state, that this question deserves further investigation because the present results cannot be interpreted as being decisive.
In conclusion, the study by Qi et al highlights that other biomarkers of vitamin D status could be independently associated with risk of coronary heart disease and that there could be potential interactions of the biomarkers with regard to risk of coronary heart disease. Further studies are needed to investigate these hypotheses and any potential consequences for clinical practice.
These randomized trials will provide us with definitive answers as to whether vitamin D supplementation will reduce cardiovascular disease or not and whether vitamin D is causally related to cardiovascular disease.
18.↵Bendik I, Friedel A, Roos FF, Weber P, Eggersdorfer M. Vitamin D: a critical and essential micronutrient for human health. Front Physiol. 2014;5:248. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2014.00248.
Robinson-Cohen C1, Zelnick LR1, Hoofnagle AN2, Lutsey PL3, Burke G4, Michos ED5,6, Shea SJC7,8, Tracy R9,10, Siscovick DS11, Psaty B12,13,14, Kestenbaum B1, de Boer IH1.
CONTEXT: Low 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] is associated with coronary heart disease (CHD) in people who are white and Chinese but not black or Hispanic. Vitamin D binding globulin (VDBG) avidly binds 25(OH)D, reducing its bioavailability, and differs in isoform and concentration by race.
OBJECTIVE: Evaluate associations of VDBG with CHD and whether accounting for VDBG or estimating bioavailable 25(OH)D explains the heterogeneity of the association of 25(OH)D with CHD.
We conducted a case-cohort study within the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis. Participants with an incident CHD event over 12 years of follow-up (n = 538) and a randomly assigned subcohort (n = 999) were included. We measured baseline 25(OH)D, VDBG, and isoforms using mass spectrometry and estimated bioavailable 25(OH)D from published equations.
VDBG was associated with an increased risk of CHD [hazard ratio, 1.77 (95% confidence interval, 1.46 to 2.14) per standard deviation increment, P < 0.0001], without evidence of heterogeneity by race or isoform (each P for interaction > 0.1). Low total 25(OH)D was differentially associated with CHD events, by race, with or without adjustment for VDBG (P for interaction = 0.04 or 0.05, respectively). Associations of 25(OH)D with CHD were strengthened with adjustment for VDBG among participants who were white or Chinese, and bioavailable 25(OH)D was associated with CHD events only among white participants.
High VDBG concentration was associated with CHD events in all racial and ethnic groups. Incorporation of VDBG strengthened existing associations of 25(OH)D with CHD but did not explain racial heterogeneity in associations of 25(OH)D with CHD.


Crown Energy Natural Gas Supplier Partners with WGRZ-TV for The Great Giveback!
We at Crown Energy are very excited to announce we will be partnering with WGRZ-TV Channel 2 on The Great Give Back! The Great Giveback is a program to recognize people in our community who go the extra mile to help others.
Whether it's you or someone else, share your story on WGRZ.com and be eligible for up to $1,000 in matching funds to the charitable organization of your choice. Each month we will pick a winner and highlight their good deed.
The chosen winner has to show that they have raised funds for a charity or group that they care about. WGRZ has created a customized page on WGRZ.com where the community can tell their stories!
This campaign kicks off Monday, October 20th, 2014 at both WGRZ.com and WGRZ-TV Channel 2 and we couldn't be more excited. We are looking forward to hearing all the stories about people who are giving back!


In 2003, Revis released the album 'Places For Breathing,' which spawned the neo-grunge single 'Caught in the Rain.' The band split up in 2005, but have recently reunited after thousands of emails from fans. Revis are now embarking on a 17-date tour of the Midwest and South, aiming to keep fans satisfied by offering ultra-affordable [$10 or less] tickets for all dates. Revis plan to add more dates to the itinerary shortly.
Revis also recently performed live in Los Angeles for Stickam.com, recording their performance so fans all over the country have a chance to see the band perform live. How considerate!
Revis will release 'Do We Have to Beg?' on May 20th.


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Battle cry to defeat Bush greets New Year
January 9, 2004 4:33 AM CST
For the movements on the ground determined to defeat Bush in 2004, the New Year came roaring in like a lion.
Recounting the attacks on Social Security, pensions, health care, and wages, William Burga, Ohio AFL-CIO president, got it right when he warned, "Unless you are a millionaire all these things and more are at risk." Addressing a gathering of over 800 union presidents on Dec. 9, Burga decried the selfish individualism of the right wing as a symptom of "an over-ripe, nearly rotten, capitalist society and culture." (See related story on page 8.)
The only rights the Bush administration recognizes are the rights of corporate power to be protected from the democratic actions of the people. This situation objectively places the working people of our country on the front lines.
From the Florida recount to the Texas redistricting and the California recall, democracy itself is under fire. Now, Republican strategist Karl Rove has his eyes on five open Senate seats in the South. The "Southern strategy" of using racist appeals to pull white voters against their own self-interest will undoubtedly be employed.
But if the Philadelphia mayoral election is any measure, old tricks may not work. FBI bugging of African American Mayor John Street galvanized the city, resulting in his overwhelming re-election, and giving rise to new working relationships between labor and community. The divisive right-wing messages flooding the airwaves in the rural South and Midwest, painting as "unpatriotic" anyone who disagrees with the occupation of Iraq, or with George Bush's economic policies, may well backfire.
Voters in the Midwestern states, where election results were very close in 2000, are also special targets of the right wing, and Bush has been campaigning there heavily.
In the industrial states of Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania, economic devastation has been especially severe. The Bush administration must be held accountable for a record high 3 million manufacturing jobs lost in two and a half years in office. Some 337,122 families have been devastated by jobs lost in Ohio; 379,352 families devastated in Michigan; and 323,700 families devastated in Pennsylvania, leaving the numbers without health coverage and the numbers living in poverty way up, and resulting in bankruptcy for the city of Pittsburgh.
In fact, Bush's policies are a disaster for the overwhelming majority in every state. And every state, every community, every campus, should be contested on that basis in the presidential, congressional and State House elections. Every vote counts, and every vote must be counted.
From the battles over Medicare in Congress to the 25,000 who rallied against the Free Trade Area of the Americas in Miami in the last days of 2003, the fight is on. "The future of all social programs is at stake in the trade globalization battle," Ruben Burke of the Alliance of Retired Americans told the Miami crowd, linking Medicare with the "free trade" issue.
The Ohio union activists who gathered last month are in the thick of the battle, working to expand the voting power of the labor movement by talking with and activating their members, and outreaching into the community. They know that Ohio is a key state to the national outcome, as do other peoples' organizations.
MoveOn will do their part with a series of "Bush in 30 Seconds" TV ads exposing the administration's lies to begin airing after the State of the Union Address.
As the Democratic primaries begin in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, the campaign will take new twists and turns. One thing is sure. The way to defeat Bush is to take his policies head on, and present strong solutions for good job creation, universal health care, and ending the occupation of Iraq. The way to win this election is building the movement from the grassroots up in the labor, and people's organizations, which can continue the fight the next day, on Nov. 3.
The year 2004 will surely go down in the history books as a pivotal moment in our country's history. The greatest patriots are the workers, students, retirees and activists out on the campaign trail working to rescue our nation from the devastation wrought by Bush and the far-right since 2000.
Media pundits have been declaring the election in favor of Bush for months, contributing toward the Republican goal of suppressing the people's voice and discouraging voter participation on Election Day. Don't believe the hype!
Joelle Fishman (joelle.fishman@pobox.com) is chair of the Political Action Commission of the Communist Party USA. The commission is organizing a conference on the 2004 elections to be held in New York City on Saturday, Jan. 31.
For information, visit www.cpusa.org.
click here for Spanish text

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
1 in 3 kids benefit from our support
Bismack banner 1200.jpg
Meet Bismack: Basketball Star, Humanitarian, UNICEF Supporter
Maryanne Buechner
When he's not playing center for the Charlotte Hornets, NBA star Bismack Biyombo is busy building schools and refurbishing hospitals in his home country, the Democratic Republic of Congo. UNICEF USA caught up with the UNICEF Supporter to learn more about what drives him, and where in the world he'd like to go next to help children in need.
In honor of Black History Month, this story is part of a series highlighting the invaluable contributions of African-Americans and the broader African diaspora to UNICEF's work to support and protect children around the world.
Why did you decide to get involved in humanitarian work?
BISMACK BIYOMBO: I wanted to be part of something bigger than myself. I grew up in the Congo, and given the situation there, and all the kids who are living in difficult conditions, I thought, what can I do to help the next generation and change the future of the country, over the long term. Home is the place that has my heart.
BISMACK BIYOMBO: About a year after I moved to the U.S. (after being drafted to the NBA) I was about to fly home for a visit, and I couldn't sleep. When I got back to the Congo that's when I set up my first basketball camp, and once I had that camp I slept like a baby. That was in 2012.
I started with 25 kids, and now we are reaching thousands of kids in three different cities, through the basketball camps, and with scholarships. We have given over 40 scholarships for kids to go to high school in the U.S. for a year or two, sometimes three. They need that time to integrate and catch up on their English before they start college.
I am trying to provide a better environment, new opportunities and hope.
But not every kid can study abroad. Most will stay in Congo and many can't afford to go to school or they drop out along the way. These kids are the future and they can help move the country forward. I think about what I wish I could have had when I was a kid there. I am trying to provide a better environment, new opportunities and hope.
We have given about 5,000 scholarships to kids to go to school in the DRC. We've also built a school in Goma, and we are almost finished building one in Lumbumbashi, the town in the south where I grew up. Next, we will build one in Kinshasha, the capital.
I've invested my own money, and we also have other donors. But it's not enough to raise money, you have to build a sustainable program. So the kids who can afford to pay fees also come to our school and that helps cover the expenses, the maintenance, the teachers' salaries and all of that. We're also jumping into medical care. We're refurbishing three hospitals and donating a clinical pod just outside Goma, in an area that needs to get something up and running immediately.
Different colors, one people! Senegal ----, Nigeria ----, Algeria ----, Mali ---- , South Sudan ----, Congo Brazaville----, DRCONGO ---- Cameroon ---- #NBAAfrica #Africanow #Bless
A post shared by Bismack Biyombo (@bismackbiyombo) on
Aug 6, 2018 at 9:36am PDT
And all this work is done through your charitable foundation?
BISMACK BIYOMBO: Yes, and my parents help me. They're overseeing a lot of things. They had seven kids — I have three brothers and three sisters — and growing up in the Congo, we didn't have enough, but my parents persevered. They showed us hard work, what that really means. They taught us how to love, how to embrace people. And they always managed to give to others. I learned that from them. They love helping people. They have been my role models from Day One.
As a UNICEF Supporter and humanitarian, what keeps you going? Why UNICEF?
BISMACK BIYOMBO: I've seen UNICEF operating in South Africa many times (where most recently I went to play in the NBA Africa game), and I had a chance to visit some programs in the Congo. I appreciate what UNICEF is doing, the goodness that comes out of that — how many children's lives they are able to save and how many lives they are able to touch worldwide. UNICEF has such a big presence, they are able to reach out to so many, in so many different places around the world.
Had a privilege to be at the opening of @sauti_kuu's new sports and education facility in Kenya . To be able to See #AumaObama work it's overwhelming. This is just proving that Africa is moving in the right direction! More here: iol.co.za/sport/basketba… ------ @asphaltchronicles
Jul 17, 2018 at 1:59pm PDT
You have a particular interest in Yemen, is that right?
BISMACK BIYOMBO: Yes, Yemen is part of my journey. I lived there for a few months and played in a tournament there once (when I was 16) and I would like to go back. I also want to see if there is some way I can get involved in helping the children who are suffering there. I like to travel to different places, even so-called dangerous places. No place scares me. It is rewarding to see people find ways to survive in crucial times, a way to work together; to see organizations like UNICEF come in and help a country get reestablished. I enjoy the learning process and admire all that UNICEF is doing to help children in Yemen.
What advice do you have for others looking to make a difference?
BISMACK BIYOMBO: I've always believed — if you make it to the top — in reaching back and pulling others up. And rather than keep talking about problems, you have to be part of the solution. I think, the more people I can help get out there working for their communities and families, the better off we'll all be.
And I want people to hear the positive side of Congo. We have great human resources. We have our natural resources, and there is a dark side to that, but there's a brighter side to our country too. I encourage donors to come, get on a plane, have fun with us. See the beauty. Experience the food, the people, the excitement. Come see the mountains, come see the gorillas. You can stay overnight with them in Virunga National Park. I've done it myself. I walk the talk (laughs).
In the Congo, at end of the day, there are a lot of people helping us get on our feet. We are like a baby learning how to walk, and once we walk we can walk through the door and on to better things.
Within each of us exists the potential to contribute positively to society. On this amazing trip with @righttoplayintl in Thailand, from the group of kids we helped get out of their refugee camp for the first time to visit Bangkok, to the kids in the detention center, to my visit of Umpiem refugee camp at the border of Thailand and Burma. what I have learned from them is that they never let the world change their smile, and more importantly they still dream BIG and face any obstacle coming their way, with hope and courage! I hope the rest of the world never forgets about them.. #Riseandshine
Apr 24, 2018 at 11:04am PDT
For Black History Month, UNICEF USA is highlighting the invaluable contributions of African-Americans to UNICEF's work to support and protect children around the world. What does Black History Month mean to you?
BISMACK BIYOMBO: In Africa, we never spoke about Black History Month (laughs). So when I came here to the U.S. I had to educate myself, so I would know the story of the U.S., what people have been through, how things were done in the past. So for me, personally, we need to educate the next generation of young kids. Kids know it's Black History Month but they are not informed about what that truly means. It's also an opportunity to unify people.
Top photo: Bismack Biyombo visits with kids in Goma, DRC, where his charitable foundation runs basketball camps and provides education scholarships for kids. © Photo courtesy of Bismack Biyombo


text:
Three Words Quotes
Love, I've come to understand, is more than three words mumbled before bedtime.
Love, Tattoo, Three
"The Wedding". Book by Nicholas Sparks, 2003.
In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.
Be the change you want to see in your networks
James H. Fowler
Inspirational, Motivational, Change
Be the change you want to see.
Build what you want to see in the world.
Be the trouble you want to see in the world.
Joey Comeau
"A Softer World". Webcomic by Joey Comeau,
Be the compromise you want to see in the world.
If we could condense all the truths of Christmas into only three words, these would be the words: 'God with us.'
John F. MacArthur
Would Be, Three, God With Us
John F. MacArthur (2006). "Truth for Today: A Daily Touch of God's Grace", Thomas Nelson Inc
"Are you a storyteller, Thomas Covenant?"
Absently he replied, "I was, once."
"And you gave it up? Ah, that is as sad a tale in three words as any you might have told me. But a life without a tale is like a sea without salt. How do you live?"
"I live."
"Another?" Foamfollower returned. "In two words, a story sadder than the first. Say no more - with one word you will make me weep."
Sea, Two, Three
"Lord Foul's Bane: The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant Book One". Book by Stephen Donaldson, 2013.
I don't know why it's so hard for me to say those three words. Most guys throw it around like breath, like bait.
Tammara Webber
Guy, Bait, Three
Tammara Webber (2011). "Between the Lines", p.37, Tammara Webber
Wait. Look. Notice. If you keep those three words in mind, you just might survive the next few days.
Waiting, Mind, Three
Michael Scott (2012). "The First Codex", p.43, Delacorte Books for Young Readers
He was giving up on keeping me alive, letting nature–or rather mob justice–take its course. When he returned, and I was dead, he wouldn't hold anyone responsible. He would not mourn. All this I could hear in those three words.
Giving Up, Justice, Three
Most people write the same sentence over and over again. The same number of words-say, 8-10, or 10-12. The same sentence structure. Try to become stretchy-if you generally write 8 words, throw a 20 word sentence in there, and a few three-word shorties. If you're generally a 20 word writer, make sure you throw in some threes, fivers and sevens, just to keep the reader from going crosseyed.
Janet Fitch
Writing, Numbers, People
Patch? Whatever happens, I love you." I wanted to say more, those three words painfully inadequate for the way I felt about him. And at the same time, so simple and accurate, nothing else would do.
Love You, Simple, Three
Writers used to make such wonderful pictures without all that swearing, all that cursing. And now it seems that you can't say three words without cursing. And I don't think that's right.
Thinking, Three, Wonderful
"Biography / Personal Quotes". www.imdb.com.
The History Of The Universe In Three Words CHAPTER ONE Bang! CHAPTER TWO sssss CHAPTER THREE crunch. THE END
Two, Bangs, Three
I have three words for you," EMT Guy said. "Possible internal bleeding." I turned back to him. "Don't you think if I was bleeding internally, I'd know somewhere deep inside? Like, internally?
Thinking, Guy, Three
Darynda Jones (2011). "First Grave on the Right", p.129, Macmillan
There's so many great, fantastic compliments I need to give that girl. Three words isn't enough.
Girl, Giving, Three
Well, Ma, see... there's this girl." Silence. He checked to make sure the call hadn't been dropped. "You still there, Ma?" A sniffle. "You can't be crying already," he said. "I haven't told you anything about her yet." "It doesn't matter, Nick," his mother said through her tears. "Those are the three words I've been waiting thirty-four years to hear.
Julie James
Girl, Mother, Years
Over my life as a teacher, women have been too quiet. I'm quiet myself. I don't think I said three words the whole of graduate school.
Teacher, School, Thinking
I want three words: Woman, Atheist, Anarchist. That's me.
Atheist, Atheism, Want
[The Head of Radio Three] had been ensnared by the Music Director of the college and a Professor of Philosophy. These two were busy explaining to the harassed man that the phrase "too much Mozart" was, given any reasonable definition of those three words, an inherently self-contradictory expression, and that any sentence which contained such a phrase would be thereby rendered meaningless and could not, consequently, be advanced as part of an argument in favour of any given programme-scheduling strategy.
Philosophy, College, Men
When you showed someone how you felt, it was fresh and honest. When you told someone how you felt, there might be nothing behind the words but habit or expectation. Those three words were what everyone used; simple syllables couldn't contain something as rare as what I felt for Sean. I wanted him to feel what I felt when I was with him: that incredible combination of comfort, decadence, and wonder; the knowledge that, with just a single taste of him, I was addicted.
Simple, Expectations, Comfort
Jodi Picoult (2009). "Handle with Care: A Novel", p.208, Simon and Schuster
Children are dying." Lull nodded. "That's a succinct summary of humankind, I'd say. Who needs tomes and volumes of history? Children are dying. The injustices of the world hide in those three words.
Children, Fantasy Novels, Dying
The fragility of love is what is most at stake here—humanity's most crucial three-word avowal is often uttered only to find itself suddenly embarrassing or orphaned or isolated or ill-timed—but strangely enough it can work better as a literal or reassuring statement than a transcendent or numinous or ecstatic one.
Love Is, Humanity, Three
Christopher Hitchens (2010). "Hitch 22: A Memoir", p.306, Atlantic Books Ltd
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in Annals of Botany
Responses of Eucalyptus globulus to eleven levels of continuous water availability
Foliar concentrations of plant secondary metabolites (PSMs) are influenced by soil water availability. However, concentrations of individual compounds in previously published studies have been reported to be higher, lower or to remain stable during water deficit. McKiernan et al. use multiple levels of continuous water deficit to test the effect on plant stress levels, growth […] More
Annals of Botany Office May 30, 2017, 9:30 am
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Aquaporin function and exogenous application of abscisic acid (ABA) to barley roots
Using an immunochemical approach to reveal the link between changes in abscisic acid (ABA) levels, aquaporin function and changes in root cell hydraulic conductivity (LpCell), Sharipova et al. compared the abundance of AQPs and ABA by means of immunolocalization in the tissue of barley (Hordeum vulgare) roots, and related it to LpCell. Shortly after (< […] More
Annals of Botany Office November 8, 2016, 9:30 am
in Articles, Tree Physiology
Within-species responses to water deficit vary more with traits than provenance
Plants manage water stress through various mechanisms, including increasing concentrations of compounds such as abscisic acid (ABA) to signal stomatal closure and reduce water loss, changing plant secondary metabolite concentrations, and altering morphological traits such as growth and leaf mass per area. During a drought period, plant growth often slows down earlier than carbon uptake […] More
Danielle Marias March 18, 2016, 3:30 pm
Abscisic acid and seed development in a lady's slipper orchid
Abscisic acid concentration and distribution during seed development of Cypripedium formosanum serves as the key inhibitor of germination. More
Annals of Botany Office September 4, 2015, 10:00 am
Arabidopsis Mob1 gene regulates organ development
Mob1 proteins are kinase regulators that are conserved among eukaryotes and which play a significant role in restraining tumor development. Pinosa et al. study the role of Mob1-like genes in development of Arabidopsis thaliana and find that the function of the gene appears to be indispensable for the growth of vegetative organs as well as […] More
Annals of Botany Office April 23, 2014, 1:00 pm
Cytokinins can trigger hypersensitive-like responses
Activating the gene ipt to produce high levels of cytokinins in tobacco is sufficient to trigger fast cell death without intervening chlorosis. More
Annals of Botany Office October 6, 2013, 9:00 am
Plant hormones in arbuscular mycorrhizal symbioses (Research in Context)
Although >80% of species form arbuscular mycorrhizal symbioses, the roles of plant hormones in the associations are still being determined. Foo et al. critically review recent progress in our understanding of the roles of strigolactones, auxin, abscisic acid, ethylene, jasmonic acid and salicylic acid in mycorrhizal symbiosis, and present new evidence for a novel role for […] More
Annals of Botany Office June 17, 2013, 9:00 am
Physiological mechanisms of germination responses
Germination timing, a major determinant of fitness, is extremely sensitive to environmental conditions but the physiological mechanisms regulating it are largely unknown. Barua et al. study Arabidopsis thaliana and find that some attributes, such as sensitivity to GA, predict germination responses to multiple seasonal cues while others, such as ABA sensitivity and seed-coat properties, predict responses […] More
Annals of Botany Office February 8, 2012, 8:00 am
Amharic (Amharic)


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text:
Q: Minimal volume of pyramid I need to say which plane goes through the point (3,5,6), intersects with the positive side of all axis and creates the pyramid with the minimal volume with those axis.
I'm not sure how to begin this.

A: When the axis intercepts of your plane are $a$, $b$, $c>0$ then the volume of said pyramid is given by $V={1\over 6} abc$. The equation of this plane  can be written in the form
$${x\over a}+{y\over b}+{z\over c}=1\ ,$$  and as it has to pass through the point $(3,5,6)$ we have the extra condition $${3\over a}+{5\over b}+{6\over c}=1\ .\qquad(1)$$
 Therefore we have to minimize $abc$ given the side condition $(1)$. This can be done with the help of Lagrange multipliers or with the help of a convexity argument.

A: adding to what Christian Blatter said, we can observe that harmonic mean is less than geometric mean always, and the G.M == H.M only when all the numbers are equal.
which would mean 3/a=1/3, 5/b=1/3 and 6/c=1/3

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Good Measure Tawny
By Mark on August 23, 2018 10:25 PM | No Comments
A couple of years ago, Alex from dontdrinkbeer.com noticed that while there was a Facebook group for seemingly every style of beer, there wasn't one for Barleywine. So he created Barleywine is Life (#BiL) and the group quickly became a wretched hive of scum and villainy. Seriously, it's a crazy little group of people and there's a surprising amount of drama. I know, it's the internets, what do you expect, but this is still a step above the usual dank memes and inappropriate comments (in, like, a good way).
Anywho, the date 8/17 has become something of a holiday to the group (817, like BIL, get it?) so I figured I'd break out the one VT barleywine I procured during during the most recent Operation Cheddar... Tawny is an English Style Barleywine (that's good) aged in maple syrup bourbon barrels (very good) with vermont table grapes (Um... I don't know what to think about that). Let's dig in:
Good Measure Tawny - Pours a copper amber color (dare I say, tawny?) with a finger of off white head. Smells sweet with a distinct vinous character, those grapes coming through, and maybe some of that syrupy goodness too. Taste starts sweet, malt and fruit, that distinct vinous character again, some caramel, toffee, oak, and vanilla, finishing with some dry grape notes (a tannic sort of dryness, like a dry red wine). Mouthfeel is rich, well carbonated, and full bodied, a bit of boozy heat, drying tannins in the finish. Overall, it's good, but I'd rather the grapes were left out of it. B
Beer Nerd Details: 14% ABV bottled (500 ml). Drank out of a snifter on 8/17/18.
It was certainly nice to break up the giant wave of IPAs I've been drowning in of late (it's the struggle, you know?) with something like this, and while I wasn't a huge fan of the grape addition, it was at least an interesting experiment. I'd be curious to try more Good Measure stuff next time I'm in VT. I'm going to have to plan a trip for cooler months of the year so I don't overload on IPAs and Saisons the way I tend to do during the summer months.
Operation Cheddar VII: Dawn of the Cheddar
By Mark on August 22, 2018 7:31 PM | No Comments
At this point, the annual sorty into Vermont for beer (codename: Operation Cheddar) has a consistent plan of attack: Warren Store, CBC in Waterbury, Alchemist Visitor's Center, Lost Nation for Lunch, Hill Farmstead, and Foam are always onboard, with the occasional target of opportunity presenting itself (this year: Fiddlehead came into our sights). It's a fun day trip for me (embedded as it is in a vacation rooted in upstate NY, which is like, totally closer to VT than PA), but since I do it every year, I'll try not to bore you with repetition. Again. Anywho, enjoy some pics from the trip, a recap of the haul, and a few quickie reviews (that are light on tasting notes and heavy on ruminations, so less skippable than usual).
Some artwork from the Alchemist Building, it's purty.
Lunch at Lost Nation, a smoked chicken sandwich thing that was great. If you're ever ripping through Vermont, it's worth stopping here for lunch, the food is excellent.
A Fiddlehead sign
Hill Farmstead Poetica 2 - Operation Cheddar involves a lot of driving, so I'm generally reticent to partake in actually drinking beer at all. The only exception is usually a 5 ounce pour of something at Lost Nation. But since it looked like I was going to be at Hill Farmstead for a while and they actually had this interesting sounding thing on tap, I figured I'd give it a swing. You see, Hill Farmstead was hosting their annual Festival of Farmhouse Ales in the coming weekend, so they were packed with newly arrived beer dorks. Alas, since they planned on releasing a bunch of limited stuff during the festival, I had to settle for their "normal" shelfies (which are still phenomenal, to be sure). This was a special DONG release though, so I figured I'd give it a shot. Poetica 2 is basically Hill Farmstead's Mary, a pilsner, but instead of simply lagering in stainless, they lagered in a single French oak puncheon in their cooler for three months. After that, they moved it to a stainless tank and krausened it with a new batch for carbonation (this is apparently a step they always do when lagering). Anywho, the result is a very good pilsner, much like Mary. Grassy, earthy hops, minerality, quaffable stuff. I was not detecting much in the way of oak and I didn't take detailed notes, but I do want to say that it had more complexity than I'm used to from a pilsner. This, of course, means that the beer was a placebo and Hill Farmstead is now experimenting with mind control and we should indeed be quite worried because they're good at everything so why not world domination? Ok, that got away from me there for a second, so I'll just say that the beer is very nice and fans of Pilsners should look for future iterations on this mind control potion oaked lager. Let's just say B+ and get on with it.
Beer Nerd Details: ~5.6% ABV on draft (10 ounce pour). Drank out of a charente glass on 8/2/18. Batch 2.
And so we come to the haul pics. For the record, some duplicate cans/bottles not pictured, nor did I hoard all these cans for myself. Indeed, I would say the majority of my purchases were passed along to (or shared with) friends. I'm not exactly a full time mule, but I enjoy spreading the wealth. So here goes:
Can Haul - Part 1: Hill Farmstead Citra IPA (seems to have been rebranded as an IPA, and I'll say that these cans were straight fire, very nice), Hill Farmstead Works of Love: Earl Grey Tea & Lactose, Hill Farmstead Society & Solitude #4, Hill Farmstead Walden, Fiddlehead Mastermind.
Can Haul - Part 2: Lawson's Finest Liquids Sip of Sunshine, Alchemist Holy Cow IPA, Simple Roots New North End, Foam Built to Spill (many thanks to Kaedrin friend Eric for gifting this can and a few others to me when I met with him at Foam), 14th Star Make the Cut (not pictured, see below), Upper Pass First Drop, Alchemist Focal Banger, Alchemist Lightweight, Suarez Family Brewing Palatine Pils (not technically an Operation Cheddar acquisition, full explanation to come in a separate post), Alchemist Heady Topper, and Alchemist Hellbrook.
Funny observation: While Hill Farmstead was packed with long lines due to FoFA, Alchemist had a practically nonexistent line. Each year, the Alchemist gets less crowded. Plenty of people milling about, but I basically just walked up to the counter and got my beer. Go figure.
Growler Haul: Foam Galaxie 500, Hill Farmstead Abner (we will be talking more about Abner sometime in a separate post), Hill Farmstead Society & Solitude #9, Hill Farmstead Society & Solitude #4.
HF Bottle Haul: Hill Farmstead Arthur, Anna, Grassroots Brother Soigne, Florence, Dorothy, and Clara.
Miscellaneous Haul: von Trapp Golden Helles Lager, von Trapp Dunkel, Jack's Abby Cordon Rouge Barrel-Aged Framinghammer, Good Measure Tawny (#BiL), Lost Nation The Wind Bretta (not to be confused with the "plain" Wind), Stone Corral Bad Rooster IPA, Rock Art Citra DIPA, Burlington Peak Nostalgia, and Lawson's Finest Liquids Super Session #7.
Moar Miscellaneous Haul: 3 Fonteinen Oude Geuze Cuvée Armand & Gaston 1.5 L Magnum, Suarez Family Brewing Postscript, Proclivity, and Call to Mind (again, not technically Operation Chowder, but we'll cover that in a separate post), and Crooked Stave Blueberry Origins.
Non-Beer Haul: Alchemist Red Heady hot sauce and Cheddy Topper cheddar cheese.
Phew, that's quite a bit of beer. Now let's take a closer look at a few of these that I drank:
Hill Farmstead Society & Solitude #9 - Pours a cloudy, golden yellow with a solid finger of white head that leaves plenty of lacing as I drink. Smells nice, sweet, lots of tropical fruit hops, mango, pineapple, and so on. Taste is also quite nice, sweet, citrusy, pine, balance in the finish. Mouthfeel is perfect, tight, soft carbonation, medium bodied, drinks like a dream. Overall, oh jeeze, another excellent HF IPA, stop the presses. A-
Beer Nerd Details: 8% ABV growlered (750 ml swing top). Drank out of a charente glass on 8/4/18. Growler filled on 8/2/18.
Foam Galaxie 500 - Pours a very cloudy, milky looking straw yellow color with half a finger of white head that doesn't stick around too long. Smells of bright citrus, tropical fruit, stone fruit, and the like. Taste is very sweet, lots of those bright citrus hops, with a sharp edge to it, finishing sweet and juicy. Mouthfeel is a tad low on the carbonation, medium bodied, with a sharp alcohol note. Overall, this is a really nice Galaxy DIPA, a bit on the strong side, but no less delicious for it. B+ or A-
Alchemist Holy Cow - Apparently one of their staples during the halcyon days of the old Alchemist brewpub, it was a local favorite long before Heady became the hotness. Pours, well, I don't know, because I drank it from a can. I'm guessing pale. Smells citrusy, bright graprefruit. Taste is light and citrusy, finishing with a nice balancing bitterness. Mouthfeel is crisp, clean, and dry, good carbonation, light, quaffable stuff. Overall, it's not going to blow people away, but I could drill a four pack of these with ease. B+
Beer Nerd Details: 5.16% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of the can (like a man) on 8/5/18.
Alchemist Hellbrook - A pretty straightforward Amber ale, a style I can appreciate when done well (and when hopped to high heaven), this doesn't quite live up to the reputation of the Alchemist's best work. Indeed, I think the pattern is that after Heady and Focal, there's a distinct stairstep in quality to their other offerings. I don't know that I've had anything outright bad, to be sure, but all of these others are somewhat standard takes, if well executed. None are quite the style-defining heights of Heady or Focal... This one pours a dark amber, almost brown color with a couple fingers of off-white head. Smells of citrus and dank, resinous pine, with crystal malt lurking in the background, light caramel tonez. Taste hits that crystal malt character, with plenty of piney, resinous hops in the middle, finishing with a balancing bitterness and dank hop profile. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, well carbonated, and pretty well balanced. Overall, another solid brew here. Not going to make headlines, but it's better than your typical amber ale, if not quite at the top of the style. B+
Beer Nerd Details: 7% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 8/5/18.
Alchemist Lightweight - Look, I'm not sure what I was expecting from this American Blonde Ale, but what I got was an almost Kolsh-like easy drinker, earthy, grassy, and herbal. Nice lawnmower beer, but again, not going to set the world on fire like you might expect from the Alchemist. I feel like I'm bagging on Alchemist here, but in reality, these are all solid little beers. Sometimes they're disappointing due to the high bar set by Heady and Focal, but I will say that I'm still going to continually seek out additional varieties of Alchemist stuff. None of it is bad, and it sometimes approaches the sublime, so why not? B-
Beer Nerd Details: 4.4% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 8/5/18.
Frost Beer Works Lush - I had the Plush DIPA a while back, which is a variant of this beer, and heck, they're both really good DIPAs. Typical Northeast IPA type stuff, not going to replace the top tier, but certainly worth a flier if you're making your way through VT's hop laden waters. B+
Lawson's Finest Liquids Super Session #7 - If you've had any of the Super Session beers, you know what you're in for here (I haven't had them in close enough proximity to notice a major difference, but who knows...) Typical session IPA territory, but it doesn't quite feel like a "diet" IPA like some of them do, it's a really nice, quaffable, citrus IPA that is light and crisp. It may not stand out against a sea of DIPAs, but it's a nice summer beer. B
Beer Nerd Details: 4.8% ABV canned (12 ounce). Drank out of a tulip glass on 8/10/18.
Foam City Lights: Pineapple & Tangerine - A pretty straightforward kettle soured fruit beer, it reminds me a bit of Burley Oak's JREAM beers, though I think those are better. For whatever reason, this one didn't quite connect with me. C+
Beer Nerd Details: 5% ABV canned (12 ounce). Drank out of a flute glass on 8/11/18.
Simple Roots New North End IPA - Pretty straightforward NEIPA stuff, not top tier, but better than the last Simple Roots stuff I had on a previous Operation Cheddar mission. One thing about these non-hyped cans that always gives me pause is that they tend to be a bit less fresh, which will have an impact. This is not entirely their fault either, as I bought this on 8/2 (when it was already a couple weeks old), but didn't drink it until 8/17. Not a ton of time, to be sure, but this wasn't the can I was rushing to try either, and you can see that the highest rated stuff in this post tends to be the freshest as well. Freshness isn't the only lever here, but that's probably a part of it. Regardless, this is a fine beer, worth a flier if you're in VT. B
Beer Nerd Details: 7% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 8/17/18.
Burlington Peak Nostalgia - This is a Strawberry Milkshake IPA with Vanilla & Milk Sugar, a style that is hyped to high heaven thanks in large part to Kaedrin's local Tired Hands, who make a whole series of Milkshake beers that are awesome. This Burlington take certainly emphasizes the strawberry aspects well (moreso even than the Tired Hands equivalent), but the balance isn't quite on point and it's overall a little disappointing. But my frame of reference is the Tired Hands Milkshakes. I've certainly had worse takes on the style, and while it's a wholly different beer, this beer is far better than Burlington's Strawberry Whale Cake, which I got on a previous Operation Cheddar. B
14th Star Make the Cut Saving Grace - Apparently there's a local homebrew competition where the winner's recipe is scaled up and brewed at 14th Star. This is a very nice Northeast IPA dry hopped with Mosaic, Citra, and Ekuanot. And it's really good, lots of juicy citrus and pine, good mouthfeel and pretty easy going. Would try again, though I suspect we've seen the last of this particular beer due to its origins. B+
Beer Nerd Details: 7.3% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 8/18/18.
Phew! That's a lot of beer, folks. Many apologies for the lack of blogging recently, I hope this makes up for it. I've still got quite the backlog of reviews, and plenty of things from this trip that I haven't dug into yet, so much moar to come. Stay tuned.
This brings this year's Operation Cheddar to a close. Next year promises to hold at least a minor shakeup in that Lawson's Finest Liquids is finally opening a brewery, taproom, and retail store in Waitsfield, VT (not far from the Warren Store, which was always my scheduled stop to find Lawson's and thus will probably fall out of the rotation next year). Most exciting!
Kane BBA Three Hundred Sixty Five
By Mark on July 26, 2018 8:34 PM | No Comments
Allright, stay with me here. In 2012, Kane was celebrating their first anniversary, and they put out a beer called Three Hundred Sixty Five (the significance of this name is obviously a total mystery.) It was comprised of a blend of 70% Belgian-style quadrupel and 30% barrel-aged imperial stout. Most of that was released then, but some of the finished blend was racked back into bourbon barrels for another year. At their second anniversary party in 2013, they incorporated some of that aged juice into their next anniversary beer, Seven Hundred Thirty (again with the cryptic name), but reserved some of it for release on draft on its own. At their third anniversary in 2014, they incorporated Seven Hundred Thirty into their next anniversary beer, One Thousand Ninety Five (I suppose I've worn this naming joke down to the bone, so I'll refrain this time and this time only). I think you're getting the solera-like pattern here, but the point is that at that third anniversary, they finally released some of the original Bourbon Barrel-Aged Three Hundred and Sixty Five in bottles. So if I've got the chronology right, they brewed and blended it, aged it in bourbon barrels for a year, then bottle conditioned for another year before releasing.
Then it made it's way to me after another, er, 3-4 years or so in the bottle. Quite the storied beer. As we've seen recently, Kane's got a pretty darned good barrel program, so let's dig in:
Kane Bourbon Barrel Aged Three Hundred and Sixty Five - Pours a murky, very dark brown color with a half finger of off white, fizzy head that does not stick around very long. Smells nice, lots of that bourbon, oak, and vanilla, along with some almost cola-like spice notes. Taste is very sweet, hits some Belgian yeast spiciness, that cola-like character is there too, with a nice, boozy bourbon, oak, and vanilla character. Mouthfeel is on the lighter end of full bodied, rich but again on the lighter side of that spectrum, nice tight carbonation too. Overall, it has a neat sorta bourbon barrel aged coke feel to it, with some added Belgian yeast notes for complexity. Having had some of the newer anniversary blends, I suspect that while this was quite nice, it would have been better if not aged as long as it was. Still really happy to have tried it! B+
Beer Nerd Details: 12.2% ABV bottled (750 ml silver wax). Drank out of a tulip glass on 6/22/18. Released: 2014.
Many thanks to Gene of Talkbeer for sending this my way (he was very generously making good on a mixup from a while back that was totally not his fault). I will most certainly be seeking out more from Kane's barrel program.
Again Burley Oak Quadruple Feature
In what's become an annual tradition, I stopped in at Burley Oak on my way home from a vacation in Ocean City, MD for a big, pre-holiday release. Last year, I was taken aback by how bonkers the release was. This year, I was mildly prepared for the insanity. I wouldn't think to put Burley Oak in the top tier of breweries capable of sustaining releases like this (i.e. TreeHouse, Monkish, Other Half, etc...), but I suspect their location matters, and it helps that it was a holiday weekend.
For their part, Burley Oak has implemented some practices to minimize the strain, such as numbered wrist bands and pre-orders (though not pre-payment, which would make the line move faster, but probably presents challenges of its own). The facility has morphed a bit as well, and is more conducive to the whole beer swap/share environment that inevitably emerges during such events. I talked to a guy who was third in line; he'd arrived at 7 pm the night before and hadn't left. Me? I was 173rd in line. But I still got everything on offer, so there is that:
Burley Oak 100 (Citra) - Last year's Mosaic 100 was amazingly good. Here we have the same beer, but with Citra hops. Alas, I don't think that this rivaled last year's version, though it's obviously quite nice. Pours cloudy, downright murky, a muted, milky looking yellow color with a finger of white, dense head that sticks around for a while. Smells great, lots of sweet citrus and floral notes. Taste is sweet and citrusy, orange juicy, that floral component kicking in for complexity's sake, with a perfectly calibrated finish. Not noticeably bitter, but not sickly sweet either. Mouthfeel is well carbonated, medium bodied, a little chewy, well balanced stuff. Overall, it's great. I'd put the mosaic higher, but this is quite good. B+ or A-
Beer Nerd Details: 8.5% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 6/30/18. Canned: 06/29/2018. Batch: Y WAS THE B BALL COURT WET?
Pretty Girls Like Hazy IPAs - This is a "Pink" IPA (whatever that means) triple dry-hopped with Vic Secret, Summer, and Mosaic hops. Pours a murky pinkish hued color with a finger of off-white (a hint of pink?), dense head that sticks around and leaves some lacing. Smells great, citrus, pine, pineapple, really nice. Taste isn't quite as great as the nose, sweet with a little of that citrus going on, and a balancing bitterness towards the finish. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, well carbonated, moderately dry, again, not quite as good as the nose would have you believe. Overall, it's a solid little IPA, but nothing special. B
Beer Nerd Details: 6.9% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 7/1/18. Canned: 06/29/2018. Batch: BECAUSE OF ALL THE DRIBBLING.
Double Blackberry Mango JREAM - The acronym stands for "Juice Rules Everything Around Me", in case you were wondering, and last year's entries in this series were nice, but didn't particularly blow me away. This one turns things around, perhaps because of the "double" nature providing a wallop of richness, or maybe just Blackberry Mango combo is more to my palate. Pours a hazy, bright red color with a finger of striking pink head. Smells nice, lots of fruit, those blackberries coming through strong, less of the mango. Taste starts off with rich and sweet, with bright, tart fruit coming through in the middle, again with the mangoes taking backseat to the blackberries, finish with a lactic sour kick. Mouthfeel is rich and on the higher end of medium bodied, well carbonated, moderate acidity. It's not something you could slam several of in a row, but it's really great. Overall, this might be my favorite take on a JREAM yet. A-
Beer Nerd Details: 7% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 7/1/18. Canned: 06/25/2018. Batch: I DON'T TRUST THAT TREE
Strawberry Banana JREAM - Pours a hazy yellowish orange color with a finger of white head. Smells decent, sweet, I'm getting both strawberry and banana in there, though who knows if I'd be able to pick that out blind. Taste starts off sweet, hits a sugary strawberry and banana note in the middle, finishing with a tartness that escalates into sourness. Mouthfeel is well carbonated but smooth and medium bodied, a sorta sweet soft drink feel to it, but with that acidic note in the finish. Overall, it's not the eye opener that Double Blackberry Mango was, but it's pretty good and compares favorably the ones I had last year. B or B+
Beer Nerd Details: 4.8% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 7/6/18. Canned: 06/25/2018. Batch: IT LOOKS A BIT ...SHADY
So there you have it. Not sure it'd be worth getting in line at 7 PM the night before, but I'm glad I got there when I did...
Finback Social Fabric
Yet another member of NYC's beer renaissance is Finback brewing. Located in Queens, it's not just a borough where you can sow your royal oats or discover a worthy bride anymore. Between Finback and their neighbors at SingleCut as well as brethren in Brooklyn like Other Half and Interboro, things are looking up in the NYC beer scene. This particular beer is a double dry-hopped DIPA made with Mosaic and 007 (the hop formerly known as Idaho 7, which if this beer is any indication, is a wonderful match with Mosaic). The Social Fabric may be fraying, but beers like this might help knit things back together. Yeah, fat chance, but let's give it a shot, eh?
Finback Social Fabric - Pours a cloudy yellow color with a solid finger of head that sticks around for a bit, leaving a bit of lacing. Smells fantastic, sweet, bright, tropical fruit, mangoes, oranges, and a wallop of pineapple. Taste starts off sweet, hits that bright tropical fruit note, juicy citrus, mangoes, and pineapples, finishes with just enough balancing bitterness. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, light, and crisp, well carbonated, drinks like a lower ABV beer. Overall, this is fantastic. A
Beer Nerd Details: 8% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 6/24/18. (No canning date, but I'm guessing this was within 2 or so weeks of canning.)
Many thanks to Kaedrin beverage compatriot Dana for slinging this can my way. I will most definitely need to be checking out moar Finback in the future. In the meantime, IPA season continues next week, but we'll start to see some other styles float in too....
Tree House Bbbrighttt with Citra (and Moar Bonus Tree House Looks)
And so we enter IPA season here at Kaedrin HQ. I know, I know, all year is IPA season, especially these days, but the summer months tend to be an attractor for hops. For whatever reason, my fridge just magically starts to fill with new and unique IPAs around this time of year, much moreso than the winter months. As such, the next several reviews will feature hoppy beers. I usually try to mix things up here, but sometimes the pipeline gets clogged with hops. Oh, the horror!
First up is a pair of Tree House IPAs thoughtfully passed along by Kaedrin friend Danur (many thanks!) I also had two additional Tree House beers at a share (also thanks to Danur), but they were small pours and I didn't take notes because I'm the worst and I know everyone loves tasting notes and finds them super-useful and entertaining to read so I'm sorry that I don't have much to say about them and by the way, I only really took detailed notes on the first of these beers, so enjoy it because the rest of the post is blatant rambling and run-on sentences kinda like this one. Annnd... go:
Tree House Bbbrighttt with Citra - I initially mistook this for plain ol' Bright w/Citra, but apparently the extra b's and t's mean something. I think this was, like triple dry hopped instead of whatever they normally do? Something like that? Let's see: Pours a moderately hazy but kinda radiant (bright?) pale straw yellow color with a solid finger of dense, fluffy head. Smells great, lots of juicy citrus (dare I say bright?) with a nice floral component. Taste starts off sweet, again that juicy citrus with a solid floral note, followed by just a hint of balancing bitterness in the finish. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, perfectly carbonated, crisp, refreshing. Overall, big shock, another great Tree House IPA. A-
Beer Nerd Details: 7.8% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 6/22/18. Canned on: 06/12/18. Batch: NNNEVER EVER SAW THE STARS SO BBBRIGHT
Tree House Hurricane - I didn't take detailed notes for this, because as previously mentioned, I'm the worst and I'm just going to blather about it for a bit and maybe make a Bob Dylan joke (or maybe just mentioning that is enough). My general impression is that this has a great citrus nose, but the taste is dryer and more minerally than I'm used to from Tree House. It's still got your typical citrus hop notes, but they're not quite as pronounced here. But the dryness makes for a good mouthfeel and a nice match with food. Still a pretty good IPA, but not near their top of the line. B+
Beer Nerd Details: 7.7% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 6/26/18. Canned on: 06/12/18. Batch: EVERYBODY'S PLAYING IN THE HEART OF GOLD BAND
Tree House Juice Machine - This apparently very limited release (2 cans pp) appears to be a sorta mix between King Julius and Very Green, with a convoluted hop schedule consisting of Magnum, Columbus, Amarillo, Citra, and Galaxy, resulting in a complexity not quite present in, for example, the above beers. Lots of citrus, juicy tropical fruit, pine, and floral notes, pretty much running the gamut of what hops are capable of. It's totally delicious. That being said, I suspect ratings are entirely driven by rarity here. It deserves a good rating, to be sure, but this gets astronomical ratings. I will abstain from rating because I was not in a hermetically sealed environment like I usually am (but seriously, not ideal conditions here). Who knows, maybe if I have ten more of these I'll think they're worth the trouble.
Beer Nerd Details: 8.2% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a wine glass on 7/5/18. I don't remember the canning date, but I assume it's around 6/12 like the above.
Tree House Very Green - The plain ol' Green was actually my first Tree House beer way back when, shared by a visiting friend from Vermont, and it was phenomenal (once again, I never really wrote about it because it was a social situation and it's not like I drank a whole can, and so on). Like Juice Machine, this one is hyped to high heaven, probably because of the rarity. It's also totally delicious with all that great NEIPA character, juicy hops with some big floral notes - the word green actually does come to mind, but that may just be the power of suggestion and my puny willpower. Again, totes great beer, but the hype and rarity drive the ratings perhaps a bit to far. Of course, here I am posting terrible pictures and no tasting notes, so it's not like I'm immune to hype.
So there you have it. I continue to pine for Tree House beers and will most certainly be seeking them out in the future. Many thanks again to Kaedrin friend Danur for braving the Massachusetts wilderness to acquire and share all these beers.
Kane Object Permanence
By Mark on June 18, 2018 7:40 PM | No Comments
Object Permanence is the idea that objects continue to exist even when you are no longer observing them. Unfortunately, beer does cease to exists if you insist on drinking it. Doubly unfortunate when the beer is as good as this one.
Kane was one of the brewers that made this Pennsylvanian take notice of New Jersey, which sez a lot, and I've been particularly impressed with their barrel program. A Night to End All Dawns and its associated variants are spectacular, but alas, I keep losing the lottery and have to make due with the generosity of friends at shares to get a taste of the stuff. I've had a few tastes of other Barrel Aged goodies from them, which have been uniformly great. Fortunately, I did manage to procure this bit of life, an English Barleywine with a complicated malt bill aged in bourbon barrels for over a year. The beer is gone, but the idea continues to exist even though I can no longer drink it. Or something like that. What is this, a psychology blog? No, it's a beer blog, so read my dumb tasting notes:
Kane Object Permanence - Pours a murky brown color with a cap of off-white head. Smells fantastic, rich toffee, caramel, a hint of dark fruit, and a great bourbon, oak, and vanilla character. Taste follows the nose, rich toffee, caramel, dark fruit, and a boozy bourbon, oak, and vanilla character. Mouthfeel is full bodied, rich, and chewy, almost creamy, moderate carbonation provides just enough levity, some boozy heat but nothing unwieldy. Overall, this is fantastic, one of the better examples of life that I've had. A
Beer Nerd Details: 11.8% ABV bottled (750 ml waxed). Drank out of a snifter on 4/20/18. Vintage: 2016 (batch 1?)
I've recently come into a couple of more Kane bottles. One is last year's vintage of Object Permanence (huzzah), and the other is a BBA anniversary beer from them. Stay tuned. I may not wait two months to write that one up (assuming I drink it soon). Fingers crossed for this year's ANTEAD lottery too.
Bottle Logic Red Rover
By Mark on June 4, 2018 7:10 PM | No Comments
I drank this on Friday, April 13th, so yes, I'm far behind on reviews here. A thousand pardons. That date being what it is, I decided to have a little movie marathon and broke out my 8 movie set of Friday the 13th films. Yes, I still use physical media from time to time, wanna fight about it? Also, yes, for some reason I love the Friday the 13th series of films, such that I'm probably going to spend a lot more time writing about them in this post than the beer in question. We can fight about that too, if you like.
So I started off with the original Friday the 13th. Made in 1980, it's not an ur example of the slasher genre or anything, but it may be a codifier of a few conventions. In other words, it's derivative as all get out, but it solidified the template that many of the trashier examples of the genre follow. There's not much in this movie that was not done earlier and better by the likes of Black Christmas or Halloween, but this shows how lesser filmmakers imitate greatness. Some elements are still great. Tom Savini's makeup and effects are a step up from earlier examples, even when they're lifting gags wholesale from obscure proto-slashers like Bay of Blood. The ending is also a notable example of a broader horror movie trope (I won't spoil it here, but it's a good one, despite the implication that it's a dream sequence? Whatever, it works.) It suffers a bit in my mind for the lack of Jason, though it's also interesting in that respect. It was fun revisiting this, but it's not the one I usually reach to rewatch.
Next up was Friday the 13th Part 2. Made on the cheap just a year later, this one features Jason for the first time, though he's still in backwoods overalls and with a bag over his head (which again, are elements stolen from earlier films like The Town That Dreaded Sundown, etc...) Again, decent makeup and effects work here, and the film is still aping Bay of Blood for its kills, but the real standout of the film is Ginny (played by Amy Steel), arguably the best final girl of all time. She fights Jason with a kick to the nards, a machete, a pitchfork, a chainsaw, and of course, a cable knit sweater (or, like, her wits, whatever). She also subverts a lot of the supposed final girl conventions, which are generally overstated to make a case that slashers are conservative morality plays (which they can be, but aren't always). Anyway, the film is a bit marred by Steve Miner's unimaginative direction and the nonsensical ending, but it's still a fun little flick.
Realizing that I probably wouldn't get through all of the series in one night, I then skipped ahead to Friday the 13th: A New Beginning, the much maligned fifth installment of the series. While certainly not one of the best of the series (a distinction that belongs to Parts IV and VI), I do think it's a bit underrated. It's got a neat-ish idea. Since Jason was "killed" in part IV, they decide to follow the little boy who killed him. Now grown up, he's haunted by visions of Jason. Currently living in a halfway house with other troubled teens, people start dying, and it's implied that Jason may be returning, perhaps as a copycat. Or something. It's not a very well executed idea, but the movie still has some fun characters or moments here or there. I mean, come on, how can you not like Violet?
Well that's probably way more about Friday the 13th movies than you wanted to know (and I'm betraying way too much about my knowledge of these movies), so let's get to one of the beers drank whilst watching. Bottle Logic's barrel aged beers are hyped and praised to the point where obtaining them tends to be rather difficult, but it's not so bad for lesser efforts like this one, an Imperial Red Ale made with Cassia Bark (basically cinnamon), aged in Mitcher bourbon barrels, then finished on French oak. It's all done in collaboration with Barks of Love, a dog rescue organization, so it's for a good cause too. Red Rover, Red Rover, I call Jason over:
Bottle Logic Red Rover - Pours a dark amber brown color with a solid finger of dense, off-white head that leaves a bit of lacing as I drink. Smells very nice, a spicy, cinnamon-like character, floral and almost fruity aromas, woodsy, with a bit of boozy bourbon lurking around. Taste hits the same profile as the nose, sweet and spicy, cinnamon, a little fruit, rich toffee, some bourbon, oak, and vanilla. Mouthfeel is full bodied and rich, hints of spice and booze on the palate, but in a balanced way. Overall, tasty, complex, refined, and balanced stuff. A-
Beer Nerd Details: 11.3% ABV bottled (500 ml). Drank out of a tulip glass on 4/13/18. Release: 2018. Level 1.
Alright folks, maybe I won't wait a month to post again. Maybe.
Jester King and Fantôme Del Rey
By Mark on April 24, 2018 8:17 PM | No Comments
The label sez: "We continue on, forward, like phantom people, towards subtle dawn." I don't know what that means, and the ghost infamously never shares its secrets, so we'll just have to let that be, I guess.
The beer itself was originally brewed in Belgium at Fantôme, with Dany and Jester King brewer Garrett Crowell collaborating on the recipe. Speaking of which, unlike most Tômes, we know a little more about the recipe here. It's made with dark candi syrup, truffle honey, coriander, and black peppercorns. After the initial batch in Belgium, Jester King made a batch back at their own brewery and subjected it to extended fermentation and partial barrel aging (and using their distinctive well water and a melange of native, mixed-culture yeast and bacterial beasties.) The name Fantôme Del Rey roughly translates to Ghost of the King, which is actually pretty evocative. But how's the beer?
Jester King and Fantôme Del Rey (Texas Version) - Pours a striking clear golden orange color with a solid finger of dense white head that has great retention and leaves some lacing as I drink. Smells very funky, lots of dusty, musty Belgian funk going on, a little earthy, some unidentifiable spices, and an underlying fruitiness peeking through. Taste is candy sweet up front, a little sticky fruit, hints of spice and earthy funk, finishing with a whisper of tartness. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, a little low on the carbonation (but there's plenty there), some stickiness, and only a hint of acidity. A little more carbonation would have done this well. Overall, this is a very nice beer, atypical for Fantôme, which I guess makes sense since this is the Texas version. Well worth checking out. B+
Beer Nerd Details: 8.8% ABV bottled (750 ml capped and corked). Drank out of a tulip glass on 4/8/18. Blend #1 - 03.22.16.
Always down for another Tôme, and Jester King is certainly a brewery I should seek out more often. Many thanks to fellow BeerNERD Gary for procuring this bottle for me in his many travels.
Hoppin Frog Barrel Aged InTENsity
By Mark on April 23, 2018 10:10 PM | No Comments
And now for something completely different. I know I'm supposed to be writing about this beer, but I've been doing this for almost 8 years at this point and thus getting a little repetitive. Please indulge me. Doubly so, because I'm going to talk about the (for some reason) much maligned Dean Koontz. For the uninitiated, he's a very prolific horror/suspense author that is usually dismissed as a second-rate Stephen King.
To me, though, he's an important author in that he's the one that got me to start reading books. I wasn't, like, illiterate or anything, but I mostly only read books when forced to for school, and Koontz got me reading for pleasure. No coercion necessary! Sure, his novels get repetitive, he has some specific bugaboos that he always focuses on (there's a Scooby-esque satanic bad guy that seems supernatural but often isn't and then a good guy with Police/SWAT/FBI/CIA/Army/Marine/etc... training takes him on and usually falls in love with a strong single mother with a precocious child and adorably intelligent dog along the way), and the stories can be repetitive, but they tend to be pretty interesting and a lot of fun. Movies based on his books have been almost uniformly bad, which might also be part of why his reputation suffers.
Unfortunately, his prolific output also means there's a lot of stuff out there that isn't quite as good as his best (to put it kindly), and from what I've read recently, he hasn't really come close to the success he had in the 80s and 90s. Even given his tendency to repeat himself, when you've got about 100 books in print, it's a little more difficult to find one that suits you, and people these days usually aren't willing to give an author a second chance (a fair strategy for dealing with media overload, to be sure). For the record, I'd recommend checking out Lightning, Phantoms, Midnight, Strangers, or maybe:
Pretty much the last great book of his that I remember reading was called Intensity. Granted, he didn't use goofy capitalization to emphasize a brewery's tenth anniversary (see? This post is coming together. Kinda.), but I have to admit that when I saw this bottle of beer, I immediately thought of Koontz's novel. It was one of the flood of serial killer tales that besieged us in the mid 1990s, and to my mind, one of the better ones. A gruesome but well paced and compulsive read.
It's been a solid twenty years since I've read it, but I still remember a lot of details, which isn't something you expect from popular airport thrillers like this. Some of these details are trivial, like the killer's choice of music for his cross country murder spree: Angelo Badalamenti (most famous as a film and TV composer for David Lynch, amongst others - and an odd choice to be employed like this). There's this recurring bit with an albino deer that was mysterious but still evocative. There's one decision from our protagonist that might be difficult to swallow, but once you get past that the book doesn't really let up. It's genuinely tense, and if I remember correctly, Koontz even sometimes reverts to present tense at times to emphasize the tension (a move that could be jarring and cheap, but which I remember working well). For once, Koontz's obvious love of dogs is subverted by his use of them in a villainous fashion. The killer's refusal to conform to textbook serial killer tropes (which was becoming a trope of itself at the time, to be sure) was effective, and there were some neat twists in that arena.
At this point, you've probably seen a dozen similar tales, so this might be old hat, but it was pretty great for teenaged me. There was a TV mini-series that was pretty much par for the course (not particularly worth seeking out, but not an abomination either), and it's worth noting that the first half of High Tension is remarkably similar to the first half of Intensity, though the stories diverge considerably from there (even so, this might be the only real worthwhile Koontz adaptation, even though it's not really acknowledged as such).
That a beer would remind me of a serial killer story is probably something best left unexplored, but since this is, in fact, a beer blog, let's take a closer look at this beer brewed in honor of Hoppin' Frog's tenth anniversary. It's a hoppy, American-style barleywine that was aged in bourbon barrels for six months, then dry hopped for some extra kick. Of course, this was released in 2016, so that fresh hop character has probably dissipated... or maybe not. Let's drink it and find out:
Hoppin' Frog Barrel Aged InTENsity - Pours a clear, dark amber color with a half finger of off-white head. Smells of faded citrus hops, a little toffee, some boozy bourbon, oak, and vanilla edging in too. Taste starts off which rich caramel, crystal malt, and boozy bourbon, oak, and vanilla, the hops emerging more towards the finish, which also has a boozy little bite. Some mild oxidation here gives complexity without turning the whole thing into cardboard. Mouthfeel is full bodied and rich, moderate carbonation, some boozy heat too. Overall, it's bit on the hoppy side, as American Barleywines tend to be, but it's quite nice. B+
Beer Nerd Details: 12% ABV bottled (22 ounce bomber). Drank out of a snifter on 4/1/17.
I'm not sure if Hoppin' Frog still makes Naked Evil, but I remember that as being better than this one. Of course, that was like 5 years ago, and my memory of that is somehow not as distinct as my memory of Koontz's book.


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KISSUN et al. v. HUMANA, INC.
S96G1225.
(267 Ga. 419)
(479 SE2d 751)
HUNSTEIN, Justice.
The widower and co-administrators of the estate of Amala Thomas brought suit for wrongful death and medical malpractice against parent corporation Humana, Inc.; Humana's wholly-owned subsidiary which does business as Humana Hospital-Newnan; and an individual physician. Humana moved for summary judgment as to all claims against it and appealed the denial of its motion to the Court of Appeals. That court reversed, finding that there was no evidence with which to pierce the corporate veil between Humana and its subsidiary, Humana, Inc. v. Kissun, 221 Ga. App. 64 (1) (471 SE2d 514) (1996), and thus concluding as a matter of law that there could be no claim against Humana under either an apparent agency or a joint venturer theory. Id. at (2). We granted certiorari in this case to address whether a parent corporation can be held liable for the acts or omissions of a wholly-owned subsidiary corporation under theories of apparent or ostensible agency or joint venturer where the evidence is insufficient to pierce the corporate veil. Because the parent/subsidiary relationship alone does not, as a matter of law, preclude such corporations from establishing the legal relationships of principal and apparent agent or joint venturers, we reverse the Court of Appeals.
Three separate legal theories are in issue here: alter ego; apparent or ostensible agency; and joint venture. Under the alter ego doctrine, equitable principles are used to disregard the separate and distinct legal existence possessed by a corporation where it is established that the corporation served as a mere alter ego or business conduit of another. See, e.g., Farmers Warehouse v. Collins, 220 Ga. 141, 150 (137 SE2d 619) (1964); Amason v. Whitehead, 186 Ga. App. 320 (367 SE2d 107) (1988). The theory of apparent or ostensible agency is the legal doctrine whereby a plaintiff may subject an alleged principal to liability if the plaintiff can establish (1) that the alleged principal held out another as its agent; (2) that the plaintiff justifiably relied on the care or skill of the alleged agent based upon the alleged principal's representation; and (3) that this justifiable reliance led to the injury. Richmond County Hosp. Auth. v. Brown, 257 Ga. 507, 508 (361 SE2d 164) (1987). The theory of joint venturers arises where two or more parties combine their property or labor, or both, in a joint undertaking for profit, with rights of mutual control (provided the arrangement does not establish a partnership), so as to render all joint venturers liable for the negligence of the other. Boatman v. George Hyman Constr. Co., 157 Ga. App. 120, 123 (276 SE2d 272) (1981).
These three theories are closely intertwined with one another. In discussing the alter ego doctrine, the courts frequently invoke the term "agency" in the context of the subsidiary corporation having been " 'so organized and controlled and its business conducted in such a manner as to make it merely an agency, instrumentality, adjunct, or alter ego of another corporation.' " (Emphasis supplied.) Triple "C" Recreation Assn. v. Cash, 124 Ga. App. 754, 756 (186 SE2d 145) (1971). See also Fidenas AG v. Honeywell, Inc., 501 FSupp. 1029, 1037 (S.D. N.Y. 1980) (tests for finding agency so as to hold parent corporation liable for obligations of its subsidiary are "virtually the same" as those for piercing the corporate veil). The general principles of agency law apply where defendants are joint venturers. Boatman, supra at 123; Bowman v. Fuller, 84 Ga. App. 421, 426 (66 SE2d 249) (1951).
However, while there may be instances where evidence to pierce the corporate veil also serves to establish an agency relationship between the corporate parties, it cannot be held as a matter of law that evidence insufficient to pierce the corporate veil automatically serves to negate the existence of an agency relationship between the corporations. The Court of Appeals has recognized that even where a parent and wholly-owned subsidiary have remained separate corporate entities so that the acts of one are not chargeable to the other under the alter ego doctrine, both corporations may nonetheless be subject to liability where one corporation acted as the agent for the other. Midland Properties Co. v. Farmer, 100 Ga. App. 8, 29 (18) (110 SE2d 100) (1959). Accord Triple "C" Recreation Assn., supra (held: subsidiary corporation was agent of parent thus rendering it unnecessary to address whether evidence was sufficient to authorize finding that corporate entity of agent corporation could be disregarded). The holding in Midland Properties Co. is consistent with foreign authorities which have recognized the "confusion" that has stemmed from "a failure to distinguish between subsidiaries treated as independent entities and those in fact not independent, but considered part of the parent corporations." Phoenix Canada Oil Co. Ltd. v. Texaco, Inc., 842 F2d 1466, 1476 (3rd Cir. 1988).
Courts most often "pierce the corporate veil" where fraud would result if the corporate structure were allowed to shield shareholders from liability . . . [I]ndependent corporate status may be disregarded when such factors as gross undercapitalization, fraud, failure to observe corporate formalities, non-functioning of officers and directors, or similar circumstances indicate that the subsidiary is merely the shadow of the parent. If, as in this case, the shareholder happens to be another corporation, piercing the corporate veil results in disregard for the separate existence of parent and subsidiary.
There is a second theory under which a parent may be held liable for the activities of its subsidiary: an application of general agency principles. One corporation whose shares are owned by a second corporation does not, by that fact alone, become the agent of the second company. However, one corporation -- completely independent of a second corporation -- may assume the role of the second corporation's agent in the course of one or more specific transactions. This restricted agency relationship may develop whether the two separate corporations are parent and subsidiary or are completely unrelated outside the limited agency setting. See Restatement (Second) of Agency 14M, comment (a) (1958). Under this second theory, total domination or general alter ego criteria need not be proven.
Id. at 1476-1477.
There is no question that under appropriate circumstances a parent corporation can set up a subsidiary to promote the parent's purposes yet maintain a separate identity from the subsidiary and avoid liability for the subsidiary's actions. A parent/subsidiary relationship does not in and of itself establish the subsidiary as either the alter ego of the parent, see, e.g., Trans-American Communications v. Nolle, 134 Ga. App. 457, 459-460 (214 SE2d 717) (1975), or as the parent's actual or apparent agent. See Midland Properties Co., supra at (18); Restatement (Second) of Agency, 14M (1958). However, the mere fact that one corporation is a subsidiary of another does not alone serve to insulate the parent where the evidence can establish the legal requirements of an actual or apparent agency relationship between the two corporations. Midland Properties Co., Phoenix Canada Oil Co. Ltd., supra.
Therefore, the Court of Appeals erred when it concluded that the absence of evidence sufficient to create a fact question on piercing the corporate veil between Humana and its subsidiary ended all inquiry, as a matter of law, into whether a fact question remains regarding the existence of an apparent agency relationship or a joint venturer relationship under the facts of this case. The holding in Division 2 of the Court of Appeals' opinion is accordingly reversed and the case is remanded to that court for action consistent with this opinion.
Reynolds & McArthur, Charles M. Cork III, amicus curiae.
Smith, Gambrell & Russell, David M. Brown, S. David McLean, Jr., Alston & Bird, Judson Graves, Biederman & Milling, Roberts C. Milling II, for appellee.
Butler, Wooten, Overby & Cheeley, Joel O. Wooten, Jr., Jason L. Crawford, Floyd & Stanford, Jackson C. Floyd, Jr., for appellants.
DECIDED JANUARY 21, 1997.
Citing Cases:
AARON RENTS, INC. v. FOURTEENTH STREET VENTURE, L.P. et al.; ACCOLADES APARTMENTS, L.P. v. FULTON COUNTY et al. (274 Ga. 28) (549 SE2d 348) (2001)
MILLER et al. v. HARCO NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY. (274 Ga. 387) (552 SE2d 848) (2001)
INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE v. FULTON COUNTY et al. (242 Ga. App. 214) (528 SE2d 268) (2000)
RAINS v. DOLPHIN MORTGAGE CORPORATION. (241 Ga. App. 611) (525 SE2d 370) (1999)
ROSSI v. OXLEY et al. (269 Ga. 82) (495 SE2d 39) (1998)
SUPCHAK et al. v. PRUITT et al. (232 Ga. App. 680) (503 SE2d 581) (1998)
SMALLS et al. v. BLUEPRINT DEVELOPMENT, INC. et al. (230 Ga. App. 556) (497 SE2d 54) (1998)
HUMANA, INC. v. KISSUN et al. (226 Ga. App. 296) (485 SE2d 809) (1997)
OXLEY v. KILPATRICK et al. (225 Ga. App. 838) (486 SE2d 44) (1997)
NISSAN MOTOR ACCEPTANCE CORPORATION v. STOVALL NISSAN, INC.; and vice versa. (224 Ga. App. 295) (480 SE2d 322) (1997)
Thursday May 21 04:40 EDT
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