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Oh my goodness! It’s already March! I’m alive, I promise. I hope those of you have been following are doing well. HOW ARE YOU???

This past month has slipped away, almost literally I’d argue, especially with all the times I’ve very (un)-gracefully landed on my behind while walking to and from class. We’ve been so spoiled with nice, sunny weather in between all the little bursts of snow that I almost entirely forget about the ice that reforms overnight. And while I am really enjoying this nice, lovely weather, it kind of freaks me out a little also for obvious reasons. I hope we can at least get enough of a snowpack so that I might be able to break out the snowshoes at least once this year! I'm more than a bit jealous of all the snow they got at the lake in the past week and not being able tromp around it...

As predicted, the semester is proving to be a busy one (like all of them!), hence the month—long—wait. I know, I know, excuses, right? Perhaps a little…it has been nice out also, after all… At any rate, a busy semester…’nuff said! J

I think we the exception of physics, I am enjoying my classes for the most part. Although—side note, here!—as much as I gripe about physics, I did have an “Aha!” Light bulb moment last week, so I guess not all is as lost as I thought. My two writing courses are probably my favorites I’d say. I geeked out a bit last time over them, so I will spare you the rambling if only to say that thoughtfulness, creativity, and horrible puns know no bounds!

If anything hasn’t been school related in the last month, I probably haven’t done it…Oh wait! There have been a few events of note…probably the most prominent of them being the annual Schell Brewery Bockfest in New Ulm, MN. While it was an excuse to consume awesome beer and spend time with some great people, there is also interesting historical and cultural significance to the creation and seasonality of bock beer. (This is going to be the geeky note!)

As one could guess from the name alone, New Ulm is a town rooted deep in German tradition. It also happened to be co-founded by August Schell. Soon after, Schell founded the brewery in 1860, the oldest in Minnesota and second oldest in the country. Today, the brewery, and all of the buildings near to it, including the Schell Mansion are some of the oldest buildings in the region. During the Sioux Uprising, all of the buildings were spared because of the initial hospitality and kindness of the Schell family had shown to the Dakota Sioux as the brewery was first becoming established. To the right is a photo of the brewery in the 1930s.

So the creation of bock? Well, the exact circumstances surrounding the origins are little hazy, but it is said to have been first brewed as a heavy lager in the town of Einbeck in the 14^th century. It was designed to provide sustenance for monks during Lenten fasts. In the 17^th century, brewers in Munich adopted the Einbeck beer, and due to the heavy Bavarian accents, it was pronounced like “Ein bock.” Literally translated, bock means “goat” in German, which is why there are often goats in the labels of bock beers as a sort of visual pun.

Another part of the historical and cultural tradition of bock beer is that is traditionally brewed in the fall, left to ferment over winter and the tapping of it in late winter/early spring signifies the end of winter and beginning of spring. This also coincides with the celebration Fasching (aka Fasnet, a dialectic version from Swabia, is how I learned it from my host family) or what is also commonly known as German Mardi Gras on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. This festival commemorates the expulsion of bad spirits of winter (death, darkness, destruction) in order to allow the annual life cycle (resurrection—think of the green up in spring!) to begin again. People dress up as witches or evil spirits in order to symbolically drive out the evil spirits. The name of the festival refers to fasting during the Lenten season, where Christians traditionally abstained from meat, alcohol, and festivities until Easter and the resurrection of Jesus. Altogether, Fasnet combines both pagan and Christian beliefs to symbolize the coming of the new annual cycle.

So in New Ulm, the Bock fest is always held the Saturday before Lent and Fasching celebrations, which are also held throughout the day. My day spent at the brewery was awesome and not only for the cultural and historical notes. The costumes of some of the people there were the highlights, actually, along with the polka band! However, I don’t think I’ll able to listen to “the Ring of Fire” for a very long time. I lost track of how many times I heard it after about the 12th time!

The first thing I noticed after hopping off our bus was that I was a bit underdressed compared to most people, especially without a bomber hat (I'll be prepared next year!). Just about everyone was a wearing one. Some people even had homemade ones made from Schell beer boxes and lined with fur! And if people weren’t wearing bomber hats, most were wearing football-type helmets adorned with deer antlers or other animals (saw a crow and a cat at some point throughout the day). One man standing behind us in line was wearing a fedora with a squirrel lying belly up, drinking from a Schell can. Beside this there was also a group of people wearing traditional Fasnet costumes with the wooden masks! (You can imagine my excitement!) I wanted to get a picture, but sadly didn’t trust myself to bring my camera and the phone died!

Here are what many Fasnet costumes look like though (these photos were shamelessly pilfered from Google images)

So….that was a very lengthy Geek Note. Wow, apologies on that one. When I’m not enjoying a good beer fest, though, it’s been all about school to be sure and work, of course. Oh, and still applying for jobs for the summer. I’m beginning to become a little disheartened with each passing day and no bites on the lines I keep dropping…Hopefully it will all pay off soon though!

Now, back to that thing called homework...

Bis dann!...Or BOCK ON!