The Graduate(s)

...of beer class. My mother, I know, is so proud. I'm sure she was concerned.

Regardless, tonight was our last night of beer class. We got to taste beer with different foods, such as chorizo sausage and horseradish cheddar cheese, and we also learned such gems as these:

• There are three beer pairing basics: match strength with strength find harmonies and common flavor elements; and look at contrasting elements as well.
  
• When in doubt, go with a Belgian beer. They are so complex you can pair them with almost any food and they will match well.
  
• Imperial stouts with chocolate dessert = magical.
  
• Got a pumpkin beer? Pair it with herbed roasted chicken, or else put it into ice cream to make a beer float. Needless to say, we plan to try this when it gets to be fall (October...are you here yet??)
• If you're a beer judge in contests, you cannot have ANY tobacco, nor can you wear perfume, cologne, lipstick or balm, or have spicy/greasy/fatty food 2-3 hours before the competition. You also need to brush your teeth before the competition with baking soda and water. Clearly I'm not meant to be a beer judge, if only because of the perfume thing. I have to have on perfume. Hashtag: girly

Again, if you're in the Greenville area, PLEASE go check out the Growler Station. We're so not kidding. They are THE nicest people, and so knowledgeable. Big Jon = beer genius. Just...please go, okay? Do it for me. You can thank me later, preferably with a growler.

But honestly, the best part of tonight for me? My B had his fantasy football draft at 7:45. We left the Growler Station at 5:40. He had his iPad in the car, ready for action...and apparently, Apple products don't cooperate with Adobe Flash very well. So he was driving, giving me his phone (a non-Apple phone, clearly) to do his fantasy draft. It sounds so unimportant, but here's the thing: my Mimi, who lived to be 95 and who is one of my role models to this day, used to say, "We're making memories" anytime anything silly happened. Driving down 385, hungry, with a Labrador waiting for us, while I tried to understand the finer points of fantasy football and do my fiance's drafting, was pretty silly. I knew remarkably little of fantasy football before tonight (he was explaining it to me between draft picks). But it was important to B, so therefore it's important to me. Likewise, when my computer is crapping out during the semi-annual Lilly Pulitzer 3-day sale and I'm having a spaz attack, I KNOW he'll be right there beside me, offering his computer, or at least comforting words and condolence for not being able to purchase the pretty Murfee scarf for uber-cheap. Not that I have any experience (yet!), but I think that's a pretty good idea of what marriage is - caring about what's important to your partner, even if it's not necessarily important to you. I could care less about fantasy football, but I love my B more than I can adequately put into words.

So to summarize: a) sign up for September beer school, and b) I can't wait to be a wife.

Life is good, y'all. Life is good. :)