Chapter 6

Asking for an attorney did it. Black shoe hemmed, hawed and came just short of threatning ... but the recording did it.

Odd ... there was a triple black sedan ... with government plates ... parked within sight of the house and store ... until the local congressman’s daughter complained to daddy.

She came in for a fountain pop and said, “Did you see that creep? He was photographing the girls. Daddy busted him. The creep.” She shivered.

“He wasn’t watching you girls ... he was watching me,” I said. I was chuckling when I said it.

“You? What did you do?”

“That new building in my backyard?”

“The BRAUEREIHAUS?” She nodded, “Yeah ... what’s that all about?”

“Communist steel.”

“What?”

“The steel was manufactured in East Germany ... when they weren’t on ‘our side’”

She wasn’t the least interested in politics ... daddy.

“What’s a Brauerehaus?”

“A brewery ... I brew beer.”

“Ooo ... can I come visit?”

I never said yes but I didn’t say no ... so.

Twenty-four of her closest friends came to visit after the game.

I was just steam cleaning the floor. Understand ... I am not a fan of Football ... Soccer? Yes. Gridiron football as played in the United States? Nope.

I don’t bottle. James still does ... but I keg. Cornelius 5 gallon kegs.

The major sugar drink makers used Corny kegs for years ... now they were switching to plastic syrup bags in cardboard boxes. Lots more drinks if the maker didn’t have to supply the water. The old dispensers were toast ... training crew to switch kegs no longer applied ... and there were all these 5 gallon kegs surplus to requirements ... and they were dirt cheap. Millions of ‘em ... scads and scads. 25 grabbag kegs on a pallet... 25 bucks and shipping ... A DOLLAR EACH!. You pays your money and takes your chances ... the sellers didn’t even steam them out first.

A hundred fifty-nine dollars NEW! ... each.

South of the border bought them like mad ... and the dispensers ... the Central and South American soft drink makers STILL use them.

Used Corny kegs for home brewers are still available today ... four kegs are just about TWO hundred dollars ... plus shipping.

Home brewing ... October 14, 1978, President Jimmy Carter signs H.R. 1337, creating an exemption from taxation of beer brewed at home for personal or family use. Those of us who home brew celebrate it as a national holiday!

A couple of Corny kegs ... a bottle of CO2 ... a tap for each keg and a refrigerator to keep ‘em in ... hot damn! Beer ... on tap ... in my basement ... attic ... den ... recreation in a glass.

I have 25 females of the cheerleader persuasion invading my brewery and they are thirsty. I don’t have bottles. I don’t have mugs. Well ... I do ... but I don’t.

“You girls need to go buy some plastic cups.”

A flood of girls invaded my store.

Now comes the reason I wrote this tale. I ran out of bottled CO2.