Monday and Tuesday always seem too early in the week for a beer-tasting. On Thursday, I just want an enjoyable beer as I look forward to the weekend and I’m generally not in the mood to try something new. On Friday and Saturday, I’m usually out getting a beer with friends anyway. And Sunday is spent worrying about the week to follow. So when a suitable Wednesday came along and I had nothing else going on, I cracked open the other Hitachino Nest beer I bought back in mid-July. It has been sitting in my refrigerator waiting for just the right day and today was it.

I’m generally not a huge fan of the mildly sweet hefeweizen beer variety, and the Hitachino Nest Weizen didn’t change my expectations too much. It poured with a lovely amber yellow colour, slightly cloudy and had about a 2 finger head showing plenty of carbonation. It had that same annoyingly sweet wheat beer smell to it, almost as if it was over-hopped but I held out hope. In the mouth, the sweetness continues. A citrusy flavour and a touch of spice – clove if I were to guess – but the sweetness detracts. The carbonation that seems evident on the pour is missing in the mouth. This is not a bad thing.

Overall, a light bodied wheat beer, but nothing special. Not one that I’d buy again in a rush but I can see it being enjoyed by those partial to the slightly sweeter and lighter variety.

Last weekend while wondering down Archway Road I stopped in at Zelas, my local upscale off-license, to pick up a bottle of wine for Reva and I to enjoy on a Friday evening. I enjoy visiting Zelas because they stock all sorts of weird and wonderful things including fresh breads, pasta, whisky from all over the world and interesting beer. They also serve coffee and pastries on premises. This time I spotted a couple of Japanese beers from a brewery called Hitachino Nest. Today I tried the White Ale, and I picked a good day for it.

It poured in a pint glass with medium head and had a pale golden color, that tended to yellow when held up to light. As can be seen in the picture, there’s a fair amount of carbonation going on but I don’t mind that in a beer I’m drinking on a hot day like today. I brought it up to my nose and had a clear sense of citrus, lime and orange peel. The connoisseur in me would want to add coriander as well, but hey, who am I kidding? The first sip had an overwhelmingly citrusy flavor – lemon and orange – mixed in with the wheat. I got almost no bitterness and it went down pleasantly. Overall, An easy drinking, well carbonated beer, perfect for a hot day but must be drunk quite cold.

I was never a Twitter power user. Even now, after being on Twitter for over 4 years, I tweet on average 2.2 times a day (as reported by http://www.howoftendoyoutweet.com/). But earlier this year I found my Twitter usage dropping off drastically and I didn’t quite like that. I enjoyed Twitter but even the thought of checking it filled me with dread. I recognized that feeling. It was the same feeling I had when I had an inbox full of stupid email to deal with. The only solution to cull my follow list – anyone I was actively interested in following or actively interacting with would be cut ruthlessly.

After the culling, I’m currently down to following 99 people from around 350. And my Twitter usage is up again. I’m tweeting more often and checking my timeline 4-5 times a day. I stopped following celebrities, news websites, sports people, any account that seemed like it was managed by a “social media team” and account that simply posted a feed of blog entries. Overall, I’m much happier for it and using Twitter is no longer a stressful experience.

“Of course, if you want to send something, we are not going to say ‘Don’t, you can’t do it’, and we would certainly never prevent people,” he said. “It’s just – if it’s not an urgent, urgent one, please kind of take it easy.”

Heh, guess I better put both my phones away.

Originally from Uttrakhand a small Indian state near the Himalayas, Kishore Bisht currently lives in Noida, a suburb of New Delhi. He moved around a lot growing up as his father worked for the government. A mechanical engineer by training, Kishore, recently spent 2 years in Milan, Italy working for a power sector company. Now 25, Kishore says he always felt challenged by speaking situations. “It felt like someone has ripped off your clothes in the middle of a crowd”, he said about speaking to family, answering roll-call in class or engaging with colleagues.

When he learned that he was being given the opportunity to move to Italy for 2 years, Kishore was excited but also nervous at having to learn a new language and speak to new people. He had previously visited self-help groups in New Delhi and hoped to continue this engagement in Italy. Initially he found speaking easier as had to slow the pace of his speech so colleagues who weren’t fluent in English could understand him and because he was just learning Italian. But as his responsibilities at work increased, his fluency declined. He sought therapy and looked to engage with other people who stammered but didn’t have much luck. It was at this time that he first discovered Stutter Social from a Facebook group.

While in Italy, Kishore also attended the McGuire Programme, a treatment programme for people who stammer. In March he travelled to The Netherlands to attend a 4 day course. Reflecting on it, he feels that he has benefitted greatly from the programme and its wide network of coaches and graduates but he cautions others to not confuse it for a stammering cure. He regularly uses the techniques he learned at the McGuire Programme while speaking in English but finds it a little harder to use while speaking in Hindi, his mother tongue. His new found confidence has also encouraged Kishore to join a Toastmasters club where he has already completed his first speech project.

Kishore uses Stutter Social as his virtual support group. He enjoys participating in hangouts because he gets to meet new people, many of whom speak different languages. He is able to share his speaking experiences and also consult with others on how to approach speaking situations. But he says the biggest benefit of Stutter Social has been being able to express himself freely in a big group without worrying about stammering.

In his spare time Kishore is an artist and photographer. He also enjoys cooking for friends and family. In the future he plans to spend more time exploring painting.