well good mojo from this thread today, S24 got into the safety we were obsessing about, woohooo!!
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D23 was a strange mix of too confident and fatalistic - as in, âIf it doesnât work out, Iâll take a gap year.â Applied to only (gulp) five schools, one of which hardly counted b/c she did the supplemental essays between 11:00 pm and 11:58 pm on the due date, and they were as âgoodâ as expected. No EDâs. Parents were way more worried than she was!! (It worked out)
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So recently I have gotten back into wheated bourbons for cocktails. I think they are nice for Old Fashioneds and bourbon Manhattans (when I am not feeling like a rye Manhattan), and also work great in Boulevardiers, Sours, Paper Planes (another personal favorite), and so on.
The standard choice is Makerâs Mark, and I specifically like Makerâs Mark 101 for cocktails.
But here is the thingâfor me, Makerâs 101 is rather expensive for a cocktail bourbon.
So the truth is recently I have been using Rebel 100, which I really like in my bourbon cocktails. Iâll tell you right now, some bourbon snobs might look down on it (although I am far from the only fan). Possibly I have put it into a decanter so I can hide the 1.75L bottle I got on sale . . . .
But it is worth a try, at least if you like that Makerâs Mark cocktail vibe.
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Hmm, anyone have recommendations for Christmas presents for spouse who likes to make Old Fashioneds? (Keeping in mind that I know nothing about this topic. He has set up his own little bar in his office.)
Luxardo cherries are a nice gift for Old fashioneds.
Maybe some nice glasses as well?
https://www.nordstrom.com/s/schott-zwiesel-paris-set-of-6-iceberg-double-old-fashioned-glasses/5816729
@NiceUnparticularMan No judgement here on using non top shelf bourbon in cocktails. DH swears by Old Crow as a great cocktail making bourbon. And we always laugh at the tagline, âGive 'em the Bird!â
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@evergreen5 You could also try to score one of the 848 bottles of Pappy Van Winkle that Kroger is offering through a lottery.
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Iâm from Wisconsin and Old Fashioneds are always made with brandy. I miss them so much! All this talk of bitters has me homesick for a good olâ Brandy Old Fashioned sweet. Itâs hard to get a good one anywhere but in Wisconsin!!
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Discussion: College admissions decisions
Discussion: beverage making suggestions
Coincidence? I think not.
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The nurse at D24âs boarding school called yesterdayâŠ.she has Covid. So I have to get her and will be in the car for the next 2 days. Selfishly, im annoyed and anxious I will get Covid too. But, Poor kid! She feels awful AND has seven exams that all will need to be made up in January. So, if her ED1 doesnât work out, not only will she have applications, she also will have to study for finals. Ugh. At least all of the fun holiday traditions and fun senior skit night were last weekend and she was able to enjoy those.
S24 actually talked about college for about 5 minutes at dinner last night. He definitely is very confident 
. He will hear from 5 schools in the next week or so and declared heâs going to be mad if he doesnât get into all of them. Hmmmm. To be fair, all but one are target/safeties, but his cockiness is a little annoying. At least one is a very tough OOS admit where there is a good chance he will be deferred. He also told us he got some scholarships to another school where he has been admitted so he was excited about that.
I LOVE that this thread has been so busy. Feels great to be in this process and waiting period together. Anyone else feel like this is not an appropriate thing to really share about with in person friends with same age kids? Itâs so personal and fraught and I donât want to come across as competing or comparing kids.
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Yesâitâs really hard to share with in-person friends. I was sure one personâs child would have gotten into a school early action, like my child (my friend is a professor at the darn school), so I shared, but it turns out their child is applying regular decision. At least there wasnât a direct comparison! And because my child is not at a competitive school, some of her friends are coming to the painful realization that they arenât initially going to be pleased with their results. All these things really make me wish the pressures on them were not as great, and that there was more public recognition regarding how easy it is to transfer from a community college to an inexpensive flagship.
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I second the suggestion of getting a good set of rocks glasses, if he doesnât have a nice set already. Cocktails in the appropriate glassware just set the mood.
Otherwise the Old Fashioned is one of the cocktails where splurging a bit on the whiskey is actually fine. There are so many good bourbons and ryes available, but if you can find a localish distillery, that can be a lot of fun.
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We tend to sort of let our in-person friends and acquaintances with kids in this cycle lead the conversation. If they ask about S24, we will ask similar questions back, that sort of thing. I have long shared parenting stories and information with one of my colleagues with a D24, so those have been very active conversations. But with, say, the parents of other seniors on S24âs sports team, we got the sense some would prefer to keep the college talk minimal, and we were happy to oblige.
Generally I agree it is good to be careful, because the last thing I would want to do is actually add to the sense everyone is watching. Consistent with the vibe here, I really just want people to know we are available to discuss as much or as little as they would like.
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100%.
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D21 introduced me to these (when he was 19). He learned how to make them from a friendâs parents when he spent Thanksgiving with them. 
They are sooo good though. I think he called them paper airplanes.
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I know it doesnât get a lot of love, but for cocktails or just to pour a shot into my coffee, I really like Larceny. (Call me a peasant!)
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Ughhh DSâs senior first trimester came out - if he does not get into his ED (which he very likely will not since it is a reach), could RD use these grades for a decision? They are not TERRIBLE but senioritis definitely kicked in - AP Calc AB - 90, Physicis Honors - 83, AP Psych - 82, English - 89, AP Stats - 95, Economics and Finance Honors - 92. I am so bummed since his record has been pretty good so far - he actually did not turn in several assignments and has just become so lazy. Do schools ask for senior grades for RD?
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They do, they ask for the most recent transcript. Also, the school counselor will have to submit the final transcript at the end of the year. I wouldnât worry with Aâs and Bâs. Best wishes.
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One of my favorite Manhattan variants is a Mezcal Manhattan. Iâll use a young sherry like Pedro ximenez and plop in a few luxardos - Smokey goodness in front of the fireplace.
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Iâm getting these old-fashioned socks for DH -
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