This Is Me--2024 A to Z Theme

My A to Z Themes in the past have covered a range of topics and for 2024 the theme is a personal retrospective that I call "I Coulda Been" which is in reference to my job and career arc over my lifetime. I'll be looking at all sorts of occupations that I have done or could have done. Maybe you've done some of these too!

Friday, April 3, 2020

Crime Against Corona ( #AtoZChallenge )


Next time I order a beer when I'm in a restaurant I'll probably be a bit careful.  Saying "I'll have a Corona" -- might not sound right...





Me savoring a Corona beer in 2009



Crime Against Corona

        Let's face it--I'm not much of a beer drinker.  Never have been in the past and even more so now.  For me, having a beer is akin to celebrating something special.  It's like when I buy a six pack of some kind of Irish beer to have with my traditional corned beef and cabbage meal on St. Patrick's Day.  This year I still had one of those beers left over from last St. Patrick's Day.  It tasted fine. 

        My point is that I don't drink much beer anymore and mostly never did.  Not like some of my friends or family do or did.  I like beer okay with certain kinds of foods, but it's rare that I'll just drink a beer to be drinking one.  It's probably been a couple years since I did that.

        When I do order a beer, if the place doesn't have some especially good brew on tap, I'll typically order a Corona.  I've been doing that since the eighties.  Same thing if I buy beer at the store.  Four out of five times I'll buy Corona.  Now I buy the six pack since if I buy the dozen bottle case it would last several months if I'm the only one drinking it.  And at my rate that six pack will probably last a long time.

          Perhaps in the future when I'm tempted to tell a waitperson, "Bring me a Corona" I'll think twice.  Yeah, it's the brand that I like, but should I say it out loud.  It's an easy call if they have local or in-house brewed beer because I'll go for that.  Or I could go for some kind of dark beer or ale or whatever it is.   Obviously I'm no beer connoisseur.  But I kind of like Corona if it's beer I'm drinking--especially in a Mexican restaurant.  Drinking a cold bottle of Corona with a chimichanga just seems like the way it should be for me.  Which reminds me--I haven't had a chimichanga in years--many years.

           What it all comes down to is labels.   Why did they have to call it Corona Virus?  Why not Budweiser virus or some other brand?   Will Corona beer have the stigma of this malady attached to it for all time to come?   Maybe they'll have to change the name.  Seems like a crime to me.  Corona is kind of a cool name for a Mexican beer. 

          Who comes up with these disease names anyway?   In this case it probably wasn't a fan of Corona beer..  Pandemics aren't fair anyway.  But lots of things aren't and that's just the way the world operates. 

           Do you have a favorite brand of beer?   Are you a special occasion drinker?   What would have been a better name for the Corona virus?  






       

33 comments:

  1. I'm partial to stout beer. There's a nice little brewery near my house and I get good stout beer there. I have had Corona (the beer, dammit! It feels weird to type I have had Corona without the word 'beer' next to it these days) before, but not really a fan of it. Considering that this is also an Acute Respiratory Syndrome virus, they should've called it CARS (Disney wouldn't have agreed though)

    C for Chir Batti - the ghost lights

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    1. V, stout beer is good. If a place has it on draft then that's what I might prefer to order. I'm not especially concerned about how Disney might feel about something. I've become kind of anti-Disney in recent years.

      Lee

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  2. It's one of my favorite beers as well. I heard sales for it were down because of the virus. So go ahead and get a Corona beer next time - they need a little help.

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    1. Alex, maybe next time I'm craving a beer and it's on sale then maybe I'll get some Corona. I just don't drink beer that much.

      Lee

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  3. "Budweiser virus" lol! I think we'll try starting that one...

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  4. Do you know the beer "Mort subite", which means sudden death? So you can imagine the jokes on social medias these days : you buy 2 Coronas, and you have a Mort subite for free...
    Yeah, I know...
    C is for Colour

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    1. Frederique, Hadn't heard of that "death" beer, but they might not think the name is so clever now. Joke possibilities about, but not many seem to be in the mood for jokes. Humor is a great cure for what ails us.

      Lee

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  5. Hmm ... not sure what is going on, but my comment has vanished from the box twice now. Thought you should know. There is a message at the bottom of my browser about waiting for twittercounter. Will try to come back later.
    Tasha 💖
    Virginia's Parlour - The Manor (Adult concepts - nothing explicit in posts)
    Tasha's Thinkings - Vampire Drabbles

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    1. Tasha, I'm not sure about any problem. Hadn't heard this otherwise.

      At least I got this comment.

      Lee

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  6. Yes, I've seen the comedy lately around Corona Beer. Maybe they will be changing their branding after all this has died down! I'm Canadian so when I drank beer it was Molson Ale in the bottles. Now that was a long time ago!

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    1. Lynn, I've usually drank Molson when I was in Canada. It's a good beer. Corona is a good brand name. I think beer drinkers will be pretty forgiving.

      Lee

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  7. I like Sam Adams Light, Heineken (the first brand to legally re-enter the U.S. market after Prohibition), and Yuengling. It's unfortunate when people and things with perfectly fine names are suddenly declared taboo or joke-worthy after a radical change in association, as though all those years of prior history never existed and are forever cancelled out.

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    1. Carrie-Anne, I like Sam Adams and have gotten those seasonal 12 pack assortment on occasion. A stigma can hurt any brand, but if the brand is strong enough then it might weather the storms of sensation.

      Lee

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  8. You never know, the name might make people want to buy more of it once this virus disappears. I like a Canadian or a Rickard's Red. I am not a beer drinker at all but if I drink, I prefer a screwdriver. My brother, on the other hand, is a beer expert in my eyes.

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    1. Birgit, So maybe we'll get sentimental for the old stay-at-home pandemic times and long for Corona? I might be able to see that. I heard that beer sales have gone up by 66% since the pandemic when full steam ahead. I'm now alcohol expert and if I never drank another beer in my life I doubt that I'd miss it.

      Lee

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  9. Corona Light and Blue Moon are two of my favorite beers, as they taste great to me. When I want to get tipsy REALLY quick, I'll have a Hellfire or Stout At The Devil from local brewery Straight To Ale. They have a higher alcohol content than most. But cider is my jam - I can drink Angry Orchard regularly!

    Kim

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    1. Kim, those are two of my favorites as well. I like the smooth mellowness of both of them. In a brewery type place I usually look for the strongest on tap. I do like a hearty draft beer.

      Lee

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  10. Beer is not one of my big things either although I do have one at a baseball game or concert occasionally. I have thought about the poor Corona company. Wonder if they'll change their brand?

    https://scr4pl80.wordpress.com/2020/04/03/a-to-z-challenge-2020-clapton/

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    1. Janet, I was well into adulthood when I began to appreciate beer, but rarely for the taste. Back when all my friends were chugging down beers I was more into chocolate milk or sodas.

      I think hard-core Corona lovers will stay faithful to the brand. What's in a name anyway?

      Lee

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  11. When I learned I had high blood pressure and started taking medication for it, I quit drinking, beer or anything else.

    I used to really love beer. Before they went national, Walgreens had a liquor department in their stores, and it was said that the best beer in Chicago was whatever was on sale at Walgreens. Frequently that was Heileman's Old Style. Heileman ended up owning a lot of the smaller Midwestern breweries, including Schmidt, Hamm's ("from the land of sky blue waters"), and a few others that I can't rememer. Of course, we had Budweiser (and its slightly snootier premium brand, Michelob), Pabst Blue Ribbon, Schlitz, Stroh's (I drank that a lot in college), Miller High Life and Lite, Old Milwaukee, Old Chicago (they had an especially good dark beer), Drewry's, Falstaff, and a couple of local Chicago breweries, Van Merritt and Meister Brau (who did a great Bock beer during the spring). Of course, Harp and Guinness (either individually or mixed in a Black & Tan), Tecate, Heineken, Grolsch, St. Pauli Girl and Anchor Steam (not foreign, but San Francisco counts...). And those are just the ones I remember... Generally, if it was cold and said "beer" on the can or bottle, I liked it.

    The current scourge of the world is just one example of a corona virus. Evidently SARS was another. I usually call it Covid-19.

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    1. John H, Stroh's was the go-to beer for many of my old friends back before I started drinking. It was cheaper than other brands so that was an appeal for young men who drank fairly heavily. One of my best friends back in TN still prefers Busch beer even over the more premium type brands that I might buy. When he came to visit me in L.A. he was so disappointed that he couldn't find Busch here and so he had to settle for Bud. He wanted nothing to do with the Coronas that I had stocked my refrigerator with before he came.

      Lee

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  12. Words as weapons! That is why a "certain jackass" changes the words COVID-19 to "Chinese Virus." People want stigmas! Zulu Delta

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  13. I don't know if I'm the guy killing a joke, but...

    "Coronaviruses derive their name from the fact that under electron microscopic examination, each virion is surrounded by a “corona,” or halo. In COVID-19, 'CO' stands for 'corona,' 'VI' for 'virus,' and 'D' for disease. Formerly, this disease was referred to as “2019 novel coronavirus” or “2019-nCoV”. There are many types of human coronaviruses including some that commonly cause mild upper-respiratory tract illnesses." - CDC

    I'd go for a Guinness or a Sam Adams Boston Lager. Blueberry Belch is actually pretty good, too. (That's local though. https://thebrewworks.com/brews/blueberry-belch/)

    It sucks to be that company right now. But I've seen a few memes that make it seem like they're dealing with it.

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  14. I'm sorry beer & I just don't get along. The taste and I don't agree. Hubby is the Miller beer drinker in the house I just crush the cans and take them to the recycle place for money & I buy yarn so I can make things for the grandkids & my 2 daughters & 2 sons & 10 grandkids & 3 great grandkids. hehehehe Have a great day!

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  15. Oh, and I'm sorry I hope all of family and you are staying healthy & happy!

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  16. I'm accustomed to stating that Guinness is my fave beer; actually a stout of course but you know that really evolved while I was into cigars and it's still my fave to smoke with but I rarely smoke anymore. Sapporo is my fave to drink with sushi, Kronenbourg with most other spicy foods, German style beers with Mexican food and Newcastle Brown Ale with more tame foods! I have become such a flavour snob that I tolerate almost nothing on its own. I'm only interested in extra-dynamic flavours through the right pairings. But most of my fave foods go with red wine so I don't sip much beer anymore. All the best to you! P.S.: Regular black tea with fish & chips!

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  17. The first name I heard for the virus was the name of the town it originated from. True and uncomplicated.

    I enjoy chips and salsa, and good conversation at Miller time ;-)

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  18. Hi Arlee, a light beer with a little ginger beer is pleasant but I so seldom drink any kind of alcohol ... tho I like a swig of my husband's every now and then.

    I'm NOT taking part in the A-Z this time round .. I'll be popping into you every now and then. Keep well and safe .. family too ..

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  19. I like beer with pizza, but I usually stick to a local microbrew. My favorite is called 90 Shilling from Odell Brewing Company in Colorado.

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    1. >>... 90 Shilling from Odell Brewing Company in Colorado

      Patricia, you are clearly the only person in this comment section who knows a thing about good beer.

      I haven't had '90 Shilling' in many years, but I think almost everything brewed by Odell's is top quality. I always loved their IPA, and for awhile, Odell's 'Red Ale' was my #1 favorite beer. (Today, I would say that honor belongs to the incredibly elusive Great Basin Brewing Company's 'Toasted Almond Brown Ale', which has achieved mythical proportions in my mind!!)

      [Link> Blasting off with Odell's Red Ale!

      ~ D-FensDogG
      STMcC Presents BATTLE OF THE BANDS

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  20. I am not a beer drinker, can'r stand the taste

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  21. Lee,

    I'm a beer drinker or a drinker of any kind of adult beverage. I never cared for the taste of alcoholic drinks. I'm glad this is something I never took up. It's expensive and high in calories. I'd rather enjoy a big bowl of ice cream if I'm gonna indulge in a lot of calories. :) As for virus names, I couldn't tell you what would be a better name for it but whatever you'd come up with someone wouldn't like it, so any name is good as the next in my opinion. :)

    Cathy's Pinup Girl #AtoZChallenge Art Sketch series ('C')

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Lee