Episode 9 - Michter's and The Quarantine

Welcome to the Backyard Bourbon Broadcast! In this episode, Jerimy talks about quarantine life, living in the 21st century and Michter’s Small Batch Bourbon. It’s a wholly quarantined episode of the Backyard Bourbon Broadcast!

Hey there, Backyardigans, how y’all are! Welcome to the Backyard Bourbon Broadcast, where we’re sippin’ corn and spillin’ tea on the dai-ly. I had originally thought that’d be a great tagline for the podcast, and then I promptly abandoned it. But looking back over some old episodes I figured it was a classic line so I’m resurrecting it. Besides, I don’t think anyone else is using it so we’re gonna go with it. 

How are ya doing with the whole quarantine? Have you been enjoying your time at home? Have you been climbing the walls? A little bit of both? Have you been rocketing through your bourbon collection? Have you found new favorites? A little bit of both? Have you been wondering how your liver is going to survive isolation? Have you panic-bought toilet paper, ammunition, bottled water or guns? A little bit of all? 

I have definitely enjoyed the opportunity to be home more. I am blessed with a fantastic job that allows me to work from home, and I realize not everyone has that opportunity. Through that opportunity to be home, I have been able to spend more time with my family. The blessing in that is immense and incalculable. I don’t know about you, but our lives have slowed down a great deal, and it was way past time for that to happen. 

This has been such a crazy time. Have you noticed how apt people are to make generalizations during this? For example, my last sentence. I’m generalizing right there. But seriously, when the quarantine first took place, there was a large portion of the population saying simply, “Stay home! Work from home!” Well, not everyone can do that! A lot of jobs can’t be done from home! At the same time, there have been people ask me personally “How long do you think you can stay employed working from home?” Well... I’d like to think I’ll be employed for a long time, seeing how I can do my entire job from home. Just because I’m not in a specific location working doesn’t mean I’m not working! It just means I’m doing the work from another location. This shouldn’t be confusing, folks! We’re in the 21st century and a lot of jobs can be done anywhere in the world. And it’s been that way for a long time… we’re only now forced to face that as a valid option. In fact, when I started my current position 7 years ago, I told my boss how simple it would be to transition to a work-from-home environment, at least on a part-time basis. I was then told that would never be an option, but here we are, four-plus months into a full-time work-from-home environment and still kicking ass! At least I am! Look, I love my job. I know what needs to be done, and I am more than happy to do it. I care a TON about the quality of the product we produce, and I work very hard to make it happen. I also know that if I don’t do it, it won’t get done, and I know that others will know it immediately. I also know I’m not a child, and I don’t need 24 hour supervision to get done what needs done. If you have employees on staff that you can’t trust to do their jobs without you over their shoulders, then you hired the wrong employees. 

So I bristle a bit at those who think that work can only be done in certain “ENVIRONS” or in certain locations. Like I said, this is the 21st Century, folks. “We have the technology…” I get it. Landscapers, construction, HVAC... a lot of jobs can’t be done remotely. But a lot can! So if I can, step off, eh?? 

OK, let’s stop that nonsense and move on to other things more important, namely, BOURBON. 

[free ballin’ without a script]

Alright folks, that’ll about do it. Huge thanks, again, to all of you who have listened to my podcast, I truly appreciate each one of you tuning in. Again, if you have any comments on our program or the pictures and videos we provide, please drop us a line at backyardbourbonbroadcast@gmail.com or find us on the interwebs or social media - we’re on Instagram @backyardbourbonbroadcast and on Twitter @bourbonandstory. And you can always visit our webpage backyardbourbon.wixsite.com (I know, we’re cheap, but we’re not paid, either, and all of our content is free, so take that!) Once again, thank you for listening, and we’ll talk to you next time on the next episode of the Backyard Bourbon Broadcast! Love ya, Liam! Love ya, Hazel Jane!