"Time is tapping on my shoulders."

Alert (Alter) Readers know that I spent about 72 hours last week in a state of beer and cheese.

In my build up to my trip, I spent a lot of time researching brewers and cheesemakers in the area. Frequently on their respective websites, the various companies had descriptions of their beers and cheeses. These descriptions often included how long the item aged.

There are many anecdotes about the prominence of beer in the history of man, from a recipe for beer found in a pyramid in Egypt to the Pilgrims landing on Plymouth Rock because they ran out of beer and needed water. A conclusion that beer is integral to civilized people and their society is quickly drawn from said anecdotes. To make beer you must be able to cultivate grain and fashion vessels to age it in. I used to drink this Kool-aid, but I've taken the production of beer and cheese and their relation to society in a different tack.

It isn't milk and grains that make a civilization but the luxury of time. Only after many other things are secure can you invest your nutritional resources into something you won't reap the fruits of until months, maybe years, down the line. In that respect, it is a very faithful venture. Without the hope and faith that your situation will be stable enough to drink your beer after it lagers in a cave for two or three months, you would just make bread with your wheat and yeast and water.

On this eve of Daylight Savings Time, I hope you appreciate the time our civilization has availed us. Time may not be money, but it is still so very valuable.