diff --git a/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/KafkaPoller.groovy b/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/KafkaPoller.groovy
index 743e579..f810f3f 100644
--- a/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/KafkaPoller.groovy
+++ b/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/KafkaPoller.groovy
@@ -2,13 +2,32 @@ package com.github.lookout.verspaetung
 
 import groovy.transform.TypeChecked
 
+import kafka.cluster.Broker
 import kafka.client.ClientUtils
+import kafka.consumer.SimpleConsumer
+import kafka.common.TopicAndPartition
+import kafka.javaapi.*
+/* UGH */
+import scala.collection.JavaConversions
 
-@TypeChecked
+/* Can't type check this because it makes the calls in and out of Scala an
+ * atrocious pain in the ass
+ */
+//@TypeChecked
 class KafkaPoller extends Thread {
+    private final String KAFKA_CLIENT_ID = 'VerspaetungClient'
+    private final Integer KAFKA_TIMEOUT = (5 * 1000)
+    private final Integer KAFKA_BUFFER = (100 * 1024)
+
     private Boolean keepRunning = true
-    private List<KafkaBroker> brokers
     private Boolean shouldReconnect = false
+    private HashMap<Integer, SimpleConsumer> brokerConsumerMap = [:]
+    private List<Broker> brokers = []
+    private AbstractMap<TopicPartition, List<zk.ConsumerOffset>> consumersMap
+
+    KafkaPoller(AbstractMap map) {
+        this.consumersMap = map
+    }
 
     void run() {
         while (keepRunning) {
@@ -22,11 +41,66 @@ class KafkaPoller extends Thread {
         }
     }
 
+    void dumpMetadata() {
+        println 'dumping'
+        def topics = this.consumersMap.keySet().collect { TopicPartition k -> k.topic }
+        def metadata = ClientUtils.fetchTopicMetadata(toScalaSet(new HashSet(topics)),
+                                                      brokersSeq,
+                                                      KAFKA_CLIENT_ID,
+                                                      KAFKA_TIMEOUT,
+                                                      0)
+
+        withScalaCollection(metadata.topicsMetadata).each { kafka.api.TopicMetadata f ->
+            withScalaCollection(f.partitionsMetadata).each { p ->
+                println "Consumer for ${f.topic}:${p.partitionId}"
+                SimpleConsumer consumer = this.brokerConsumerMap[p.leader.get().id]
+                println consumer
+                TopicAndPartition topicAndPart = new TopicAndPartition(f.topic, p.partitionId)
+                println consumer.earliestOrLatestOffset(
+                    topicAndPart,
+                    -1,
+                    0)
+
+            }
+        }
+
+        println 'dumped'
+    }
+
+    Iterable withScalaCollection(scala.collection.Iterable iter) {
+        return JavaConversions.asJavaIterable(iter)
+    }
+
     /**
      * Blocking reconnect to the Kafka brokers
      */
     void reconnect() {
         println "reconnecting"
+        this.brokers.each { Broker b ->
+            SimpleConsumer consumer = new SimpleConsumer(b.host,
+                                                         b.port,
+                                                         KAFKA_TIMEOUT,
+                                                         KAFKA_BUFFER,
+                                                         KAFKA_CLIENT_ID)
+            consumer.connect()
+            this.brokerConsumerMap[b.id] = consumer
+        }
+        this.shouldReconnect =false
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Return the brokers list as an immutable Seq collection for the Kafka
+     * scala underpinnings
+     */
+    scala.collection.immutable.Seq getBrokersSeq() {
+        return JavaConversions.asScalaBuffer(this.brokers).toList()
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Return scala.collection.mutable.Set for the given List
+     */
+    scala.collection.mutable.Set toScalaSet(Set set) {
+        return JavaConversions.asScalaSet(set)
     }
 
     /**
@@ -34,14 +108,18 @@ class KafkaPoller extends Thread {
      */
     void die() {
         this.keepRunning = false
+        this.brokerConsumerMap.each { Integer brokerId, SimpleConsumer client ->
+            client.disconnect()
+        }
     }
 
     /**
      * Store a new list of KafkaBroker objects and signal a reconnection
      */
-    void refresh(List brokers) {
-        println "refresh: ${brokers}"
-        this.brokers = brokers
+    void refresh(List<KafkaBroker> brokers) {
+        this.brokers = brokers.collect { KafkaBroker b ->
+            new Broker(b.brokerId, b.host, b.port)
+        }
         this.shouldReconnect = true
     }
 }
diff --git a/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/Main.groovy b/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/Main.groovy
index 0304f36..7e496c0 100644
--- a/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/Main.groovy
+++ b/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/Main.groovy
@@ -24,10 +24,11 @@ class Main {
 
         TreeCache cache = new TreeCache(client, '/consumers')
 
-        KafkaPoller poller = new KafkaPoller()
+        KafkaPoller poller = new KafkaPoller(consumers)
         StandardTreeWatcher consumerWatcher = new StandardTreeWatcher(consumers)
         consumerWatcher.onInitComplete << {
             println "standard consumers initialized to ${consumers.size()} (topic, partition) tuples"
+            poller.dumpMetadata()
         }
 
         BrokerTreeWatcher brokerWatcher = new BrokerTreeWatcher(client)
@@ -42,7 +43,7 @@ class Main {
         cache.start()
         println 'started..'
 
-        Thread.sleep(9 * 1000)
+        Thread.sleep(10 * 1000)
 
         println 'exiting..'
         poller.die()
diff --git a/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/TopicPartition.groovy b/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/TopicPartition.groovy
index 797f56c..83312d1 100644
--- a/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/TopicPartition.groovy
+++ b/src/main/groovy/com/github/lookout/verspaetung/TopicPartition.groovy
@@ -39,4 +39,9 @@ class TopicPartition {
     int hashCode() {
         return Objects.hash(this.topic, this.partition)
     }
+
+    @Override
+    String toString() {
+        return "${this.topic}:${this.partition}"
+    }
 }