Hey, it was Memorial Day Weekend!

We cruised on down to the in-laws for a long weekend in the Berkshires. It was nice. Driving w/ my kids sucks but what can you do... apparently we do not have teleporting technology yet. The great thing about a long drive is that my kids sleep for maybe an hour and then all hell breaks loose. We try to feed them, we sing until we run out of songs (5), and then my wife climbs in the back to wedge herself between car seats and try to entertain. When we got there the kids were great. They chased the cat around the house pointing and screaming. Screaming! We went to a fantastic dance party my sister in law put together. I saw a fat couple absolutely rocking the dance floor. One chick puked on the bar and promptly faded out. The bar tender swept in out of nowhere and scooped the girl up whisking her out the back door... never to be seen again. Seriously, that girl might be in the swamps of Jersey or Guantanamo Bay right now.  Did I mention that the bartender was a 30 some odd year old woman who did the amazing power lift. It was impressive. We rocked out to some songs I don't know and ghosted out. We also hung w/ my brother in law and his family including the beautiful newborn baby girl. They also have a son who is very intelligent and know what a hairy woodpecker is as opposed to a red breasted woodpecker. He is not even 3. He also had a haircut that looked like terraced fields in China. Apparently young boys get restless quickly. Who knew?! I mean my son gets distracted by a dog barking a mile away.

We were able to get out for a meal at the Prairie Whale. It was really quite nice. The oysters were very crisp and flavorful w/ a great mignonette. The radishes on toast w/ marrow butter were decadent and delicious, and the citrus salad was off the hook w/ perfectly delicate de-pithed grapefruit on lightly dressed greens. The main course might have been my least favorite, a nice but not special brisket. Good, but other stuff was very good. The owner/host Mark Firth was super nice and accommodating and even remembered us when we saw him at the farmer's market the next day. That is a true host my friends.

Our other eating experience was w/ the kids at the Pit Stop in Granville, NY. Hey, it was perfect. You eat outside, the food was as expected from a roadside stand, and it was cheap. The bacon on my BLT was crisp as was the side pickle (did not smell funny). It was what we needed at that moment. My son kept walking over to the neighboring picnic table, laughing and then walking away, and then walking over and getting closer, and then doing it all over again. Funny kid.

So all in all, it was a nice little weekend. Oh yeah, I laid down a shock and awe campaign at the house. When I got home there were 4 dead mice and 2 traps that the mice had escaped from. Gross, but effective.

Alert! Silver German Luxe (semi) cars terrorizing Charlotte VT!!!!!!

So there is a thing around here called "Front Porch Forum". Depending on the town it ranges from neighborly posting on local events, musings, and services wanted type stuff to snarky shots at people not picking up their dog's poop. I am not actually on it but my wife is. She alerted me to the fact I had made the forum! How? Good question.

The other day, I played golf w/ a colleague and then headed over to a house in Charlotte to meet my realtor and look at a farmhouse that was for sale. I was late but still the first person there. It is right on a pretty main road, and there neighbor across the street was outside mowing the front lawn. It was 4pm or so. After waiting awhile I saw a lurky person in the window peering out at me. Not wanting to seem weird or make them feel uncomfortable I decided to go to the door and tell them who I was and why I was there. A woman in her 60s/70s opened the door a sliver and asked who I was. I explained the scene and she said she was unaware of a showing... I better call my agent. Oh yeah? No shit Sherlock... I was going to keep waiting in your driveway a while and make it super weird. Freak. Anyway, I called my agent and she was at the wrong house and had f*d the whole thing up. Whatever, it was a FUBAR but it happens, so I fired up the car and drove home. Case closed right? Wrong.

On the heels of a post concerning an apparently sketchy Silver BMW w/ tinted windows (probably a minority!) I was lit up as a sketchy character in a silver Audi lurking around.  A further post suggested calling the cops on such occasions. Now, I know how intimidating a short bald dude in gold attire driving an Audi is so I get it. Frankly, I was going to rob that old woman but it is hard to fit the good stuff between the car seats and I had too many strollers in the trunk to access that either?!

My wife said this is the kind of thing that only happens to me. I suppose that is true. Well, me and the person in the silver BMW.

Cinco de Mayo... Ugh

How did I party on May 5th?  Well, let me tell you! I cruised home early because my nanny had to leave. Kids were fussy. I had a sour stomach so I had to crap a bunch of times. Upstairs of course because my 1st floor bathroom was busted. That was my big win of the night, I fixed said toilet! Boom!!! One beer and a bunch of dished done later I settled on the couch w/ leftover soup and a turkey sandwich to watch TV. Now that is a hot night right?

So we were at a really fun 20's party at Shelburne Farms the other night and I had a Trout River Red Ale. It was terrible. Really terrible. My other choice was slightly less terrible Rock Art White Tail ale. It was a great night and very well done but the beer selection was tough. I moved to Citizen Cider (which I almost never do) and it was not too bad.

On the flip side, my pal LB busted out an Alchemist Beelzebub and it was really good. Smooth, luscious, a hint of coffee and chocolate. I like hops so I didn't mind their presence. Big fan here... wish they had more around.

So this was a fun post huh?  Somebody give me some inspiration... I am in a rut!