Hot Water...

The winter months at my apartment building are interesting months. They are old apartments and the hot water can be kind of touch and go. I learned last year that you need to sometimes give yourself about 1 hour to wait for the hot water, which kinda sucks, because that's one hour of letting the water just run down the drain. But, that's pretty much the only way to get a hot shower. So I'm letting the water run as I write this little blurb, in hopes of getting some hot water today. Yesterday, I didn't time it right and was not so lucky.

I'm growing to despise the other blogger about as much as a Duke fan. The author is the most pretentious, stuck-up little snob I've come across in a long time. I'm sure she's as bad if not worse in person than she portrays herself on her blog. But I still read it all the time. Can't help myself. Used to read it because I liked it. Now I read it because she's so ridiculous that I just have to shake my head and laugh....

Not much else happening worth commenting on. Gavin was in town last night. We went out drinking on the company dime. Always good times when he visits. And I can tell by his topics of conversation that he's very much the family man these days. Finn is 18 months and their second child is due in February, a fact that still blows my mind. But seeing how happy he is makes me think that I too would maybe, just maybe enjoy the family life. There's just the wee small problem of not even having a girlfriend. So alas, my dear family life, we shall have to wait...

OK... just went and checked the shower and the water's starting to get hot... in less than 15 minutes. So, friends and neighbors, I'll just sign off for now.......

Comments

My love for music

I've been wondering lately which one of my kids is going to catch the music bug. Or if any of them will. I was about 8 years old (Wyatt's age) when I caught the bug. I remember a Christmas around that time when I got two albums, Elton John's Greatest Hits and Neil Diamond's Greatest Hits. I wore those albums out! And my aunt Nan loaned me a stack of albums and said that one day I'd thank her. I can't remember the exact albums, but I know one was Frank Zappa. One was the Rolling Stones. I believe there was a Zeppelin and a Grateful Dead. When I first got into music, it was all vinyl. There was a local music shop in Fayetteville called Paradise Records. They also had tapes. Then one day these things called CDs appeared. The CD section was tiny at first. And my first CD was Huey Lewis and the News 'Sports.' But that section quickly grew and before you knew it, the record section was almost non-existent. We used to go to the record shop all the time. Back th...

Thoughts On Bars and Bartending

Now for some thoughts about bars and bartending, which I did for 25 years. BIG disclaimer: these are my opinion. They're opinions based on a ton of experience on both sides of the bar. But please don't take them as fact. Within the hierarchy of the restaurant, the bartender is right behind the chef at the very top. Both the chef and the bartender are responsible for creating things. Both should be expertly skilled. And both are the reasons that guests come to the restaurant. I got my first bartending gig in 1998. I attended a bartending school which the BIGGEST waste of time and money. I'll explain why shortly. My first gig was at the Angus Barn. I didn't know what the hell I was doing. I had never bartended a day in my life. But their hiring philosophy was to hire good people (which they couldn't train) and then train those good people to do what they needed to do. I was there for two years. I got better with each shift. Looking back I realize that I was awful. A...

At some point recently, the kids and I were telling each other stories. I can ’ t remember who went first, but Wyatt and Pepper each told their stories amid interruptions and corrections and suggestions. Let’s say for the sake of argument that Briar wasn’t talking yet, so it became my turn. Rather than the usual stories of kingdoms and unicorns and the garden variety stuff I usually went for, I decided to pull from my memory of past events. The kids listened in amazement, not really understanding what I was talking about. The story was a hit. And I think I’ll share it with you now. It was the summer of 1993. I had finished my first year of college at The College of Charleston. At the end of summer, I would be transferring to NC State. I enjoyed College of Charleston very much. I loved the 9-to-1 girl-to-guy ratio. It had been a great year. But I had spent most weekends driving up and back from Raleigh to see my girlfriend Marcia. At some point during the year, I had decided...

More Thoughts on Bars and Restaurants

Sometimes it's hard for me to believe that I spent 25 years of my life in the restaurant business, especially now that I’ve been out for five years. I worked at some great places. I worked with some great people. Some amazing chefs. And I had a great time. Most of the time. During my time in the business, I learned the ins and outs of a restaurant and a bar. I even took my knowledge and experience further by attending The Culinary Institute of America up in Hyde Park, NY. But that’s for another post. This post is to share some of my thoughts on the business, as well as some suggestions for how to act in a restaurant or bar. Heed my suggestions if you want, or don’t. It’s all good. But should you try a few of them out, you might just find that your experience was a little better. A little more special. A little more magical. And finally, for those of you who are reading this and are in the business or have been at some point, I hope that this post makes you smile, giggle, and nod ...

Thoughts on depression

I've had depression for as long as I can remember. For most of that time I have self-medicated in one form or another. As I get older, my relationship with my mental health has matured and I find myself looking at it and dealing with it in different ways. And looking back since the days of Covid, I remember the dozen-plus friends that I've lost, though not all of them were from depression, and realize that confronting our mental health and finding a way to live with it is crucial. Through my 25 years of bartending, I came to understand what alcoholism really looks like. I saw it every night and it looked different on every person. What I came to know, to truly know and believe, is that alcoholism is not something that can be determined by filling out some government questionaire. It is an individual disease. What becomes a problem for one person does not effect the other person. I could serve one regular six doubles of Jack Daniels and feel fine with how they were. And I could ...

The Original Blog

Search This Blog