Sunday Morning News from the dining room table

[RonJ51]

Hi Vince,

I hope your recovery from the eye surgery goes well. It sounds to me that you certainly have the correct attitude not only concerning your health but also when it comes to the matter of getting along with our fellow human beings. Thank God there are children around to teach the adults the important things in life.

Happy Easter

Ron

[Vince]

Good morning it is Sunday 30 March 2008, a Bright sunny but chilly morning here in da Burgh , the Birds are hitting the feeder very hard this past week, a Red Tail hawk has been hitting the birds hard all week , I just wish he went after the doves & left the robins alone , dammmm doves just make to dammmmmm much noice . a large flock gather every morning just outside my bedroom window , COOOO COOOO , all morning long , cant sleep in if I wanted to !!! I think I should start feeing the Viarga , & they will be so busy Humping they will starve to death ! hahahaha
with Easter behind us & a LOT of left over ham in the freezer, I am breaking out a little of it for Escalloped Potatos today, I was thinking of spicing them up with a little bit of hot peppers diced in the mix , gotta run that buy the Boss & see if its OK with her . magesty. No hunk of beef today so I have no idea what kind of mood she will be in !Better ask nicely .
I have been getting into the training for the Cigar crawl comming up in May, I am getting my 10 cigars a day in , 3 pots of coffee ( 1 Reg & 2 Decafe) & a weee dram of single malt a few times a week hahahaha
The Grandsons have been busy doing what ever they do & I havent seen much of them this week, I guess we all needed a break hahaha, I know the guy at the local arcade needs a long rest from us being there & my wallet needs the same rest, I think I bought that guy a new car last year hahahaha BUT we had fun, now if I could only get them interested in Fishing , just sit on the bank of the lake , watch the bobber & then we can eat what we catch, or head to Mickey D's when we dont get anything !, gotta be cheeper than the arcade & I could have a cigar outside , hey I just got a brain fart, why not just stock the pool with fish , & if we could find fish that live in Beer instead of water .................. what an Idea hahahaha

My Humidors are looking a little worse for ware over this past COLD time of the year & the traing for the crawl hasnt helped & I get a letter from one of my supplyers a price jump of 5 BUCKS a box on my Yard Gars , looks like I will be changing my President size for a robusto , I never get to finish one anyway, buy the time I get to the nub it is so chewd up & wet , it just gets tossed. , & speaking of Humidors , I picked up number 15 this past week , a new / used box I sold a guy new about 5 years ago, he never put anything thing in it , still had the box it was shipped in , he had a small humidor & told me he needed more room , so I got him this nice 150 Count box, & he never used it , he never filled his 40 count box to allow him the need of getting the 150 Count, so I got it back at a good price
he was happy & I felt like I paid to much for it , but the guy is a steady customer good for 150 to 175 bucks a month, he said his wife lets him have 50 bucks a week for "spending" money & since he drinks coffee for free at the shop, he spends his hard earned retirement money at the shop, , so it cost me a few cups of coffee & a weee dram of single malt on Friday night if he is there , a few time he has brought in a bottle & left it there so it all works out in the end , BUT now I have a new 150 count Humidor , NO place left to put it with out stacking it , BUT it like most humidors opens at the top, so when I want to open it I need to remove the stack of Humidors on top of it , cant put this one on top as it is way to big, I might just use it for long term ageing & stash it under the bed with the coolador, But it is way to nice to hide , Nice inlay , heavy gloss a verry pretty hunk of wood , of well my daugher wants it for a silver ware storage chest , I told her plastic eating tools dont need to be stored , they get tossed !

I have been getting in a few HEAVY WEIGHTS this past week, Camacho trip maduro , Mambacho trip Leghero , & a few Cohiba, Robustos , they cleared out the old sinus passages , this week I am going to TRY & stay with the lighter smokes , Don Diego , Casa Blanca , & the Diamond Crowns( maybe one anyhow) , I still LOVE the Don Carlos #3 in the morning, , I thought I might try a Rocky patel edge missel in maduro, but it just didnt hit the taste buds right for the first cigar of the day, i guess after 15 or more years of #3's every morning its just hard to break the TRADITION, it is way past habbit or Obsession , it had to move on to Tradition !! , * I think TRADITION is a much better word than Habbit dont you ? , reminds me of" Fidder on the roof," Tradition ! , for you Young guys it was a Broadway play years ago about a poor Eastern European Jewish Village & the life there , A GREAT story & wonderful music ,
I have a feeling I just might start out the week taking a little break for all the cigars & cut back to 8 a day hahahaha , but make them all Dbl.Coronas hahahah , BUT the #3 will still be the first one of the day .
it is getting to start staying warm, & the new car bug has taken a big BITE out of me, I want a new one, BUT the Sable is Paid off, sure it has 165K on it but it is running fine & getting 20 MPG , & with gas hitting 3.35 a gallon for the cheep stuff I was thinking of down sizing to some thing getting 35/40 MPG , untill I took a ride in one of the little kidney busters , May sable with all the milage on it Rode better than the new little $hitbox Scion I took for a ride , DIDNT LIKE IT AT ALL. , I dont give a
rats @$$ , what motor trend or car & driver have to say about the gas misers, I am an OLD MAN with arthritus & need a BIG door to get my formerly fat @$$ in & out of the car, a ride that is somewhat smooth & a long wheel base to allow for smooth transitions over the bumps & pothols in the roads here in western Pa , No short chopy JEEP ride for this old fart , my 4 wheeling days are long behind me , My old Bronco is just a hunk of scrap iron by now, might have been recycled into a washing machine by now . So it looks like I will squeeze a few more years out of the Sable, I had a Tempo for 13 years, still had the orginal clutch in it , with 213K I sold it for 275 bucks & the guy got an entire winter out of it , he blew out the clutch trying to pull his wifes Olds out of a ditch at the end of there drive way one snowy day , I am supprised he didnt pull the bumper of the tempo ahahaha

thats about all I have for this week, maybe more later, maybe not ! haha Enjoy, Vince

[Vince]

Good Morning it is Sunday the 6th.day of April 2008, a BEAUTIFUL day here in da Burgh the sky is Blue with a few clouds the grass is starting to turn green & the air is crisp & cool, the Qtr.Deck is about 65F indide & 58 outside, I will be heading there soon, My wife & her sister are heading out today with Credit card & check book in hand , God Help me next month when the statements come in ! hahahaha
I have a BIG pot of Beans on the stove , the ham bone will go in shortly & it will be soup tonight ......
that brings me to a little RANT , the econemy ..... things go in cycles, right now it is down, but soon it will be back up, the Dow Industrial average when I was a kid was 2 or 3 thousand, a big swing was 12 points , now we see tripple diget swings daily but the average is over 12K , so the % of the market that changes isnt much different than it was 50 years ago, the big difference is the VOLUME of the trades, there are more people out there with money & more action in the market, the Buck isnt worth as much today as it was when I was a kid Because there are more of them in circulation , the more money in circulation the lower the value of the cash money , all the BS about the housing market is all driven my GREED & mismanagement of the lenders trying to get rich quick, ENRON was a perfect example of money going to there head. MONEY is not the root of all eveil the LOVE of money is the root , the money is good it is the averice & LOVE that makes it evil, I do not have a masters in Economics but all it takes is a little common sence to see that all we need is to work hard, save a few bucks here & there & SPEND a little less than we make, Now if the GD GOVERNMENT could get SPENDING under control by the congress , Spend what you have not what you will get from our grandchildren & the ecomemy will right it self in a year, but the @$$H@T$ in DC , Harrisburg, & your state capitals just got to learn NOT to spend MY tax dollars so often, we need a MUCH smaller government & less people spending OUR money , we elect the @$$H@T$ to serve us , but they end up serving them selves with out worrying about the outcome & we the voters keep sending them back to DC to represent us, & they LAUGH all the way to the bank , so WHO is the @$$H@T , them or US?
end of rant
the NUB had its release party friday night here in da Burgh, I was NOT able to get there I had to work, so I missed it, but I wish Sam & the NUB best wishes & hope to sell a million NUBS from King Beaver Cigars this year , if he can make that many !


Last Night my wfe & I with our daughter went to the LINCOLN HIGHSCHOOL FOR PREFORMING ARTS , in Midland Pa , the World Premier of Dancing with Mancini , a set of dances to the Music of West Aliquippa native Henry Mancini , ( he wrote the Pink Panter theme, Moon River,Peter Gunn, & tons of GREAT musci ) well the show was a tribute to a Beaver County native , & growning up in Quip myself in the Black snow from the open hearth furnaces my self I understood what was going on . ..... when my Daughter was a lot younger & a dancer ( before the arthritus) I would sleep till I heard her music , watch it & then Nod off till it was over, welll last night I watched it all, GREAT dancers & wonderfull Videos of the OLD stomping grounds & the parades honering Henry . it was a great night, the croud was full of celebs, the wife of Henry Mancini was there , still looking Good & the guy who was the promotions director of Apple records 7 the push behind the Beatles was there , there is going to be a tribute show to the Fab 4 this fall at the Lincoln HS , so he was there to see the place & check out the 35Million Dollar HS , dammmm what way to spend our TAX money !!!!

Yesterday was the Strippers day at a Club I beling to here in da Burgh, , you know strippers are not what they used to be in the heyday of burlisque ( or how ever you spell it ) the Girls had a routene & danced as they too it off, today , they come out pull off the T shirt & bammmm in your face, so little seduction, no moves just POP they out ! , the ART is gone , I miss the show, , the **** industry is to blame, get right to the money shot, no plot no story just wam bam its in its out , its all over her face ... NO Class at all.

the Soccor season starts next saturday for my Grandson, I will be there with the wife cheering & wondering what is going on , , at lest i will be out in the morning sun, & have a nice morning cigar & coffee ,Next Saturday is the wife birthday so I plan on being as nice to her as she was to me on my birthday.... No I dont think I could ever be that mean hahahahaha

Last Night I was watching Saturday Night Live, , , , , , , , , back when it started many years ago with DAN,JOHN<GILDA<Jane, Garrte,Chevy,Lorain & the gang it was funny, it was new & different, today , well its still live....., about the only thing I enjoyed last night was weekend up date , kind of the idea for my Sunday morning post , an update of the past week, well I am Not Chevy Chase but I do have 2 fingers to type this every sunday when I remember to post it anyhow ! maybe I am getting old but it just isnt as funny as it was , the players are wonders , but the material is lacking for some thing, maybe the writers need to get KICKED up a notch or bring back some of the old farts, bring back the coke & boose to the cast , make it Funny again , what ever it takes, Find the next Eddie Murphy, Find the next Jane Curtain, Find the next JOHN BALUSHI ,Jiim is Ok , but John was OUT THERE , Cone heads, where are they, Blues brothers , Hans & Franz , THE CHURCH LADY & & Waynes world, , , , just no strong characters to build on ....... & the musical Guests , come on , I never here of them again, , , , , the first time I heard Willie Nelson was on SNL, & I am not a Counrty music fan, BUT I have a few Willie Nelson CD's In my collection, "Stardust" is my favorite , , SNL went down hill when Loren Michaels stopped being the producer, & it got better when he came back, but I think he is looking at retirement & letting it slide a little bit, Just MYOPINION, & like @$$hole$ every one has one !

Gotta go stirrrrr the soup ! , Enjoy, Vince

[Jimmy Ray]

Way to go Vince. The South Beach Diet is working for me.

[Vince]

I needed more than a diet myself, it was a change of life style for me, diets just didnt work, I would loose it at the start then I enednded up bigger than I was when I started, Good luck on the SB diet. Enjoy, Vince

[Vince]

Good morning, it is Sunday April 13th 2008, a cool day here in da Burgh, Yesterday was the Bosses Birthday she was 59 , ( & still a mear child ) , But mentaltly she is the OLD lady in this relationship, cause I'm just a little punk kid compaired to her in maturity , I guess when I die I will still be a teen ager or even younger, who knows what is in store for all of US , I know for sure I enjoyed this life to its fullest !, could have I done more in my life , well sure but enjoyed it more , wellllll thats a hard call, I know what I did & what I missesed , well what ever I missed this time , I will try to fit in the next life , I believe there are a finiate number of souls & we get to live over & over again, till we have used up all of our lives & then & only then do we go to heaven or Hell, thats just my Opinion & like I have said before , opinions are like @$$hole$ , everone has one !!
it has been a quiet week at the shop, good days & bad , nothing outstanding happened, , whitch in a way is good, sales were wonderful on Friday , but lack luster the rest of the week, but with Fridays numbers it averaged out the week to welll Just about average ! , I did get a Humidor returned , the guy got it at Christmas & filled it with water & let it sit for a few weeks, instead of a few minutes , well when he dumped it out it was growning hair & the joints had swelled that the top didnt close , it is now a planter , I explained to him that it wasnt my fault he forgot about it for a few weeks or months, that I would get him an other one at a little bit of a discount but he wanted it free, well he ended up moving to a bigger unit & paying for it , But I did toss in a few bundle sticks to make him feel like he got some thing out of the deal, but I made enough on the humi to cover the sticks & still be able to make a credit card payment this month ! hahahaha , all I want to know is HOW can you forget a Humidor filled with water sitting in your basement? , well I just look at this "Gentleman" & see that he cuts about 3/4 of an inch off the top of a double corona & only smokes about 2 inches of it & puts it down , Gulps his drink & gets on his broom stick & flys away , A atrange bird to say the lest , I have know a few witches in my life but this guy is a devouted warlock, complete with the black eye liner & & pentagram chocker , a few tatoos of ocoult figures & a real strange maner about him self, BUT he has CASH , so I put up with him & a lot of others that Dont have CASH hahahahaha .
We had a few warm days hit the low 70's & I had all the doors open & aired out the shop 2 days in a row, then yeasterday my Grandsons first Soccor game of the year, COLD WINDY & WET , I sat on the sidelines hood up teeth chattering & watched a bunch of 10 & 12 year olds running back & forth kicking a ball & the game ending up a 3all tie , no over time or a shoot out , the next 2 teams were ready to take the field, so we vacated the field & got in a NICE WARM car & took the boys to Pacendros Pizza for a little after the game celebration & there grandmothers Birthday all rolled into one , hey I got off cheep this time !
Speaking of Cheep, I dont know what I did but all of a sudden my gas consumption on the Sable has gotten Mind blowing, , I have been averaging 19 to 21 MPG for the past year or so with it , NOW all of a sudden BAM last tank I got 25.7 & the one befor it 28.1, , I think some one is playing tricks on me & adding gas to my tank, Got to be a JOKE on them for sure since the price is just under 3.35 a gallon , I filled up last night at 3.25 a gallon took 9 gallons &had just under 235 miles ....... dammmmm I wish it did that good when it was new , But then gas was 95 cents & I drove 75/80 MPH on the highways just to keep up with the traffic, now I stay on the 2 lane blacktop roads 7 stay of the concrete super slabs & keep my speed under 50 & the RPM's under 2000 & BINGO great MPGS, unless some one is adding gas to my tank, dammmmmmmmm I hope this lasts a LONG time, I was thinking about getting a new one this summer, this one has 166K on the clock, BUT I think I might jusr need to keep it a year longer just to pass the 213K I had on the one before this one , I dont know, I guess if the right deal comes along I might go for it & just keep this one & trade in the wifes car, it is a lot older but only has 88K on it , she seldom drives when we go anyplace & I am not allowd to smoke in her car , so we go in MINE !
I have noticed a few pairs of pants have been getting a slight snug to the waist , so I jumped on the scale & scared myself , 235 , dammmmm Gotta get back to the tofu & water , cut out the apple raisin oatmeal muffins & start back WALKING everday , I was doing just fine till it got COLD last fall , I figured if it was cold enough to crack my cigar it was to cold to go out & walk well It is a lot warmer now , still cool but I dont think it will hurt the morning cigar , ahhh yea me & my Don Carlos #3 & coffee on a morning walk , this morning I had a Olivia series V lancero with my Sunday morning kona , Not bad but didnt light me up like the #3 , I guess old habbits are hard to break, but after all the years its no longer a habbit, it is a way of life , I will still be on the lookout for a better morning smoke , years & years of Gruling reasearch have gone into this project & years more to come I hope to find that elusive PERFECT morning cigar
the NUB ..... what can I say about the NUB ,,,, I had the Habano torp & the Cameroon Torp , Both lasted over 1 hour, SAM you got a winner here !! I have the Conn. to smoke soon, no idea when I will get to it , every one tells me its a mild smoke, but that means I need to smoke it first thing in the morning, ..... dammmmm reasearch will never stop ! hahahaha
I have a weee bit of Eathopian Yourgachef in my press pot this morning , not as crisp as the kona but a Nice coffee , it is matching up well with the gala apple & grapes I am munching on this morning, gotta get the FIBER in the diet , no movements with out it ! hahahaha , speaking of Movement, I guess its TIME hahahah Enjoy Vince

[Jimmy Ray]

Can't wait till next Sunday, brother.

[Vince]

glad you enjoyed it m

[wolfdreamtattoo-cl]

first time I've read this post, now I'm hooked. Keep up the good work brother.

[Vince]

Originally Posted by wolfdreamtattoo

first time I've read this post, now I'm hooked. Keep up the good work brother.

this thread started years ago on cA about 1998or so , then it migrated to amback.com now called Eotec forums , it goes back there to 2004 lots of water has passed under this bridge , I welcome your comments anytime , I had my first cigar in 1955 & have been playing with the computer since before the internet, I still have a computer that runs on DOS , it is not internet ready, , I use it to pick the daily number on the Pa. lottery, so far I have about 5K spent on tickets over the past 25 years & won about 500 bucks, I think I need to write a better program !!!!!!!

[Vince]

Goodmorning, it is Sunday 20 April ,2008a rainy day here in da burgh but we just had the real first week of spring, it was GLORIOUS , Blue skys hardly a cloud in the sky the temp was in the mid to upper 70's , it was a fantastic week sitting outside the shop sipping single malt scotch & smoking fine old Cigars , & a weeee drop of coffee might have passed the lips on the way , BUT I got to get the guys at the shop to LEARN how to brew a pot of coffee, I have the digetal scale sitting right there , we use it for the pipe tobacco, well all they need to do it drop the paper filter on the scale add 2.5 ounces of coffee , put it in the basket & push the button, the water is plumed right to the pot, well I go in Friday & there are 3 pots of coffee made sitting on the warmers, I can see right through them & one looks like tea , , I pull the filter basket& look in , I see about 1/3 the amount of coffee I use for one pot, & this Joker made all3 pots from the same grounds, , needless to say a LOT of retraining needs to be done as well as remaking the coffee ! , next new hire will be a coffee drinker , not a coke drinker for breakfast kind of guy even if he is a cigar smoking fool, he better make GREAT coffee. I have all the best tools & the best home roasted coffee I can make , all he has to do is push the button on the pot, you dont need to measure the water it is AUTOMATIC , I did remove the front of the machine & turn Down the amount of water per pot, now we get 10 cups per pot not the factory preset 12, but I still use the 2.5 ounces of coffee , I like coffee with BODY !!!!
there is a new coffee roaster in New Brighton Pa , un Common ground s NOT bad I am drinking some of there Yourgachef right now, & my wife is grinding a little beavervally espresso , an Italian roast bean from an undisclosed region , the owner said it is a mix of african, american & asian coffees , well after they are dark roasted I guess you taste the roast more than the bean itself , so we will give it a try today .
We had our first squerrel of the season on the bird feeder , , but the Hawk who uses the feeder as a bait trap , took care of the furry little rodent ! , swoop it was all over , if I hadent heard the crash of the feeder lid I would have missed it all ! fast SOB !!!
the herb are starting to send up new shoots, the chives are all ready 6 inches tall, the rest of the stuff is just showing a bit of green & the garlic is pushing up some nice tops , My grandson has his Pumpkin seeds sprouted & in pots ready to be transplanted along with the watermellon, cant wait for them !!!!, the pumpkins will be ready for Halloween ....
the guy across the street cut his grass Friday, well that gave Barb the Idea that she needed to cut hers all ready, so I went & got her some gas, & then I took off for Slippery Rock Cigars & the POD cast of Blowen smoke , , I had a great time there & when I got back home the grass was cut & I was not one bit tired from watching her cut it ! hahahaha
the gas just keeps going up 3.49 for self serve regular , it sure has cut down on our Saturday & Sunday Cigar rides , it was Nothing to put on a hundred or so miles on a Saturday night just driving the back roads of Western Pa soming a fine old contraband cigar & sipping coffee listening to the radio, Now dammmmmm I just cant seam to convince the boss that 20 Bucks for gas is cheeper than going to the movies & we both enjoy the time together talking, , well she talks & I agree with what ever she is droning on about, it gives us time to comincate, she talks & I agree, & I dont have to say alot , as long as I do it her way she will be so much easyer to live with, & this August it will be 38 years together & she is still talking, so I dont want to interupt her .......
I have a couple of Ribeye steaks that will be hitting the grill about 3:45 today , a baked spud & a little grilled portabella & onions with some roasted garlic, , just dont be down wind of me come Monday ! hahahaha

The buss is full for the cigar crawl on May 17 . 50 cigar smokers on a bus hitting 5 cigar shops eating at 2 different FINE dining establishment, all for $125.00 a person, cant beat it with a stick. great time for all but the poor bus driver hahahahaha well we all kick in a few sticks & a few bucks per crawlwer & he gets one hello of a nice tip !!

I have been noticing my choice of cigars lately has been to the corona & demi Corona , sot of moving away from the double corona & "A" sized sticks, cant tell you went I last had a Cononoe from Fuente, an 8.5 X 52 flagpole of a cigar , the jaw dosent seam to handle the Big cigars much anymore, torp are ok as the bite isnt all that big, & I was thinking of going to a Cigar holder for the big ring stuff, but then you never get all the taste of the wrapper, , dammmm it hell getting old ! hahaha

I have a nice selection of smokes all ready set out for the day, the Don Carlos #3 is all ready history, & I have a Olivia V Lancero , set to go next, & a fallow up to that with a corona from Monte a contraband smke about 10 years in the humi, should be nice with a cup of Kona & a wee dram of Bacardi 8 , I havent had a sip of Rum since last summer, so today I will pass on the single malt well for the first one of the day anyhow , I am not all that excited about rum, but there is a time & place for everything & a little switch up on the taste buds will just make me appricate the single malt a little more next time , after the ribeye & coffee with desert , I have no idea what I will make so far, I think I will fire up some thing rich & sweet I have a verry old Opus must be about 5 or 6 years old, a little torp, not sure of the name , might be the #5 , but who cares what its called , , it is a toss up between it & a Davidoff some about the same time , the perfecto just might be it & save the Opus for a bright sunny afternoon at the shop, , with a scotch, yea the opis needs scotch not Rum, at lest for my taste buds , , , yours might be different so smoke & drink what YOU like not what I like , who knows cream soda & scotch might make a come back some day hahahahaha
Enjoy, Vince

[Vince]

Good morning , it is a beautyful Sunday Morning the 27th of April 2008, I just came in from getting the Sunday Paper & what a wonderful start to a spring day, Blue skys warm, a light breeze & the Bird feeder is teaming with Birds this morning, a few wild caneries , tiny little yellow & black birds with a sweet song, the cardnials & bluejays add red & blue to the color sceeme & the Robing run the yard but never go near the feeder, I guess they are meat eaters & dont go for the seeds ! , the wind chimes are adding to the churping & the doves are QUIET this morning , , if I had a digetal camera I would post some photos but all I have is a very old Nikon 35MM , shot lots of rolls of film back when I first got it , I guess I must have went through 10K rolls of film, the power winder is SHOT , but I still have it on the camera for balance , the thumb advance on the camera is worn & showing signs of its age , it was a big investment back in the early 70's but it has paid for itself time & again .
I have been digging deep in the humidors this past week & have been setting fire to an aray of fine old sticks I did finish the Last contraband smoke in the house this past week, after the letter i got from the treasury dept I just dont want to have some one show up with a warrent & I end up paying a heafty fine so they are all gone , & it was a wonderful experence , I did sip some fine old single malts , ahhhhh yes life is GOOD.

Friday Night the boss & our daughter went to the Lincoln High school for the arts in Midland Pa , the students had put on "Too Kill a Mocking bird " & it was well recieved by all, I was "stuck" at work on Friday night & I wasnt able to go , , , dammmm doged a bullet again hahahaha
Not much going on here , just kicking back enjoying the spring weather & & enjoying life , today i have a do nothing day all ready planed, & when I say do nothing I mean NOTHING< but RELAX, I will cook some thing , but I have no idea what today, , maybe grilled cheese with bacon , I just dont feel like a gourmet meal today , but I might fancy up the grilled cheese a bit, no american cheese on white bread for sure, dont have white bread in the house , but I do have a little oatmeal bread & some Fontenila & Jarlsburg , a few strips of bacon a little tomatoe dammmmmm when I dont get the gourmet spirit even for a grilled cheese sandwich then I guess its time to pull the plug on me !!
I have 2 dance recitals comming up this summer , dammmmmmmm I thought that they we all over for me , but now the grandson is at it like his mother so 2 more waisted days sitting in the high school autotourium , 4 hours of dance to watch 4 minuts of the grandson, I know I am not the only one who fels like this , the shows are just WAY to long sure you gotta get your moneys worth for all the lessons , but how many Private numbers do the kids need dance with the groupe , feature a few outstanding dancers 7 get the show over in 90 to 120 minuts & be done with it , but NO we need to drag it out for over 4 hours , cranky little kids dont want to sit for 4 hours & a lot of grandfathers dont want to sir for 4 hours in the heat with out a drink or even Coffee let alone 4 hours with out a cigar hahahahaha
I have the new car bug again , but there is Nothing wrong with my old car that a good cleaning wouldnt hurt , the glass has this great smokey quality to it , the floor has a good bit of ashes here & there & a few burn hols in the seat, but dammmmm it runs fine it just has a little over 160K on it , like to get an other 160 on it befor I get rid of it ! hahahahaha

not much else going on here in da burgh, the Pirates are loosing the pens are winning & the steelers drafted a running back, when they need linemen, OH well gladd I am just an unintrested observer , time for me to get to the kitchen & make a Sunday morning pot of Kona , get a Don Carlos #3 & get the day started !! Enjoy, Vince

[Vince]

Goodmorning , it is Sunday May 4th , in 2008 , dammmmm time flys , its all ready May, seams just like yesterday I was thinking about the snow that needed to be removed from the walkway, well its all gone hahahahaha , I had a BUSY week here in da burgh we had an Olivia event Friday night , had a great time with our salesman Andrew , , story swapped cigars smoked & a weeee dram of single malt was sipped & we managed to move a LOT of cigars ! it was a good week in more way than one, on Saturday my brother stopped over & I cooked for his inlaws, they are getting OLD & not getting arround well so I made a few dozen meals for them now all they need to do is defrost & heat , beef tips & noodles ,,angel hair pasta with broccolli & hot peppers ,meat loaf, mac& cheese ,Creamed dryed beef ( she will need to make her own toast hahahah, , stuffed porkchops , Tapalia with a tomatoe basil crust , & tapalia with a cracker crumb crust ( the talipaia was on sale so I loaded up ) , there was a rice dish to go with the fish, but it was a Zaterans box mix so I cant take credit for that one , , everything else was home made , the mac & cheese was the best to me , a little hot pepper cheese added to the the dish gave it just enough heat to let you know its not your ordinary mac & cheese , the mix of cheese was tasty as all get out ! a lot of sharp chedder a touch of blue a dash of feta , a handfull of American, & a big hand full of the KING Regeano Parmageno , a dash of nutmeg & in the oven it went right along with the meat loaf , shopping time cigar breaks & clean up all done in less than 4 hours , dammmm I forgot the turkey burgers & the lemon pepper chicken & the chicken with stewed tomatos & the 6 omlets , just drop them still frozen in a pot of boiling water still in the plastic cooking bag & in a few minuts it will be lip smacking good & hot but a little rubbery, I havent figured out howlong it needs to cook & how long you need to boil it before you find that happy medium of time VS doneness with out hitting the rubber ball stage , I am not one for tossing out the mistakes & have a bad habbit of not keeping good notes on a project so I find my self reapeating the same things just looking for the right time & tempature to hit the sweet spot of perfect done ness from the freezer to the plate with out getting a rubber ball out of it ! , just getting way to old to rely on remembering hat I did last time , the raveges of Time on the brain & body ! , well after all of yesterdays cooking I am ready for the task today, but it will be simple bacon wrapped tenderloin with a double baked spud No fuss , simple straight fwd, easy cooking, fire up the grill & bingo before you know is time to wash dished hahahahaha .
I will be leaving work early Monday the gransons playing piano at the school Monday evening, so I will be there for the world premier of his "Seasons "4 part solo , a bit to classical for me , he needs to JAZZ it up a little , not that i dont like classical , but Beethovenn he isnt , he needs to stick to the simple stuff till his hands get bigger to cover a bigger spread , I dont need to work about covering a wide spread, I play like I type, Index finger of each hand, thats it , the arms get a workout but the fingers never leave the palm of my hand behind hahahaha
Nuber 2 Grandson is having a bit of a constapation problem, well with the family history of being Full of $hit he has taken it to a new level, pore little guy , he went to the doctors had 6 tubes of blood drawn & an x ray of the gut & got his first "Interal " exam , my daugher said the look on his fase was a kodak moment , "WHAT WAS THAT" was his utterence hahahahaha well at 10 years old I am sure he will be getting a lot more of the dredded cold finger when he starts to have prostrate exams , dammm I hate that trip to the doctors evey August , word to the wise , find a doctore with small T H I N but LONG fingers , trust me I did have a doc with short thick fingers , Glad he retired ! hahahahaha
We had a cool week here in da burgh 40's at night 60's in the day a little frost one night so it is way to soon to put in the tomato plants, I dont thing I am going to plant anythis year, My chive plants are almost knee high all ready & the oregano came back very nice but the rosemary didnt do well over the winter, the rose bush surived & the raspberrys are sending out shoots & green leaves, but thew dammmmmmmmmmm maple trees, & pine trees, why did I ever plant them????? pine cones & whirrle birds all over the place , next liftime FRUIT TREES , then I can make a pie , the dammm pine trees just make a mess 7 the maples do make a lot of shade , but the seeds they drop are all over the place, if I didnt keep up with them I would have a maple forest instead of a lawn............ dammmmmmm I messed that up 30 years ago, I should have just let them all grow & then I wouldnt be needing to have the wife cut the grass hahahahaha , , trees all over the place, no grass to cut & no leaves to rake , just let Nature take care of her self BUT NO we got to cut down the trees, plant grass water it feed it & cut it , maybe I should move to the beach, NO grass just sand !!!
I have been busy in my taste testing lab looking for the Morning cigar & thought I might have a new starter to replac the Don Carlos #3 , but after the third morning withn the Olivia "V" lancero I went back to the DC3, still looking , a life long Quest , its the journey not the destination .... & to complacate the taste buds this morning I have over looked the Sunday morning POT of KONA for a new blend from our new coffee roaster in new brighton Pa , it is called the Black & Gold City of Champions blend , so it has been quite a few years since Pittsburgh had a winning baseball team we di get the World Seriers, SuperBowl & Stanley Cup all at the same time well it is a mix of light & dark roast coffees all from the Americias, the little bit of Kona that is in the blend is part of the light roast mixture & the dark roast Brazillian Santos gives it the zip that i enjoy from American coffees, not that African or Asian coffees are bad, I dont think I have ever had BAD coffee , a lot of them have been better than others & I have found my share of pots that would be better used to put out the campfire but all in all coffee is like a cigar , I would rather share a bad smoke with a good friend than a FINE cigar with some one who id just a total @$$hole , so I seam to smoke alone most of the time hahahahaha yea my "friends" think the same way I do , so I guess they world rather smoke alnone hahahahahahaha
looks like the day will be cool & a bit wet, so I will be headed out to the Qtr.Deck soon & fire up a DC3 & maybe go for a little walk this afternoon , & fill the country side with sweet cigar smoke !! Enjoy, Vince

[Vince]

Good Morning iot is Sunday , 11 May 2008, Mothers Day, ! so happy mothers day to all you "Mothers" & MOTHERS out there , , that raises a question , if to day is Mothers day , when is fathers day, well it was 9 months ago hahahaha ! , I have been as busy as a one legged man in an @$$ kicking contest, getting ready for the Cigar crawl next Saturday , getting ready in the mind as well as the body, you need to have the game face on & realllllly mean it , this is no light weight event, a weekend of smoking drinking & eating, well the eating part I have mastered years ago & have retired undefeted ( before the Japaneeses sensation Cobashi was even Born hahahaha ) some people called me a Glutton , but I always thought of my self as a Gourmet with a harty appitite . hahahaha
well since it is sunday & mothers day , my wife is heading to the nursing home to pick up her mother & bring her here for supper so i have a pot roast in the oven all ready , getting ready for the old lady, I just hope is has a few diapers with her , , she forgets to go to the bathroom, well she is a weeee bit older than she was 38 years ago when I married her daughter , some time she remembers who I am , some times she even remembers her great grandsons, but has no idea who there mother (her first grandchild & my daughter is but knows her kids , well i guess she still thinks her granddaughter is still that little girl in the bright yellow dress getting ready for Church on Easter Sunday, she has that photo of her on her dresser at the home ( she was about 4 or 5 in the photo ) now she is 35 , dammmmm time flys
My brother in laws oldest son & his wife had a little Girl Monday , Anna , 6.12 & 20 inches , the baby looks like winston Churchill, hahahahah, as do most babys !!!, his first but his 2 brothers all ready have 2 each, , so my Brothet in law has 2 grandsons & 3 grand daughers so far , a great way to increase the population of the world ! , me well I am DONE , just one daugher, & 2 grandsons , & who knows how many babys they will bring in the world, right now they both think girls are YUCKKIE , just wait a few years they will change there minds I hope hahahahaha
we have a rainy day here in da burgh , a bit cool , but with the oven on & the windows closed I am sitting here at the computer in my underware & am comfortable , yea I know more info than you needed , but I didnt post any photos hahaha, just use your imagination, Picture the statue of David , with the 6 pack abs & bulging Bicepts & chiseled chest, got that in yopur mind , well Good cause I aint niotheing like that hahah, no six pack abbs here, just a KEG shape hahaha , but it isnt as bad as it was 6 years ago hahahaha

Yesterday was a Killer, I had to spend the entire day in the car with the wife hitting a few stores , getting stuff ready for her mothers visit today , we hit wallmart,kamart, toys are us , a few grocery stores & then we had to go to the "MALL" for her to exchange stuff she got last week & get vitimins at the health food shop, , I went from shop to shop being the package handler so she had both hands free to shop ! , well after the soccor game & shopping I only got in 2 cigars all day long , the starter was an Olivia special S corona , & a series C Monte torp was the second & last of the day, she had me so dammmmmm busy I didnt have time for any more by the time we got home & unpacked everything it was time for bed so i missed my training regiment by 8 cigars for the day , i am ramping up for the crawl next weekend ! , gotta get the toxin levels at an all time HIGH for the big blow out ! hahahaha
I got the state inspection done on the wifes car, it needed 4 tires & a minor adjustment to the emergency brake cable, it never gets uded so it rusted ! , it is a 93 Contour with 88K on the clock, I have a 2000 Sable with 166K , she never seams to put verry many miles on her car , I guess since I dont smoke in her car we always go in mine ! , well I am paying for the gas in both of them ...... in more ways than one hahahaha

the Local Orthodox Church has a Perogi sale last friday , ( it is an eastern european stuffed dough ball, like ravoli ) ours were filled with cheese , sourkraut or a prune puree called lectvar , some had potatos , I was able ( in my heyday to stuff 42 of them down my pie hole at a sitting ), but I stopped at 4 this time , dammmm what a letdown, but now I am 202 pounds ligher than I was before , THAT feels GOOD ! , but I still miss the food !
the Coffe is a new roast for us , a strong dark roast from a new roaster in New Brighton, this is a nice cup 2.5 ounces of fresh ground coffee & my wife made 12 cups, I would have rather she made 10 with the same amount of coffee , I do like my coffee to stand up with out a cup hahaha , but this was good, I have a pot of Kona waithing to brew & when I am finished posting it will go on & I will head to the Qtr.DECK with my buddy Don Carlos III , I am still looking for a better morning smoke but havent found it yet, , it must be way over 10 years no maybe closser to 15 that the #3 has been at the top of the list for a First of the day smoke , I tryed the NUB Connecect , it just didnt have the zip & the Hanano didnt have the taste I was looking for early in the morning, So many cigars , so little time, you only get ONE first cigar of the day & I hate to experament EVERY morning, so days you just need to comfort & enjoyment of the REGULAR smoke ....

its raining here in da Burgh & I am in the need of more coffee & a pair of pants on my formerly fat
@$$ , so I think I will grab a bar of soap hop in the shower 7 get on with my day of cooking smoking & spending a little ( as little as possable ) time with the mother in law ! , Enjoy your mothers day celebration !!
Enjoy, Vince

[Vince]

Good morning it is Sunday May 18, 2008, the DAY AFTER the Cigar Crawl , I am suprised at my self for being up & able to type this early in the day as I did consume a lot of EVERYTHING , But I did limit my food intake , but as far as sipping whisky & coffee & cigars , well lets just say I was welll taken care of , the hooch was well recieved by all, & the contraband cigars were smoked with a lusty zeal I havent seen since last cigar crawl, needless to say i did have a GREAT time , , & I didnt need to cook breakfast for every one this year , the dining room was staffed & there was coffee made , the hostess was the same one as the night before in the lounge, she was still dressed for her evening job, looking like she never had gone home , But the food was hot well cooked 7 the coffee was hot as well as the food , so it was a Good morning for sure , the buss was on time , & after our First stop was had to return to the hotel as one DUMB$HIT left his wallet in his room, well he lost his Veteran status & had to be a NEWBEE the rest of the day , you know like ,,light my cigar Bitch, , carry my bags bitch & the related hazing that goes on with Fresh meat on the crawl, hahahaha, we had a record number of new crawlers this year so it was easy to pick on some one , well next year they get to pick on ther new ones that they get to go, but since this years activitys sold out 2 months in advance they better get the $$$ in soon for next years deposit ......

we started the day at Cordys Cigar box in Girrad Ohio , with the smoking ban in effect in ohio we were law breakers on the bus comming & going to Cordys , how do you hide a Smoke belching 55 passenger Tour bus with the open roof vents belching cigar smoke to the tune of 12 tons of smoke per minute !!!! hahaha, well we got out of Ohio with out incedent , we next stopped at Klafters in New Castle Pa where we all spent a Lot of Cash, & melted down a few credit cards , I picked up an old partial box of Perdomo small figurados with a natural rosado wrapper, sweeeeet smoke back in the day when they were being made , lots of age on them now , so this morning instead of my DC#3 , I have a R&J contraband pitite corona picked out for number 1 & the Rosado wrapped Pradomo for #2
we next went to Greg Powells Rivertown Dining room, , all I can say is GREG YOU DID A WONDERFULLLLLLLLLL JOB , Mudbug bisque , wild turkey 80 , duck salad with a warm orange vinererette , wild turkey 101 , osoboco with garlic mashed, , wild turkey rare bread, & a warm chololate torte with fresh berrys & wild turkey honey liquore , well after all the Hooch on the bus & with lunch I was feeling no pain , then we hit KING Beaver , jammed up the place for an hour or so & then headed off to the south side of Da Burgh for Blums cigars , complete with a "Dancer " in just a spandex "Dress?" , nothing under it , & at various times , the top was down & the bottoms were up, , as well as a few of the NEWBEES hahahaha, , but after 38 years of marrage the idea of loong with out touching sort of looses its luster so being the quiet reserved & saintly man I am hahahahahaha , HELL YES I LOOKED & touched hahahah, BUT MY @$$ was smaller & firmer than hers was hahahahaha , she tred to spank me , but the cheecks were so calloused over from the wife riding my @$$ for the past 38 years i didnt feel much at all hahahaha, back on the buss to my favorite stop Allegheney Smoke works in Blawnox Pa , Just about 35/40 miles from King Beaver , it is close enough to visit but we dont take each outhers customers away from each other so a good relationship has developed over the years & we hold out winter NOG & GROG party there & it was the location of Vince Fest when I had my first cigar after the BY Pass a few years ago, , then it was on to Siba for our party & door prises , wow what a night , !!!!!!! , I got to bed early this morning & now I have to get things going here to take the Boss to Ambridge for Nationality day s & get the freezer stocked with Stuffed grape leaves from the Greek Booth & Hagas from the Celtic Booth ,Schnitzel from the Austrain Booth,Sausage fro the German Booth & Sweet potatoe pie from the African American Booth , & what ever we find that is looking good till we run out of freezer space , did I her bacalava ?
when I was out having a geeat time with the cigar crawl my wife was at the Lincoln High school for the arts watching "Leader of the pack"with our daugher & Barbs sister , she said it was a great show , so we both had a great weekend , I dont need to cook today witch is good as I am a BIT tired hahahaha, it must have been all the booze, cigars coffee & food I had yesterday & the small amout of sleep I got last night that is making me "tired" today hahahaha
one last thing , I had a GREAT TIME & will be hoping to do it again this Tuesday , as i will need Monday to recoop ! hahaha Enjoy, Vince