Photos from Jerry's Tiki Bar, Millens Bay, NY

Local music legend Tom O'Riley at Jerry's Tiki Bar

Here are some photos I snapped today at Jerry's Tiki Bar in Millens Bay, NY. The place just opened a week or so ago. It's a great atmosphere. My brother Al & I just dropped in to have a beer and check it out. To our pleasant surprise the very talented musician and song writer Tom O'Riley was playing there. So we caught his last set. There was a beautiful breeze coming off the lake that tempered the afternoon heat. It was a perfect northern New York day.

Local music legend Tom O'Riley at Jerry's Tiki Bar

Local music legend Tom O'Riley at Jerry's Tiki Bar

Jerry's Tiki Bar, Millens Bay, NY

Jerry's Tiki Bar, Millens Bay, NY

Jerry's Tiki Bar, Millens Bay, NY

Jerry's Tiki Bar, Millens Bay, NY

Sink Cabinet Repair, Club Sandwich, Beer May 11 2024

Don't let the glass fool you. It contained Sierra Nevada IPA. I would NEVER drink Michalobe Ultra.

What I did Yesterday, May 11, 2024. 

BEFOR: Under the kitchen sink, apartment no 1, Clay St. 

I repaired the floor of kitchen sink base cabinet in apt No. 1 of our Clay St house. I used some scrap plywood to crudely replace the missing particle board of original cabinet floor. I then cvered it with some left over flooring planks. It is sturdy and looks good and is sealed up against bugs, mice and any other vermin that might show up unannounced. 

Couple scraps of 1/2 inch plywood to cover most of hole and support new flooring.

Final result: Strong, clean, attractive. 

About 6:00 pm we decided to take a drive, no place special, just toward the lake. Next thing you know we were at the Shangra La bar / restaurant on Point Peninsula. They just opened for the season. Musician Adam Netto was playing there. Nice surprise. I had a couple beers and a garlic pizza with chicken and bacon. The Better Half had a turkey club sandwhich. The food was delicious. Tab came to $51.00

An excellent turkey club sandwich served up at Shangra La on Point Penninsula, NY.

It was a quite pleasant day, mostly sunny, 55 degrees or so.

My iPhone says I walked 4,704 steps for the day. 

New Years Eve & New Years Day 2024 Kia Sorento Rear Brakes

Grilling jerked chicken wings and enjoying Red Stripe beer in Chaumont, NY on New Years Eve.

New Years Eve saw mild temperatures and no snow in Chaumont, NY. The ground was bare. In early afternoon I grilled some Jamaican jerked chicken wings. The Better Half made some deviled eggs. We boiled a pot of salt potatoes. Served it up with some Red Stripe beer, a brew from Jamaica. 

We declined an invite a small New Years Eve party at B & M's house in Rutland. However, having eaten early in the afternoon  we felt differently by 6:00pm. So we decided to go drop in on them. They were surprised & happy we showed. We left after a couple hours getting back home about 9:30.  I stayed up to ring in the new year by watching the NY City Times Square ball dropping countdown. The BH hit the hay a half hour earlier. 

We drove the BH's car (2019 Kia Sorento) and on the way the brakes started making a scraping, gritty sound. 

New Years Day I replaced rear brake pads on our 2019 Kia Sorento.

New Years Day I inspected the rear brakes. The pads were wrrn down and needed replacing. Rotors were worn some, but not to where they need replacing. 

Called Auto Zone. They were open. Set of rear brake pads were $28.00 and tax. 

January 2nd 2024 finished rear brake pads on our 2019 Kia Sorento.

Before I got them installed H & D called. We went to their house and grilled hot hot dogs, drank beer & wine. Played Phase Ten, a card game. Good fun. Got home around 10:00pm. Had some egg nog with vanilla whiskey and coconut rum. 

January 2nd I was mildly hung over and finished the rear brake job on the Sorento.

Christmas Eve at My Daughter's 2022

Christmas decor at daughter S' place. in Watertown, NY 2022

 

I spent Christmas Eve away from the Better Half this year, well, I should say not exactly. I saw her some of the day visiting her in the hospital where she was recovering from surgery to repair her right femur bone. On Thursday, December 23 she slipped on some snow and ice as we were leaving our grandson's house in Adams, NY.  By the time she was settled in the hospital a severe lake effect snow storm began and I was unable to go home. So for the next few day I was staying with my daughter S. More about that in another post.

Anyhow, it turned out to be nice spending more time with her than I have in a long time. Maybe ever. I really like how she decorated her place for Christmas. Christmas Eve morning she made great breakfast of eggs, home fries, bacon and toast. I had to shovel a great deal of snow to get out of the driveway. Hospital visiting hours begin at noon, so I was there at that time. Visiting hours end at 8:00 pm at which time I left. So I actually spent 8 hours with the Better Half.  Upon returning to S' house I had to shovel the driveway again as the snow hd been falling and blowing about relentlessly. After that I had a tasty beer, a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. S had to work overnight, but she works from home so she wasn't far away. I slept a good 10 hours that night. It was much needed.

Christmas decor at S' house. She is an artist but doesn't know it or believe it if I tell her.

Christmas decor at S' house. She is an artist but doesn't know it or believe it if I tell her.

Eggs and home fries. Missing in this photo was the toast and bacon. Superbly cooked It was like I was in a classic diner. 

My daughter S whipping up a great Christmas Eve breakfast. 

My daughters driveway looking toward Franklin St about 9:00pm after I shoveled it.

Finished the evening with Sierra Nevada Pale Ale that I had sitting outside while I shoveled snow.

Smuttynose IPA

Just got home from playing a wedding reception for an older couple on Wellsley Island. I am relaxing in my back yard with a Smuttynose Indian Pale ale.it is a mighty good beer. I have seen it on the shelves for a long time but just now bought my first 6 pack. Wow! It is bitter which is good. Most refreshing and I highly recommend it.

Self Portrait With Saranac Pumkin Ale

This is a self portrait I made with a Nikon D300, 17-55mm f2.8 lens, at my home in Chaumont, N.Y.

It wouldn't be Halloween at my house without Saranac Pumpkin Ale from the Matt Brewing Company in Utica, N.Y. Check out www.sranac.com Happy Hallowee everyone.

Thomas Jefferson Tavern Ale

Back in March when my mother was in the hospital my sister S happened to be coming from Arizona to Philadelphia, PA where her daughter lives. When she heard how desperate Mom's condition was she drove up here. She brought with her a case of Thomas Jefferson's Tavern Ale. It is a strong, rich beer made by the Yard's Brewing Co., Philadelphia, PA. The label reads: "Based on Jefferson's original recipe, this golden ale also includes ingredients that were specified and grown on his Virginia estate."
So it was that I was able to celebrate Mr. Jefferson's birthday on April 13th with that fine brew. Thank you Sister S.

The photo is a self portrait.

Christmas Ale From Great Lakes Brewing Co.

Today is Thanksgiving Day. We started things out with a special Christmas Ale brewed by the Great Lakes Brewing Co. in Cleveland, Ohio. It's a complex beer with a bitter, spicy edge and 7.5 percent alcohol. The photo is of my celebrity brother who joined the Better Half and I, along with some of her family, for a traditional turkey dinner. A good time was had by all. They have all departed and tonight I'll watch The Office on TV. One of my all time favorite TV shows.

Saranac Pumpkin Ale For Halloween

We like beer here at this blog.
Today being Halloween and we are enjoying Saranac Pumpkin Ale while we hand out candy to the trick or treaters. The beer is a limited, annual made by the Matt Brewing Company, 811 Edward Street Utica, NY 13502.

Day 208: Cooking With Beer & Love

So today it's Sunday? Where did Saturday go? Well, actually it went well. I spent a couple of hours at my friend Tom Bintz's home on Pillar Point. He has a guest with him for a few day. He was a film and photography major back in hid college days. So, over a few beers we had some good conversation about life, art, promoting your work, inspiration, and other good things. Most enjoyable.
The beer was Thousand Islands Pale Ale from the Sackets Harbor Brewing Co., Sacket Harbor, NY. A fine beer indeed. My first time drinking it.


So that brings me to Sunday. Well today I finally got down into the basement to take apart the pipe that runs from my furnace to the chimney. I needed to clean it out. You see, it tends to get rusty inside and then the rust flakes off and gathers on the bottom of the pipe. If ignored the debris will build up to where it affects the draft and cause the furnace to short cycle. Never mind why this happens, that's too much to get into right now. But anyhow, one of the elbows rusted apart at the joint & I had to replace it. Lucky for me the local;l hardware store is open on Sunday's until 3:00. So off I go. Then it occurred to me, I may as well stop at the local grocer and get a beef roast to slow cook in the crock pot. That can take place while I'm doing other chores. By the way, the Better Half is off for the day visiting one of her daughters so this will be a nice surprise for her to come home to. So here is the deal: I had so9me fresh produce from a local farm market and the crockpot idea seemed a good way to use the stuff. I placed small red potatoes on the bottom, added the beef roast, then sliced up fresh carrots, onions, garlic, and tomatoes tossed them in. Added spices, some water and there it was. In a few hours, great eats!.

Now here are a coup-le of my secrets about cooking. I cook with Love & with Beer. What I mean is I do not cook unless I want to. Not because I have to. There in lies the problem with many women in relationships. It seems the are REQUIRED to cook. That is terrible. I do not want my better half to cook ever, unless she is truly into it and wants to do it. Now of course things are different if you have kids. They must be fed, and fed on a schedule. It's also important for the family to eat as a group. But we are at a point in life where we are not obligated to eat at any set time. I would NEVER demand that she prepare my meals. And vice verso. The idea is to enjoy cooking. Most of the time I cook for me and the bonus is that I am also cooking for her. In other owrds, I simply cook with Love in my heart. It is what I want to do and it is what I want to share. I don't ever want to eat a meal if somebody felt coerced into preparing it. Do you get it? I am cooking with Love, and as best as I can tell thye Better half does the same.
Now, about the beer. When I cook, I like to drink beer. There's nothing better when it comes to peeling onions, washing potatoes, chopping carrots, and the like, than to do so while slugging a couple of beers. Suddenly it becomes festive. I think the problem many women have is that they do not drink while cooking. Break out the wine or the beer and dive in to the work. Enjoy it. If your better half walks in pour them a glass. Cheers! While you are at it you can always throw a splash of wine or beer into your recipe. It will never screw it up. You see that photo of the beef roast in the crock pot? I just put that together an hour or so ago with the great company of two of those Thousand Island beers. I loved it. Now, after posting this I am going back down to the basement and finish my furnace pipe cleaning job. Life is good. Thank you Lord.

Day Seventyone: Front Porch Beer

For a long time now my favorite beer has been Labatt Blue. Darn good beer. Prior to that It was Old Vienna. When the store near me ran out of Old Vienna I would buy Labatt Blue. Over a period of some time there seemed to be less and less OV on the shelf and more and more Labatt's. Almost without realizing it I stopped buying OV, and I now no longer see it in any stores. That's fine. I love Labatt's. In fact, for years I figured if Labatt ceased production I probably wouldn't drink beer again. Well, that's not very realistic is it? Anyhow, my celebrity brother moved back to NY after many years in the South. He likes to try out different beers. Gradually through my exposure to him, I started getting interested in other beers too. My goodness, there are a lot of beers out there and darn good ones too. Well, a couple of weeks ago I was visiting family in Cleveland, Ohio area. They turned me on to the beer pictured above: Burning River Beer, a handcrafted pale ale made by the Great Lakes Brewing Co. It's named after the Cuyahoga River that caught fire in 1969. This brew has a strong flavor, reminiscent of Guiness. Some beers are working beers. That is, you keep one close by to sip on while working on the car, or splitting your fire wood. Burning River, however, is what I call a real front porch beer! In other words, you open a beer like this and you should get away from the TV, from facebook, from any distractions. It's a worldly beer so go sit out on the front porch and savor it in the outdoor ambiance. Out there the birds are chirping, the bees are buzzing in the lilac bushes, and the neighbors lawn mower is humming in the distance down the street. Cars may pass by, and the sound of kids in the playground behind the school come whispering in now and then on the Summer breeze. I am describing what typically I hear from my front porch in Chaumont, NY. Your porch may be in a more urban setting where the sounds in the area are of kids kicking a can in the street, a distant firetruck siren, and the muffled flapping from a cloud of pigeons on the wing. Maybe your porch is an old farmhouse where the cows moo, the chickens cluck and the sputter of the neighbors tractor fades in and away as he plows the North Forty acres. My God, you go out into your own front porch atmosphere and these are your SOOTHING sounds. They are the sounds of life in YOUR neighborhood. What better place could there be to drink a front porch beer. Burning River beer: It may be brewed in Cleveland, but it's perfect for a front porch anywhere.