Mid-Week Thunder

My redemption tour headed north yesterday to allow me some time with friends while my Favorite Panamanian feasted on the tax-free shopping available in my hometown. My wife didn’t seem all that excited until we arrived and then she was off like a shot without even asking for directions because TJ Maxx was sending its siren call to one of its favorite daughters and that’s the type of place she remembers how to get to. She dropped Keene Friend and I off on Main Street which led to, you guessed it, a couple pubs. I stared across the street at the former site of the Cobblestone which now just held a pile of rubble form the post-fire demolition. Based on earlier consult with my Kindergarten Friend I had to commence reconnaissance for a replacement bar for the Cobblestone for the November birthday pub crawl.

Wife Finally Showed up at Margarita's

He and Cantankerous Friend suggested I try Modestman Brewery which set up in a former bank on Main Street a few years ago. I’ve avoided it because the beer is expensive and craft beers are not my forte. Why pay more for something I wouldn’t enjoy as much as a Coors Lite? I bit the bullet and we walked into Modestman which looks nothing like a pub. It more closely resembled an auto parts store but we ordered a couple overpriced beer and sat down to assess the locale. We decided it would fit nicely in the crawl, if only for one beer. It sits between two real bars, the Lab ‘n Lager and Kilkenny’s. It was a weekday afternoon so there were hardly any other people there but I know a hipster location when I see it. It was probably the middle age guy with a purple mohawk and a t-shirt proclaiming F- - k the Police and Everyone Else as well.

After our one beer we retreated back to the more mundane and definitely more welcoming Lab ‘n Lager. There were sports on multiple screens, a real bar, and people who didn’t seem to question the concept of reality. We had a very nice stay and the Cantankerous Friend stopped by to show us his “not pink!” bike. He had shown a picture to my Favorite Panamanian of the bike who complimented him on his pink bike. He’s been trying to overcome that title ever since. We admitted it wasn’t a bubblegum pink but more of a magenta. I told him he should be proud of his bike no matter what color people thought it was. Shortly thereafter we were joined by the aforementioned worthy, Kindergarten Friend. He still works and noted I was thunder running and joined us for a few libations. Exactly the kind of day I was hoping for when we set out from Worcester. Great people, great location, and beer.

Keene Friend at Modestman

Keene Friend and I eventually got hungry and wandered across the street to Margarita’s hoping the Favorite Panamanian was getting hungry. She was but also was not about to abandon the hunting grounds yet. We set up at the front window and watched Keene walk by for a couple hours. Around 8:30pm I finally sent her a text saying we were going to start ordering food and if she didn’t get there soon the kitchen would be closed. She and the food arrived at just about the same time as she regaled us with stories of the bargains she found. At least I think that’s what she said, a lot of beer had been sent downrange by that point. As we were leaving, we saw a fellow high school classmate who rides bikes with the Cantankerous One at the bar. She said she had just seen him at another bar trying to convince people there that his bike was not pink.

Lab 'n Lager

We declared victory and returned to Kene Friend’s house to drop him off. He asked us to come in and produced a birthday cake for my Favorite Panamanian. That’s the kind of guy he is. She was down in Panama for the actual date but he wanted to insure we got a chance to celebrate it together. I once again confirmed my long held belief that cake and beer are truly the food of the gods when consumed together.

Birthday Girl

Speaking of birthdays, tomorrow, BR3, the youngest granddaughter, turns two. I can’t believe that’s already rolled around but she’s shown recent signs of truly embracing her role as a two year old. She has more personality than is probably legal and can suffuse a room with light just be smiling, which she does a lot. Happy birthday wild one, I can’t wait to celebrate with you!

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RECURRING CHARACTERS:                                        

ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete - my daughter in law; BR3 – Blog Reader #3 – granddaughter #3; BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter; First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd musquetera (musketeer); Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member; PanaGals – female relatives /friends of my wife from Panama; Panamanian/Latin Mafia – inevitable group of Latino friends my wife accumulates wherever we have lived & their spouses; Pittsburgh College Roommate– high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; Soxfather - my brother in law; Tia Loca – wife’s younger sister; Wingman – my son in law; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom, of course