No, I’m not bashing any Czechs. I love all the Czechs I know. The title is my less than clever way of combining the last three days of adventure. A night of Czechs, a birthday bash, and pub crawl reconnaissance activities. So. There. First to those Czechs, my Favorite Panamanian had conspired with her Czech counterpart to identify a date we could get together. After comparing two very competitive social calendars, they realized Thursday night was the only one where both groups were available. They were joined by their Leicester neighbors of summer pool party and dahlia fame.
It was a very fun evening, which I’ve come
to expect, and hope am not taking for granted. My Czech Shadow regaled us with
tales of her first couple weeks of being a high school junior. They also brought
a very cool tradition with them. They came with a dessert and after dinner
revealed that the plate came to them for another friend and was meant to be
passed on after being signed by the giving friend. The only rule is it can’t be
gifted back to a former plate holder. So, we have that to look forward to and now
have yet a reason to host and/or attend another dinner party. Yes, we all have burdens
to bear. I’ve written so many times here on Frail Deeds concerning how blessed
my wife and I are with friends. Thursday night was yet another sterling example
of that truth. It was followed by even more demonstrations of the same over the
weekend. 
Very Fun Birthday Bash Table
Thursday Night Dinner
One of those aforementioned crowded
social calendars included a very busy weekend that started with a trip back to
my hometown on Friday morning. The inimitable KHS Class of 1973 held another
well-planned and executed gathering. Someone noted the fact that everyone in
the class was turning seventy this year which called for a celebration,
because, well, that’s how we roll. We rented the Keene State College camp on Wilson
Pond near the airport. This was also the scene of a couple of earlier reunions
and was a perfect location for Friday’s party. A pair ladies from the class planned
the event and New England provided an absolutely perfect late summer day. 
Czech Friend Passing Plate to my Wife
Keene Friend 2 and the PCR Arriving 
The Dinner Line at the Reunion 
Table of Kryptonite 
Ladies Manning the Entry Table 
Great Turnout 
PCR Holding Court Outside 
One of Fabulous Organizers Delivering Cupcake Warning
None other than that Pittsburgh worthy,
the PCR, left his Gibsonia mountain stronghold to grace us with his and his wife’s
presence. The other usual suspects were also on hand, both Keene Friends, the
Cantankerous Friend, the former CRC, the Kindergarten Friend, as well as all the
girls I had crushes on from elementary school through high school. That
assemblage of superstars more than guaranteed a special day. We spent most of
our time in the shade at the picnic tables catching up with each other and recounting
the latest adventures and, of course, given our age, health situations. I was especially
glad to spend some time with the PCR given some recent heath news. He looked
fit and had his usual collection of entertaining stories.
She is Not Pointing at Me
With Keene Friend and the Cantankerous One 
Our Great Table, Again
I had such a great time that I cleanly forgot
it was Friday (felt so much like a Saturday). Great Aunt texted me an hour
after the time of our usual First Friday Facetime call. I pled guilty to not
informing the family about my absence. Although the maximum effect range of an excuse
is zero meters, I had some reasons for my forgetfulness. Not only was there an ample
supply of beer but the organizers had cleverly arranged a table full of cupcakes
(a personal kryptonite). They made an announcement that there was a one cupcake
limit for everyone. I was already about five cupcakes deep when that announcement
was made. I was not alone in my excess. My Favorite Panamanian was taking a bite
out of each delicacy I smuggled to the table. I felt better at the end of the
event as there were plenty of leftover cupcakes left, well, at least there was
until my friends and I noticed.
A Spectacular Way to Spend the Afternoon
With my Fellow Lincoln School Elementary School Alumni 
Wife Found the One Spot with Cell Phone Reception
Being the KHS class of ’73, we were not ready
to conclude the fun with the end of the birthday party. A healthy percentage of
us gathered at Margarita’s, which for the first time in a while, was up to the
challenge of hosting us. It was a fantastic evening where we put the much
younger patrons to shame, at least when it came to partying. There was a rumor
that a couple of us were even shut off by the bar staff. I’m happy to report
that I was not. We eventually had to accept that aren’t in our twenties anymore
and called it a night, after a few memorable goodbye hugs.
Wife Assaulting Keene Friend
The fun wasn’t anywhere near over
though. My Favorite Panamanian and I spent the night at Keene Friend’s house
where his neighboring college kids didn’t hold one of their newsworthy all-night
parties for a change. The good night’s sleep was needed. We joined the
Pittsburgh duo for a Pub breakfast where Keene Friend invented a new breakfast delicacy,
combining his ice coffee with bacon. Following breakfast, the PCR had a golf
game while the two spouses went shopping. Left at loose ends, Keene Friend and
I set out on a reconnaissance for the November pub crawl. There was a lot to be
covered with a rapidly evolving Keene pub scene (that was our story at least). After
making certain both my kids were reminded of where I went to kindergarten
(inside joke), we passed by the shuttered Penuche’s Ale House. We saw some
signs of life as the dumpster out front was full and we saw a crew inside
working on something. I hold out hope it will be back in operation as our
launching point by mid-November.
Lively Margarita's Table
Hope Springs for Penuche's
We set up shop in the Lab ‘n Lager where
we were joined for a spell by Keene Friend 2. If Penuche’s remains out of play the
Lab is more than ready to stand up as the kickoff point. After Keene Friend 2
left to referee youth hockey games (don’t know where he finds the energy), we wandered
down Main Street, past the now defunct (and not lamented) Modestman Brewery, to
check out hopefully a new addition to the lineup, the Owl’s Perch. We noticed
it open on Friday night but it was closed when we walked up to it. There was a
sign saying the “super soft opening” we saw Friday night would be followed with
a solid opening late in September. So, more reconnaissance is needed to confirm
it qualifies as a crawl stop.
New Mural in Keene Commemorating Jumanji Filming There
With Keene Friend in Kilkenny's
We ended up in Kilkenny’s Pub, which has
not lost any of its dive bar ambience. I convinced myself that the license
plates adorning the ceiling were a new addition, but the bedridden Kindergarten
Friend assured me they were not. We decided to pass by Madame Sherri’s given
that it was Gay Pride recognition weekend in Keene. I spotted a new place on the
square with the name “Tavern”. This set my pulse to tapping a bit but it turned
out to be a bit of an upscale place and not appropriate for a pub crawl stop. We
then passed by another, yet to open, place on nearby Court Street where an old
church is being refurbished as a beer garden. Less information was available on
that so, again, more reconnaissance needed. We took the results of our foray to
the Pour House to compare notes.
The License Plate Ceiling
The Owl Perch Possibility 
And the Church Garden
We were joined there by the PCR and the
former CRC, fresh from their golf game as well as the PCR’s wife. She is a less
dedicated shopper than the lady I’m married to. We were eventually able to
convince my Favorite Panamanian to abandon TJ Maxx hunting grounds. We decided
to check out that tavern I noticed earlier, the Tavern on the Square. That turned
out to be a very nice place for what, in effect, was a goodbye dinner. We were
leaving for Worcester after the meal and the Pittsburgh duo were scheduled to depart
first thing in the morning. The former CRC conducted an informal briefing on
what to do and not to do when hanging blinds. There was hope his travels will
bring him to western Pennsylvania in the future to address some issues there.
It was a great night hanging out with old friends and there is not a substitute
for that. I feel lonely today after the events of the past three days, but
there is the red zone. 
Pour House Rally Point
Farewell Dinner
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; CRC - Connecticut Riverboat Captain – another close friend from high
school, renowned sailor of the big river; Curbside
Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in
Brooklyn; Czech Connection – Czech couple who’ve become good friends
along with their daughter (the Czech Shadow); 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
3rd Musquetera (musketeer); Namesake
Nephew – son of Great Aunt and Soxfather named after me; 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; PCR - Pittsburgh College Roommate – high
school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; PCR+1 - Pittsburgh College Roommate’s wife; Riggins - also known as the
Grandpuppy, son's dog; Seis Amigos - two couples from our condo complex
and my wife and I; Soxfather – my
brother-in-law (whom I miss more than I can ever explain); Tia Loca –
wife’s younger sister; Wingman – my
son in law; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom,
of course
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