Sunday Morning Smoke

Good morning from the deep freeze , today is the 14th day in a row of below freezing temps , but we dont have as much snow as Oswego NY , dammmm I do feel sorry for those people over 8 feet of snow & it is still coming down , DAMMMMMMMM !!!!!!!!!
we it has been a strange week here in da Burgh, beside the fist fight at the shop last friday night between to $hit heads , I got rear ended Tuesday when I was leaving the cigar shop, by a van , the car is drivable but I cant open the trunk or the back doors , both my wife & I have a little whiplash , but no broken bones or blood loss , lots of bruised knees & shoulders . we will both be going to the Chiropractor to get adjusted , dammm I love the sound of bone cracking hahahahaha
I haven't been in the Qtr.deck for over a week now , just way to COLD , I have suspend the morning walk with Don Carlos , just to dammm cold to enjoy it , we have been below 0 & have had wind chills to a minus 20 at times , my water line froze & it cost me over a C note to have a plumber come & unthaw the dammmmm pipes , well I guess that cuts down on my next box of Cigars hahahaha
the Sunday morning pot of Kona is still at the forefront, no matter how cold it gets , outside , I can still enjoy a pot of Kona on Sunday morning, , I do have a plan for a Sunday Morning smoke , I will be headed to the gas station to fill up the tank, & I plan on taking Don Carlos with me , IV , just to cold to take the time for a III
I will be making Pork fried rice today , the boneless chops are in the marinade right now , you know I hate getting any kind of meat with out a bone in it,....., I like a t bone , porterhouse or Rib steak better than a fillet , the same with a chuck roast, I cant find a chuck roast with a bone in it at any super market , everything is boneless, & the butcher would give you the soup bones , they tossed them , but now they charge a $1.99 a pound for Bones , , they charge extra for boneless cuts & then charge you for the bones , dammmmm they have us bent over & are giving it to us real good ! hahaha

Not much else going on in da burgh, OH YEA I almost forgot , the 4 year old Convention center in da Burgh , was gearing up for the car show, a loaded 18 wheeler crashed right through the floor , YEA BABY like this building is safe , a few days below zero & it snaps like a twig , lets hear it for giving the bid to the lowest price & to hell with the safety regulations , whe a slab of cement 18 inches thick filled with rebar snaps under the weight of a truck , well some one is fudging the numbers on the tests if there ever were any tests made , this was in the loading dock area & it was made to support trucks , well some one "GOOFED" to say the lest, no one was hurt but a lot of heads will roll soon ! or we might just get the regulation government cover up & some one's brother in law will be awarded a Huge contract to repair it , My guess & gut feeling will be the Brother in law kicking back some of the cash to some one & the entire mess being swept under the rug
& now our ILLUSTRIOUS Governor ed rendel wants to raise the sales tax in the state to 7% & add 7.6% to cigars ,dip & chew, raise the state income tax & tack on 10 cents to each pack of cigarettes , all ready at a Buck a pack ( well that one is OK for me )
& there are a few other taxes he wants to impose & raise , what a $HIT HEAD , he should go back to school & study economic from the same people who taught JFK , he LOWERED the tax rate & the treasury was awash in money,, every one thinks Ronnie was the father of trickle down economics , But JFK did it first & it worked then Just like it will work now if Congress ever STOPS SPENDING my grandsons income today !!, well so much for my political rant this fine brisk COLD Sunday morning , I am headed to the kitchen for a second pot of coffee & check the chops & maybe add a few sliced onions to the mix . Enjoy the rest of your Sunday Morning , I want a smoke about right now but its to dammmm cold, looks like a cigar ride in on the menu today hahaha Enjoy, Vince

Plastic pipes do not like fire !! & the new construction is almost 100% Plastic pipeing , no more copper lines & cast iron sewer pipes , its all PVC & the crap you glue , I dont know if anyn of the new bread of plumbers can soder a joint to save there life , but they can glue up a manifold for a Kitchen, 2 bath & laundry room in about 20 minuts .
The fight started when one guy said the Germans were a war like people , it was in there blood, & one other $hit head who is German , responed No we are not a war like people , & soon the fists were in full swing, , the worst thing that cold have happened did happen, a bottle of Coppela wine worth 20 bucks got broke , but it was opends & about half consumed , but the Killer to it all was a WONDERFUL Bottle of 16 YO Laugavulin , just poured in a Bacaratt chrystal snifter , it was sitting there breathing , waiting for the snifter to be raised to my lips & kiss the taste buds with that warm thick Islay taste & aroma well it never got close to my lips , the bottle & snifter went on the floor with a great crash & then SOBS of disbelief , a wonderfull bottle of whisky distoyed before its time with out ever being filered through my kidneys , I was going to pick it up with a sponge , but with all the salt & grime on the floor , I didnt was to kill the taste of a fine whisky with salt ! , both combatants are persona non gratta & one Stupid @$$ who called the cops , the last thing we need is a police report filled with a fight in the place , the bad thing is both them combatants were sober , no one had had a drink yet , but when the tempers flair no matter how cold it is outside the blood boils inside . Dammmm $hit Heads

Enjoy, Vince

I am a Whore horse hahaha, & NO one paid for any damages , but ME, we had to replace a broom handle, it got broke between the first & second rounds, when I was cleanup up the broken ashtrys & wine bottle they calmed down, but one $hithead got a little rambunctious & went after the other $hit head a second time, I had the broom in my hand cleaning up the first mess & used the broom to keep them apart, hence the broken handle, thats when the scotch & snifter & an other ashtray got broken, a $70. bottle of scotch,a 20 bottle of wine , a broom, & cieling tile that was damaged by the broom handle , 2 ashtrays one glass top for the ashtry stand, ( the sales lady at Pier One informed me they were not ashtry stands but plant stands ) , so between all the damage, & the bad blood & lost customers ( 2 new guys first time in walked out & I havent seen them since ) we lost a lot of capital & brownie points with the police & ambulance crew , we had to call the ambulance for one of the $hit head combantants, he had a great looking cut under his left eye , from a round house right delevered by the other $hit head combantant , with all the cursing & name calling , the place didnt get into its Frida Night Vibe, even Coltrain on the CD player didnt improve the mood , I put on some BB King & that didnt help at all, so I went for the big Guns & switched to Mozart & Bach, that did settle it down & when I pulled out the bottle of Fonseca Port all was well with the remaining creatons . , but my back is hurting from the scuffel & then the accident, dammmm I need some Vicodan or OC hahahahaha , but I think I will just stick to the cask strength single malt ! hahaha Just dont let my liver fall on hard times Now hahahaha , Enjoy, Vince

& I did go for the DC 2 , last one in the humi, dammmm where did they all go , some one must be smoking my cigars agin, looks like I need to start locking it again , just to keep my self out of it hahahaha

Not me I am a lover not a fighter , the reason I joined the Navy was that when we go into battle we have our beds, showers toilets & stoves right with us , the rest of them dont have all the good comforts of home 24/7. war like , no not me , BUT DONT MESS WITH MY COFFEE ,SCOTCH, OR CIGARS , hahahahaha
Enjoy, Vince

Good Morning fellow cigar smokers,posters & lurkers , I want to tell you all right from the start this has been a HORRIBLE week here in da Burgh, cold , snow & slow in the shop, a good day here & there but nothing to write home about , Valentines day sale was utterly dismal, I had all the left over Christmas stock at 50% off just to get rid of the bright red foil wrapped boxes ( I did have a methode to my madness when I did that at Christmas & didnt use green, ( I am saving the green ones for St. Patricks day )
well the snow is falling AGAIN, But we didnt get hit as bad as Oswego NY, we got 12 inches , they got 12 feet, GOD Help them !
I have been experamenting with Decafe at the shop, making it just a wee bit stronger than the regular coffee & no one seamed to notice & complain about it being decafe , so untill some one askes , they will not know unless they read it here, & some of our customers cant read anyhow ,let alone have a computer hahahaha , those who do , well they get a heads up on the coffee for monday, right now I give the stuff away, but soon I will start charging for it , I am paying for the coffee & cups out of my own pocket, not the shops money, & the customers who want cream & sugar know to bring there own , I dont use it , I dont buy it , but when I start to charge for the coffee , & I will be soon,I will provide the cream & sugar , all the lockers are in place now & there are a few left to rent , 20 total lockers, complete with a brass plate on it with your name or what ever you want on it , one of the state police officers has his badge number on his ( & yes we do give a 10% discount to any law enforcement officer or Fireman )
so now that all that BS is taken care of , lets get down to the food & cigars, , today I will be making a chicken dish of some sort, I still havent thought it out as well as I should have, I do know I have a package of skinless,boneless chicken breasts, , so it is going to get a marinade for sure & other than that I have no idea what I will do with them till I look in the pantry & see what is available , I will be making spinich & fetta cheese pockets with the chicken so it will have a middle east spice to it for sure, I do know it will have onions & garlic for sure, cant NOT have garlic in a middle east dish , I since I dont have any chick peas , I cant make hummis with the chicken , oh well I am sure I will be able to figure some thing out by the time I get to the kitchen . , I pased on the Kona this morning, just to cold & snowy for a light roast coffee, so I made a pot of Dark roast Columbian Superemo, with a little Costa Rican tossed in on top for a little added sweetness , dammmmm the snow is comming down HEAVY right now, this is the time I realy miss cian & his first mate , dammmm to be in the sub tropics right now ,,,,,,, But my life is here in da Burgh , & I cant think of any one better suited to live my life but ME ! hahaha , I dont know if I could be happy it being warm all the time, right now I have on a long sleeve t shirt & a flannel shirt over it with a sweatervest , jeans & boots , when i was out cleaning the snow off the walk way & drive way I had on a leather flight jacket & a tossel cap & gloves, I came in when my hands got cold , so I will be going back out to finish before noon , I am warm now , but will be chilled soon, like a fine bottle of Bubbly, I will be chilled just right hahahaha, I havent been to the Qtr.Deck all week again , Just to dammmm cold & I just dont have the time to wait for the heater to warm it up, & the cost of running it 24/7 is just way to much , when it gets below zero with a 20 MPH wind, I dont need a cigar that bad hahahaha , I can smoke all I want at work , well I guess its not work if you enjoy it hahaha
I smoked a FINE cigar yesterday after a Filet of beef for lunch a Tony Saparano Signature. C.A.O. , BIG S.O.B. but not as strong as I was looking for , not mild but a wonderfull middle of the road power, great taste with the 12 YO Glenfiddich & coffee & last night when my wife & I went for our Saturday night cigar ride I had a Monte white corona , we stopped at the local coffee shop & got a cup of joe to go & rode arround listening to the Parrie Home Companion on the local NPR station & by the time the news from Lake Woebegon was over we were ready to head for home as it had started to snow & the roads were getting a little slick , so we decieded to call it a night & headed to the house , I did clean the walk way & drive way last night but had to do it all over again this morning , dammmm snow ! maybe a move to the Virgin Islands isnt such a bad idea hahahaha , but then what would I do with all my long sleeve shirts & Boots , dont think I would need them there hahaha
well its almost noon & have have a Don Carlos calling to me & a warm car to sit in ( I need to go to the store & get milk ) , well thats what I told Barb any how hahaha . Enjoy, Vince

Honey said:

Vince,
Sorry to hear about the unfortunate turn of events. If they couldn't respect each other, they could have at least respected the $70 scotch??? Anyways, glad that you weren't hurt physically. Hang in there and I promise not to start a fight when I visit. Twoputts is a Navy guy also, so if I bring him you should also be pretty safe.

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Honey , you can stop anytime & if you start a fight I know I can just pick you up & toss you out in a snow drift till you calm dow hahahaha , the $hitheads I was dealing with were both over 225 pounds each, now that I have lost that much , & am tipping the scales at 220 I dont want to jump in & toss my weight ( what little I have left ) arround, BUT IF you start some thing , YOUR IN BIG TROUBLE hahahahahahahaha , I might put you over my knee & spank you ( then you can spank me hahahahaha )
Enjoy, Vince

The Colonel said:

Vince, with spinach and chicken, the only way to go is Joe Perry's Hot Sauce!!

Had a Monte Afrique Kilimanjaro and black coffee at Big Nose Kate's Saloon.

More later...

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it is going on after it gets cooked, , when you roast anything with the JP Hot sauce it seams to loose a little heat, or maybe I put to much lemon the last time ? Enjoy, Vince

I try to keep a 2 year supply , but lately it isnt even close, to 3 months before i had the by pass I did have a 2 year supply , at a Box a month I had 24 un opened boxes & roted them every month, but I sold off a lot of cigars & I payed off my house "Just Incase " the doc screwed up & I never got off the table , that way my wife had nothing to worry about , but now 3 years later I am doing fine & re investing in cigars for the future !

well here we are , Sunday 25 Feb 07, , it has been a slow week here in da Burgh Cold wet & lots of ice on the roads & walkways , it did get warm enough to get it all cleaned & here it is 30F & raining again, the rain hits & freezes , the car looks like it has a nice coat of wax right now , but soon it will look like a big batch of ice & say good by to the paint job, because my wife will be out there with a broom , dragging it all over the car it get it cleaned off , I have told her countless times , LET IT MELT, but I give up the car is a 2000 with 140+K on the trip meter & there is about a thousand bucks damage on the back end from the last time it was hit , just been to dammm cold to get it to the body shop to get it fixed , I do have rental coverage but some thing about the little rentals that I dont like , mainly the size , I am just not all that comfortable in a little car, not that my Sable is a Tank , but I feel at ease with some thing that size, , sure I want to go bigger but I am not a big SUV fan , I dont need 4 wheel drive , dont want to pay for it , so why get it , if the road is that bad that I need FWD , I'll stay home a day & let the road crew clean the streets before I venture out , I figure if its bad enough for me to stay home , its bad enough for the shop to stay closed till I get there !
I had a great white Pizza this past week, thin crust , with Provolone cheese right on the crust ,Basel , crushed garlic all over that, Capacolla & prosciutto, Supersede over that, black olives , yellow hot pepper rings ,roasted red pepper strips , mushrooms , all covered with mozzarella & sprinkled with Romano & oregano when it came out of the oven , not a tomato near it , but it might have been a tad better with a few diced roma tomatos tossed on anyhow .

I did make it out to the Qtr.Deck this past Thursday & was joined by 2 buddys , it was about 65F in there after a few hours of heat being added when we went in & about 70F when we left , all in all it was a grand evening , I smoked a Camacho Demedia , sipped a little single malt & drank coffee , we listened to Miles & Coltrane , & the BS was as good as ever , dammmmmm it was a good night, well I need to get dressed , get the salt on the drive way & bring in the sunday paper, that will keep the wife busy all day !
enjoy, Vince