TRANSPORTATION I HAVE OWNED
1948 Studebaker Starlite Coupe
1953 Mercury Hardtop
1959 Triumph TR-10 4 Door English Sedan
1965 Honda CB-150 Motorcycle
1963 Jaguar 3.8L MKII Sedan
1966 Corvette Convertible, 327cid/350HP
1965 Chevrolet Impala 4 Speed Hardtop
1970 Ford Econoline Van
1978 Chevrolet Custom Van By Doran
1983 Lincoln Continental
1987 Toyota Camry 5 Door, 5 Speed
1991 Mercury Topaz
1994 Toyota Corolla
1999.5 Infiniti QX-4
THINGS I HAVE DRIVEN
The Original 'African Queen' Motor Launch, based in Key Largo, Fl
NASCAR 600HP Ford at Homestead Motor Speedway, 142 MPH Top Speed
1st Time- Richard Petty Driving Experience, 2nd Time- Skip Barber Racing
GMC Cyclone Pickup in Tennessee
Honda 750cc Motorcycle in the hills of Tennessee
55 Ft Sailing Sloop on Long Island Sound, NY
40 Ft Houseboat in the Everglades
Go-Carts in Virginia
Dirt Bikes in Miami
Ford Van with Bad Steering, Over the Old Seven Mile Bridge in the Florida Keys
Same Ford Van, with a Bad Carb Float from Orlando to Miami, 8 Plus Hours
Red Mustang Convertible in Honolulu, Hawaii
1954 Cadillac Hearse in Puerto Rico
A 2- Mule Team, Fred and Nell, on my Grandfathers Farm in Arkansas
A Snowmobile at the Playboy Club Hotel in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
A Forklift at Life Medical Equipment in Miami
THINGS I HAVE RIDDEN ON OR IN
The Goodyear Blimp
Boeing 707, 727, 737, 747, 757, 767, 777
Lockheed L1011
McDonnell Douglas DC-6, DC-8, DC-9, DC-10, MD-87
Airbus A-320
Embraer EMB-120
Canadian Dash-8
Funicular Railway in Hong Kong to the top of Victoria Peak
Cog Railway to the top of Mt Rigi, in Switzerland
High Speed Ferry, Hong Kong to Macau
The Kat, a High Speed Catamaran (60 MPH) Miami to Nassau, Bahamas
The Queen Elizabeth II, Ocean Liner
The USS Intrepid, CVA 11, US Aircraft Carrier
The USS Francis Scott Key, a Polaris Nuclear Missile Submarine
A US Navy Rescue Helicopter, Chesapeake Bay
A Lockheed Super Constellation Hurricane Hunter Plane
A Grumman S2F Submarine Hunter Plane, with a Carrier Landing on the Intrepid
A High Speed Mexican Taxi Cab in the Yucatan
Various Buses, Jitneys, and Publicos around the Caribbean Islands
An Everglades Airboat
A Swamp Buggy in Naples, Fl
Subways in London, Paris, Singapore, Hong Kong
A Slow Ferry from Cape Cod to Martha's Vineyard
A Stella-Link Ferry from Scotland to Northern Ireland
A Hovercraft across the English Channel, Dover to Calais
A Cable Car in San Francisco
The Matterhorn at Disneyland
Space Mountain at Disneyworld
A Double-Decker Bus in London
An Elevator in the Eiffel Tower, Paris and LasVegas
A Circular Escalator in San Francisco
A Grumman Mallard 'Chalks Airline' Seaplane, Miami to Bimini
A 1 Mile High Ride on a Cable Car in Switzerland
A Mechanical Bull in Houston, Texas
A Hot Air Balloon in Arkansas Piloted by Gene Carr
A Cessna Citation Over the Rockies, Denver to Montrose, Colorado
A Boat on Loch Lomond, Scotland
A Boat on Lake Windermere, UK
A Boat on Lake Wolfgang, Austria
A Boat on Lake Okeechobee, Florida
A Boat to Alcatraz Island, San Francisco
A Glass Bottom Boat to the Reefs, Key West, Florida
A Glass Bottom Boat to John Pennecamp State Park, Key Largo, Florida
A Boat on the Rhine River, Germany, from Boppard to St Goar
A 45 Ft Deep Sea Fishing Boat, 'Sump'n Special' Islamorado, Florida
A Star Ferry from Kowloon to Hong Kong Island
The Catano Ferry, San Juan, Puerto Rico
A Ferry across the Mississippi, Mo. to Tenn.
A Boat on the Thames to Windsor Castle
A Gondola in Venice, Italy
A Chinese Junk in Singapore
A Train from London Paddington to Cardiff, Wakes
A Train from Gatwick Airport to Victoria Station, London
A Train from Waukegan, Il to Chicago
A Green Subaru from Melbourne to Prince William Island, Aus, to see the Fairey Penguins come ashore.
A White Van, Driven by Mr Silver, From Mo Bay to Negril, Jamaica for jerk pork and cliff diving
A Gray Van Around the Volcanoes on the Big Island of Hawaii
A Blue Bus from Ocho Rios, Jamaica to the Blue Mountains for some coffee beans
A Black Taxi in London
A Yellow Taxi in New York City
A Purple Taxi in Paris
A Pink Taxi in Key West
A Red Trolley in Honolulu, Sydney, and Washington, DC
A Limo Taxi to the Miraflores Locks, Panama Canal, Panama
A Horse Drawn Carriage Ride around Nassau, Bahamas
A 4-Horse Stage Coach in Ballarat, Australia
The Monorails at all the Disney Parks
A Greyhound Bus Trip from Miami to Los Angeles
A Trafalgar Tour Bus through 7 European Countries
A Frames-Rickart Tour Bus Around Southern England
An 18 Wheeler from Little Rock Arkansas to Miami Florida
Friday, September 17, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
BEER AND BRISKET- TEXAS STYLE
Every year on the last Saturday before Labor Day, my friends Bill & Nancy, in Spring, Texas, host a big BBQ for friends and relatives from all over. Depending on what the air-fares are vs. the price of gasoline, I'll either fly or drive to their place just north of Houston, in Spring. This year it was on a Continental Connection small jet, that I arrived at the George Bush International Airport. From Nashville, the flight is only 90 minutes, which means flying has a 3 day time advantage over driving round trip. Before I retired, time was an important factor, now, not so much. When I land, and have collected my luggage from the baggage merry-go-round, I call Bill on the cell thingy, and he picks me up right away.
This year I arrive at 1:30 in the afternoon, on Wednesday the 1st of September. The BBQ is on Saturday, the 4th. Nancy has to work today, so I won't see her until later. First stop is at an H-E-B supermarket so Bill can replenish the beer stock. Then we go to Spec's Liquors so I can get some bourbon for myself. I have been in a lot of retail liquor outlets, all over the country, even all over the world, and I must say that the stores in the Spec's chain in Texas are by far the most well stocked, complete stores I have ever been in. This year I found some bourbon from the Buffalo Trace distillery in Kentucky that was only $14.99 for a 1.75 liter bottle. That is an exceptional price for a quality bourbon. We were now equipped to go to Bill's home and began our pre-cookout rituals. This involves sitting on the patio and drinking, warming up our arms and shoulders for the task ahead. We will be up on Saturday at 5:30 AM to start the fire in the huge smoker on Bill's patio. After years of experience, we have found that since the festivities could last into Sunday morning, it is best not to start drinking until 11 AM on Saturday. By that time, all of the meat has been seasoned, rubbed, and placed into the cooker, and that it is time to start replacing all of the precious bodily fluids lost while tending the fire and the accompanying smoke.
When Nancy arrives home from work, it is decided that dinner that night will be at Capt. Benny's Seafood Boat, just off of I-45 at Rankin Rd. On past visits, the raw oysters at the Boat were large and priced right. A few years back, we sat there one afternoon and had several dozen with Bill's daughter, Elaine. At that time, I think we paid $2.99 a dozen as the afternoon special. This year, they were up to $9.99 a dozen, and the size was not so big. This was due to the BP oil rig disaster out in the Gulf. I passed on them since it was my first day, and more opportunities would come up. I had the special of stuffed shrimp, which was very good.
Thursday was an easy day, as planned. Nancy went to work, and Bill and I went to Denny's for breakfast.The waiter working the counter had to have been hired from the Clover Grill, in New Orleans. He was a most 'happy' fellow, and a big hit with the construction workers sitting in his area. When Nancy arrived after work, it was off to a place called 'Wings & More' in the Woodlands. I had wings, of course, and what they advertised as a 'Big Willie', which was a 32oz Shiner Bock, a Texas beer, in a big mug. The wings and the willie hit the spot.
On Friday, we awoke to a rainy day. We ran some errands, picked up some last minute things for tomorrows party, and had dinner at home. Nancy fixed some good Mexican food. The rain finally stopped and we were hoping it would dry up by tomorrow.
Saturday morning at 5:30 finds Bill and I on the patio awaiting the arrival of Nancy's son, Slugger, who lives next door. He is the fire starter today. He brings over a propane tank and a weed burner and has the fire started in just a few minutes. Where there is fire, in this case there was a lot of smoke. My eyes took a beating for a while. Bill's smoker is probably 10 feet long with a huge fire box.After about an hour, the fire was under control, and it was time to throw the briskets on. Bill has 2 big briskets, about 10 lb each, all ready rubbed with his secret ingredients, so on they went. Twelve racks of ribs went on at 10 AM, and 6 lbs of sausage at 11. It was now beer time, so we began.
Around 12:30, folks started arriving. I knew a lot of them from my days in Houston some 38 years ago, having seen them on visits I had made since then. This year was relatively peaceful, since there were no kids playing in the pool. A little after midnight, it was over. It had been a day of good drink, good food, and good company, a success by any measure.
Sunday had nothing planned, so we would just let it happen. After some coffee, we decided to drive up to Lake Conroe and see what was going on. It was a holiday weekend, so we knew that the boaters would be out in full force, proving some excitement on the water for our viewing pleasure. We arrived at 'Wolfies' on the lake, around 1 PM. They had Guinness on tap, so we were off to a good start. Sitting at the bar near us was a group of 4 young men, semi intoxicated, we thought. They were playing one of the electronic trivia game that are found in some bars, where you can play against other people in the bar, or, other bars. They weren't doing very good. So we started giving one of them the answers, behind his buddies backs. It was fun to see him getting the right answers from us, and ragging on his buddies. They never figured out how he got so smart, so quick.
After a couple of rounds at Wolfies, we drove to the other side of the cove to a place called 'Papa's'. They had a live band that was decent, and a singer that was not. We found a table in the back where it was not too loud. The high light of this place is that we had a very good view of the water, and were able to see the comedy provided by 2 'brothers' who were obviously impaired, as they tried to both get back on a jet ski It took them 45 minutes and help from some who swam out, to mount the thing again. From Papa's, we went to the Woodlands for dinner at an English pub, Baker Street. After a good dinner of fish and chips with Guinness, we called it a day.
As we turned on the morning news, we found out that a tropical storm, Hermine, had developed in the Gulf overnight. It was down close to the Texas-Mexico border, and expected to come ashore Monday night, and head due north, affecting San Antonio and Austin on Tuesday. We were planning a trip towards that area tomorrow, so we would have to pay attention and see what developed. The outer bands were supposed to cause some rain in Houston later in the afternoon on Monday, but we weren't going far that day. We went to Papadeaux's Seafood for lunch, where I got my oysters, along with some good catfish. The rain began as we drove home, and when we went out for a Mexican dinner, it was falling at a steady rate.
We were up at 6:30 to see if our trip was still possible. The storm was soaking the hill country, but Houston was clearing. We decided to chance it and head west. First stop would be at the Shiner Brewery. It's really the Spoetzel Brewery, but since it in Shiner, that is how everyone calls it.The first tour was a 11 AM, so we left Spring a little early to avoid the Houston traffic, by taking back roads. About an hour into the trip, the skies opened and we were in some serious rain, with scary looking black clouds all around. We found as we went on, that we were in the bands, and the rain would come and go. When we arrived at the brewery, it was just a light drizzle. The tour was pretty good. Only 66 people total work for the Shiner beer company, but they can put out a couple of hundred thousand bottles of beer a day if necessary. They are very generous with their free samples, so you can taste as many as 4 different brews if you want. I did, and they were all good.
Next up on the trip was some good national award winning BBQ in Luling, Texas. Unfortunately, the place we wanted to go to was closed. Fortunately, there was another place just down the street that was open. We got a sampling of ribs, brisket and sausage that was excellent. It was served Texas style, by the pound, and on butchers paper. Going back to Houston, we ran into some Oz clouds, that looked like a tornado was around somewhere.But we made it back safely. That night we went to a good Chinese buffet for my last meal with my hosts.
Bill dropped me at the Bushport at 10 AM, and I was back in Murfreesboro, Tn by 4 that afternoon.It was an excellent trip, with not much wasted time. But that is how Bill and Nancy and I plan our trips and adventures. We have done things that mortal men merely dream of. I will save those for another time.
This year I arrive at 1:30 in the afternoon, on Wednesday the 1st of September. The BBQ is on Saturday, the 4th. Nancy has to work today, so I won't see her until later. First stop is at an H-E-B supermarket so Bill can replenish the beer stock. Then we go to Spec's Liquors so I can get some bourbon for myself. I have been in a lot of retail liquor outlets, all over the country, even all over the world, and I must say that the stores in the Spec's chain in Texas are by far the most well stocked, complete stores I have ever been in. This year I found some bourbon from the Buffalo Trace distillery in Kentucky that was only $14.99 for a 1.75 liter bottle. That is an exceptional price for a quality bourbon. We were now equipped to go to Bill's home and began our pre-cookout rituals. This involves sitting on the patio and drinking, warming up our arms and shoulders for the task ahead. We will be up on Saturday at 5:30 AM to start the fire in the huge smoker on Bill's patio. After years of experience, we have found that since the festivities could last into Sunday morning, it is best not to start drinking until 11 AM on Saturday. By that time, all of the meat has been seasoned, rubbed, and placed into the cooker, and that it is time to start replacing all of the precious bodily fluids lost while tending the fire and the accompanying smoke.
When Nancy arrives home from work, it is decided that dinner that night will be at Capt. Benny's Seafood Boat, just off of I-45 at Rankin Rd. On past visits, the raw oysters at the Boat were large and priced right. A few years back, we sat there one afternoon and had several dozen with Bill's daughter, Elaine. At that time, I think we paid $2.99 a dozen as the afternoon special. This year, they were up to $9.99 a dozen, and the size was not so big. This was due to the BP oil rig disaster out in the Gulf. I passed on them since it was my first day, and more opportunities would come up. I had the special of stuffed shrimp, which was very good.
Thursday was an easy day, as planned. Nancy went to work, and Bill and I went to Denny's for breakfast.The waiter working the counter had to have been hired from the Clover Grill, in New Orleans. He was a most 'happy' fellow, and a big hit with the construction workers sitting in his area. When Nancy arrived after work, it was off to a place called 'Wings & More' in the Woodlands. I had wings, of course, and what they advertised as a 'Big Willie', which was a 32oz Shiner Bock, a Texas beer, in a big mug. The wings and the willie hit the spot.
On Friday, we awoke to a rainy day. We ran some errands, picked up some last minute things for tomorrows party, and had dinner at home. Nancy fixed some good Mexican food. The rain finally stopped and we were hoping it would dry up by tomorrow.
Saturday morning at 5:30 finds Bill and I on the patio awaiting the arrival of Nancy's son, Slugger, who lives next door. He is the fire starter today. He brings over a propane tank and a weed burner and has the fire started in just a few minutes. Where there is fire, in this case there was a lot of smoke. My eyes took a beating for a while. Bill's smoker is probably 10 feet long with a huge fire box.After about an hour, the fire was under control, and it was time to throw the briskets on. Bill has 2 big briskets, about 10 lb each, all ready rubbed with his secret ingredients, so on they went. Twelve racks of ribs went on at 10 AM, and 6 lbs of sausage at 11. It was now beer time, so we began.
Around 12:30, folks started arriving. I knew a lot of them from my days in Houston some 38 years ago, having seen them on visits I had made since then. This year was relatively peaceful, since there were no kids playing in the pool. A little after midnight, it was over. It had been a day of good drink, good food, and good company, a success by any measure.
Sunday had nothing planned, so we would just let it happen. After some coffee, we decided to drive up to Lake Conroe and see what was going on. It was a holiday weekend, so we knew that the boaters would be out in full force, proving some excitement on the water for our viewing pleasure. We arrived at 'Wolfies' on the lake, around 1 PM. They had Guinness on tap, so we were off to a good start. Sitting at the bar near us was a group of 4 young men, semi intoxicated, we thought. They were playing one of the electronic trivia game that are found in some bars, where you can play against other people in the bar, or, other bars. They weren't doing very good. So we started giving one of them the answers, behind his buddies backs. It was fun to see him getting the right answers from us, and ragging on his buddies. They never figured out how he got so smart, so quick.
After a couple of rounds at Wolfies, we drove to the other side of the cove to a place called 'Papa's'. They had a live band that was decent, and a singer that was not. We found a table in the back where it was not too loud. The high light of this place is that we had a very good view of the water, and were able to see the comedy provided by 2 'brothers' who were obviously impaired, as they tried to both get back on a jet ski It took them 45 minutes and help from some who swam out, to mount the thing again. From Papa's, we went to the Woodlands for dinner at an English pub, Baker Street. After a good dinner of fish and chips with Guinness, we called it a day.
As we turned on the morning news, we found out that a tropical storm, Hermine, had developed in the Gulf overnight. It was down close to the Texas-Mexico border, and expected to come ashore Monday night, and head due north, affecting San Antonio and Austin on Tuesday. We were planning a trip towards that area tomorrow, so we would have to pay attention and see what developed. The outer bands were supposed to cause some rain in Houston later in the afternoon on Monday, but we weren't going far that day. We went to Papadeaux's Seafood for lunch, where I got my oysters, along with some good catfish. The rain began as we drove home, and when we went out for a Mexican dinner, it was falling at a steady rate.
We were up at 6:30 to see if our trip was still possible. The storm was soaking the hill country, but Houston was clearing. We decided to chance it and head west. First stop would be at the Shiner Brewery. It's really the Spoetzel Brewery, but since it in Shiner, that is how everyone calls it.The first tour was a 11 AM, so we left Spring a little early to avoid the Houston traffic, by taking back roads. About an hour into the trip, the skies opened and we were in some serious rain, with scary looking black clouds all around. We found as we went on, that we were in the bands, and the rain would come and go. When we arrived at the brewery, it was just a light drizzle. The tour was pretty good. Only 66 people total work for the Shiner beer company, but they can put out a couple of hundred thousand bottles of beer a day if necessary. They are very generous with their free samples, so you can taste as many as 4 different brews if you want. I did, and they were all good.
Next up on the trip was some good national award winning BBQ in Luling, Texas. Unfortunately, the place we wanted to go to was closed. Fortunately, there was another place just down the street that was open. We got a sampling of ribs, brisket and sausage that was excellent. It was served Texas style, by the pound, and on butchers paper. Going back to Houston, we ran into some Oz clouds, that looked like a tornado was around somewhere.But we made it back safely. That night we went to a good Chinese buffet for my last meal with my hosts.
Bill dropped me at the Bushport at 10 AM, and I was back in Murfreesboro, Tn by 4 that afternoon.It was an excellent trip, with not much wasted time. But that is how Bill and Nancy and I plan our trips and adventures. We have done things that mortal men merely dream of. I will save those for another time.
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