Sunday morning from PITTSBURGH Pa

[vince]

Good morning , it is Sunday10 July 2011 & time for the Sunday morning smoke , Burp, fart & various other rumblings from my body & mind.... , it has been a HOT & HUMID week here in da Burgh , A bit uncomfortable at times but it is summer & thats why we have air conditioning, if not I would be in some mine shaft or basement to keep cool, as a kid i remember spening a lot of time in the basement as it was a lot cooler there than upstairs , I didnt get central A/C in my own home till 20 / 25 years or so ago , we did have a room a/c unit before that in the bed room , but it was uncomfortable in the living room & kitchen, I slept well all summer long ! Now I just take it for granted that the a/c & the furnace will work when needed, I have a contract with the local service man to check both of them every fall & spring, tune them up & get them ready for the next season..... I just want to find a place to live where I dont need a furnace or A/C & am Comfortable all year.... now this place must have access to fine cigars , good coffee & LOW cost malt whiskys , an occasional trip to the butcher shop for a few selected cuts of Beef, pork, lamb, chicken, turkey,duck,maybe a bit of wild game here & there , as long as its cleaned & skined I will cook it ! , I just dont like doing that any more , to much WORK .... , we will need a miller to grind the grain into flour ( way to much work for me ) oh yea seafood , got to have some shrimp,crab,lobster, a bit of Cod, tuna,& some catfish,then I will need access to herbs & spices & lots of Fruits & veggies ..... Utopia ? hahaha , sounds more like HEAVEN to me !
Yesterday was a graduation part for my daughers foster child, , she has been there a little over 2 years , & did a 100% turn arround, , never knew her father ,mother was a drug addict & drunk, never had much of anything , went into a group home & ended up living with my daughers extened family of hers/his & now she made ours ,,,,,, kind of like the Brady Bunch with out the maid & a BIG DOG who gets in you way no matter what your trying to do ,,,, But it is one big messed up family,,, they have it all, a tatooed biker dad, an educated professional mother , a gay foster daugher, a lazy plump step daugher, a pierced liped bone through the nose step son a piano playing sports spaz son & a dog loving undirected son who has no ambition to do anything but sit back & play with the dog.... when you can get the dammmm dog off the couch ! .... Such is life ... well the graduation party was HOT but fun , lots of Pizza & finger foods , the music was a mix of oldies from the 50's 60's , a few from the 70/80's & a Bunch of garbage from the Rap (CRAP ) era... there is no need to drop the F bomb or N bomb , if that what you call music, them I will find something else to listen to , the music behind the lyrics is recycled Rock & roll , Jazz & classical tracks all mixed & dubed, I havent heard an orginal music track that was scored like music, & not lifted from the great sounds of before ....
dammm I have been rambling on & on today & havent got much said at all... breakfast coffee was a pot of Columbian , it was paired with a few slices of Tofu & a grilled banana,,, I made bacon & eggs for the boss as she is not a tofu fan...... what do dildo's & tofu have in common? both are meat substitutes ....... hahahaha , right now I have a pair of NY strip steaks that have been aging for the past 28 days , a quick trim & a tiny bit of seasoning , a VERRRRRY HOT grill & about 3 minutes a side for mine & 10 for the wife, dammmm I could give her shoe leather so I need to cook all the pink out of the center for her,,,,, to bad I cant get her to eat in the dark ! hahaha , there will be a patato & onion dish of some sort, a bit of lettuce & maybe some veggie to be picked out of the garden next door ........ I have the Kona on & will be fireing up a Don Carlos #3 soon, the A/c is all ready on in the Qtr.Deck & I will be ready for my nap after that ! but I have a few cigars to taste some time today ,,, a nice looking Camacho tripple maduro , so I am told by the customer who gave it to me with out a band, he liked the band but didnt like the cigars so he took off the bands & gave the sticks away go figure ! ,,, dammm if you want a cigar box , & dont like the cigars, but buy it for the box........ I just dont understand people at times... I think I have taken up enough of you time this moring so I guess I will grab the kona & head out to the Qtr.Deck & get ready for a 90 F day here in da Burgh , the only time I will be out of the A/C is when I am in front of that HOT grill cooking the beef....... Enjoy, Vince

[peanutpete]

Keep up the ramberlings Vince, Sunday would not be the same without them

[snooky]

Quality

[vince]

Good morning it is Sunday 17 July 2011 a hot humid day here in da Burgh , a whole lot of goings on this past week, a few new cigars hit the store , the grandson will be going to Houston in Sept. to play piano for a fashion show with members of the Synphoney( yes I know its miss spelled but I am to lazy to look it up) , & last night we had a BBQ at a friends house & sat outside & smoked a few fine cigars & drank a good amount of sangria , the brisket was great as well as the chicken, & the desert was a FANTASTIC Pavalova, a creation of egg whites, fruit & whipped cream....... well done Lou .... next time he will be making a cheese cake. , & we had some fine Contraband cigars , I had a Fonseca corona & it paired well with the wine, later I did have a Butera Churchill & it went fine with the coffee & Irish whisky .... (note to self, Dont mix grain & grape ),a bit of a headache this morning ! & this morning a knock at the door , its My Daughter , she is here for breakfast.... she is taking her mother shopping for God knows what this morning ...... the arguements have started all ready & they havent even got up from the breakfast table ..... OHHHH yea kids you gotta love them...... AHHHH SICLENCE.... but as they get in the car & drive away I can still hear them........ Yack Yack Yack .
Friday night we had a NEW cigar at the shop, the owner of the comapny George Rodrigez, was in the shop with his new Rodrico cigars 2 different blends & a total of 5 sizes & dammmm every one was a hit in my book, blended by a retired master blender from Davidoff & just full of FLAVOR , not a lot of POWER whitch is good for me , , I like great taste over kick your butt power & the price was right in the sweet spot for the shop , the High end 6 X 60 is only $8.00 & the low side of the price scale is the Robusto at $6.00 a NO brainer for sure , the cigars all smoked fine & while not going to replace Don Carlos #3 for my morning smoke it is verrry enjoyable with coffee &/OR a scotch, out of the 5 sizesI like to Belicosa , great draw & flavor & to top it off George is from DA BURGH ,,,, a Pittsburgh connection for Cigars ,,, while we are no rivel to Tampa , its nice to have a local who understands cigars & the life style it provides .
Well its time to change gears a bit , I have a little new from the front & back yards here at the Qtr.Deck , the 4 pine trees between me & the place next to me are GONE ,,,, YEA no more pine cones , no more pine needles all over the cars & in the gutters , No more ... But the birds have found a new place to $hit,,, got to remember to close the sunroof on the car. & the 2 maples in the back yard have been trimmed , looks like a big wind storn came through & took all the branches , looks like some one will have a lot of fire wood after it drys a few years , the pines went into the chopper & it smelled like Christmas here , even with the cigar in my mouth I could smell the pine ....... they did a fine clean up & even starting a bit later than they had said the job went smooth & I was at work by 2PM . Dammmm the yard looks so OPEN with out the 4 Pines , Lots of Sun on the Qtr.Deck now , But I am done cleaning the gutters !!!!!!
I have a slab of Ribs ready to hit the grill shortly & they should be falling off the bone about 4 or 5 Pm , depening on how soon I get them on . I havent any idea what to have with them , so i will look in the Fridge & see whats available ,,,, might be leftovers Or some thing made just for today ,,, Had I thought about it last night I might have made a pot of baked beans, but no time now ,,,, still have lots of time to think about what to have & the ribs will be happy no matter what gets served beside them...... this morning's pot of kona is a bit weak,,, I dont think my Wife used enough coffee for the amount of water, , so I am going to brew a small pot of SUPER STRONG & blend them together, & since her & our daughter are shopping they will never know ,,,,,, till they taste it , Thick as OIL ,,, yea baby , coffee at its Best.& speaking of the best , I need to get outside & turn on the A/C in the Qtr.Deck , we are looking for a high in the upper 80's or low 90's today..... dont look for me outside till the sun goes down , just a quick run from the house to the grill & back in the Qtr.Deck. Right now its Time for a CIGAR .... Enjoy, Vince

[vince]

Good morning , it is Sunday 24th of July 2011 & its HOT HOT HOT here in da Burgh, High Humidity , & no breeze,,, it is MISERABLE & has been all week, The grandsons are on there way to the outter banks with thier other grandparents & cousins ...... 12 hours in a mini van 5 kids & 2 adults ..... not my idea of a fun time .... My idea of a fun time would not involve 12 hours on the road, sure the outter banks should be fun , but a plane , train or BUS would be better for me , even if I had to pass on the cigars , I will leave the driving to a Professional ,,,, I just dont want to deal with the trouble of finding my way to some place fighting traffic & the heat, worrying about the car, the traffic & other drivers .... local ,I am fine but I just dont want to be pilot & navagator ... GPS ? well that might help but I just am old school & love my folding paper map ! hahahahaha
The heat has been overwhelming & sales at the shop show it, no one wants to go out side , the A/C has been working overtime to keep up , I have it set at 80F , I have a few fans running in the lounge , the humidors are running between 72 F & 75F with the humidity between 67% & 68 %between the 2 walk ins at the shop,,,, its a Pain keeping everything as close to 70/70 as i can get, keeping the lights off is helping keep the temp down & I turn them on when we have a customer & they are few & far between,,,,, I havent turned the TV on at the shop all week , got the CD player hooked up & have been blasting the Jazz all week, played a little blues Friday evening to show my sadness for the low turn out on our BYOB friday night,,,, most Fridays its a full house & a lot of standing & lawn chairs from different customers, but this past friday it was so hot No one showed up, 5 Guys braved the temp & humidity & I left them at 9:30 to call it an early night & I went home ...... back at it saturday & nothing happened after I left Friday night ,,, the same amout of cash was in the regester when I got back in as when I left,,,, so I am glad I didnt just sit there & stair at the walls .......
The Sunday morning Cigar was the Traditional Don Carlos #3 & kona coffee ,,, I have the A/c on in the Qtr.Deck & will be going out there soon , I have a few peppers to roast on the gas grill to go with the rib steaks later today ,,,,,, way to hot to turn on the oven for the roast beef , everything will be done on the outside grill today , including the yams & the Cheesecake ......... cheesecake on the grill? why not ?,,, freeeeeeeze it hard , & slide it on the well oiled grill to give it a lite char , maybe a little egg wash might make it brown a bit faster? I dont know, I will try it & see what happens ........ This past wendsday we went to the Greek food fest at the local Greek church ,,,, I ate all I could hold & brought a ton of stuff home , the stuffed grape leaves were not up to the usual 9.9 out of 10 this year , more like a high 7 or low 8 , the leaf was fine but the filling was not up to standards they have been setting for the past 20+ years ,,, oh well time passed & the Old people who ran it all the years have been gone a few years & the replacements have tryed to fix something that wasn't broke,,,,,, But I spent a few bucks & helped the church add to the Bell tower fund , I live far enough away I cant hear them so let them ring anytime .....
I was digging arround in the humidor here at home & found a few R&J from a buying spree I went on in 85/86 .Looks like one will be tourched some time today hahahaha , I just wish it wasnt as hot as I would love to have a nice single malt with it BUT its just to dammmm hot , I dont even want a Beer, ice cold or warm as spit , all i have been drinking is coffee & water , I did have a bit of Tomato juice to cover up the taste of the vodka , but I am not a big fan of Vodka ...... I wonder if you smoke the potatos with peat before they are fermented ........ Hummmmm any distillers want to run with that idea give me a call ! hahaha
looks like it is about time to stop typing & get the show on the road, the coffee needs brewed & the cigars are calling me , I have a craving for a nice old contraband cigar to be the Mid morning pick me up with more coffee, But this pot will be a strong brewed Central American Mountain grown bean with a medium dark roast ,,,,, I might pull the cork on a malt whisky to wash it all down with But then again I might not...... choices are a chore ! hahaha Enjoy, Vince

[peanutpete]

Vince dont forget you sun cream and hat when your at the grill

[vince]

The back deck has an aluminum awning , with 2 maple trees shading it , No hat needed , No sun screen needed , just a cool drink & a cigar .... it hit 90 F here today, but there is a nice breeze be it a 90F breeze but it is welcomed ! Enjoy, Vince

[vince]

Good Morning , it is Sunday 31 July 2011 a HOT HUMID day here in da Burgh,,,, Not a lot going on , its just to dammmm hot to do much outside, the grandsons are back from the vacation with thier other grandparents , they went to N. Carolina shore for a few days of fun in the sun, , NOT that it wasnt hot & sunny here but no Atlantic Ocean to play in , the river is just not the same hahahaha , but no sharks in the river !!!!
the shop has been up & down all week, I think if its hot out & way to hot to sit on your back deck or front porch to have a cigar you might stop at the shop, the A/C is on & the jazz is in the background, the coffee is hot & fresh & the Bull$hit is flowing all day long, but no one wants to leave the house & brave the heat to get a cigar , Oh there are a few of the regulars who show up every day come H3ll or high water , but its the semi regulars who spend the cash , the box buyers & gift givers , & lets not forget the babys , weddings & golf outtings & other FUN times ....... we had a batchlorette party come through , they got all the acid kuba kuba in the shop, glad they didnt smoke them there ..... it was off to the Pub for them,,,,, dammmm I hope they have a taxi to get home ,,,, the bride was all ready $hitfaced, BUT what a Belch , as loud as anyone I have ever heard , you go girl !....... BEER ~ helping homley girls get laid since the first one was brewed,,, I would have needed a case or 2 & by then the mood would have passed hahaha
Breakfast was a toasted muffin with bacon & egg , a pot of Columbian coffee & a fig , I have the Kona on all ready & the A/C is running in the Qtr.Deck , there will be smoke soon ! , & I am passing on the Don Carlos #3 this week in favor of a FINE OLD contraband Monte corona that I have had about 10 years now ,,,, I think its Time has come to be turned into ASH ...... after that I have no idea what I will be fireing up ,other than the Grill for the chicken today , to hot to heat up the kitchen so I will be facing the elements outside with the chicken , corn on the cob & grilled yellow squash,,,, everything will get the light smoke from the grill & seasoned with a little salt,pepper & garlicbutter,,,,, cant forget the garlic ! & since its hot out I just might pop the top on a Saint Pauly Girl Dark Beer , just thinking about a nice cold beer is making me thursty ,,,,, BUT that dammm carbonation kills me , & flat beer looses some thing in the taste BUT a frosted mug is in the freezer,,,, so I will Brave the gas & expaned bloated feeling for a nice cool beer when I cook later today ..... maybe I will be able to BURP it out ! hahahaha
Not much else going on here in da Burgh, way to hot to get outside & do much of anything .... maybe a nap is instore for me this after noon ,,, a nice cigar , coffee & a few drams of single malt....... a nap ....... then the beer & cooking...... should be a geat day ! Enjoy, Vince

[vince]

Good Morning , It is Sunday 7 Aug.2011 A hot humid day here in Da Burgh. It has been Hazy hot & humid all week, in the low 90's & the humidity in the 75/85 % range , all I can say is THANK GOD for A/C !!! the shop was a little slower than I thought it should be , I figured with all the heat the Guys would be flocking in for the A/C & to enjoy a fine cigar , But they came in grabbed a stick or 2 & out they went ,with out lighting up..... BUT for some reason we went through a lot of coffee ???? Speaking of Coffee this mornings pot is a Sumatra medium dark roast & the Kona is in the Press pot waiting for the water to get Hot......... & when I get back to the kitchen I have the BBQ sauce to "Brew " as the rack of ribs has been on the 140 F grill since 8 AM ,,, L O W & S L O W , lots of Smoke & fall off the bone tender about 4 PM , just a light dry rub a little wet basting with a acid based wet mix & the BBQ sauce on the side AFTER they are cooked , a mix of oak, maple & hickory chips supply the smoke .... I have a few summer squash to go on some time today , Havent thought about what to do or how to do them as yet, , most likly they will get tossed on the grill at some time today , havent thought about if they will get sliced & grilled or smoked Whole or , cut up with onions & peppers & covered with tomato sauce ,,, depened on the amout of scotch I have this afternoon will determine the amount of knife skills needed to bring the squash to the table will set the way they will be cooked, ,,, my guess right now , they will be smoked WHOLE ........ Yesterday was a big day for Birthday partys , Beside Lucy of "I love Lucy" fame as she turned 100 , But My Mother, My Brother ,my Aunt Shirl, MY Buddy George & his son ,Cigar buddy Tiny Tim All celebrated birthdays on the 5, 6, & 7th of August, as well as the BOMB at Hiroshema back in WW2 .. so it was a BUSY day for smoking & drinking with friend & making new friends , & speaking of new friends there were 2 H O T girls at Georges place yesterday compairing there tatoos ,,,, thought there might be a little girl on girl action in the hot tub ,,,, But I had to go home before anything developed ,,,, Dammmmm , & so far today I havent talked to anyone who stayed to see if anything developed , for all I know they are still at Georges place hahahahaha
I have a paving company comming in at 8 Am Monday moring to widen my drive way & add 2 inches of asphalt to change the slope & redirect the rain water away from the Qtr.Deck,,,,, next summer I am going to have the area landscaped , remove the 2 x 4 boarders & replace them with cement & add a few tons of river rock to keep the weeds down,,,,, looks like that will be a summer long project ,,,, unless I hit the lottery & move hahahahaha , since the house is paid for I can use the monthy payment to make improvements & add stuff we were not able to afford 20 years ago ,,, I am leaning tward a hot tub BUT the wife isnt thinking that way so I guess I dont get a hot tub...... I will just have to fart in the tub to make bubbles hahahaha ,,,, only trouble with that Idea , I cant get down into the tub anymore, & standing in the shower & farting just isnt the same hahahaha
The grandsons have been with thier Dad all week & I havent seen them since last Monday , But I will be taking them to the piano & art lessons on Monday after stopping at the local Tasty Freeze for a cone or a shake & Pizza on the way home , I need to watch my weight , I have noticed the dish of peanut M&M's is always going empty & my pants are a bit snug,,,, I wonder if they go together??????
Thats about it for today , time to press the Kona & turn on the A/C in the Qtr.deck fire up the Don Carlos #3 & wait for the clock to strike Noon ..... ahhhhh its time for a scotch ! hahaha Enjoy, Vince

[vince]

Good morning it is Sunday, 21 August, 2011, a hot humid rainy day here in da Burgh,,,, sorry about no posting last week, the computer crashed & I just got back on line with a new Dell computer my grandson picked out for me ,,,, 4 gig , .5 terrabite , & a bunch of BS that I have no idea what he is talking about,, all I had to do was Pay , he carried it out put it in the car, set it up here at home & gave me my own pass word , for WHAT REASON I NEED A PASS WORD IS BEYOND ME, I guess so when he is here surfing porn I cant see what he is up to haha......... he is 15 & will be driving this fall ( Oct .23 is his birthday I think ) So lets he to the BS at hand, the shop has been holding its own & nwe have been getting a lot of Rain & the roof still is popping leaks here & there , we had over 3 inches of rain in less that one hour that the run off was backing up & flash flooding , 4 people Dead from getting trapped in there cars & over 9 Feet of water ( about 3 meters for our metric friends ) flooded Washington Blvd. , it is a small valley between 3 hills & most of it is paved areas & no place for the water to soak in to the ground, so it runs down the streets & fills up the road at the bottom , & before you have time to blink the water is up the side of your car & BINGO ,,,,, to late to do anything about it, ,,, River rescue saved 11 people but 4 didnt make it out ........ say a small remeberance prayer for them....
On a more joyfull note ... I have a set of rib steaks in a light marinade that will be hitting the grill later today ,along with some yams , onions & peppers ,,, looks like I will be dodgeing the rain drops when I go out to cook , a 30% chance of showers, the same forcaste we had when 4 died.....
I am still finding my way arround the windows #7 ,a bit different than the 95,98,xp , I was used to using, I did loose a lot of saved stuff & pass words , so looks like I will be getting a bunch of new ones asap..... & all that Great CIGAR Porn I had saved on the hard drive ,,,, all gone ,,,, & this new keyboard is a little smaller & the letters are just a bit closer, & I find a lot of extra letters from hittinhg, 2 keys at the same time ,,,, as you see the extra H in hitting ,,,, this unit is so much more QUIET that the old one, , I cant tell if itsa on by listening foir the fan or hard drive spinning & the light on the front is so dim I cant tell if its on from that, I need to move the mouse to see if its on !!!!,,,,
this morings coffee is a purivian medium dark roast & soon to be brewed will be the Kona & the Don Carlos #3 ,,, I have a Gurhka Shaggy robusto lined up as well as a Montecristo Churchill from the 2001 Cigar crawl , after 10 years in the humi it is looking a bit tired & should be nice & smooooooth , that will be after the rib steak & with a bottle of Chainti from a case I put down in 2007 , made by a local wine maker , it was his last bottling before he retired , & this is the next to last bottle .... saving the last one for his wake & dont hope to drink it anytime soon.........
Not much else to tell you about ..... I have been hitting the scotch at work & & a lot of the stuff that happens het forgotten in the whisky !
OHHHH , just remembered , last tuesday a few guys from the shop stopped out here at the Qtr.deck for a cigar & scotch tasting ,,,,, one guy has a BMW convertable & he brought his buddy with him , the next day the guy across the street asked me who the 2 Gay guys were in the convertable hahahahaha, we all got a great laugh about that at the shop..... ,,,, so its feminin color & & he is an airline pilot with a few bucks & dresses a little upscale, he isnt overtly gay & had a wife for a few years, she died from the flu a few years ago when he was out of the area working, he dates a lot of Ladys who are all smoking hot, why the guy thought the 2 of them were gay is beyond me,but it did get a good laugh at the shop.......
Enjoy, Vince

[Bigboned]

Where did Vince go anyone?

[vince]

still here but having some computer problems..... & a bit of over worked brain cells needed a rest to revive the gray matter, should be back at it soon,,,, thanks for asking ,,,, Enjoy, Vince