We Walked Into A Pub...part 1

    Did you hear the one about the tourist who walked into a pub.....

   Scots and Irish pubs are a world unto themselves

    They are a distinct and vibrant culture.

   Strolling through a foreign neighborhood, they are beacons where you know you will find a good story.

   Looking for a lunch of fish and chips we popped into Deacon Brodie's Tavern on the Royal Mile at Lawnmarket in Edinburgh...we dropped into history

   Robert Louis Stevenson is memorialized on the walls of Deacon Brodie's because in turn he memorialized the Deacon.

   William Brodie was a Deacon in a Guild of carpenters. He was an upstanding citizen, a member of the town council. But his nocturnal personality was something else. He was a drinker and gambler and had 5 children by two wives. He got into debt and resorted to burglary to pay off his gambling.
   He was eventually caught and tried. The case was notorious in that day and 40 thousand people turned out to watch him hung in October of 1788.  It is reported he was born and hung within sight of the tavern that now carries his name. 

   Robert Louis Stevenson was fascinated by the double life of Brodie. Stevenson's father owned furniture that had been made by Deacon Brodie.  Stevenson wrote a play with another writer  W.E. Henley, Deacon Brodie or The Double Life. It didn't do well. Stevenson remain fascinated and in 1866 published Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde inspired by the double life of Deacon Brodie.

       Slainte!

    There are more pubs ahead on this path.

    See you down the trail. 

Cheers! Why Not?

Bridge Dinner at Halter Ranch Paso Robles AVA

     Over heard eldest daughter saying to youngest "Life is for celebrating."

      I had "doctored" a Petaluma chicken that was French Roasting in the oven and the sisters were busy as co conspirators in prepping a Mother's Day dinner. What sage wisdom I thought.

      The American Republic is under attack by stupidity and blind allegiance, the North Korean tin god is playing with missiles again, someone used American spyware to hack the world, boomers of a certain age are beginning to notice the maladies of extended exposure to gravity including troubling diagnoses, insurance and Medicare and Medicaid and profit and greed and politics are rumbling and wrestling as a nightmare in daylight to say nothing of the real misery of refugees, victims of wars, victims of climate change and no one seems able to fix a damn thing. We humans can certainly make a mess of a perfectly good world and ourselves! 

      The option to celebrate then is perfect. Certainly more fun than hair shirts, self flagellation or sitting in the dark. Celebration might just remind us that life is a gift, a treasure and works best when shared. So we begin this week with a round of cheers! And where better to go than our neighborhood wine country.

the spring bridge dinner

         Dappled sun, an old California ranch, friends, and festivities

    Talk about a field kitchen!

the Halter Ranch Bridge and the table is set

less formal more intimate

 the common antidote? friends and family

Lago Giuseppe-Paso Robles AVA

    As we watch our screens and see the crazy human drama unfold, remember to hug someone once in a while, smile at as many people as you can, raise a glass with friends, recharge your spirit, freshen your outlook and when you are ready, go back to being toe to toe with that which threatens. It is good to celebrate what we live for.

     Cheers!  See you down the trail.

CHINA SMOG-PACIFIC BREEZE-YOUR CHOICE

WAKE UP TIME

    Published in the UK's Daily Mail, these photos are simply  frightening.  That the Beijing sky is so fouled is apocalyptic, then to see the seeming acceptance?! The sunrise is posted electronically, because the smog makes it impossible to see.

I'LL TAKE PACIFIC A BREEZE, PLEASE

    A recent drive through Big Sur, after seeing the Beijing photos, gave me an extra appreciation for clean air and sky and for the US EPA.

    Say what you will about American bureaucracy, but at least we are unwilling to accept what the Chinese must endure.

     Cheers to those who are guardians of clean air and water.

   See you down the trail.

LIBERTY'S LIGHT AND A LEGEND

A LION FALLS

The entire affair is sad.
A terrible allegation followed by apparent inaction
leads inevitably to a bad ending.
The board of trustees has acted now, but where 
were they before now?
Paterno was a legend. This is not how it should end.
Everyone looses here.
Responsibility, accountability and honor 
are more important than a game.


FREEDOM AND THE MUSE

PUBLISHED IN PUNCHNELS
Link here to Punchels  to read
Liberty's Light-An American Tribulation,
a new poem inspired by the 
10th anniversary of the Patriot Act
and the ongoing Occupy Wall Street movement.
CHEERS TO FREEDOM
UNFETTERED.
CHEERS TO PUNCHNELS 
AND TO YOU!

See you down the trail.