Getting married in Destin

Well, this was quite the weekend in Destin. Friday was Sunshine Cindy’s birthday. On Thursday we went out to dinner at Longhorn Steakhouse. We had a nice dinner of steak and shrimp. After dinner we stopped in at Sago Sports Bar for a while. There was a small crowd there watching the basketball playoffs and NFL draft. It is always a good time at Sago.

Friday we had a Parrothead meeting at KC’s Sandbar in Ft. Walton Beach. Our friend Jan was booked to play music for the meeting. A big crowd showed up as the weather was perfect for the outside venue. I had a big surprise planned for Sunshine Cindy. I worked it out with Jan that after everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to Sunshine Cindy I would hand her a card. The card was asking her to marry me. She was shocked to say the least. It was a great moment. I am a lucky guy!

She said "yes!"

We stayed at KC’s till Jan finished playing. It was a lot of fun. They had a jello shot eating contest. The difference with this contest was you could not use your hands to eat the jello. It was a blast watching everyone. Kenny won with Larry coming in a close second. A group of us headed to the Legion to sing some Karaoke. We pretty much took over half the place. As that wound down Judie, Kelly, Capt. John, Sunshine Cindy and I headed to Waffle House for some late night food. The entire night was a blast.

Saturday was taken up with a pool party at our friend Julie’s house. It was an all day party that turned out to be a lot of fun. The sky was overcast most of the day but we still got some tan. Good food, music and friends.

Pool party fun

On Sunday our only plan was to get some pop-up tents for our upcoming party on May 18th.  http://www.crabislandmambo.com/3rd-Annual-Trop-Rockin-Rocky-Bayou-Party-presented-by-KC's-SandBar-&-Grill.html We picked them up at Old Time Pottery that is right next door to Landshark Pizza. So of course we had to stop in and see Brian and Sue. Bruce came in and we all chatted for a while. They all wished us congratulations on our engagement. We left to drop off the tents at home and headed to the harbor. First stop was Crab Island Cantina. We waited out a rain storm talking to some tourist from Kansas City. Mike and Deb were nice folks who are in town for a week.

Wayne and Renae joined us there. We walked to Crazy Lobster. None of our usual bartenders were working. We had one and moved on heading to the Boathouse. We stopped in front of AJ’s for a minute checking out a fish weigh-in that was taking place when a guy in a big boat that was tied up at AJ’s recognized Sunshine Cindy. Turns out he is newly engaged too. We all talked about that. As we left to continue to the Boathouse I asked Sunshine Cindy who were those folks and she had no clue. They obviously knew her but she could not remember from where. Old age is catching up with her!

Getting ready for the Jello Shot contest

At the Boathouse Kerby, David and Kelly were at the entrance. We talked with them for while as we waited for a table to open up. I stopped Gigi the manager as she walked by to give her the good news about our engagement. Gigi is great and always takes good care of us and all the locals. Next thing I know half the staff that we know come over to congratulate us too. That was cool. Then a couple at another table called out our names and congratulated us. I had to ask Sunshine Cindy who there were. They are Parrotheads who were at KC’s Friday night. Now I was the one who felt old! LOL

We ended up running into a couple more friends there including Tony. Just another Sunday Funday at the Boathouse. We made one last stop at Coyote Ugly on the way back down the harbor. From there it was time to head home to get ready for the work week.

Looks like this week we will be doing some wedding planning. We are not sure if we are going to get married in town or maybe some place like Key West or New Orleans. We shall see but there will definitely be a reception in Destin somewhere. I think all the bars will be fighting for it! LOL

Have a great week. See ya Thursday.

Destin Boshamps Oyster House

The newest joint on the harbor has finally opened. Boshamps Oyster house opened on Monday. Sunshine Cindy and I have not been there yet. Each evening that I have driven by it the parking lot is packed. I have talked to a couple of people that have gone and they said it is nice but expensive. I guess they have to pay for all the work they have been doing some way. It looks great from the outside with a big deck and a sandy area. I wish the boardwalk went all the way down there as the parking is limited. I hope they do well.

Badass on the harbor

After all the excitement of last weekend we have been taking it easy this week. I did get to Landshark Pizza Wednesday for their Wing Night. I talked with Steve for a while and relaxed watching some baseball. As I left I talked to Brian and Sue about bringing Jan back to play. Looks like we are going to target Sunday May 28th which is in the middle of Memorial Weekend. It should be another great time.

Driving to work this week I noticed the wrecking ball is taking down the old Holiday Inn. This was one of the first high rise buildings in Destin. There is a total rebuild taking place. It looks weird seeing a partially demolished building in Destin. The work is continuing on the Hampton Inn in Destin too. They had to rebuild from the ground up to comply with Hampton rules about all rooms having an interior entrance. They are building a big building now that is right across from the beach.

Sea Blaster heading out

The summer season is almost upon us. We have a little lull right now but that won’t last too long. Some schools are already finishing up classes. The crowds will be here before we know we it. We hope that Crab Island Mambo has a big season. Don’t forget you can get your own Destin Crab Island Mambo tee’s, tank tops and long sleeve t-shirts right here on line. http://www.crabislandmambo.com/Crab-Island-Mambo-Merchandise.html  Have a little of Destin shipped to you.

Picture from Sunshine Cindy's B-Day party last year

Friday is Sunshine Cindy’s birthday. The Parrotheads will be at KC’s Sandbar and Grill in Fort Walton Beach. Join the fun and wish Sunshine Cindy a happy birthday! She is 37 once again!!!

Have a great weekend. See ya Monday!

What a wild few days!

Okay, where do I start? I guess we will start at the beginning on Thursday. I had taken the day off of work to get some errands done as we were leaving Friday for Panama City Beach for Rendezvous. I stopped in at Landshark Pizza for lunch. They do a smoked beef or pork sandwich on Thursdays that is fantastic. It is a great deal for this sandwich. You would never know you were in a pizza joint when you have this.

Thursday evening was the Southern Drawl Band show at Crab Island Cantina. Sunshine Cindy and I got there about 7 pm for the 9 pm show. The band set up on the inside stage and a decent crowd was there to hear them. Everything was going great but then the lead singer Mike had an urgent personal matter come up that forced him to have to leave the show. Throw in a drunk chick who had to escorted out and a female singer who was watching the show who got up to help the band finish the show and you can really say everyone there, “Embraced the Chaos!”  Wow!

Friday we hit the road to Panama City Beach for Rendezvous. Over 550 of our closest friends were registered for this fun weekend on the sands of Panama City Beach. Unfortunately it rained on and off all day Friday so the music was moved inside the Barefoot Beach Club. We were packed in like sardines but it was still a lot of fun. For the night time entertainment they had Jimmy and the Parrots from New Jersey playing. They moved this show into the parking garage at the Legacy hotel. It was a surprisingly great show in there. A couple of hundred folks packed in with rain dripping down but Parrotheads can party anywhere!

Yes, a parking garage party!

Saturday it was clear but cold and windy in the morning. We were all back on the beach and as the day wore on it warmed up nicely. The music was great with old friend Eric Stone doing a great show. He had Steve and Shelly Hall playing with him. I have not seen Shelly in a long time. She had back and neck surgery but was back better than ever. The Boat Drunks closed the show Saturday night. It was cold again but the crowd had a great time.

Sunday the party was continuing on the beach but we had to head home as Southern Drawl Band was playing the Cantina again. Sunshine Cindy and I got there about 12:30 pm for the 2 pm start. Mike was not there but Tommy did a fantastic job filling in on the vocals. Al the sax guy did some songs with the band and Eric Stone showed up and sat in for a few songs too. There was a big turnout to listen to the guys on a postcard perfect day. A big group of Mambo’ians came out and we also had a big group of River Rats there. What a blast it was.

After the show Sunshine Cindy and I walked over to Coyote Ugly. Leigh and Keith were supposed to be there but the place was empty except for one guy and the staff. We sat down and had a drink when Leigh and Keith finally came in. They had looked in but moved on when they saw it was quiet. Once they got there you had Cindy and Leigh on the bar and the party was on! LOL We finally had to call it a night so we could get some sleep and go to work.

Leigh on the bar at Coyote Ugly in Destin

It was a fun and crazy weekend. We made some new friends and sold some of our new t-shirts. If you want your own Crab Island Mambo tee, tank or long sleeve, click here to order on-line. http://www.crabislandmambo.com/Crab-Island-Mambo-Merchandise.html  If you are in Destin, we will personally hand deliver it to you! Have a great week. See ya Thursday!

Prepping for a party weekend on the Emerald Coast

This week has been a preparation week. We are preparing for a full party weekend. I know, it seems like we are always doing that but this weekend we take it up a notch.

Monday we stayed around the house doing some more Crab Island Mambo stuff. We are doing pretty well selling our new “Passed out on the Island” T-Shirt design. You can check out our designs here and have a piece of Destin shipped to you. http://www.crabislandmambo.com/Crab-Island-Mambo-Merchandise.html  As the night wore on, I ended up watching some hockey and relaxing.

Our new Tank Top

Tuesday night I was down and out with a stomach virus. It made for a long night. Luckily it was only the 24 hour variety and I was moving okay by Wednesday evening. Not 100% but enough to get out.

Mike, the lead singer from the Southern Drawl Band got into town Wednesday evening. I met up with Mike and Wayne at Crab Island Cantina on the harbor which is where they are playing Thursday night and Sunday afternoon. Cherie also joined us. We chatted for a while then headed down to the Boathouse handing out small posters about the shows to anyone walking by.

Mike enjoying some shrimp and drinks at The Boathouse

At the Boathouse Courtney took care of us. There was a table of ladies sitting next to us. Courtney told them about Mike and they just had to have their picture taken with him! I think Mike has some new fans. Cherie handed out some more posters and everyone got some food to eat. Mike got Mahi and was amazed at the amount of food he got. He really liked the dive bar atmosphere.

Mike and some new fans

We decided to drive over to Fort Walton Beach and stop in at KC’s Sandbar. Mike rode with me and enjoyed his ride in Badass. Our friend Jan leads a sing-a-long on Wednesday’s at KC’s. A good group of our friends were there. Mike the owner was there and I got to chat with him for a minute about Mike and Southern Drawl. Jan let Mike get up and do some songs. What a talent Mike is. He did about 5 songs and the entire bar took notice. After the first song owner Mike came by and told me to make sure Mike has his contact info and to get in touch with him. Pretty cool.

Mike at KC's

After he finished his few songs, Jan got back up to finish the night. We hung around and chatted with our friends. Mike loved the bar and the sand made it perfect in his mind. I drove Mike back to the Emerald Grande and I headed home for the night. It was cool hanging out with him and Wayne.

This weekend is going to be busy. As I mentioned, we have the two SDB shows at Crab Island Cantina tonight and Sunday. Over in Panama City is their Parrothead event Rendezvous. Over 550 Parrotheads from around the country will be there. That will be fun. We will be there Friday and Saturday.

A full report on the weekend on Monday. See ya then!

Some Rain, Some Sun…

The fun continues in Destin. It started out Thursday evening. Sunshine Cindy went to Crab Island Cantina to pick up some post card flyers for the upcoming Southern Drawl Band concerts there on 4/18 at 9 pm and 4/21 at 2 pm. I stopped there on my way home from work to join her. We got the flyers then hung around for a bit. Dominic joined us for a while. Loren was behind the bar. A storm was moving in. We decided to head home before it hit. Not long after we got home the skies opened up. A major line of thunderstorms blew through.

Southern Drawl Band poster

Friday cleared up and the weather was nice. We had a parrothead meeting at Harry T’s. We had a good time there meeting some new friends. We left there and headed back to the Cantina for some dinner. Greg and Dominic were working the bar and the place was pretty crowded. We got to meet some of the local radio folks too as we tried to talk them into coming to the SDB show.

Off to the American Legion we went for karaoke. Judie, Kelly, Russ, Julie, Capt. John were all there. We had the place to ourselves. Old friend Henry was behind the bar. Good seeing him again. We had a blast there.

Kelly, Judie and Capt. John wooing the crowd! lol

Saturday was another busy day. I worked on the monthly Crab Island Mambo Mullet Wrapper newsletter. Check it out here:  http://www.crabislandmambo.com/Mullet-Wrapper-April-2013.html  In the afternoon I headed to Malibu Jacks then I walked over to Hogs Breath. The weather was perfect. The sun was actually hot. I went down to the harbor and stopped in at Crazy Lobster. Jesse was working the outside bar. He is still excited about being the bartender of the month last month for us. A good crowd was there. I talked to Jasmine who had just two weeks before moved to our area from Chicago. Jesse’s girlfriend then came by and joined the fun.

Sunshine Cindy made it and the party was on. We hung around the Lobster for a while then walked down to the Boathouse. It was packed inside and out so we walked back down the harbor and stopped at the Shark Shack. Kerby was there holding court. A couple of guys stopped and started preaching and blessing the bar. That was a first for us. I had a good conversation with Kerby about how to try and drive traffic to Malibu Jack’s. We need to talk to James the owner.

Jim at Harry T's

When we left the harbor we stopped in at Sago. Stephanie was working. Rhett was there playing pool. A decent crowd was in the place. We hung out there a while then headed home.

Sunday morning the weather had taken another turn for the worse. We had driving rain. It was coming in right off the Gulf just like a tropical system. This went on till the late afternoon. The only thing I did all day was go to Landshark Pizza to join Jan, Loujean, Kenny and Julie. Sunshine Cindy decided to stay home instead of getting wet. We watched the Masters and solved some of the world’s problems. Then it was home and getting ready for the work week.

Join us Thursday night on the Destin harbor for Southern Drawl Band. They are great! Hope to see ya’ll there!!!

Destin work week...

Some weeks it seems like we are always on the go and other times it’s more laid back. This week has been the on-the-go kind of week once we got past Monday. That was a stay at home night to watch the championship B-Ball game. Tuesday we headed over to Landshark Pizza to hang out for a while. Tommy from Sago was there and Stephanie and a new cook were working. I had some wings and Sunshine Cindy had some taco’s as it was taco Tuesday with $2.50 Corona’s! We can’t pass that up!

Brian from Landshark Pizza

Owners Brian and Sue stopped in. They had been out and about for a while and came in for a few minutes. That was long enough for Sunshine Cindy to convince Sue to have Landshark Pizza become a sponsor of our May party. We appreciate them for helping out. After a while B came in. He was once again in rare form. B has a paper products company in town. We will be purchasing some stuff from him for our party. We want to keep the dollars in our community.

We left there and headed to Sago. Surprise…Tommy was there too. We chatted with a few of the locals around the bar. I got to talk to Tommy a little while about trying to bring in some Trop Rock entertainment. He is up for it. I will be putting together some ideas and see what we can do. I also got to listen to Tommy and another guy talk about some overnight fishing trips they have taken over the years and how much fun they have. We left there and headed home where we sat on the back porch for a good while. It was a beautiful night. It was late but worth staying up for.

Destin harbor

It was worth it Tuesday night but Wednesday morning when I had to get up I started to question my wisdom. Wednesday night a group was heading to KC’s Sandbar & Grill to listen to Jan play. I decided to stay home and work on the Weekend Update. Sunshine Cindy went with Julie. All the usual suspects were there. It sounded like they all had a great time. I was able to get some much needed sleep!

It’s only one week from Southern Drawl Band playing at Crab Island Cantina. 4/18 at 9 pm and 4/21 at 2 pm. Be there to see one of the hottest up and coming band in the country. No cover charge!

Southern Drawl Band

We have a great weekend coming up weather wise. We just might have to get some beach time in. The legs are looking pretty pale right now. Enjoy your weekend. See ya Monday!

DJ Fred in Destin

With the weather in Destin finally warming up, Sunshine Cindy and I were able to get down to the harbor this weekend. Thursday we stopped in at Crab Island Cantina. Sunshine Cindy got there first. As she was leaving the parking garage she ran into Steven Youngblood. He had a meeting at the radio station. Sorry I missed him.

We met with Carlos and finalized plans for their sponsorship of our May party. (http://www.crabislandmambo.com/3rd-Annual-Trop-Rockin-Rocky-Bayou-Party-presented-by-KC's-SandBar-&-Grill.html)  We appreciate him helping us. We are also going to get some post card sized posters promoting the Southern Drawl Band concerts they are doing there on 4/18 and 4/21. We can’t wait. It will be a blast. Harborwalk was packed. Crab Island Cantina was almost completely full. Brian from Landshark Pizza and his daughter stopped by and we chatted with them for a while.

Southern Drawl Band

We stopped in at the Crazy Lobster. It was time for my Abita fix. We talked with Jesse for a while. He was excited to be named our Bartender of the Month for March. Crazy Lobster was also crowded to the point of having a waiting list for a table. On the way home we made a stop at Sago Sports Bar. We talked to some of the locals in there. It’s always fun at Sago.

Friday we started out at Fisherman’s Wharf for their Happy Hour. We ate some great fish sandwiches and enjoyed talking to the bartender Coung and some of the other staff. We walked down to The Boathouse from there. The gang was all there. Julie, Jan, Loujean, Kenny, Capt. John, Scott, Russ and Suzanne. We also saw Kerby and Jack when we got there. Courtney is now working as a server there. We last saw her at Landshark Pizza. The place was so packed you could hardly move. Sunshine Cindy and I stayed for a while then we decided to move on.

Mindy, Matt and Sunshine Cindy

Off to Lucky’s Rotten Apple we went where Matt and Mindy were playing. Rose was working the bar and a decent crowd was there. Capt. John also tired of the crowd at The Boathouse and joined us. Old friends Mark and Joan came in. We had not seen them in months. It was a fun night.

Saturday we didn’t get out till the afternoon. It was a perfect day weather wise. We headed down to the harbor to go to the Banana Hut. (The tiki bar formally known as the Tipsy Turtle.) Tommy was working the bar and a good crowd was there using the jet skis. Darryl was at the bar and we talked to him for a while. Julie joined us. Tony and Amy stopped by. It was like everyone was coming out of hibernation and getting back down to the docks.

As the sun went down it was getting cooler so we headed out. Julie joined us at Johnny O’s for some dinner. A good crowd was in there watching the final four basketball games. From there we headed home and enjoyed some time on the patio.

Sunshine Cindy at Banana Hut on the Harbor

Sunday was a kind of lazy day. I worked on the Crab Island Mambo web site. I washed the car. I took a bike ride. Nothing to wild and crazy. Sunshine Cindy and I had plans to meet up with our friend DJ Fred and his wife Georgia. Fred and Georgia are from Atlanta and came down for a few days. Fred writes a CD review each month for the Mullet Wrapper. Fred also has a blog called, “Beach’s, Bands and Bars.” It’s a great read. Check it out. http://beachesbandsandbars.blogspot.com/

We met Fred and Georgia at The Boathouse. We got there before them. Kerby and Dave were at the entrance. We talked about Malibu Jack’s and what a great spot that is but it needs some advertising. While talking to them Wayne and Renae came out. They were listening to Kelly play. About that time Fred and Georgia arrived. We grabbed a table and had a great time talking about all things Trop Rock. Fred is just a beach bum at heart too.

Fred with his new Mambo T-Shirt

While we were talking someone snuck up behind me. It was Turtle. He wanted to make sure the folks at the Banana Hut take good care of us. He was appreciative of all the business we brought to them last year. That was nice hearing and it was great seeing Turtle again. He is working on a charter boat. You can call Matt at 850-585-4384 to book a trip with Turtle or one of the other boats there.

It was another great Destin weekend! Have a great week. See ya Thursday!

Still Spring Break in Destin

Destin is having one more busy week of Spring Breakers. Things should start to settle down a little before we ramp up big time the end of May.

Sunshine Cindy and I got out on Tuesday for a while. We headed to Anglers to take in some views of the Gulf and have a few cold drinks. The parking lot was packed. We had to park close to the Boardwalk as Spring Breakers were taking advantage of the beautiful day. Justin and Ryan were working the bar. I have known them for several years now. They are brothers from Ohio and good bartenders.

Jim Asbell and Sunshine Cindy at Angler's on the Island

They were having fun with some of the customers. The customers would throw ice at the liquor bottles. Whatever bottle it hit was going into the drink. They had three throws and then had to drink the concoction. There were some…umm…interesting mixtures made. It was fun watching it. Sunshine Cindy and I shared a Grouper sandwich. It was huge and good. We were glad we stopped in.

We have spent the rest of the week working on Crab Island Mambo stuff. We are busy promoting two shows the Southern Drawl Band will be doing at Crab Island Cantina on Thursday April 18th at 9 pm and Sunday April 21st at 2 pm. There is no cover and they will have specials galore. This is one of the hottest up and coming bands in the country. Be sure to join us for one or both shows.

Sunshine Cindy on the Coyote Ugly bar in Key West

Tomorrow Coyote Ugly opens their doors Harborwalk Village. They should be a good addition to the party scene down at the harbor. Saturday will the first day the Destin Main Street Farmers Market will be open. It is in the parking lot of the Destin Water Users office on Main Street. They will have a wide variety of fresh produce and other treats. Hours are from 9 am to 1 pm each Saturday.

Don’t forget we have our new Crab Island Mambo tee shirts available. I will have the shopping cart up and running this weekend on our web site. Take a little of Crab Island Mambo from Destin home with you!

New T-Shirt

Have a great weekend. We have a DJ friend from Atlanta stopping in town this weekend. We look forward to seeing him and to the weekend in general. Enjoy yours and we will see ya Monday!

Destin Easter Weekend

What a weekend we had. Thursday we stopped at Crab Island Cantina. The weather was warming up a little so we got out to the harbor. We talked to Carlos, Dominic and Greg. While we were there I noticed a Facebook posting from JB that he was doing Karaoke at Sundestin resort. Our friend Sami tends bar there so we decided to head over.

Sami was surprised to see us. JB and his wife Tammy were outside doing the Karaoke. It was cold but there were tourist sitting around having a good time. Inside we were watching some of the March Madness basketball games. Ohio State was on and there were some Buckeye fans watching the game. A big cheer went up when the Bucks hit a long 3 point shoot as time was running out to win the game. We closed the bar down…okay, last call was at 9:30…but it was fun. We headed to McGuire’s from there. It was ladies night and the place was packed. We stayed a while enjoying watching the younger folks have fun.

JB at last years Seafood Festival

Friday Sunshine Cindy and I headed down to the harbor. It was sunny and warm. We stopped by to see Matt. Tommy and Pops were there too. Matt is booking fishing charter trips. Call him at 850-687-8424 and he will set you up. From there we wandered down to the old Tipsy Turtle. It has been opened again by Danny of Rotten Apple fame. Tommy was working the bar. They plan to have liquor soon so it will be a little different. Mike was at the bar. He is running Aloha water sports. The new name of the bar is going to be Banana something. They are not sure yet.

We continued down the harbor and ran into Renee in front of AJ’s. We talked to her for a while then headed to see Steve at the Hawaiian Ice booth. He has some good ideas for the upcoming season. We wish him well. On the way back down the boardwalk we saw Scott and a parrothead friend. The good times are rolling on the harbor again.

Malibu Jack's

We left the harbor and went to Hogs Breath for some dinner. After eating we stopped at Malibu Jacks. James was working and Eric was the only other person there. We hope they make it as this could be a fun place. Right next to Malibu Jack’s a new El Paso Mexican restaurant has opened. They are putting a big deck in. Looks like it will be fun place. The tour continued as we stopped in at Rotten Apple. Rose was working. A small but lively crowd was in there. Some drunk chick with no teeth was trying to pick up everyone in the bar. Scott and Paul stopped in. A couple of guys we saw at Hogs Breath also came in. We joked they were stalking us.

A beach day

Next stop was Landshark Pizza. A big crowd was there eating and watching more basketball. We spent a lot of time talking with T. We have seen him before but never really had a chance to talk to him. He is an interesting guy. Wayne joined us. Paige was working. We had not seen her in a while. As they were getting ready to close we walked down to Cash’s to check it out. We have seen it a hundred times but have never been in there. A good late night crowd was there. And from there it was time to head back home!  

Saturday we slowed down a little. We celebrated Easter at our house. It was a relaxing day of food and drink. While on our back porch we watched an Osprey fly over and dive into the pond behind us. What a majestic bird. Sunday we had Larry and Brodie over to discuss the food for our May “Trop Rockin Rocky Bayou” party. Larry is cooking up another feast for us. Everyone is welcome to the party. Here are the details: http://www.crabislandmambo.com/3rd-Annual-Trop-Rockin-Rocky-Bayou-Party-presented-by-KC's-SandBar-&-Grill.html

Sunshine Cindy showing off our new tank tops

We have also received our new Crab Island Mambo t-shirts, tank tops and long sleeve shirts. They turned out great and they are all American Made from the shirts to the design and to the printing. I hope everyone will want one so you can “Embrace the Chaos!” where ever you live!

Have a great week. See ya Thursday.