Key West continues...

The Key West party continues. Actually today (Thursday) is the official start of MOTM. Hard to believe everything up to this point has been a warm up! LOL

The weather in Key West has been perfect. Mid 80's during the day and upper 70's at night. There has hardly been any clouds but a decent breeze has been blowing. The water is a perfect shade of blue and the sky has been too. This is the weather people from up north come to Key West for.

Sunshine Cindy and I have been all over the island the last couple of days. We have hit all of our favorite spots. But our newest favorite is Dante's. Okay, it is because we sponsor the Welcome to the Island Party there. But it is a great spot and we had another fantastic party. A large number of people came and went all afternoon. The musicians were wonderful and the friendships priceless. We have already committed Crab Island Mambo to be the primary sponsor again next year!

We did get a bit of interesting news about the new Destin Margaritaville. We were at the Cafe on Duval street last night. We talked to a lady we thought was just a customer but she also was a server there. She was off for the night enjoying the music. It turns out the manager of the Key West Margaritaville will be coming to Destin to open and manage our new restaurant. We didn't get a chance to talk to her but we will be back to welcome her to Destin.

One cool thing about MOTM is all the musicians we get to see that we have not seen before. Yesterday at the Lazy Gecko we got to see a full show from Wes Loper. It was the first time we heard Wes. He was really good. Check him out if you get a chance.

Okay, time to keep the party going and get out and enjoy this perfect Key West morning. Next update will be Monday or maybe Tuesday depending on when we get home! See ya then!

Key West

We made it...we are in Key West! The blog is a day late as we got into town and right into party mode. It was my birthday too. Sunshine Cindy and Wayne did a last minute surprise party for me. They had the band members of Southern Drawl show up as well many other friends. We had a great time then we all hit the town.

I won't bore you with all the details. I will have a day-by-day account of the entire trip on the Crab Island Mambo web site in the Mullet Wrapper in November. And no pictures as I am not on my computer. Sorry...

But...a few highlights so far...We had a great time in Punta Gorda. We did see Southern Drawl Friday night and Sunday afternoon. On Saturday Sunshine Cindy and I went to the Oktoberfest and made a stop at Bert's Bar. It is a funky hole in the wall place.

We call this trip our "family reunion" as we reconnect with so many old friends. This time is no different. We seem to pick up right where we last left off.

Okay, time for a morning walk in Old Town to get the blood flowing. I will try to update on Thursday. But we are on Island Time so no promises! See ya then!!!

Destin Margaritaville

This has been a week dedicated to getting ready for our upcoming trip. Sunshine Cindy and I look forward to our “Parrothead Family Reunion.” We always have a great time with wonderful friends in SWFLA and then Key West.

Fun at the Nav-a-Gator lounge

But before we leave, there is still plenty going on in Destin. For one thing, winter arrived today. It was in the low 50’s this morning along the coast and in the 40’s inland. Brrrr! I am still not giving in though, I road into work with the top down on Badass! At least the days are in the 70’s.

We are getting closer to Margaritaville opening at Harborwalk Village. Reports say the construction will be done in early January with an opening towards the end of January. Last week they held auditions for musical acts so this is getting closer to being a reality. It was also reported Jimmy Buffett himself was in town a few weeks ago to check up on the construction. I can’t believe he didn’t call me to meet for a drink! LOL

A long way to go on the Destin Margaritaville

The fishing rodeo continues down on the docks. They have already weighed in more fish this year than any other year with over a week to go. That is pretty impressive. A couple that we know had their son Kaleb in the Destin Log holding up a fish he caught. That was pretty neat.

Destin Margaritaville

This is a big week in Destin as the Florida Harley Owners Group (H.O.G.) are holding their yearly convention in town. Between the Boardwalk on the island and Sago Sports Bar at The Palms, various activities are being held for the bikers. Last night at Sago they had a welcome party with the band Cadillac Willie playing. I saw some pictures and it looked like they had a big crowd. Later this weekend they will have the final party at Sago on Saturday.

The week began with getting new tires for Badass after I took a spike in one of them. New Goodyear Eagles are now on Badass all the way around. I also made sure Sunshine Cindy’s car is ready to go as we will be taking it on the trip. Everything is ready to go.

Duval Street Party for MOTM

I will try to keep my Mon/Thurs blog schedule but I can’t promise if it will be on time. I am on vacation after all. Everyone have a great weekend. See you soon!

Destin update...

Sunshine Cindy and I spent most of the weekend prepping for our upcoming trip to the Keys. We did get out and about a little though. Thursday I stopped in at Hogs Breath for a while. Cam is mending well from his staph infection. Blake Griffin was playing music. It was a nice evening there.

Cam behind the bar at Hogs Breath

Friday night Sunshine Cindy and I met Julie at Sago Sport Bar to watch the Cards baseball game. Julie is originally from St. Louis and a big Cards fan. We had a great time there. The Cards won and they are now going to the World Series. There was a wedding party going on out on the patio. Chuck Lawson was playing for them. They had the entire patio to themselves but there was still plenty of room inside.

We heard there is an African King staying at a sister condo. He has the full security around him. Any food even has to go through several people before he gets it. You never know who might be in Destin at any time!
 

Jesse at Crazy Lobster

Saturday was a lot of prepping. We did go to the harbor in the evening. We met up with Wayne. We started at Crab Island Cantina. Fall is in the air as it was getting cool there. We stayed for a while. Dominic and Greg we being kept busy.

We then walked over to the Crazy Lobster. We sat inside. Jesse was working. There was a good crowd in there watching some of the different football games. Something Fishy was playing outside but most folks were inside. I was able to get my Abita Amber fix. We all talked about the upcoming trip. Wayne is rooming with us again. It will be fun.

BadAss before the tire problem

Sunday was going to be a quiet day but I ended up getting a spike in a tire and it was flat as a pancake. BadAss has special tires that are not commonly carried. Goodyear is getting my tires in today so BadAss was out of commission. We did stop at Friday’s for some lunch with Sunshine Cindy’s parents and Tiffany. I then went to Landshark Pizza to watch the Browns game. I am sorry to say they are back to their old selves. Oh well, it was a nice three week run!

Have a great week. I will have an update Thursday before we leave. See ya then!

Tour of Destin

Sunshine Cindy and I have not been out much this week as we prepare for our trip to the Keys in a week. Since it has been quiet, I will take you along on my bike ride I took last Sunday. I am not one of those professional pedal pushers but I am more of a Trop Rock Bicyclist with my flip flops and Trop Rock tank top.

Mattie Kelly Arts Center

As I leave my neighborhood I go east on Commons drive. I pass the Mattie Kelly Arts complex and turn up by Home Depot to cross Hwy. 98. Now we are heading east on the sidewalk (I don’t ride on the highway, I don’t want to get killed!) in front of Henderson Beach park. I turn toward the beach at the bowling alley and reach Scenic 98 right alongside the beach. I ride along the beach all the way to the Crab Trap. I pull over here to enjoy the beach views before heading back.

On the way back I ride through the Crystal Beach neighborhood. I make a pass through some retail areas including City Market. In this area are several restaurants I want us to try one day. I pass Skent and Dent appliance sales. They sell appliances that might have a dent but can’t be sold as new and they have a great commercial with an old lady saying, “Where’s the dent?”

The Crab Trap on the beach

As I work back I again pass a huge Baptist Church. I think this is the called the Rock and Roll church and a lot of people go there. Now it is back onto the sidewalk heading west. This time I keep going past Ruth Chris Steakhouse all the way to Old 98. I turn up here and I am once again at the beach. There is a beach access here that is popular. We also have the CandyMaker on one corner and on the beach is The Back Porch restaurant. As I head back to the highway I pass the old townhomes that have been demolished to make way for a new condo and the new Hampton Inn that looks like it should open before the end of this year.

After waiting for a while for the light to cross 98, I pedaled up to The Track and cut through their parking lot to get to Airport Road. I went up to Commons drive. I have Morgan’s Sports Complex on my right. No one is playing this morning but there is usually a lot of games going on here. On the left is the dog park. There were quite a few people out with their dogs because it was a nice comfortable morning. I passed by the backside of The Palms condo where Sago Sports Bar is located and I made my way back home.

Sunshine Cindy at Sago with Brian and Bruce

The entire ride was over 11 miles and took me about an hour and twenty minutes. I hope you enjoyed this little ride through my slice of paradise in Destin!

Have a great weekend. See ya Monday.

Busy weekend in Destin

It was another fantastic fall weekend in Destin. The weather continues to be perfect. The town was crowded with tourist as it appears there are some fall school breaks going on. Add in the Columbus Day holiday and it is a three day weekend for many folks.

Great Sunday Morning

On Thursday I stopped in at Tapworks on my way home from work. Tapworks is a craft beer bar located in the KC’s Sandbar complex in downtown Ft. Walton Beach. It is a great spot with 60 beers on tap. They also have some craft liquors to go with the beers. It is a cozy place that I will get back and visit again soon. When I left Tapworks, I stopped at Harry T’s. Alan and Jackie were there. I had not seen them since they got into town on Monday and they were leaving on Friday. There was a perfect sunset over the Destin bridge. The harbor was crowded and all the tour boats were full. I could tell it was going to be a busy weekend in town.

Sunset from Harry T's

We all left Harry T’s and stopped at Landshark. We chatted some more while watching some of the Thursday night football game. It was a nice visit with them. They will be back for the winter in a few weeks. They are good folks and we enjoy their company.

Friday was nice. I ordered some flowers for Sunshine Cindy as we have been together 6 years now. I got them from a local florist called Pavlic. Turns out the lady who owns the place is also Croatian. We had a nice talk about Croatia and living in Destin. Sunshine Cindy and I met for lunch at Friday’s. We sat outside enjoying the nice weather. Friday night we had a Parrothead meeting at Harry T’s. And who do we see there but none other than the florist lady. I am now her Croatian Buddy! LOL

Tapworks

After the meeting we stopped in at Crab Island Cantina. Dominic and Mike were working. Greg had the night off but he stopped in for a while. Judy was staying busy as the place was full. We made one more stop at Crazy Lobster. Tom and Sandy were at the bar and we joined them. Jesse was working and again, there was a big crowd of tourist there too. That is good news since last weekend all the places lost out big because of the seafood festival being cancelled.

Saturday was low key. We were doing a lot of work around the house. I also spent a lot of time on the Crab Island Mambo Mullet Wrapper newsletter. It will be published later today. I did get out for a while in the afternoon and stopped at Landshark Pizza. B came in and joined me. Jason and Stephanie were trying to keep everyone happy as the place filled up. I stayed for a while and then called it a night.

Fun time watching the Browns

Sunday started out with a bike ride. I rode a little over 11 miles. A good bit of the ride was along the beach. The morning was perfect with no humidity and clear blue skies. In the afternoon Sunshine Cindy and I went to Kenny D’s to join Tom and Sandy in watching the Browns game. We had comedian for a waitress. She was giving everyone a hard time and we gave it back. Tom and Sandy are there each week to watch the Browns and they love cutting up with this waitress. I think her name was Julie but it helped make watching the Browns lose a little more bearable.

After the game we stopped in at Sago. Brian and Bruce were at a table and we joined them. Tommy was running around keeping all the TV’s on the right games. The outside patio area was pretty full with folks enjoying the nice weather. The Saints game was the big draw and all the Saints fans went home sad as they lost in the last couple of seconds of the game. From there we went home to get ready for the work week.

Have a great week. See ya Thursday!

Fall has arrived in Destin

It is officially fall in Destin. We had a cold front come through on Monday. The humidity is gone and our night time temps are in the low 60’s with the day time highs only in the mid 80’s. Most folks around here love the cooler weather but not me. The hotter the better for me. Oh well, nothing I can do about it. Before long I will have to wear long pants again. Ugh!

John Patti and Jimi Pappas at last years party

This has been a real slow week for Sunshine Cindy and me. It has been all work and no play so far…but that will change soon! I have been able to get a lot of Crab Island Mambo work done. We have our Key West trip coming up in a couple of weeks. We are preparing for the “Welcome to the Island” party that we are the primary sponsor for. The party is on Oct. 30th and is always a lot of fun. If you are in Key West at that time stop by and join us. No cover and some great Trop Rock music will be playing. Here are the details:  http://www.crabislandmambo.com/Crab-Island-Mambo's-Key-West-3rd-Annual-Welcome-to-the-Island-party.html

We have also booked our room in New Orleans for Pardi Gras in January. This is a fun Trop Rock event put on by Jerry Diaz and Sailaway Productions. Sunshine Cindy and I are looking forward to partaking in all the fun on Bourbon Street again.

New Orleans Pardi Gras parade

Closer to home, there are some changes taking place. The Rotten Apple on Mountain Drive is taking over the entire building they are in. There was a Thai Delight restaurant adjacent to the Apple but they are moving to the Target Shopping Center in Destin. The Rotten Apple will now be serving pizza and nacho’s among some other items. From what I understand, the owner of the Apple was the person who got Helen Back’s pizza business started. So he knows what he is doing.

The Rotten Apple

The Lighthouse restaurant has officially opened their doors at their new location. They are in the old Calhoun’s Pub and Grub location in the Old Time Pottery shopping center. I have heard they are doing well but they always had a loyal following.

Get out and enjoy the fall weather this weekend. Don’t forget the fishing rodeo is in full swing down on the docks. There have been some big ones brought in already! We will be down there Friday for sure. See ya Monday!

Karen was a dud

With all the build up by the Worry….I mean the Weather Channel, you would have thought we were in store for a Katrina type of storm. They even sent Jim Cantore to Pensacola but I am sure he was disappointed since all he saw was sunshine! But the threat of the storm did lead to many cancellations. The Destin Seafood Festival was cancelled as well as some musical shows. But somehow we still had a great time.

Fun at The Boathouse

It started Thursday night. Sunshine Cindy and I went to Sago Sports Bar to watch the Browns/Bills football game. A couple came and sat next to us at the bar. Tom and Sandy moved to Destin from Cleveland three years ago. They own a kiosk in Harborwalk Village. I see Tom all the time wearing his Browns jersey. It was a great game that the Browns won. It was a late night and made for a tough time getting up on Friday to go to work. lol

Friday night Sunshine Cindy and I met Wayne on the harbor. The weather was great so we took advantage of it. We started out at Crab Island Cantina. We walked over to The Crazy Lobster where we hung out for a while. We made our way to Fishheads. Then we went to The Boathouse. Kenny was there with a friend from Alabama, Terri. We had a fun time. Scott and a friend of his, Tom were there. A big crowd was inside listening to Jason Clark play. We had a lot of fun there. We made one more stop from there at The Waffle House to get some food and wind down.

Kenny ready for food at the Waffle House

Saturday we were back down on the harbor. The Boathouse was supposed to have Phil Calhoun play on Sunday but the rain from Karen was going to come on Sunday so they asked Phil to sit in with another band that was going to play on Saturday. Sunshine Cindy, Wayne and I got a table right up front. The band, Gunner, was an old rock and roll band. We had a couple of tourist guys from Texas sitting at the table next to us. They were enjoying themselves and we all got to know each other.

Norma came and sat next to us too. Phil did several songs with the band and he sounded great. Phil is getting up there in years and does not play much anymore but he still sounded great. There were a lot of people there. We got to talk to many different folks. Gigi and the staff once again took good care of us. At one point I was grabbed from behind. It was Tom who we met at Sago. He and Sandy were at Dockside watching some football. When we left the Boathouse we stopped at Dockside and talked to them for a while.

Phil Calhoun singing at The Boathouse

As we were talking I see Charlie and Kim walk by. They stopped and said they were going to the Monkey Bar to listen to JB. He was a last minute addition since his other gigs were cancelled. We hung around there for a while then headed to Fishheads. I wanted to get some pictures of Melissa as she will be our bartender of the month for October in the Mullet Wrapper. Al the sax man was playing and he had a big crowd hanging around. Al is a great showman. We decided to call it a day. We made a stop at AJ’s to use the restroom and next thing you know we are at the downstairs bar having one last drink. I had never been at the downstairs bar before. It was more comfortable than the mosh pit the upstairs becomes most of the time.

Dancing to JB's music at the Monkey Bar

Sunday we finally got some of the rain they had been predicting. We had a few bands pass through but nothing serious. In the afternoon I stopped in at Landshark Pizza to watch some football. There were a good group of fans in there watching some of the different games. A big group of Packer Backers were also there. A good time was being had by all.

Monday morning the last of the weekend storm has passed and it is now much cooler. It was in the low 60’s this morning and will be in the 50 tomorrow morning. Brrrr! Oh well, fall is officially here I guess.

Have a great week. See ya Thursday!

Tropical Storm Karen heading to Destin

Just when we thought it was safe to go back into the water here comes Tropical Storm Karen. I barely know her but already I don’t like her. I don’t pay attention to any storms until they are into the Gulf. Well, TS Karen is in the Gulf so I am paying more attention to it. There is a slight chance it might become a minimal hurricane but it will be a big rain maker. And because it will hit on Saturday, the Destin Seafood Festival has been cancelled.

Picture from last years tropical storm with Eric and Kim Stone

That is terrible news. The Seafood Festival has become one of the biggest events on the Destin harbor. This will have a big economical impact on a lot of folks. The businesses on the harbor have already had the 4th of July weekend and the Poker Run weekend rained out ruining two of the biggest weekends. Now this is the third strike. I feel bad for everyone trying to make a living down there.

The Southern Drawl Band shows in New Orleans and in Destin at Crab Island Cantina have also been cancelled. I don’t know if these shows will be made up or not. If they are, I will announce them so everyone can make plans.

The waves were pounding

People in Destin are already making a run on the gas stations and grocery stores. Time to stock up for a hurricane party! This is not going to be a big event so we can joke about hurricane parties and riding out the storm. I have been through Ivan and Dennis in years past and they were no laughing matter. No power for days is not fun.

This week Sunshine Cindy and I went to the Cantina on Monday to talk to a lady about helping with our wedding next year. Carlos came over and we were all excited about Southern Drawl Band and the upcoming festival. Judy also was there and she was just as excited. Dominic was behind the bar and said they had everyone scheduled to work this weekend. My how things can change in a few days.

Picture from last years seafood festival

The rest of the week was spent at home. Hockey season is underway. I love watching the games. I was disappointed the Indians didn’t win their playoff game but they had a great season. Tonight the Browns are playing. Hopefully they can stay on their run. Then we can keep an eye on the Gulf and see what Karen is going to do.

One last word about TS Karen…Last Sunday while we were at Landshark Pizza Pops and Mom were there. Pops is a boat captain. He told us to keep an eye on the disturbance that was forming that I didn’t know anything about. He was afraid it would become a storm and hit us on Saturday. Looks like Pops was dead on. Never doubt a boat captain!

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