Tourist Season in Destin

Here they come….the tourist are back. With Memorial Weekend behind us, the start of our tourist season in Destin is now hitting full speed. The weekend was crazy in town. Crab Island was packed. I heard from several people that there are more rental pontoon boats than ever. That means very inexperienced people driving those boats. It is a recipe for disaster. I remember a few years ago I was heading back to Niceville and just got out of the no wake zone by Crab Island. I was with three other boats when a rental pontoon cut right in front of all of us. Luckily we were all alert and got slowed down but it could have been bad. Especially since there was small kids in the rental boat. Look out for boats with numbers on them!

Jet Man in Destin

We have finally started to slow down a little this week. After spending Monday at Sunshine Cindy’s parents house we have not been out since. This is giving us time to clean up around the house and wind down from all the excitement from the last few weeks. I have been able to get some Crab Island Mambo writing done too. It felt good to relax.

Crab Island

The Destin Commons area has been in the news lately. First Peter Boz asked the city council to consider turning the area around the Commons north to the bay into a special district where open containers would be legal. He wanted this to be all the way to the new Lulu’s that is going up next to Legendary Marina. Then just as fast he withdrew his request. I am sure this is some kind of ploy on his part to soften up the criticism he would be sure to get. I would like to see it happen but there are so many people in this town who automatically reject anything Boz suggests no matter what it is. The NIMBY’s in this town don’t realize we are not a small fishing village anymore. The world has discovered Destin for better or worse. The genie won’t be going back into the bottle.

The other Commons news was a proposal for a small amusement area just off the Commons grounds. It is to be called, “Crabby Island Amusement Park” and will feature 13 rides. They plan to have carnival food but no alcohol. Of course someone who lives in the area is opposed to this plan. But it sounds like it is zoned properly so I am sure it will happen.

Good times at the Groovy Grouper at Destin Commons

It is only a few weeks till the World of Beer and The Blend open at the Commons in the new expansion that is being built. That entire area is now taking on a life of its own.

No big plans for this weekend. I am sure we will be down on the harbor at some point. Get out and “Embrace the Chaos!” this weekend. See ya Monday!

Memorial Day Weekend in Destin

What a fun weekend we had in Destin for the Memorial Holiday Weekend. It started out Thursday night. Jeff, Robbin, Judie and Kelly were still in town. We all met up with Wayne at Harry T’s. It was happy hour. Harry T’s has a great happy hour and Chris took good care of us. We then went upstairs for the sunset. The group went to Dewey Destin’s for dinner but Sunshine Cindy and I stayed back. We made a stop at Crab Island Cantina. Greg was working and we talked to him for a while. Then we made a last stop at Margaritaville before heading home.

Group pic at Margaritaville

Friday started the madness in Destin as the tourist descended on our town. I made a trip to the harbor in the afternoon to stop by Harbor Gifts. Tom and Sandy were not open yet so I stopped by Matt’s booth and chatted with him for a while. I then went to The Crust Pizzeria. Charlie apologized for missing the wedding but he was too busy to get away. I told him not to worry, I was glad he was busy! I had a slice of pizza for lunch and then headed to Landshark to make sure everything was in order for our Sunday party. Brian had it all under control.

Happy Hour at Harry T's

In the evening Sunshine Cindy and I met Julie at Sago. Except it is no longer Sago. It is now called Chips. Damon sold out and Chip is now the owner. He is adding breakfast in a few weeks and the kitchen will be open late. They have ½ price drinks for locals all day every day now. They were remodeling now. It will be interesting to see what it ends up being like. We ate and the food is still good. We sat on the outside patio. There was a nice breeze. Capt. John joined us. It was a relaxing evening.

Saturday was the 19th annual Bobby and Darla Memorial Holiday party at their house. They do a crawfish boil, have music, volleyball, a pool….yes, it is a blast. Jeff Brewer and the Camaro’s played. A ton of food was consumed. Bobby gave a moving speech honoring our vets and active duty service members including his own two boys. It was a fun and moving time as always.

Bobby giving his moving speech

Sunday we had our Crab Island Mambo and Landshark Pizza BTSHTF party at Landshark. Jan Patton played for us. Brian and James boiled up a mess of crawfish. Jim and Barb brought a ton of jello shots. The weather was great. You could not ask for a better time. We didn’t have to fight the crowds at the beach or the pools. It was a great Sunday afternoon.

The crawfish were getting ready

After the party Julie invited a group of us back to her house to swim and have some hot dogs. I bought a Landshark Pizza to take with us to go with the hot dogs. The pool water temp was at 90 degrees but it was refreshing. We had Jan, Kenny, Wayne, Suzanne, Russ, Julie, Mike and of course our host Julie all there. It was a perfect end to the weekend!

Don’t forget to take a moment today and say a prayer for our troops who are protecting us so we can celebrate this holiday. Without them and our vets we would be able to have the good times that we do. Enjoy the holiday. Have a great week. See ya Thursday!

Post Wedding

The whirlwind few days Sunshine Cindy and I have recently had are slowing down. Monday we got the balance of the items we rented back to the rental place. Monday night we wanted a nice quiet dinner. We went back to the harbor and stopped in at La Familia in Harborwalk Village. We have ate at the original La Familia up the road but this was our first visit to the new place. We liked it. We sat on the big deck overlooking the Destin Bridge and East Pass. Tony waited on us. We remember him from the original location. The food was as good as always. It was a nice relaxing evening after a hectic few days.

Wedding week picture with my cuz Steve and his wife Jane

We left there and headed to Landshark Pizza for a few beers. Brian, Sue, Jason and Haley were working. Everyone greeted us and told us how much they enjoyed the wedding. B was there and told us he was sorry he had to miss it but he ended up having to go to Georgia on Saturday. We thanked him again for the paper products he gave us. Just after we got there a carry out order was called in for 11 pizza’s and some number of wings. The guys were kept busy with all those pies! Music bingo was starting. We had not planned to stay but we ended up playing both games. It’s a lot of fun.

Tuesday we went to Sunshine Cindy’s parents house. Her cousin and her boyfriend were still in town. We picked them up and we all went over together. It was a relaxing day. We sat on the dock for almost two hours talking and soaking up some sun. We had a nice visit with everyone.

Jeff and Robbin

Wednesday night we met up with our friends from Milwaukee, Jeff and Robbin. They are sharing a condo for the week with Judie and Kelly. We all met up at Harry T’s for Happy Hour. Wayne also joined us. When this crew gets together it is always a lot of fun. You never know what will be said. We had our drinks and walked over to Fisherman’s Wharf for dinner. We sat on the outside patio. A nice breeze was blowing. It was a perfect evening with great friends.

I had their Mahi sandwich and Sunshine Cindy had a Grouper sandwich. The food there is always good. We were cutting up and joking around having a good time. They were ready to close down by the time we left. One of the servers said we were having so much fun he wanted to join us! LOL We made one more stop at Margaritaville before calling it a night.

Some of our friends at the wedding

A couple of new places have recently opened in the area. Down on the harbor district of Hwy. 98 Uncle Bucks BBQ joint opened. They must be doing something right as they ran out of food the other day. We will have to check it out. The new Jimmy John’s sandwich joint opened in the Winn Dixie plaza. Also on the island, the new Holiday Inn Express opened this week. It is between the Sheraton and Waterscape. I hope they have done something about the flooding that happens on Hwy. 98 where their driveway is. That is a bad spot.

It’s a big holiday weekend. We have an annual party to attend on Saturday that is always a blast. Sunday we have a Crab Island Mambo party with Landshark Pizza. Jan Patton will be playing music from 1-5 pm. There will be a crawfish boil and a hot wing eating contest after the music. We hope to see all of our friends on Sunday at Landshark Pizza in the Old Time Pottery Shopping Center. Here is a link to all the weekend fun: http://www.crabislandmambo.com/Weekend-Update.html

Jan and Kenny playing our last Landshark party

Have a safe weekend and don’t forget to thank a Veteran or active duty service member as they are the reason we can do what we do. See ya Monday!

Awesome Wedding Weekend in Destin

Words cannot describe our wedding weekend but I will try to hit some of the highlights. It started out Thursday night. We had checked into the Emerald Grande and got settled. Our friends planned a Wedding Pub Crawl along the harbor for the evening. It turned out to be a fun time.

We started at the Boathouse. We hit Coach’s. We made a stop at the outline of the old Tipsy Turtle. Then we went to Lapotada before heading up the hill to Coyote Ugly. And it got ugly there with folks riding the bull, dancing on the bar and me being blindfolded and wrote on. When we left there we stopped in at Margaritaville. A bachelorette party was there. Sunshine Cindy and the other bride compared notes. Then we made one last stop at Crab Island Cantina. From there everyone headed home or to the Waffle House. Sunshine Cindy and I stopped at Harry T’s before going back to our room.

Wedding Crawl stopped at Coach's on the harbor

Friday was our “Embrace the Chaos! Trop Rock Music Series at The Cantina” with Jim Asbell playing. We had out of town guest arriving all afternoon. We probably ended up with about 120 people that came and went. Jim did his usual fantastic show. What fun catching up with our Trop Rock friends from around the country.

Saturday was the big day. I won’t bore you with a lot of details other than to say the day could not have been any more perfect. Sunshine Cindy was radiant and glowing. Wayne had a surprise musical act lined up. Turns out it was more than one. It was a 12 Volt Band reunion with Paul Roush and also Bob Bannerjee from Pittsburgh. We had Bob play his fiddle leading the wedding party right down the middle of Harborwalk Village. Pam did a great job being the officiate. It was a blast of a day. Music went till 9 pm. Food was great. Stephanie’s Cup Cake “cake” was fantastic. Jerry Diaz and Hanna’s Reef rocked the house. It was a perfect ceremony and reception. Sunshine Cindy did all the planning and pulled off a great wedding!

Jim Asbell

Sunday we tried to catch our breath a little. We met Wayne and Bob for brunch at Harry T’s. Tiffany was with us too. Bob could not get over how beautiful Destin is. He was in awe! As Wayne and Bob left so Wayne could get him to the airport, Sunshine Cindy and I collected up the rental items we had and I made a run to the house with some of the gifts we were given. When I got back we hit the boardwalk. We saw SinCity Lisa at the Cantina. Deron was just getting back from a fishing trip and they were heading home to Panama City.

A cup cake "cake"

We walked down to Fishheads. As Sunshine Cindy and I walked up Melissa and Becca started cheering and applauding. That was cool. We hung out there for a while talking to them and a tourist couple at the bar. We walked down to Coach’s. While there we got a message that some of the gang was at The Crust Pizzeria. Up there we went. Judie, Kelly, Jeff, Robbin, David and Wayne were there. Then we get a message Pam and Earl are at Margaritaville. We needed to meet up with Pam to get some paperwork for the marriage license. So off we went there.

They were at the bar. Steve was behind the bar working. Leigh and Keith came in then the crew from The Crust. Finally Mark, Stephanie, Roland and Jackie all came in. It was now a party! It was dinner time so Pam, Earl, Leigh, Keith and Sunshine Cindy, Tiffany and myself went to Boshamps. We had a great dinner. Then it was back to Margaritaville for Pam and Earl and us. We sat at the bar enjoying Earl telling stories of some of the places around the world they have visited. Pam and Earl own the Tropical Isle locations in New Orleans. They are successful folks that are just down to earth like the rest of us. We love those two.

Sunshine Cindy was stunning

Finally we called it a night. Time to wind down!!! We sat on the balcony for a while enjoying the stars over the Gulf of Mexico.

This week we will be laying a little low before the holiday weekend. I will see ya Thursday!

Destin weekend…

This weekend was the calm before the storm…so to speak. With the wedding coming up this weekend, we spent most of the last few days tightening up loose ends. Thursday we did get to the Cantina to make sure all the preparations are complete. Judy and Stephanie are doing a great job working with us. I highly recommend them for any big party you are planning. Our drink concoction was finalized and we are good to go.

Sailboat in the harbor

While there we had a few drinks and some dinner. I had their Tamales. I love them! The Cantina has great food and drinks. The place was crowded. It turns out they had a party of about 30 people. It made for a good night for them.

Friday I worked on the upcoming Mullet Wrapper. Meanwhile Sunshine Cindy and Tiffany went to Pensacola for some final wedding shopping. They ended up being gone all day. I headed down to the harbor early for the Parrot Head meeting. Wayne was off for the day and he went early too. We planned to meet at The Crust Pizzeria. On my way over I ran into Capt. John. He joined us too. We talked to Charlie for a while. LeMaya was waiting on us. She is an outgoing server. Capt. John and Charlie talked about sailing. Charlie is looking to buy a sailboat.

We left there to head to Harry T’s for the meeting but we first made a stop at Harbor Gifts. I wanted to say “hi” to Tim and Sandy. We talked a little about how slow it has been on the docks but we talked a lot about the Browns drafting Johnny Manziel. Now that was big news. At Harry T’s the Parrot Heads had the upper deck packed out. It was another good time with food, drinks and music. A great combination.

Don't ask! LOL

Wayne and I left and went to Crab Island Cantina. Mike was behind the bar. The Penguins and Rangers game was on a TV. We ended up staying to watch the whole game. I had the Cantina’s gumbo. It is award winning and I can see why after having it. This was outstanding gumbo. We had several friends stop by and Judy sat with us for a while. It was a nice relaxing evening on the harbor. From there it was time to head home.

Sunshine Cindy and I didn’t do a lot on Saturday outside the house. I had an appointment for a haircut with Renee at 10 am. After that was done Sunshine Cindy and I decided to stop for some breakfast. Everyplace we tried to get into was packed. We went to the harbor thinking we would go to Margaritaville at 11 when they opened for lunch. We had about 20 minutes to kill. We walked to the Marler charter booth to talk to Matt. He was his usual crazy self. We then stopped at Fishheads. Becca was opening the place. We have not seen her in a while. She seems to be doing fine.

We changed our mind about Margaritaville and instead went to Harry T’s. We didn’t know it but they do brunch on Saturdays too. Sunshine Cindy loves her breakfast food so she was in heaven. We are getting to know a lot of the folks at Harry T’s and I think we talked to every one of them! LOL  When we left we headed home for the rest of the day doing things around the house.

Harry T's packed with Parrot Heads

With Sunday being Mothers Day, I made breakfast for Sunshine Cindy. It was a nice way to start the day. I worked on Crab Island Mambo stuff while Sunshine Cindy worked around the house. In the afternoon I went out to wash Badass. It was hot out. Summer has finally got here. I worked up a good sweat but Badass looks good again. Finally in the late afternoon, I headed to Landshark Pizza. Sunshine Cindy wanted to stay home so I went for a while.

As I was pulling into the parking lot I felt something hit my arm. I looked and realized I had been pooped on by a bird. That sucker had to have good aim and targeting skills to hit a moving car! LOL I got cleaned up and cleaned Badass up again. In Landshark Jason was working the tables. He was in pain. He has a kidney stone that was causing him a lot of grief. He was toughing it out though. I had some wings, a few beers and brought home some food for Sunshine Cindy. All in all it was another great weekend in Destin!

This week we already have friends and family coming into town. It is going to be a wild and crazy week. I will have an update on Thursday. See ya then!

Countdown to a Wedding

Destin is a small town where it seems like everyone knows everyone else. That was never more prevalent than this week. Right now it is all wedding work all the time….except for Monday. Sunshine Cindy and I went to the harbor for Cinco de Mayo. Our first stop was at Margaritaville. We heard some scuttlebutt that “The Man” might be making an appearance that night. Jimmy usually shows up a few months after a new café opens plus he was in NOLA for Jazz Fest so it was possible.

Margaritaville "Chill Bar"

The only one that showed up was Tiffany! LOL She joined us. We had a drink and enjoyed the nice night. From there we went to Harry T’s for some dinner. Tiffany works there so she knows everyone. We sat at the bar and had a good meal. While there Julie called to see where we were at. She was with her sister and a friend. They joined us before we all headed to Crab Island Cantina. The Cantina was packed with revelers. We saw a ton of people we knew that was there partying it up. With a DJ playing music and ladies dressed to the hilt, it was a great party atmosphere.

We hung around for a while then headed home due to work on Tuesday. Tuesday night Sunshine Cindy and Tiffany joined the other girls at Julies house for a small party while doing a dress fitting. Meanwhile I went to Landshark Pizza. B was there. He is giving us some paper products for the wedding but he didn’t have them with him. We made plans to meet again on Wednesday. Landshark was mostly packed all night. Pops and Janice were there as well as a bunch of folks I didn’t know. Seemed like a lot of tourist. B and I had a good time conversing. I had some pizza too. It was a good night.

Wednesday night saw Sunshine Cindy and I go to pick up my ring. It was in and looks great. The owners of Emerald Lady Jewelry are great folks. They really know how to take care of their customers. From there it was back to Landshark Pizza for Wing Night. We met B and got the paper products. Then it was time for some wings. Jason was cooking them up. He had a huge to-go order. 200 wings and a couple of pizza’s. Wow. All the regular’s were there…too many to mention. Paige was back working after having the baby. She looked good and was glad to be back.

Sunshine Cindy at the Chill Bar

We ended the night sitting outside with Brian, Glen and Bruce. David and Kelly were there with their grandkids. The night was perfect with the temps still almost 80. As we were leaving Bruce’s wife came up and we got to talking to her. It turns out she has a brother who lives in Marathon in the Keys and another brother who lives in Key West. Small world for sure.

Earlier today Sunshine Cindy and I went to the courthouse to get our wedding license. Yes, it is all coming together now. With all of our friends and family from Destin and around the country coming to join us, this wedding will be one of the better parties in Destin this year. At least I think it will!!!

This weekend will be a little of the calm before the storm. The Parrot Heads will meet on Friday night at Harry T’s. Otherwise we don’t have a lot planned. Enjoy your weekend. A full report coming Monday!

Destin Drying Out

After the deluge we received in Destin on Wednesday, we are slowly drying out. There is still some water sitting in places it is not supposed to be but with sunshine and warm temps everything is getting back to normal.

A lot of rain fell on Wednesday morning

Thursday night Sunshine Cindy stayed home but I went down to Crab Island Cantina to meet up with some Parrot Head friends. Mark and Stephanie had a visitor for the weekend. Char, who is on the national Parrot Head BOD, came into town Wednesday night to spend a few days with them. Mark had to work but I met Stephanie and Char. Val was taking good care of us as she has done many times before. The Calypso Nuts were schedule to perform but cancelled due to the weather so it was quieter than normal.

Capt. John came in not knowing the Nuts’ were cancelled. He joined us. We had a fun evening catching up with Char. Char is from the Columbus, Ohio area. Her husband was also in Florida but down south and he was playing golf. With the storms, Char almost didn’t get in. She was hours late but finally did arrive. Some on her flight had to sleep in the airport all night as no earlier flights made it in. That had to be terrible. While we were there Char got a message from her husband wondering where his underwear was. Turns out he left them behind. That lead to a good joke the next day.

 Here is Steve's underwear! LOL

We were all back at Crab Island Cantina on Friday night for our “Embrace the Chaos! Trop Rock Music Series at The Cantina” with Gene Mitchell performing. During the day Char and Stephanie went out and bought some underwear. They brought it to the Cantina and had me hold it up. They sent the picture to Char’s husband Steve saying they found his underwear. Needless to say I had a few strange looks as I held that up! It was a fun evening at The Cantina. Gene did a great job. Sunshine Cindy and I ended the night with a Waffle House stop. Love the scattered, smothered and covered!

Gene Mitchell

Saturday was our Mambo and ECPHC beach cleanup. I was on the beach by 9:15 am. Sunshine Cindy stayed home to work on wedding stuff. She is in full wedding mode right now. I learned something new from a life guard who was putting up the warning flags. The Gulf was as calm as I had ever seen it but she put up a yellow flag. I asked what it takes to get a green flag. Turns out the water temp has to be at least 75 before they think of putting a green flag out. Very strange but I guess they have reasons.

We had a great time on the beach. There was a little more trash than normal due to the rain and the crews not able to get to the beach but even with that there was not much to cleanup. This is one of the cleanest beaches in the state. The weather was perfect. Kenny brought his kayak. I took a trip out into the Gulf with Loujean. It was a perfect day to be out on the water. The beach party broke up about 4 pm.

Wayne and Loujean taking the kayak out

A lot was going on in town over the weekend. There was a classic car show on the Island. All kind of hot rods and classic cars were on the roads. Panama City Beach had their motorcycle weekend, Thunder Beach. Thousands of bikers descend on the town. Many of them come through Destin. Morgan’s Sports Complex had some tournaments going on. The area around there was packed. The town was jumping.

When I got home Sunshine Cindy and I headed to Sago Sports Bar for some dinner and a few drinks. We got a booth by the 90 inch TV’s. Tommy came by to say hi and put on the hockey game for us. He sure does know me! LOL  The place was not very crowded. Ashland waited on us. First time we had seen her. She did a good job. Not too long after we were there the place started to fill up with families and lots of kids running around. Turns out the tourney at Morgan’s was a kids soccer event and many of the families were staying at The Palms. It was good to see the place packed.

Loujean on the beach

When we got home we sat out on the back porch for the first time in a long time. The temps were perfect. A nice end to the day.

Sunday we mostly stayed around the house. The wedding is real close and all encompassing now. We can see the light at the end of the tunnel though. Temps are now in the 80’s so it is starting to feel like summer. Finally!

Have a great week. See ya Thursday!

Rain, rain and more rain for Destin

The big story of the week was all the rain the Florida Panhandle received Wednesday. The amount of rain was record breaking. Tuesday night we were receiving weather alerts but most were for possible tornado activity. There was a flash flood watch but no one seemed too concerned about that.

Early Wednesday morning about 1 am I was woke up by thunder and lightning. I could hear it raining hard too. I fell back to sleep but got woke up again about 3 am. Now the lightning was constantly flashing and thunder was just rolling. The rain was coming down extremely hard. The way the wind was blowing it was blasting our bedroom window. I tried to go back to sleep but about every time I dozed off, the thunder and rain would wake me back up.

From our house looking across the street

Our neighborhood is prone to flooding. I figured the way the rain was coming down we might have a problem. I finally got up about 4:45 to get ready for work. I went to front door and looked out. The street was completely underwater and it was coming up our driveway. It was still dark so it was hard to see how bad it was. The rain was still coming down as a monsoon so it was not going to get any better soon. I texted my boss saying I was not able to get out of my garage and would be in as soon as it let up.

It did not let up till almost noon. In our area of Destin rain was coming down at the rate of 3 inches an hour. We are lucky, our house sits up a little higher than most in our neighborhood. The water got half way up our driveway but then it started to recede. Many of our neighbors were not so lucky as quite a few ended up with water in their homes. This was a bad storm for sure.

Looking up the street...that is why we could not leave the house

Many roads in Destin were closed. The Mid Bay Bridge and Brooks Bridge in Ft. Walton Beach were both closed due to flooding on the roads that lead to them. Hard to imagine but it was worse in Pensacola. They got over 20 inches of rain total. Roads were washed out, people were forced into their attics to escape rising flood waters and the sheriff used boats and jet skies to rescue folks.

Our friends Brian and Sue’s house took a direct lightning hit. Somehow the strike caused a fire in their stove. They were quick thinking and dumped a bag of floor onto the fire to put it out. All of their in-house electronics were taken out too. But at least the house didn’t burn down.

Many other friends had their houses flooded. There is going to be a lot of cleanup going on around the area in the next few weeks.

We are ready for the Beach Cleanup

This has been a strange year for weather in Destin. We had the ice storm. Then the violent thunderstorms a few weeks ago. Now this parade of thunderstorms that dumped more water than even our sandy soil could handle. I wonder if a cloud of locust are coming next!

Our weekend looks like it is going to be great. We will take it. Friday night we have a Crab Island Mambo party at Crab Island Cantina on the harbor with Gene Mitchell playing for us from 5-9 pm. Saturday we will be on the beach for our first cleanup of the year. Everyone is welcome to join us at Beachwalk #2 on Okaloosa Island next to The Breakers resort.

A full report Monday on all the fun and games. See ya then!!!