Road Trip…

Normally folks road trip to Destin but this weekend Sunshine Cindy and I took our own road trip. We left Destin before the sun came up on Friday and headed to Punta Gorda, FL. On Saturday there was a celebration of the life and music of Jim Morris and we wanted to be present to pay our respects and to be a part of the celebration.

Jim was one of the pioneers of Trop Rock music. He had a legion of dedicated fans who would pack his shows. Sunshine Cindy and I even traveled to Costa Rica a few years ago with Jim and his fans for a week. He and his wife Sharon were great people. Jim was taken from us way too early so it was important we were there this weekend.

Wayne rode down with us and there were 6 others from the Destin area that also went down. We got there in the early afternoon and hit the ground running. Some of our friends had never been to the Nav-a-Gator so we headed there for some food and fun. Mona took good care of us as we had a blast telling stories and relaxing. As we were winding down a monsoon hit. It poured for a good 20 minutes. When it lulled we headed to the car walking in ankle deep water.

Friday night was spent at Hurricane Charley’s where we saw dozens of friends. It was great seeing everyone even if the reason we were all there was sad. I had a chance to talk with Jimi, the drummer from Jim Morris’s band and got the story of what happened to Jim. I also learned that they are keeping the band together and will continue to play Jim’s music. That’s good news. It was a long day of driving and partying and we about ready to head to our room when our friends Jay and Kathy came in. They have a second house in Punta Gorda and Jay had just flown in. We ended up talking to them till almost 1:30 am. Yep, a long day. LOL

Saturday was the celebration. It started at 12:30 pm. I guess there was close to 2000 people show up for it. They had quite a few musicians play and many folks shared stories. It was hot out there as the sun was relentless with very little breeze. About two hours in a monsoon drenched everyone but the party went on. It was a moving and emotional day.

As the party wound down Sunshine Cindy and I took Wayne, Kenny and Becki into town. We first stopped at Fisherman’s Village and found a spot to have a few beers. At one point we were all walking around when Kenny reached back to hold Becki’s hand but she had moved off to look in a store window. The lady whose hand Kenny had grabbed was sure surprised as was Kenny. We all had a good laugh at that.

We also made stops at The Ice House and Celtic Ray. It was a lot of fun. Back at the hotel the party was cranking up at Hurricane Charley’s. Sunny Jim and John Frinzi were leading a parade of musicians who performed. The time went by way too fast.

Then Sunday morning we were back in the car and headed home. 8 hours later we were back in Destin, got Chaos who was being watched by our neighbors and we caught our breath before we had to get ready for the new work week.

In Destin we missed seeing our friends Alan and Jackie. They came into town for the weekend and we hated that we missed them. Oh well, they will be back in a couple months for the winter.

This is last week of the Summer season. We have a tropical system that has had the Worry…I mean Weather Channel all in a tizzy. They have been reporting on this thing (that is still not named by the way because it is so weak) for what seems like a month. Yes, it might become a tropical storm and it will most likely drop a lot of rain but they are making it sound like doomsday is coming. I guess they need something to talk about.

Enjoy your Labor Day weekend. I will have a full report next Monday!

Destin Steve

Slow week in Destin.

Now that most of the tourist have returned to Atlanta, New Orleans, Dallas and all the other places they come from, things have slowed back down in Destin. The traffic is lighter, you can get into most restaurants and everyone who deals with the tourist crowd is catching their breath.

Sunshine Cindy and I stayed around the house for the most part this week as we are preparing for a trip to Punta Gorda next weekend for a celebration of the life of Jim Morris. Friday evening I did make a run to Landshark Pizza to get a pizza for dinner. Courtney was working the bar. Pops was there having a brew as I walked in. It was slow at first but it got crowded as the dinner crowd started to come in. The pizza was the usual excellent pie Landshark is noted for.

Saturday morning I took a bike ride. I ended up going almost 11 miles as I rode to the beach and around Destin. It was a beautiful morning. The Gulf was smooth as glass. We don’t see that too often. By the Back Porch restaurant folks were preparing for a series of paddle board races. I saw Skip there as he was volunteering. We talked for a few minutes before I continued my ride. It was a good ride.

The rest of Saturday was spent working around the house and running errands for things needed for the work around the house. lol 

Sunday morning I took another bike ride. I got down to the Crab Trap on old 98 and it started to rain. A storm came up from nowhere. I got under a pavilion as it rained hard for a few minutes. When the rain stopped I saw blue sky back the way I was heading so I took off. Well, before I could get to the blue sky the rain came back. I got soaked but as least I was not hot! I ended up doing almost 10 miles on Sunday. It’s good exercise and I enjoy riding.

After I got home and took a shower Sunshine Cindy and I headed to Asiago Skillet for breakfast. This is a new place next to Landshark Pizza that has only been open a few weeks. They have an original location on Okaloosa Island next to Helen Back and I have heard good things about both locations. It was crowded but we were lucky and got a table. A big lined started to form after we got there. The food was great. I had shrimp and grits with a couple eggs on top of it all. The shrimp was fresh from the Gulf and the meal was really good. Sunshine Cindy had their ham and cheese omelet and a pancake. We also had potato cakes and sausage gravy. Everything was excellent. I highly recommend this place if you want breakfast. They are open from midnight to noon each day. We will be back!

Our friend Charley and his wife Brenda who own the Crust Pizzeria have opened a new location. They have taken over and totally remodeled the old Mama Rosa’s Pizza on Lewis Turner Blvd in Fort Walton Beach. This is now their third location around town. The Northwest Florida Daily News did a nice piece on them. You can read it here: http://www.nwfdailynews.com/business/20160818/new-pizzeria-opening-in-fort-walton-beach

The Emerald Coast Poker Run was held this weekend. It seemed like there was not as many boats around town as in previous years. The Parrot Heads manned a couple of the stops with the krewe at Juana’s getting voted the most fun stop. That is not surprising.

I have not done this in a while so let’s take a virtual stroll around the harbor area. We will park at The Crust and say hi to Charley and start with a cold beer to get the stroll off and running. From there we will walk the few steps to AJ’s. Something is always going on at AJ’s. Next we head to Tailfins. If you want a great view go to their open air bar on the third floor. Leaving Tailfins we will pass Dewey Destin’s and Brotula’s. Both place are great for fresh local seafood.

Continuing down the boardwalk we come to The Boathouse Oyster Bar. This is a Destin original dive bar that always has a good crowd. One more stop before we head up the hill is Duck Duck. This is more of a late night place but a good spot for a cold beer on a hot afternoon. Up the hill is The Red Door Saloon. This is another dive bar with great views and always a sea breeze to keep you cool. Go on Sunday’s when they have happy hour AND they do a 2 for 1. You can’t drink this cheap at home!

Back up along Hwy 98 is Landshark Pizza and Asiago Skillet. As you know I highly recommend both places. Across the highway is Bucks BBQ. Stop in here for some of the best BBQ in Destin. I hope you enjoyed this short stroll along the harbor. There are many more places within walking distance where you can go and have a drink and some food too. Keep reading this blog and I will take you on more trips around Destin.

Have a great week. See you next Monday!

Destin Steve

Rainy week in Destin

This past week saw a lot of rain along the panhandle but it was nothing like they got in Louisiana. We actually got lucky as only Friday was a total washout. Otherwise we had thunderstorms blow through but we had plenty of time between the storms.

The rain didn’t stop us from getting out though. Sunshine Cindy’s daughter Tiffany flew back to Atlanta on Saturday so on Friday we all went to Harry T’s for happy hour and some dinner. Tiffany’s last day as a server at Harry T’s was Wednesday so Friday many of her co-workers came by to say goodbye. Red was behind the bar but she was getting off and Mike and Susan took over. Lou also came by to give Tiff a big hug. Harry T’s has a great happy hour at their bar. It is half price everything from 11 am to 7 pm. It’s a great deal. Plus they have some good food specials.

From there we headed to Landshark Pizza for our monthly Parrot Head meeting. A big crowd was there as Jan and Kenny entertained everyone. There was even the longest conga line we have had in a long time erupt! Lol  Our friends Steve and Becky were back in town and made the meeting. It was great seeing and talking to them. By the time we left Landshark to head home the rain had stopped and it was actually clearing up.

Saturday was our 3rd Crab Island Mambo / ECPHC beach cleanup of the summer on the island. Sunshine Cindy could not make it as she had to get Tiffany to the airport but I was there with almost 40 others. We did our usual good job cleaning the beach and then we had a fun beach party. The theme was chicken wings. Folks brought some and we had a contest. I was a judge and it was difficult to pick a winner but the judges agreed Mike’s were the best. He grilled them and added the right amount of spice. They were fantastic.

We had our usual assortment of drinks and good conversation. We even fed one of our lifeguards. She stopped to talk to us and she was grateful when we offered her some wings as she forgot her lunch. About 2 in the afternoon the skies darkened and we could see rain was coming. Everyone packed up about 3 and I headed home. As I pulled into our neighborhood it was dark and the rain was coming. I unloaded and within two minutes the sky also unloaded. I just made it.

That was different from Friday. I left Publix and the sun was out. Our house is about 3 miles away. By the time I got home it was raining. Later in the day I went to the post office. I walked in and it was not raining. I checked my PO box and walked out. Now it was a monsoon coming down. Go figure.

Sunday Sunshine Cindy and I made a run out to Santa Rosa Beach. On the way back we wanted to stop at one of the beach bars but all the parking lots were packed. We ended up at the harbor and Tailfins for lunch. While there we saw Julie was at the Cantina listening to BT so we walked down there to join her. Jan and Loujean also showed up. Jasmine and Marti took good care of us. It was hot and humid with no breeze but we still had a good time.

We ended the weekend at home visiting with our neighbors. The dogs all ran around and everyone enjoyed the summer evening.

Our tourist season is officially over for the summer. Traffic was its normal rate last week. I got home in about 25 minutes instead of 50 minutes that it had been running. Our local schools were back in session as were many of our neighboring states and cities schools.

I saw a new Emergency Room facility is going to be built at Emerald Lakes. They are going to have a ground breaking this week. I don’t know if this will be in addition to or replacing the current ER on Airport road.

Speaking of Airport road…the curve was busy collecting cars in the ditches this past week. When it rains people don’t slow down and they end up in the ditch. I saw two different cars in the ditch and Sunshine Cindy saw one. I don’t understand why people don’t slow down especially if they travel that road often and know how bad it is.

Have a great week. I will leave you with another poem I wrote.

Destin Steve

“What Happens in Destin Leaves on Saturday”

Patty came to Destin on Saturday to get away from the daily stress at work
She will put her feet in the sand and the hot guys she sees are just another perk
It’s a girls week at the beach as they leave Atlanta behind
As they check into their condo they are now in a relaxed Destin state of mind

Meanwhile the locals are heading to AJ’s to check out the new Saturday arrivals as they are hoping to score
They will be having beer and rum drinks while trolling the dance floor
With their flip flops and cargo shorts you can’t miss them as they come down the walkway
With the bay and harbor in the distance they are land sharks looking for their prey
You have airman to the left and fishheads to the right
Everyone is looking to make this a memorable night

Dougie comes each Saturday to scope out the club, there’s a cute girl here and a hot one there
At the bar sits Patty in a colorful sun dress with her shoulders bare
Patty and her girls are sipping their Jack on the rocks
Dougie decides to move in like a sly fox

Black Eyed Blonde is playing great music to dance to
Dougie and Patty start to dance as he says, “I like you”
Patty tells him she is not looking for “mister right” but just “mister right now”
After dancing and laughing all night Dougie can only say, “wow”

They hook up all week hitting Hogs one night and The Boathouse the next night
The week is slipping away but with each passing day it feels right
Cruising up and down Hwy. 98, renting a pontoon boat and taking a dolphin cruise they look like love birds
But the reality of Patty leaving on Saturday are the unspoken words

Friday night is epic as they promise to stay in touch and see each other often
But it was the blow of Patty leaving they were trying to soften
They said good bye with the memories of the week fresh in their minds
While they toasted the good times with one last glass of wine

What happens in Destin leaves on Saturday
Dougie went back to AJ’s Saturday night…he’s ready to play
Patty’s memory is so yesterday
He’s walking around the bar looking for his next hook up
With his Costa shades around his neck and a beer in a red solo cup
You have airman to the left and fishheads to the right
Everyone is looking to make this a memorable night
What happens in Destin leaves on Saturday

Steve Kesegich August 2016 ©

Drunks and tragedy in Destin

This was a sad week in Destin as two separate incidents took two lives. The first was a small plane crashed into the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday night after taking off from the Destin airport. The pilot was killed in the crash. No cause has been given but a medical emergency has been mentioned.

The second incident happened on Friday on Okaloosa Island. A beach chair/umbrella attendant was struck by lightning and killed. To make this worse he was the son of a lady who works for me. A severe thunderstorm blew through Fort Walton Beach Friday about 3 pm. This was a major storm with tons of lightning and driving rain. Unfortunately we have a young guy just trying to make some money over the summer who was caught in the storm. Many people are killed each year in Florida by lightning strikes especially on the beaches. Needless to say if a storm approaches get to some place safe to ride it out. RIP Zack…

This also seemed to be a week where we ran into more drunks around town than usual. The first one was about 6 am Tuesday morning. I was driving to work and near AJ’s a drunk was staggering across Hwy 98. Several of us had to dodge him as he was not making it across in a straight line. What makes it worse was he was at one of the new pedestrian lights but he didn’t activate it. He was lucky he was not killed…at 6 am!!!

On Thursday morning as I went to work part of 98 was closed by Hogs Breath as a truck hit a power pole about 4:30 am. Power lines were down in the street and traffic was diverted to Mountain Drive. I don’t know for sure but my guess would be a drunk driver. Thursday evening as I was going home I was on Mountain drive and a guy on a bicycle was hit by a car. From what I could see it looked like one of our homeless drunks. Some of them have bikes making them even more of a problem.

Friday night Sunshine Cindy and I went to The Boathouse for their grand opening of the Upper Deck bar next door to the Boathouse. We checked out the new bar which is real nice then we went to listen to Kelly and later Jason play. Mark and Stephanie joined us and then Kenny showed up too. At one point in the evening an ambulance pulled down there. There was a drunk guy that was in distress but he refused treatment. Some of his friends hauled him out. It was a fun night at The Boathouse. Kenny got up to play a few songs with Jason. Our neighbor Hayden was there. A bachelorette party came through…a good time was had by all.

Keeping the drunk theme going…Sunday afternoon Sunshine Cindy and I stopped in to the Red Door for some lunch. A drunk guy with a couple girls was getting loud in the back corner. We were ignoring him but I was keeping an eye on him. For no reason he threw a drink at one of his friends but it mostly hit us and some folks next to us. Luckily the girls got him out of the bar before we kicked his ass. On his way out he must have been bumping into people as folks were hollering to get the drunk out of here. Then in the parking lot he face planted himself. He was down for a while but they finally got him back up and out of there. I guess Karma caught up with him.

Other than that we had a good time. The folks next to us were two Cajun couples. We ended up talking to them. Danny and his wife actually live in Santa Rosa Beach so we hope to meet up again in the future. Ken and his lady came in and we talked to them. Tony stopped in. He has been busy all summer as the captain of the Cattywomphus catamaran. Finally John came in and we chatted with him too.  It was a fun time as we had a strong breeze keeping us cool.

Saturday was a laid back day for us. We went to see Sunshine Cindy’s parents as it was her mom’s birthday. We can tell the summer tourist season is coming to an end. Usually Saturday traffic north and southbound is a nightmare as it is the changeover day. It was not terrible this Saturday. There was a backup at the toll booth but it was gone by 6 pm and we flew through.

We have some restaurant openings and closings to mention. The Harbor House in Destin appears to be closed. There was a lot of money sunk into this place to try and turn it into a big club but only being open a few days a week it is tough to make enough to pay the bills. I also see the place in downtown Fort Walton Beach that was called Buffalo Chip’s then just Chips has closed after a short time being open. We never made it into either the Harbor House or Chips before they closed. Sometimes places are gone almost as fast as they come.

On the island, The Gulf Okaloosa construction is progressing. This place is on the bay back by the strip club area. They are using shipping containers for the building. They will a big place with about 5200 square feet of enclosed space, 3600 square feet of covered space and about 4800 square feet of uncovered decks. A ton of palm trees are going in now so they must be getting close to opening.

I also see a Dunkin Donuts will be opening in Destin in a new center almost across from Big Kahuna’s. 

It looks like we are in store for a wet week. A small system is in the Gulf that will be bringing the rain. I hope it does not wash away some of our plans for the parade on Tuesday on the harbor and our beach cleanup on Saturday but we will see.

Have a great week. See ya next Monday!

Destin Steve

Some days you don’t want to end…

And some weekends you don’t want to end either…okay, almost every weekend you don’t want it to end but this past weekend in Destin was more fun than usual. Sunshine Cindy and I were on the go from the beginning to the end.

Friday morning I took Chaos to the vet to get her nails cut and to pick up her heartworm and tick medicine. Chaos loves to ride in the car. I had the top down and she had her nose up in the air catching the breeze as we drove. She is now up to 57 pounds too. After the vet we stopped at the Destin dog park. It was extremely hot out so we didn’t stay too long but she got some running in with a few other dogs that were there. She was ready to get home and back into the air conditioning though.

I then ran a few errands then headed to Landshark Pizza for some wings for lunch. Sue was working the bar. Tommy and Pops came in right after I got there. Then Tom also came in and joined us. Tom had recently got back from Cleveland where he went for the Republican convention. He was impressed with my home town I am glad to say.

At one point during lunch we noticed a procession of police motorcycle cops and cars passing by on highway 98 followed by a bunch of bicycle riders and more emergency vehicles. It turns out a group of riders had left Naples several days before and rode across Florida in honor of our fallen officers. They stopped in five towns with Okaloosa County being the last town on their ride. That was an awesome honor for those officers and for our Deputy Myers who was killed a year ago.

Friday evening Sunshine Cindy and I went to our pool. We had it to ourselves. The water was as hot as bath water. That’s what happens when you have temps in the 90’s for a couple months in a row. But it was still a nice and relaxing way to spend the evening.

Saturday we did something we have not done in years. We went bowling. The Parrot Heads sponsored a bowling night at Hurricane Lanes. We had about 25 or so show up. It was a blast even though we all are now sore. It was a lot of laughs and drinking beer as no one took it too seriously. Then a big group ended up in Ruperts drinking more beer and shooting pool.

Sunday I went kayaking to Crab Island with Kenny, Becki and Wayne. I have been trying to get out there with them and it finally happened. It was a fun day. The water was beautiful and it was not to crazy out there. A big thunderstorm blew up over Niceville but the Destin Dome held and we had blue skies the entire day. Sunshine Cindy is not big on kayaking. She went to Crab Island Cantina with Julie to listen to BT play. When we finished with our excursion I joined them for the last hour of BT’s set. I finally got to meet Julio, the new manager and we also broke in a new bartender, Marti. The Cantina continues to be a fun place that we love to go to.

When it was time to leave I had a taste for pizza and they wanted Waffle House. We both got our way. I went to Landshark for my pizza and they hit the Waffle House. Everyone was happy! Lol  Needless to say Sunshine Cindy and I were all pretty wore out and slept good Sunday night.

We have a great life in Destin. For years we have had a saying that we live where it does not suck. Well, I took that line and made a poem about Destin.

“Living Where It Does Not Suck”

The Emerald Coast is home to crystal clear water and sugar white sand
You can take a boat out to catch the big one or dance up a storm with a great Trop Rock Band
Head to the beach in a big ol Ford truck
Because we are Living Where it does not Suck!

Check out The Boathouse and Crab Island Cantina for some Patron and brews
Destin has hundreds of great places for you and your krewe
Do you like to shop and play golf, then you are in luck
Because we are Living Where it does not Suck!

Only in Destin can you have a funky place like Banana Bart’s
Or the upscale Grand Boulevard that will capture your heart
Let’s “Embrace the Chaos” bowling and drinking Fireball at Uncle Bucks
Because we are Living Where it does not Suck!

Crust and Landshark are fantastic places for a pizza pie
In Destin you can also get sushi, BBQ and some great Thai
Tourist come in droves across our bridges in their SUV’s and trucks
Because they know we are Living Where it does not Suck!

Rob Romans and BT Turner are part of the Destin music scene who you must hear
Or you can ride a zip line through Harborwalk Village if you have no fear
Catch rays on our beautiful beaches where there is no muck
Because we are Living Where it does not Suck!

Fun bars like Baby J’s and Tipsy Turtle come and go
But this is our beach town and we know how to go with the flow
We have Crab Island as our playground where no one gets stuck
Because we are Living Where it does not Suck!

The sunsets in Destin are awesome
You will love it no matter where you are from
Our life is better than your vacation
So don’t be a smuck
You too can be Living Where it does not Suck!

Steve Kesegich July 31, 2016 ©


I hope you enjoyed this short poem and that it gives you a little more insight on why I love my little (and not so sleepy anymore) fishing town. Have a great week. See ya next Monday!

Destin Steve