Just July



"O" Martini



One very, very, very (and I do mean "very") hot & humid Wilmington afternoon, we headed downtown to Elijah's to have the first of our July drinks on the riverfront.  With the Henrietta rolling past, we manned (or should I say, womanned) up and ordered our libation of the day, "O" Martini - vodka (of course), coconut rum & banana liqueur.  "O" MG - it was so hot outside that we literally stuck to our chairs & when we finished & rose - "O"MG, we were drenched.  Actually hoping that no one would notice, we scurried out with our wet behinds making a mad dash to the car.  "O" Martini was oh so good as was the ambiance of the riverfront, but the sweltering heat gave us no desire to go into our reason for being there and yet - again - not a funny name. Finding "funny" is becoming quite challenging. 

Simply put - the next drink "Pink Floyd" STUNK - so much so that it didn't even warrant a picture (a frozen concoction of vodka, sloe gin & fresh pineapple).  Having decided to take to the beach & celebrate what would have been my 20th wedding anniversary, we chose the Blockade Runner.  While the outside ambiance is lovely and the guitarist/singer was quite enjoyable, as Pink Floyd's song, Run Like Hell says - "run, run, run, run, run all day and run all night".  So, here's the reason for this CC (crappy critique) - the outside bar was being serviced (using that term loosely) by 2 female bartenders (using loosely again) and they had a staggering one customer upon our arrival.  For an extraordinarily unacceptable time, we were totally ignored - no, "be right with you", no phony smile - nothing.  As usual, we handed over our recipe eliciting nary a shred of interest from the other side of the bar.  As we were already ticked off, we merely waited but had to correct her during preparation.  She was drowning it with juice & ice - omitting the fresh pineapple and did she even add the liquor?  Oh, it gets worse - the colorless slush was dumped into a Styrofoam cup ( so esthetically pleasing, right?) and being informed that they ran out of regular straws (really, a resort hotel has no straws?) she stuck 3 small stirrers in each up, plopped it on the bar - no napkins.  And for this - guess what they charged - $16.00.  When we asked if this price was a mistake, they shoved the menu in our face and plain as day - frozen drinks $16.  It must cost them a pretty penny to run the blender and use that much ice that they have to pass it on to the customer.  But, if that drink had been fantastic, we would have sucked it up as well as the $16.00.  But no - it was flat & tasteless, ugly and thoroughly disappointing.  We tried to find a manager to lodge a complaint but there was none to be had.  Stay away - stay far, far away unless you stick stick with a beer - how could they possibly ruin that?  Well, I guess you're bound to encounter a dud once in a while so we'll chalk it up to just that and move on to August!  Stay cool and remember, drink in moderation.

Too Soon June



Melon Martini

 I can hardly believe that half the year is behind us!  June came too soon but we were on it like peanut butter on a cracker.  Ann was supposed to be away for most of the month so we decided to attend our very first Cape Fear Singles Meetup Group at the Bluewater Grill.  I know, we already went there, but every Sunday they have a band, you're out on the deck enjoying the fresh air, so we decided to kill 2 birds with one stone.  It was a beautiful day, the band was good albeit LOUD (hmm, guess that's showing our age!) and the drink was quite nice - Melon Martini with vodka, melon liquer, dash of lime juice with a cherry in the bottom!  Delish - I recommend it for Christmas - it's so festive looking.  Actually, when we gave the recipe to the bartender she commented that it might be against NC law to add that much vodka  - 3 1/2 oz.  Really?  What's a little law breaking amongst widows?!  Did Ann make a mistake in transcribing the ingredients (on purpose?).  No, the book clearly states 3 1/2 oz. of vodka, but we had to abide by the "possible law" of 1 1/2 but I expect one could get a serious buzz off the misprint - tee, hee.  Guess we'll have to try it and see!


Nervous Breakdown

 Ann had a little mishap a few days into her vacation (not to worry, she's safe & sound), but was back home in a week and out we went for a Nervous Breakdown.  Not the 19th Nervous Breakdown that Mick Jagger & Keith Richards of the Stones fame penned & performed in 1965 - we're not spoiled and we do appreciate life's gifts.  The drink consisted of Vodka (surprise), raspberry liquer with a splash of cranberry juice & a lime.  We stopped in at the Towne Tap & Grille right before heading to see "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" which we absolutely adored.  The bar was empty but that meant we had all the attention of our young Aussie bartender! Again, we appreicate life's gifts :).  One of the lines in the movie aptly describes our ups & downs and that is, "Everything will be alright in the end and if it is not alright, it is not the end"!!!!  So as C.S. Lewis cited, "Onward and Upward! To Narnia and the North!"  Until next time - live well, love much and laugh often.  AND, drink - in moderation, except at home when you have Nervous Breakdown with 3 1/2 oz. of vodka!