~Thursday, December 30, 2021~
Day 564
I decided to wake up before everyone else, in the dark no less, to catch up on some writing. I couldn’t tell if it was snowing out or if the new layer of powder was being simply kicked up from the blustery wind. It was a good 90 minutes before anyone else was stirring. Ah, perfect…….my sis. Nice to have some sister time by the fire, over a cup of “Joe” and Chamomile before the rest of the household awakened. It was just a “chill” type of day, nice after yesterday’s long drive.
We were all in agreement that today would be the day to “hit the town”, before the New Year’s craziness. Tim’s first suggestion was The Dullahan Irish Pub; perfect since we looove Irish pubs and even better that it was within walking distance from their townhouse. A very welcoming type of place with its cozy, low-ceilinged rooms, fireplace, and great staff. Since Tim and Tracy used to frequent the place before COVID, the waitress recognized them right away, or remembered Tracy with their like-minded vegan lifestyle. Our plan was to order just beer and head down to the basement for a little shuffleboard, but it would be about a 20-minute wait until the large, loud family of 10 cleared out. We had the whole downstairs space to ourselves, with the frequent guest popping in to take a peek at our commotion. The shuffleboard went as expected with our lack of practice. Jeff and Tracy teamed up against Tim and I and beat us at several rounds. I wish I could have blamed my ill attempts at keeping the puck in play, by the insufficient layer of salt on the board. 😉
Next, in close proximity to Dullahan’s, we headed over to the neighborhood bar and grill Bairds on B with their lovely, open, dimly lit space and New American cuisine. The owner, Baird Balmore sat us. Our waiter….from Hawaii. Tracy and Tim were surprised how much less busy it was than the last time they were here; the calm before the storm I guess, since our waiter said they were fully booked for tomorrow night. Tracy had Mushroom Risotto and a Cosmopolitan, Jeff and Tim had Sirloin with Martinis and I had a Salmon BLT with Fries and a Mojito which was delicious. Tim did let the waiter know that though the presentation was very good on their sirloin, the cut of meat was sub-par, especially for the price. That’s the only way they’ll know, right? Constructive criticism. Before you knew it, the bartender did a little damage control by bringing out a sample of peanut butter whiskey that was amazing. Tracy and I liked it so much, we ordered our own, on ice. Does that mean I now like Whiskey? This could be dangerous when there’s a whiskey out there that tastes like peanut brittle. !!