MySideOfTheBar

As most of you already know, Central Patti and I are big movie fans. Also as most you know I do not believe there have been very few good movies made since 1979. If you do not believe me just ask the experts. If you look at the American Film Institute’s list of the top 50 movies of all time you will find only two that were made after 1979. (Schindler’s List and E.T.) One of my hobbies is collecting the top 100 movies of all time and for now my stipulation is that I have to record them myself, they have to by commercial free and they have to be uncut. To date I have 76 in my collection. So for all of you movie fans that follow MySideOfTheBar May is going to be a great month on Turner Classic Movies. Here are some of the highlights. For starters Donna Reed is the star of the month and you can look forward to seeing no fewer than 30 of her films in may. Most of use remember this Iowa born beauty for her role in “It’s a Wonderful Life” as the unforgettable Mary Bailey. However, do not miss...

In a Word Whiskey or the Water of Life Sitting at my side of the bar a couple of weeks back the subject of whiskey came up. Being a scotch drinker I realize the differences between Scotch and other Whiskeys. The taste is the main thing and as I always say all Scotch is Whiskey, but not all Whiskey is Scotch. So myself and the other usual suspects at the bar continued to break down the differences (with the help of a couple of iPhones and Blackberrys) Scotch Well, what more do I need to say. Scotch Whiskey is Whiskey that is made in Scotland, the three more prevalent regions are Highland, Lowland and Islay. All three have very distinct characteristics and tastes. The one that is the most distinct is the Islay Scotches which are normally very smoke flavored due to being distilled with peat. Whether you like single-malt or blended make no mistake about Scotch is really a whiskey in a class by itself. The taste of any scotch is very unique and largely due to the mineral content of the wat...

Last week Central Patti and I had the privilege of celebrating the 1 year anniversary of closing on our house in Moblery. We loved the house dearly, but it was time to make the move to K.C. Not taking the occasion lightly and never missing the opportunity to celebrate to drank a toast to the occasion. The toast spawned a memories of another toast a couple of years earlier. This toast was probably the longest in the history of celebratory drinks. In fact it was six years in the making. The toast started one cool crisp evening on the Kansas City Plaza as my wife and I were having our annual Christmas outing. The Plaza of Kansas City is an exciting area filled with shops, bistros and lounges designed for individuals who enjoy the finer things in life and do not mind paying for them. The Plaza is about three or four blocks wide and about eight blocks long with wide sidewalks along both sides that bustle with patrons until the early morning hours. It has a median in the middle of the four...

I was sitting at MySideOfTheBar last weekend with a few friends, Central Patti, Doc, and C. and M. V. We were in one of the better Martini Bars on the Plaza, The Kona Grill . The Kona is known for good Martini’s and Great Sushi as well as attracting a younger crowd of very, very attractive people. The girls were on one side of the bar chatting with Doc and C. and I were on the other side talking about nothing in particular. However we could not help but notice all the great looking women that kept coming through the door. One of Central Patti’s and I favorite pass time when we are out is the guessing game; Natural or Enhanced. I am sure you figured out I am talking about womens breasts. I told C. about this game and he and I began to play as each women came through the door. Now do not for a moment believe that I am being disparaging about what a women does with her body, it is none of my business. However, I do admire all women and the ones coming into the Kono on this day were all a...

Ok, this time the Madness I am talking about does actually have something to do with College Basketball, however also about the foot of snow we received this past weekend. It started to ice late Friday evening as we were taking a cab back from one of our favorite sides of the bar. ( Fidels in Westport ) By the time we awoke on Saturday we had over 6 inches and started to snow again an hour or so later and snowed the entire day dropping another 8 inches on us. The Kansas/Northern Iowa game was going to be played later that day and we had planned on walking to the ESPN Sports Zone to watch the game. As the snow kept falling and Central Patti was making her famous chicken wings we had nixed the idea of going out and planed on watching the game from home. Well Mother Nature was doing her best to get us back outside. I discovered about 2 P.M. that the dish was out because of the heavy snow and if we wanted to watch the game we would need to venture out after all, or would we? I remembered...

On this day in 461 A.D., Saint Patrick, Christian missionary, bishop and apostle of Ireland, dies at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland. Much of what is known about Patrick's legendary life comes from the Confessio, a book he wrote during his last years. Born in Great Britain, probably in Scotland, to a well-to-do Christian family of Roman citizenship, Patrick was captured and enslaved at age 16 by Irish marauders. For the next six years, he worked as a herder in Ireland, turning to a deepening religious faith for comfort. Following the counsel of a voice he heard in a dream one night, he escaped and found passage on a ship to Britain, where he was eventually reunited with his family. According to the Confessio, in Britain Patrick had another dream, in which an individual named Victoricus gave him a letter, entitled "The Voice of the Irish." As he read it, Patrick seemed to hear the voices of Irishmen pleading him to return to their country and walk among them once more. After st...

That’s right, MySideOfTheBar was on the road, or should I say on the water last weekend at the Lake of the Ozarks on the St. Patrick’s Day Celebration Cruise . This is a great time and very cheap for a couple of hours of cruising. Big thanks to S.O. for getting our group of Baypoint “Usual Suspects”(which incidentally made up half of the entire cruise this year) a great rate of only six dollars a head. The weather was not great but then again I actually stood outside on the back deck almost the entire cruise (thanks to a patio heater) and wore only a sport coat. The drink specials were also very good they had several beer specials for the ridiculously low price of two dollars a bottle, while I enjoyed a green drink they called “Grog” which I was told contained about every type of white liquor you could think of for only three dollars. Don Akers provided the entertainment in the bar and sang a mixture of all types of music from 60’s and 70’s tunes (Brandy you’re a fine girl!) to tradi...