Sailor Food

This is what sailors eat during passage.

This is what sailors drink prior to passage.

 

The Sailormen Three

 

Likes and Dislikes

I like big butts and most everything about women.

I like public art.

I don't like the death penalty.

I like the ocean.

I like order and tradition.

I don't like cold weather.

I like open air bars and restaurants next to water. (Must be warm)

I like wine, scuba, golf, and appealing designs.

I hate badgering assholes.

That's about all for today.

 

Red Neck Eiffel Tower

Every small southern town has one or two of theses old water towers. This one is in Mint Hill, NC.

 

Bars and Pour Houses

A new pour house is opening in my county where they'll make craft beer, people will gather, and proudly drink beer with local musicians playing. This is now considered being cultured. They aren't bars or pubs but pour houses.

When I was a kid, the pour house was clandestine back room at the Amoco Country Store in Bragtown, where poor old sots gathered around the wood stove to drink Budweiser. They were talked about in an unfavorable manner.

 

If I Were A Rich Man

About mid month of November, I'd call ahead and tell my people to get my St Croix villa ready. Scrub and mop, clean the pool, and provision with the foods and beverages I love. Make sure there is plenty of charcoal too.

I'd enjoy Thanksgiving, football, and all the silly celebrations. Christmas would be warm and relaxing.

Janurary and February is a no brainer. Warm and lots of festivals. Great sun and swimming.

About now, I'd call my people back home and tell them to prep my home. Clean the yard, scrub the house, and provision it with all the things I love.

Then, and only then, after I experienced St Patrick's day on St Croix would I venture home to summer. Just in time for the Masters and Kentucky Derby.

If I were a rich man.

 

Free Almost TV

I installed a medium range directional antenna with an amp and tripod. Total cost less than $80. I live just east of Charlotte, NC and I'm pulling in 34 channels crystal clear. All networks. The amp made a huge difference. It's pointed at 285 degrees witch again makes all the difference. If I add Sling with Netflix I might be done. Total monthly cost? $28 a month vs over $100 and still get ESPN, and other cable channels on Sling.

I have options. I like options*.

*includes Roku stick $45 one time purchase, sling TV app at $20 a month, Netflix app at $8 a month.

 

Old School Thermos

Back in Janurary on our passage from Antiguia to St. Croix, it was necessary to keep hot coffee flowing for nightly watches.

The coffee? A vintage metal percolator on a gas stovetop clamped into position on a piviting stove top. The coffee was strong and hot. It was kept very hot by a novel idea...a 25 year old thermos bottle.

I had forgotten about the simple pleasure of owning and using a thermos. Gigi and I used to keep one for traveling until one day the glass inner container broke and the vacuum seal was distroyed. For some reason I never replaced it.

So impress I was that I just ordered a new one liter thermos from Amazon for $28. Goodbye hourly stops not for coffee while traveling up the highway.

 

Cars

I remember when one could buy a new economy car for less than $2000. A luxury car was $10,000. Premium gasoline was $ 0.299 a gallon.

I have friends that bought Corollas in '74 for $3,400. Great cars with AC and basic otherwise. They were dependable Toyotas.

My first new car was $5 ,000 and I haggled all day. When I broke thru the $10,000 a car sales price mark, I questioned my sanity.

Then $25,000..... Then $50,000.

I want a Tesla.

Hanging Up The Cleats

Yours truly, Reggie Hunnicutt, has retired honorably from weekly operations of Extreme Tailgate Society effective 2/8/16. I've hung up my cleats. Rode off into the sunset. I'm waiting now for the call from the hall of fame of tailgaters.

I plan to stay on as social media mainstay, and be a resource for season and logistic planning. A tailgate think tank so to speak.

I am willing to mentor young minds with strong backs and creative ideas. We need some volunteer fill ins. Inquire within. There is plenty of time to plan next seasons run to the Super Bowl.

The whole process is fun. It's a block party of friends every other week during the season.

Going forward, I will not be attending the tailgate weekly as I have for 16 years. I will watch the game at the local pub or from home.

It has been an honor to help grow this tailgate club over the last 16 years from 5 to 150 tailgate participants. I cherish the friendships I've made while doing something I love. Cooking, marketing, football, and socializing.

Thank you all to those who attended our tailgates and helped build this club.

Reggie

 

Sharks

This was a Caribbean Reef Shark, a rather large specimen. Typically I see 3 to 4 feet sided sharks on most dives. This guy was over 6 feet, and was courious as to what I was up to.

What I was up to was killing a lion fish, and stopping my thumb from bleeding. The smell of blood was irrestable and he came to investigate.

 

Oh Beautiful .......

Sunrise smoke on the weber smoker.

Look at the bark!

 

 

Damn I Wish I was There

 

 

The Annual Scuba Shot

 

Breakfast

I like to get a good breakfast before a morning dive. Just a plan old regular breakfast, nothing fancy.

I've suffered breakfast frustration on this St Croix trip.

The Golden Rail moved and my new tryout restaurant Toast, well, their interpretation of grits was not really like any grits I have ever seen in 59 years of roaming the earth. $7 for a blob of grits too. That means I have about $10,000 worth of "Toast" grits back home in my cabinet. I'll have to adjust my net worth up a bit based on market prices of cooked grits. I'll give Toast another try next trip. Just not the grits.

And Angry Nate's, my goodness that was good but very expensive for a diner type breakfast I desire.

I did drive to the new Golden Rail and the breakfast was dead on at a reasonable price. It's just not on my way to anywhere.


 

Chillin on St Croix

A handy bar at the dive boat!
Waiting on a Night Dive

 

Breakfast and Boobs
Staying cool out of the sun.

 

Chickens everywhere.