Sun update: Canada Day, passion fruit smoothie, food porn, Pints for Prostates, strawberry Andygator, Goose patio furniture, late night Downtown, Jake “The Snake” falls off the wagon

Today is the annual Canada Day celebration at Kooky Canuck. They’ll have $3 Canadian beer bottles along with $4 Forty Creek. They have 32 Canadian whiskys. They’ll also have a special Canada Day menu, including perogies, poutine, Montreal steamies, the Donair, maple sirloin steak, the Canadian burger, the Yonge Street Burger (my favorite), maple bread pudding and Nainamo bars. There will be a poutine eating contest at 2 PM. Recommended attire is Canadian colors (red and white), Canadian hockey jerseys, or tube tops. Most of that recommendation came from Shawn but I might have added something there at the end.

Yesterday I rode down the elevator with two of my neighbors. They asked if I’d been to Havana’s Pilon, the new Cuban restaurant around the corner on Madison, and I had to admit I still have not. They told me that not only are the entrees delicious, but the restaurant sells smoothies too. They recommended the passion fruit smoothie in particular.

My first stop yesterday was Bardog. Every day they have a Dog of the Day, an enormous hot dog special. Yesterday the Dog of the Day was the “Wake and Bake,” a 10 oz. all-beef hot dog, wrapped in bacon, deep-fried, and topped with curry mustard and green onions. Food porn at its finest and a heart attack on a plate.

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My next stop was the Flying Saucer. They are doing their annual raffle in conjunction with Pints for Prostates. Pints for Prostates helps raise awareness of prostate cancer through the universal male language of beer. From July 3 through the 24th, every Wednesday 144 glasses will go on sale. Proceeds from the glasees will go to Pints for Prostates, and with each glass will come a raffle ticket. Winner of the raffle will get a beer trip to Belgium, Holland, and Germany September 12-22. Last year’s raffle winner was from the Memphis Saucer and was my Moody Ques BBQ teammate G-Rock. More info here.

In other Flying Saucer news, they have a new beer on tap. It’s Abita Strawtator, also known as Strawberry Andygator. It’s 8% alcohol by volume, similar to original Andygator, so this is not a beer to mess around with after you’ve already had a few. In the right state of mind, though, it is delicious.

After I left the Saucer, I went to the Silly Goose, where the day shift crew from the Saucer had gone for a drink after they got off. I joined them for a PBR on the Goose’s new patio furniture. I snapped this pic:

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About 7 I decided it was “halftime” and decided to go home and take a nap before going back out. I was more tired than I realized, though, and when I woke up the clock read 2:03 AM. “The Blind Bear closes at 3, and is 2 blocks down the street. I still have time,” I thought. I put my clothes on and walked down there. That’s the beauty of living in the Downtown core, that I can do things like that. I found a couple of my poker buddies at the bar, and in the remaining 57 minutes I found time for 2 PBRs and a couple of shots of Fireball.

Not-so-random pro wrestling video of the week: Jake “The Snake” Roberts falls off the wagon. You might remember Jake from late ’80e/early ’90s WWE. He’d come to the ring with a burlap sack. After winning with his signature move, the DDT, he’d take his python Damien out of the sack and place Damien on top of his beaten opponent. In the past two decades Jake has suffered from addictions to alcohol, cocaine, and crack that nearly killed him. His friend Diamond Dallas Page, after retiring from wrestling, started a second career teaching DDP Yoga. DDP invited Jake to move in with him, calling his house The House of Accountability. Wrestler/addict Scott Hall also moved in. For 8 months Jake was completely clean and doing the right things to get his life back together. However, in late June he had a road trip where he had some drinks. Jake turns into a completely different person when drunk, a sure sign of an alcoholic. Back at The House of Accountability, DDP dressed Jake down. “When you drink, you turn into THAT GUY. And THAT GUY sucks to live with.” After talking to Jake’s therapist and recovering alcoholics, DDP came up with a plan to get “The Snake” back on the right track: 90 meetings in 90 days. Not, “well Jake, it’s OK if you have a drink now and then, but only a little.” Hardcore is the only plan that will work. If anyone reading this blog sees a little of themselves in Jake, perhaps they should attend daily AA meetings too, while separating themselves from the environment that leads to bad decisions.

Getting ready to head to the Majestic for brunch, with a stop at Canada Day at some point in the afternoon. Beautiful, cooler weather outside today. Let’s enjoy this last day of June.