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apropos of nothing, other than watching the sun slowly stink in the west…whatta perfect Sunday in A-Town.   Some seriously drop-dead gorgeous Capitalinas strolling about, our own Sol Latino house band in the park…I forget how good they are….our Mime, holding forth and fifth to a large crowd on 5ta. Perfect weather: sunny, warm, the air clean and clear..

say, did you hear about the woman who was stabbed, robbed…not raped…her dog got that one..just another silly example of the gossip/chisme that circulates amongst the bored and the restless…usually ‘snowbirds’…of which there’s the usual influx, speaking of which, there was a sighting this morning of he who shall not be mentioned or named…other than the fact that he’s been gone for 2-3 months. I have specific instructions not to write about him because he values his privates…no, privacy, dammit….spelchuk blew it again…sorry..

Spiro cranking his superb ceviche at Ocelot…whew, some serious babes at Lava…I’m fond of staking out the corner table, so as to get the view going up/down the stairs to the ladies room..and they were ladies..good thing i’m tryin’ to quit…hey, at my age, looking is about all there’s left.

‘had to  recharge the new TIGO modem today…that newish shop across from Bodegona..? FotoImagen? superb service, quick recharge…a helluva lot better than MovieStar…a lot better…tis the only drawback to being in the new digs on the finca…no wi-fi..this was what we used to call a ‘mental health day’…taking it off, not doing anything requiring thinking(and how would you know the difference?) well, just a little stuff..went by Fernandos, showed him the booklet and bang..he’s in for five..a tiny ka-ching…writes off the modem $$..

lotta turistas in town…and more to come..the maya ladies who work the park and streets are gonna be losing some weight chasin’ ‘em..altho with all that jewelry and fabric they carry around you’d think they’d be slimmer..unless they’re hiding the money under their skirts…February coming soon…two things to check off…14th..Valentine’s Day in which those of us who claim to be of the male gender are required to buy chocolates, cards and flowers….a dinner isn’t a bad idea, either…and then the 3rd Venetian Masked Ball, on the 17th…San Jose el Viejo, up 5th from La Viniera Antigua…tickets at the Cargo Room and a couple other places (i forget, ok) 300q a pop…this’ll be the first year that Lynn hasn’t done/promoted/staged it..yeah, i’m in….the sweet ms A asked…what could i say? she reminds me so much of my last wife..it’s spooky…speaking of her, no word since the frantic emails of christmas from ‘vegas…’gotta get outa town in 24 hours’…too bad bout the expired passport problem…her’s, not mine…maybe, just maybe i’m over being involved with drama queens…no more “Frugal Me!”  the punchline from a joke about the word being taught in grade school as meaning to save…yeah, well frugal you too..Monday will be here sooner than you think..lastly….Alex Ferrar’s Helado Exoticos? doing a helluva day..50 flavors! remember the gossip about his past? fuggedaboutit…more chisme, made up by folks long gone…’active fantasy lives’…and ‘impoverished social lives’…gringas…alas..kinda like Don Marco asking me if i were gay…right…by this time, Don Marco, who’s in the clink, has probably…uh…jeez, how to say this..been turned…turned out? hey, you go to jail and you take what’s on your plate, whether you like it or not…this just in! another Five Star Review for Our Man in Antigua…off the www.smashwords.com site…the ebook, the original version..gotta feeling that there’s gonna be a 2nd edition coming soon, to a theatre near you..

 https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/114724.

and no, i have no idea who reviewed it…and no, i didn’t pay them..

 

 

A Pink Crustacean

but no white sport coat…yeah, i’d thought about putting on the brocade chinese smoking jacket but it wouldn’t have made any difference..the first event i get invited to and i’m a day early? yep…shaved, dressed and reasonably coherent, armed with witticisms, anecdotes and a bottle of cheap red wine..fie..fool…tomorrow night…

so…another stroll into the burg we call home and a perfect night…a crescent moon, jupiter  nearby…Fuego! blew stuff high this morning…Bull says we’re getting earthquakes by the swarm…funny, i don’t feel a thing(good meds)..Ocelot had two new faces behind the bar tonight…Marty the Aussie in the crushed cowboy hat, last seen working at Ricardo’s Tabacos y Vinos….Neil kinda cracked up when i mentioned that i’d like to trace the tattoos on the babe at the bar with my tongue..hey..why not?

one of my personal  pleasures in this town are the experiences traveling by the expats here..sitting outside on the patio with Reed, Brendan, Mike and ‘the other guy’ you realize that we all have seen most of the known world, sometime and somewhere..’trying to think of someplace not visited…Bumf..ck, Egypt?

the new Braulio in what was Pangea? giant sucking sound heard…Lava ground zero for an amazing parade of babes…ah, if i were only…50 or 60 years younger..Jean-Marc holding down the doorway at dos Reilly’s(quiet, at least early)..’think i’m goin’ to hell…ate 2X at McD’s today…why? once early, thinking of a 6:30 dinner engagement, then leaving town, knowing that there was zero food in the house..aside from vodka and orange juice…not part of the four basic food groups.

the new chocolate museum on 4th calle has an amusing act…kinda performance art stuff..the guy in the chef’s hat, a toque?  no, not a toke…there’s a wave of cruise shippers coming to town this and next month..the mayan ladies have their schedules memorized…and don’t expect any italian ships…they’re kinda upside down right now.

go Luis! in the booklet, under Tour Guides, I mentioned him by name/phone number..now that he’s an official guide for INGUAT, he’s driving the freaking tour buses in from Puerto Quetzal….hello!..fill in the blanks, if you need to…he’s stoked, i’m jazzed…thanks again, Rich N, for your help on Monday…

John Rexer’s Ilegal Mezcal? included in the swag bags at Redford’s Sundance event!

 

Solar Flares

fried my brain…uh, right..vodka-breath..go by Fusion on 4th calle and ask Alex for a tour of the massive re-mod job next door, where the ill-fated 709 restaurant used to be…this is HUGE and will be a very interesting place whence(done)completed, scheduled to open two week before Easter with a ‘soft opening’ in February…only two rental spaces left, if that’s a clue..

Bill Ipsan, the very talented Cuban painter that i wrote about last month…or so…being kicked out of his space on 2nd calle, around the corner from Epicure…owner wants to put in a liquor store…a few churches within the designated ‘no booze zone’..he was relating the final final melt-down with the ‘person’ of PV and the delectable Ms A…yeah, o so typical of a plain pain in the …. vs a tasty and talented lady…sign up for tickets for the 3rd Venetian Masked Ball…yeah, I’m ‘in’…signed off on being the ‘moderator’ whatever that means…moderate isn’t exactly a word often used in my life(as you know)..if a little is good, more is better…etc..february the 17th, a friday…

El Muro!…kicked out some walls, decorated the place..what was a ‘dive bar’ is now a semi-classy joint…no biz but tasty barmaids..what happened to the ‘free drinks’ til 11 pm? round up the Gallo Girls, bring on the Brahva Babes and have some kinda nude/jello/wrestling event..’it’s a full nelson and she’s pinned!..i could ‘moderate’ this…

and thanks, one and all for the very kind words about the Amazon.com reviews of the booklet…tis selling, and a major tip of the panama to Frener Printers!…50 more copies ordered today…should one wish(and i wish you would)google our man in antigua for the various outlets..i’d love to upgrade the vodka brand..woof!

El Caminante’s open…Angie Angies is doin’ great..go by and see(before its gone)the carving of St Michael redone as Ronald McDonald…major joke/goof and sold…and as mr vonnegut once wrote, and so it goes..rip, mr v..it’s a quiet night in A-Town…avoided (2X)angel of djinn..last seen at ricardo’s t&v slurping wine..she’s a bit too peligroso por moi..but i like looking at her.. 

Ruby Tuesday

an old Rolling Stones song, as i recall… and then I’m as old as the ‘Stones’ so if you can’t remember, it’s okay…it was a quiet a night in A-Town as it gets…dos Reilly’s closed, anyone else with a lick of sense lo mismo…only Gaia on upper 5th hopin’ for walk-ins…the very delicious Flor M closing shop at 7..Alex of Sobermesa recounting a long day in the City..involving tuxedos and rum…go ask him..it was hilarious.

Frener Printing!…5th ave sur…cranked a perfect copy of the book in  24 hours!…Mike bought the only copy ever in white(the cover)..everyone else asked about the choice between the orange-ish red and the white version went for the orange-ish red…thank you, one and all…i felt the same but there’s been times when my judgement(sic)hasn’t been exactly 100%…

looks like Maggie M has rented out the space between what was Poco a Todos and the new cafe casaca(and they’re doing great)…Los Cebollinas doing a decent breakfast biz, at least on the weekends…otherwise, it’s a dead zone…and if I start flogging the Great Venetian Masked Ball..Feb 17th, San Jose El Viejo…it’s because the ever delectable Gabi talked me into being the ‘moderator’…whatever that entails(means)…

thanks again to Franklin of the Whiskey Den, Robbin Haas(B5) and John Rexer for signing off on orders of the book..the Pirate Radio Guy in Travel Menu…the project is hung up, just a little bit…it’ll fly,,,give it time…

thanks, H, for the shot of rum and the good words…let’s see..a sample of scotch at whiskey den, a shot of stoli at travel menu and a shot of rum? could i be the souse of the border?

the fire is smoldering in the fireplace(i can smell it) and a match to the paper would accelerate events…and daughter #2 is moving to Wales with her her husband…whatta day..i love this life..tim for a shot of pavlov and then start barking like a dog when the bell rings…woof!

Gung Hoy, Fat Boy

tomorrow…Chinese New Year’s…as with a lotta calendars, this is s’posed to be an auspicious year, assuming that one isn’t buying into the 2012 hysteria…last year, the Year of the Rabbit? totally sucked for most everyone, so any kind of improvement will be gratefully accepted…

ah, the old Pangea space? now transformed into something called Braulio, hosted/paid for by the demised Hot Road people(Fusion’s old space)…the Lounge? up for being rented out…they asked me how Ocelot worked…i said that Shaun worked it from Day One, personally handing out flyers on the streets and never ever quitting…a simple formula: show up and work your ass off eight days a week..and keep smiling..case in point..the 5-6 Happy Hour? drags in a crowd every day…some stay, some stagger home..ah, speaking of such, who was behind the bar tonight?

Neil Fucking Craig!…wearing a Movado twice the size of mine(and twice the price)…class, dude..is Maggie M getting a little broad across the beam? who cares? she smells great and gives great hugs.

ah…the ‘unauthorized ATM withdrawals aren’t over…CD,  a long time A-Town person had her card dinged for some 14K but the bank froze the deal…hint: change your pin #..

thanks and a tip of the panama to Piano Mike for noting that I’d called Antigua’s elevation at 4500 feet…he corrected the altitude with a real meter/feet correlation…actually closer to 5000 feet..no doubt about it, we’re high…one way or the other..

a quiet night on 5ta norte…lotta places closed: cashbar, studio 35, sangre…gaia with their lights on, hoping..caffe bourbon doing a few tables…

ah..thanks to Rich Neel, who showed me his printers…three different offices, three different stories, prices…Frener, on 5ta sur is gonna get my biziness, assuming that the proof copy out tomorrow is reasonably close..yep, the idea of having the booklet printed on the east coast and shipped there, here and so on…sucks..but, as with everything else, one must learn the ropes/dopes/hopes..its all been a major learning curve/experience but with a little help from my friends, it’s getting queer…no, clear…and yes, I’m getting used to being in the new location…funny how being a few feet higher and in the shadow of a minor hill drops the temperatures but with a bit of firewood, all is exceedingly bueno..one of the guard dogs has adopted me and sleeps at the foot of my bed…

Reilly’s! noted as being the top dispenser of liquor/booze/alcohol in Central America! is this a Guinness thing?..nope, can’t spell Guiness one way or the other but the concept is there..and a belated thank you to Pat Farrell, whereever you are…the outdated concept of having mules schlepp in the booklet was okay at first but subsequent moves have proved otherwise..gracias, Pat… 

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