Green Parrot Bar No Snivelling Zone: 08/01/2005

NOLA

I know it always seemed like a major hurricane when Patrick would hit town for JazzFest, but this is the real deal,baby.

"It's All Good" doesn't apply today. To all our friends in NOLA, you are in our thoughts. Jake! Call us and check in. We're going to make Colby's Candle do double duty for YOU.

MoreWork

Oh yea. And I guess in addition to the mound of hurricane-soaked clothes waiting in the laundry room, the yard needs a little attention too.

Power Outage Update

Just for the record.
In my last post, just as had finished saying how grateful we were to have power restored after a day and a half, and just as I clicked the "publish post" frame on my blog...the power went out again and did not return until mid afternoon the next day.
So now it's Sunday afternoon and after another day of urban camping I am again grateful to have our power back on and I only hope it stays on because it gets pretty warm at night with no ac and not even a fan to stir the air.
I will say that it was nice to sit outside on the patio in my bahama village neighborhood with nothing but a candle on the table to illumine just a few-foot circle around us and after that, just pitch darkness. Also nice to see the silhoutte of the palm fronds against the moonlit sky with just a few clouds rapidly scudding by as a remnant Katrina. Very tropical, and hurricanes not withstanding, sometimes it's all to easy to forget just where it is we live, and more importantly, why.
That's it for now as I just heard the dryer buzzer go off and I must admit it is music to my ears because as you can see in the photo above, there'e still a helluva lot of damp stuff lying around here.

Good God, Y'All, It's Hurricane Katrina

"Good God"...that what we all said when we flipped on the TV on Friday morning and realized, in the words of Paul Simon, that "..the weatherman lied...".
'Katrina, the storm that was scheduled to crash the MTV party this weekend in South Beach had decided suddenly to include Key West in its' itinerary.
Nevertheless..we are grateful, it was a minor brush with a strorm that could have dealt us a much worse hand had it had taken more time to strenghten or had dipped just a little lower in latitude.
What happened to Colby and the candle in the Grotto?
Did his wife say, "Bruce, don't forget the grotto tonight" and he thought she said "lotto" and trundled off to the 7-11 to get a few tickets.
Anyway, we're still here. I just got my power on at home a few moments ago, not withstanding a brief tease this afternoon but I'm grateful for it now. In the bar tonight my friend the photographer Mike Forti told me about an old timer he knew in the Virgin Islands and after Hurricane Mariyln hit one September he didn't get any power till February. That makes a day and a half withou juice seem very tolerable indeed and there will be Robert Albury tonight. "Good God Y'all!"

There would be no Robert Albury tonight. There would be no electricity tonight.

The view out on the corner. The rain was horizontal and so thick it looked at times more like a snowstorm than a rainstorm.

Jack Flat's, a bar/restaurant around the corner from the Parrot lost their facade to the storm, but to their credit managed to reopen in the morning.

Artist John martini's studio during the storm.

The palms in john martini's garden being whipped about by Katrina's winds, gusting to near 90 mph

Alvin Youngblood Hart's Muscle Theory

Jay Gogin's Raku Pottery

Jay proudly displays the platter he created with his assistant Jeff just a few weeks earlier at the Green Parrot outdoor art show. This piece was made here, was glazed and fired at the college, and now will hang in the bar. See post below to view the piece the day it was thrown. Thanks again to Jay, Robin and Jeff.

Mud Pi at The Parrot

Jay, Robin and Jeff with their the platter created today for the Green Parrot... Great Job!

Jay and Robin

Mounted by jay and Tom Owens less than a month after it was created just a few yards away.

A detail from Jay's platter.

Blast Off!

While spending a lazy Sunday afternoon surfing around, I decided to check the No Snivelling Zone stats.

From the search engines leading folks here were these top two keywords:

Hunter Thompson. (Here)

RIP, Dr. Hunter.

Speaking of blasting off, I'm prepping for a colonoscopy this weekend. What are you doing?
.

Jimbo Mathus

The Greyhounds

Technodread

Roots-Reggae with Technodread

Tony and Duane bring Tecnodread to the green Parrot. Adell on bass and Mathew on drums.

Burner's Birthday Visit.

Burner, ever the optomist, gives us the high sign.

Linda Cottton brings Burner down to the bird for his birthday and Willie shares a pint with Tommy Owens.

Burner and Mike Gardenier

The Greyhounds

The greyhounds

Jimbo Malthus' Knockdown South

Alvin Youngblood Hart August 21-22

Randy McAllsiter

Silver Medal for Parrottroopers

Proving once again that age and guile will consistently overcome youth and enthusiasm, The Parrot Troopers stunned the Key West Bar and Restaurant Community with their Silver Medal Performance. It is, however, unfortunate that the snake-bitten Parrot team was again deprived of a first place finish by officiating that some termed,at the very least, questionable . We acknowledge that it is a charitable event for a great cause but that does not excuse what some observers viewed as blatant cronyism on the part of some judges.That said, our hats are off to the Parrotroopers for their fine performance and their contribution to the community by participating in events such as this. Way to Go!

Formally accepting the Bar Wars Trophy and looking none the worse for wear are Regan and Heidi. Other members of the team were not available for this photo opportunity as we're sure they were either attending another function in the endless round of celebratory parties that usually follow such events or passed out in some gutter between The Schooner Wharf and here.

New Martini Sculpture Instalation

In typical Green Parrot fashion, as the battle of the Bars raged on, and as Joanna Connor belted out scorching Chicago blues and searing slide guitar, the new John Martini sculpture titled "I Don't Know...Had I Been Drinkin?" was brought out from the storage shed and formally installed in it's permanent repository in the back bar...albeit exactly two weeks late.

Like any piece of fine art, and per the artist's instructions, the sculpture was uncerimoniously hosed off out back..

A job for a man and a boy

Up it goes

The boys make it look effortless

Just like it grew there!

And now the boys go back to the bar to enjoy Joanna Connor and another cold one...

Bar Wars Update

Sans fog machine, the 2005 Parrottroopers come out of the tunnel and take the field.

Regan digs it out, pushed beyond his limits, urged on by his bartender/personal trainer, Beaver

Too much pork for just one fork.

...coming out of the chute with the bravado of two marielitos Pat and Pat are forces to be reckoned with...

Heidi and Fossum, Patrick and Andy Blaze through the first heat.

Battle of The Bars

Eye of the Tiger.The scene at The Parrot Base Camp as the team pepares themselves. Pat will draw power from beaver's shaved head and then spread the JuJu over the course to thwart all those who would stand in their way.

Make up your own caption here.

The Boys look loose, but ready for this years event

Pat, along with his posse, issues a challenge, complete with posturing worthy of the WWF, to the other 43 bars competing this year and vows to win this one for Kenny, (pictured below in a post from last years' games) watching at home via closed circuit satellite while recuperating from his recent and sucessful hip surgery, hang in there Kenny and get well soon. And greetings to all other Parrot Troopers who are unable to attend but are watching at home. A special hello to Jimmy and Rachel, Mike and Linda Johnson, Terri and Eric, Vicki, Lurey and all the others who set the standard years ago.. These guys are all standing on your shoulders.

Eye of the Tiger

Here's Parrot Trooper Kenny Scott in his dojo preparing for Bar Wars 2004. Kenny displays the go-for-the-jugular, no-holds-barred attitude that has made the Parrot team one of the most feared competitors year after year