A Movie, Meal and the Civil War As Well as Wings and a Concert

TUESDAY, AUGUST 9

Bob Stroud played Ten at Ten from that great college year for me, 1972, including "Ventura Highway" by America and "Sunshine" by Jonathan Edwards.  Took me back.  

Drove to Woodstock and saw the movie "Minions:  the Rise of Gru."  Gotta love those little yellow guys.  Then met some Civil War buffs at 3 Brothers restaurant in Il. Highway 47 and then to The Woodstock Library for a presentation on the USS Merrimac(k)/ CSS Virginia.  I especially like presentations on anything Civil War Navy.

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 10

Trivia at Donovan's Reef in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin

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THURSDAY, AUGUST 11

Went to Captain's Quarters on Fox Lake and had those great 50 cent wings and a good talk wih a Sox fan where we figured out that the Sox really have stunk up the place this season.  Drove to Wisconsin and got gas just over the border for $3.87 ($3.86.9) which is 45 cents cheaper than in Illinois.  A whole lot of Illinois folks near the border do this these days.

Then went to Antioch's It's Thursday concert featuring a good party band, 28 Days.

Why Go Anywhere Else?  --RoadDog

POINTS TO PONDER:  How can a SLIM CHANCE and a FAT CHANCE  be the same, while a WISE GUY and a WISE MAN aren't.

Trivia, Food, Captain's, the Beatelles, a Fish Fry and Lake View

WEDNESDAY, JULY 6

Played trivia at Donovan's Reef in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, and, as usual, we had a smorgasboard to eat as folks brought food in.

THURSDAY, JULY 7

Drove to Captain's Quarters on Fox Lake and had their 50 cent wing special said hi to former neighbor Mel who used to live next to us and is an unbelievably good bartender there.   Then drove to Antioch, Illinois, for the It's Thursday concert series, today featuring an all female group named  Beatelles singing Beatles songs.  That was sure a different way to hear the Beatles.

FRIDAY, JULY 8

Met Kelly and Kevin, Glen and Barb at Cuda's for their fish fry then went over to Lake View Place for their $1.50 draft beer and had never seen the place so crowded.  Former neighbor Mel and a lot of the Captain's Quarters folks were there.

Fun and Games Around Here.  --RoadDog

THINGS TO PONDER:  Which letter in "Scent" is silent?  Is it the "S" or "C?"

Fun With Taxes: MCCWRT, Wendy's $1 Breakfast Sandwiches, Taxes, Jumbo Wings at Kelly's, Fox Lake Legion, Stucky's and McHenry Moose Lodge

FRIDAY,APRIL 15

Met Steve from the McHenry County Civil War Round Table at the Aldi parking lot in McHenry where he handed me the copies of the student entries for this year's $1000 college scholarship.  While there, went to Aldi's of course.  How they can sell groceries for those prices is amazing.  Then to Wendy's for their wonderful $1 breakfast sandwiches.

Later, I went to H&R Block and picked up the taxes.  A new record in how much we have to pay.

Gas prices today:  McHenry $3.94, Fox Lake $4.17 and Trevor, Wisconsin $4.00.  When I say McHenry was $3.94, that means it was $3.93.9.

Met Kevin and Kelly at Kelly's Bar and Grill in Trevor, Wisconsin, for their fish fry, only Liz and I split the ten chicken wings for $15.99.  Now, that might sound like a lot, but these are truly gargantuan wings and have both parts.  We could only finish five of them, that's how big they are.

Then went to the Fox Lake Legion for 50-50 and home to Margaritaville in our basement.

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SATURDAY, APRIL 16

How about 28 degrees for half way through April?   And here I was thinking it was spring.  Foolish me.

We went to Stucky's in Johnsburg where we had the $14.50 buffet, sang karaoke and, of course, enjoyed those $1 draft beers.

SUNDAY, APRIL 17

It was enjoyable seeing the family across the street having an Easter Egg Hunt with the grandkids this afternoon.  They raised five children who are now off and married and having children of their own.  There were about ten kids running around.  Went to the McHenry American Legion in the afternoon.

--RoadDog

Last Week: Chipmunk Training, Trivia at Donovan's, Drought, No Wings for Me, Rosie & the Rivets and Classic Car Phobia

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 4

The FP (Front Porch) chipmunk about has me trained to its expectations.  I get in big trouble if I don't give it something to eat every time it comes by.  We played trivia at Donovan's in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, and enjoyed happy hour with half price (+25 cents) drinks.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 5

Watering, watering and watering.  We could SURE use some rain.  We're in our second drought of the summer.  

I drove to Antioch, Illinois, for their It's Thursday party.  Along the way, I had in mind to stop at Captain's Quarters on Fox Lake for their 35 cent wings and 35 cent loaded potatoes.  No dice son, too crowded.  Then figured I'd stop at Bootlegger's on Grasslake Road, but they too were packed.

Ended up at Roost On 59 (on Illinois Highway 59) and had their great Chicago dog meal.

Then to Antioch for the 50s-60s band Rosie & the Rivets and the car show.  Watched an hour, but left early when we started getting some raindrops.  You should have seen those classic car guys scramble.  I think they think their cars will melt of they get wet.  (Heaven forbid if even a speck of dust gets on it.  Out comes the chamois and lightly move it off the exterior!!)

Why Go Elsewhere.  --RoadDog

LAWS OF THE UNIVERSE, LAW OF THE RESULT:  When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work it will.

Still Got Our CB&C, Even With Everything, St. Patrick's Day-- Part 1: Who Says You Need a Parade?

This will have to go down as the strangest St. Patrick's Day ever.  As a joke going around right now has it, this was the time a Chinese virus with a Mexican name wiped out an Green Celebration.  Even so, we got in as much as you can.

Now, we are spending the next bunch of days at home.  However:

THURSDAY--  Kick off with 50 cent wings and $1 pints at Bootleggers in Antioch.

FRIDAY, MARCH 13--  Had planned on going to the Legion for the Grant Township fish fry but that was cancelled.  Ended up at Sunnyside Tavern.

SATURDAY, MARCH 14--  We already weren't planning on going to the Chicago or McHenry St. Patrick's Day parades (Chicago because we don't go to Chicago and McHenry because it is way too crowded).  We had planned to go to the Lake Villa parade, but that got cancelled as well.

We decided to go to Stucky's in Johnsburg for their corned beef & cabbage  (CB&C), but they were way too crowded.  So, we went over to Sunnyside where a whole lot of friends were having their alternate party.  Who says you have to have a parade to get into the drinking o' the green?

--RoadDog

One Great Time Last Weekend: Barhopping, Wings, $1 Drafts, Beach Bumz Band, Fish Fry and the Legion

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 7

Barhopping at Donovan's Reef in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin and Sunnyside in Johnsburg, Illinois.  Two places where everybody knows your name.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 8

Met Kevin and Kelly, Glenn and Barb at Bootleggers on Grasslake Road in Antioch and enjoyed the 50 cent wings and $1 draft pints.  Then went to the It's Thursday in Antioch, the weekly party by the bandshell behind Main Street.  Every Thursday from mid-June to mid-August, they have a band playing there from 7:30 to 9 p.m..

Tonight the band was Johnny Russell & the Beach Bumz.  If you like Jimmy Buffett, reggae or country beach music, this music is for you.  We also met several good friends there.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 9

Enjoyed WDRV's Ten at Ten's American Road Trip songs.  Road tripping on old highways is one of our favorite things to do, especially on Route 66 or the Lincoln Highway.

We met Kelly and Kevin and Barb and Glenn at 'Cuda's on Grasslake Road for their beer-battered fish fry, auce for $9,99 and $2 craft beer pints.  Then went to the Fox Lake American Legion with them for the 50-50.

Why Go Anywhere Else?  --RoadDog

I'd Celebrate That!!! February 1-3: Groundhog Day Saturday

FEBRUARY 1--  Bubble Gum Day   As I teacher I fought a losing war against it.   Change Your Password Day**  If I remember.    G.I. Joe Day     Never got into him that much.  I was too old.   Hula In the Coola Day**   Never heard of it, but the idea of putting on a hula skirt and coconut bra might be just thing.

FEBRUARY 2--   Crepe Day**   I like a good crepe every now and then.    Groundhog Day**  Of course,  Must watch the movie and get over to Woodstock, Illinois, where it was filmed.  Sorry Punx..     Heavenly Hash Day**  Will warm your insides.   Hedgehog Day**   Well, why not.  Kind of a distant cousin.   Tater Tot Day**  What would Homer say?   MMMMMMnnn, Tater Tots.

FEBRUARY 3--   American Painters Day**  Especially Rockwell and Kinkaide.    National Carrot Cake Day**   Few things I like better than carrot cake.   Super Chicken Wing Day*8   Always on Super Bowl Sunday.  Always my favorite part of the chicken, even before they got popular.

--RoadDog

I'd Celebrate That!!-- July 23 to July 29: Cousins Day and Aunts and Uncles Day This Week

JULY 23, MONDAY--  Vanilla Ice Cream Day**   Hot Dog Day**  One of my favorite foods as long as it is loaded or Chicago-style.

JULY 24, TUESDAY--  Cousins Day**  Hey Joe, Debbie, Phillip, Louis, Nancy and Gayle.   Tequila Day**  I still don't remember last year's celebration.  "One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor, you know."

JULY 25, WEDNESDAY--  Hot Fudge Sundae Day**  Just watch out for brain freeze.

JULY 26, THURSDAY--  Aunt and Uncle Day**  Sadly, they are all gone now, but remembering Aunt Louise and Uncle Delbert, Aunt Angelea and Uncle Louis, Aunt Dot and Uncle Billy.    Chili Dog Day**  Hey, isn't that a hot dog?

JULY 27, FRIDAY--  Bagpipe Appreciation Day**  Nothin' like a good tune on those.  Scotch Day**  Well, now that I taught myself (with a lot of practice) to drink the stuff.

JULY 28, SATURDAY--  Milk Chocolate Day**  Any kind of chocolate.

JULY 29, SUNDAY--  Chicken Wing Day**  (Always my favorite part of fried chicken, even before they got so popular and expensive.)  Lasagna Day**

Practice Makes Perfect.  RoadDog

YOU KNOW IT'S A REDNECK COMPUTER WHEN:  The six front keys have rotted out.

Great Time Around Here Last Week-- Part 1

TUESDAY, JULY 5TH--  Did some shopping in McHenry and then watched our Fox Lake American Legion Baseball team defeat Lake Forest 14-4.  Our guys hit back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the third and then the second guy came up and hit another one later in the inning where we scored 9 runs.  I came home and had a bonfire out on the Grand Strand.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 6TH--  Met friends Kevin and Kelly at Donovan's Reef in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, and had those great Wednesday special jumbo chicken wings for 40 cents.

THURSDAY, JULY 7TH--  Worked in the yard and then met Kevin and Kelly at Bootleggers and enjoyed the $1 draft pints and 50 cent wings.  Liz and I then went to It's Thursday in Antioch, Illinois, and met up with a lot of friends while watching an Irish musician and then Johnny Russell & the Beach Bumz Band playing all that good Beach music.

A Good Time Had By All.  --RoadDog

AIN'T IT THE TRUTH:  When i was a child I thought "Nap Time" was a punishment.  Now, as a grownup, it feels like a small vacation.

JSIS: Gators-- Tornadoes-- Bears-- Wings

From the August 26, 2013, USA Today State-by-state.

1. GATORS: BONITO SPRINGS, FL-- No more baby alligator-hugging at the Flamingo Island Flea Market. The market and Gator Man Mike Sturgill refuse to pay the $3,500 fee for permission to have an ordinance exception.

2. TORNADOES: FAYETTEVILLE, ARK.-- Research from the University of Arkansas shows thqat tornadoes traveling uphill cause much more damage than ones going downhill after studying the horrific tornadoes of 2011 in Tuscaloosa, Ala., and Joplin, Mo..

3. BEARS: MINNESOTA-- The world's oldest-known wild black bear has died of old age at 39 1/2. Bear No. 56 was tagged and radio-collared in 1981.

4. WINGS: BUFFALO, NY-- That's a lot of wings. Forty tons of chicken wings have been delivered for this weekend's National Buffalo Chicken Wing Festival which will feature 100 styles of wings, music and wing-eating contests.

Love Dem Wings --RoadDog

JSIS: Wings Crisis?-- Barnes & Noble

JSIS:  Just Some Interesting Stuff


1.  WINGS CRISIS?--  Super Bowl is becoming synonymous with chicken wings as far as eating goes.  hey, eggs at Easter, chocolate ate Valentine's, candy and more candy at Halloween.  But sadly, I have to report a serious shortage of wings because of last summer's drought

As a result, some 12.3 million fewer wings will be eaten this Sunday, but that still leaves 1.2 billion. down the gullet.

By the way, those new boneless wings are really just chunks of chicken breast.

I still plan to eat a bunch o' wings at Donovan's Reef.


2.  BARNES & NOBLE--Sad to see that the last of the big box bookstores, Barnes & Noble is on its way down like my favorite, Borders.  They are closing stores, scaling back from 689 stores to 450 to 500.  They had a jump in sales after Borders liquidated but lost 10.9% of their sales over the Christmas season.

Even though Borders and Barnes & Noble were Big Box stores, they kept that little bookshop feel.


Like the Chickens Said "Et Mor Bef!"  --RoadDog


WHAT SHE SAID AND WHAT SHE MEANS:  Do you like this recipe? = It's easy to fix, so you'd better get used to it.

NTNing Down Da Road Part 3: To Donovan's Reef

Yesterday, we stopped at one more new NTN site, this time Jerseys, in Beloit, Wisconsin, out by I-90 on a frontage road behind Subway. Like Cousins yesterday, cigarette smoking is not allowed, Great for me, but not for Liz.

The TVs are not set up well for NTN players so you have to turn to look to play, not a favorite situation. Very friendly bartender. We had just overeaten at the buffet at Thunder Bay Grille in Rockford, but, when I heard that they had 25 cent wings, I had to order some. I just can't turn down 25 cent wings!! These were huge too, not those little bitty baby ones you get at BW3, well, Buffalo Wild Wings. My excuse for eating again is that I had just walked around the world-famous Anderson Japanese Gardens in Rockford. That is really worth the $6 admission.

We then drove small roads along the Wisconsin-Illinois border to Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, where we played NTN at our home bar, Donovan's Reef. It is named after the Lee Marvin/John Wayne movie and is a taste of Florida in Wisconsin. There are three palm trees out on the deck where you can see the lake across the street. Bamboo lines the front of the bar and thatched grass hangs above it. All the paneling is wood with beach stuff on it.

We've been playing NTN here for about 12 years now. This is where we have our highest point totals. We had three top twenties. NTN shows the top twenty scores across the two countries as well as top twenty individual scores. (We had also had two top twenties yesterday at Scoreboard's.)

Have NTN, Will Travel. --RoadDog

Wings and New Invaders

Yesterday, after boating, I went to Steitz's  on the hill overlooking Bluff Lake and had chicken wings for 20 cents each, now that is a great deal, and they weren't the very little ones they serve at BW3 (or B-Dubs as it is sometimes called. Actually BW3 (Buffalo Wings & Weck)  is what we old-timers call it, you younger ones call it Buffalo Wild Wings. How they get that small of a chicken is beyond me. Those wings are little-bitty.  We call 'em parakeet wings.

This is a historical business, dating back to the 1920s. A lot of people there enjoying the wings, plus a new Anheisser-Busch offering called a Land Shark beer, something to battle Miller's new Chill beer.

Then, I went to Antioch, where they were having an "It's Thursday" band at the beautiful new outdoor stage that is set up to the east of Main Street. The New Invaders were playing. I've seem them before at Fox Lake's Oktoberfest. They play mostly 60s music from British Invasion and American bands. This is a talented six piece group, eight if you count the go go dancers. They even did Crosby, Stills & Nash at Woodstock. Everyone took turns singing and playing each other's instruments. They definitely looked the part of a 60s band. I'll have more on them later.

Afterwards, I checked out a new tavern on Main Street called the Sequoit Creek Lodge which is done up in a true north woods style. I'll have to go back some time and get a meal. The place was packed.

Good Times Out Here in the "Sticks". --RoadDog

Official Opening Day of Summer: Bar, Band & Beer

Yesterday was the official first day of summer for me. It was never the first day out on the boat, or first day of summer vacation.

It becomes official when we have our first Sunday afternoon party out at Captain's Quarters on Fox Lake. This is a tradition of many years, at least back to the early 90s. Every Sunday from 3 to 7, Captain's has a live band. Nothing much is better than sitting outside and enjoying some great music, friends, and drinks with the lake in view. Lots of boaters, but I wasn't one since I don't go out on the weekends. Too many Weekend Warriors.

Yesterday, I saw a new band called One Track Mind, who play nothing but One Hit Wonders, songs by groups who only had one big song. One set, they played "Back in Black" by Los Bravos, "What I Am" by Edie Brickell, and "One Toke Over the Line" by Brewer & Shipley; all back to back. These are songs I've never heard another band do and three of my favorites. The band consists of five members, mostly in their 40s and 50s.

I would have to question how One Hit Wonder Sam the Sham and the Pharoahs and Nancy Sinatra were, however. I can think of several hits for both.

Captain's Quarters has been owned by the same couple since about 1992. They have turned what once was a dump into a top Chain of Lakes destination. There is a huge new outside area including a bar, picnic tables, and large canvas-covered pavillion.

They have $3 meals Mondays through Thursdays, as well as 25 cent wings on Thursdays. Definitely a great place to go.

Summer and the Chain--That's the Ticket. --RoadDog