I had a great weekend with my family and a few friends. It was Father’s Day, and I had cleared the decks so I would have time for what would happen. Now we just need to have less rain! (I see we are at like 30 weekends in a row of some type of precipitation)
The weekend started early for me.
Cruise Night
Thursday was a busy day, and part of it was taking my grandson Jacob to get a haircut to get ready for some visits to look for a job. I did not expect his beard to go. That was a surprise. I picked up my car following a repair, and we headed to the car cruise night at Frogg Brewing in Swanzey, New Hampshire. (And we had two more car shows planned for Saturday.)
It was a beautiful evening. A slight breeze. When we arrived, the cars were already pulling in. Jacob and I visited with some of the regular folks who bring their cars. He and I wandered around taking pictures. Over the next few hours there were a lot of cars that came.
We took a break and went up and sat on the deck. I got a great new beer created by a young woman who works there. Briauna is part of the Pink Boots Society. (An organization- “Pink Boots Society aims to assist, inspire and encourage women and non-binary individuals in the fermented/alcoholic beverage industry to advance their careers through education.”) We sat there with a friend and a couple of car guys.
One of the owners came over to talk to us and we discussed that we were going to be back the following night for their lobster night with Cousins Maine Lobster.
We took a final walk around, taking pictures of all the newly arrived vehicles. And always there were some beauties!
It was a great night for cars, sitting outside, and hanging out with folks.
On Friday, Jacob, Tina and I worked to clear the decks so that we would be able to go out for lobster rolls! I love lobster!
I am a Connecticut boy. I grew up on seafood and New Haven pizza! The only things I ever missed about living in Vermont and New Hampshire! (Last year I took Jacob to Pepe’s for his birthday!)
Father’s Day
For me, Father’s Day was always a time to buy my father Hickory Farms, the latest aftershave, and make a meal for him. (My dad passed away in 1999.) 202
My kids have always been good with cards, gift cards and outings, as well as spending time.
This year my daughter, Amy, reached out to me to let me know that she wanted to come up on Friday for Father’s Day and spend some time with me. She was going to come in about 7 PM and I had promised Jacob his first lobster roll. (We had planned on doing it while on the Cape Cod last month, but we ended up relaxing more than eating!) At about 3:30 we headed over to Frogg. Cousins Maine Lobster was there, and Jacob ordered his first lobster roll. (He decided on the Maine lobster roll, which is mayonnaise based. Me, I ordered the Connecticut roll with butter.) He got a Whoopie Pie to go with it and the folks at Frogg made him an orange slushie. My wife is not a lobster fan and went with a BLT. I ordered a Poison Dart – IPA, 5.9% abv, New England Style Hazy IPA brewed with the Pink Boots Hop Blend developed by Briauna.
It was a fun night and the weather was great.
(Like many breweries, Frogg puts on some amazing events. They have an upcoming Country Event with WINK Country radio and some incredible talent. Including Jeremiah Bones who was a podcast guest here last year.)
We headed home, and my daughter was on her way up from Massachusetts. (My wife had made her turkey pot pie!) We hung out and talked the night away. Part of our Saturday plan was Jacob, and I were going to hit 2 car shows. Unfortunately, it rained, and both shows rain-dated to Sunday. (Sorry, Alyson’s and the Middle School show.)
Saturday morning, Jacob and I headed out to grab a coffee, as there were no car shows that day. He had asked if he could visit some friends, while Amy and I did our daddy-daughter time and of course, I said, “yes.” (It is strange to see your car head out and you are not the one driving.)
My daughter wanted to do something for me, so we could just hang out. She had wanted to try out a different brewery, and we headed down to a local brewery, Modestman. The rain had stopped, and it had warmed up a bit so once we had chosen our beers (Kraftwerk-a Kölsch, 5.6% abv), we headed out to one of the picnic tables that are on the Main Street side. We talked about a lot of things. (One of the funniest things while we were there was a group of about 12 women, who came in as Mrs. Roper, all with red curly hair and bright dresses!)
We sat outside for a couple of hours and while we there we encountered a couple. She was bringing her daughter to Keene State College for orientation. They were trying some of the beers and we got into a conversation. He was from England and because my daughter is headed to London and Paris next month more conversation came up.
At some point, we were having a discussion about other breweries in the area, and Branch and Blade came up. I shared some of the recent Facebook posts and they had a weekend drink, called the Naughty Cosmo.
“Dad, can we go?” How do you say no to your kid? Uhhh, you can’t!
We headed over to Branch and Blade Brewing. I like these guys. (If there is a downside, it is trying to get back out onto Route 10 if you need to head back into town!) We got there. They had music playing over at their pavilion. (Brian Walker was playing.)
We walked in, and Amy was greeted by the bartender. It was a new drink for them, but Amy told me it was great. While she was ordering hers, Jesse poured me a blueberry sour (Burning Love: Blueberry cobbler — Smoothie Sour-ABV 6 % abv). That was amazing!
We sat out on the deck for a while. More conversations about things that all too often should be done in person.
We headed back after a few hours. I had agreed to make chicken enchiladas for dinner.
Father’s Day Sunday
Sunday mornings are the time that I gather with our fellowship at Abundant Grace Fellowship. I was looking forward to seeing folks. When we got there, a dear friend who used to live in the area had come back from North Carolina for a family event. It was a good morning for me.
We came back for lunch and more of my kids showed up during the course of the afternoon.
I had an enjoyable weekend.
After everyone had left, I gave a lot of thought to my childhood. I thought about the skills and the many things he taught me over the years. Everything from mowing lawns and pounding nails to driving cars and water skiing. He also instilled in me a work ethic and a sense of value, that to this day, I carry.
It was a great Father’s Day weekend.
Happy Father’s day weekend!
