The (West Coast) Boran family tradition is to put the Christmas tree up the morning after Thanks-giving Day. See color photos. This involves coffee, some sort of leftovers-inspired omelette and maybe, just MAYBE, a mimosa. And Christmas Music. This year we started out with The Chieftains 'Bells of Dublin', then moved on to Yo-Yo Ma and Friends, 'Songs of Joy and Peace' (thank you Dad!), then moved on to Pandora, an excellent music/project site that allows you to enter a few songs you like, they then personalize a 'radio station' for you based on your selections (see http://www.pandora.com/).
All of this Christmas joy reminded me that, just a few years ago, I spent my Christmases serving booze to patrons of The Deadwood, a charming and lethally smoky dive bar in Iowa City, IA. I left a tiny filthy piece of my heart in that bar when I left IC. In fact, Chad and I MET at The Deadwood. Because all of my family was either on the West Coast, in Colorado or in Tennessee, I always used to volunteer to work Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Those were long strange lonely days. Although lots of people used to drift in and out on those holidays, it always seemed oddly empty, and a little dreamlike. Patrons showed up for a variety of reasons. For some of the regulars, we were their family. Others would just show up when they were sick of dealing with their families. Some were just people who used to hang out at The Deadwood in their 'heyday' and were in town for the holidays, swinging by to see how much, if at all, it had changed. That's us now, up there in the black and white picture. Now Chad and I are the people who show up every year or so and annoy the waitstaff by insisting 'HEY! I used to WORK HERE!'.
In honor of The Deadwood and all those who love it as much as I do, I thought I'd include the 'recipe' for the strangest drink I made during my nearly four-year tenure there, The Lunch Box.
This sounds disgusting, but ends up tasting just like an Orange Julius and gives a nice harmless Christmas buzz:
In a shaker, gently shake:
12 ounces Miller Lite
2 ounces orange juice
2 ounces Amaretto
Pour into a chilled pint glass and enjoy!
All of this Christmas joy reminded me that, just a few years ago, I spent my Christmases serving booze to patrons of The Deadwood, a charming and lethally smoky dive bar in Iowa City, IA. I left a tiny filthy piece of my heart in that bar when I left IC. In fact, Chad and I MET at The Deadwood. Because all of my family was either on the West Coast, in Colorado or in Tennessee, I always used to volunteer to work Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Those were long strange lonely days. Although lots of people used to drift in and out on those holidays, it always seemed oddly empty, and a little dreamlike. Patrons showed up for a variety of reasons. For some of the regulars, we were their family. Others would just show up when they were sick of dealing with their families. Some were just people who used to hang out at The Deadwood in their 'heyday' and were in town for the holidays, swinging by to see how much, if at all, it had changed. That's us now, up there in the black and white picture. Now Chad and I are the people who show up every year or so and annoy the waitstaff by insisting 'HEY! I used to WORK HERE!'.
In honor of The Deadwood and all those who love it as much as I do, I thought I'd include the 'recipe' for the strangest drink I made during my nearly four-year tenure there, The Lunch Box.
This sounds disgusting, but ends up tasting just like an Orange Julius and gives a nice harmless Christmas buzz:
In a shaker, gently shake:
12 ounces Miller Lite
2 ounces orange juice
2 ounces Amaretto
Pour into a chilled pint glass and enjoy!
2 comments:
The Deadwood is indeed different now - no smoking. What we didn't know was all that smoke was covering up some truly vile stench.
We had some good holidays there, didn't we, Milkshake?
Oh that drink does sound vile but one day you're making it for me!
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