Bourbon, and Cigars

Every Tuesday has become a sort of ritual at my house. A good friend of mine recently returned from Iraq, albeit slightly damaged. He was never sane to begin with, but it certainly didn't help. He is starting to sleep more now, which is good. I was a little worried when he first got back. The best part about... oh a good name for him would be CT, about CT is that he appreciates many the things I do. It was he who introduced me to good bourbon when I was a younger lad. Twas he who forced me to consume my first Carbomb the night before a chemistry test, as well. I owe him many thanks. CT was actually my PI way back when I was pledging. He got his orders shortly after I was initiated. We have been making up for lost time, though.

Back to Tuesday nights, CT and I have begun taking turns bringing a bottle of whiskey and he usually brings the cigars. Tonight though, was a special affair. With me leaving in a couple of weeks and break coming, I figured I'd splurge this time. I also needed to give him a reason to leave his g/f for a night lol. Jefferson's Reserve was the trick. I had never heard of Jefferson's Reserve until Bluegrass Brewing Company made a delicious concoction in its honor. The BBC Jefferson's Reserve Imperial Bourbon Barrel Stout is one of the best beers I have ever tasted. It is aged in the same casks as it's namesake bourbon for 6 months, picking up a strong hint of bourbon, and the smoothness oak barrels bring. It will also knock your socks off at 10.6% and not a lick of alcohol in its taste. Definitely not a session beer for you English types. So, I wanted to meet the maker, if you will.

I was not disappointed by any means, either. There is something about sitting on your porch, sipping on a small batch bourbon that simply can't be beat by the party scene. There is no sense of urgency, there is no need to "pregame" or "beat happy hour." I drank one of the best bourbons I have ever had, and I still have the better part of a bottle, and spent less than a nights bar tab. And you don't wake up feeling like a train hit you, and you don't go to sleep feeling like your missing out on the party that's still going on.

We sit on the porch, smoke a cigar (I can handle cigars, barely) and enjoy the evening. Also fun is making fun of the drunk kids walking back from parties or the lame kids wandering aimlessly trying to 'find the party.' Either way, we were once just like them and it is amusing. The best is the dumb girls though... aye. Girls: "Are you guys Frat Boys!?!?!?!?" .some would call us that, yes. "OOoOOoOoHhHh Which Ooone?" .Theta Tau. "Theta Tau.... is that like Theta Chi?" .not quite... we're a professional, engineering fraternity. "No... its an Engineering... Oh. So do guys like party?" .do you drink whiskey?. "Eewww gross. I know a guy in Theta Chi!" ... They're mostly harmless, and there's always one girl whose eyes light up when we say engineering. There are two reasons for this: 1. Her mother is smart and told her to find an engineering boy to marry. 2. She would enjoy a talking to us about such things, but can't admit it because her friends would be lost in seconds.
I used to not believe the second one, until one girl said she did First! Robotics in high school. Our organization ran the First! tournament for several years so most of the participants know at least one Brother, if they are not aware of the organization itself. AfroNinja, my roommate and Big Brother, was really big in First! in high school and still mentored its team when he had time, so they started talking about robot stuff. The other two girls just kinda rolled their eyes and looked silly until they got bored and dragged her away... But we were not on the porch to hit on young girls, so when they do stop by its more of a spectacle than anything else.

It is nights like last night that I will miss the most leaving Richmond. They were much more prevalent in years past, but I still cherish them. Like the night Billy and Old Man and I sat on the porch talking about the future til 6 am. They had assigned a cop to watch us or something because we got a 'roll by' 18 times in 4 hours. Or running from the dirt-bike mounted Police on Bell Isle (an island which had both exits blocked by more police) for 3 hours one night. Thank the lord for the 4 am shift change. So many of my best memories here were with OT.
Nothing Golden Lasts Forever.