We went to Shreveport this morning to pick up Belle's daughter at the airport. She's going with them on the cruise.
We stopped in Natchitoches for a bit of history and a bite for lunch. Belle's favorite restaurant is closed this week for a thorough cleaning and remodeling. We went around the corner to another restaurant and ate po'boys.
Bourbon has a number of criteria that must be met before it can be called bourbon. At least 51% corn, distilled in the US, aged in new oak barrels, barreled at no more than 125 proof. Straight bourbon is two years old.
Many of you know my fondness for Evan Willians Bottled in Bond. It's my bouse whiskey, aged at least four years, bottled at 100 proof. It's good hooch.
I also like Buffalo Trace. One of the products of that distillery is Benchmark. It's a bottom-shelf, straight bourbon whiskey. Over the years, I have consumed my share. I was in the liquor store today and found a bottle that they call Full Proof. Bottled at 125 proof, this hooch is not watered down.
For $25 out the door, not a bad deal. I brought a bottle home and we'll try it on in a little bit. If nothing else, it should be a good mixer for cocktails.
I walked out into the carport this morning and saw a little water on the floor near the carport door. I wasn't really concerned, thinking it was condensation dripping from the humid weather and heavy dews we have had lately. Looked closer and wasn't convinced, so I went inside and looked at the hot water heater. Found a drip, a very small drip, coming from the lie that brins hot water to the house. Well, hell. Verdigris corrosion, that line was about to fail.
Other than the usual Democrat handwringing about President Trump's flawless warrant sweep this weekend, the only thing that I see is that Tampon Tim is dropping out of the Minnesota governor's race.
Normally I would not care who the governor of Minnesota might be. I just don't give a shit. And now that I think about it, I really don't care. It's just not something that gets on my radar. The only reason I know who Tampon Tim is, is because he ran a disastrous race with whatshername in 24.
Kudos to our folks in the Caribbean. They did a bang-up job this weekend. No casualties in a very complicated evolution. Lots of aircraft moving around in hostile skies, and everyone came home safe.
It looks like President Trump gave the green light to capture Maduro last night. Kind of like when we captured Noreiga in 19889.
I bet that the politics in Caracas is interesting this morning.
UPDATE** Nick Freitas makes some good arguments on both sides of the question.
What makes a great cheeseburger? That's rather subjective, but people still try to rate them. For example, these guys think they have found the world's three best cheeseburgers.
I recall, in the latter years of the last century, there was a place in Derry, LA called Ruby's Cafe. Miss Ruby was a widow who ran a lunch place. She served local, grass-fed beef that she had butchered to her specifications. Her steaks were great, but her cheeseburgers were top notch as well. She made something she called a Ranch Burger, and they were to die for. I think she put a little ranch dressing powder in the burger mixture.
North of there about 15 miles was a place called the Rite Way Grocery. It was a convenience store with two gas pumps out front. Owned by John Gibson, he had a guy named Howard who did the sweeping and the stocking and anything else that needed doing. Howard also manned the grill during the lunch rush. Howard made a magnificent cheeseburger.
Both Ruby's Cafe and the Rite Way Grocery have passed into the pantheon of places gone forever.
Today, if I'm looking for a great cheeseburger, I go to The Pelican in Pineville. It's right across the street from MacDonalds. Run by a Korean family, they have an eclectic menu, but I'm convinced that their cheeseburger is the best in the parish.. And, it is less expensive than a Big Mac from across the street.
The search for the worlds greatest cheeseburger is never done.
It's New Years Eve and I've been doing all manner of year-end chores. The tax year ends at midnight.
I had a pork tenderloin in the smoker for a few hours. It's resting now, and I'll slice it in a little bit. It will become part of lunch tomorrow, along with blackeyed peas and cabbage. Cornbread, of course.
That reminds me, I need to change the battery in my red dot sight. I do that once a year on the New Year.
Tomorrow starts 2026. I'm looking forward to a splendid year. I hope all of you can say the same.
