Russell Has Left the Building!

Weenie and I headed up to the Bayou to have preparty drinks with Karn. When we walked up on the deck, this is what we saw.

Look at those cute chicks! Weenie and I invited ourselves to sit down. Duh.

Karn showed up and we had many drinks. Mel was on her way back from Tupelo but it would be several hours before she showed up. So, we followed Karn home and she left her car and rode with us.

The going away party was in full swing.

We went outside and there were more partiers!

Good Luck in Nashville Jamie and visit often!

Herb Parsons Lake

Weenie and I got up early Sunday morning (8:00 gasp!) and headed out to Herb Parsons Lake. We'd never been out there and heard it was a haul. We drove and drove and drove. We wound up in Williford, Tennessee. Weenie pulled over and asked for directions. They told us we had missed the turn. Figures. The morning was getting away from us and we finally arrived around 10:30. After lugging all our gear to the point where T and Pickle were, it was 11:00. They were already fishing in their kayaks.

They had been out there since around 7:30. Early birds!

We took our chairs down to the bank and wormed up. It was really shallow and not much was happening. We should've rented a boat. Nevertheless, it was beautiful and not too hot. I walked back up to the picnic table to do a little reading.

It was then that T and Pickle parked their kayaks and we began to prepare lunch. Weenie and I had brought some Johnsonville Brats for the grill and chips and dip. T and Pickle brought filet(!) and salad fixings plus some organic sausage. T had bought a grill in a box for the trip. It had everything in it. She put it together in minutes. She lit it and we waited for the coals to whiten. Meanwhile, we chowed down on chips and salsa.

Our brats were done quickly, so Pickle put on the filet. She butterflied the meat because the coals were burning down quickly.

Weenie and I chowed down on our brats. Weenie had bought some BBQ rub that she sprinkled all over them. They were really tasty.

T was tossing a salad while Pickle finished up the filet. Pickle threw in the filet with some roasted red peppers. OMG, yummy!

We filled up on the food and decided to go try and get some fish. I got several nibbles but never landed one. Pickle and T took a tiny nap. I had to run to the bathroom and supposedly while I was gone, Weenie caught a bass.

Pickle and T joined us as the clock approached 4:00.

There still wasn't much action so we decided to head home so Weenie could ride the motor scooter. We will be back so the fish better watch out!

Memphis in May BBQ Fest

Weenie and I made our way down to Tom Lee Park for the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest. I left work around 2:00 and scooped her up on the way down. We paid our $20 to park across the street and started down the hill towards the river.

The day could not have been more perfect. It was around 75 and not a cloud in the sky. It's usually raining or 90 degrees. I was really looking forward to free beer and BBQ.

We got to the tent and it was pretty empty. Phil had us 3 cases of very cold Bud Light and we started making a dent in the cooler. We had a couple of hours to kill before anyone else we knew showed up so we headed up on the top of the tent to enjoy the view.

The team was downstairs preparing for supper so we went down to check it out.

Some of my friends showed up and saw the crawfish at the tent next door. We walked over and they told us to eat all we wanted.

Pegelah and JJ stepped up to the cooler and started shucking and sucking.

Then the Food Network showed up.

We wanted no part of the filming so we went back on top to people watch.

Dyna showed up.

Then it got real crowded up on top.

We watched the sun set and I was pretty buzzy by then.

We left the park around 10:30 and headed to the Bayou. Surprise!

Bayou, Beers and Karaoke

Last Friday, Mooey and I got off work early and headed up to the Bayou. DP was waiting on us. He had snagged a table on the patio. Weenie walked up from work about 45 minutes later. The beers were already flowing. This was going to be a small get together but the table kept getting bigger and bigger.

Here is a pic of our fearless waitress, Betsy, with Dyna.

She puts up with a lot from us and still manages to smile.

Me and Karn!

The table was too crowded so we paid up and headed to the One More.

As soon as we arrived, Weenie put her name up for karaoke. She wrote down her signature song, Thank You by Dido. Dyna grabbed my camera and got Weenie in action.

Then we all moved to the patio.

Gracie!

My aunt got a dog. She's a toy Yorkie and her name is Gracie. I was over at her house for Mother's Day and I took a few pictures. She's so freaking cute I want to kidnap her!

Here she is getting a treat. Look how tiny!

Another Birthday!

Beck's birthday is the day after Weenie's. She decided to wait and have her cele on Saturday. Saturday was also Cinco de Mayo.

We started the party early and went to Molly's La Casita for margaritas, Tecate and food around 4:00. Dyna, Torrence, Mooey and Beck joined us later. We had secured the big table by the window.

We were having a big time and then the electricity went out. It started getting warm in there so we got one more beer and then the check. The lights came back on after about 10 minutes but we were over it by then. Time to head to the One More. We needed to secure a couple of tables for the party.

As you can see, the deck filled up fast.

Weenie grabbed the birthday girl for a little two-step.

More party goers!

DR and happy!