Lou Pickney's Online Commentary
Reservoir Bar
Sunday
November 6, 2005
"Out on the street are so many possibilities to not be alone"
-Death Cab For Cutie "Your Heart Is An Empty Room"
This weekend was a fun time for me. My friend Suzy and I met up in Ybor on Friday, and we went to Reservoir Bar, which is a cool bar over toward the far end of the 7th Avenue strip, over near Masquerade (and that horrid club Code; remember, DO NOT go to Code for any reason, lest you be thrown out at the whim of the bouncers, no refunds, no explanations.) Reservoir Bar is a fun place, small enough to not feel overwhelming, but not so small that you can't move around in the place. It's a good size for what it is.
Last night, Suzy and I met up again, this time with more people involved. My friends Adam and Amanda were in from Orlando (for the Bucs/Panthers game today, as Adam is a Panthers fan), while Suzy's friend Michelle came down from Orlando. Michelle and I hit it off great. We had a really fun time, including doing a number of Jägerbombs and involving ourselves in general Ybor rowdiness.
|  | | It's great to meet new, fun people. |
Some assorted notes:
-After I had walked Suzy to the parking garage on Friday night, getting back to my apartment was interesting. I was wearing my Peyton Manning jersey (as seen here), and as I walked through Centro Ybor, some kid who looked to be about 15 years old yelled out, "Peyton Manning sucks!" I turned and looked at him with a Bruce Willis in Pulp Fiction stare, and the Jäger started talking. He told me that the Patriots were going to kick the Colts' ass tomorrow night. I informed the guy that he was wrong, particularly since the Patriots are without Rodney Harrison. Only I used much saltier language, and I was loud about it, too. I finally told him to shove it up his ass, and that was that. Always a productive way to end an argument, I think.
-Patriots fans still have quite aways to go to be more annoying than Dolphins fans. See this commentary for just a snippet of what I mean about that. Dolphins fans have a way of getting under my skin, even after their horrid 2004 season. Maybe it's the way many of them talk smack incessantly, even when there's no justification to do so. Maybe it's that stupid 1972 team (which didn't win as many games as the 1985 Bears -- this just in!) Or maybe it's because of the apathy that plagues all south Florida sports teams, to the point where the Dolphins have had trouble even selling out first round playoff games before. But I attribute it mostly to fans who are waaay more cocky than they have any right to be.
|  | | You never know what will happen in Ybor! |
-I felt like the worst host in the world on Saturday, as my apartment had hardly any food in it at all. I had a box of Honey Nut Cheerios, some Crown Royal whiskey, a few cans of Diet Cherry Vanilla Dr. Pepper... and not a whole lot else. Luckily Adam and Amanda came prepared. It's like the ad campaign for Racetrac that had been running recently here in Tampa where the people stop on their way somewhere to get supplies (98% of you probably won't get that reference... that's okay.) It's a bit of a tradition for Adam and Amanda to make breakfast when they come here, though it's been a long time since they've made the trip over here to Tampa to visit. Further embarrassing, along with the whole no bread, no milk, etc. thing, was that my pots and pans actually had dust on them. I really do make an effort to keep things clean, I promise, but obviously not a strong enough of one.
-Adam and Amanda split off from me to hit the Tampa Bay Brewing Company, and Adam actually called me from there, as he had something like 11 beer samples to go through. Apparently these were more than just small sips. But, as you can see from the pictures, I was a busy guy.
|  | | This bachelorette party managed to do something I'd never seen before in Ybor. That can't be good for the Blue Shark's risk management, though... |
-There was a bachelorette party that stopped in at the Blue Shark. The girl in the bride outfit claimed that she got married that day. If that's true, either her new husband had already pissed her off, or she just didn't know the protocol of when you have your bachelorette party in relation to the wedding day. I think it was the alcohol talking for her, but what do I know? Regardless, I managed to capture a crazy moment with my digital camera. A girl climbed on a guy's shoulders and was doing a pole dance as the "new bride" gave her pointers. Surreal, to say the least. Notice how I captured the bride's reflection in the mirror. I'd put the full size photo on here, but disc space is at a bit of a premium. I've joked that the larger picture is worthy of AP Photo of the Year consideration, and that it's much better than the INS Elian Gonzalez photograph. Regardless, I suppose that unusual technique is one way for a girl to dance without having to worry about guys sneaking up from behind and bothering her...
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