Awesome Old TV Clips of the Week: Jon Stewart and David Letterman post 9/11

Fifteen years ago this morning, I was cutting limes at the Navigator Restaurant in Edgartown when my boss said "Turn on the TV, a plane just crashed into a building in New York City."

It was the strangest day I've ever had behind the bar.  The place was packed, but nobody was eating or drinking.  Everyone was just standing there, staring at the televisions in a state of shock and horror.  In particular, I remember three men from New York who worked in the towers but had taken a few days off to come to Martha's Vineyard.







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2000 consecutive days of blogging

Oak Bluffs, August 19, 2016

Today is the 2000th consecutive day that I've posted a blog on LucidSportsFan.com--no time off for summer vacations, Christmas, or even my honeymoon.  I'm now only 633 days away from passing Cal Ripken.

The first post ever was on March 2, 2011.  In the beginning I wrote more than one per day, so blog No. 2000 actually came back in July.

To celebrate, here's a clip of the best fireworks show on the planet, the annual late-August display in Oak Bluffs, on Martha's Vineyard:




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How long before somebody invents carrot-celery?

I saw this truck yesterday waiting in line to get on the Martha's Vineyard ferry.  I know those things pictured on the back are carrots with the leaves cut off at a certain length, but what do they really look like?

How about some sort of hybrid half-carrot/half-celery?  Imagine how great that would be?  That's probably an even better idea than strawberries with mint flavored leaves.

I googled Gordon Food Service, and even though there's no mention of them being on the cutting edge of genetic engineering in terms of splicing vegetables together, I'm sure they're just keeping that side of the business quiet pending FDA approval.


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Blog No. 2000

The first-ever post on LucidSportsFan.com (actually LucidSportsFan.blogspot.com at the time) went live on Wednesday, March 2, 2011.  The site has come a long way since the beginning.  Earlier this year I noticed I was approaching 2000 blog entries, so I made a mental note to celebrate post No. 2000--but then I forgot.

This is actually No. 2012, but I'm going with the fireworks anyway.

When I first started writing I often published multiple posts per day, and by my calculations this is my 1,970th consecutive day of blogging.  Maybe I should've saved the 2000 hullabaloo for a month from now?  Or I could just do it again, I like seeing more than one fireworks show each summer anyways...


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Did you know that turkeys sleep in trees?

Here's a photo I took last week outside my family's Vineyard house at dusk:

If you didn't notice anything weird, take a closer look:

There's a family of wild turkeys that frequently hangs out in the back yard, and apparently on occasion they sleep in trees.

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Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck selling $22.5 mil Vineyard house; I'm pretty sure I went to a party there once

I met Wyc Grousbeck on Martha's Vineyard in the summer of 2008, just after the Celtics won the championship.  He and Ray Allen took part in the Edgartown 4th of July parade that year:

You can see Ray in the bottom right corner of the picture as well.  Quick sidebar--Allen played golf with the President on the Vineyard just the other day, something that is apparently becoming a yearly ritual.  In my mind, once he spurned the Celtics in 2012, Ray should have found a new place to go on vacation.

But anyway, back to Grousbeck.  His Edgartown estate is on the market for $22.5 million.  After looking at the pictures (click the previous link), I'm about 85 percent certain I went to a party there in either the summer of 2002 or 2003.  Did Wyc own it then?

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Man, Boston lost the Olympics and Shane Victorino in the same day?

I was on Martha's Vineyard today and not really paying attention to what was going on in the outside world.  So, you can imagine my surprise when I checked the interwebs this evening and discovered that the city of Boston lost both Shane Victorino and its 2024 Olympic bid in the same day.

It was time for the Red Sox to move on from Victorino (and it's not really surprising that all they could get in return was a 26-year-old minor league infielder), but his value to the 2013 World Series champions was immeasurable.  I was in attendance at Fenway Park for his spectacular series-clinching grand slam in Game 6 of the ALCS:



That postseason, Victorino became the first player ever to knock in the winning runs in the deciding games of all three series.

The 2024 Olympics coming to Boston was always a long shot, but it was still something amazing to dream about.  As great as the above memory is, the Olympics coming here could've created some of the greatest sports moments the city has ever seen.


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Awesome Old Movie Clips of the Week: "Jaws" 4th of July Edition

Jaws was released on June 1, of 1975.  The fictional island of Amity is Martha's Vineyard 40 years ago.  One part of the film that always amused me was how eager people were to go in the ocean on Amity leading up to the 4th of July.  The water is cold in early summer.  I was there yesterday and could barely get my feet in.

Yeah some people swim, but not en masse like they do in the movie.  Jaws would've been a lot more realistic if they'd set it in late August instead.









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The most fun water slide I've ever seen is brilliant, yet so simple

In 2004, I lived in Austin, Texas for a little while.  I was coming off of a lucrative Vineyard summer, and combined with the relatively low cost of living down there I hardly worked at all.  I really, really wish BSR Cable Park had existed 11 years ago, because I'm pretty sure I would've moved to Waco for three months and had the time of my life.

How is it possible I've never seen this type of water slide before?



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Awesome Old Song of the Week: "Semi-Charmed Life" by Third Eye Blind

Third Eye Blind's self-titled debut album was released in June of 1997, with Semi-Charmed Life becoming their first big hit.  Unlike some of my other "Awesome Old Song of the Week" selections, with this one I actually have irrefutable evidence that it is, in fact, an awesome old song.

Eight years after the track's release, in the summer of 2005 I was setting up the bar one morning at the Seafood Shanty in Edgartown, Massachusetts.  I had just purchased my first ipod and hooked it up to the restaurant's stereo system.  When Semi-Charmed Life turned up on my playlist, I noticed something I'd never seen before: As the servers were going about their morning duties (rolling silverware, opening umbrellas, wiping down trays, etc.) each and every one of them independently began singing along to themselves.

I don't think anyone else noticed, and it's a phenomenon I've yet to ever again witness.



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Icebergs are washing ashore on Cape Cod?! (and the beach in Boston is pretty wild right now too)

These photos are from the Outer Cape yesterday and this morning:

This is how thick ice in Wellfleet, Cape Cod! Dapixara pic. @CapeCodNPS #nature http://t.co/EZ4jzjrCMY pic.twitter.com/QLoutS9ELB
— Dapixara (@dapixara) March 7, 2015

First twitter!!! This photo was taken earlier this evening out on the Cape, and it was something else!! @ericfisher pic.twitter.com/cRGlHGuqfk
— John R McCarthy (@JRMcCarthyPhoto) March 11, 2015

Out in the land of icebergs, wellfleet! @capecodtimes #capecod pic.twitter.com/c3MhQY8Fea
— CapeCast (@capecast) March 11, 2015

Right now it's 56 degrees out.  I remember my sixth-grade earth science teacher telling us that one of the biggest signs of global warming would be extreme weather patterns...

UPDATE:

On a much smaller scale, a similar thing is also happening now in Boston.

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Smart phone TV remote app may be an issue in bars and restaurants

My phone came with an app that allows it to work as a remote control for your TV and cable.  I tried it out once for fun, but it's not actually better than my regular remote, so I have no use for it.

The other night while I was closing my bar at 1:45 am some friends of mine who were still there decided to mess with me.  After I shut off the television, one of them turned it back on.  From her phone.  All you need to make the app work anywhere is to be able to read the brand of the TV and/or cable box.  And that got me thinking...

I remember times when I've been in the Wharf Pub on Martha's Vineyard (where last call is 12:30 am) and they turned off a west-coast Red Sox game at a dramatic moment just before the end.  Now I could discretely flip the TV back on for a minute to see the final out.

There's also been many occasions where I've gone to a bar or restaurant specifically to watch a certain game, but had lots of troubling getting the staff to put it on the TV.  Now bar patrons could simple change the channel themselves (if the cable box is close by).  Which would be fine, unless somebody else was already watching whatever was previously on.

Or how about when a person would like to hear the TV, but the establishment has decided not to turn up the volume?

This app has the potential to be a nightmare for bartenders.

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Did you know you can rent a goat to eat your poison ivy?

The funny thing is, I'd actually just heard someone mention this a few days before I stumbled across the advertisement below:

That "before and after" picture is pretty impressive.  This fits into the category of "unusual signs you might see at the Martha's Vineyard fair."

Apparently the city of Boston put some goats to work clearing a park this summer.

WeRentGoats.com doesn't list its prices, but some competing sites suggest rates start at $250 per day to rent a heard of goats to eat everything in your back yard.  I'm not exactly sure how it works if you want to rent just one goat, or how you get it to only eat the poison ivy and nothing else...


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Ridiculous photo of the day nominee

This was taken at the Martha's Vineyard fair a few weeks ago:

Since there isn't anyone standing by the sign, it must mean one of two things: Either all of the missing people have been claimed already, or there are so many of them that they are kept in the back somewhere and this lady is looking over a list of names to see if whoever she lost is one of the lucky ones who've been found.

It looks like the guy in the middle behind the fan may be on the radio with the people in the back to confirm if the lady's missing person is actually there.


RELATED: Ironic photo of the day nominee


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Why do you think these people have a dog stroller?

My attempt at discretion caused the poor photo quality.

I saw this contraption being pushed along the sidewalk of the Oak Bluffs harbor on Martha's Vineyard the other day.

Are dog strollers really a thing?  Do they apply in the same manner as with actual human children--too small to walk any distance on their own, but also too big to carry for very long?  I never heard of a dog being unable to walk as far as it's owner though, and from the looks of this person that explanation seems highly unlikely.

Is it for the dog's protection?  Who knows what potential puppy dangers are lurking on the Vineyard streets on a pleasant August evening...

As much as I mock this, in reality I fully support the concept.  Anything that keeps dogs better under their owners' control and less likely to come sniffing at my legs uninvited is definitely a plus.

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Didn't Ray Allen sacrifice his rights to vacation on Martha's Vineyard when he joined the Heat?

One of the first things Barack Obama did on his Martha's Vineyard trip was to play golf with Ray Allen and Amhad Rashad.  A), good for the President.  If I was him and I heard those two were on the island I'd absolutely want to go golfing with them as well.  But B), in my mind Ray Allen shouldn't really have even been there in the first place.

I know Ray and his family have been vacationing on the Vineyard for a long time.  I'll never forget when he and team owner Wyc Grousbeck carried the Celtics' championship trophy in the Edgartown 4th of July parade back in 2008.

That's me shaking Wyc's hand.

From my own experience and multiple other Vineyard sources, Ray has always been extremely nice and friendly to everyone in his time there.  But Bostonians take their sports pretty seriously, and regardless of who Ray is in real life, after the way he spurned the Celtics for Miami in July of 2012 it probably would have been wise for him to find a new vacation spot outside of Massachusetts.


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My favorite parade float ever

Two weeks ago in an annual July 5th parade (I mean 4th, but bad weather bumped back the festivities this year) I saw my favorite parade float of all time.  It wasn't extravagant, artistic, or even particularly creative; it was just fun:

As the van slowly moved along a group of kids rebounded shots and passed basketballs to spectators lining the street.

I've always been proud of my extremely-long-range shooting abilities.  In fact I'm convinced I'm one of the best potential candidates out there for those half-court shot contests at NBA games.  But in this case, by the time I got a ball in my hands the hoop was already about 35 feet away from me.  Had the van stopped I think I might have made it, but the extra few feet that the rim moved while my shot was in flight caused it to be an airball slightly to the left.  I maintain that it was fairly impressive as far as airballs go though; I think the people nearby thought it was crazy for me to even attempt a shot at that distance on a moving target.

And while I'm on the subject of July 5th, here's my best shot of the fireworks that night over Edgartown (Martha's Vineyard, MA) harbor:

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What are the odds of finding three $20 bills in two days?

This story doesn't sound believable.  But it's true.  Yesterday while walking to work I picked up a $20 bill on the edge of a puddle on the street.  The rest of the way there I tried to remember a time when I'd found a twenty before.  I couldn't think of one specifically, but I feel like it may have happened 2-3 times previously in my life.  I got to work and began setting up the bar, and while laying the mats down on the floor I came across another $20 bill.

I was shocked.  People had been talking about the fact that it was Friday the 13th and a full moon put together, and I wondered if I was having some sort of reverse good luck thing going on.

This morning I was at South Station buying a ticket to Woods Hole on the way to the Vineyard, and there on the ground in front of me at the counter was yet another twenty.  At this point I became convinced the only reasonable explanation was that Elaine Benes was following me around throwing Jerry's money out the window:





I've been alive for 13,000 some odd days.  I'll subtract 1,000 of them for me being too young to find money on the ground.  If it'd happened to me three times before, that puts the frequency at roughly once every 4000 days.  Using that number, by my calculations the chances of finding three $20s in two days should be in the neighborhood of 1 in (4000^3) / 2, which is 1 in 32 billion.

And yes, I'm 100% certain that it wasn't me dropping the same bill and picking it up again.

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Did you know you can buy a can of gin martini?

I was in a liquor store in Woods Hole, MA, yesterday, looking for something to drink on the ferry ride over to the Vineyard.  To be honest I never considered a single serving can of gin martini as a possible option, but there it was in the cooler next to the 40 oz beers.

The can is 200 ml (a little less than 7 ounces, and about the same size as a martini glass), and already has vermouth in it according to the label.

Normally gin is 40% alcohol, but this "martini" says it's 23%.  So what else is in there?  When you make a martini in a bar and shake it up with ice it gets watered down, so I guess in this case they just put the water right in there for you?

I didn't buy it, but now I'm kind of wishing I did.  Who knows, it might have been the best $2.50 I've spent in a long time...

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Awesome Old Song of the Week: "Feel Us Shaking" by the Samples

I'm not exactly sure how or why this came to be, but when I was in high school my buddies thought a little band from Colorado known as "The Samples" was pretty much the coolest thing they could listen too.  My best theory to the origins of this is that one of my friends probably learned about the group from his college-age sister, and she most likely discovered them because an older guy she liked was from Denver.  But that's just a guess.  Anyway, we all had copies of their 1989 album of the same name.  The first and probably best song on the disc was "Feel Us Shaking."  Both the audio and video in the clip below aren't very good, but when I came across it on youtube I didn't have a choice; it was taken during a show I happened to be at, on Martha's Vineyard in August of 2007.

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