Happy Easter from the Bar

New Corona, new glass, new lime wedge.

I love the way the reflections change as the surface of the water changes.

Once again, our shared story from the bar is somewhat inspired by Linda G. Hill and her Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt. Linda couldn’t have known that our favorite bartender has a sweet tooth and a sharing spirit, but she still pitched us a softball with:

“Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “bun.” Find a word that contains ‘bun’ or use it as a word all by itself. Have fun!”

If we were having a beer, you’d be surprised by the bowl of candy on the bar.

“Cheryl, what’s this? Did the Easter Bunny stop in for a few pops before beginning his rounds?”

“No, he won’t show up until tomorrow night. That’s from Target, they already put their Easter candy on sale.”

“Well, it was sweet of you to share. I need to take one of the Reese’s Peanut Butter eggs before Dan gets here.”

“Don’t worry. I bought plenty of those for him.”

“Hey guys, sorry I’m…wait, I’m actually a little early. Did you sleep here?”

“I came early to get the Peanut Butter eggs before you got here.”

“Ooooooh, I love those.”

“We know…”

“We know, Dan. You want to wash one down with a beer?”

“I do Cheryl, but let’s keep it light.”

“I’ll send a Corona out to find her lime. How about you?”

“Hmmm, dark chocolate goes with red wine, but I think milk chocolate goes better with Bourbon.”

“John Howell’s bourbon?”

“Of course.”

“Yay, top shelf! Coming right up.”

“How did your Pirates do on opening day?”

“Rained out.”

“Rained out on opening day. Do you suppose that’s a sign?”

“I’m not superstitious.”

“Said the man wearing a Pirates tee shirt under a Pirates hoodie. Did you leave your cap in the car?”

“I did. I’ve lost too many of them in bars.”

“Here’s your Corona, your bourbon. I’ll be right back with your seltzer and ice. And, Dan, we have a big bunch of lost ball caps over near the coat rack, if you want to look.”

“Thanks Cheryl, but I’ll pass. I’m guessing most are Yankees and Red Sox hats.”

“I might check that out, I need a new Red Sox cap.”

“Did you lose yours?”

“No, but maybe I’ll find a good one in the pile.”

“It’s a lost and found bin, not a charity give-a-way. Besides, you can certainly afford to buy a baseball cap.”

“That’s not the point. I’m just trying to save them from being thrown away.”

“Only the Red Sox caps are in danger, Bobby’s a big Yankees fan. He’ll probably keep them here all season.”

“I think as the manager, he should be neutral on sports.”

“Are you crazy? That’s like asking me to root for UConn.”

“You might as well, you don’t seem to have a team left in the tournament.”

“That’s not how it works with true fans.”

“I’m just saying, you could adopt the UConn women for a couple of games.”

“No thanks. Besides, they lost last night to Notre Dame by two points.”

“Ahem, there’s a hard-working bartender who could use your support. You boys interested in some food?”

“I think we could get behind that cause, Cheryl. Dan probably wants wings, so make it an order of twenty.”

“And another round when the wings are up?”

“Absolutely”

“Speaking of worthy causes, bourbon and adoption, did you see that John Howell adopted a puppy?”

“I did see that, although it almost looked like a baby bunny in that picture.”

“I’m not sure Lucy and Bailey would like sharing their house with a bunny.”

“Your house, maybe. Maddie doesn’t seem to mind sharing her yard with rabbits.”

“Bunnies.”

“Bunnies are rabbits.”

“Rabbits are in the woods. When they move into our yard, they become bunnies.”

“You see, that’s your problem, you’re too soft.”

“What?”

“You’re too soft.”

“Repeating the phrase isn’t an explanation. Where did that come from?”

“From under your Pirates cap and your WVU shirts and your Pitt jerseys and your Penguin socks. You stick with your teams, even after they’re out of contention. You should at least support UConn and Boston teams when they’re winning.”

“The Penguins are hardly out of contention, and the baseball season just started. The Pirates won their first game, albeit it took 13 innings, but…”

“And what, you seriously expect either to win it all?”

“The Pens have won the past two Stanley Cups.”

“OK, I’ll grant you that, but the Pirates? They haven’t won the series since…1971…”

“1979.”

“Oh right. We are Family.”

“That’s right, and that’s how we roll. Family. We don’t switch our allegiance to the current winning team.”

“I thought you hated Disco.”

“Willie Stargell could make anyone love disco.”

“And wings. Wasn’t he famous for giving away ‘Chicken on the hill’ when he homered?”

“He was. I’m surprised that you knew that.”

“So that’s why you like our wings. Here you go boys. I’ll get those drinks now.”

“Thanks Cheryl.”

“I saw a documentary on ESPN. Weird how he died, though.”

“Yep. Opening day at the brand-new PNC Park. I think once they were out of Three Rivers Stadium, he was ready to move on.”

“Well, opening day is over, and I’m ready to move on to football.”

“That’s bad. I hope the Easter Bunny leaves coal in your basket.”

Thanks for joining us at the bar. To those of you celebrating Easter tomorrow, I hope it’s a happy one. Also good wishes to those observing a Passover. Today’s gallery holds a mixed bag of March leftovers. Note: no edits in this post, except adding the late score for the Pirates and UConn’s loss.

One of my favorite times of the day, but the wrong one (AM)

I’m starting to see some daylight at Great River Park – that’s a welcome sign.

The Colt Building from Great River Park – yeah, you’ve seen this before.

This is part of our weekend routine. At some point, we rest on the couch.

Easter candy (and an Irish Setter statue).

That’s a western omelet sandwich (from Maddie’s).

Maddie has had this ball for well over a year. I didn’t know why my wife called it a “Scooby Doo” ball.

This picture is for Peter

The weather has been just warm enough this week to sit outside after work.

They have to learn somewhere.

Hartford before the alarm.

Old man river.

Getting ready for fishing season.

One of my favorite views from the park.

Not sure he knows what to make of the landscape edging that’s come undone.

Some days, the river is still.

“Hi. Did you bring peanuts?”