Dan Antion

Don’t Bring Skippy – SoCS

The perfect lime wedge.

It’s Saturday. David and I are at the bar, and we’re looking forward to some adult refreshment and face-to-face conversation, a rare pleasure during the pandemic. During this conversation, we will be working with Linda G. Hill’s Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt:

“Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is ‘container.’ Use the word ‘container’ any way you’d like. Or think about a container of some kind and write about it. Enjoy!”

If we were having a beer you and I and Cheryl would be pondering a recent delivery.

“Sorry you had to move your stools, gentlemen, but the instructions say to deliver this to the bar.”

“Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom, and all that. I didn’t know the Post Office delivered crates that big.”

“Ah, David. You’re not familiar with 108 inches in combined length and girth.”

“And you are, Dan?”

“I worked my way through college by delivering mail and items like this.”

“Would the former ninety-day wonder like to sign for this?”

“Well, I don’t work here, but, what the heck. I’ll sign.”

“What the heck is that?”

“That was going to be our question Cheryl.”

“Why is it here? What am I supposed to do with that? I need a crowbar to open it.”

“I have a prybar in my car, Cheryl. Open a Corona for me, pour David a glass of John Howell’s bourbon and I’ll be right back.”

“Why do you have a prybar in your car, Dan?”

“David, let’s just accept that he does.”

“You’re right, Cheryl. Can you scrounge up a few cherries while you’re back there?”

“Here you go, Cheryl, a Stanley Wonderbar.”

“Thanks Dan, but I’m not sure it’s a good idea for me to start swinging this thing.”

“I’d be happy to open the container.”

“Thanks Dan.”

“David, would you care to help?”

“Happy to, Dan. I’m very curious.”

“Well, I don’t know what’s in it, but I know why it’s here.”

“What are you talking about Dan. It’s a crate. How can you know why it’s here.”

“Look at the postage, Cheryl.”

“That’s odd, it’s not a printed amount, it’s a bunch of stamps.”

“Yes and look at those stamps, Cheryl.”

“A bunch of trains, something that looks like Grand Central Terminal and – a flapper doing the Charleston… wait… is this from Teagan, Dan?”

“I’m sure it is, Cheryl. She’s joining us next week.”

“Next week? No, it can’t be next week.”

“Why not?”

“Skippy’s behind the bar next week. I was hoping to see Teagan.”

“We’re not going to be at the bar, Cheryl.”

“What? Why aren’t we going to be here?”

“Relax, David. We’ll be here, but my guess is we’re going to have too many people to be at the bar.”

“I’m confused, Dan. Open the crate so I can get back to my bourbon and you can explain this.”

“Pineapples?”

“Pineapples, Cheryl. That can only mean one thing.”

“Well, I have to find a place to store these. I’ll catch up with you guys at the bar.”

“Dan, what do those stamps have to do with Teagan?”

“They’re all nineteen-twenties stamps. That can only be a reference to her new book, “Hullaba Lulu,” which, by the way, is why she’s coming.”

“And what, is she going to juggle the pineapples?”

“You need to read the book, David.”

“It’s not available yet, Dan.”

“Soon, David. It will be available soon. Read it and you’ll understand the pineapples.”

“OK boys, the pineapples are safely stored, the lounge is reserved, and it looks like you need another round.”

“Do we need the whole lounge, Cheryl? How many people are coming?”

“It doesn’t matter, David – pandemic protocol – only one party in the lounge at any one time.”

“Stupid virus.”

“Yes, David, but it means we’ll have the whole place to ourselves.”

“Here you go boys, another beer, another splash, a few more cherries. Do you want some food?”

“Ah, um…”

“You stopped at Skooter’s didn’t you Dan?”

“I was in the mood for fish and chips, Cheryl.”

“We have fish and chips on the menu, Dan.”

“I know, but yours are fancy. Signature batter, aioli, and all that.”

“You can have tartar sauce.”

“You don’t have coleslaw.”

“Who has coleslaw with fish and chips?”

“Asked the man with three cherries in his bourbon.”

“Touché, Dan.”

“Besides, Skooter’s coleslaw is amazing and it goes perfectly with fish and chips.”

“Is it served with the fries and fish?”

“No, it’s in a little container on the side.”

“Cheers, Dan.”

New floor and peg board to finsih the inside of the shed.
“Don’t touch my paw!”
The sun us seting earlier.
But Maddie doesn’t seem to mind.
The trees are losing their leaves.
I don’t think MiMi wants me to wake her just yet.
Goldenrod in bloom
Rose of Sharon hanging on.
Fish and chios and coleslaw.
Pine cones are everywhere.
“Yes Maddie, we can go the long way.
Into flight.
Overexposed, but he wasn’t going to stay there very long.
My first thought was that I could get a better version of these leaves.
Then somebody stepped on them :(
It was a toss-up between this leaf and the one I posted earlier this week.
We can open a creat of pineapples with this.

108 comments

  3. I love pegboard. It is everywhere in the garage that can hold it. :-) Maddie looks like she is enjoying the nice weather almost as much as you enjoyed that delicious looking fish and chips. Coleslaw is an interesting food item – it either sends all your taste buds to heaven or you take one bite and can easily leave it. Pine cones is a topic that is sending my disposition south. A neighbor has two huge pines that are half over one bed and our lawn (or dirt). We picked cones up for a couple of hours this week and spent a couple of hours cleaning pitch off our car from several short stays outside. Add that to the mast year for acorns from the oaks, and I need a Corona with lime please. :-)

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  5. Quite a bar tale today, Dan. I had to laugh about the cole slaw – I don’t think I’ve ever had fish and chips without it!! haha
    I don’t mind the sun setting earlier, Maddie and I seem to agree that we’re pooped out by that time.

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    • Maddie is sleeping later and moseying along on our walks. It’s cooler here, but very humid – it’s a little hard to breath.

      During the early lockdown days, when business was slow at the diner, the owner discontinued coleslaw to save money. He said he was having to throw too much away. The customers, particularly the fish & chips customers, complained. A couple of the cooks bought heads of cabbage and made some for us. After a few weeks, they shamed the owner into putting it back on the menu.

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  9. Hi Dan. I’m with you about slaw and fish-n-chips. Yes, they’re the kind of food that is just best when it’s basic. LOL, but that basic does include slaw.
    Heartfelt thanks for this advance promo! I updated my weekend post to include a link.
    Those stamps are fabulous. I love cool stamps. 1920s and trains too… brilliant. Hugs on the wing!

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  10. You are too kind, Dan. Skippy didn’t get to meet John Howell, so he gets to have the pleasure of meeting Teagan. That should be fun. Those stamps are some kind of wonderful, too! Looking forward to see you, Teagan! Dan, your shed is looking great. You really do good work. Oh, Maddie and the leaves–made me laugh. Let them get crunchy and then step on them, Maddie–that’s where the fun is! Have a great weekend.

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  11. A Wisconsin Friday night fish fry is not complete without cole slaw. It would be like ying without yang or Dan without a crowbar in his car.

    The pineapple delivery has made me hungry for pineapple, Dan, and I’m looking forward to the gathering with Teagan next week. Happy Saturday! What fun!

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  15. Nice photos, and no surprise you have a crowbar in your trunk, plus other tools I’m sure. I could have used that yesterday when a huge package from Wal-mart was delivered to my door. Only thing inside was Kleenex. All that packaging wasted. Typical of the home delivery process these days. Cole slaw is one of those recipes that is so varied, I rarely find one in a restaurant I like, but I make it at home and wish I could make it like my mother did.😄

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  16. Floor to ceiling peg board ! ? ! Oh my. Toto says he prefers the flying monkeys to peg board. Then again he is paranoid ever since the whole ruby slipper thing. Psst, Psst check the bottom of the pineapple crate and make sure Skippy isn’t hiding down there.

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    • The editor is shorter than I am, John. I needed a place for her tools to be easily accessible. I’m not a big fan of peg board, but that’s because the hooks fall out. I bought “secure” hooks for this, and they seem to work pretty well. I think if Cheryl could land the crate on Skippy, she might be tempted.

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  17. I’ll definitely be at the bar next Saturday to party with you and Teagan. I’ll come with bells on. Music, dancing, pineapple margaritas, good friends, how could I resist!

    Love that single leaf, and of course Maddie protectively standing over the leaves….just in case it rains!

    I hope before I die I can get into the position MiMi’s in! You know, just for kicks! Lol.

    Have a great weekend. Stay healthy. Be safe. Forget about hanging on to any semblance of sanity. Sanity, my friend, has left the building and is never coming back!! 🤗
    Ginger

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    • MiMi the contortionist gets mad when I grab her paw ans ask “which foot is this?”

      Maddie tromped the delicate bundle of leaves because she thought her feet would make a better picture. I really liked the single leaf photo. I took it the same day as I took the other one I posted earlier in the week. I love how the sun was behind them.

      I think you’re right about sanity. Stay safe, that might be enough.

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  18. I’m not all that surprised that you have a prybar in your car, Dan, though I may get a little concerned if you tell me that you also have a lockpicking set and a ski mask. I used to collect stamps, so it was cool to see the old subjects–the stamps themselves came out mostly in the 1998-1999 time frame. I don’t know if homophones count, but I was expecting you to use a sentence like, “Teagan is so energetic that we were not sure if the bar could contain her.” :)

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    • Haha! Mike, I certainly wish I had that kind of energy.
      I love the stamps too. Hullaba Lulu is a dieselpunk fantasy so that magical train might land in any era and get those stamps dated. They’re perfect for the spirit of the post. Thank goodness for the pineapples — Lulu has indulged in too many cheeseburgers lately. Have a great weekend. Hugs on the wing!

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    • No ski mask, Mike, but these days, everybody looks like a burglar. When I started thinking about the container being sent ahead by Teagan, I thought I’d see if there were any stamp images form the 1920s. When I saw the Flapper, it didn’t matter when they were issued – it had to be. Good job on the homophone, but I’m not sure I could pull that off ;-)

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  21. PFTETOS are NOT pleased with your title, Dan. Yes, it is People for the Ethical Treatment of Skippy. You’re leaving him out of all the fun and fraternizing. Humph! There may be a lawsuit in your future, for cruel and unusual blogging mention (or non-mention.) I have confirmation from an anonymous source that this might be in the works. So be warned!!

    janet

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  23. I’m not much of a party person anymore, but it’s been so long since I’ve been a any sort of gathering, that I’m looking forward to this one! The goldenrod is beautiful and making my eyes water.

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  26. How exciting that Teagan will be a guest next week. Good thing you won’t be at the bar, so Cheryl can join you. BTW, I love coleslaw with fish and chips! Why am I not surprised you had a crowbar handy in the car? Super post, Dan!

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  28. It’s late and I must be a bit loopy because the prybar in the car made me think of my sis and how she always said she’d help me get rid of the body. 😆 We don’t ask questions about what other folks have in their trucks. 😂

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    • Hahaha – that’s being a good sister. When I was working, I would often be asked to give some visitor a ride to the airport (since I live about 2 miles away). I got a lot of “why do you have…in your car/truck?” type questions over the years.

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  29. LOL! Maddie always photo-bombing your shots is quite funny. I love your back-lit leaf! It’s a gorgeous fall color and feels warm, and the sighting of the hawk was neat! I love hawks.

    I’ll be in the lounge when Teagan arrives. I’m looking forward to her visit.

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