Welcome To Fried Pickles! A Blog for those who enjoy a cold drink on a hot day, friendly people, and visiting new places...

"When the first British colonists began to wash up on our shores, the very first thing they built was usually a tavern." (NPR)

Hey there! Thanks for stopping by and checking out the new "baby." This is an idea that has been bubbling in my brain for a few months, and after visiting another great Tiki Bar in Florida, the Lakeside Anchor Inn, I decided that it was time to stop procrastinating. Today I am going to get some things done! I am going to get my tax records in order for the accountant and start this blog.

Well, maybe the tax stuff can wait 'til tomorrow...

So, from whence comes this idea? Well, it goes like this. I spent several years as a traveling helicopter pilot and crew-resource-management instructor. My work took me all over, always on my own, and always looking for a new place to eat dinner, have some drinks, and make a new friend or two.

I am a member of the "where's the bar?" set. While some people out on their own prefer to enjoy the solitude of a table for one, I am not that person. I would rather slide into a seat and meet the lady on my left and the guy on my right. Some people don't drink alcohol. I like those people - and many are friends - I call them "drivers." One thing I have learned is that a bartender is likely to be the first person any stranger in a city, village, or town will meet. Watch any old western movie about a dusty cowboy walking into a saloon and you will get the idea. Take note Chambers of Commerce; your bartenders are your town's ambassadors.

Consumed in moderate quantities, and along with food, alcohol is a social-lubricant. Saloons, bars, pubs, and grills are where the lubricating and socializing take place. Many great ideas (and some bad ones) owe their start to a conversation in a bar. As a National Public Radio staffer wrote in a book-review;

"When you order a couple of beers at your neighborhood bar, you're not just having a drink, you're taking part in a grand old tradition stretching back to the birth of our nation and beyond."

Legend has it that General James Oglethorpe designed the city of Savannah on a bar-napkin in an English Pub. That may not be technically one hundred percent accurate but it's my story and I am sticking to it. America, it is said, was born in a bar!

Speaking of births, I can't even imagine how many Savannians are a result of a Thursday Night Sunset Celebration either at the old Sheraton (General Oglethorpe) on the Wilmington River or the later version at Tubby's Tankhouse in Thunderbolt. You, dear reader, can no longer stroll on the grounds of the old Sheraton - unless you live there - but you can still enjoy Tubby's and I recommend you do.

Why "Fried Pickles," you ask? Well, I was sitting at Paula Deen's new "Creek House" with family and friend not long ago, and we ordered fried pickles. I love fried pickles. You might think all fried pickles are equal, but they are not. They come in many shapes, sizes, and flavors. But so far, they've all been good. (Paula's are excellent and served at a beautiful bar in a gorgeous setting) I decided that since I am no longer an active helicopter pilot, and I have actually managed to start getting paid for writing for Vertical 911 about EMS helicopters and people who fly in them, that I will let my helicopter blog languish and focus on something fun.

Like Fried Pickles...

Next round is on me...

If you are suffering through the winter storm that dumped a yard of snow in Pennsylvania
over the Christmas Holidays, imagine yourself here, on the elevated deck at the Old Key Lime House
in Lantana, Florida. It's 75 degrees, the bartender is beautiful (and a math teacher),
and the fried pickles are PERFECT. And yes! They project football games on that outside screen.