Cena, puros, y vino!

I meant to blog about the Mercer Cigar sponsored dinner at the Hyatt back in October after attending and having a great time. Actually I was hoping that there would have been another one by now. Heck, it would be ok with me if there'd be one once a month or at least quarterly. (Hey, Andrew, are you listening?)

For those of you that don't like a good cigar once in a while or an upscale place here in Merida to get one this post will not be of any interest.

Here's a little background on Mercer Cigars:

Andrew and his lovely wife Elisa own Mercer Cigars here in Merida. Andrew's mom, Faye, and step dad, Vic, are some of our best friends. Going to Faye and Vic's is without a doubt one of the greatest pleasures anyone can have here in Merida. It is always a pleasure and they are super at making you feel at home and boy howdy the viddles are scrumptious!
They are all great people and it's my pleasure knowing them and being able to call them my friends.

Andrew came here with the idea of starting up an upscale cigar bar and made it happen and he did it in aces!

Mercers was a pretty plush place to go. A very large walk in humidor and a selection of Cuban cigars second to none in the State of Yucatan. There are also cigars from other countries as well but the specialty there is Cuban cigars. Excellent liquor menu especially if you like to sip rum and single malts! Big screen tv with all the sporting events and the respectable amount of leather sofas and chairs to allow for a comfortable visit. Not to mention a fine air handling unit as well.

So now if that isn't or should I say wasn't enough the entire place is undergoing a complete remodel to make it bigger and better. As I like to say, "if some is good, mo' is better!"

Part of the reason for the remodel of Mercer Cigars has to do with becoming a "Certified Habanos Dealer". The "Habanos" Certification is very prestigious and highly coveted by those that have achieved the level of success and service necessary to obtain it.

Ok, this may seem like a commercial but it isn't, and no I'm not getting a free cigar or anything! It's just when you come across something really good in Merida you have to share, right? Right!

Anyway I want to tell you about the first Mercers sponsored dinner and cigar event at the Hyatt. Mercers has various events throughout the year and Andrew decided that since he was bringing in a world famous Cuban cigar roller from the prestigious Partagas Company that he might as well make a special event out of it. Andrew combined a demonstration by the roller using tobacco leaves from Cuba. Each participant could watch the cigars being rolled right there and each participant received one of the cigars. In addition was a fantastic meal with appetizer, filete mignon, and dessert.  Moving right along I'll tell you about the fantastic duo that performed while we ate.  They are from the Merida area and they were just another added ingredient to make the night perfect!  Last, and yes there is more, Andrew got together with the folks from Covi and the vino it did flow! We were greated with a glass of wine as we arrived and with each course a different wine was served. The wine pairings were superb! With the last wine being a port style malbec served as the cigars were being handed out. I and the guys I was with moved over to the cushy terrace seating and settled in for conversation, a great vino and an ultrafine cigar! Oh, and the setting was out under the stars on the Hyatt's third floor pool terrace.

This is Andrew making his opening remarks and welcomed us to the first Mercer dinner and cigar event. 

 

 After a few more introductions including Richard, the manager of the Hyatt, Andrew, introduced the torcedor and the fun began.

The torcedor was there for us to watch and watch I did.

 

This guy was smooth and efficient and rolled perfect

cigars!  It was really a treat to see this guy do his thing!

 

Every one had a good seat to see him!

 

We had a great time and the music was superb!

 

Vic, Doug, and I had a most excellent time!

And like I said earlier in this post I certainly hope I get to attend another one, soon!  (Andrew, are you listening yet?  LOL!)

Into the looking glass.....what do you see!

I, as do many other people my age, tend to not see our actual reflection in the looking glass. Possibly because we don't look that hard or maybe because we just don't care to see it.

For the most part everyone has a point or age in their life when they stopped aging. Of course not literally but in their mind. Everyone has an age that when asked how old they feel they can tell you.

When asked how old I feel I'll tell you that I feel like my mid twenties. Now upon closer examination you'd find that the only thing left that in any way resembles me in my mid twenties would be the color of my eyes and my appendectomy scar. Beyond those two items (or would that be three items counting that I have two eyes?) everything else has sunken, sagged, twisted or left the building.

Of course with all this said there are very few of us that feel or see ourselves in true clarity when it comes to how old we look. We are always younger and a wee bit better looking than what we really are. In addition most all of us are guilty of looking at others our age and thinking that we surely do not look that old!

With all that said allow me to share a brief story with you on this subject.............................

After a few minutes of sitting in the waiting room for my first appointment with my new doctor I lost interest in the People Magazine and I stood up and started looking at the art and plaques on the walls. The office housed four doctors and their diplomas and other notable achievements were framed and hung proudly on the walls. I took a small amount of additional interest in the diploma that belonged to my new doctor. The diploma, of course, had her full name and upon reading it I flashed back to my high school class of some 40 years earlier and I remembered this tall, slender, gorgious, black haired beauty that I had always had a crush on. Of course being the shy country boy that I was then I never left my feelings be known. Regardless, could this possibly be her? A bit of anticipation wafted thru my heart.

However upon seeing her I quickly abandoned my thinking and the anticipation swiftly took flight!

There was no doubt in my mind that this gray haired, fairly rounded woman with an aged lined face was way to old to have been in my class!

We did the doctor patient conversation and she examined my knee. No, no drugs needed for pain.....yes, the knee compression wrap is great, etc.

At the conclusion I decided to ask if she had ever attended Gettysburg High School. She said why yes, I did, I'm a Warrior!

I asked her what year she graduated? She said in 1967, why do you ask?

You were in my class, I answered!

At that point she looked at me closely and then that not so pretty, fat, wrinkled face, old, decrepit, worn out piece of crap asked me "What did you teach?"

Denny, Alan, Silver Oak and me!

Yea, it's been a long time since I posted, I know!
Why? I'm not exactly sure but between getting more lazy (is that possible?) combined with waiting for something significant to come along I just haven't.

However, as fate would have it significant events happened to me just last night. Significant for you, no, but for me most definitely. What were these significant events? The end to "Boston Legal" and drinking my last bottle of 1997 Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.

Unlike many of my friends here in Merida I have not yet connected to a dish service or other means of getting current programming from the US of A. I am connected to the local cable company here, CableMas, but the level of programming I have is a year behind for the majority of the shows. Thus I cannot really talk current happenings about any recent events in any shows that frequent my TV screen. Heck, somethimes I start talking about a show I've seen only to find out that the show is no longer on the air. Humph!
Regardless after the first year I got used to being behind, and in some cases without, in my viewing pleasures.

Ok, moving on, last night I decided it was time to watch the last show of "Boston Legal". I have put this off ever since I received the last season DVD set a few months ago. I had heard that it came to an end but I didn't want to believe it and in a way if I didn't see the last show it was still on the air. I guess that's about the only advantage of being behind a year in my TV watching. LOL!

Knowing that the series was over was sad and I was very fortunate that no one informed me of how the last show ended.

For those that may not know, the end of "The Practice" was the beginning of "Boston Legal". I never watched "The Practice" while it was on but for some reason I started watching it as it went off the air and that's where I met Alan Shore. There was just something about the character, Alan Shore, that James Spader was portraying that made me watch. It was a twisted ending to "The Practice" and it was different enough for me to get interested. That's how I started watching "Boston Legal" from its inception.

For me Boston Legal rates right up there with Mash, Northern Exposure, and Ally McBeal! I like the off center shows that actually have value in a unique way. Saying that I was and am a true fan of those shows would be very accurate. Shortly after getting started "Boston Legal" elevated itself to my most favorite TV show ever. Why? Maybe because I'm older now and I even more than ever appreciated the issues that they dealt with and for sure the friendship between Denny and Alan. I understood their friendship and appreciated that friendship!

So I bought a ribeye to grill, made my comfort mashed taters, a bit of salad supplied by my sweetie and with as much mental ceremony as possible I removed the last bottle of Silver Oak from the wine cooler, removed the foil and popped the cork. This bottle, the last one of six, made our original drive to Merida back in 06.
After a bit of breathing, the bottle not me....well I was breathing but, well, you know, I poured a glass and gathered all the aforementioned food items and set up my eating area in their proper positions and I settled down in front of the screen. I loaded the DVD player and sat silently for a few seconds before hitting the play button.

When all was said and done the series was over, the bottle was empty, and Denny and Alan will be friends forever!

I can always replay the series but I'll never have another bottle of 97 Silver Oak and I doubt that I'll ever have a friendship like the one I had the chance to watch once a week for five seasons!

Now I can only hope that another program comes along that will fullfill the program void in my TV viewing pleasure. And yes, even if it is a year late!