Floridays 2019

Thursday, January 24th, 2019 Today was my last full day in Panama City Beach. It's also my last day of work before a long weekend! As usual, there's not much to report during the day on work days. I figured I would go somewhere for dinner since I had time and it was my last night in the city. I narrowed my options down to Moe's Original BBQ or Mike's Cafe and Oyster Bar . Moe's is basically across the street, and also a chain (which doesn't mean it's bad, just means it's not a local hole in the wall that I usually prefer). Mike's is a little over 3 miles away, and while I could drive, a nice walk (it was low 40s, so much nicer than Wisconsin!) would mean I deserved a big plate of seafood. When I got there, there wasn't anyone up front even though it said "wait to be seated". Eventually a lady showed up and said it would be 45 minutes to an hour for food (even though the place was pretty empty). Having no other plans, I figur...

Wednesday, January 23rd, 2019 Today was another work day. At least it was a bit warmer this morning than yesterday, so I got to have breakfast and start working outside. The wind was definitely a lot stronger than before, and rain/storms were in the afternoon forecast. It sure beats snow and cold that everyone back in Wisconsin was getting though. As I mentioned, I was previously in Panama City Beach for Parrothead Rendezvous . That event is hosted at Sharky's - just a few minutes walk from my condo. I figured it would make a nice break from work to head there for dinner. Just like coming back to the Wyndham I knew, going back to Sharky's felt nice and familiar. You get one of these cups when you buy a specialty drink - then refills are cheaper! Too bad I left all of mine at home in Wisconsin :-( Shrimp with Jalapeno Pesto - yummy!

Tuesday, January 22nd, 2019 A lot of people asked me how I was going to be able to leave for so long - "what about work?". Well, I am using some vacation (mostly when I'm at an event or traveling between cities), but the rest of the time I'm working remotely. Luckily my job is flexible and I can work as well from a laptop in the office as I can from a laptop somewhere else. So as long as I make sure to set aside a fair amount of time from work, I'm welcome to do so from a balcony overlooking the ocean.... And at the end of the day, there's nothing that says I can't make myself a cup of coffee and watch the sunset....

Monday, January 21st, 2019 Today was my last day in NOLA and first day in Florida! Checking out was pretty slow and crazy - apparently everyone wanted to leave, use the elevators, bell boys, and valet right around check-out time. I also needed to spend a while getting everything back into my car. I had time for one last meal in NOLA, so I went to Original Pierre Maspero's . I got a delicious and giant seafood omelet, which was a perfect way to end my time in NOLA before a day of driving. It was about a 5 hour drive through Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and into Florida. There were a few nice views over water and near the coast, but even in the south, the sun sets early in the winter. Since Whattaburger isn't something I can get locally, I figured it'd be okay for a quick stop (it was really good for a fast food burger!) to break up the drive. I also had to get groceries, and then check into my condo. I did find these interesting pickle-flavored freeze pops.......

Sunday, January 20th, 2019 After 2 really long and intense days, Pardi Gras definitely winds down on Sunday. Similarly, everyone is pretty tired and sluggish, so we went back to an old favorite for brunch, Cafe Pontalba . I got a egg and sausage breakfast po boy that was awesome - exactly what I needed to get moving! After brunch I went on a little stroll around the french market. Amazingly, I still had enough trinkets and hot sauces from previous trips to New Orleans that I REFRAINED FROM MAKING ANY PURCHASES!!!! I did find a lost pigeon wandering around a store. Luckily I spotted the pigeon before stepping into what happens when scared pigeons are lost in stores. The whole afternoon was upstairs at the Tropical Isle listening to Brent Burns, Bill Whyte, and Matt Hoggatt tell songs and stories. It was fun, funny, and a nice relaxing end to the weekend. It ended just around when the Saints lost the NFC Championship Game, so Bourbon Street and most of the French Qua...

Saturday, January 19th, 2019 The big event for the day was the street fest. We basically block off a section of Bourbon Street and have a big party in the street all afternoon. I first heard about Mike Serio's Po-Boys because they were on Food Network and their mufaletta beat Bobby Flay's. I tried a po boy the other day, which was awesome. Today I was ready to tackle a mufaletta. It was really good, though I think I prefer the po boy. No matter what, this is definitely one of my favorite places to get a quick meal in NOLA. After lunch I stocked up on drinks for the street party and headed over. I was mostly paying attention, so again, didn't document much of it. Tony joined me again for this and got to see some of the trop rock artists. The weather was gorgeous - easily shorts and t-shirt weather, which made me really happy since it was single digits and snowing back home. I went to Pere Antoine for dinner. This was not one one of my favorite meals. It was ...

Friday, January 18th, 2019 I remember thinking today would be more productive than yesterday. I was, simply put, wrong. Plans to get breakfast quickly became plans to get lunch. However, that wasn't such a bad thing despite missing out on several hours of gorgeous New Orleans weather (I think it's somewhere around 60 degrees warmer than Madison right now, but honestly, I'm afraid to check). Lunch was at a quaint local joint called Cafe Pontalba , which may have been one of my favorite meals so far. It started off which a bloody mary to take away any feelings of motivation. After that, I had a crawfish combination platter - crawfish caesar salad, crawfish etoufee, and crawfish pie. Everything was great, but the crawfish pie was absolutely wonderful. I might stop back for another one of these whenever I walk past, and I might go out of my way to make sure I walk past. Nothing wrong with an official day drinking koozie! ...

Thursday, January 17th, 2019 Here it is - the reason I'm in New Orleans - Pardi Gras ! Pardi Gras is a 4 day long trop rock music festival set among a variety of bars (and streets) in New Orleans. I've never been before, but have heard great things about this event, so I'm glad I finally get to make it. And the day is off with a.....really slow start. Back to bed. Seriously, not much happening until 6pm, better conserve my energy or better yet....naaaaaaaaaaaaap. I might actually be turning into a cat. I got up long enough to get a Po Boy from Mike Serio's Po Boys , which was on my "want to try list" since I found out they beat Bobby Flay in a contest with muffelettas (I'll go back for a muffeletta, I was just in a Po Boy mood). It was great - would definitely recommend! And more lounging around in the afternoon. Seriously, I'm probably sprouting a tail and claws and turning into one of my cats. It's okay though, there's a lot going t...

Wednesday, January 16, 2019 I only had a few hours of driving before I got to New Orleans, and my goal was to get there by lunchtime to meet up with my friend Tammy. I got to New Orleans without issue and was able to check into my hotel quite early, which means I was able to park my car and leave it for the next 5 days - and now I could have some drinks for lunch and in the afternoon! We met up at the Royal House Oyster Bar ....but didn't get oysters :-( I got a sampler of classic New Orleans dishes.   After that I went back and unpacked and rested a while. It was Tammy's birthday, so later in the afternoon a group would be heading out on a celebratory pub crawl. We started off at Beachbum Berry's Latitude 29 - home to my favorite drink ever, the Nui Nui. After we have enough strong tiki drinks there, the group migrated all the way around the corner to Tiki Tolteca  for more strong tiki drinks. Wisely, the increasingly raucous group decided it was time for food a...

Tuesday, January 15th, 2019 And so it begins.... By hitting snooze... And again.... Okay, get outta bed, shower, breakfast, and on the road by 7. Goodbye low 30s of Wisconsin!!!! Won't see anything like this for the next 2 months. Unless of course it's mid-20s and tons of snow along the roads all throughout Illinois and Missouri :-( Okay, maybe tomorrow will be a snow-free day.... I stopped at a favorite stopping point for whenever I'm heading south through central Illinois - Freddy's in Charleston/Mattoon. Even though it's pretty quick, it complies with my no fast food on vacations goal because it's not something I can get locally and you technically have to wait a few minutes for it. Anyway, it's about perfectly a tank of gas away, times right for lunch, and it's a pretty good burger and fries (with a great sauce), so those things make it a recommended stopping point if you're ever stuck driving through Illinois. Not much else to report on t...

Last March I went to Music on the Bay and saw a lot of parrothead friends in Florida. Being there reminded me how much fun the bigger Trop Rock events are, so I decided to attend a few more events that are relatively close in location and date. As I contemplated the logistics, I realized that it would be easier to stay in the southeast rather than traveling back and forth. As an added bonus, if I became a snowbird, I would miss out on the awful Wisconsin winters. My job offers me the ability to work remotely, so between events and travel I'll be working my full-time day job for UW-Madison. After countless hours of planning and creativity, the pieces came together forming a trip slightly over 2 months that will be filled with sun, beaches, water sports, and music....