deucers.com ~ miami ~ miami beach

I got my tickets the first day they went on sale  to see one of my all-time rock -n-roll heroes, Neil Young, at the Seminole Hard Rock, on September 23.

Imagine my excitement when I figured out the next full moon was also the 23 of September.

The name of the  full moon in  September is….The Harvest Moon.

And he’s playing solo.

Countdown.

We are smack dab in the middle of the Dog Days of Summer, named after the Dog Star, Sirius’, close proximity to the sun. Marked by sultry, stagnant weather, perhaps we should do as the dogs do, find a baby pool and chill:

Playboy ranks the Deuce bar as one of America’s Greatest Bars.

Click here for the link.

Here’s the text:

MAC’S CLUB DEUCE
Miami Beach
Some dive bars transcend the designation, rising to must-visit status. The Deuce, a neon-wrapped cocktail lounge off South Beach’s Thong Alley, is one of them. From eight a.m. until whenever, it draws in every element possible, including newspapermen and drag queens, socialites and drug addicts, white collar and teal collar, unofficial mayors and bona fide politicos. Call it a subtropical democracy (with two-for-one from morn till balmy eve).

My father taught me to be a Hemingway long before he began to look like Hemingway. Inspired by his books, I’ve run with the bulls in Pamplona (twice) and wandered around the streets of the left bank looking for literary inspiration. Closer to home, I’ve been going down to Key West for Hemingway Days for well over a decade, since before Sloppy Joe’s had air conditioning. My father, George Burley, won the the Hemingway Lookalike contest in 1992, since then he has been on the panel of judges. Of course I think my father is the most handsome of all the lookalikes – here he is with Bob Anderson Papa ‘90:

Imagine wearing those heavy sweaters in Key West in July.

Each year over 150 men vie for the title. Here’s a view of the judges table:

Here’s Jeanne with Papa ‘92:

Walking around town with 150 or so men who look like my father, drives one to drink…We love to hang out at the Green Parrot, or The Bull with bartender Debbie, especially when Yankee Jack is  NOT playing, and at Captain Tony’s.

My friends and I always stay at the same B&B where all the former look alike winners/judges stay, the beautiful, historic, and conveniently located Cypress House. Happy hours and breakfasts with Hemingways every way you look. Good times.

Happy Birthday, Hemingway.

Happy Birthday, Papa.

One of my favorite deucers, Glen, sends chilly greetings from Alaska:  

And word to the wise care of Bill Bagg’s State Park, as if you hadn’t noticed:

Thomas, Alex and I headed over to the Miami Beach Marina this morning to board the Won Reward from the Reward Fishing Fleet:

Hot and sunny, perfect weather for bananafishing:

Alex caught the first fish and the biggest fish- a king fish:

Three hours later, Sherman (not the toilet paper, the tank) expertly fileted the fish:

We took the filets to Monty’s and they grilled them up for the freshest lunch:

Another day in paradise.

My parents popped in last week for a quick visit. Fun fun.

Lovely to spend an afternoon in their company:

My mom and I went for a walk with Lucy in Morningside Park; I showed her my favorite banyan trees:

We drove home under canopies of Royal Poincianas bursting with orange:

Bonbonbon.

After a delicious lunch at the cozy White Lion Cafe: we went to visit the Buddhist Temple, Wat Buddharangsi:

A Thai monk guided us around: and in the temple we saw his teacher in the corner on a computer: In another corner was a huge gong to call the monks and people to prayer: As our guide escorted us to the Siddhartha garden, under the Bodhi Tree that tells the life of Siddhartha, he reminded me to “feel your feet.” Be in the moment. He said in India a Bodhi tree would be stripped bare of leaves, and I asked if I could take one, he replied, if you need one, take one.

My summer project is going to be to visit Miami places I’ve missed over the years. Any recommendations?