Picture the rolling hills of Scotland, heather and grass, a green so deep that it hurts your eyes. Perhaps a beautiful loch or an imposing glen in the background. Och, aye, the Highland Games. Caber tossing, hurling a Braemar stone, throwing the hammer, and any number of other feats of skill and strength. Perfectly idyllic.
While Brengle Terrace Park in Vista, CA is a long way from the Highlands, it was the home of the San Diego version of the Highland Games. Large men and women were throwing large things about on a baseball field devoid of grass. And while Brengle Terrace is a bit urban, it does have expanses of grass and more than a few rolling hills. Highland dancing, sheep dog competitions, piping contests, and music. Opening ceremonies included a parade of the clans, with the Wallace clan predictably shouting "Freedom!" and the MacLaren's marching about with arms thrust into rather disturbing sheep puppet facsimiles...don't go there; I didn't.
We heard two terrific bands, Highland Way, anchored by Brian Caldwell, a native Glaswegian, and The Wicked Tinkers, a bagpipes and drums led by Aaron Shaw, also featuring a rather interesting contribution by that odd Australian instrument, the didgeridoo.
And a stop to see my good friend, Ray Pearson, The Whiskeymeister (check him our on Facebook.) Ray plied me with a wee dram of Glenrothes and we planned the next meeting of the Vice Squad, of which I proudly serve as Vice Chairman. We are devoted to single malts and cigars, two noble vices worthy of Winston Churchill's admiration.
For those who must hear the strains of pipes and drums, click above.
Care and Feeding of Your Humidor
At a recent meeting of the Del Mar Cigar Club, Jim Boldt of Payne-Mason Cigars gave us a lesson on preparing and maintaining our humidors.
1.) The humidor should be lined with Spanish cedar.
2.) Make certain that when you close the lid, you don't hear a noisy crack, but instead a soft thunk. Think of the door of a Mercedes Benz closing. If you hear a crack or slap, the seal is not sufficient to keep your cigars at the proper humidity.
3.) Before putting your wee darlings into the humidor, cure the humidor by lightly spraying a cloth with distilled water and wiping down the interior. Do this several times a day. The cedar's pores will close, thus preventing the wood from absorbing water.
4.) Keep the humidor away from direct sunlight.
5.) 70 degrees in temperature, 70% humidity.
6.) Use a digital hygrometer.
7.) Unless you intend to keep the cigars for longer than a year, remove them from their cellophane wrapper.
8.) If you intend to keep the cigar for extended period of time before you destroy it in a small fire, then cut the cellophane at the point where it folds in on itself, thus opening the end that you light to the air.
Who knew?
Apologies to Don Henley
"Out on the road today, I saw a Deadhead sticker on a Cadillac..."
From The Boys of Summer
My friend and fly-fishing buddy, Gary Farrar, and a Deadhead sticker on his Cadillac.
