WEEKEND RECAP (a very LONG post)

A "Great Day in Murray Hill"

I previously stated that while we've been in lingo regarding our fate at 523 3rd Avenue, if the past week has been any indication, at least we are going out with a bang! The last few weeks brought out supporters in hordes and it's been a fun, yet emotional ride. This weekend alone was one filled with great memories, lots of laughs, a few tears and of course, lots of drinks.

FRIDAY:

H.B.E. had a meetup with a large contingent of friends from both the past and present. I'd gotten to know most of them through the years and I'd forgotten how much fun they can be, as these photos will attest:




Beauty and the Beast....






After watching this crew party hard all night, I knew then and there it was going to be a long, hard weekend.

SATURDAY:

Saturday night was much like Friday night in that we received more visitors from the past (as well as the present, there to lend support and to reflect on the good old days. Folks drove in from Long Island, Connecticut, New Jersey... and even Philadelphia. Like most of the people who'd stopped by before, most were shocked and saddened by the turn of events. Most still can't believe that the bar will no longer be in existence a week from now. That did not stop them, however, from partying their asses off.




"nice shoes"....

'LIL JOHN flanked by his lovely wife and his bodyguard...



Former and current staff members of Third and Long (from l to r): Tom Syron, THE DON, FIRE MARSHALL ED, Chris (Cy) Long, FRENCHY, and Ray "Boom-Boom" Paprocky...



SUNDAY:

I opened up Sunday for one last gathering of the Sunday Brew Crew. We'd been together as a group for a number of years now and it was only fitting that we have one last blow-out before our doors closed for good. I knew that we were in for a fun afternoon but how much fun was to be determined. Let's just say I wasn't disappointed. There were the usual suspects, MR. LOW-KEY, THE MAYOR OF MURRAY HILL, MR. CHIPS, T-BILL, AFRIKA BAMBATTA, NAPOLEON DYNAMITE (arriving via train from Boston), ANGEL, JON CUSACK, BABY GIRL, STIFFLER, THE ENERGIZER BUNNY, AMERICAN PSYCHO, SILENT BOB and his lovely wife, BETTY BOOP, DIRTY SANCHEZ, REDSKINS GIRL, FREEJACK, SUSHI SAMBA and even some old-school BREW CREW members, including K.C. SUPERFAN and N.E. FAN JOE.

The afternoon/evening was nothing short of a blast. In between Car Bombs, Miller Lites, and Gentlemen's Drinks, there were stories and bantering going back and forth the whole time. Some highlights include:


A Group Photo of the whole Sunday Brew Crew (including myself, looking like Willie the Whale). Priceless photo if I do say so myself. We got one of the patrons to stand in the middle of 3rd Ave to take the photo, even at the risk of getting hit by a bus (bless her heart)....


Yours truly and N.E. FAN JOE reflecting on old times...

K.C. SUPERFAN making a surprise visit


I'm not quite sure if this is a look of shock that the bar is actually closing, or if DIRTY SANCHEZ is reprising his role as a prison bully on the TV series "OZ"...

*AFRIKA BAMBATTA doing his usual "bang-up" job in taking photos, only to somehow screw up the camera and deleting all of the photos in the process. As a result, we had to gather everyone up to do the group photo again. Jackass.

*JON CUSACK and NAPOLEON DYNAMITE taking it upon themselves to let HORNY GOATWEED on the long-running storyline about himself and the blog. He took the news surprisingly well, considering that he was seen doing the walk of shame up 3rd Avenue earlier that morning with no shoes on.... Hmmmm..








*SUSHI SAMBA feeling the need to yell out all of his feelings to the whole bar the entire afternoon. Priceless. Watching him and NAPOLEON DYNAMITE wrestle each other all over the floor: painful.

*Random hook-ups taking place throughout the day/night. Priceless.

*The conversation between THE MAYOR, REDSKINS GIRL, myself and a group of Canadian women. Topic- real vs fake orgasms. Not sure how I got involved in the conversation, but it was entertaining, nevertheless.

*T-BILL's touching speech at the end of the afternoon stirred up a lot of feelings; even bringing some people (myself included) to tears. He is indeed a class act and a true friend indeed.

*The number of people who deteriorated into puddles of booze throughout the course of the day, far exceeded my expectations.


MR. LOW-KEY being, well, low-key...



"Shake what ya mama gave ya!"




The lovely smile of Ms. ENERGIZER BUNNY....




NAPOLEON and SUSHI-SAMBA playing footsies all day long...


"Stiffie-Love"....



AFRIKA BAMBATTA doing his "Shaft" imitation... Don't think it's working though...



Some of the Third and Long staff making it out for Staff Night!


As you can see, we had one hell of a time. There are plenty more pics, but I think you get the drift. A very good weekend, albeit the last one, which as I think about it now, makes me sad.

Two days left.


Hope to see everyone between now and the end of the road.


nuff said