I'm combining the Friday and Saturday reports for a couple of reasons. The first reason is that I think the stark contrast in the styles of the two nights will provide an interesting example of the ebbs and flows of the life of a single man. The second reason is that I'm just plain lazy.

Rich O's was moderately crowded on Friday, with a few of the regulars I can actually stand to be around. I was able to grab a seat at the island and ordered my first beer - an Upland Winter Warmer.

I actually had this beer a couple of times last weekend - when I was starting my writing drought - and I really like it. It reminds me of the Great Lakes Christmas Ale that I enjoyed so much a few months ago. There was some fruitiness that I will call raspberry and some nutmeg as well. My only real problem with this beer is that it's rather strong and I cannot safely have more than one.

Next, on the advice of one of the regulars I tried an Old Slug Porter and I just can't describe it very well. I'm sure it had some flavor and some characteristics, but I just couldn't detect anything after the Upland beer I'd just had. I'll be sure to try it again when it comes back to Rich O's.

At about the time I was finishing my Old Slug, LaptopGirl arrived and WOW! She was looking sexier than I've ever seen before in her little skirt and top. She looked like she'd come straight from a figure skating competition.

(I should point out that while I'm no longer romantically interested in LaptopGirl, I'm still a straight single man and I still find her physically quite attractive and mentally fascinating.)

Once her interesting friends left, LaptopGirl joined me at the island and I spent a good couple of hours striving to make eye contact instead of looking down her top.

Once my Old Slug was gone I ordered an Avery Czar. At 10% alcohol I knew this would be the only one of these I'd have. I liked the taste of this a lot. I detected a definite bourbon odor, and I asked if it was aged in an old bourbon barrel but the bartenders didn't think so. There wasn't really any bourbon to the taste so I may be insane.

After a while the living room area cleared out so LaptopGirl and I moved over there. I was enjoying the conversation (and the scenery) so I ordered an NABC Beak's Best and that ended up being my last beer of the night - though I did have a draft root beer while LaptopGirl finished her NABC BourbonDaddy.

As we've done several times in the past, LaptopGirl and I closed out Rich O's. As we've also done a few times, we went over to Jack's where I had a Diet Coke and wondered how long it would be before the InvisibilityFactor took effect.

It didn't take long. We were sitting with a couple of other Rich O's regulars and MusicalHippyDude is certainly more interesting than I am. Once I was fully invisible to LaptopGirl I was able to finish my drink and leave unnoticed.

Saturday night, as I think I hinted way back at the beginning of this entry, was completely different than Friday.

Rich O's only had a dozen or so people, all in the bar area. A couple of people there I recognized, but I wouldn't say I knew any of them, so I just stood at my spot at the bar and talked with the bartenders.

Wanting something fairly weak after the previous night's strong brews, I first ordered an NABC Beak's Best. They were out. I then ordered a bottle of Newcastle Brown Ale. They were out of that too. Starting to feel desperate, I ordered my old old OLD standby, Pete's Wicked Ale. They actually had that and I had a couple more during the night. I won't say too much about the Pete's because it makes me sad that it used to be one of the best but now it's simply passable.

I was also able, thanks to the bartenders, to sample a couple of beers that I really liked. Unfortunately I was sworn to secrecy and I cannot break that trust. I'll just say that I liked them and I wish they were more readily available.

After a relaxing couple of hours I left Rich O's at 11:00 PM and went home.