Doin' Fine at 59!!

BIRTHDAY MONTH:  ENGAGED!!

4/1 - I was in Morristown for work today (no April foolin'!) and when I was done, I headed south toward Greeneville for some waterfall hunting.  My first stop was at the historic Nolichucky Dam on the river of the same name where the right side of the old dam (built 1913 and held like a champ during Hurricane Helene back in 2024) looks like a natural waterfall. 

My next stop was to pee, and I was so grateful for the little gas station's super-clean bathroom (and store overall) that I just had to buy something.  I found an interesting regional soft drink called Dr. Enuf that was actually pretty good.  Kind of tastes like a Sprite and ginger ale mixed together.  It has natural energizers (no caffeine), so I got a Sun-Drop as a back-up!  

Kelly Falls is a little roadside beauty on Paint Creek inside the Cherokee National Forest near Greeneville, TN, and close to the North Carolina state line.  

Dudley Falls is farther downstream on Paint Creek and is signed but is more of a sliding cascade than a true waterfall.  Still, it makes for a nice roadside area with a great swimming hole beneath it.  There were even two people swimming in it when I came back through!!  What??  It's April 1st, you crazies!!  
Delicate little Ricker Branch Falls is across the road from the parking area for Dudley Falls and was just a trickle today but would definitely be worth coming back by to check out after some significant rain.

They even had a sign for this little fella, also on Paint Creek farther downstream, called Stephen Falls. 

Hardy-har-har - UNTAPPD trying to be funny on April Fool's Day - hey, morons, did you know you actually can check a beer in while in Antarctica?  My best friend, Craig, tried to do it recently and got no love for it?  Get your shit together already.  I earned this goofy badge back at the Casual Pint in Pigeon Forge this evening where the beers were back to their pricey $8+ per pint cost (welcome to the Smokies, tourist!).  At least they were both good brews.  I started with the smooth and tasty Wrought Iron oatmeal stout from Iron Forge Brewing over in Sevierville, and then the crisp and rather fruity IPA from Hi-Wire Brewing (Asheville) called Cooler Nights.   I even saw a rainbow as I was coming in born of the rain showers that I drove through coming back from the west through the mountains. 

Well, ya got me, Facebook.  Well done.  An ad popped up last night for this Verse Immersive "experience" at Ripley's Super Fun Park in Pigeon Forge, and it looked and sounded kind of interesting, so I plopped down the $30 cost ($25 plus taxes and fees) for a ticket tonight.   Turns out it's more of just a trivia game in AVR (augmented virtual reality) than an "experience" and looked nothing like the ad picture above.   It was still kind of cool, and I even learned a thing or two (did you know that giant-ass Jupiter acts as shield to Earth blocking a lot of interstellar bad stuff - like comets and asteroids- from getting to us), but it was not nearly worth the hefty price.  Oh well, lesson(s) learned.  

4/2 - I headed back west today with some new-to-me waterfalls and breweries in my sights. My first stop was Middle Fork Falls near the little hamlet of Stephens, between Oak Ridge and Wartburg.  It's roadside and fairly free of litter and graffiti which was nice.  

This next one's been on my radar for many years.  I finally got visit Yahoo Falls up in Kentucky.  Not sure why I never came here before since it's only about 25 miles from Oneida, TN.  I knew that it is very rain-dependent, and it was only a delicate stream today, so I didn't venture to the base of the falls.  I will do that sometime again after some significant rain since it's so much closer to home than I realized. There's also the Yahoo Arch nearby that should be worth checking out too on a return trip.  I did get this cool pic from the precipice of the drop of over 100' making it the tallest in Kentucky.  Another reason to come back is that I scouted two other waterfalls - Princess and Lick Creek - very close by but with longer hikes that I couldn't do today but would make for a great weekend return sometime hopefully.   

My next stop was the new Big South Fork Brewing Company in Oneida.  They actually only have one beer of theirs on tap, the solid O and W Light lager.  Their guest taps were pretty good though.  I also had the tasty Around the Bend ESB from Clinch River Brewing over in Norris, TN.  This new brewery is set up in an old bank and even has a small event space in the old vault which is pretty cool.  A nice addition to this small town and this great outdoors area. 

I was running late getting back home but just had to stop and check out the new brewery in Cookeville called Dream Country Brewing.  Great beer in a very neat little bi-level building.  I had their very good farmhouse ale called Strange Folk, and then a half-pint of their nice juniper-infused farmhouse ale - grisette called Hedge Witch.   I am glad to see these guys here since I really miss Hix Farm and Jig Head Brewing (RIP).  

4/3 - I had a day off from work but just hung around the house for the most part since I've been gone all week.  I did take an afternoon drive over to Donelson to TennFold Brewing to have their excellent new IPA called Check Your Latitude and a delicious grain bowl with blackened chicken.  I also stopped by Mt. Juliet Beer Company on the way home and got a variety four-pack of new-to-me pint can IPAs to have at some later dates.  
Back at home tonight, I won another $5 SNG on ClubWPT Gold.

4/4 - Boom goes the dynamite!!  That's 6,000 unique beers checked in on UNTAPPD!  Salute to me and my liver!  That historic beer happened to be the excellent double-hopped DIPA called Wandering Into the Fog (Galaxy) from Abomination Brewing (CT) in collaboration with Twelve Percent Beer Project (also CT) which was part of the variety 4-pack I got yesterday at the Mt. Juliet Beer Company.  Not a peep of recognition from UNTAPPD.  Lame-o's!! 

4/6 - I went to see Sebastian Bach of 80's heavy metal hairband, Skid Row, fame, with my head-banging friend, Nate, at the newly reopened Cannery Hall in Nashville.  We Ubered from Nate's place to Marble Fox Brewing for some pre-show libations.  I had their excellent IPA called Ghost Runner on 1st and their equally good TIPA called Pick Your Prize.  It was a short walk from there to the venue which has had a nice upgrade.  The show was surprisingly good.  SB still has his singing pipes, he's pretty funny too, and has a great way with the crowd.  The opening bands, Blaze Francisco and Stitched Up Heart, were OK, but nothing to get too excited about.  

4/7 - I went to see NSC in the quarterfinals of the Concacaf Championship vs. Club America from Mexico tonight at Geodis Park thanks again to my pal, Nate, and his season tickets.  It was a frustrating 0-0 tie with NSC having some real chances.  Now they have to go to Mexico City next week and play again, but a win or even a tie with a goal would send them to the semifinals.  I sure won't miss the endless drumming from the CA fans during the match.  I don't how they do it every game!  
Beforehand, after some really shitty traffic, we parked for free at Broadcast Brewing (thanks, Mike!) and had a pre-game brew.  I had their new-to-me Belgian Tripel called Arcane Frequency along with an excellent cheeseburger all the way and cheese curds from the Austin's OG Smashburgers food truck outside.  

That is surely not my work rental car and a walking beer from Broadcast Brewing, is it?  Nope.  Can't be.  Well, it was a tasty IPA called Bone from a guest tap of theirs from The Veil Brewing (VA). 

4/8 - I had one last overnight trip to Chattanooga this spring for work today.  I stayed at a nice Fairfield Inn in East Ridge (points!). Before checking in to the hotel, I stopped by Five Wits Brewing for lunch and some brews.   With rare free parking and a comfy place to hang, it's become one of my favorite places in downtown Chattanooga.  I had a solid Philly cheesesteak sandwich and three 10 oz. new-to-me beers including their nice Vienna-style lager called Viva la Vienna; then a quirky but enjoyable wild ale they called Zing It Again; and I finished with their pretty good Scottish ale called Scottish Alexander. 

Tonight, I went and checked out a new-to-me chess-themed microbrewery on the east side of Chattanooga called Mean King Brewing.  I had their very nice DIPA called The Long Game and then their terrific NEIPA called Fog of War.  It's a cool vibe here and along with Alpha Brews nearby, it's nice to see the east side have some great craft beer for once.  

4/9 - I drove back from the Chattanooga area today after a lunchroom visit up in Cleveland.  I stopped at Monkey Town Brewing in Dayton for a late lunch and a brew.  I had their solid red ale called Amber Waves of Grain along with their great club sandwich and corn nuggets.  While there I also logged into my order window queue for some 2028 Olympic women's preliminary soccer tickets at Geodis Park in Nashville.  Now we just gotta wait two-plus years for the game!! 
When I got home, I was able to win another $5 poker SNG on ClubWPT Gold.  

4/11 - I won another $5 poker SNG on ClubWPT Gold. 

4/12 - We had a fun (and tasty) Master's Snacks Party today out on the patio today, and I had a couple of new-to-me-beers during it including the excellent Fugu IPA from Tox Brewing (CT) and another very good NEIPA called My Love Language is IPAs from Little House Brewing (also CT).  They were both from my recent variety 4-pack pick up at Mt. Juliet Beer Company.  
But the biggest news of the day was that my Golf Team: Shank O Potamus tied for first place with two other teams at -23 in a $10 Masters pool vs. 23 other teams.

And then I won the tiebreaker for the full win!!!  Rory McIlroy repeated today as the 2026 Masters Champ with a -13 and my guess of - 9 was closest of the three top finishers!!  That's $230 in profit!!! 

4/13 - Finally, some love on ClubWPT Gold for my favorite hand: pocket threes.  And, yes, I doubled up with them on this hand! 

I hit another milestone badge tonight on UNTAPPD (again, I think with 6K+ check-ins, this one's coming a little late) while meeting my pal, Nate, at East Nashville Beer Works - Wilson County where I started with the interesting (and boozy at 9.5 ABV) imperial stout called Snapback with a lot of ginger in it.  Next up was their new IPA called Truth in Revolt that was excellent.  I finished with a half-pint of their very good collaborative black IPA called Heavy Metal Parking Lot.  They made this one with help from the newish Stoke Haus Brewing over in East Nashville.  

4/14 - Ashlee got us tickets for tonight's live podcast of "The Consumers" at The Lab at Zanies which was part of the Nashville Comedy Festival going on this week.  I am a bigger fan of this podcast than she is, but it was an early birthday present for me.  Thanks, hon!  It was a great time although my "truck nuts" joke was probably a little too blue for them and will probably get cut out of the final version.  But, hey, "it made Randy laugh" and that's all that matters! 

Beforehand, Ashlee picked up at Homegrown Taproom since she was getting her cut nearby.  While I waited on her, I had a half pint of the very good West Coast Diesel IPA from Mill Creek Brewing over in Nolensville.  I blew out the keg on my next half-pint order and wound up getting a free quarter-pint of the solid PILS from Sierra Nevade Brewing (CA).  At the show, I had a repeat of the always-good Hippies and Cowboys IPA from Tennessee Brew Works here in Nashville. 

4/16 - My trophy for winning the Global Poker Championship Grizzly Series IX Event # 4 back in January of this year came in today along with a T-shirt and a hat.  I stayed on their ass about this one since I lost out on the last trophy I won in their previous Rattlesnake Series which they evidently sent to someone else.

4/18 - I flew non-stop to LA today for my 59th birthday trip which will include shows at two legendary and historic rock-n-roll venues in West Hollywood and also checking off another national park visited.  Craft beer, some poker and other fun to be determined!  I traveled solo again which was fine with me.  

My flight was going out of the fairly new Concourse D at BNA where they have the new NSC bar and lounge called The Castle.  Very cool, but I opted for the also-new New Heights Brewing Cantina and Taqueria just across the way.  I had a couple of A.M. brews there including their excellent DIPA called Sticky Premonition and their current rotator beer, the solid cold IPA called That's Pretty Cool Man 2.0.  Cheers to the start of a fun trip! 

This was my first time flying on Southwest with an assigned seat.  Prices are a little higher, but it is kind of nice not being in the usual cattle-call.  The flight was smooth and easy with my window seat providing some nice views.  I caught up on some TV shows and watched a great movie called "Rental Family" starring Brendan Fraser.  

I got a discounted rental car at Enterprise (thanks to points) and the process was smooth and easy.  I was prepared for the common gridlock of LA traffic with a new audiobook called "The Dog Stars" by Peter Heller (soon to be a Ridley Scott film).  It's great so far, and traffic wasn't that bad getting out of the airport and over to West Hollywood.  

My only hiccup of the trip came early when I discovered that I had booked my AirBnb room in West Hollywood for the wrong night!  Doh!   The owner, who was the one who actually alerted me to the error, was super gracious and allowed me a refund despite being past the time to get one and my offer to pay since it was my mistake.  Who says LA people aren't nice!?!  I was able to jump on my Hotel Tonight app and luckily find a room available for a reasonable price at Hotel Ziggy, a hip rock-n-roll themed boutique spot just around the corner from where the AirBnb is located.  The room was small but nicely decorated and very quiet (photo above).  Works for me!  

Walking around "the fun end of Route 66" in West Hollywood was an eye-opener at times, but it felt very safe and friendly overall.  But they aren't kidding about the "Hollywood hills" - there was some steep urban street hiking to be done here at times! 

After not being able to find a seat at the bar at the famous and historic Barney's Beanery, I settled for my back-up afternoon craft beer location called 33 Taps.  Oh yeah, it's definitely a gay bar, but it's also a pretty good sports bar with a nice beer list based on the name plus good, friendly service.  I was able to watch NSC get another road win in Atlanta while I was there while enjoying their own house 33 Taps IPA (not sure who makes it for them).  Next up was the excellent Dodger-themed NEIPA called Chavez Ravine from Boomtown Brewing here in LA.  I finished with the very good Lush IPA from Fremont Brewing (Seattle).  I also had an excellent grain bowl with steak for my early dinner. 

Tonight's show was at the famous and historic (est. 1964) Whiskey a Go-Go nightclub where rock bands like The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Quiet Riot, Motley Crue, Guns-n-Roses and many others got their start.  I had to settle for Stevie and the Rockers, a Fleetwood Mac tribute band.  It's a tiny place very reminicient of Exit/In here in Nashville.  Well, I at least got my money's worth with four different openers.  The first three openers - Cherry Project (think poor man's Nirvana); Lucy (think Billie Elish as a punk rocker); and Sinnamonroll (an interesting all black girl trio doing grunge/punk) - weren't really my kind of music, but I could see potential in each of them, especially the (maybe) 12-year-old drummer for Lucy, very impressive.   The biggest disappointments were the closers: Mancini and then Stevie and the Rockers - pretty terrible to be honest - old, washed-up and not even very talented. I left two songs into SatR's set.  I am afraid the Whiskey which is in the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame as a location has really fallen on hard times if this is the best they can do for a Saturday night in LA.  The thin crowds all night was another indicator.  
Of course, another reason why maybe no one is here are maybe the beer prices - fifteen bucks for a decent Mind Haze NEIPA from Firestone Walker Brewing (CA) served up in a plastic cup??  What a rip-off.  Go eff yourselves!  

I could at least come and go from The Whiskey between bands and was able to stroll a little up and down Sunset Boulevard including across the street to the side entrance of the infamous Viper Room.  It was here on that one of my favorite young actors, River Phoenix, collapsed and died from a drug overdose 33 years ago.   Kind of morbid, I know, but it still haunts me.  

4/19 - I got up early today and headed north for an hour in an easy drive out of LA to the Oxnard/Ventura area to catch a boat out to the Channel Islands National Park.  My choice today was to visit Anacapa Island and its Lighthouse 

It was a perfect day for the 12-mile ride out to the easternmost island in the archipelago.  We saw tons of birds, seals, and dolphins riding in our wake going out of the harbor aboard the clean and roomy two-deck ship.  

As we approached East Anacapa Island, we "dotted" the huge Anacapa Arch.  

The lagoon water surrounding the island is the purest aquamarine in color (no filter in the picture above) with huge forest of sea kelp.  I would love to come back and do some snorkeling here! 
The only way on the island is UP!  Besides a ladder climb off the boat to the pier, it's another 150+ steps to the top and the start of the trail around the island. 

Access to the Anacapa Lighthouse (1912) was restricted unfortunately, but there a lot of great photo ops with it in the background all over the island. 

Pictures just don't do Cathedral Cove justice.  Amen! I sat and had lunch here with this incredible view.  I had stopped at a 7-Eleven before boarding the boat and bought some cheese, salami and crackers; some Cool Ranch Doritos; some M&Ms and a Mt. Dew.  A meal fit for a king!  There were sea lions lounging, swimming and barking in a little cove below as well.  Man, what a magical place! 

Inspiration Point is quite breathtaking as you are looking west toward Middle and West Anacapa Islands. 

I am very proud of this time-lapse photo of the waves breaking beneath Pinniped Point.  I had this spot (and most of the day) to myself on the island.  With only one boat a day coming here, it's pretty easy to feel (and enjoy) the isolation here.  No commercialism, no souvenir booths, and the nesting gulls are so wild they don't even try to steal your lunch!  I truly loved it here.  With all the disappointment of the Whiskey-A-Go-Go experience last night, today's experience exceeded all expectations and added true balance to this trip.  I am so glad I came! 

We got a closer look at Anacapa Arch on the way out along with a close-up view of some lounging sea lions on a rocky beach nearby.  The cruise back was smooth and easy.  What a great day!  

I stayed overnight (for free with points!) at a nice Springhill Suites in Oxnard, California, tonight before heading back to West Hollywood again tomorrow for my birthday.  It was a brand new hotel and they even gave me an early birthday present!  Thanks, Marriott Bonvoy!! 

I got off the boat and checked in with enough time to go check out a poker tournament at Players Casino in Ventura a few minutes away.  The place got bad reviews, but I thought it was OK.  It even had an ocean view.  The staff was nice and helpful, and the little tournament wasn't too bad in terms of structure based on the $60 price.  I didn't have to rebuy and was doing pretty well early on and even got to the final table with 23 total entrants, but I got crippled when my AQ did not improve against 88 and then knocked out in 6th and they only paid three.  Womp! Womp!  Still a good time and I was proud of my play that included a great slow-played AA, a good semi-bluff with 99, and a big double up with a turned full house with junk cards.  

Besides not cashing, the only other downside was that I played so late that I missed getting to any local breweries before they closed.  I was able to swing by a Yard House back in Oxnard nearby my hotel where I had some of their awesome lettuce wraps and a couple of tasty pints including the altbier called Valkyrie from Enegren Brewing (CA) and the IPA called Weekend Vibes from Coronado Brewing (San Diego).  

4/20 - Happy Birthday to me!!!  I took my time heading back to West Hollywood today as I traveled down the beautiful Pacific Coast Highway (Hwy. 1) southbound. My first stop was the stunning El Matador State Beach in Malibu.  I see where they get the name with the bull-shaped arched rock on the beach.  I usually don't like people in my nature pics, but it helps here to give the massive scale of the namesake rock.  

Despite a brilliant blue sky, this black and white version of El Matador Beach (although it looks more like an elephant from this angle) is my favorite.  

A convertible would certainly have been nice on this trip since I had perfect weather the entire time, but my discounted black-on-black Honda Civic still had the new car smell with very little miles on it and sipped gas nicely since it's over $5 a gallon out here. Thanks, T-rump!! 

I thought Malibu Brewing might be a little snooty for me, but I really enjoyed the vibe here and the beer was outstanding!  As was my order of grilled halibut tacos and the best guacamole I've ever had (and I'm usually not a big fan of it).   My brews were in this order:  

12 birthdays on UNTAPPD! 

I couldn't believe how easy it was to find Marilyn Monroe's simple crypt 

The Brady Bunch House was a last-minute addition, but a fun and easy to find stop.  

I stayed overnight at the historic (and convenient) Beverly Terrace Hotel which has "cheap" valet parking at only $30/night.  

All Season Brewing 

La Brea Tar Pits 

How dare this hot-looking LA woman get in my artistic picture!  

A golden reason to come back to LA!! 

This was about as close as I got to a movie star while in LA.  

Tonight's show was at the legendary and historic (est. 1957) Troubadour nightclub where The Eagles, Jackson Browne and many others got their start.  And tonight's show was Nashville's own, Langhorne Slim. (poster pic on phone).  The opener, Laney Jones and the Spirits was 

It was an incredible show.  Langhorne Slim is definitely one of the most underrated singer/songwriters around.  How he's not a bigger star is beyond me. 

4/21/26 - There's a donut place around here somewhere, I can just feel it! 

Goodbye, West Coast.  I will be back as soon as I can! 

Here's a pretty good shot of what I think is the beautiful Sedona, Arizona area (thanks, Waze and SWA internet!).  Yep, it's on the list to visit!! 

4/21 -I flew back home non-stop on Southwest Airlines from LA today.  

4/23 - Desert Warrior movie?

cat-sitting at a $2-million-dollar house (yeah, I looked it up) on the lake

poker tournament at The Barrel? 

Michael movie