BBC Shipping Forecast

When I was a kid I would sit in my Grandad's garden shed (home to all that is manly in Northern England), drink sugary tea and watch him smoke JPS's. We would listen to the BBC's shipping forecast in silence giving into the hypnotic quality of the names: Faeroes, Fair Isle, Viking, Dogger, Fisher, German Bight, Humber, and Thames to name but a few.

Years later in Alabama I would sit and listen on a small Grundig short wave. The familiar names from the North Sea filling the humidity of a Tuscaloosa row house both comforting and making me long for a place I had left years before.

Summer is now dwindling and the kids are restless. I find a BBC stream and the names come again. This time working their magic on my 6 & 8 year old. Faeroes, Fair Isle, Viking, Dogger... the names as meaningless, exotic, and comforting as they where to me in my Grandad's garden. They drift off and things just seem to be in the right place- at least for a while.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/coast/shipping/

god its hot

I think we can all agree that it's hot out. I've dispensed with wearing one of our lovely shirts and seem to be living in a ratty t-shirt from Foxy's on Jost Van Dyke along with a pair of Mountain Khaki shorts.

When even this isn't enough, and the kids are no longer satisfied with waiting for adult swim to end at the pool , I have been reaching more and more for this drink courtesy of the fine folks at Fort Defiance in Red Hook. Ditch the Firefly, this is what you want:

CUCUMBER COLLINS

5 cucumber sticks

1 oz fresh lemon juice

1 oz simple syrup

muddle above ingredients, then add:

2 oz Hendricks Gin

plenty of ice

Shake

Pour over tall glass of Ice. Top of remainder with Club Soda, Garnish with mint.

Unbelievably Refreshing. Turn on some Mojave 3 or Jackpot, think cool. Almost wants you to get back into a freshly ironed shirt again.

Cheers