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August 23, 2007
This was my third year in a row making the pilgrimage over to Pier 81 (41st St &12th Ave) for the annual MurphGuide Cruise. It’s always a great way to blow off the steam of the work week by cruising on the Hudson River with a couple hundred friends and strangers. Once again the night was be filled with food, booze and music. All on a boat called The Temptress; the second largest US Coast Guard certified vessel in NYC. What finer place is there for this party? The weather had given us a bit of a break. Earlier in the week was quite rainy and chilled. Tonight my bit of voodoo and superstition helped keep the rain in check. Basically, I carried an umbrella with me the whole night long while never actually needing it thereby spooking the rain gods. But the boat was big enough and the crowd fun enough that rain would not be an issue. Which is why our floating shindig was a rain or shine event. I walked up the steep gangplank and into the boat with my buddy John who I saw outside. We noticed an odd but harmless odor of baby lotion mixed in with the food from the hot buffet. We made a few inappropriate ass jokes while waiting for the bar to start serving up a steady flow of top-shelf liquor and cans of beer. Soon enough our inappropriate jokes drifted and morphed into slurred but deep conversations about real estate, women, publishing, politics and more that has slipped into the depths of lost thoughts. There were two bars on the lower level, a beer-only bar on the top level and a shot and beer bar outside with several cuties from the bar Whistlin’ Dixies. The girls saw my camera and began to tease me about taking their pictures. I understood their cynicism since every obnoxious drunk with a camera phone was snapping away. I made them laugh when I confessed to not being a pro and nearly fell as the boat heaved. After that—plus me telling them I was writing for MurphGuide—they were happy to pose for me. I have to try that more often. Finally, after three years, my timing for the food was right on target. I was able to enjoy the very tasty chicken, pasta, potatoes and veggies. In years past I would always find myself waiting too long and missing out. But tonight I was like a giddy kid when I found myself with a full plate. And with the frequent trips to the bars, having a solid base of food in my belly was essential. At this point in the night I’ve eaten, imbibed and taken pictures ... what’s left? Ah yes ... dancing. Well others, not me. Earlier I was voicing how impressed I was with women walking with full drinks or plates of food in heels on a moving boat. And boy was the boat moving. But not only were they walking now they were dancing. Of coarse the motion of the floorboards and dizziness of the booze I think helped a lot of guys get closer to the women. After all, it was not an obscene act, it was merely physics. Never one to be considered a dancer, I preferred to keep snapping pictures while bracing myself on whatever I could find. After we docked back at Pier 81, organizer and MurphGuide honcho Sean Murphy and I made our way to not one but two after parties. The first was the large Irish pub/sports bar called Lansdowne Road (599 10th Ave, NYC) where we ran into some cruisers grabbing a late night drink. And in one case some late night smooching. The bar is getting ready to celebrate their first anniversary. They boast the only illuminated full-bar ice rail in NYC. I’d never seen one before. This seems like a great place. I’ll have to come back. Our next stop was at Whistlin’ Dixies Texas Tavern (714 11th Ave, NYC). It’s a good ol’ western bar just as the name implies. I had hit the wall and was not interested in any more booze, but I was glad I came anyway. A bunch of cruisers were here winding down their night as were the cuties from the bar on the boat. This is another place I need to come back to soon when I'm not quite as many sheets to the wind. The festive mood was still in the air when I noticed a guy named Eric who I had not seen in a very, very long time. He wasn’t on the cruise, just coincidently at the same bar, at the same late night time as me. As big as this city is, it can be amazingly small. And so ends another successful cruise on the Hudson with new friends whose names I've forgotten, old friends showing up randomly and good times that will stay with me until next year. Links:
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