So, it’s gettin’ on time for Christmas, a time for family, friends, Jesus, presents galore, homemade colored Christmas tree cutouts and sweet sweet carols. But before we get to all that, let’s take a minute to reflect on what’s really important about tonight’s festivities: January 1, 2009, as you may have heard, marks the first day of our fair state’s… smoking ban. That’s right, given that the next two weeks marks NO QUIZ due to holiday shenanigans, the next time I host a quiz at the Belmont Inn I will be delivering to a beautiful ol’ bar that will be, oh yes, free of nicotine tendrils. Whatever shall we do? I just can’t imagine this lovable ashtray of a drinking establishment without it, but I guess I’m gonna have to. I guess we all got used to the idea of Sonny without Cher, and Conan without Andy, and the federal government without a total buffoon in the highest office… so I imagine we’ll prevail. But it won’t be easy… no it won’t. On Xmas eve this year, friends, let’s all say a little prayer for the pub quiz smokers at the Belmont Inn. They’re about to get awfully familiar with the corner of SE Belmont and 34th. Say hi to Stumptown Coffee for me!
And in other news, hey! tonight’s quiz was awfully fun, what with the homemade colored tree cutouts and caroling galore. Dug the Star Trek tree from Porkchop Express, and the homemade trees from the Urban A-tree-vers (get it? tree?), who didn’t even need the tree printout, they just built one themselves, from scratch! Handy!
Then came the caroling. We got smooth renditions of the classics from Ryan of YMBP, Scott of Drop the Tennenbaum (doing his best Frank Sinatra impression), and Chris from Merry TX-Mas. And we got more as well, that I’m forgetting, but I salute everyone who gave the singing a try. You are braver souls than I, and it warmed my heart to hear ya… even when you had no idea what the song was whatsoever.
Y’all have a merry ol’ Kwanzaa (starts the day AFTER Christmas, as we learned at the quiz tonight) and I will see you in a better, fresher, smoke-free 2009.
Justin
Hurray for smoking ban! My xmas wish is for no sore losers next year though. Accusing winning team of cheating (which turns out they totally weren’t) = not cool. Spend the two week’s break sharpening your pub quiz skills instead!
No more love to pay the rent? No more holding my little hand, or blackening my fresh pink lungs? Nice to know I’ll be filling in at Belmont once it’s smoke free, then everyone will be extra nice and fueled with nicotine fits!