The One Indispensable Player. . .

To start your Cincinnati sports team

Every once in awhile, Mobsters, The Morning Man hits the creative wall. Usually, breaking news and/or relevant trending topics bail me out. Not today. Today’s about as exciting as the weather. Or Thursday Night Football. I won’t rest until the NF of L gets rid of that atrocity. Falcons-Panthers. Haha.

So. . .

You have one guy with whom to start the local pro and college franchises. Who might it be?

Reds: Rose/Bench/Morgan/Robinson/Votto/Perez/Larkin. I go Bench. How could you pick against the consensus GOAT at his position? Frank finishes 2nd for me, Morgan 3rd.

You?

Bengals: Munoz/The Andersons (Kenny and Willie)/Esiason/Burrow/Whitworth/Chad/Riley/Curtis/AJ Green/Reggie Williams.

I go Burrow. He has Kenny’s accuracy, Boomer’s duende (lookitup) and hopefully a decade to do what no Bengal has ever done: Win a championship. Munoz is the obvious #2, followed by Willie Anderson. After QB, blind-side tackle is still 2nd-most important piece.

You?

UC basketball: Oscar/Oscar/Oscar/Oscar. I go Oscar. Followed by Kenyon Martin, Jack Twyman, Danny Fortson, Steve Logan, Nick Van Exel and Eric Hicks.

Eric Hicks, Doc?

My all-time favorite Bearcat.

You?

Xavier basketball. David West/Brian Grant/Jordan Crawford/Lenny Brown/Byron Larkin/Tyrone Hill.

I go West, obviously. I loved Crawford, best pure scorer I’ve seen come through X, but he was only there a year. Brown makes the list because of The Shot.

You?

UC football: Greg Cook/Sauce Gardner/Kevin Huber/Travis Kelce/Shaq Washington/Brig Owens, Desmond Ridder.

I go Cook, but barely. Ridder gets big consideration here. Huber should, he was a two-time all-American, but a punter is never a cornerstone of any team.

You?

A VETERAN’S DAY MEMORY, one I’ve shared before.

On Dec. 7, 1941, 14-year-old Dick Kerin walked into the drugstore in his small, central Ohio town. He and his buddies had just been to the movies. Now, they were headed to the soda fountain. It was strangely quiet.

From behind the counter, the soda jerk offered, “The Japs just bombed Pearl Harbor.’’ Dick and his buddies expressed the requisite shock, because, well, because it sure sounded awful. Then Dick said, “Where’s Pearl Harbor?’’

Nearly four years later Dick Kerin landed on Iwo Jima as a United States Marine. He sunk to his thighs in thick volcanic sand. Then the Japanese started shooting at him.

Dick would make the newspapers a month later. A picture of him appeared, showing a hole in his arm where a bullet had been. He would witness in person the iconic planting of the American flag atop Mt. Suribachi. What most don’t know is that photo occurred barely a few days into the fighting on Iwo. Five weeks and 7,000 dead later, the U.S. forces took the island.

Dick returned home from the war, taught school and coached wrestling at Greenhills HS for many, many years. Every Veteran’s Day, he’d speak at a Cincinnati-area school, telling his story and beseeching the students to remember the bravery displayed more than half a century ago.

He died early in 2019. I wrote about him then:

Dick Kerin, who died last week, was great. He was a teacher and a coach and a constant father, a man married nearly 70 years to one woman. He was a Marine who spent three years fighting in the Pacific Theater during World War II, who took a bullet on Iwo Jima, who saw the flag raised and victory won at great cost.

He brought his Silver Star and two Purple Hearts home with him and got on with it. For 34 years, he coached high school football and wrestling and taught history at Taft and Western Hills and Aiken and Greenhills. Three times, he was president of the Southwest Ohio Football Coaches Association. He lived his American Dream after making it possible for others.

Thank you, veterans.

GREAT WAY TO PASS THE DREARY WINTER is playing APBA and Strat-O-Matic baseball. I bought my first Strat game in 1970, from money I earned painting the picket fence in our backyard. Since I’ve played entire seasons of the Pirates four times. Now, I’m 50 games into the season of the ‘73 Mets, via APBA. Great starting pitching (Seaver, Koosman, Matlack) sub-average bats. They won the NL East with 83 Ws. Right now, they’re 30-20 under my superb managing.

You’re very strange, Doc.

No question. Sixty-four-year-old dude rolling dice and keeping score. I mean, read a book or something.

AND NOW. . .

Hey Michelle wants you to have a great weekend. Listen to her and you will.

Holiday Market ~ This huge shopping event is perfect for kicking off your holiday shopping with over 325 vendors from all over! Friday 11am-7pm, Saturday 10am-7pm, Sunday 9am-5pm at Duke Energy. Ticketed event 

Closets for a Cause ~ Benefitting Boys & Girls Club is a high end clothing re-sale event with top name brand lightly worn items. In Rookwood next to Sur La Table Thursday 5-9, Friday 1-6, Saturday 11-4 and Sunday 11-2

Creativity Center’s UnMuseum ~ The Contemporary Art Center has an over the top colorful, interactive, fun new exhibit that was designed by one of Cincy’s favorite creative geniuses Pam Kravitz. The CAC is always free and open to the public so make sure to bring the kids or come and bring the kid out of you! 

Covington Yard ~ First this bar is fantastic with a great outdoor space, lot’s of t.v.’s and food trucks… now it has transformed into Winter WonderYard.. with winter cocktails, heaters, and a ton of Christmas spirit. 401 Greenup St. 

Fun dinner pop up~ If you haven’t been to Iris Read it’s an adorable natural wine and spirits store and they’re hosting a pop up with Wildweed Friday from 5-9 or sold out. Fantastic home cooked pastas and of course as much wine as you need. 733 E McMillan 

UC Bearcat Football ~ Friday Night Lights against East Carolina at 8. These guys are on fire so cheer on your hometown Ohio team! 

Where I’ve noshed and sipped this week ~ Lost & Found 22 E. 14th St. This eclectic cool hidden away is a must go! They have great cocktails, fantastic ambiance and tasty food and on Wednesdays they have homemade pasta night which is AMAZING! 

Hey Michelle,
Do you want to know where to eat, drink and have fun in Cincinnati? Check out my page  

https://heymichelle-help.com

Imbiber Dave would prefer if you didn’t tell a anyone about The Post in Ft. Thomas.

The only way I could have imbibed any closer to home this week would have been from my bed, and I’m pretty sure that post would show up on a very different blog.

Now as many readers are aware, the Commonwealth of KY is a wonderful place to visit, live, and most definitely to imbibe. Things here are typically more relaxed, sometimes refined but still casual, and nearly always warm and welcoming.

For whatever reason, my hometown of Ft Thomas missed the bug to commercialize over the last few decades, and has largely been without the proverbial watering hole.

Recently however, things have changed. Now, to be honest, I’ve been nervous to write this out loud. As I’ve traveled more over the year, the allure of having your town turn into today’s Nashville or Austin frankly sounds terrible. So, these days I basically smile and nod when people share their flyover state opinions about Cincinnati. You will never hear me complain about the ease of getting around Cincy, or the relative access to arts, sports, and culinary delights compared to other leading markets.

Bottom line, we have it good. Ft Thomas is no different, and I don’t want to see our brand new commercial investments get overrun. If everyone pinky swears to only visit on alternating Wednesdays then we should be fine.

Our neighborhood favorite Fort Thomas Coffee moved into a brand new and much larger space, complete with a plush bar and solid whiskey selection. It felt wonderful to have a drink with my dad in such a respectable environment.

As a father, we are completely used to carting our boys around town to meet friends, let our kids play, while we imbibe. There are scores of great places, and we can finally add The Post in my town as one of them. When I saw Founders Breakfast Stout, Great Lakes Christmas Ale, and Belhaven on a nitro tap, there was an audible are you kidding me?

Let me know if you want a hall pass, and you can check these places out.

Cheers!
cincybeerguydave@gmail.com

TUNE O’ THE DAY. . . Not a huge James Taylor guy, but for folks of a certain age, he certainly had his moment. This was one of them.