Or "How Ronald McDonald Kicked My Ass"


About ten years ago, shortly before Brenda and I got married, we attended a Halloween party at a friend's house. The primary reason to get together was obviously to dress up like we did when we were little but secondarily to get drunk as a sailor on shore leave.

The standard "funny name" cocktails were offered like "sex on the beach" and "southern screw" and "raw sewage". But the drink that swore me off booze forever (hard liquor, that is) was called a "Ronald McDonald". This drink was composed mainly of vodka, cinammon schnapps and cranberry juice. What made it unique was the addition of a packet of McDonald's ketchup. Stir briskly and drink as quickly as possible. Repeatedly.

You may as well have shut my head in a car door over and over again and had a lesser effect. I woke up sometime after it made no sense to get up and staggered to my car. I was sober enough to realize I was still too drunk to drive and promptly decorated my friend's lawn with a Foster Brooks "Happy Meal". Jaysus.

Each successive Halloween has been soberly celebrated but I still get a little nervous when I see a pale old lady wearing too much lipstick.


One Reply to No Clowns On Halloween Allowed At My Door

Amy Austin | October 29, 2008
For those trying to get the full mental picture of Steve, as described:

Foster Brooks


Web Junkie

Steve West scours the Web searching for interest or absurdity and then shakes his head ruefully when he finds it. Read more »

The Real Colon Blow Cereal

Holy metaphors, Batman! This recent All-Bran commercial from Kellogg's touts its ability to aid one in shitting enough bricks to build a barbecue. Go »

A Story Without Words

I can't imagine being disfigured as an adult. I've read articles and seen pictorials of veterans wounded in the war and losing a limb or being disfigured by fire. And then those soldiers coming home to their fiancĂ©es to be married. Go »

Never Volunteer, Dummy

Ever since seeing Anthony Hopkins in Magic, ventriloquists and their evil dummies have given me the creeps. This guy does as well but I laughed nonetheless. I think I could sit through his entire act but could never get past the queasiness and actually volunteer like this guy did. Go »

Kinderfest

Brenda and I were going to take the girls sailing but there was rain in the forecast so we decided to put it off for a week. Rainy combined with slightly chilly (60 degrees) doesn't make for a good time outside of Wasilla. So we decided to go to Kinderfest at a local regional park. Go »

Baby Boomer Blues

I overheard someone of my generation (born in the early 60's) recently say, "Kids today don't even know how to write in cursive," in a negative way. That statement got grumbled agreement from the codgers nearby. I was thinking without saying out loud, "Grandma, you can't even turn on your laptop without getting six viruses and wiring half your retirement money to a Nigerian Prince." Go »

Driftwood

Washed up on the shores of my PC. In the spirit of Monty Python & The Holy Grail intro, "Those responsible for sacking the people who have just been sacked have been sacked," comes this notice. Beautiful pictures of a fairly clever notion, holding the sun. Go »