What a busy week I had!  It is Sunday afternoon now, and I am finally relaxing at my cabin and trying to wind down with some coffee and a smoke. 

Tuesday night, I was invited to dinner with a cigar rep and his boss who was in town.  The company was one of the “big boys” in the industry.  Dinner was great, Morton’s Steak house.  But the evening was somewhat disappointing to me by the tone of conversation.  I am not impressed when one company feels the need to bash their competition. Enough said. 

Wednesday brought another busy day for us at UPtown’s.  Rocky Patel was in town for a big event at the shop.  I knew it would be a good one with Rocky being there.  But I was not expecting it to be so huge on a Wednesday night. But the place was packed.  Rocky spent four hours shaking hands, signing autographs and having pictures taken.  The food was great, the wine was great and the live music was outstanding!  The event ended shortly after 9:00 PM, and by the time we cleaned up the shop and closed, it was my second night in a row of not getting home until after midnight!  But it was a pleasure to host an event with Rocky.

All this was leading up to a huge Saturday for UPtown’s.  The annual Music City Brewers Festival which takes place in downtown Nashville. UPtown’s teams up with CAO every year and sponsors the “Cool Zone” at the festival.  This year’s festival was broken into two four hour sessions.  Afternoon and evening.  Both sessions were packed and we had non-stop cigar sales for the entire eight hours of the festival. Micro brewed beer and cigars are a good combination!  We had a full staff including myself, Big Jim, Handy Dandy Andy, Smoking Joe Zike, CAO’s Jeff “The Animal” Tinnell, and our very own “Good Old Democratic Advice” man, Arron. Even with all of us there, we could have used more!  And I will tell you, with all the beer that was flowing, there was no shortage of entertainment! After starting the day at 7:30 AM at Pancake Pantry, and finally getting home around midnight, we had another very long day. But as busy as we were, it was a day of laughter and enjoyment.  On my drive home to the cabin, I could not help but reflect on what a great staff I have at UPtown’s.  With two major events in one week, Rocky Patel and Brewer’s Fest, they pulled it off with ease and enthuthiasm. Now onto next Saturday.  Our big Oliva day at UPtown’s.  See the events calander for details.

In closing today, I would like to ask each of you to keep another one of our great employees in your thoughts.  As many of you know, Marcus had back surgery on Thursday.  All indications are that the operation was a success, and we hope for a speedy recovery and look forward to having him back at the shop.

Note: The following is a guest blog by Andy Whitaker

In contemplation of writing this “guest blog” many ideas come to mind.  Typically, cigar reviews, recent holiday celebrations and current events come to mind.  However, the subject that continually keeps my interests busy is the commonality and camaraderie that the cigar brings to a gathering.  I am fortunate to recently have been invited to a celebration of the birth of a beautiful baby girl.  This celebration consisted of smoked meat, fine cheeses, libations, and wonderful cigars.  This celebration which was informal, brought forth some feelings which I believe everyone  who has smoked premium tobacco products with a group has experienced.  Events with cigars can often times “Bridge the Gap” between many people, who on the surface, might feel they have nothing in common.  When smoking in a time when smoking is often done in a selected area.  Look at it as a opportunity to develop a bond with whom you are fortunate enough to share that moment with.  Smoking can help broaden your interest and help develop valued friendships into the future.