Cannon's reopening imminent?

That's what they tell me.

I want to see the Redhead fall off that chair.

Federal Grill

It's a shame the Federal Grill is closing. We used to go there a lot, but over the years we became frustrated with the place and stopped.

Back when I smoked cigars, the Federal was the only place where I'd light one indoors. Plus there weren't many places we could walk to in those days.

We probably had dinner at the Federal 10-12 times and the food was always good. I took my parents there a couple of times, my brother's family, and the two of us went many times. Service was almost always slow, but not godawful. Upstairs was better than downstairs. Downstairs seemed chaotic & the servers confused. Upstairs was calmer. Plus, if you didn't like smoke -- it was after all a cigar bar -- the upstairs was smoke free and remarkably clear of any smoke odor.

Our problem was with the main bar. The bartenders seemed indifferent. You could sit there 10 - 15 minutes with an empty glass while the bartender talked aimlessly with a waitress or another customer at the other end. If you got up and walked down to get their attention, then they'd be pissed. More than once I left the bar and went upstairs for a refill. If you're really good at what you do then you can have some attitude. If you're not, you'd better be nice. They weren't good or nice.

Another problem was the restaurant didn't have consistent hours. We'd go there at 10:30 or 11 p.m. on a Friday and it would be closed. One night we called around 10 and a woman said they'd be open till 12. When we got there at 10:30, they were closed. Another night, almost the same thing. The bartender opened the door & said "Are you the people who called? You can have one drink while I clean up" as he locked the door behind us. Jesus, just tell us you're closed when we call. Don't make us walk over there.

So, while we really didn't go there anymore -- and we still did consider it many times for dinner but ended up walking to Robata or the Brew Works instead -- we're sorry to see it go. The food was upper echelon -- especially the steaks -- and the beer was good if you could get one.

I hope the owner, Iris, who always was very friendly and accommodating, finds a place with more customers and better bartenders.

Hmmmmm

I finally stopped by the farm market on Hamilton Street yesterday. It was just a few stands offering a variety of lettuce and greens, some nice looking roots and some potted herbs. There was a stand selling fresh ice cream, one with some goat cheese, one selling tempting baked goods. It was small, but there's not a lot of stuff in season here just yet. And I know I'm missing a few of the offerings, too. Unfortunately I had no cash. Not a dime. I called my fiancee and she had no money either. And that's too bad. One stand had a basket of beautiful fingerling potatoes. I was thinkin', I'm gonna take me some of these taters home with me. Hmmmmm. ... I like them French fried potaters.

WDIY comes in loud & clear

Here's a really good photo of my car's antenna. I shot this at the corner of 9th and Maple streets in downtown Allentown. The PPL tower is just outside of the photo, to the left.

What about Bubba?

A young guy gets sentenced to state prison an inevitably one of the first comments on Topix will allude to Bubba's evil plans for the young man.

Typically, commenters who make the most racially insensitive statements tend to be the same ones most fixated on Bubba and his insatiable appetites.

Is there a connection? Do all racists harbor male-rape fantasies? I think they'd be better off discussing their Bubba obsession with their therapists rather than ranting about them on a discussion board.

And who is this Bubba anyway? Is it someone's name or more of a title?

Is it fair to expect Bubba to mete out so much justice? Does he ever get time off for bad behavior?