A Little Ice...

This is a story about an Ice Machine.  An ice machine you say, what could possibly be interesting about an ice machine?    Well, this little maker of ice lives in the basement of the old Connolly’s, soon to be the Birdsall house.  The first my attention was drawn to the machine was during an early inspection of the space with our then soon to be landlords.  One of the Connolly’s pointed in the direction of what appeared to be the oldest and dirtiest looking machine I had ever seen and announced that everything in the space works except that.  The ice machine had panels missing, parts hanging off and dirt that seemed to have been built up since the space was an A&P back in the early 1900’s.  I was already calculating how hard it would be to carry it up the stairs and heave in the trash pile in the back yard.  Enter Tim Reinke, my business partner and mechanical engineer extraordinaire.   When Tim said he could fix the old ice relic every nerve in my body screamed NO!!!! TRASH!!!!  But I have seen Tim take an old Mercedes that probably shouldn’t have even been on the road in the first place and take it apart, put back together and drive for several years.

So against my better judgment I shut-up and let Tim do his thing.  Or I should say I shut up a little bit and let Tim do his thing.  I am happy to say that our little ice maker that could is almost up and running.  Our little ice factory is no longer an eye sore.  It is no longer a cause for stress.  Instead it has become a symbol of what we can do with what we have.  And In a way I think of Peekskill when I ponder the ice machine.  Peekskill is old and it has 100 years of dirt and grime still stuck to it in places.  But just like the Birdsall boys and their little ice maker I see people all over Peekskill washing the dirt away and making something old new again. 

-Johnny

Refrigeration Repair

All of our refrigeration is up and running!  The cold box, behind the bar, glycol machine & ice machine (which will be a whole other blog) have been charged with freon and getting chilly - thanks for Freddy Ayala of Blizzard Refrigeration, our new refrigeration guy.  In this business you want a good refrigeration guy.  We found him by Googling. He doesn't have a website, but his number is 845-526-3435 if you're in need of a good refrigeration repairman.  He knows what he's doing and his pricing is fair and affordable.

We're still sweating it out in the basement.   We've been painting the subterranean exteriors walls with Dry-Lok all week and there's finally an end in sight.  John's has cemented some of the rough spots on the basement floor, so tomorrow we should be able to paint the floors and be done with the basement - except for the draught system.  All of our draught system components have arrived and we're getting ready for the install.

A Glimmer

John Emerald Sharp came in to this world in 1926.  Born in the hills of the Ozark Mountains in Southern Missouri to Hugh and Clara Sharp.  In his early days he was a US Army Air Corp Veteran.  Most of the stories I remember from those days consisted of him and some Air corp. buddies taking the plane for joy rides or duck hunting with a machine gun.  Needless to say he spoke of those days with a glimmer in his eyes.  After his stint with the Military he came back to his hometown Croker, MO and got to work in the family feed and grocery distributorship, Sharps Grain and Supply.  One day he was standing outside the office with a friend and saw a new girl in town.  I guess the young lady must have been a looker because he turned to his friend and confidently pronounced that he was going to marry that girl.  Seven days later he proposed with a wooden ring and some dead flowers.  You see John could be quite the jokester in his day.  He used to go to parties with a spool of thread in his inside pocket.  He would then poke the end of the thread through his jacket to the other side.  Then when some unsuspecting person tried to help him get rid of that pesky thread on his nice sport jacket the thread would keep coming and coming.  He had many tricks up his sleeves.   Anyway, when confronted with the wooden ring and dead flowers Sarah Hammock must of got the joke, because they married soon after.  

My Grandfather passed away this summer, and I think about him all the time.  I think about his place in his community and what he meant to so many people.  The life’s he touched by being part of a town and running a small business in that town.   I think about the path that I am now on and I hope I can fill his shoes in my community as well as he did.  

Hanging over the bar at the Birdsall House are three hanging globe lights.  These lights were from my grandfather’s office.  They probably date back to the late 30’s or early 40’s.  So, if one night you’re in the bar and you happen to look up and you see a little glimmer from one of those lights that’s John Emerald Sharp saying Hello!

A Little History...

Paula Connolly dropped off a few pictures today, which have been posted in Pictures under "The Old Place".  We plan to dedicate a wall in the tavern to history - that is the history of this space and some Peekskill history.  We'll hopefully be getting more old pictures soon (and if anyone out has others, let us know:  bh@birdsallhouse.net).

We've been focusing on the basement for the past week.  Lots of dust and dirt, but it's coming along.  Our draught tower has been put on hold for the time being as we re-design it.  I don't think we'll be able to build what we had originally intended.  It's still going to match the decor in the bar, but it's going to be less complex.  If you've been following our renovations you know that we can only use a very small section of the bar to support our 20 line draught tower.  We're going to build it out of mahogany, which we have, but we're going to wait untill we have some of our draught parts before we start cutting wood.  We'll post some pictures once the process starts.

Family Matters

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As much as the Birdsall House means to me, I have another satifying endeavour -  helping Brandy raise our 2 children - our son who is 3 1/2 and our daughter who is 8 weeks.  So I spent yesterday with my family.  It can be a difficult balancing act, as most days (except Sunday) I'm gone before anyone wakes up and I'm often home after the kids have gone to bed.  I'm a small business owner, but I'm also a father.  My family and I went into Manhattan yesterday and as anyone who has a toddler and newborn knows, going anywhere, especially on a belowing freezing day, can be like moving a small army.  You must have a plan of action (as well as a plan B), be well stocked on supplies & patience and have eyes on the back of your head.  But it's always worth it.  My son is still young enough that going just about anywhere is entertaining to him, which I'm thankful for as his happiness and laugh are intoxicating to me.  We left the house at 8am and returned home just as the sun was setting.  After making dinner and reading my son two books, everybody got a good night sleep.  It was a great day.

Today I'm back at the Birdsall House (after waking early to wash my sons pee soaked sheets and make his bed) cleaning out the basement and trying to fix an old ice machine.  We still have a laundry list of items to check off before we open, which is why we haven't been able to set an opening date as of yet.  But this little tavern becomes more beautiful to me everyday and hopefully, in the near future, to the patorns who frequent the Birdsall House.  We are building a good place and after over a decade of being in the this buisness, I like to think I know a little about what it takes to build a good place and a successful business.  As owners, John and I can only do so much.  We can control what the place looks like and who we hire and keep a close eye on the product we serve.  But it's the people that frequent your establishment that make it a great place.  If culitvated correctly, I believe that bars and taverns can build bonds almost as stong a family and for some it can replace the family bond.  A great tavern should not just be a place to get a cold beer and meal, it should be one of the centers of the community, a place where news and information are shared and heard, good or bad.

It can be dangerous, but we have set our expectations high.  Hopefully we will have it all:  great beer, great food & great conversation.  In my opinion, all three can be inspiring.