Keep on truckin’, says my shirt. Tie o’ the Day #2 displays a plethora of martini glasses. Note that each drink has a green olive in it. I believe the olive to be superior to the cocktail onion in this drink.
I came to that conclusion back in the day, when I called Maryland my home. I lived on a funky, artsy street in a funky, artsy city called Takoma Park. Every year, we closed down our street for a bigly 24-hour block party. Blasting music. Dancing in the streets. Suntanning in the road. All that good stuff.
During the block party we wandered into and out of each other’s houses and yards, in no set order, and we ate or drank whatever was offered at each house. At my pal, Winthrop’s (his real name) house, the offering was martinis. That was it. No soft-shell crab, no fruit, no dessert, no cheese and crackers. Martinis By Winthrop, for the duration.
Anyhoo…I had not yet consumed a martini in my then-young life, but I was game to give it a try. I asked Winthrop about the cocktail onion versus the green olive hullaballoo. Of course, Winthrop said it couldn’t be explained so I should just consume one drink with the onion and one with the olive. Which I did. And thus, I formed my opinion that the green olive is the correct compliment to a martini.
So then I asked Winthrop what the difference was between shaken martinis or stirred martinis. Of course, he said it couldn’t be explained so I should just drink one of each. Which I did. (With a green olive in each.) I couldn’t taste any distinction between the two differently prepared martinis. But I did think it looked hipper to shake the concoction. And, lo and behold, by then I was too bigly buzzed to care anyway.
This tie is appropriate for me tonight because I ran out of Diet Coke and there’s only a bottle of club soda in the fridge. It is my belief that when one is out of Diet Coke and has to drink club soda, one has to use a fancy, elegant glass. Wine glass, shot glass, beer mug, brandy snifter, martini glass, Slurpee cup, etc.
