Sneak Joint Mission Beach

Ted's Contentment Thought for the Day: "To be content, you must first be content with yourself."

The Sneak Joint is our favorite place so far. Fun atmosphere, great food, friendly people and dynamite specials. Here we are with Tim Nelson, one of the owners of Sneak Joint. He bought us a drink and told us how Lady Gaga will sneak into The Sneak Joint, and has even been known to dance on a table there.

The specials on Wednesday night were awesome. If you bought a $5 pint of one of these beers, then you could have one of their big juicy hamburgers and fries that are regularly $12-$13 for $5. Wine bottles were half off. The hamburgers were amazing and this is the kind of deal and atmosphere we are looking for.

We had such a good time that I wanted a hat from the Sneak Joint. Check it out and you may see Lady Gaga or Cathy dancing on the table... (I promise not to dance on the tables, but maybe around them.) We will be back. Thanks Tim!

Saskas Mission Beach

It was Saturday afternoon and we did our research to try and find places that were offering a Saturday afternoon Happy Hour. We found that many offered early morning Happy Hours and many offered late night ones, but few offered Saturday afternoon ones.

We found two that we thought were in walking distance and took off down the beach. We came first to Saska's. We asked if they were running their Happy Hour specials. A man reluctantly said yes and said that you can sit anywhere you want. He gave us a menu that said that the Happy Hour specials were 3-6 Daily in big letters. We sat in another room away from the noise of a big rowdy party.

We looked at the menu and when the server came I asked for the $4 Margarita. He said, "Oh on Saturdays the Happy Hour ends at 4:00PM. It was 4:25PM. We said, "Well, we have come here specially for your Happy Hour and it says on the menu that the hours are 3-6 and also on the websites." He said, "Well, I will have to check. He came back and said, that it was the policy now to have the Happy Hour end at 4PM on Saturday. We then said that we would then leave, he said, "Let me check again." He was also reluctant but came back and said that if we wanted the Happy Hour specials that he would give us those prices." He was not a happy camper.

We drank our drinks and left and will not be returning.

A Tequila Museum Old Town SD

This is not exactly Happy Hour, but oh... do I miss my old days of shooting tequila with the big boys. I can now have a margarita every once and awhile, but boy I do miss those old days of the toe to head rush of a good shot of tequila going up and down my spine.

 For one of my birthdays in Birmingham we had a Tequila and Tapas Party. My boss at the time thought that we had invited everyone for a Tequila and Topless Party. I think we all hear what we want to hear. She said that she would be there for sure, she was a little disappointed when she found out it was tapas, Spanish appetizers.

Thought this place was amazing in Old Town, San Diego. I had never seen so many types of Tequila. Ted is not a Tequila man, so he did not appreciate all of the nuances of the different types of tequila. Just even all the different types of bottles were amazing.

Old Town Mexican Cafe San Diego

Ted's contentment thought for the Day;
"It is what it is and it really does not matter."

We went out for lunch at the Old Town Mexican Cafe in Old Town San Diego with my dear friend and sorority sister Donna Sinclair. I think that I had never made it to Old Town before in all of my school days in SD. I guess I was oriented more towards the beaches and less around the tourist things.

The whole atmosphere reminded me of Olivera Street in Los Angeles and even some of Tombstone AZ. We enjoyed the lunch and the food. We did not partake of the Happy Hour here, but took a shot of their board telling of their specials.

Firehouse American Eatery and Lounge PB

Cathy's contentment thought for the evening:

"It is not my job to tell you what you need to do, to judge your actions, what you eat or drink or think. It is my job to support you in finding your own unique expressions of health, spirit, well being and love that are You and only You."

Tonight we biked down to the beach at sunset and it was one of those ones where you got to watch the sun slowly sink down and then it was gone. This time so was the color as soon as the sun was gone.

We parked our bikes and then we went to the Firehouse near the pier in Pacific Beach. We asked about the Happy Hour specials and were told that on Friday nights they give some of their profits to the local firehouses. We thought, that is a cool idea. We decided to go upstairs and sit outside. They had all kinds of heaters and fires blazing and it actually became warm.

It was a beautiful setting and ambiance. We both had a glass of wine and thought that we would come back on Tuesday nights when they had 50 cent ribs and other specials. We will go back now that we know the nights and their specials.

We both loved biking home in the dark along the beach. Most people had gone inside and it was quiet and there was enough light on the ocean that you could see the waves breaking in the dark.

Pacific Beach Ale House

Our new blog is called Happy Hour Contentment, Thoughts for Senior Citizens on a Cheapskate Budget in Mission and Pacific Beach.

Ted and I are going to go to Happy Hours in the Mission and Pacific Beach areas of San Diego. We are going to partake of their Happy Hours and let you know our thoughts on their offerings. We are going to also share with you our thoughts on contentment as we enjoy our winter in San Diego. Is there a better way to do this??? I ask you.

Ted and I decided to begin our happy hour blogging journey with the Pacific Beach Ale House today. We went and sat upstairs on the outdoor heated deck. We almost could not make it up the stairs since it was really almost three flights up. Apparently we were not the only ones with this problem, since on the wall it was written, you are almost there, only 11 more stairs. We were glad for the encouragement.

We had to ask the waitress what it meant on the outside chalkboard when it said, 1/2 off apps. We thought now they could not be controlling what all the apps were sold for on the internet... What do they mean apps? We found out that they meant appetizers, half off all appetizers. We could not find the list of appetizers that were half off on the menu. We did not ask because we had already planned dinner and invited Peter to join us. The waitress did give us a really fast rundown of all the drinks that were on the special off  because it was happy hour. After she left Ted said, I am just going to have a merlot because I could not understand a thing that she said, she talked so fast. I had the Crystal Pier Pale Ale. I wondered if there really was a Crystal Pier somewhere in the area?

We have fun every day that we walk to the Ralphs to pick up stuff for our dinner. I lived a block away from where we are living now when I was in school at San Diego State in 1972. I did not have a car. I never once walked to the Ralphs because it was TOO FAR. We would walk across the street and buy gallons of ice cream from Harry's Market, which had televisions hanging from the ceiling, among other things. I am proud that at 61 and 69 we now can walk to the Ralphs everyday... something I would not do when I was 21...