HUNGRY GERALD

Can’t have any alcoholic solace in HG’s Montague Hospital (Prince Edward Island) room. HG misses (to understate it) the daily alcoholic beverage routine HG has followed since becoming an adult. In days gone by, HG preceded dinner with dry Martinis. Lethal. Led to many mishaps. HG switched to vodka on the rocks. Not as dangerous as Martinis but plenty risky. Saving grace: They made HG so drowsy HG couldn’t do damage. (HG thinks the smidgen of vermouth in Martinis or vodka is the killer). In recent years HG has switched to civilized Italian Negronis–modest amount of gin, sweet vermouth, splash of Campari or Aperol. The thinking person’s cocktail. HG has (pre accident) switched to PEI gin mixed with Italian lime syrup and a squeeze of lemon. Less alcoholic. A friendly sip. At dinner, HG usually drank two glasses of wine–and  a third with HG’s daily dessert of chestnut puree and whipped cream. All of the wines were selected by BSK, an adroit sommelier who finds a wide array of tasty wines at modest prices. Nightcap: Jack Daniel’s. HG will have to radically adjust this routine when HG leaves the hospital–walking but still unsteady.