Avast, mateys!

Shiver me timbers. It be International Talk Like a Pirate Day again already! And the 10th such sea battle to boot, arrrr! Yer mighty Cap’n, Black Dougal o’ the good ship Pegu’s Pride has just a mite o’ piratical plunder on board here for ye this happy day. And beware if ye follow me Twitter feed, fer today all me usual political bluster, grog swilling, and noodity will be in our lovely pirate speak!

Belay that last! What manner of lubbery is this? There be no noodity in yer timeline… Or arrrrre ye holdin’ out on me?

Heh. A pirate can lie a wee bit to spice up interest, can’t he? Now quit harshing me pitch.
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Ahoy there, me hearties! Since today is by way o’ bein’ September the 19th, the language around this here blog today is wee bit saltier than be usually the case. As in the salt o’ the High Seas… and Adventure!

Yarrr!

September the 19th be International Drink Talk Like a Pirate Day, so be sure to be modifyin’ yer language to sound like a scurvy dog in search of plunder til the Sun be well past the yardarm. It’ll delight yer fellow swabbies who be in the know, and confuse the lubbers… that always makes ‘em easier to plunder, ye know.
If ye be wanting some tips on piratical speech, I be havin’ a prior post on the subject, wi’ videos and some discussion ‘o getting your cocktail on, pirate talk style. And more to the point, I have many posts on how to mix yer refreshments for when ye sun sets in the west. May the sky be red fer ye! X marks the spot fer those treasures here, here, here, and sorta here. Finally, while I be tootin’ me own hornpipe o’ past piratical punditification, here be me own interview wi’ the masters o’ ITLAPD themselves, Cap’n Slappy and Ol’ Chumbucket.

So, what manner o’ new material have I fer this year’s a lootin’ and a pillagin’? Arrr, first off with the non-drinnkin’ booty, I just want to be observin’ that since the inception o’ this wee little celebration o’ almost everything real piratin’ was not, the world has seen a resurgence o’ real piracy upon the high seas. And while ye’ haven’t been by way o’ hearin’ about them as much lately, they’ve been expanding their range and even attacking naval vessels! Me own instincts be tellin’ me that any solution that doesn’t involve taskin’ yardarms and keels will be by way o’ ineffective…. But whatever we do, it be high time to rid the wolrd o’ pirates who look like this:

…so that we can be gettin’ back to pirates who be lookin’ more like this:

Or (perhaps) better, this:

And young Miss Swann is by way o’ sailing us (tangentially) into the harbor o’ my cocktail related material fer this year’s festivitatin’.

Ye see, me hearties, the word is out that Hollywood be plottin’ a remake o’ The Thin Man, with perhaps a bit more material from the original Dashiell Hammett book. This ol’ pirate has his doubts about how well they’ll manage things, as do many others.

Avast! What manner of trickery be this, ye scurvy knave!
What possible connection to high-functioning alcoholics in the 1930′s be piratin’ havin’?
Arrrr!

I’m glad ye’ asked, me hearty. (Nice hat, by the way.) Because all the word on the street be that they intend The Thin Man to star this well-known pirate laddie:

Who?
The elf?

NARRRR, ye bilge rat! Johnny Depp. People always said he played Jack Sparrow like Errol Flynn, but I kind saw Nick Charles in him from the beginning. One simply never knows whether or how drunk he is. And Depp be roguishly charming, that be sure. As an actor, I think he be a great pick fer the part. I just don’t know how he’ll look. Have any of you been seein’ yon swashbuckler ever cleaned up like this?

Avast, me hearties!
Today be International Talk Like a Pirate Day, the official Most Awesome Internet Meme Evar™.
Ye can see me main ITLAPD-themed post here, in which ye can read o’ me interview with founding pirates, Cap’n Slappy ‘n Ol’ Chumbucket them ownselves.

And, because it be the thing ter do on ITLAPD, here be the latest video missive from the crew:

It be needin’ a soarin’ score and complimentary barf bags at one point, but a worthy entry, nonetheless! Arrrr.

Sunday, September 19th, 2010 is International Drink Talk Like a Pirate Day….

Avast, ye bilge rat!
EVERY September 19th be International Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Silence, ye scurvy knave, or ye’ll get a taste o’ me hook!

As I be sayin’, Sunday be ITLAPD. (It be harrrrrd to type with a hook and only one eye, so I be using the acronym from now on, aye?) But since September’s Mixology Monday (hosted aboard ship here) be comin’ right after, I be gettin’ a jump on the festivities, the better to ready ye and yer crew for the best parrrt o’ bein’ a pirate… the drinkin’!

{UPDATE: Ahoy, me hearties! A hearty pirate welcome be to ye seafarers who’ve washed up here from the Pirate Guys’ FaceBook Page! If ye be interested in more about Pirate drinking, here be a link to a page wi’ all ourrrr posts on pirate potables! Arrrrr.}

I stumbled down t’ the docks, and into the Bloody Bilge, as run-down ‘n dangerous a tavern as ye be likely to find. Ye’ll never be findin’ a more wretched hive o’ scum and vil…. er, anyway. I be findin’ there Ol’ Cumbucket hisself, and in two steps o’ a peg-legged jig, the good Cap’n Slappy be joinin’ us.
I fergot meself fer a moment and demanded the wench bring me a Pegu. She spat in me eye ‘n I smartly changed me order to a hearty Bumbo.
I heeled o’er to me interviewees and began me quest fer what be givin’ today’s greatest living pirates the sway in their steps.

Avast, me hearties! All good seafarin’ folk know, it be no mere sea chanty that all good crew and cap’n alike be liking a wee spot o’ drink at appropriate times… like day and night, fer starters. What manner of pirate’s courage be yer particular poisons?

Ahoy Dangerous Doug!
I can’t speak for Slappy (I tried it once and he gave me a savage beatin’ with his fists and forehead) so I’ll let him ennumber … enumm .. list the many libations he enjoys from time to time, and give ye mine.

It’s hard to beat a good ale. Yes, beer is the proof of the goodness of god and that he wants us to be happy. Me own personal favorite brew (and the official beer of International Talk Like a Pirate Day, at least until someone pays us to endorse *their* beer) is Rogue’s “Dead Guy Ale.” Delicious – and so good for you!

Arrr! I had a bottle of this brew just last night ’round the Poker table…. Arrrrgh. (That “arrrgh” be fer the poker, not the ale.)

The Fort Christian Brew Pub here on St. Croix makes a fine dark beer as well, with a great name – Blackbeard’s Ale.
And Arrogant Bastard Ale is a dandy drink, don’t ya know.

I, too, am more o’ a beer man. In fact, when purchasin’ me land lodgings I settled into a wee cottage just around the corner from a local brewhouse pub. “Calapooia Brewing Company” they call it and they make some splendid beers. In fact, the brewing warehouse wall sits at the back o’ me back yard and we’re still in negotiations for a direct line for me to tap into whenever the spirit moves (and as “spirits” go – mine is constantly movin’)

Arrrr! S’truth, why be building yer own Basement Bar (e’en a pirate basement bar!) when ye be havin’ a backyarrrrd bar already?

But tell me, me hearties, the pirate’s signature firewater be rum, what rums drink ye, and how do ye drink it?

Occasionally, I enjoy a nice rum drink. For a nice, neat rum – I go for “Pyrat Rum” – it’s a shame to mix it with anything – but occasionally I do – with Coca-Cola or, when I’m feelin’ me vitamin C deficiency, with some orange juice. Of course, I go heavy on the rum – light on the OJ. (As the evening wears on, sometimes I just wave the Orange Juice over the top o’ me full glass o’ rum and call it good.)

When I’m in need of a Vitamin C fix, I’ll drink me rum whilst looking at a picture of Ponce de Leon, who discovered Florida, where they grow so many of those oranges.

Havn’t had a cold in … well … days.

And what rum be goin’ wit’ yer oranges?

I usually drink Cruzan Rum’s Single Barrel – neat. I’m not a huge fan of dilutin’ me drinks with soda and water and fruit juices. I happen to live on the island where Cruzan is made (Cruzan means ‘from St. Croix.’ Although the people here are called Crucians. I still haven’t figured out why the difference.) So Cruzan s a might cheaper here than you’ll find it in the states.

Ol’ Chumbucket, matey. Yer voice be a bit, er, lubbery this fine marnin’. Um, not real, um, piratey….

YAARRRRRR!

Sorry.

I’m also not above experimenting (or bein’ experimented on) by new and dangerous concoctions o’ libational delights. But if’n it just be me – it’s probably just beer (good beer, mind ye – but beer nonetheless.)

Any other ways ye be likin’ to be wetting yer whistle, Ol’ Chumbucket?

I’ve also spent much of my life enjoying that marvelous concoction from the wonderfully creative people of Lynchburg, Tenn., where they know a thing or two about sippin’ whiskey.

Well, I’m sure ye fine mateys must be shovin’ off. I thank ye fer yer kind time and attention. Have ye any final words fer the pirates out there to be heedin’?

Aye! Remember kids! f you’re below the legal drinking age where ever you happen to be, don’t let me catch you partakin’ of the demon spirits! It’s bad for ye. Bad I say, and if you’re one of the nippers you should just stay away from the rum barrel. Do we have an accord? Good!

Ye be havin’ a rollickin’ good time on International Talk Like’n a Pirate Day, me hearties!

I’ve written about Grog before, outlining Don the Beachcomber’s contribution to the genre during the last International Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 19th. Mark your calendars!). What I alluded to back then, I’ll say flat out now: Grogs and Bumbos were the first Tiki drinks. Maybe that is why so many of us refer to the Tiki Elders, especially Don and Vic, as pirates.
At any rate, here is Trader Vic’s version of Grog. I used a single rum here, rather than following Tiki tradition and blending several, because it was late, I was tired after chopping fresh sugar cane swizzle sticks, and I wanted to give this new bottle of Appleton Estate 12 I bought a workout.

Recipe found in Trader Vic’s Tiki Party!

Avast there, me hearties! Here be me last of three drinks for yer piratin’ party pleasure this International Talk Like a Pirate Day. This one be the most authentic pirate drink of them all, yarrrr!
Back when them blasted party-poopers in the British Navy were sufferin’ their way through the day with nothing but Grog to keep them from a realizin’ how much better we pirates were livin’, we pirates were a livin’ better’n them by drinkin’ Bumbo! Now, pirates ain’t be known much fer their rigorous spellin’ adherence, so ye’ll be findin’ this drink spelled all sorts o’ ways across the Spanish Main Internet, like Bumboo, Bombo, and most likely Bongofongo! Narrrr! Probably not be tellin’ the truth with that last one….

Bumbo was by way of bein’ Grog made all piratically tasty with the addition o’ whatever flavorings had been recently plundered along the way. When yer takin’ whatever ye be wantin’, whenever ye be wantin’ it, there always be plenty o’ flavorin’ to had.
To tell the truth, pirates may have gone overboard at times with how much they added to their Bumbo. Indeed, some bloggers have gone so far as to suggest that pirates were the first consumers of girly drinks! Some bloggers had best shut their hatches, or they’ll be a walkin’ the plank, me hearties! Yarrrrr!

This recipe be touched up just a wee bit to make it easier on me less hearty hearties who only pirate on September 19th! If you want the true base Bumbo, like a bonny crew might be quaffin’ on the high seas while running like little girlies from pursuin’ a British frigate, omit the juice and instead o’ chillin’ the mix, just use an ounce o’ cold water to cut the rumbullion!
For a sea o’ other Drink Like a Pirate Day cocktails, set sail for me main ITLaPD post fer a treasure map! Arrrr!

Ahoy, me bonny crew! This wee libation is bein’ me favorite of me three International Talk Like a Pirate Day drinks, even if it be sufferin’ from a most unfortunate etymological origin.

Avast!
No pirate worth the salt in his beard be usin’ such fancy dan words as etymological. Yarrrr!

Arrrr. Perhaps ye be speakin’ the truth. Let’s be findin’ out fer sure.
Ahoy me hearties! Take Mr. Guy here and let him ask the experts. They be swimmin’ around just below the end o’ that plank!
As I was sayin’, Navy (Arrrgh!) Grog has a most unfortunate name and origin. I spit on those Navy dogs! And the real Grog o’ the British Navy from pirate days was pretty scurvy stuff, bein’ naught but bad rum, with a wee tot o’ worse water to cut the burn. Arrrr!
But back in the 1930s, a man named Don the Beachcomber took the name and mixed up a true bonny cocktail he was by way o’ callin’ Navy Grog. It be worth the drinkin’ me lads and lassies. Yarrr!
Now, Don’ original recipe be as unknown as the location of Blackbeard’s Treasure, me hearties. The original tiki pirate was powerful secretive with his mixing instructions, since his rivals like Trader Vic were always on the lookout fer ways to plunder him! Don was a cunning buccaneer, who were like to be livin’ the ITLaPD lifestyle every day of his piratical life! Arrrrr!

Regardless, through considerable reverse engineerin’, a powerful number o’ corsairs have worked out what was probably in Don’s Navy Grog. Here be me take on this tasty treat, with a nod of thanks to the hoity-toity rum drinker for help wit’ the brands!

For a sea o’ other Drink Like a Pirate Day cocktails, set sail for me main ITLaPD post fer a treasure map! Arrrr!

Ahoy, mateys! This is bein’ the first o’ me International Talk Like a Pirate Day drinks, and the one most o’ ye scurvy dogs will want to be orderin’ should ye shove off to sail the bars o’ Spanish Main this festive holiday evenin’.

But beware, laddies!
If’n ye be drinkin’ too much rumbullion while ye be out wenchin’, yer cutlass’ll be too weak fer the boardin’ party!

Harrrr! That be why I be keepin’ ye around, ye mangy boot-filler puppet. So I can be disavowin’ comments like that last me ownself, arrrr!

This simplest o’ pirate potables is Cap’n and Coke, me hearties. Sure, there be other spiced rums out there, with better, ‘n worse, pedigrees than Captain Morgan, patron saint of ITLaPD that he be. But most dockside taverns ye scurvy lot will stumble into will be barren o’ all but the bonny Cap’n. And that be fine, arrrr!
Regardless, just be takin’ a good measure o’ the Cap’n's original, put it in a flagon, add ice and Coca-Cola. Squeeze in a wedge o’ lime, if’n ye be a fancy dan. Raise it up to yer crew and bellow out the pirate toast: ARRRRR!

Arrrrr!

Arrrrr!

Yarrrrr!

Just drink up, me bucko!
For a sea o’ other Drink Like a Pirate Day cocktails, set sail for me main ITLaPD post fer a treasure map! Arrrr!

UPDATE: Ahoy, ye marauding hordes from Mashable! There be lot o’ non-pirate drinkin’ an’ thinkin’ about these waters, so search fer some other treasure afore ye be leavin’!


Ahoy there, me fine fellow corsairs! It be International Talk Like a Pirate Day, or as we here on the good ship Buccaneer’s Strumpet like to say, International Drink Like a Pirate Day! Yarrrrr!
It be the time o’ year to celebrate the most entertainin’ internet meme of the all, arrrr!
What’s that, me proud beauty?
Yarrrr! Indeed, ITLaPD is the best o’ them all! Yes, even better than pictures of adorable little shark bait kitties with worse language skills than ours! Now get ready to drink up!

This year, on International Talk Like a Pirate Day, yer bonny Pegu Blog has scoured the Seven Seas for appropriate refreshment to drink on this day… and any other where ye be feelin’ piratical! And I, yer genial host Mad Morty Rackham, have rounded up three potent potables to pour down yer parched pirate piehole! A good pirate cocktail is just what this old sea dog needs after a long day o’ keelhaulin’, and plunderin’, and pillagin’.
Now, I’ve been bloggin’ up a storm, a gale, me hearties, over ITLaPD this week. I started with a shot across the bow, then I wrote about supplies ye need to be fillin’ yer hold with for this bonny day, and I also addressed how to be talkin’ like a pirate in the most important port of all, a bar! Arrrr!
But today, lay yer helm hard over, and set yer course fer these three ports o’ call, each ripe for plunderin’!

• Cap’n n’ Coke
• Navy Grog
• Bumbo

But before ye be headin’ off to swill some rhum, me buckos, it be time for a pirate song!

Avast! Now, where be that tavern wench? Ah there she be! Drink up, me buckos!

Although my focus on September 19th this year will be on renaming it International Drink Like a Pirate Day, for most folks it will be about the talking thing. And even for us pirate drinkers, it is important to get the voice down just so. So my post today is intended to get you all ready to, well, talk like a pirate.
I want to start with the basics of pirate talk, The Five A’s. This first video is from the leaders of the ITLaPD movement, Cap’n Slappy and Ol’ Chumbucket, the Pirate Guys.

These five words, Ahoy!, Avast!, Aye!, Aye-aye!, and Arrrr!, must include the exclamation point when written, in case you were wondering.
For a more advanced and modern method of learning pirate, the good folks at Rosetta Stone are working on a new product, but I’m afraid it may not yet be available commercially. Perhaps the Navy has bought all available copies for use in the Indian Ocean. At any rate, take a good look:

TalkLikeaPirate.com has much more advanced information for your piratin’ usage, including Pirate Pickup Lines (“Have ye ever met a man with a real yardarm?”), German, Swedish, and Mandarin pirate talk, and even a link to Internet Pirate Chat Acronyms (WWLJSPD-What would Long John Silver’s parrot do?).
In the interests of trying to add something original to the ITLaPD phenomenon, I here offer several lists of suggested pirate talk while pirate drinking.
For pirates in bars:

• “Ahoy, Barkeep! Ye be splashing me a flagon full o’ Cap’n Morgan’s best, and be smart about it!”
• Arrrr, it be Harry the Hook! (Ed note—Harry the Hook’s real name is probably Dwight or Skip) Lay along side, and let yer old friend buy ye a beer.
• Ahoy, me beauty! How can I find a map to your treasure?
• Avast, Bartender! How many doubloons be I owin’ ye?
  Arrrrr?!?
  Who’s been plunderin’ me tab?

For pirate lassies in bars:

• Avast Molly the Red and Bad Betty, me hearties! I be lovin’ this chanty the DJ be playin’! Let’s all go and dance the hornpipe together!
• Avast, ye lubber! Steer to the lee, afore I plug yer bunghole with me boot!
• Arrrr, me fellow pirate lasses. That bell be tellin’ me ’tis time to set sail together for the head!
• Avast, me likely Barman! I’ll be havin’ another Cosmogrogitan.
  Arrrr?
  Arrrr, just be puttin it on yon sailor’s tab. He be buyin’ me grog this night!

And finally, for the tavern keeper, or his serving wenches:

• Ahoy, Cap’n. What manner of grog be ye wantin’ to wash the taste o’ the sea from yer bilge?
• Arrrr! ‘Tis a sad, sad sea tale ye just told, me pirate friend. What canna ye be wantin’ to drown yer sorrows?
• Aye aye, Horrible Harry, Terror of the Lake Erie Main. One Appletini comin’ yer way smartly!
• Avast, ye scurvy land lubber! Where be me doubloons for all yer pirate lagers? Ware, lest I take me belaying pin to yer noggin!

There’s much more video assistance with general pirate talk, but in the interests of not slowing down my main page load, I’ll jam it under the fold. Otherwise, be sure to be steerin’ yer way back to these waters on September 19th its own self. There’ll be lots of recipes to whet yer pirate whistle!
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