THE FATHER BLOG

For Booze Tuesday, I’m discussing the celebratory beer. Good news about this…it can be anything you have in the fridge because it’s more about the occasion than the beer. And why am I discussing celebratory beers on a random Tuesday? It’s because Mikey and his high school varsity team took home the championship last night. When I got home late last night….I needed a beer…celebratory or to settle the excitement before bedtime….or possibly a little bit of both.

I’m proud of him and his teammates for what they have accomplished. I’m particularly proud of the way Mikey endured this season. Mikey was the youngest and smallest on this team. When the season started, he had dreams of playing for varsity but said he would have been happy just being able to practice with them.

He got the occasional practice early on but was still seem as “too small” and they were worried he could get hurt, so they didn’t play him or even allow him to dress for the varsity team. As the season went on, he got to practice more and prove himself until they let him play in a game. And he produced right away with goals and assists and also by showing his size had nothing to do with his ability to compete as that level.

Fast forward a couple months to last night. Mikey was now on the starting line. He had the primary assist on the goal that finally put them in the lead for the first time late in the 3rd period. And he was out on the ice as the clock hit 0:00 as they celebrated the teams’ first championship.

Life isn’t easy….it’s going to throw you around and try to keep you down. But sometimes you work and fight hard enough and you win some of life’s battles. And when you do, go and have yourself a celebratory beer….You deserve it!!

Today’s topic is not the war with Iran as I’m not a political debater or someone who follows politics closely. I will certainly stick with my Monday topic of Finances though as the two are undoubtedly intertwined.

So, how will this war with Iran effect the Stock Market? It already has and if you are paying (or paid) attention, there is money to be made. Overall, the market has dipped and you could simply buy into more S & P 500 ETFs as the prices are down and make some good long term money because they will eventually rise. Where will it bottom out? That’s anyone’s guess but never a bad time to buy as the S &P 500 has already lost it’s yearly gains for 2026.

You can research as well….but maybe look into the defense sector, oil, gold, silver, etc….those just may get a temporary boost.

It’s all how you want to play it. Long term or quick hit for profits and get out. Either way, market fluctuations and volatility is not always a bad thing if you’re doing your due diligence.

Having a business meeting in Nashville, or the “Bachelorette Capital of the World” or “Nashvegas,” probably could have been more interesting, but I’ll say it was uneventful at best.

The weather wasn’t great, the meeting obviously took place mid week, etc. But I will say downtown Nashville, particularly Honky Tonk Highway, is a pretty lively place and you will never run out of places to slip into for live music. The bands were all good that we heard and don’t think for a second that you will only hear country music there. It definitely dominates the scene but we listened to a great band at Kid Rock’s who played a great 80’s set list while we were there. You can probably find whatever you’re looking for there if you search hard enough.

I was a little disappointed in myself that I didn’t research the hockey schedule better as the Chicago Blackhawks were in town and my hotel was across the street from the Bridgestone Arena. Had I stayed the extra night, I could have watch the game. In hindsight, the Predators beat the Blackhawks last night so maybe it worked out for the best.

Drink-wise…you can’t go wrong with the hard stuff there. Bourbon and whiskey galore! The handful of craft beers I had were mostly average (at best). The Homestyle IPA from Bearded Iris brewing was by far the best and luckily was available everywhere…so I basically stuck with that one.

Would I go back to Nashville for a vacation? I highly doubt it. Nice city but don’t think I could spend more than a night or two there unless you are really into country music. There is the Grand Ole Opry and the Country Music Hall of Fame if that’s what interests you. Maybe I’d fly into Nashville for a night on the way to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park just for a change of pace and a great meal.