Backwoods Blog

SCREECH IN

Backwoods Blog;

in the woods and on the road…

Guinness draft stout at Christian’s Pub in St. John’s, Newfoundland

Before we left for our trip to Newfoundland several people asked us if we were going to get “screeched-in” while we were there. I had no idea what they were talking about?! It turns out there is an island tradition where you can become an honorary Newfoundlander by participating in a simple ceremony and it’s called getting “screeched-in.” There are several variations of the ceremony, but most of them include eating a piece of fried bologna (of which Newfoundlanders eat on average 5 pounds per person each year), repeat several Newfoundland phrases, drink a shot of Screech Jamaican Rum, and this is the best part, kiss a frozen cod. In preparation for our trip we re-watched the Newfoundland episode of Anthony Bourdain’s travel/food show Parts Unknown. In the closing scene of E11E03  https://youtu.be/hQm1cTDR4sE?si=UEZMxfweyVyb9hbq he is “screeched-in” at Christian’s Pub in St.John’s. We decided to pre-book our “screech-in” at Christian’s Pub and do the same! 

Christian’s Pub is located on George Street, one of the oldest streets in St. John’s known for having the most bars and pubs per square foot of any street in North America. During breakfast on the day of our “screech-in” as we were talking to a couple sitting next to us at the b&b we discovered they were also getting “screeched-in” at Christian’s in the same time slot as us. We told our “new-found” friends, Al and Monique we would meet them there. Brian Day is the owner and face of Christian’s Pub (a.k.a. Skipper Lukey) and he’s the master of ceremony of the “screech-in.”  The skipper does have a flair for the dramatic and when I saw a flash of blazing fire behind the bar I knew the bologna had hit the pan and the event was about to begin. The ceremony took about 45 minutes and while he certainly has his spiel down, his spontaneous responses with the would be screechers and his ability to remember everyone’s name was remarkable. There were 42  of us in our group and by the end of the “screech-in” he retained all of our names and most of our places of origin. We also had to learn a bit of Newfoundland lingo. When the MC asks “Is ye a Screecher?” your proper reply is “Deed I is, me old cock (translates my old friend), and long may your big jib draw!” This is an island blessing meaning “may the wind always be in your forward sails.” While difficult to say at rapid speed with a Newfoundland accent (and after a couple of beers) most of us struggled our way through it like true islanders…Skipper Lukey made a heart-felt toast to the late Anthony Bourdain as we prepared to drink our shot of Screech Jamaican Rum. Lukey pointed to the booth where he sat and had a drink with Anthony after the filming of the show. He said that Anthony Bourdain was the same guy off-camera that he was on-camera and credited Tony for changing his life (and business) after the episode was released. In his own way, Brian Day is embodying the tradition of good food, good drink, music, camaraderie and strong personality as he initiates we mainlanders into the “Royal Order of Screechers.” Skipper Lukey even took a larger than life group-selfie of Al, Monique, Linda and I afterwards (see photos below). If you watch the video closely you will also see Monique and Al standing beside Linda as we receive our “Screech-In Certificates.” https://youtu.be/kLIOtbrQ5Uk For more on Anthony Bourdain and Bourdain Day check out Backwoods Blog #16 https://backwoodsblog.com/2020/08/21/isolation-blues-16/

On the road,

Dave

September 27, 2023

The view from the back corner table…

Brian Day owner of Christian’s Pub  (a.k.a. Skipper Lukey) 

Linda kissing a frozen cod

Dave getting personal with a frozen cod…

Dave & Linda, honorary Newfoundlanders!

Group-selfie with Skipper Lukey!!

Christian’s Pub; St. John’s, Newfoundland