b'P o r tA r a n s a sThe end of an era was celebrated last November 1st, when hundreds of patrons, musi-cians and island enthusiasts gathered at Shortys Place for a last hoorah. No one, includ-ing Edwin Myers, was certain about the beloved bars fate, but its devotees, the heart and soul of Port A, were determined to hang onto it. One of those devotees was Chris Jordan, a contractor whose band, Selfie, was a regular act at Shortys Place, and whose crew would conduct the exceedingly difficult dismantling, relocation, reassembly, and connection of the bar and two additional structures on the new site. Set upon a new foundation, rebuilt inside and brought together with new decking, the precision and skill of their construction work is truly astonishing.For generations, Shortys patrons, perhaps many after throwing down a few, would be-queath their ball caps, gimme caps, to be pinned for posterity on the bars ceiling. Hun-dreds had accumulated over the years, and a well-organized operation was initiated to preserve them through the move. Each of thousands of caps was unpinned from the ceilings beams and washed. Some did not make it, and disintegrated in the process, but hundreds were saved and re-pinned to Shortys ceiling at its new home. Myers most Above: Shortyssignificant improvement has been to the comfort of Shortys patronsits new position-Place now opening and proximity to the gulf have greatly improved air flow, the ceiling has been foam-on Beach Streetsealed to insulate from the heat, and the bathrooms are now air conditioned!at North Alister,When asked, Edwin Myers only explanation as to his motivation for saving Shortys where two otherPlace was, Its the right thing to do.buildings have been adjoined.Often, maybe more often than not, the right thing morally is also the right thing for Left: Gimmebusiness. Rather than following the crowd and watching what is old and loved be re-Caps pinnedplaced by the luxurious and exclusive, Edwin Myers has not only saved a Port A icon, on the rafters ofbut he has created the center of island nostalgia on the most prominent corner of the Shortys were re- towns historic epicenter. Every now and then, the trend of the day gets bucked, and moved, washedyoung and old, rich and not-so-rich, find a place where they feel at homethats always and re-pinned. been Shortys Place, the Islands Oldest and Friendliest.134THE COASTAL BEND GUIDE TheCoastalBend.com'