Today, for me, feels like a snow day. I lounge around in bed reading, one of my cats sitting nearby licking herself. Instead of wearing my regular pants, I put on pajamas. I want to feel cozzy. There is no snow down here in Texas (though a night that was freezing!), but feels as if there could be. I put on my tie-dye socks for some brightly colored coziness. All I have planned is to read. Read & watch movies.
Last night I got The Pacific from the library. It's a fairly thick book by Hugh Ambrose (Son of Stephan E. Ambrose, author of Band of Brothers) about WW2 in the Pacific (for the U.S. Marines). Recently (last year or so...) HBO made a miniseries by the same name, and this book is "The Official Companion" to the show. Before HBO made The Pacific, in 2001 they made (or more accurately released) Band Of Brothers. But wait, Liam, you just said this Stephan Ambrose guy wrote a book called Band of Brothers. Why yes, he did, and then HBO made a tv series of it. BOB follows "Easy Company" 2nd battalion, 506 Regiment, 101st Airborne Division of the U.S. Army. They fought in Europe from Normandy to Germany.
Anyways, I started watching The Pacific online after I read an account by one of the soldiers who is depicted on the show (E.B. Sledge's With The Old Breed). Both shows do a fantastic job of showing war, through unexpected explosions blowing limbs off, to the sweat & tears from the men. It can be a bit hard to understand what's goin' on though, so I grabbed the book (and I love reading, and love history, and well, yeah, love reading history). Anyways, it's quite well written & I recommend it for people who enjoy history.
Well, I talked about that a long more than I wanted too. Blah, war sucks. Always fascinated me (in a historical sense) though.
Anyways, X-Mas is soon to be here & I'm quite excited for that. I have sent several gifts in the mail for friends which will of course reach them after X-Mas. That's nice to receive, cause you've already thought you'd gotten what you would be gettin'! I've got several gifts under our lovely tree (decorated by my mother, a wonderful decorator) and have already opened one.
A camera! From my snappin' Dad. I say snappin' for he is a photographer, and always "snap's away" during the day. Thank you very much, that's been fun to fool with. Currently I can't put up what few good photo's I have, perhaps another day. I always find it amusing that Christmas is the biggest holiday of the Christian faith celebrated by non-Christians (myself completely included). I think this has to do with the previous generations raised in Christendom, and even if they themselves don't consider themselves Christians, they still celebrate it. That's my crack at it. Maybe one day only Christians will celebrate it. Maybe it'll continue being celebrated by Christians & non-Christians alike. Frankly, X-Mas for me doesn't have to do with the homeboy JC and his devotee, it's just about caring & love for others. Hence "Christmas Spirit". Even if it's quite commercialized.....
I'd like to see the love that comes out during this time, all the time. Which is what I go for. Now that I think about it Christmas Love doesn't seem to be there. Just in old movies.... Now, maybe this is just a little thought I think as I sit alone in this house...Do you feel X-Mas love? Or love from any other holiday that goes on this time of year?
Maybe one of these years I'll celebrate the Hanukkah Spirit (which I assume is just caring & love for folks) and get or make or claim a menorah.
Heh, but of course, that seems more religious to me that continuing to celebrate X-Mas, and not having considered myself Christian since the third grade or so.....interesting.
Well, this is just one big ramble of course. I'm gunna go, make some cereal-yogurt-healthy-stuff, eat it, watching some movies & read. Cause, I feel like being cozy. Made a nice fire last night, maybe I'll do the same today.
Whatever you celebrate or don't, Happy Happy to you.
I wish you well, and a greatcrazynew-New Year on it's way.
Liam.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Hello Fall My Old Friend
In-case you didn't get what was running through my brain when I typed the title, it's based off the first lyric of "Sound of Silence" by Simon & Garfunkel. Lisssten to in maaaan.
I like fall, except for the coming of the cold.
It happens to be the prettiest season up here in New England. The leaves turn over their crisp green and show off golden yellows, & oh so sweet oranges.
My fall started with the wonderful Not Back To School Camp.
An amazing camp for teenage unschoolers & homeschoolers. I want to write about my weekend, so I shall be brief about this camp. I was there last year, at the gorgeous campground of Farm & Wilderness in Vermont. This year due to Hurricane Irena, (devastating damage to Vermont) we moved sites to Camp Huckins, located in Freedom NH. Camp Huckins is an all girl YMCA camp, right across the lake from Camp Robin Hood, the current home of Dance New England! If you don't know, DNE Aka Dance Camp, is the hippie camp I've been going to since I was in the womb. I in fact kayaked out to Camp Huckins during Dance Camp, only to find out a few weeks later that I would be in that area soon. At Not Back To School Camp (NBTSC) there is soooo much to do! Different classes ranging from blues dancing to hide & go seek go on all day. Run by both the staff & kids :)
Only meetings and advisory groups are you actually required to attend. The advisory group is a group of 6 or 7 campers that meet in the mornings, and "check-in". Good stuff.
If ya just want to hangout, see old friends. You are more than welcome. It was a beautiful time.
But now! My weekend! What an adventure! And when I say weekend, I refer to yesterday. A day of great fun & adventure. I have a good friend in Winchester named Julien. His17th birthday is this Wednesday, and decided that it'd be pretty cool to grab our friends & go camping for a night on a mountain in New Hampshire. He's got a house up here (In fact I'm sitting out on his porch now. Now being at the time this is written...who knows where I'll be when you read this) in New Hampshire & we would be staying up there the rest of the weekend. But as it turns out the party to be, was well, just me. Never the less, Julien & I plannded to still hike up the mountain & campout for a night. The two of us! All alone!
Mountain, mountain, mountain. Now what mountain? A ski mountain. The name I shall leave out....(perhaps we tented in a no tent zone & made a fire in a no firezone...but perhaps not)
Alas, the name doesn't really matter.
Julien drove his family & me up to his house Friday night....Saturday morning, we set up & took down his tent several times to get the hang of it. Not that hard...
After a scrumptious lunch we were dropped off at the trail.
Boy, oh, boy it was just two wild boys now!
Our journey started with crossing a rushing river!
Sorta.
It certainly seemed so with our high spirits. Hopping from rock to rock we crossed the stream (it was a decent size, not a little creek or such ). Raving about a minute into our hike we had to cross water, we found ourselves at a smaller stream. This one we could easily get over, but oh no I couldn't have that! We grabbed a fallen log and pushed it over the water. It was quite heavy, and got it most of the way across. I quickly (alright I wasn't that quick 'bout it) walked over the log and with a small jump made it to the other side. Julien did the same. Now, I of course brought hiking boots of this adventure. But man, what a beautiful day it was, so being the stubborn bare-footer I am, didn't wear them. Not at all :)
Pretty soon we stopped, I was gettin' hot with my clothes on. Changing into the shorts my dad advised me to bring, I also ditched my shirt (keepin' my comfy flannel shirt unbuttoned on at least for a bit longer). Eating half a cliff bar we continued.
Up, up, up.
After a few stops we found a large rock, that had a nice little seat jutting out. After climbin' around & snapping some photo's we continued our hike. Our legs sore we marched & marched.
Pretty soon we got to some beautiful areas....the path had flattened out a bit which was wonderful to our thighs. The trees at this stretch of the hike were giving off a great vibe. I started hugging them, tall purdy birch trees. Birch are now on my top favorite types of trees to hug. They give fantastic hugs like most trees, but what I found so amazing was their size. Just big enough for a firm hug, but easy to wrap your arms around.
Julien wanted a picture, so I told him to "Get his camera out next time I hug one, which will be soon. I don't really want to pose." And so, around the bend, there was a patch of some sort of leafy thing, that looked utterly gorgeous with the golden sunshine shining down on it. In my nature-loving hippy mood I hugged more trees, to which Jules got photo's of.
Soon though our trail headed up, up, up again. We passed a fair amount of folks, all pretty friendly.
And then, filling our hearts with joy, we saw blue sky ahead of us. We were so close to the top!
The summit was quite small, but ever so pretty. We threw our packs down & literally flew up a side path to see the best view we could. Sadly, there were a lot of trees all around, and so we only got a small glance at some mountains behind us. After hanging out, we continued on the trail. Julien believed this was not the final peak! He had been here before hiking, and sorta new the area. As we followed the path it took a dive down the mountain. A slow dive, but none the less a descent....where was the peak we were searching for? Looking for answers (and for the kicks) we searched for trees to climb. There were two pines (one for each of us) that looked like they'd give us some sort of answer. I told Julien "To tell my mother I love her" in a dramatic voice that woulda fit some World War 1 movie, and scampered up the tree. Julien's was harder to climb, and he didn't get far. I however, plugged on, and got as high as I could, breathing in one of the best view of the day. Could be my favorite one, due to having to climb through a maze of branches to get that wonderful sight. But, there was some disappointing news for us. We were going downhill, but seemingly would go up a bigger mountain. After climbing down, I took a short video, showing my few cuts from the climb, and showing off the eager yet tired grin of Julien & I.
The hike up the mountain wasn't as bad as we thought...and quite pretty. Full of moss. How I love moss, that soft delicate green. I'd love to sleep on it for a time...
Climbing through many mossed covered rocks, we were once again rewarded with a fantastic view of the valley & surrounding mountains. There we met two other hikers, two older guys. Chatting for a bit, we all made our descent though on different paths. Julien and I took a path that looked promising & of course pretty.
Promising for what? adventure of course! It soon looped to the path the old guys took, which then led to a very steep path of rocks. Rocks. Lots of rocks. Now my feet were fine up to this point (the same with the booted Jules) but then they became sore (and Julien's blisters were, driving him blistering mad! ;).
We continued walking down, complaining of the rocks. Julien also was bummed out for this wasn't the path he wanted to take, and we were now not going to stop at the top of the ski area. I could see his spirits dampening, and try to "zen" him out of it, bring him into the now. But then, just as luck would have, he exclaimed that he found the path! "The path to the ski slope man!" He explained. It didn't look like much of a path, but I followed hopefully. And once again, a beautiful view came into our sights. A ski slope in fall.
That quick sentence doesn't do justice to the spectacular view we saw, and how our hearts were lifted.
"We can make camp at the ski lift stop, it's close." The scruffy faced Julien said pointing to the ski lift line..."We'll just follow it" he said with a grin. He then had the brilliant idea of climbing up the ski lift pole. We took turns, photographing each other as we climbed to the top (there's a small ladder :).We headed down the steep slope, wide-eyed with goofy grins. The sun was slowly setting to our backs.
The marvelous "Northside" ski lift was our camp. After arriving, we sat down on one of the lifts and breathed. Julien set up the tent, as I gathered things for a fire. It was a warm night. Cloudless.
With the tent set up thanks to Jules, we gathered a little more firewood, and started a fire.
Wait sorry, did I say start a fire? Oh gee, misspoke there. TRIED. That's the word I was looking for.
We had plenty of canned food, which we could eat cooled, but man, we wanted fire. But fire didn't go.
Now, a little bit of chemistry. When a lighter is punctured, the fluid spews out from the chamber. Very quickly. In fact it shoots out as pressured gas, so the liquid dissipates within seconds. Basically, if you are trying to start a fire, with lighter fluid from cheap little lights, it doesn't work. You spray it everywhere instead.....I'd also advise against taking an axe to a lighter.....not sure were the other half went....
*NOT THAT WE DID THIS OR ANYHTING*
Ahm...noooo waaay maaaan.
Laughing as we stared at ember & wood....we remember the holy birch tree. "JULIEN, BIRCH.WE NEED BIRCH BARK!" He dived off into the woods and came back with loads. It was time for Fire On The Mountain. "Fire On The Mountain"
With an actual fire, our spirits flew like an eagle (Fly Like an Eagle-Steve Miller Band)
We cooked green beans & corn, totally one of the best canned food meals I've ever had. Warm water for our throats, and hot food for our stomach. Mhmm :)
We also cooked up a cold vegetarian stew thing...very tasty!
Julien then mentioned how he wished we had some music. A stero or something.
Only a couple of minutes later, we heard music. Amazed, we got up from the lift and ran to the slope. Live music, pop stuff. Right at the bottom of the slope. We quickly grabbed what we needed (phone, knife, wallet, water, almonds, boots & flashlights) made sure the cute little fire was out....and ran down the rest of the way. Ran, and uh, jumped. Skipped & slid. It was was wet, grassy, and a bit sharp even (cut off bush stems). I didn't realize how cut up me feet were till we were at the bottom. Oh yeah, if you though I was wearing the boots, nope, a course not man.
We weren't really sure if it actually was live music, for the songs were different hit pop songs.....As we got closer, we saw tents. Tents & tents. Lots of tents. And a live band. Plus, a big group of people. Mainly kids younger then us, some our age. Lots of Boy Scout uniforms too...
The band was called The Zoo, "MTV's Cover Band". It was pretty rockin'.
Of course not really my music, but a very fun show! We raved about the chance to pick up chicks as we sprinted down, but soon realized that was that nights fantasy, and another nights adventure. We quickly went up as close as we could to the stage (ditching my boots & Julien's flashlight in a hiding spot) and started to boogie. Of course we also happened to be next to a few girls. Pretty much the only girls there. The band took a set break, and I shat in a portie-pottie. We found out that this was a Boy Scout Jamboree, only happening every 4 years.
With the music pumping we jumped and dance for a while longer, till the band left. Calls for an encore came from a few people of the crowd (me included), though most started to leave. The male lead singer came back on, asking if they could do an encore. I screamed a yes (more, more, more! Neither Julien or I wanted to hike up the mountain to camp). The band came back on, doin' a request. Jay-Z. I showed Jules my "gansta hippy dance" and soon realized the song was "New York", the song Mr. Z did with Alicia Keys.
Alicia Keys performs this on Colbert, my favorite version.
It was good. At the end, the band was signing posters, and Julien & I hung around watching the crowd & the band. The female singer was super hot, and I found it quite funny how several of their songs (all covers) had sex themes, and this hot lass was shakin' up the stage, to a bunch of 12 year olds. Hee Hee Haw!
We got a photo with the band, though sadly the guitarist snuck away (or so we think). We then became roadies! Alongside the "Service Corps" (a new section of the boy scouts dedicated to helping out with a smile) we packed up the sound stuff. It was a lot of fun.
Afterwards, we may have almost taken an American flag that was left on the stage, and taken some pop tarts from on of the unlocked buildings. At 1 in the morning, we hiked up to camp.
Gawd, it was hard....but the sleep was sound & good.
Peace & Love,
Liam Here Comes Sunshine
P.S. Occupy Wallstreet is pretty "boss" for a slightly ironic description. Rock on guys!
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=259977164037403&set=a.206387512729702.43344.108734602494994&type=1&ref=nf
I like fall, except for the coming of the cold.
It happens to be the prettiest season up here in New England. The leaves turn over their crisp green and show off golden yellows, & oh so sweet oranges.
My fall started with the wonderful Not Back To School Camp.
An amazing camp for teenage unschoolers & homeschoolers. I want to write about my weekend, so I shall be brief about this camp. I was there last year, at the gorgeous campground of Farm & Wilderness in Vermont. This year due to Hurricane Irena, (devastating damage to Vermont) we moved sites to Camp Huckins, located in Freedom NH. Camp Huckins is an all girl YMCA camp, right across the lake from Camp Robin Hood, the current home of Dance New England! If you don't know, DNE Aka Dance Camp, is the hippie camp I've been going to since I was in the womb. I in fact kayaked out to Camp Huckins during Dance Camp, only to find out a few weeks later that I would be in that area soon. At Not Back To School Camp (NBTSC) there is soooo much to do! Different classes ranging from blues dancing to hide & go seek go on all day. Run by both the staff & kids :)
Only meetings and advisory groups are you actually required to attend. The advisory group is a group of 6 or 7 campers that meet in the mornings, and "check-in". Good stuff.
If ya just want to hangout, see old friends. You are more than welcome. It was a beautiful time.
But now! My weekend! What an adventure! And when I say weekend, I refer to yesterday. A day of great fun & adventure. I have a good friend in Winchester named Julien. His17th birthday is this Wednesday, and decided that it'd be pretty cool to grab our friends & go camping for a night on a mountain in New Hampshire. He's got a house up here (In fact I'm sitting out on his porch now. Now being at the time this is written...who knows where I'll be when you read this) in New Hampshire & we would be staying up there the rest of the weekend. But as it turns out the party to be, was well, just me. Never the less, Julien & I plannded to still hike up the mountain & campout for a night. The two of us! All alone!
Mountain, mountain, mountain. Now what mountain? A ski mountain. The name I shall leave out....(perhaps we tented in a no tent zone & made a fire in a no firezone...but perhaps not)
Alas, the name doesn't really matter.
Julien drove his family & me up to his house Friday night....Saturday morning, we set up & took down his tent several times to get the hang of it. Not that hard...
After a scrumptious lunch we were dropped off at the trail.
Boy, oh, boy it was just two wild boys now!
Our journey started with crossing a rushing river!
Sorta.
It certainly seemed so with our high spirits. Hopping from rock to rock we crossed the stream (it was a decent size, not a little creek or such ). Raving about a minute into our hike we had to cross water, we found ourselves at a smaller stream. This one we could easily get over, but oh no I couldn't have that! We grabbed a fallen log and pushed it over the water. It was quite heavy, and got it most of the way across. I quickly (alright I wasn't that quick 'bout it) walked over the log and with a small jump made it to the other side. Julien did the same. Now, I of course brought hiking boots of this adventure. But man, what a beautiful day it was, so being the stubborn bare-footer I am, didn't wear them. Not at all :)
Pretty soon we stopped, I was gettin' hot with my clothes on. Changing into the shorts my dad advised me to bring, I also ditched my shirt (keepin' my comfy flannel shirt unbuttoned on at least for a bit longer). Eating half a cliff bar we continued.
Up, up, up.
After a few stops we found a large rock, that had a nice little seat jutting out. After climbin' around & snapping some photo's we continued our hike. Our legs sore we marched & marched.
Pretty soon we got to some beautiful areas....the path had flattened out a bit which was wonderful to our thighs. The trees at this stretch of the hike were giving off a great vibe. I started hugging them, tall purdy birch trees. Birch are now on my top favorite types of trees to hug. They give fantastic hugs like most trees, but what I found so amazing was their size. Just big enough for a firm hug, but easy to wrap your arms around.
Julien wanted a picture, so I told him to "Get his camera out next time I hug one, which will be soon. I don't really want to pose." And so, around the bend, there was a patch of some sort of leafy thing, that looked utterly gorgeous with the golden sunshine shining down on it. In my nature-loving hippy mood I hugged more trees, to which Jules got photo's of.
Soon though our trail headed up, up, up again. We passed a fair amount of folks, all pretty friendly.
And then, filling our hearts with joy, we saw blue sky ahead of us. We were so close to the top!
The summit was quite small, but ever so pretty. We threw our packs down & literally flew up a side path to see the best view we could. Sadly, there were a lot of trees all around, and so we only got a small glance at some mountains behind us. After hanging out, we continued on the trail. Julien believed this was not the final peak! He had been here before hiking, and sorta new the area. As we followed the path it took a dive down the mountain. A slow dive, but none the less a descent....where was the peak we were searching for? Looking for answers (and for the kicks) we searched for trees to climb. There were two pines (one for each of us) that looked like they'd give us some sort of answer. I told Julien "To tell my mother I love her" in a dramatic voice that woulda fit some World War 1 movie, and scampered up the tree. Julien's was harder to climb, and he didn't get far. I however, plugged on, and got as high as I could, breathing in one of the best view of the day. Could be my favorite one, due to having to climb through a maze of branches to get that wonderful sight. But, there was some disappointing news for us. We were going downhill, but seemingly would go up a bigger mountain. After climbing down, I took a short video, showing my few cuts from the climb, and showing off the eager yet tired grin of Julien & I.
The hike up the mountain wasn't as bad as we thought...and quite pretty. Full of moss. How I love moss, that soft delicate green. I'd love to sleep on it for a time...
Climbing through many mossed covered rocks, we were once again rewarded with a fantastic view of the valley & surrounding mountains. There we met two other hikers, two older guys. Chatting for a bit, we all made our descent though on different paths. Julien and I took a path that looked promising & of course pretty.
Promising for what? adventure of course! It soon looped to the path the old guys took, which then led to a very steep path of rocks. Rocks. Lots of rocks. Now my feet were fine up to this point (the same with the booted Jules) but then they became sore (and Julien's blisters were, driving him blistering mad! ;).
We continued walking down, complaining of the rocks. Julien also was bummed out for this wasn't the path he wanted to take, and we were now not going to stop at the top of the ski area. I could see his spirits dampening, and try to "zen" him out of it, bring him into the now. But then, just as luck would have, he exclaimed that he found the path! "The path to the ski slope man!" He explained. It didn't look like much of a path, but I followed hopefully. And once again, a beautiful view came into our sights. A ski slope in fall.
That quick sentence doesn't do justice to the spectacular view we saw, and how our hearts were lifted.
"We can make camp at the ski lift stop, it's close." The scruffy faced Julien said pointing to the ski lift line..."We'll just follow it" he said with a grin. He then had the brilliant idea of climbing up the ski lift pole. We took turns, photographing each other as we climbed to the top (there's a small ladder :).We headed down the steep slope, wide-eyed with goofy grins. The sun was slowly setting to our backs.
The marvelous "Northside" ski lift was our camp. After arriving, we sat down on one of the lifts and breathed. Julien set up the tent, as I gathered things for a fire. It was a warm night. Cloudless.
With the tent set up thanks to Jules, we gathered a little more firewood, and started a fire.
Wait sorry, did I say start a fire? Oh gee, misspoke there. TRIED. That's the word I was looking for.
We had plenty of canned food, which we could eat cooled, but man, we wanted fire. But fire didn't go.
Now, a little bit of chemistry. When a lighter is punctured, the fluid spews out from the chamber. Very quickly. In fact it shoots out as pressured gas, so the liquid dissipates within seconds. Basically, if you are trying to start a fire, with lighter fluid from cheap little lights, it doesn't work. You spray it everywhere instead.....I'd also advise against taking an axe to a lighter.....not sure were the other half went....
*NOT THAT WE DID THIS OR ANYHTING*
Ahm...noooo waaay maaaan.
Laughing as we stared at ember & wood....we remember the holy birch tree. "JULIEN, BIRCH.WE NEED BIRCH BARK!" He dived off into the woods and came back with loads. It was time for Fire On The Mountain. "Fire On The Mountain"
With an actual fire, our spirits flew like an eagle (Fly Like an Eagle-Steve Miller Band)
We cooked green beans & corn, totally one of the best canned food meals I've ever had. Warm water for our throats, and hot food for our stomach. Mhmm :)
We also cooked up a cold vegetarian stew thing...very tasty!
Julien then mentioned how he wished we had some music. A stero or something.
Only a couple of minutes later, we heard music. Amazed, we got up from the lift and ran to the slope. Live music, pop stuff. Right at the bottom of the slope. We quickly grabbed what we needed (phone, knife, wallet, water, almonds, boots & flashlights) made sure the cute little fire was out....and ran down the rest of the way. Ran, and uh, jumped. Skipped & slid. It was was wet, grassy, and a bit sharp even (cut off bush stems). I didn't realize how cut up me feet were till we were at the bottom. Oh yeah, if you though I was wearing the boots, nope, a course not man.
We weren't really sure if it actually was live music, for the songs were different hit pop songs.....As we got closer, we saw tents. Tents & tents. Lots of tents. And a live band. Plus, a big group of people. Mainly kids younger then us, some our age. Lots of Boy Scout uniforms too...
The band was called The Zoo, "MTV's Cover Band". It was pretty rockin'.
Of course not really my music, but a very fun show! We raved about the chance to pick up chicks as we sprinted down, but soon realized that was that nights fantasy, and another nights adventure. We quickly went up as close as we could to the stage (ditching my boots & Julien's flashlight in a hiding spot) and started to boogie. Of course we also happened to be next to a few girls. Pretty much the only girls there. The band took a set break, and I shat in a portie-pottie. We found out that this was a Boy Scout Jamboree, only happening every 4 years.
With the music pumping we jumped and dance for a while longer, till the band left. Calls for an encore came from a few people of the crowd (me included), though most started to leave. The male lead singer came back on, asking if they could do an encore. I screamed a yes (more, more, more! Neither Julien or I wanted to hike up the mountain to camp). The band came back on, doin' a request. Jay-Z. I showed Jules my "gansta hippy dance" and soon realized the song was "New York", the song Mr. Z did with Alicia Keys.
Alicia Keys performs this on Colbert, my favorite version.
It was good. At the end, the band was signing posters, and Julien & I hung around watching the crowd & the band. The female singer was super hot, and I found it quite funny how several of their songs (all covers) had sex themes, and this hot lass was shakin' up the stage, to a bunch of 12 year olds. Hee Hee Haw!
We got a photo with the band, though sadly the guitarist snuck away (or so we think). We then became roadies! Alongside the "Service Corps" (a new section of the boy scouts dedicated to helping out with a smile) we packed up the sound stuff. It was a lot of fun.
Afterwards, we may have almost taken an American flag that was left on the stage, and taken some pop tarts from on of the unlocked buildings. At 1 in the morning, we hiked up to camp.
Gawd, it was hard....but the sleep was sound & good.
Peace & Love,
Liam Here Comes Sunshine
P.S. Occupy Wallstreet is pretty "boss" for a slightly ironic description. Rock on guys!
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=259977164037403&set=a.206387512729702.43344.108734602494994&type=1&ref=nf
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Well, I did want to blog....
Hawllo der folks, the current time is 7:30 AM, EST.
My life's been pretty crazy, though what I really want to talk about is the Grateful Dead.
I will just say what I've been up too since June. I've now finished both The Original Scroll of On The Road, and the 1957 version...and I want to read them again. Mhmm-hmm.
For the past 3 weeks I've been at a Larping (Live-Action-Roleplaying) camp. It was quite exhausting, though much fun! I got to play crazy goblins, bandits, & ferocious vampires!
I am also single now (my choice) but I'm not really gonna go into it. If you're really curious, I'd be down to talk. Anyways, I'm going to Chicago!! Frankly, according to "the plan" I was supposed to be there by now (9:22 AM, see how 2 hours went by in just a couple of paragraphs)....but I missed my flight. My freakin' 6:25 flight.....Ughbazzam. I'll be leaving in a couple of hours, and arrive over there around 3.
And whaaaaayyyyyyy might you ask (or maybe not....)? Because of friends! Friends, love & joy! Friends being love & joy that is. Mainly the Souers (Emily & Wyatt) & Will Surhbur, but I plan on seein' as many folks as possible! They are all wonderful & cool!
We shall jam too! Wyatt, Ty (another hip Chicagoian) & I will have a beautiful blues jam I'm sure. Ahh! I'm excited! Then after the fun in Chi-Town, I'll be home for a night, a single night before Dance New England! DANCE CAMP! The wonderful hippie camp I call home (been going since I was in de womb :)
Then, after those kicks, it's time for more adventure at the Northeast Unschooling Conference! Fun fun! I'm so ver excited this year. I'll be stayin' with the Kimi Biegler kid (what a surprise!) but we'll be joined with two good friends; Abbi & Brianna'h! It'll be a party :D
So, the Grateful Dead....my love. Jerry Garcia's birthday was 2 days ago, on the 1st of August. He woulda been 69 (and I'm sure still playing). And now comes "The Days In Between", the time span between his birth & death. Datewise, not age wise. First-ninth of August, verse 53 wholes years (well, some leap years...)
Now I don't have a lot of time, for brother Jason is buggin' me to watch somethin' on Netflix (Since I missed the flight, we've finished Clerks, which is utterly fantastic, and played two games of magic....and ate), but anywho, story time of how I got into the Dead. I had heard their name as a small child (for my father has a Dick's Pick's Grateful Dead Cd), but never listened. Not that I know at least....but this memory of the cd, and the cover photo (a flying magic ticket) stayed with me. After my Dad & I moved into our Mystic Valley residence, I found a "Best Of" cd for the Grateful Dead. I then listened, and oh boy, did I dig it! Yass yass yessir I did. It was wonderful, & totally rockin'. So I looked for other cds at the library. I took two out, Reckoning, & Go To Heaven. None of the Best Of cds had any tracks the other cds had. Even better I thought!
Well, I was disappointed. I think I listened to Reckoning first. It now holds several favorites of mine....but when I first heard it, I only liked "Dire Wolf" the first song...that rest was "eh" to me.
Dire Wolf
I then listened to Go To Heaven, which had some cool stuff....but I wasn't really diggin' it. Now, what I didn't know was the Best Of was made in 1974, "only" 10 years in the Grateful Dead's carer. Reckoning was made in 1980 (though the songs were mostly from the early 70's) & Go To Heaven also came out in 1980. It was definitely way more 80's than, well, the 70's & 60's stuff. But I was annoyed, the Best Of had such great tracks such as sugar magnolia, Casey Jones, & Uncle John's Band!
A rockin' Sugar Mangnolia, from '73
I felt compelled to like them, but I needed to genuinely like them of course. I didn't wnat to only like "the best of". The summer before, at a camp (North Woods) some of the councilors had Grateful Dead shirts, talked about them, or sang a song of theirs. They were cool, I looked up to them (Not knowing anything 'bout them though...just a little kid, lookin' up to the cool older guys....which I saw at Larp Camp, from now the perspective of the older kid, being "idolized"). I listened to the albums again, trying to like it.
And frankly, I guess it just happened. I'm not really sure. All of a sudden I like it! Mainly Go To Heaven. Reckoning wasn't a big on my list (the like list that is) till a little while ago (as I said, I dig it now!). And since this was 3 or 4 years ago now, my love for the Grateful Dead has only grown. Man, I freakin' love 'em!
Here's a whole show of theirs, I haven't listened to to much, but it's good man!
Love ya
Liam
http://www.archive.org/details/gd72-08-27.sbd.orf.3328.sbeok.shnf
My life's been pretty crazy, though what I really want to talk about is the Grateful Dead.
I will just say what I've been up too since June. I've now finished both The Original Scroll of On The Road, and the 1957 version...and I want to read them again. Mhmm-hmm.
For the past 3 weeks I've been at a Larping (Live-Action-Roleplaying) camp. It was quite exhausting, though much fun! I got to play crazy goblins, bandits, & ferocious vampires!
I am also single now (my choice) but I'm not really gonna go into it. If you're really curious, I'd be down to talk. Anyways, I'm going to Chicago!! Frankly, according to "the plan" I was supposed to be there by now (9:22 AM, see how 2 hours went by in just a couple of paragraphs)....but I missed my flight. My freakin' 6:25 flight.....Ughbazzam. I'll be leaving in a couple of hours, and arrive over there around 3.
And whaaaaayyyyyyy might you ask (or maybe not....)? Because of friends! Friends, love & joy! Friends being love & joy that is. Mainly the Souers (Emily & Wyatt) & Will Surhbur, but I plan on seein' as many folks as possible! They are all wonderful & cool!
We shall jam too! Wyatt, Ty (another hip Chicagoian) & I will have a beautiful blues jam I'm sure. Ahh! I'm excited! Then after the fun in Chi-Town, I'll be home for a night, a single night before Dance New England! DANCE CAMP! The wonderful hippie camp I call home (been going since I was in de womb :)
Then, after those kicks, it's time for more adventure at the Northeast Unschooling Conference! Fun fun! I'm so ver excited this year. I'll be stayin' with the Kimi Biegler kid (what a surprise!) but we'll be joined with two good friends; Abbi & Brianna'h! It'll be a party :D
So, the Grateful Dead....my love. Jerry Garcia's birthday was 2 days ago, on the 1st of August. He woulda been 69 (and I'm sure still playing). And now comes "The Days In Between", the time span between his birth & death. Datewise, not age wise. First-ninth of August, verse 53 wholes years (well, some leap years...)
Now I don't have a lot of time, for brother Jason is buggin' me to watch somethin' on Netflix (Since I missed the flight, we've finished Clerks, which is utterly fantastic, and played two games of magic....and ate), but anywho, story time of how I got into the Dead. I had heard their name as a small child (for my father has a Dick's Pick's Grateful Dead Cd), but never listened. Not that I know at least....but this memory of the cd, and the cover photo (a flying magic ticket) stayed with me. After my Dad & I moved into our Mystic Valley residence, I found a "Best Of" cd for the Grateful Dead. I then listened, and oh boy, did I dig it! Yass yass yessir I did. It was wonderful, & totally rockin'. So I looked for other cds at the library. I took two out, Reckoning, & Go To Heaven. None of the Best Of cds had any tracks the other cds had. Even better I thought!
Well, I was disappointed. I think I listened to Reckoning first. It now holds several favorites of mine....but when I first heard it, I only liked "Dire Wolf" the first song...that rest was "eh" to me.
Dire Wolf
I then listened to Go To Heaven, which had some cool stuff....but I wasn't really diggin' it. Now, what I didn't know was the Best Of was made in 1974, "only" 10 years in the Grateful Dead's carer. Reckoning was made in 1980 (though the songs were mostly from the early 70's) & Go To Heaven also came out in 1980. It was definitely way more 80's than, well, the 70's & 60's stuff. But I was annoyed, the Best Of had such great tracks such as sugar magnolia, Casey Jones, & Uncle John's Band!
A rockin' Sugar Mangnolia, from '73
I felt compelled to like them, but I needed to genuinely like them of course. I didn't wnat to only like "the best of". The summer before, at a camp (North Woods) some of the councilors had Grateful Dead shirts, talked about them, or sang a song of theirs. They were cool, I looked up to them (Not knowing anything 'bout them though...just a little kid, lookin' up to the cool older guys....which I saw at Larp Camp, from now the perspective of the older kid, being "idolized"). I listened to the albums again, trying to like it.
And frankly, I guess it just happened. I'm not really sure. All of a sudden I like it! Mainly Go To Heaven. Reckoning wasn't a big on my list (the like list that is) till a little while ago (as I said, I dig it now!). And since this was 3 or 4 years ago now, my love for the Grateful Dead has only grown. Man, I freakin' love 'em!
Here's a whole show of theirs, I haven't listened to to much, but it's good man!
Love ya
Liam
http://www.archive.org/details/gd72-08-27.sbd.orf.3328.sbeok.shnf
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Drivin' and other things (Battle of the Bands, Cousin's Graduation)!
Hey Now!
Been "ages" since my last post, so I'm writing now!
My return to Boston was pretty nice. Marin (My girlfriend) came & surprised me at the airport. A fuuuuun car ride indeed ;)
Now that I'm back here I've been doin' a lot of driving! Much fun dude!
I realized I'd gone driving multiple times without my permit....I had put my wallet (with my permit inside) in a pair of pants that were then plopped on the floor of my room. Oh well! Got it now so we're all good. Anyways, before what was today but now yesterday (June 4th) I had been on the highway once. A short little journey from Burlington to Winchester (Mass, not to Burlington Vermont). It was a bit scary, but alright.
MY FATHER RULES.
He wanted some appreciation (He was right next to me as I typed this), for he is certainly a great dad & totally annoying.
Anyways, Winchester's Battle of The Band was pretty fun. I always dig live music, and the bands were pretty good! Cool stuff, sadly no shenanigans afterwards, but oh well. Certain friends had some love duties to attend too :)
And then it was time to head to New York City! Not that night though, Saturday, June 4th.
My cousin Nerissa is graduating on Monday, and the family is comin' down to celebrate!
Nerrissa's mom came from Bainbridge Island Washington, and my Aunt Mauli arrived to New York from Kauai Hawaii! My other cousin & her mom are comin' down too! Plus I'm sure others. We're staying at an old family friends house, Genie Rogers. She has a really nice house that has a great porch overlooking water! She lives right off a canal or somethin' of the sort. Well, it's a very lovely place in Brooklyn. Dinner was super tasty....grilled corn, quinoa salad, potato salad, bread. Man, I just wanted to keep eating. And it wasn't even the "real" party!
As I was saying, I drove on the highway again. It was nerve-a-rackin' & fun. I also got annoyed with my father much more than I normally do while driving.
Definitely harder (and more stressful) to drive on the highway then regular streets.
Twas fun though, even when *kinda* lost control of the car....
Yep, goin' probably around 65 mph, and trying to get into the other lane, and well, then I'm not really sure what happened. There coulda been aliens man. I heard my father shout my name in alarm, grab the wheel for a second, but then I had "control" of the car, though it was gettin' curvy at the high speeds. With I'm sure a smile (even though we almost ran off the road and possibly coulda hit a sign that my father recollected was there, though I don't remember it) I regained control of the car and thought that after the yell of danger, it was a fun time. This I found pretty crazy. Seconds later my father told me to take deep breaths (which was possibly more for him then me) and then nervousity kicked in.
We soon got off the interstate (took a pee/breather at dunkin donuts) then I continued to drive on what was the old highway before the interstate. Two lanes in each directions, and still driving fast paced (for me, going close to the speed limit, 50-60-65 mph). There also was of course on & off ramps, so it was quite similar to the big interstate, except smaller. Definitely better for me (and my father), even though at one point I was blocked in on the fast lane (and calmly freaking out) until I could get back to the right lane.
All in all a fun drive, and listening to the Grateful Dead totally helped me out (staying calm and not too annoyed with my dad).
My dad took over to head into the Big Apple, and we arrived.
More driving will come, hopefully all when I'm in control of the vehicle :)
Been "ages" since my last post, so I'm writing now!
My return to Boston was pretty nice. Marin (My girlfriend) came & surprised me at the airport. A fuuuuun car ride indeed ;)
Now that I'm back here I've been doin' a lot of driving! Much fun dude!
I realized I'd gone driving multiple times without my permit....I had put my wallet (with my permit inside) in a pair of pants that were then plopped on the floor of my room. Oh well! Got it now so we're all good. Anyways, before what was today but now yesterday (June 4th) I had been on the highway once. A short little journey from Burlington to Winchester (Mass, not to Burlington Vermont). It was a bit scary, but alright.
MY FATHER RULES.
He wanted some appreciation (He was right next to me as I typed this), for he is certainly a great dad & totally annoying.
Anyways, Winchester's Battle of The Band was pretty fun. I always dig live music, and the bands were pretty good! Cool stuff, sadly no shenanigans afterwards, but oh well. Certain friends had some love duties to attend too :)
And then it was time to head to New York City! Not that night though, Saturday, June 4th.
My cousin Nerissa is graduating on Monday, and the family is comin' down to celebrate!
Nerrissa's mom came from Bainbridge Island Washington, and my Aunt Mauli arrived to New York from Kauai Hawaii! My other cousin & her mom are comin' down too! Plus I'm sure others. We're staying at an old family friends house, Genie Rogers. She has a really nice house that has a great porch overlooking water! She lives right off a canal or somethin' of the sort. Well, it's a very lovely place in Brooklyn. Dinner was super tasty....grilled corn, quinoa salad, potato salad, bread. Man, I just wanted to keep eating. And it wasn't even the "real" party!
As I was saying, I drove on the highway again. It was nerve-a-rackin' & fun. I also got annoyed with my father much more than I normally do while driving.
Definitely harder (and more stressful) to drive on the highway then regular streets.
Twas fun though, even when *kinda* lost control of the car....
Yep, goin' probably around 65 mph, and trying to get into the other lane, and well, then I'm not really sure what happened. There coulda been aliens man. I heard my father shout my name in alarm, grab the wheel for a second, but then I had "control" of the car, though it was gettin' curvy at the high speeds. With I'm sure a smile (even though we almost ran off the road and possibly coulda hit a sign that my father recollected was there, though I don't remember it) I regained control of the car and thought that after the yell of danger, it was a fun time. This I found pretty crazy. Seconds later my father told me to take deep breaths (which was possibly more for him then me) and then nervousity kicked in.
We soon got off the interstate (took a pee/breather at dunkin donuts) then I continued to drive on what was the old highway before the interstate. Two lanes in each directions, and still driving fast paced (for me, going close to the speed limit, 50-60-65 mph). There also was of course on & off ramps, so it was quite similar to the big interstate, except smaller. Definitely better for me (and my father), even though at one point I was blocked in on the fast lane (and calmly freaking out) until I could get back to the right lane.
All in all a fun drive, and listening to the Grateful Dead totally helped me out (staying calm and not too annoyed with my dad).
My dad took over to head into the Big Apple, and we arrived.
More driving will come, hopefully all when I'm in control of the vehicle :)
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
My Austin Life
Since my last post I have not thought about blogging until today. There was no crazy adventures that made me want to write, write, write. Nothing utterly fantastic that I wanted to share with everybody (everybody meaning whoever actually reads these things). Just life. And so it hit me not long ago (It is now 3:41 on the 11th) while I sat on a stump outside enjoyin' a cool Austin day as I ate my salad, that my life would be great to write about. Great not because of mad adventures, great for it was pure & simple, like carrot juice.
Carrot juice is a delicious juice made from the fruits of carrot trees. My father & I would make juices often when I was a small child, and carrot juice was not only a favorite, but a regular. Here in Austin we have Odwalla's carrot juice, which not as good as the soft foam off of fresh juice, but it is still quite nice.
Since my first few days of exploring the city with friends, I've mainly been at my new home. I enjoy my yerbe mate tea everyday. That is quite delightful. It's to hot as soon as I brew it, so I let it steep, then put it in the fridge or freezer to cool. Hamilton (My mom's good friend who lives here, in the house) bought a whole kilo of the leaves for $5, a great deal.
I've never been so hot, sweaty, clean all in a single day before I moved here. It's crazy! I've taken one shower already today, and I know I will have a second soon!
As for my day to day activities, it starts early (for me). The first few days I'd be up before 10, but now I'm sleeping in til around 10:30. Then I simply lie in bed. Read, check facebook. My days are relaxed, I drink tea, play my guitar, and read. I've read most of the free comics that I got, and near the end of "On the Road". I keep talking about that book, cause man, it's the best. It's just faaaan-tastic. And I'm in love with it! In-case you didn't see my status I recently bought "The Original Scroll" which is the first draft of "On The Road" that is "rougher, wilder, and racier than the 1957 edition". It doesn't contain alias, and as I just mentioned, a lot wilder. The first part of the book is different people talking about Jack Kerouac's writing of "On The Road".....then it's the original thing. He wrote it all out on 8 pieces of thin art paper that he attached making a long "scroll". Pretty groovy. That'll be really fun to read once I'm finished with the 1957 version. Other than reading, drinking tea and showering, I'm playing a lot of guitar. Specially when I first arrived. Now not as much...for I'm watching a show called Dexter. It's a crazy show about a serial killer who kills criminals (that have escaped the law). It's quite good and I just finished the 3rd season. But back to that thing about guitar, man it's rad. I've learned a some new scales too which is really helpful & cool. Backtrack after backtrack, just jammin' out.
I don't know really what else to say. Oh, I've been writing some poetry too!
My life is really nice down here and I dig it all.
Carrot juice is a delicious juice made from the fruits of carrot trees. My father & I would make juices often when I was a small child, and carrot juice was not only a favorite, but a regular. Here in Austin we have Odwalla's carrot juice, which not as good as the soft foam off of fresh juice, but it is still quite nice.
Since my first few days of exploring the city with friends, I've mainly been at my new home. I enjoy my yerbe mate tea everyday. That is quite delightful. It's to hot as soon as I brew it, so I let it steep, then put it in the fridge or freezer to cool. Hamilton (My mom's good friend who lives here, in the house) bought a whole kilo of the leaves for $5, a great deal.
I've never been so hot, sweaty, clean all in a single day before I moved here. It's crazy! I've taken one shower already today, and I know I will have a second soon!
As for my day to day activities, it starts early (for me). The first few days I'd be up before 10, but now I'm sleeping in til around 10:30. Then I simply lie in bed. Read, check facebook. My days are relaxed, I drink tea, play my guitar, and read. I've read most of the free comics that I got, and near the end of "On the Road". I keep talking about that book, cause man, it's the best. It's just faaaan-tastic. And I'm in love with it! In-case you didn't see my status I recently bought "The Original Scroll" which is the first draft of "On The Road" that is "rougher, wilder, and racier than the 1957 edition". It doesn't contain alias, and as I just mentioned, a lot wilder. The first part of the book is different people talking about Jack Kerouac's writing of "On The Road".....then it's the original thing. He wrote it all out on 8 pieces of thin art paper that he attached making a long "scroll". Pretty groovy. That'll be really fun to read once I'm finished with the 1957 version. Other than reading, drinking tea and showering, I'm playing a lot of guitar. Specially when I first arrived. Now not as much...for I'm watching a show called Dexter. It's a crazy show about a serial killer who kills criminals (that have escaped the law). It's quite good and I just finished the 3rd season. But back to that thing about guitar, man it's rad. I've learned a some new scales too which is really helpful & cool. Backtrack after backtrack, just jammin' out.
I don't know really what else to say. Oh, I've been writing some poetry too!
My life is really nice down here and I dig it all.
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Skippin' posting about the last day or so of my journey to Austin (I'm gettin' right into what I've been doing). This place is so great!
I've had an amazing time in Austin so far. End of the second day! MAN.
So many cool things. Yesterday (hard to believe that today was my first full day...and that I'll be here 10 more!) as Hamilton (the guy we're staying with) & my mom went out to a developmental movement/dance class, I decided to head into the city! I wanted to jump right into things. I sent a facebook message to a mutual friend who lives in Austin (Brooke). Since I was already gonna go to the city, I threw in my phone number in case she wanted to meet up. I hopped on a bus (without evening waiting :) and soon after I got a call from Brooke. We then met-up nearby the Whole Foods (The Mecca Whole Foods, where all of 'em are based off of). It's really big! We had smoothies, and Brooke showed me around the city. We did a lot of walkin' & talkin'. Austin is very cool.
I then headed to First Street, to try to find a bus back to the abode. After 30 minutes or so of walking, I got on a bus. Just in time for the end of a really "late" supper!
Today (the 7th) I awoke early and laid in bed, sleeping & resting. I then made some yerbe mate (favorite tea:) and a big bowl of cereal. Twas quite good! Then, for the first time since we moved I played my guitar! And boy, oh boy it was gooo-oood! I stopped because my finger tips where gettin' roughed up & hurtin'.
Super nice time though...played with some backing tracks (rhythm music of someone to solo over) and jammed out! I then had a driving lesson with me mom. With a stickshift! I have only driven in an automatic before, so this was a challenge. Alternating between the clutch & gas. Fun time though!
I then set off to do more exploring, and visit shops. My mom got me a good guidebook of where all the hip shops are in Austin, and I looked at it last night before I slept.
First up was a thrift store! It was a cool place and I bought some pants. They are plaid pants that were marked at $4.50, but I got 'em for a dollar 25 ($1.25)! When I told me mom this she thought it was to expensive...:P
Gettin' on a different bus, I was headin' for the North Loop...a place in North Austin where a bunch of shops are. I got off a few blocks away from it, for the bus driver didn't think there was a stop on 53rd where I planned to get off. As the bus drove away I saw right across the street a big sign (and tent) for FREE COMICS. "Well how about that" I thought. Earlier I had tried downloading Neil Gaiman's Sandman with no luck. I then headed over to get some free comics! The store was celebrating it's 10 anniversary, and I lucked out! Got 10 free comics and a $1 bottle of water.
I then needed to head downtown for the show. Show? What show? Lucinda Williams! Yesterday I happened to see a small poster of hers, for her show on the 7th (It was the 6th at the time). I then bought a ticket that night! So I trudged along till I got on a bus, which brought me closer to downtown. I got off after chattin' up the driver, to get some vegetarian food. Turns out the place was closed so I had a long walk to the show on the other side of town. I then passed some art buildin' which had some live music. There was also a group of young dudes (girls & boys) watching. One of them waved for me to come in. And of course I did! The musician playin' was really good. The dude who called me in is named Kevante, and we're plannin' on hanging out soon. If I didn't have a show to catch, I totally would have stayed longer. They had tea and a bit of food! I went to the pizza place next store, where I got two slices of cheese pizza. It was quite tasty! Turns out my rush to get to the venue wasn't really needed...for the show didn't start till an hour after the doors opened (7 Pm, when I wanted to be there). It was a groovy place. I currently forget the name of it though.....it was outside, but with walls/buildings all around. While waited for the opener to come on, I talked with this young lady (Christine). She had been livin' in Austin for two years, gong to school to get her PHD in Sociology. She has been doing a lot of research on the effects of deportations of undocumented migrants AKA illegal immigrants. Fascinating stuff.
When the opener came on I left to go into the middle of people near the stage (we had been sitting talking on the side of a wall). After the opener which I thought was alright, I moved again. I got some more water, peed, then went to find a better/different spot. I ended up next to 2 really nice people. I had noticed them when walked in, and saw they saw me too. Anyways, I'm pretty sure it was a mother & duaghter hippie duo. Vicky & Meagan. Meagan noticed my sarong was of the "Steal Your Face" symbol, a Grateful Dead logo! We talked for a bit before the show & durin' the breaks.
Lucinda Williams is a FANTASTIC songwriter & artist. My Dad really digs her, and I did too....but now I really DIG her. Man! Great stuff! Some of the songs she played are :
Something About What Happens When We Talk
Joy
and my favorite Honey Bee
Then the band left, and came on for the encore! Several great groovin' songs later, they left. Man, the second part of her setlist and encore was so farout! I was dancin' away, so was Meagan, and most of the people there! Fabulous time....and then they came out AGAIN! To top this amazin' time off, they played Buffalo's Sringfields "For What It's Worth"!!
Man that was hoppin'! I was boogieing like crazy! Her lead guitarist was quite skilled and rocked the solos.
What a great night. Hope to connect with the people I met today soon.
P.S. The venue is called Stubbs.
I love you!
Liam
So many cool things. Yesterday (hard to believe that today was my first full day...and that I'll be here 10 more!) as Hamilton (the guy we're staying with) & my mom went out to a developmental movement/dance class, I decided to head into the city! I wanted to jump right into things. I sent a facebook message to a mutual friend who lives in Austin (Brooke). Since I was already gonna go to the city, I threw in my phone number in case she wanted to meet up. I hopped on a bus (without evening waiting :) and soon after I got a call from Brooke. We then met-up nearby the Whole Foods (The Mecca Whole Foods, where all of 'em are based off of). It's really big! We had smoothies, and Brooke showed me around the city. We did a lot of walkin' & talkin'. Austin is very cool.
I then headed to First Street, to try to find a bus back to the abode. After 30 minutes or so of walking, I got on a bus. Just in time for the end of a really "late" supper!
Today (the 7th) I awoke early and laid in bed, sleeping & resting. I then made some yerbe mate (favorite tea:) and a big bowl of cereal. Twas quite good! Then, for the first time since we moved I played my guitar! And boy, oh boy it was gooo-oood! I stopped because my finger tips where gettin' roughed up & hurtin'.
Super nice time though...played with some backing tracks (rhythm music of someone to solo over) and jammed out! I then had a driving lesson with me mom. With a stickshift! I have only driven in an automatic before, so this was a challenge. Alternating between the clutch & gas. Fun time though!
I then set off to do more exploring, and visit shops. My mom got me a good guidebook of where all the hip shops are in Austin, and I looked at it last night before I slept.
First up was a thrift store! It was a cool place and I bought some pants. They are plaid pants that were marked at $4.50, but I got 'em for a dollar 25 ($1.25)! When I told me mom this she thought it was to expensive...:P
Gettin' on a different bus, I was headin' for the North Loop...a place in North Austin where a bunch of shops are. I got off a few blocks away from it, for the bus driver didn't think there was a stop on 53rd where I planned to get off. As the bus drove away I saw right across the street a big sign (and tent) for FREE COMICS. "Well how about that" I thought. Earlier I had tried downloading Neil Gaiman's Sandman with no luck. I then headed over to get some free comics! The store was celebrating it's 10 anniversary, and I lucked out! Got 10 free comics and a $1 bottle of water.
I then needed to head downtown for the show. Show? What show? Lucinda Williams! Yesterday I happened to see a small poster of hers, for her show on the 7th (It was the 6th at the time). I then bought a ticket that night! So I trudged along till I got on a bus, which brought me closer to downtown. I got off after chattin' up the driver, to get some vegetarian food. Turns out the place was closed so I had a long walk to the show on the other side of town. I then passed some art buildin' which had some live music. There was also a group of young dudes (girls & boys) watching. One of them waved for me to come in. And of course I did! The musician playin' was really good. The dude who called me in is named Kevante, and we're plannin' on hanging out soon. If I didn't have a show to catch, I totally would have stayed longer. They had tea and a bit of food! I went to the pizza place next store, where I got two slices of cheese pizza. It was quite tasty! Turns out my rush to get to the venue wasn't really needed...for the show didn't start till an hour after the doors opened (7 Pm, when I wanted to be there). It was a groovy place. I currently forget the name of it though.....it was outside, but with walls/buildings all around. While waited for the opener to come on, I talked with this young lady (Christine). She had been livin' in Austin for two years, gong to school to get her PHD in Sociology. She has been doing a lot of research on the effects of deportations of undocumented migrants AKA illegal immigrants. Fascinating stuff.
When the opener came on I left to go into the middle of people near the stage (we had been sitting talking on the side of a wall). After the opener which I thought was alright, I moved again. I got some more water, peed, then went to find a better/different spot. I ended up next to 2 really nice people. I had noticed them when walked in, and saw they saw me too. Anyways, I'm pretty sure it was a mother & duaghter hippie duo. Vicky & Meagan. Meagan noticed my sarong was of the "Steal Your Face" symbol, a Grateful Dead logo! We talked for a bit before the show & durin' the breaks.
Lucinda Williams is a FANTASTIC songwriter & artist. My Dad really digs her, and I did too....but now I really DIG her. Man! Great stuff! Some of the songs she played are :
Something About What Happens When We Talk
Joy
and my favorite Honey Bee
Then the band left, and came on for the encore! Several great groovin' songs later, they left. Man, the second part of her setlist and encore was so farout! I was dancin' away, so was Meagan, and most of the people there! Fabulous time....and then they came out AGAIN! To top this amazin' time off, they played Buffalo's Sringfields "For What It's Worth"!!
Man that was hoppin'! I was boogieing like crazy! Her lead guitarist was quite skilled and rocked the solos.
What a great night. Hope to connect with the people I met today soon.
P.S. The venue is called Stubbs.
I love you!
Liam
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Day 4! Alabama Getaway! And my story of a King!
Here In lie, sleepy and full. Enjoy my writing, enjoy not havin' the same tense, enjoy yourself, enjoy your friends. <3
Alabama Getaway- Grateful Dead
Here we are at a rest stop (my mom called it "the best one yet, full of great junk") in Alabama.
I almost bought a short cowboy novel. I might get one later somewhere. Instead I got Neil Young's "Harvest" & Steve Miller's Band's "Book of Dreams" for a total of $23 (Pretty good considering some cds cost 23 bucks on there own). There was some confusion about who was next in line (it was me, but I didn't care who went) because the line had split when another register opened.
As I approached the counter the (young & large) cashier said "C'mon you long haired hippy" which gave me a smile. As I handed over the cds the cashier commented that I was a bit young to be a hippie. Just smile & nod Liam.
I punched him the face! Nah, there was a tough guy behind me who coulda knocked me flat on my back.
Kidding aside, I shrugged.
"Hippy Day at school?"
"Nah I don't go" I quietly muttered. I also happened to be wearin' my "Unschoolers live as if school didn't exist" shirt. I don't think he noticed....
"You following Widespread Panic?" (A hippie jam band) His tone was borderline harsh, and interrogative.
WHY ARE YOU HERE HIPPIE!!!?!
I quickly asked if they were playin' around here. He didn't answer me and I left.
Near Tuscalosa we passed a hitchhiker. My heart-leapt. A hitchhiker! Readin' about Sal Paridise (Jack Kerouac)'s hitchiking adventures have made me yearn to do it! I did it once with my father in Hawaii. We also picked some people up too. Fun stuff!
I wished we coulda picked him up....He had sandy hair that almost came to his shoulders. He looked dusty, dirty, & hot. Probably tired too. He had two bags on the ground behind him.
I hope he gets where he's goin' alright.
We now played the part of "After Storm Chasers". My mom was curious to see the damage in Tuscalosa. I was a bit curious too, but felt it was a tad uncool to driven around looking at all the damage.
Man, there was a lot. And in the mists of rubble you might see one store still totally intact (Maybe some glass broken).
I don't know why I switched in between passed and present tense, but oh well. (Mind you this is written before tonight, as I was driving)
There's National Guard too. With guns. That surprised me....
"Old Man" is one my favorite Neil Young songs. Maybe my fav. Man the country is pretty. We're on 20 West headed for Jackson Mississippi!
Lush tree's surround the road.
I can't wait to get to Austin.
And as the Woodworth-Train hit Mississippi, our "time" was shifted an hour back from my gang back home.
We out to Pickdelly's for food. It was a cool joint. A southern fast foody place. You order what you want (for there or to go) at a buffet type thing, then you get a receipt, and pay at the door when you leave. I was waitin' to get some of the salad stuff when a middle aged black guy (working) said I was a "cool guy". He then asked if I wanted some salad, I told him which ones I did.
"You don't eat meat doya?" He asked with a big grin.
"Ha, no I'm a vegetarian"
"Haha, I knew it. I can tell when people don't man" He said with a wonderful smile.
I then I asked him how to pronounce his name. Sabu (Sah-Boo)
He then told me it meant "King" in Swahli.
"That's pretty cool man!"
"You ever met a King?" He asked.
"No man!"
"Now you have!" Sabu the King said with a fun lovin' grin & fist bump.
Another lady guessed I was a vegetarian when I didn't get any sauce on my noodles.
We took the food and enjoyed it at the hotel. As we got our receipt, I told the lady at the counter to tell Sabu bye. He was hip. Real nice wide old grin.
Sleep Now :)
Alabama Getaway- Grateful Dead
Here we are at a rest stop (my mom called it "the best one yet, full of great junk") in Alabama.
I almost bought a short cowboy novel. I might get one later somewhere. Instead I got Neil Young's "Harvest" & Steve Miller's Band's "Book of Dreams" for a total of $23 (Pretty good considering some cds cost 23 bucks on there own). There was some confusion about who was next in line (it was me, but I didn't care who went) because the line had split when another register opened.
As I approached the counter the (young & large) cashier said "C'mon you long haired hippy" which gave me a smile. As I handed over the cds the cashier commented that I was a bit young to be a hippie. Just smile & nod Liam.
I punched him the face! Nah, there was a tough guy behind me who coulda knocked me flat on my back.
Kidding aside, I shrugged.
"Hippy Day at school?"
"Nah I don't go" I quietly muttered. I also happened to be wearin' my "Unschoolers live as if school didn't exist" shirt. I don't think he noticed....
"You following Widespread Panic?" (A hippie jam band) His tone was borderline harsh, and interrogative.
WHY ARE YOU HERE HIPPIE!!!?!
I quickly asked if they were playin' around here. He didn't answer me and I left.
Near Tuscalosa we passed a hitchhiker. My heart-leapt. A hitchhiker! Readin' about Sal Paridise (Jack Kerouac)'s hitchiking adventures have made me yearn to do it! I did it once with my father in Hawaii. We also picked some people up too. Fun stuff!
I wished we coulda picked him up....He had sandy hair that almost came to his shoulders. He looked dusty, dirty, & hot. Probably tired too. He had two bags on the ground behind him.
I hope he gets where he's goin' alright.
We now played the part of "After Storm Chasers". My mom was curious to see the damage in Tuscalosa. I was a bit curious too, but felt it was a tad uncool to driven around looking at all the damage.
Man, there was a lot. And in the mists of rubble you might see one store still totally intact (Maybe some glass broken).
I don't know why I switched in between passed and present tense, but oh well. (Mind you this is written before tonight, as I was driving)
There's National Guard too. With guns. That surprised me....
"Old Man" is one my favorite Neil Young songs. Maybe my fav. Man the country is pretty. We're on 20 West headed for Jackson Mississippi!
Lush tree's surround the road.
I can't wait to get to Austin.
And as the Woodworth-Train hit Mississippi, our "time" was shifted an hour back from my gang back home.
We out to Pickdelly's for food. It was a cool joint. A southern fast foody place. You order what you want (for there or to go) at a buffet type thing, then you get a receipt, and pay at the door when you leave. I was waitin' to get some of the salad stuff when a middle aged black guy (working) said I was a "cool guy". He then asked if I wanted some salad, I told him which ones I did.
"You don't eat meat doya?" He asked with a big grin.
"Ha, no I'm a vegetarian"
"Haha, I knew it. I can tell when people don't man" He said with a wonderful smile.
I then I asked him how to pronounce his name. Sabu (Sah-Boo)
He then told me it meant "King" in Swahli.
"That's pretty cool man!"
"You ever met a King?" He asked.
"No man!"
"Now you have!" Sabu the King said with a fun lovin' grin & fist bump.
Another lady guessed I was a vegetarian when I didn't get any sauce on my noodles.
We took the food and enjoyed it at the hotel. As we got our receipt, I told the lady at the counter to tell Sabu bye. He was hip. Real nice wide old grin.
Sleep Now :)
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Day 2 & 3, Asheville & 'Lanta
May-2-3, I'm currently bloggin' from a hotel in Atlanta a little before midnight. This is once again written on the road, and now being copied to the internet.
Day 2-
After barely recognizing the sound of my alarm in my dream, I awoke in my dark hotel room. I quickly drifted back into a light sleep. After leaping out of bed & dressing, I raced to the lobby for breakfast thinking it was closing at 9, and it was about 10 till. It turns out they didn't close it down at all.
I chatted with a tall older guy after he commented on my "colorful skirt" (What he said was "That's a colorful skirt"). Now that I think about it that's kinda of an odd comment. He didn't say "I like your skirt" or "That's a pretty skirt".
His comment...was uh, obvious.
I was delighted to talk to him of course. I love talking to people.
I'm really enjoyin' "On The Road" by Jack Kerouac (Great Name). Cameron Lovejoy lent it (and Dharma Bums, which I read first) last year. As the roadtrip materialized I realized it would be a great book for it. So I started it in Connecticut and now several chapters in. It also smells soooo good! Mhm-hmm! I also started reading some tales of Robin Hood. Pretty cool stuff.
My mom was quite tired so we pulled over at a subway so she could sleep & I could eat.
I got a veggie sub, called a friend and read Kerouac. It was very lovely out & an enjoyable time.
After my mother's second nap (she was fading again). I was pretty anxious to get to asheville. this turned quickly into a sour mood when I read that the GPS had our arrival at a few minutes before 9. Damn that!
I soon plugged in my ipod and began listening to American Beauty (Fantastic Grateful Dead album)
I didn't notice it was on shuffle, but I enjoyed the surprising change of pace. I layed my head down on a pillow and closed my eyes as the music took me home. I only listened to three songs in total, sleeping after the first two until the Rumblin' "Truckin'" woke me up. I slept for roughly a half-hour. In better spirits I explained to my mom that I feel asleep.
Soon afterward we passed through an area (in Virginia) that had been torn though by a Tornado. It was pretty crazy. Tree's where all over the ground next to a lot of housing pieces....Roofs torn & houses ripped. A while later (7:10 May Second) we past a storm chaser....Should I be worried?
Nothin' happened...yet ;)
Man, we're in the south now (not to be stereotyping of course). Just saw a buildin' saying "GUNS
Get Guns Here" and it also had "JESUS IS LORD"
Niiiice get guns while ya pray to the Lord!
We arrived at Josie's house a bit before 9. AS I got what I needed for the night, I heard Passion Pit blast out of a car. The car was Logan's as I figured from the sweet groovin' music. Logan unaware of me standin' on the other side of the road, holdin' a cat's leash, he started pulling into Josie's driveway (hehe, run on sentence!)
I could hear someone (Josie or Kimi) say "He's right over there"" to which Logan replied with a stare across the road. After Hugs, we drove to Logan's where Kimi & I had pasta. Logan & Josie had a long crazy wrestlin' match which took off all the covers & sheets of the bed. They're were many sex jokes made due to the noise....
After they were sweaty & hot, we had some cookies and took off to The Hop, (where Josie works) to get some ice cream. Tara another unschooler who was stayin' at Logan's came with. Tara, Kimi & I squeezed in the back while Logan & Josie were up in the front. We mainly talked about placenta's....and eating the and benefits they have. Tara knew a lot about them, and Logan was completely disgusted ( I was fascinated). We also talked about it if 1 in 10 people (or some kind of statistics like that) had penises on their chin. Fun car ride!
I got some delicious Mocha Oreo & Mint Oreo ice cream. Real good. After hanging at Logan's for a while, he drove Kimi, Josie, & I to Josie's house. We quickly fell asleep. Asheville is really groovy. I'd love to live there. It has very lush suburbs that reminded me of Hawaii.... :)
May 3
I woke up to wonderful songs of the birds. It was lovely. This is day 3 of our trip. I soon left the Maples wonderful home. we stopped at a health fod store to get food & drink (yerba mate)
There I remembered I didn't give Kimi her "goodbye" present. I say "goodbye" cause I'll be back ub a few weeks for a while. I presumed she was in the shower fro she didn't answer my calls. I was right. She opened the door to the bathroom still soaking wet with a towel 'round her. I then gave her a very soft & cute stuffed animal of a cow. She was very happy about this which I was glad about. Departing the Maples Abode, my mom & I hit the road. We stopped to get some local strawberries & creamed honey....(Have to try this in Austin)
So we've found a hotel and now eatin' warm food! Spaghetti squash marinara. Plus some onion rings (cause I was in a mood for something fried). I also had a big tasty salad. My mom also got some broccoli & cheddar soup to go.
Oh so at the hotel, there is some church thing going on. Lot a yellin' and praisin' Jesus. A bunch of people and at least one Preacher, preachin' & prechin'!
Crazy thing for me to her, and barely see a wee bit of.
Southern people pretty much always acknowledge you;
I smile, they nod (or maybe smile). A cashier near Greenvillie (SC) even said she liked my sarong :)
At Ruby Tuesdays where I sleepily sit, we once again struck up a conversation with the waitress.
Well, actually it was who struck the talk up. She had recently driven to Chicago for her mother's funeral. It was nice to talk about roadtrips for a couple minutes. More so it was a lovely stranger who would talk it up with other strangers!
Well now it's 1 in the morning, and I must sleep! Goodnight! <3
Day 2-
After barely recognizing the sound of my alarm in my dream, I awoke in my dark hotel room. I quickly drifted back into a light sleep. After leaping out of bed & dressing, I raced to the lobby for breakfast thinking it was closing at 9, and it was about 10 till. It turns out they didn't close it down at all.
I chatted with a tall older guy after he commented on my "colorful skirt" (What he said was "That's a colorful skirt"). Now that I think about it that's kinda of an odd comment. He didn't say "I like your skirt" or "That's a pretty skirt".
His comment...was uh, obvious.
I was delighted to talk to him of course. I love talking to people.
I'm really enjoyin' "On The Road" by Jack Kerouac (Great Name). Cameron Lovejoy lent it (and Dharma Bums, which I read first) last year. As the roadtrip materialized I realized it would be a great book for it. So I started it in Connecticut and now several chapters in. It also smells soooo good! Mhm-hmm! I also started reading some tales of Robin Hood. Pretty cool stuff.
My mom was quite tired so we pulled over at a subway so she could sleep & I could eat.
I got a veggie sub, called a friend and read Kerouac. It was very lovely out & an enjoyable time.
After my mother's second nap (she was fading again). I was pretty anxious to get to asheville. this turned quickly into a sour mood when I read that the GPS had our arrival at a few minutes before 9. Damn that!
I soon plugged in my ipod and began listening to American Beauty (Fantastic Grateful Dead album)
I didn't notice it was on shuffle, but I enjoyed the surprising change of pace. I layed my head down on a pillow and closed my eyes as the music took me home. I only listened to three songs in total, sleeping after the first two until the Rumblin' "Truckin'" woke me up. I slept for roughly a half-hour. In better spirits I explained to my mom that I feel asleep.
Soon afterward we passed through an area (in Virginia) that had been torn though by a Tornado. It was pretty crazy. Tree's where all over the ground next to a lot of housing pieces....Roofs torn & houses ripped. A while later (7:10 May Second) we past a storm chaser....Should I be worried?
Nothin' happened...yet ;)
Man, we're in the south now (not to be stereotyping of course). Just saw a buildin' saying "GUNS
Get Guns Here" and it also had "JESUS IS LORD"
Niiiice get guns while ya pray to the Lord!
We arrived at Josie's house a bit before 9. AS I got what I needed for the night, I heard Passion Pit blast out of a car. The car was Logan's as I figured from the sweet groovin' music. Logan unaware of me standin' on the other side of the road, holdin' a cat's leash, he started pulling into Josie's driveway (hehe, run on sentence!)
I could hear someone (Josie or Kimi) say "He's right over there"" to which Logan replied with a stare across the road. After Hugs, we drove to Logan's where Kimi & I had pasta. Logan & Josie had a long crazy wrestlin' match which took off all the covers & sheets of the bed. They're were many sex jokes made due to the noise....
After they were sweaty & hot, we had some cookies and took off to The Hop, (where Josie works) to get some ice cream. Tara another unschooler who was stayin' at Logan's came with. Tara, Kimi & I squeezed in the back while Logan & Josie were up in the front. We mainly talked about placenta's....and eating the and benefits they have. Tara knew a lot about them, and Logan was completely disgusted ( I was fascinated). We also talked about it if 1 in 10 people (or some kind of statistics like that) had penises on their chin. Fun car ride!
I got some delicious Mocha Oreo & Mint Oreo ice cream. Real good. After hanging at Logan's for a while, he drove Kimi, Josie, & I to Josie's house. We quickly fell asleep. Asheville is really groovy. I'd love to live there. It has very lush suburbs that reminded me of Hawaii.... :)
May 3
I woke up to wonderful songs of the birds. It was lovely. This is day 3 of our trip. I soon left the Maples wonderful home. we stopped at a health fod store to get food & drink (yerba mate)
There I remembered I didn't give Kimi her "goodbye" present. I say "goodbye" cause I'll be back ub a few weeks for a while. I presumed she was in the shower fro she didn't answer my calls. I was right. She opened the door to the bathroom still soaking wet with a towel 'round her. I then gave her a very soft & cute stuffed animal of a cow. She was very happy about this which I was glad about. Departing the Maples Abode, my mom & I hit the road. We stopped to get some local strawberries & creamed honey....(Have to try this in Austin)
Here I sit, in 'Lanta or Atlanta if you want.
Here I sit with dark clouds and rain pouring down.
Oh so at the hotel, there is some church thing going on. Lot a yellin' and praisin' Jesus. A bunch of people and at least one Preacher, preachin' & prechin'!
Crazy thing for me to her, and barely see a wee bit of.
Southern people pretty much always acknowledge you;
I smile, they nod (or maybe smile). A cashier near Greenvillie (SC) even said she liked my sarong :)
At Ruby Tuesdays where I sleepily sit, we once again struck up a conversation with the waitress.
Well, actually it was who struck the talk up. She had recently driven to Chicago for her mother's funeral. It was nice to talk about roadtrips for a couple minutes. More so it was a lovely stranger who would talk it up with other strangers!
Well now it's 1 in the morning, and I must sleep! Goodnight! <3
Monday, May 2, 2011
Day 1 On The Road! (and a few other things)
Weary traveler me & my mother be~
Currently we are at a Sleep Inn in Carlisle PA
This is mostly all written in the car traveling, and now being typed up & published
We finally left 10 Water Street at around 2. I had spent the night at my dad's, and had breakfast with my Mom's good friend Linda and her daughter Astrid around 10 O' Clock Am. Then after a final clean, we started to get the cats (3 of them) used to having small doggy harnesses & leashes on.....dreadful things...then after a long goodbye, we were off!
To Starbucks!
Then we were really ON THE ROAD!
Heading south we took a wrong turn and started heading for New York City, which we didn't want to do. As we got off the highway I saw a Hooters. Jokingly, I said we should stop there (my mom needed a coke, and figure out how to get back on 84). She in a lighthearted, though serious tone totally agreed. In the "end" I stayed with the cats and car, while my mom went in. So I was starred down by some tough looking guys. At least southern people supposedly act nice & smile...these guys were a bit scary haha.....Ah, the life of a young care-free hippie...specially when dressed in a (Grateful Dead) sarong & just a (unbuttoned) jean jacket....and not really in "Hip Town". Ha, we just passed under a sign for "Austin Road" YUP!
Anyways, I like standing out. Makin' people think "Who the F is it that?"
Freaks Unite Man
I like dressin' in all tie-dye to be "Oh yeah, BAM color baby, I'm crazy & wild"...and cause I dig tie-dye man!
As for Sarongs (skirt like things you wrap and tie and the hip, Here's what some look like) my landlord summed it up pretty well "they are way more beautiful than shorts, and comfy"
That was totally paraphrased but oh well man. They are soft, comfy, gorgeous & breezy :)
I love my style (and most of the looks I get) but it's not flaky to get attention...just in case you were confused ;)
Near Scranton Pa we stopped off the highway (in a woody area) to check on the cats. One of them pissed on their small blanket, oh well...they are quite freaked and not happy :/
I wish there was a better, less scary (for them) way to get them down there (Austin) preferably without us...so my Mom & I wouldn't have to worry (to much) about them, and just focus on the drive.
It's dark as I write this except for the car light, which creates an awesome reflection in the wind shield of my notebook, sarong, & jacket.
We just had a late (9:30) super at Marvelous Muggs restaurant and pub. I was doubtful how I'd like the food options, and the quality of it.
We hurried in for they closed at 10.
There was a waiter at the serving table, about to rush off. Noticing me she turned with a smile. My mom right behind me, I asked for a table for 2. As I asked for this, the sever/manger came over, to make sure the waiter (Morgan) "got it". And that she did.
Morgan had to little braids, some greenish blue eye liner and a really rad presumably hemp necklace. And a nose-ring!
For dinner, I had a grilled portabella mushroom burger with sauteed onions, peppers & lettuce. For my side dish, I had rice pilaf. Plus a pickle!
My mom had crab-cakes with mashed potatoes. As Morgan came over with refills of win & water, we started talking with her. My mom (kinda out of the blue) mentioned how we were headed to Austin from Boston. Turns out she is goin' to Boston for a Dispatch concert on June 24th.
Later I asked her what kind of music Disptched played;
"Kind of, Rock N' Roll Reggae" she explained. Plannin' on checking them out!
My mom told her I was a musician..."Guitar, and I'm learning some harmonica" I said as she jumped in excitement at the mention of harmonica. She loved the harmonica, "So great to fool around with!". Passion was between us. Music & the Arts. She had previously explained she was in college for Art, painting & photography. And yes Dad, we mentioned that you also took a few snapshots of "cool things". She was really hip & I wished I could've talked with her more.
I knew through most of dinner that I was going to write my blog down on something.
I told her I liked her necklace, to which she smiled replying "oh, thank you! I like your, uh, everything!" (It was either "everything, style" or something very similar."
Thanks Morgan. Maybe I'll see you in Boston...?
I did indeed write the name of my blog down, the URL, & my name.
So Morgan, if you're reading this, I'm very glad <3
It's now almost quarter to 4 in the am, and I (and me mum!) are off to bed. The cats seemed to have calmed down a bit and settled in the hotel room. Tomorrow we head to Asheville, to meet friends :)
Goodnight!
Currently we are at a Sleep Inn in Carlisle PA
This is mostly all written in the car traveling, and now being typed up & published
We finally left 10 Water Street at around 2. I had spent the night at my dad's, and had breakfast with my Mom's good friend Linda and her daughter Astrid around 10 O' Clock Am. Then after a final clean, we started to get the cats (3 of them) used to having small doggy harnesses & leashes on.....dreadful things...then after a long goodbye, we were off!
To Starbucks!
Then we were really ON THE ROAD!
Heading south we took a wrong turn and started heading for New York City, which we didn't want to do. As we got off the highway I saw a Hooters. Jokingly, I said we should stop there (my mom needed a coke, and figure out how to get back on 84). She in a lighthearted, though serious tone totally agreed. In the "end" I stayed with the cats and car, while my mom went in. So I was starred down by some tough looking guys. At least southern people supposedly act nice & smile...these guys were a bit scary haha.....Ah, the life of a young care-free hippie...specially when dressed in a (Grateful Dead) sarong & just a (unbuttoned) jean jacket....and not really in "Hip Town". Ha, we just passed under a sign for "Austin Road" YUP!
Anyways, I like standing out. Makin' people think "Who the F is it that?"
Freaks Unite Man
I like dressin' in all tie-dye to be "Oh yeah, BAM color baby, I'm crazy & wild"...and cause I dig tie-dye man!
As for Sarongs (skirt like things you wrap and tie and the hip, Here's what some look like) my landlord summed it up pretty well "they are way more beautiful than shorts, and comfy"
That was totally paraphrased but oh well man. They are soft, comfy, gorgeous & breezy :)
I love my style (and most of the looks I get) but it's not flaky to get attention...just in case you were confused ;)
Near Scranton Pa we stopped off the highway (in a woody area) to check on the cats. One of them pissed on their small blanket, oh well...they are quite freaked and not happy :/
I wish there was a better, less scary (for them) way to get them down there (Austin) preferably without us...so my Mom & I wouldn't have to worry (to much) about them, and just focus on the drive.
It's dark as I write this except for the car light, which creates an awesome reflection in the wind shield of my notebook, sarong, & jacket.
We just had a late (9:30) super at Marvelous Muggs restaurant and pub. I was doubtful how I'd like the food options, and the quality of it.
We hurried in for they closed at 10.
There was a waiter at the serving table, about to rush off. Noticing me she turned with a smile. My mom right behind me, I asked for a table for 2. As I asked for this, the sever/manger came over, to make sure the waiter (Morgan) "got it". And that she did.
Morgan had to little braids, some greenish blue eye liner and a really rad presumably hemp necklace. And a nose-ring!
For dinner, I had a grilled portabella mushroom burger with sauteed onions, peppers & lettuce. For my side dish, I had rice pilaf. Plus a pickle!
My mom had crab-cakes with mashed potatoes. As Morgan came over with refills of win & water, we started talking with her. My mom (kinda out of the blue) mentioned how we were headed to Austin from Boston. Turns out she is goin' to Boston for a Dispatch concert on June 24th.
Later I asked her what kind of music Disptched played;
"Kind of, Rock N' Roll Reggae" she explained. Plannin' on checking them out!
My mom told her I was a musician..."Guitar, and I'm learning some harmonica" I said as she jumped in excitement at the mention of harmonica. She loved the harmonica, "So great to fool around with!". Passion was between us. Music & the Arts. She had previously explained she was in college for Art, painting & photography. And yes Dad, we mentioned that you also took a few snapshots of "cool things". She was really hip & I wished I could've talked with her more.
I knew through most of dinner that I was going to write my blog down on something.
I told her I liked her necklace, to which she smiled replying "oh, thank you! I like your, uh, everything!" (It was either "everything, style" or something very similar."
Thanks Morgan. Maybe I'll see you in Boston...?
I did indeed write the name of my blog down, the URL, & my name.
So Morgan, if you're reading this, I'm very glad <3
It's now almost quarter to 4 in the am, and I (and me mum!) are off to bed. The cats seemed to have calmed down a bit and settled in the hotel room. Tomorrow we head to Asheville, to meet friends :)
Goodnight!
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Cool Things :)
So, cool things in my life when I'm in the process of moving by next week. Wow, that's crazy. Next week I'll be gone (for 2 weeks). But still, this house I've lived in for the past year will be rented out to someone else. My hoot of a landlord insists I visit her of course. She is quite funny.....Theresa is in her mid 70's, totally enjoying life. She's very sweet, caring and all around a delight to hang with. My friend and I once joined in on a late supper with her & my mom (plus a few of Theresa's nieces friend, and niece). We were quickly served food without asking for it....without evening agreeing to have food. Since we there, we were to eat! Theresa heated some spaghetti & gravy up for us, and pretty much insisted we had some. Also, this "'gravy" is not the classic Thanksgiving graving. This gravy is that red tomato sauce thing. But according to Italians, this is gravy.
Numerous times Theresa has told me how handsome I am, and how lucky Marin was to be dating me. "If only I was younger!" She said. She's also commented on how cute my friends were, calling them her boyfriends. She adores my headband & style, which is really cool....I'm not sure I can say the same for Sister Geri, Theresa's nun sister. She's nice, but also kinda of a stickler, and highly religious. My mom wondered if she was so uptight cause she's never had sex. That find pretty spectacular. Father Richard is a cool guy who stays with Theresa a few nights of the week. When Theresa first told me mom this, she reassured my Mother that he wasn't a boyfriend. Just long time friends, and Richard was at Theresa's mothes deathbed or something....Not really sure. But he's cool.
Cool things. Learned several songs on guitar including Franklin's Tower (by The Grateful Dead) a favorite of mine. I'm also pretty excited about goin' down to Austin! Sadly for me, I may not wear all the clothes I'd like to on the way down there....evidently, Texan's like their guns....
When I arrive back to Boston, I'm going to a Junior Prom!
Marin & I are going to her school, for a biiiiiiiig dance. I'll also being were a Tux
*GASP*
On the formalitly bar, that beats what I wore to the Winchester Semi-Formal!
The Tux I'm wearing is my Mom's stepdad's. It's pretty hip, it has tails!
But the "coolest" thing is about this blog!
People in Europe have read my blog! And in Singapore! That was a little mind blowing to me! I don't know anyone there. Crazy. People have read it in Canada too, but I know several people there....it was good to see, but not WILD CRAZY OHHMGEEEEEE!
So there ya go :)
Back to packing , groovin' to the Allman Brothers
In Memory of Elizabeth Reed
Liam :)
Numerous times Theresa has told me how handsome I am, and how lucky Marin was to be dating me. "If only I was younger!" She said. She's also commented on how cute my friends were, calling them her boyfriends. She adores my headband & style, which is really cool....I'm not sure I can say the same for Sister Geri, Theresa's nun sister. She's nice, but also kinda of a stickler, and highly religious. My mom wondered if she was so uptight cause she's never had sex. That find pretty spectacular. Father Richard is a cool guy who stays with Theresa a few nights of the week. When Theresa first told me mom this, she reassured my Mother that he wasn't a boyfriend. Just long time friends, and Richard was at Theresa's mothes deathbed or something....Not really sure. But he's cool.
Cool things. Learned several songs on guitar including Franklin's Tower (by The Grateful Dead) a favorite of mine. I'm also pretty excited about goin' down to Austin! Sadly for me, I may not wear all the clothes I'd like to on the way down there....evidently, Texan's like their guns....
When I arrive back to Boston, I'm going to a Junior Prom!
Marin & I are going to her school, for a biiiiiiiig dance. I'll also being were a Tux
*GASP*
On the formalitly bar, that beats what I wore to the Winchester Semi-Formal!
The Tux I'm wearing is my Mom's stepdad's. It's pretty hip, it has tails!
But the "coolest" thing is about this blog!
People in Europe have read my blog! And in Singapore! That was a little mind blowing to me! I don't know anyone there. Crazy. People have read it in Canada too, but I know several people there....it was good to see, but not WILD CRAZY OHHMGEEEEEE!
So there ya go :)
Back to packing , groovin' to the Allman Brothers
In Memory of Elizabeth Reed
Liam :)
Monday, April 11, 2011
Cowboyin' it up to play some Texas Blues!
Hey...Life is is currently a swirl of chaos, and a spiral of organizations......
I'm moving to Austin Texas!
That's right kids, and we're leavin' soon! My mother & I will be leaving this state of Massachusetts by the end of April. Then with our good friend Micheal we'll be roadtrippin' down to good 'ole Texas. Not that I really think Texas is all that great. As my good friend Jonah put it "Austin's the only place you wouldn't get shot." from what I've heard, Austin is pretty hip. It's also the capital which I found quite surprising, totally thought the Cap would be Houston or Dallas. Dallas Cowboys N' such....but nope, Austin is. Austin has a giant music scene, and a lot to do. So yeah, I'm pretty excited!
But fear not Northern loved ones! I'll be flyin' back to Boston a week after I arrive, and staying throughout the summer. Then in October comes my birthday, followed closely by good 'ole X-Mas. And those special days are always better with friends. So I might not be down South till the New Year. Who knows man.....Oh and, I'll be back & forth between Austin & Boston :) Two homes, two very different places
So I'm sorry my (NOW 10, NOT 7, BUT 10) followers about my lack of writing. Water Street (my mother & I's home) is ordered chaos and as my Mom put it, "Transitional Wings". (I used to have 7 followers but now I have 10, all according the google whatevers)
So yeah, crazyness. Walls are mostly bare, and there are a lot of boxes. So many boxes....some empty, some filled. A LOT, has been done here. Mainly by my crazy Mother <3.
This whole process reminds me of last year, when we (my mother & I) moved to our current-not-for-long home. Course I don't want this to be an every year thing. Last year was my first move, more or less down the street from 38 Eaton Street to Water Street.
Okay so why am I moving? Yeah good question Chuck (You are now Chuck).
Well, financially, the year has been really tough between house rent AND a rent for my Mom's office. At Eaton Street she worked "out of the house" as in inside the house. And now, for the first time in my life, that phrase actually makes sense to me. Wow. Crazy, I get it! Yay dude. I've known it for years, and never got that phrase. She also is really tired of New England, and has a great friend in Austin (who we are moving in with)
MAN! It's so nice out right now (2 am early Tuesday Morn, the 12th). Night birds. Man, Spring is here and it's beautiful. Today was so warm (Monday the 11th). Still haven't worn a sarong yet....but barefoot, oh yes! I must listen to these night birds again. They made such a pleasant sound as I took a short walk and gazed at the sky. So happy to be writing again <3
I'd love to go on about my nice warm day with my beloved girlfriend, packing, and other rambles....but I must sleep. So here it is folks, I'm on a new adventure! Ya-hoo!
Love to you all,
Liam
I'm moving to Austin Texas!
That's right kids, and we're leavin' soon! My mother & I will be leaving this state of Massachusetts by the end of April. Then with our good friend Micheal we'll be roadtrippin' down to good 'ole Texas. Not that I really think Texas is all that great. As my good friend Jonah put it "Austin's the only place you wouldn't get shot." from what I've heard, Austin is pretty hip. It's also the capital which I found quite surprising, totally thought the Cap would be Houston or Dallas. Dallas Cowboys N' such....but nope, Austin is. Austin has a giant music scene, and a lot to do. So yeah, I'm pretty excited!
But fear not Northern loved ones! I'll be flyin' back to Boston a week after I arrive, and staying throughout the summer. Then in October comes my birthday, followed closely by good 'ole X-Mas. And those special days are always better with friends. So I might not be down South till the New Year. Who knows man.....Oh and, I'll be back & forth between Austin & Boston :) Two homes, two very different places
So I'm sorry my (NOW 10, NOT 7, BUT 10) followers about my lack of writing. Water Street (my mother & I's home) is ordered chaos and as my Mom put it, "Transitional Wings". (I used to have 7 followers but now I have 10, all according the google whatevers)
So yeah, crazyness. Walls are mostly bare, and there are a lot of boxes. So many boxes....some empty, some filled. A LOT, has been done here. Mainly by my crazy Mother <3.
This whole process reminds me of last year, when we (my mother & I) moved to our current-not-for-long home. Course I don't want this to be an every year thing. Last year was my first move, more or less down the street from 38 Eaton Street to Water Street.
Okay so why am I moving? Yeah good question Chuck (You are now Chuck).
Well, financially, the year has been really tough between house rent AND a rent for my Mom's office. At Eaton Street she worked "out of the house" as in inside the house. And now, for the first time in my life, that phrase actually makes sense to me. Wow. Crazy, I get it! Yay dude. I've known it for years, and never got that phrase. She also is really tired of New England, and has a great friend in Austin (who we are moving in with)
MAN! It's so nice out right now (2 am early Tuesday Morn, the 12th). Night birds. Man, Spring is here and it's beautiful. Today was so warm (Monday the 11th). Still haven't worn a sarong yet....but barefoot, oh yes! I must listen to these night birds again. They made such a pleasant sound as I took a short walk and gazed at the sky. So happy to be writing again <3
I'd love to go on about my nice warm day with my beloved girlfriend, packing, and other rambles....but I must sleep. So here it is folks, I'm on a new adventure! Ya-hoo!
Love to you all,
Liam
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
FURTHUR~
WOW.
What a weekend! Alright so, I talked a bit about who Furthur was last post, but I'm going to say it again.
Furthur is made up of Bob Weir & Phil Lesh (from my favorite band of all time, The Grateful Dead) and some other dudes. :P
The lead guitarist is this guy named John, and he is very, very good at guitar. He used to be in the band Dark Star Orchestra, which is basically the ultimate Dead cover band. They play actually concerts the dead played. Not quite note for note (I think), but song for song.
So Grateful Dead. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grateful_Dead
AMAZING. They formed in the 60's, and disbanded in the 90's, after Jerry Garcia's (the lead guitarist) death. This band is was a band of spectacular musicians. They used a lot of different styles of music, to create their personal style. The would jam on & on. Improvise, the tempo rising, then have the tempo drop. Or go from a concrete sounding song, and dive into a long epic solo, then suddenly go right back into the verse or chorus. Please just look some of their stuff up. Try "Sugar Magnolia" or "Uncle John's Band". Or if you want to get jammy, perhaps "Dark Star"? "Here Comes Sunshine" is another great tune!
Sugar Magnolia
Here Comes Sunshine
Oh Boy! And I'm a Hog For You
So, Furthur is made up of the other guitarist (Bob Weir) & the bassist (Phil Lesh) from the Grateful Dead.
I found out quite a while ago that they were playin' in Boston (March 4, 5, & 6th). I planned to see them, and get tickets as soon as they were out! I figured the tickets would be expensive, but I'd work as much as I could to go to all three nights. Tickets were being released at 10 O'clock in the am (I have no clue what day this was. A couple months ago probably.) I woke up at 12, and immediately tried getting tickets form Live Nation. No luck what so ever. It kept telling me that "the seat I was looking for seemed to be out, but the show might not be sold out". It was wicked annoying.
Then I thought maybe I could go to the Orpheum's page (where the show was) and get tickets for cheaper! Live Nation was selling them for about $60 ($70 in total). I was completely wrong.
The Orpheum was sellin' them for $117 or more.
Well, I finally got one ticket for Sunday night!
YAY!
Very happy you Deadhead I was.
I figured that I could go to the show's and buy tickets from others there, hopefully for cheaper than face value. My good guitar buddy Zach also joined me! We tried getting another friend to go, but he couldn't.
Bummer man. Anyway, Zach & I got into Boston on Friday night around 5:30, to find tickets.
Hold you finger out & smile. "Cash for extra" was the phrase to tell people that you'd pay for an extra ticket to the show. We both said this multiple times. Multiple, multiple times.
I then, found a guy who had an extra!
I was so happy! He wasn't sure of what people were selling the tickets for, and I suggested givin' him $40 for it. He accepted. I was overjoyed! I also had just about $50, and some of that may have been needed to get home (train/subway). So, $40 is what I was willing to pay haha.
Zach still didn't have a ticket, and we were plannin' on both going in, or neither of us.
I was frantically searching for an extra ticket for him when he came & grabbed me shoulder.
HE GOT ONE.
He had to pay face value, but nonetheless we had tickets!
Can't Come Down (Really early stuff!!)
The Setlist:
SET 1
Come Together>Feel Like A Stranger>Alabama Getaway
Promised Land
Althea
Peggy-O
Cream Puff War
Good Lovin'>Come Together (Reprise)>Good Lovin'
SET 2
The Music Never Stops>The Wheel>Uncle John's Band>Playing In The Band>Crazy Fingers>The Other One>Morning Dew>Help On The Way>Slipknot>Franklin's Tower
Right before the encore (after the band had left though), Phil Lesh came on stage to give his Donor Rap.
Talking about how if it wasn't for an organ donor, he'd be dead.
The encore was The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion).
AMAZING SHOW.
So, the ">" symbols mean the band changed songs without stopping. So basically until they left the stage, the band didn't stop playing. Zach & I entered a bit through "Feel Like A Stranger". Which I found suiting. Though I do call myself a Deadhead, I was new to the crowd of Deadheads outside the venue (or inside). I of course felt very much at home :)
"Feel Like A Stranger" has a groovy riff and I immediately started boogying to my seat. The version of "Althea" was quite beautiful. One of my favorites from the Dead's "Go To Heaven" album. I was very happy when I heard "Cream Puff War"start. A tune from the Grateful Dead's early days (which are my favorite). The "Good Lovin'" into "Come Together" & back to "Good Lovin'" was great, kept me jumpin' & grooving. "The Music Never Stops" was GRROO-VVYY. They threw some great funky stuff into it, totally great! The Wheel almost brought me to tears, chanting along with everybody!
That's thing about the shows, everybody sang along (Most of 'em at least). That wasn't annoying though. Not like the drunk guy behind me when I saw Eric Clapton, who "serenaded" his girl with the lyrics (To be fair, this annoyed my dad waaay more than it annoyed me). Everybody signing along made it better. So much better. You could hear the "actual singer's" voice just fine. Everybody signing powerful, and also seemed to unite everybody there. There was plenty of "different types" of people there. The guy who sold me a ticket looked about mid thirties, Dad, had a nice wife and seemed ordinary. But he was happy. Quite happy to be there I'm sure of-it! Later in the night he actually took a toke (after denying a few times earlier). There was young people, there was older people, middle aged people. Everyone lookin' different too. Of course, there was a lot tie-dye :D
The "Uncle John's Band", "Playing in The Band" combo was beautiful! They really jammed out :)
"Crazy Fingers" was beautiful (A favorite from Blues From Allah).
"The Other One into "Morning Dew was FANTASTIC. Then, the trio of "Help On The Way", "Slipknot","Franklin's Tower" may have been my favorites. There may have been "something else" makin' Morning Dew to the end "The Best".
Golden Road was pretty great too.
And to top the start of an amazin' weekend off, there was two things.
1. Two more shows, one of which I had a ticket too.
2. We bought Cherry Garcia ice cream (my favorite, named after Jerry Garcia).
Zach stayed the night as we ate soup & ice cream, ravin' about the show.
I must hit the hay for now, even though I just want to write, write, write!
More will come!
SPOLIER: IT WAS ALL SO FAR-OUT
I'll also talk about all the people I met!
Characters:
Shirt Guy-This guy was really nice, but I keep forgetting his name. He was selling Furthur tour shirts for $10, a good deal (I got mine inside the theater for $30)
Drew-Hip dude with a cool dready beard selling buttons. Really groovy buttons. I got to buttons for 5 dollars, and on Sunday night I bought some for Zach. The button I have on my jean jacket (I have the other on my jeans) has three pyramids on it.
Kevin & Ed-Two close buds that Zach & I kept seeing Friday night. We found each other inside the show too. They were sitting right behind me! I saw them again Saturday night, and Ed on Sunday (Kevin couldn't make it)
Rich-A young guy Zach & I hung with for a spell, trying to find a small parking lot (to score tickets in). He hailed from California. I didn't seem him Saturday night, but I did Sunday, still looking for tickets. He hadn't gotten in yet.
SHAGGY-This old groovy Deadhead. He makes tie-dye socks for a living :) I got a pair. wish I got another one. I met him the first night, but talked to him more on Saturday. He was sitting down with some things to sell (Stickers & buttons) and I was talking with him, when this girl came over. She was "well dressed" and with a bunch of other well dressed young people. College aged late night party people. I think she asked what we were all doing, but I can't really remember. There was a lot of people hanging around the park near the venue. Selling things, chatting, hangin' out :)
She asks where we could find some pot. We both said "no", but I remember Shaggy gave some witty comebacks, to which I joined in, screwing with the Boston girl. Other than having fun with her, I seriously tried telling her who might have pot. No idea if they actually bought some though. Anyway, Shaggy had this leather jacket filled with buttons and pins. Plus some patches! He also had leather chaps, covering, oh yeah, TIE-DYE PANTS. Unlike my dyed pants, his were actually tied (Mine are just dyed a bunch of colors). He had purple rings all along them :)
So yeah, Shaggy was pretty hip.
Abe- Abe was this really cool dude I met the first night. He made these rad posters for Furthur playing in Boston. It was quite simple, but I liked it! He sold it to me for 2 bucks, and it now hangs on my wall :) He seemed pretty surprised that I wanted it, but it was groovy! So was he! He had these pigtails, and really nice red hair. Saw him again Saturday night briefly, and again on Sunday! Sunday I chilled with him during the break. Of course, what I had no idea of was that he in fact an unschooler AND knows my good friend Henry! Pretty crazy. Note I sadly forget to mention Abe when I wrote this whole thing up. Addin' you now buddy!
Jerry- This old hippie guy behind me Saturday night. He also had a friend who came & sat next to me during the second set (I totally forget his name, could also be Jerry though!)
Dan-also a guy sitting behind me on Saturday, saw him again Sunday night
Father & Mother-Sunday night I had a ticket, but I found an older Deadhead friend and his buds. Instead of staying where my seat was, I stayed with my friend Jeff & his mates. but to start the night, I went over to where I was actually supposed to stay. There, was my mother & father. Not my actual parents though. But as I said hello to my neighbors the husband said "My boy!"I laughed and then left to go with Jeff. When I returned to that seat during the break, my "father" excalmied, "My Son! My son! You're back!"
I quickly replied with "Father, father! I am, but not for long." He then told me to tell my sister that he loves her & to visit <3
Wish I saw them after the show.
Jeff-Jeff is a neighbor of a good friend. During a party my father called my upstairs to meet Jeff. As soon as I saw Jeff he said "We have the same god". Now this utterly confused me. He then said "Jerry" and everything clicked. He was a Deadhead!
I'm going to post the setlists for the other shows, but "that's about it".
So Saturday night:
Born Crossed Eyed>Something
Cassidy
Dire Wolf
Loose Lucy
Row Jimmy
Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
One More Saturday Night>Cassidy
SET 2
Truckin'>New Speedway Boogie>Caution (Do Not Stop on Tracks)
China Cat Sunflower>I Know You Rider
King Solomon's Marbles
Standing On The Moon
Shakedon Street>Not Fade Away> Audiecne NFA Chant
Donor Rap
Encore: Ripple
Pretty great setlist I thought, the "I know You Rider" was fantastic! So was "Shakedown / Not Fade Away". After the Donor Rap by Phil Lesh, the crowd (I was one of the few to start it) began to sing "Not Fade Away", until the band played Ripple. It was great :)
Sunday Night. Probably my favorite out of the three, that and the first one.
SET 1
Here Comes Sunshine
Alligator
Maxwell's Silver Hammer
Mason's Children
Passenger
Viola Lee Blues>King Bee>Viola Lee Blues
Next Time You See Me>Viola Lee Blues
AMAZING (more on that later)
SET 2
Mountain Song>St. Stephan>Time>Breathe (reprise)>The Eleven>Dark Star>Nobody Girl>China Doll>Dark Star>Sugree>Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad and then they ended with "We bid You Goodnight". I'm pretty sure they left the stage, but according to a website where I'm getting the setlists from, they went right from GDTRFB into "We Bid You Goodnight."
So good, everything was so groovy about that night. "Here Comes Sunshine"-Amazing (15 minutes of great boogieing! Yes, real word :). A great tune that I only recently discovered. An absolute great opener! And then "Alligator". A FAVORITE. Made me SO happy dude. Then with "Maxwell's Silver Hammer"? Great tune :)
Even if Marin's sister thought the song was disturbing. Come on, serial killers only kill cereal.
Ha Ha, corny joke. Quite punny.
My next "supa fave" was "Viola Lee Blues". Wait..."Supa fave"....probably cause I'm watching the Roast of Donald Trump, and I had to watch Mike "The Situation" talk...which was funny. Cause no one laughed.
But yeah, "Viola Lee Blues" is a great early tune. So yeah, really rad. And they kept comin' back to it, oh yeah. Wicked groovy (Boston Hippie :P)
The whole second set was just crazy. From to longs jams of the "Mountain Song" & "St. Stephan", they started playin' some Pink Floyd. Far-out. "The Elven" into "Dark Star", yeah, a kinda a dream true. Oh wait, the whole weekend was. So yeah "Dark Star" the jammy jam jam tune of the Grateful Dead. Soon after, "China Doll" (Which I keep spelling "dool" by accident.) A great slow song that I find oh-so beautiful. It was. Back to a little "Dark Star", I'm diggin' it. In to a 15 minute "Sugree", fabulous. "Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad", nope, not at all. Great song though!
Then "We Bid You Goodnight". Which I guessed would be the encore. A great little ditty :)
The Cherry On Top, was hangin' with Marin on Monday. Great fun, lot's of laugh!
So yeah, wonderful weekend! One of the cool things I bought, was this big patch, of a skeleton in a fancy suit, with a top-hat. On the top was a lightning bolt & a Skull. His hair is multi-colored and sticks straight out of his head. Pretty groovy man.
Well much love to all <3 <3 <3
P.S. I tried getting some photo's up, but it didn't work. Visit my facebook page if ye want to see 'em.
Au Revoir. BY THE BY It was Phil Lesh's birthday "yesterday". So his birthday is the 15th....for "legally", in Boston Mass, it's the 16th. He is now older than he was. Some where in his 70's.
Box of Rain-Studio Version
Box of Rain-Live
What a weekend! Alright so, I talked a bit about who Furthur was last post, but I'm going to say it again.
Furthur is made up of Bob Weir & Phil Lesh (from my favorite band of all time, The Grateful Dead) and some other dudes. :P
The lead guitarist is this guy named John, and he is very, very good at guitar. He used to be in the band Dark Star Orchestra, which is basically the ultimate Dead cover band. They play actually concerts the dead played. Not quite note for note (I think), but song for song.
So Grateful Dead. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grateful_Dead
AMAZING. They formed in the 60's, and disbanded in the 90's, after Jerry Garcia's (the lead guitarist) death. This band is was a band of spectacular musicians. They used a lot of different styles of music, to create their personal style. The would jam on & on. Improvise, the tempo rising, then have the tempo drop. Or go from a concrete sounding song, and dive into a long epic solo, then suddenly go right back into the verse or chorus. Please just look some of their stuff up. Try "Sugar Magnolia" or "Uncle John's Band". Or if you want to get jammy, perhaps "Dark Star"? "Here Comes Sunshine" is another great tune!
Sugar Magnolia
Here Comes Sunshine
Oh Boy! And I'm a Hog For You
So, Furthur is made up of the other guitarist (Bob Weir) & the bassist (Phil Lesh) from the Grateful Dead.
I found out quite a while ago that they were playin' in Boston (March 4, 5, & 6th). I planned to see them, and get tickets as soon as they were out! I figured the tickets would be expensive, but I'd work as much as I could to go to all three nights. Tickets were being released at 10 O'clock in the am (I have no clue what day this was. A couple months ago probably.) I woke up at 12, and immediately tried getting tickets form Live Nation. No luck what so ever. It kept telling me that "the seat I was looking for seemed to be out, but the show might not be sold out". It was wicked annoying.
Then I thought maybe I could go to the Orpheum's page (where the show was) and get tickets for cheaper! Live Nation was selling them for about $60 ($70 in total). I was completely wrong.
The Orpheum was sellin' them for $117 or more.
Well, I finally got one ticket for Sunday night!
YAY!
Very happy you Deadhead I was.
I figured that I could go to the show's and buy tickets from others there, hopefully for cheaper than face value. My good guitar buddy Zach also joined me! We tried getting another friend to go, but he couldn't.
Bummer man. Anyway, Zach & I got into Boston on Friday night around 5:30, to find tickets.
Hold you finger out & smile. "Cash for extra" was the phrase to tell people that you'd pay for an extra ticket to the show. We both said this multiple times. Multiple, multiple times.
I then, found a guy who had an extra!
I was so happy! He wasn't sure of what people were selling the tickets for, and I suggested givin' him $40 for it. He accepted. I was overjoyed! I also had just about $50, and some of that may have been needed to get home (train/subway). So, $40 is what I was willing to pay haha.
Zach still didn't have a ticket, and we were plannin' on both going in, or neither of us.
I was frantically searching for an extra ticket for him when he came & grabbed me shoulder.
HE GOT ONE.
He had to pay face value, but nonetheless we had tickets!
Can't Come Down (Really early stuff!!)
The Setlist:
SET 1
Come Together>Feel Like A Stranger>Alabama Getaway
Promised Land
Althea
Peggy-O
Cream Puff War
Good Lovin'>Come Together (Reprise)>Good Lovin'
SET 2
The Music Never Stops>The Wheel>Uncle John's Band>Playing In The Band>Crazy Fingers>The Other One>Morning Dew>Help On The Way>Slipknot>Franklin's Tower
Right before the encore (after the band had left though), Phil Lesh came on stage to give his Donor Rap.
Talking about how if it wasn't for an organ donor, he'd be dead.
The encore was The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion).
AMAZING SHOW.
So, the ">" symbols mean the band changed songs without stopping. So basically until they left the stage, the band didn't stop playing. Zach & I entered a bit through "Feel Like A Stranger". Which I found suiting. Though I do call myself a Deadhead, I was new to the crowd of Deadheads outside the venue (or inside). I of course felt very much at home :)
"Feel Like A Stranger" has a groovy riff and I immediately started boogying to my seat. The version of "Althea" was quite beautiful. One of my favorites from the Dead's "Go To Heaven" album. I was very happy when I heard "Cream Puff War"start. A tune from the Grateful Dead's early days (which are my favorite). The "Good Lovin'" into "Come Together" & back to "Good Lovin'" was great, kept me jumpin' & grooving. "The Music Never Stops" was GRROO-VVYY. They threw some great funky stuff into it, totally great! The Wheel almost brought me to tears, chanting along with everybody!
That's thing about the shows, everybody sang along (Most of 'em at least). That wasn't annoying though. Not like the drunk guy behind me when I saw Eric Clapton, who "serenaded" his girl with the lyrics (To be fair, this annoyed my dad waaay more than it annoyed me). Everybody signing along made it better. So much better. You could hear the "actual singer's" voice just fine. Everybody signing powerful, and also seemed to unite everybody there. There was plenty of "different types" of people there. The guy who sold me a ticket looked about mid thirties, Dad, had a nice wife and seemed ordinary. But he was happy. Quite happy to be there I'm sure of-it! Later in the night he actually took a toke (after denying a few times earlier). There was young people, there was older people, middle aged people. Everyone lookin' different too. Of course, there was a lot tie-dye :D
The "Uncle John's Band", "Playing in The Band" combo was beautiful! They really jammed out :)
"Crazy Fingers" was beautiful (A favorite from Blues From Allah).
"The Other One into "Morning Dew was FANTASTIC. Then, the trio of "Help On The Way", "Slipknot","Franklin's Tower" may have been my favorites. There may have been "something else" makin' Morning Dew to the end "The Best".
Golden Road was pretty great too.
And to top the start of an amazin' weekend off, there was two things.
1. Two more shows, one of which I had a ticket too.
2. We bought Cherry Garcia ice cream (my favorite, named after Jerry Garcia).
Zach stayed the night as we ate soup & ice cream, ravin' about the show.
I must hit the hay for now, even though I just want to write, write, write!
More will come!
SPOLIER: IT WAS ALL SO FAR-OUT
I'll also talk about all the people I met!
Characters:
Shirt Guy-This guy was really nice, but I keep forgetting his name. He was selling Furthur tour shirts for $10, a good deal (I got mine inside the theater for $30)
Drew-Hip dude with a cool dready beard selling buttons. Really groovy buttons. I got to buttons for 5 dollars, and on Sunday night I bought some for Zach. The button I have on my jean jacket (I have the other on my jeans) has three pyramids on it.
Kevin & Ed-Two close buds that Zach & I kept seeing Friday night. We found each other inside the show too. They were sitting right behind me! I saw them again Saturday night, and Ed on Sunday (Kevin couldn't make it)
Rich-A young guy Zach & I hung with for a spell, trying to find a small parking lot (to score tickets in). He hailed from California. I didn't seem him Saturday night, but I did Sunday, still looking for tickets. He hadn't gotten in yet.
SHAGGY-This old groovy Deadhead. He makes tie-dye socks for a living :) I got a pair. wish I got another one. I met him the first night, but talked to him more on Saturday. He was sitting down with some things to sell (Stickers & buttons) and I was talking with him, when this girl came over. She was "well dressed" and with a bunch of other well dressed young people. College aged late night party people. I think she asked what we were all doing, but I can't really remember. There was a lot of people hanging around the park near the venue. Selling things, chatting, hangin' out :)
She asks where we could find some pot. We both said "no", but I remember Shaggy gave some witty comebacks, to which I joined in, screwing with the Boston girl. Other than having fun with her, I seriously tried telling her who might have pot. No idea if they actually bought some though. Anyway, Shaggy had this leather jacket filled with buttons and pins. Plus some patches! He also had leather chaps, covering, oh yeah, TIE-DYE PANTS. Unlike my dyed pants, his were actually tied (Mine are just dyed a bunch of colors). He had purple rings all along them :)
So yeah, Shaggy was pretty hip.
Abe- Abe was this really cool dude I met the first night. He made these rad posters for Furthur playing in Boston. It was quite simple, but I liked it! He sold it to me for 2 bucks, and it now hangs on my wall :) He seemed pretty surprised that I wanted it, but it was groovy! So was he! He had these pigtails, and really nice red hair. Saw him again Saturday night briefly, and again on Sunday! Sunday I chilled with him during the break. Of course, what I had no idea of was that he in fact an unschooler AND knows my good friend Henry! Pretty crazy. Note I sadly forget to mention Abe when I wrote this whole thing up. Addin' you now buddy!
Jerry- This old hippie guy behind me Saturday night. He also had a friend who came & sat next to me during the second set (I totally forget his name, could also be Jerry though!)
Dan-also a guy sitting behind me on Saturday, saw him again Sunday night
Father & Mother-Sunday night I had a ticket, but I found an older Deadhead friend and his buds. Instead of staying where my seat was, I stayed with my friend Jeff & his mates. but to start the night, I went over to where I was actually supposed to stay. There, was my mother & father. Not my actual parents though. But as I said hello to my neighbors the husband said "My boy!"I laughed and then left to go with Jeff. When I returned to that seat during the break, my "father" excalmied, "My Son! My son! You're back!"
I quickly replied with "Father, father! I am, but not for long." He then told me to tell my sister that he loves her & to visit <3
Wish I saw them after the show.
Jeff-Jeff is a neighbor of a good friend. During a party my father called my upstairs to meet Jeff. As soon as I saw Jeff he said "We have the same god". Now this utterly confused me. He then said "Jerry" and everything clicked. He was a Deadhead!
I'm going to post the setlists for the other shows, but "that's about it".
So Saturday night:
Born Crossed Eyed>Something
Cassidy
Dire Wolf
Loose Lucy
Row Jimmy
Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
One More Saturday Night>Cassidy
SET 2
Truckin'>New Speedway Boogie>Caution (Do Not Stop on Tracks)
China Cat Sunflower>I Know You Rider
King Solomon's Marbles
Standing On The Moon
Shakedon Street>Not Fade Away> Audiecne NFA Chant
Donor Rap
Encore: Ripple
Pretty great setlist I thought, the "I know You Rider" was fantastic! So was "Shakedown / Not Fade Away". After the Donor Rap by Phil Lesh, the crowd (I was one of the few to start it) began to sing "Not Fade Away", until the band played Ripple. It was great :)
Sunday Night. Probably my favorite out of the three, that and the first one.
SET 1
Here Comes Sunshine
Alligator
Maxwell's Silver Hammer
Mason's Children
Passenger
Viola Lee Blues>King Bee>Viola Lee Blues
Next Time You See Me>Viola Lee Blues
AMAZING (more on that later)
SET 2
Mountain Song>St. Stephan>Time>Breathe (reprise)>The Eleven>Dark Star>Nobody Girl>China Doll>Dark Star>Sugree>Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad and then they ended with "We bid You Goodnight". I'm pretty sure they left the stage, but according to a website where I'm getting the setlists from, they went right from GDTRFB into "We Bid You Goodnight."
So good, everything was so groovy about that night. "Here Comes Sunshine"-Amazing (15 minutes of great boogieing! Yes, real word :). A great tune that I only recently discovered. An absolute great opener! And then "Alligator". A FAVORITE. Made me SO happy dude. Then with "Maxwell's Silver Hammer"? Great tune :)
Even if Marin's sister thought the song was disturbing. Come on, serial killers only kill cereal.
Ha Ha, corny joke. Quite punny.
My next "supa fave" was "Viola Lee Blues". Wait..."Supa fave"....probably cause I'm watching the Roast of Donald Trump, and I had to watch Mike "The Situation" talk...which was funny. Cause no one laughed.
But yeah, "Viola Lee Blues" is a great early tune. So yeah, really rad. And they kept comin' back to it, oh yeah. Wicked groovy (Boston Hippie :P)
The whole second set was just crazy. From to longs jams of the "Mountain Song" & "St. Stephan", they started playin' some Pink Floyd. Far-out. "The Elven" into "Dark Star", yeah, a kinda a dream true. Oh wait, the whole weekend was. So yeah "Dark Star" the jammy jam jam tune of the Grateful Dead. Soon after, "China Doll" (Which I keep spelling "dool" by accident.) A great slow song that I find oh-so beautiful. It was. Back to a little "Dark Star", I'm diggin' it. In to a 15 minute "Sugree", fabulous. "Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad", nope, not at all. Great song though!
Then "We Bid You Goodnight". Which I guessed would be the encore. A great little ditty :)
The Cherry On Top, was hangin' with Marin on Monday. Great fun, lot's of laugh!
So yeah, wonderful weekend! One of the cool things I bought, was this big patch, of a skeleton in a fancy suit, with a top-hat. On the top was a lightning bolt & a Skull. His hair is multi-colored and sticks straight out of his head. Pretty groovy man.
Well much love to all <3 <3 <3
P.S. I tried getting some photo's up, but it didn't work. Visit my facebook page if ye want to see 'em.
Au Revoir. BY THE BY It was Phil Lesh's birthday "yesterday". So his birthday is the 15th....for "legally", in Boston Mass, it's the 16th. He is now older than he was. Some where in his 70's.
Box of Rain-Studio Version
Box of Rain-Live
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Wowzer, Hey Now!
Hey all you die-hard fans. I'm back!
It's been a tiring week...or two weeks. Been mainly very tired from some early mornings..... (I worked a lot & made money! Yay!) It was a fun two weeks or whatever. And now, I'm finally updating! YAY!
Since I got up pretty early today, I'm watching Flight of The Conchords & writing on my blog!
Later today I'm going to be part of an unschooler's panel at MIT (A college in Boston just in case you didn't know). I might tell ya how it goes! I also got a 10 speed bike (thanks Pop's!). It's quite old & retro, and very awesome! I could feel the power of it toodlin' around the parking lot. Fun, fun. My other bike is a single gear bike (meaning I cannot shift) which is much harder to ride. and by harder, I mean uses a lot more work. Love it though!
In other news, I've picked up Harry Potter & the Deathly Hollows. For the first time, so no spoilers please!
Now, the best news of all!
FURTHUR IS PLAYING IN BOSTON! THREE WHOLE NIGHTS!
Now, who is Furthur? Well, come closer little boy (said in a raspy Italian voice) Mafia man aside, Furthur is a band made up of Bob Weir & Phil Lesh (From....
THE GRATEFUL DEAD). Wait...Grateful Dead? Isn't that like some old jam band? They played on & on? YEAH. IT IS. My favorite band hands DOWN. ALL THE WAY DOWN. All the down. To me, they are so very fantastic. Futhur's lead guitarist is this guy named John, he was the lead guitarist for Dark Star Orchestra....basically the ultimate Dead cover band. Pretty sweet.
So yeah, I'm very excited to be going. I have a ticket to the Sunday show, but I'm gonna go to the other shows & buy tickets there :)
I'm slowly roundin' some friends to go. Man, I'm so pumped.
By the way, that Mafia guy? I just started watching the Godfather :)
Never seen the whole thing so I got it from the library the other day. It's really good. Very, very good.
Alright, this post is quite short....I might update it again tonight, and or tomorrow.
Au Revoir!
Nope! Guess again! If you guessed the first time. guessed at what, I don't know. HARRY POTTER IS SO GOOD. I want to talk about Harry Potter. It's Fabulous. Just fantastic. MAYBE SPOILERS.
Just warnin' ya.
I really like how J.K. Rowling goes back & forth between comedy and seriousness in the Deathly Hollows. Light & Dark. Bouncing back & forth. When I saw the latest movie, I was very confused about a lot of things. I'd seen all the movies....but forget most of the things...small or large. I knew the plot (general stuff) but didn't get a lot of stuff. My father read the first 4 books to me as a child, but we then stopped. I hadn't picked up the books on my own either. Until this fall. Kimi more or less told me to read them, or she'd beat me with 'em. No...not really, but it sounds better that way. Anway, I started reading them. Good stuff. Picked up on the 5th :)
I can see so many differences between the books & movies too! It's really fun to have them dawn upon you. There is a lot too! It makes sense, though I'm a bit surprised. Hmmm, wish I could read now.
Alas, I'm spending the night at Marin's! My wonderful girlfriend who is sitting right next to me ;) We might watch a movie. In-case you were wondering.....Heh, I really feel like a sex joke should be put it. I can't think of one though.......Ya know (No, I don't think you do, unless I told you.) when I was visiting my buddy Milan in California (About 3 years ago I think) we cracked "That's What she Jokes" every 30 seconds. Literally. It was crazy & mad fun. Even at the diner table, we'd silently cumunicate
with chuckles & looks. Well, found my sex joke...;)
Take care,
Liam <3
Oh! Oh! Oh! The panel!
There is a alternative education course that's going on at MIT, and the guy running it asked a lot of Boston Unschoolers to come in for a Q & A. So I did! My father came in as well, and that was really cool to have an unschoolin' parent as well as teens. It was really groovy.
Well, Marin is buggin' me to finish up, so SEE-YA!
It's been a tiring week...or two weeks. Been mainly very tired from some early mornings..... (I worked a lot & made money! Yay!) It was a fun two weeks or whatever. And now, I'm finally updating! YAY!
Since I got up pretty early today, I'm watching Flight of The Conchords & writing on my blog!
Later today I'm going to be part of an unschooler's panel at MIT (A college in Boston just in case you didn't know). I might tell ya how it goes! I also got a 10 speed bike (thanks Pop's!). It's quite old & retro, and very awesome! I could feel the power of it toodlin' around the parking lot. Fun, fun. My other bike is a single gear bike (meaning I cannot shift) which is much harder to ride. and by harder, I mean uses a lot more work. Love it though!
In other news, I've picked up Harry Potter & the Deathly Hollows. For the first time, so no spoilers please!
Now, the best news of all!
FURTHUR IS PLAYING IN BOSTON! THREE WHOLE NIGHTS!
Now, who is Furthur? Well, come closer little boy (said in a raspy Italian voice) Mafia man aside, Furthur is a band made up of Bob Weir & Phil Lesh (From....
THE GRATEFUL DEAD). Wait...Grateful Dead? Isn't that like some old jam band? They played on & on? YEAH. IT IS. My favorite band hands DOWN. ALL THE WAY DOWN. All the down. To me, they are so very fantastic. Futhur's lead guitarist is this guy named John, he was the lead guitarist for Dark Star Orchestra....basically the ultimate Dead cover band. Pretty sweet.
So yeah, I'm very excited to be going. I have a ticket to the Sunday show, but I'm gonna go to the other shows & buy tickets there :)
I'm slowly roundin' some friends to go. Man, I'm so pumped.
By the way, that Mafia guy? I just started watching the Godfather :)
Never seen the whole thing so I got it from the library the other day. It's really good. Very, very good.
Alright, this post is quite short....I might update it again tonight, and or tomorrow.
Au Revoir!
Nope! Guess again! If you guessed the first time. guessed at what, I don't know. HARRY POTTER IS SO GOOD. I want to talk about Harry Potter. It's Fabulous. Just fantastic. MAYBE SPOILERS.
Just warnin' ya.
I really like how J.K. Rowling goes back & forth between comedy and seriousness in the Deathly Hollows. Light & Dark. Bouncing back & forth. When I saw the latest movie, I was very confused about a lot of things. I'd seen all the movies....but forget most of the things...small or large. I knew the plot (general stuff) but didn't get a lot of stuff. My father read the first 4 books to me as a child, but we then stopped. I hadn't picked up the books on my own either. Until this fall. Kimi more or less told me to read them, or she'd beat me with 'em. No...not really, but it sounds better that way. Anway, I started reading them. Good stuff. Picked up on the 5th :)
I can see so many differences between the books & movies too! It's really fun to have them dawn upon you. There is a lot too! It makes sense, though I'm a bit surprised. Hmmm, wish I could read now.
Alas, I'm spending the night at Marin's! My wonderful girlfriend who is sitting right next to me ;) We might watch a movie. In-case you were wondering.....Heh, I really feel like a sex joke should be put it. I can't think of one though.......Ya know (No, I don't think you do, unless I told you.) when I was visiting my buddy Milan in California (About 3 years ago I think) we cracked "That's What she Jokes" every 30 seconds. Literally. It was crazy & mad fun. Even at the diner table, we'd silently cumunicate
with chuckles & looks. Well, found my sex joke...;)
Take care,
Liam <3
Oh! Oh! Oh! The panel!
There is a alternative education course that's going on at MIT, and the guy running it asked a lot of Boston Unschoolers to come in for a Q & A. So I did! My father came in as well, and that was really cool to have an unschoolin' parent as well as teens. It was really groovy.
Well, Marin is buggin' me to finish up, so SEE-YA!
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Semi-Formal!
Warning: This is long.
So, last Friday night was the Sophomore Semi-Formal for Winchester High.
I of course desperately wanted to go. It would be much fun to dance around people that I like (and some I hardly see) and dance around people I dislike that I hardly get to see. Since I don't go to Wincehster High School, I'd need to be someone's date. That wasn't hard at all to find. I had a lot of offers which frankly surprised me (I was quite glad though). I originally wanted my friend Jason "Jesus" St. Jean-Dorcy to bring me.
If you don't know this wonderful person, I think you are in need of a meeting. He is after all, our Lord & Savior. His nickname of Jesus is pronounced with a hard "J". It's like the bowler Jesus in "The Big Lebowski."
The Lord & Savior.
Anyway, more about that fantastic kid latter. My date turned out to be Josh Clemson, a good friend who lives up the street with fiery red hair. To get into the Semi you need this form signed. I had no idea of this fact till two days before the dance. It also cost $25. Luckily, I have a good friends and a good father, so money wasn't a big issue. (Got my buds to pitch in, not sure who owes who money though...) The form was an issue. Or not so much the form, but buying a ticket with the form.
Mr. Clemson & I came up with a simple plan. (This is Wednesday night mind you)
On Thursday I would enter the High School during First Lunch, fill the form out, and buy a ticket.
This, I was pretty sure, was against school policy. Whoops.
But, as we found out the next day during lunch, the principal could care less. Josh & I had filled out the form, and my dad had "signed" it. All that was needed was the principal's signature. This scared me, for I had simply walked into the school, with telling any authority figure. The principal asked no questions. When Josh asked for permission for me, a homeschooler who lives in Winchester do go, he simply said "Sure."
I was amazed.
I then sat in on a 10th grade English class.
The rest of expedition is for later.
I had my ticket to the dance!
The next day I found out Josh was sick. And he wasn't going. This was a slight kink. He was supposed to be bringing me. I talked with my other bud Julien, told him this, and asked for him to bring me in. Julien wanting me to go, agreed.
I figured the people in charge of the dance would have no problem with this slight change, after all, I had bought a ticket..
So, the dance being in half an hour, I needed to get ready.
 |
| Washed my pits, and put my fabulous Tie Dye Pants on :) |
My plan was to walk in with Semi-Formal attire (Suit Jacket & nice pants) wearin' Tie Dye underneath.
My father prepared some supper as I washed myself, and now it was time to eat! Time was a tickin!
 |
| Takin' a few bites of super, hiding my Colors |
 |
| Looking a bit more formal, with dashes of color My father gave me several ties to wear, I choose the one most matching my tie dye. I grabbed my nice, black indoor shoes to wear. I hoped I could remove them when the dance started (I could!) |
 |
| A wonderful warm coat provided by my gracious Father completes my outfit. |
As I told my dad I wasn't sure what to wear as a coat, he promptly said "I have just the thing!" and ran off, to get the giant coat.
I was at first a little taken back, but he insisted. "It's your Semi-Formal!"
I was at first a little taken back, but he insisted. "It's your Semi-Formal!"
 |
| I leave, taking boots with me to leave on the porch, in case I wanted to change into them. |
And so the I headed off to the dance. I met Julien, and we headed inside. There we were asked our names. I explained 'bout how Josh Clemson wasn't going, and that Juilien could take me instead. The lady was fine with it, and we continued on our way inside.
The dance was takin' place in Winchesters Town Hall. It had a great open space for dancing, a stage where the DJ did his thing, a place for water & pretzels, hangin' coats, and a place to put our bags. They took everyone's "bags" (which happened to be my bag & a bunch of girls purses). In case we had any "illiegal things". I did not have anything illegal, instead I had clothes. Lot's of clothes. Backtrack Time
Kimi Biegler had stayed over on Thursday night, it was much fun. Made mint brownies, & watched "Dazed and Confused" a stoner-esk comedy about the last day of school in 1976 for some high school students. It had a greeat sound track of rock.
Anywho, Kimi brought with her many clothes, mainly dresses. I borrowed a pretty blue dress (Strapless, not that it really mattered for me) & rainbow suspenders. YEAH. RAINBOW SUSPENDERS. So groovy man.
Well anyway, I was bringing those to things to wear, a white puffy shirt (to go with the suspenders) and a few tie-dye shirts (In case I wanted to change my other tie-dye shirt).
Back to the to dance. I handed over my bag, which had all of my clothes in it. I had not idea if I'd be able to get into my bag, which would cause a major problem....I really wanted to wear the dress. I hoped to get it back at some point, in the meanwhile I started to boogie. Now, back to Jason, AKA Jesus. When I saw him on Thursday during school he said he wasn't able to go, for he didn't have the money (and maybe didn't have the form, I didn't ask) with him. This saddened me deeply. As far as I was (and still am aware) that was the last (and maybe only) day to get your ticket. How manged to legally come, I don't know... Congrats to him, he did. Barely.
I asked some friends of his (before he came), if he was coming (Just makin' sure there was no way he was going) they said he was! I was quite happy, for I love him very, very much. I also knew the doors closed at 8 (Danced started at 7:30)....the lights got turned off, and maybe the music got louder. I figured I wouldn't see Jesus cartilage free nose, and smell his beautiful scent. No joke, I was quite sad. THEN DUHN DUHN DUNNNN!
I saw him. A tall, black teen wearin' a dark gray coat looking awkward near the doors.
"JASSOOOOONNNN!!!!!!" I yelled, my heart jumpin' with joy I lept upon him. He replied calmly, though slightly overwhelmed from my greeting "Chill out Liam, man.". I then ran 'round & 'round tellin' everybody I was close to that Jason was here. The Semi-Formal had started.
I boogied, wearin' my Suit Jacket I had bought at a thrift store and the nice pants that were covering my tie dye. I then took them off ( my shoes & socks already ditched) in a flash, yellin' "Burst of Color!" My tie dye was revaled. I quickly danced around, showing off how colorful I was.
Burst Of Color: A motto of mine, whenever wearin' all tie dye. It started while travellin' down south with the Bieglers (Kimi's family) to an unschooling birthday party. Headin' down south (South Carolina) we picked up the amazin' Cameron LoveJoy. (Typically his last name doesn't have a capital Joy, but I wanted to get extra effect) One morning (the day of the party) after getting out of the shower in the Beiglers RV, I looked to Kimi and said "Blast of Color!" She laughed, and in my crazed mind I deiced to blast Cameron. Running to wear he was I yelled even louder "BLAST OF COLOR!" He cracked up. And Kimi & I fell apart laughin' too. What I didn't know till later, was he had just finished mediating.
As the dance resumed, I decided to have some fun. I went to school for 8 years, and though I certainly didn't make enenmies, I wasn't in the "in" crowd for the most part. So me & my friends had to deal with many douches, pretty much all from the wonderful "in" crowd. I wanted to have some fun against them.
My main weapon was Homophobia. The fear of being gay yourself. A wonderful "Social Disease" as a button on my bag puts it. Dancing at these dances, was either by yourself, or with someone else. If you were with someone else, it most likely was grinding. Movin' all your "private zones" up against someone elses. As Julien put it that night, "Sex with clothes on."
So, my first "attack", or as I'd all it, joke/prank was on a kid named Evan. I asked him to dance with me, the weird overly colorful kid who doesn't go to school. I moved my hips & had a gleeful look on my face. A good friend (Zach) said he'd sandwich us. Evan of course refused and promptly left, without a smile. Zach & I chuckled and continued boogie-ing around. I then found Jason & our friend Bridget. Near them was basically, a douche line-up all grinding "popular" girls. It was a sign, with Jesus next to me, I knew it was time.
The line-up was of John D, Evan, & I truly I forget the other kid, I think he was Trevor.
Trevor, in 6th grade during a recess (which were few) decided to steal the ball I & my boys were playing with. Trevor and his "cool" friends took it, and played keep away, as we tried pleading the ball back. How fun. I can't remember any one story filled with the doucheness of John & Evan, but they are plenty.
"I'm going to grind on them. Yeah, yeah I'm going to grind Johnny' I said to Jason & Bridget. They were quite happy 'bout that.
There they are, distracted, as I'd be dancin' with a girl. Prankster time baby!
I went up right behind John & started to grind, I'd do it long enough to get his attenion. It didn't take long at all. His head spun back, then looked forward again. Registering. He turned his head a second time, realizing that it wasn't one his friends making a joke. It was me, a freak, pulling a prank. That was not cool. He quickly broke off from his grinding, pushing me on the floor.
Now, I figured nothing to bad was going to happen when I grinding him. Of course, I truly had no idea what this testosterone filled jock would do. I hoped if a fight broke out, it would end quickly. I had no intrest in getting into a fight, so I'd simply try t owalk away. Luckily, all he did was push me flat on the ground, and fortunely for me, I slid. Slid right back next to Jas & Bridget. I was estatic. Laughing me head off as I slid, I could hear Bridget & Jason laughing as well. John was yelling the "F" word, and possibly asking me if I wanted to fight. I couldn't hear him. Blasting music & laughter was all I heard. I smiled and continued bouncin' around the room.
After dancing & talkin' about my encounter I realized that the dance was almost over. Just about half an hour left (It was 'round 10:00, ended at 10:30). It was time to see if I could get my dress on. I had thought about not bothering, but I decided that I did want it. I asked the lady who was in charge of watchin' over the bags, if I could have mine to take something. I was quite vague & hoped she would just hand it over. Handing me my bag she asked what I needed. I took out the blue dress, "This."
After putting it on, I twirled the dance floor with it, showing it off. It got many compliments which surprised me. I was quite glad though. Bridget, who was in a very pretty dress, seemed quite happy 'bout me in one as well.
(I swear I'm almost done)
After dancing some more, I decided to have a bit more "fun". Headin' over to where all the popular kids where, I found Trevor. He was sitting down next a bunch of people on the steps leadin' up to the stage. I figured asking him to dance wasn't going to cause a fight. I was thankfully right. After I politely asked (including moving my hips and swishing the dress) he declined, telling me to leave. Completely straight-faced, which of course made me smile. I then used the "I'm in a dress line" Still more "No's".
"I'm a girl" a quickly said laughing. I don't think he heard, which slightly disapointed me. I then laugh hearing him say "I don't care what you do, but no, I'm not doing that with you."
My father soon after arrived, takin' some pictures of me in Kimi's dress.
(Currently I'm watching G.I. Joe, the original cartoon...pretty spectacular. Just sayin')
The dance didn't last long after this. It happened to play two slow songs, that I actually liked.
I twirled & twirled, enjoying the slightly slower paced songs.
The Winchester High School's Sophomore Semi-Formal was now over.
The lights came on and people started putting on their coats & shoes (I think I was the only guy who had his shoes off )
Julien, Saavan & I left, headin' downtown to meet Jason. He had left at 10 with some friends to hangout. On the way, I yelled about how there was all these big cars coming to pick up kids. Winchester is full of big SUV's.....on the way, we passed Trevor getting into a car. "Maybe next time Trevor!" I called. He flatly just like before, said "No."
As it turned out, Jason was heading for the town hall just as Julien, Savaan & I were headin' downtown. Somehow, we missed each other. We met up with him and a friend named Mark in front of the town hall.
The Boys & I decided to head to my house, for my dad was out. There, we hung out briefly, reading dirty jokes from a joke book.
Jason stayed later then Julien or Saavan, only living a minute away. My father had turned on the television so Jas & I watched a bit of tv. After Jesus took a short, unexpected nap, he left and I went to bed. I was very tired.
 | ||
| Afterwards....a very sleepy bunch. |
So that was my Friday night. Lot's of fun, dancin' around. I wrote most of this on Valentine's day (But currently finishing it Tuesday night) so I'd like to have a special (though brief) shout-out
MARIN GARDNER.
Marin is a lovely lass who lives in Bedford Mass. She is my girlfriend of 2 years (November, my dad's birthday is our anniversary as a matter of fact). She has golden hair, and bright blues eyes, with a sparklin' smile :)
Happy (day after) Valentine's Day babe, I love you.
To any of those who don't really like V day, my apologies, I'm not a big fan either. But I do love that women very much. Anywho, I'm quite tired & still have to (edit) do dishes.
Goodnight World, I love you. <3
Liam
P.S. I apologize about any "grammar" mistakes. I don't use proper English, and thanks to blogspot/old, slow computer not working, I've barely edited this. Sorry folks.
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