Ok, I’ve been back at work for two days, now, and I’ve gotta say, work is for chumps. I walked in yesterday morning, and within 30 minutes I was all jittery with a headache. I told you I was on vacation, don’t send me a voice mail asking where I am. On top of that, I have a big project due in a week, and I am in no mood to get it done. Whatever, I’m sure I’ll figure something out.
In cool show news, I found out that Hey Mercedes and Piebald are coming to the 9:30 Club, on August 14th, my birthday. That’s gonna be awesome. The last time I went to a Hey Mercedes show, I made the mistake of taking a girl with me who I was trying to impress, so I couldn’t spazz out and act like the fanboy that I am. I will not make the same mistake twice.
More cool show news, and on the J Mascis front, J and the boys are playing at the 9:30 Club next weekend. I am so very excited .. well, I’m just very excited. Hopefully, the actual Fog will be playing with him — Mike Watt and Kevin Shields. Chris From New York said he saw J at NYU, and that the show was lame — J just phoned it in. I guess Chris From New York doesn’t want me to get my hopes up.
One wrinkle in the DC show though — SHE will probably be there, which could be awkward. Of course, SHE already knows that I am a spazoid fanboy, so there are no cool points involved there.
HT says she doesn’t believe in cool points, but I saw her sporting some fresh Steve Madden’s today, so it may be a front. We’ll see how that shakes out.
One story related to shows on my birthday, and then I’ll be out. . .
Michael hates this story.It’s about my sixteenth birthday, my first car, and the first time I ever drove at night.
For my sixteenth birthday, my parents gave me a car. Sure it was my Mom’s old silver Chevrolet Celebrity “Eurosport”, but it was mine, and it was cool. The day before my sixteenth birthday, I drove to Greenville to pick up Michael. On the morning of my birthday, we went off to Columbia to see Jawbox play with The Belltower at (the Lengendary) Rockafella’s. About half way through the show, Michael asks me for my car keys, he wants to go to another show across town. So, I gave him the keys, thinking that we would all hook up after the show at Scott’s. Which was a great plan.
When the show ends, it raining. Sczott, Anutron (?), Gary (?) and I go out to Sczott’s car. The battery is dead — which sucked. Luckily, the guys from Jawbox were at the Circle K, and even more luckily, Gary was pen pals with Kim Coletta (bass player for Jawbox). So, the Jawboxen help us push the car to the Exxon for a jmpstart. . . blah blah blah, and every one gets home safe and dry.
Except for Michael.
[Special note: All of the guys from Novelty era Jawbox (Kim Coletta, J Robbins, $3 Bill Barbot, Adam Wade ) are a great bunch of guys. Jawbox made some of the best music ever to come out of DC. If you haven’t heard Jawbox, let me know. Also, check out J’s band, Burning Airlines. Finally, check out ThreeSpot Media, Bill Barbot’s New Media company.]
Anyway, back to the story.
6pm turns in 7pm, skips right over 8pm, and goes straight on to 9pm. We’re all sitting around Sczott’s apartment, watching Cops and waiting for Michael to return. Around 10pm, he sticks his head in the front door and pulls Sczott into the hallway. After a few minutes, Michael walks in, sits down next to me on the bed, and in a very quiet voice says, “I’m OK, but don’t be mad.”
Friends and neighbors, I’m sure you can guess the rest of the story. Michael had indeed wrecked my car. Totaled it. Rear-ended some guy at a stoplight. I was , indeed, terribly angry.
My parents had to drive down from Cheraw at midnight and pick us up from Sczott’s. I drove back to Cheraw that night. For two hours. In silence, except for when my parents were taking turns “talking” to Michael. It reminded me of that DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince lyric,
“It was a tough ride home,
I don’t know how I survived it
They took turns
One would beat me while the other one’s driving”
So, that’s the story of my 16th birthday, the first time I ever drove at night, and the wreck that took my car.