surprisingly

i successfully fought off my first cold of the season. a stiff regimen of nyquil, tylenol cold, and vitamin overdoses in the form of airborne did the trick. extra sleep helped. i'd like to blame it on my kinfolk, but we're not sure who was first with the bug...

so, surprisingly, last night, i ventured out into chinatown to an irish pub called fado's for some awesome live music. scythian is the band. i highly recommend visiting one of their shows. bouncing crowd. high-energy bluegrass meets a mellower brand of irish punk. think more comprehensible, less angry dropkick murphys or flogging molly. they rocked out hava nagila, some song from fiddler on the roof, and put an irish twist on some dc101 airplay. that's most of what i got to see. i hope i catch their set at shamrock fest next weekend!

[what is the corrolary to adding insult to injury? to add fresh powder to blue skies? good friction to strong climbing? whipped cream to chocolate chip banana pancakes? the cherry on top?] aside aside, add in a visit to the district from one max merrick miller (of ankeny, iowa fame). we had a grand time reminiscing about times from way back when and people we ain't seen since then. stories of snipers, divorcees, and RVs. that was just from florida-georgia one year! it seemed to be hat night, and i was without one of my new trademark hats. i will not make that mistake next weekend at RFK.

people watching redux

leaving georgetown on friday night, i was transported back to college and what a normal night was downtown or on the strip in the 'ville.

one, near the end of m street where it merges into pennsylvania. two guys had been kicked out of a bar, or they'd left a bar, and they were not happy with each other. one guy, screaming obscenities at the other, "i'll f'ing kill you. i. will. end. your. life." and other such threats. his girlfriend (presumably) pushing him away, "seriously? listen to yourself. seriously?" her eyes saying something far different. more along the lines of, "i'm really getting tired of this nonsense. every night he drinks, same old..." other guy involved being restrained by his friends, pinned against a storefront, goading mr. death threat, "come on then. bring it!" this guy could barely stand up on his own. two frat boys mad about politics, a spilled $9 drink, or scuffed pumas. strolling past through the gathered throng of onlookers, most mocking them and watching with amusement.

two, crossed the street, sitting on a windowsill, a couple playing tonsil hockey steps from the four seasons. they needed a room. it was a little too cold for that nonsense.

three, drunken couple on the metro. she, glazed eyes and a vacant stare. she looked like she was going to chum. he, passed out against the window. five bucks said they missed their metro stop. i sure hope they hadn't just met. they got off, then got back on. wrong stop. she fell on the floor trying to sit back down. he had quite a time helping her totter back onto her four inch stilettos.

i miss college shenanigans people watching. (not really.)

boomeranging

friends, countrymen, lend me your ears. last night i took part in the greatest incarnation of barhopping i've ever been privilege to. no limo, no lines, no cover charges. entrepreneurial opportunity for someone with a few coins?

the ride: a reconfigured school bus. seats torn out, replaced with benches facing inward. three "stability" poles in the middle of the bus.

the host: a gregarious former party girl. she apparently has an equally attractive husband that hosts the other bus when the group's big enough. mingling with the riders on the bus and in the clubs.

the trip: four bars/clubs. changes depending on drink specials and what kind of deal the company has worked out with the destinations. about an hour at each bar. now, it seems to me that this concept works best in a bigger city like d.c. because there are numerous nightlife districts that have both no nearby parking and are too far to walk between. gainesville, hmm. going between the redneck dive bars on the outskirts in a jacked-up short bus with rebel flags? nah, that'd suck!

like clockwork, we hit each watering hole for a power hour. skipped the lines, got frisked, partied like rockstars, and moved on. waivered away, we b'ed our o.b. in between stops. we figured they gross more than three grand a weekend to be a lower cost limo crossed with a d.d. and a club promoter. not a bad gig, and everyone has a blast.

...until they wake up the next morning!

i. love. music.

last night, i treated myself to a long-awaited night of live music in the district. the venerable black cat club in northwest. a run-down of the acts.

lucero
the headliner. for a reason. his set was awesome. gravelly voice, great songs. less indie, more springstein. straight up rock set. unfortunately, we had to leave before his set was over. cabbie strike in the district left us with little choice but to make sure that we made the last metro train from u street/african-american civil war memorial/cardozo (affectionately, longest metro stop name EVER). i hope i can catch his act again sometime.

bobby bare, jr.
odd. that's the best i can say. odd. phish meets nickelback on an acid trip. a rockin' jam band. their songs were all over the place. first few songs were somewhat demonic-looking. maybe because he had all the red lights on stage and devil horns on his head. i guess it was halloween and all. "the heart bionic" was one of the first songs, as catchy and odd as it sounds. it's on his myspace page. downhill from there. maybe i'll try catching him again sometime, only if i want to see the other acts performing.

whiskey & co.
opening up, i got to see my favorite gainesville band i'd yet to see. for over a year now, i've been jamming to their cd that i procured from the library. completely being against my principles for local, independent music, i've been trying to see them pretty much for that entire time span. it was worth the wait. they're as good live as they were on cd. vocals were spot on. if you've never heard them, their songs of misspent years in gainesville usually make me chuckle. i did indeed purchase their latest disc, haven't gotten to listen yet because my truck is sitting in a garage (getting a new battery, nothing major). i'm super stoked. i had to leave gainesville to finally catch their act and get their cd, all proper like. go figure.

great music + great company = great evening.

drag racin'

no, motorheads. not what you think. last night was the annual dupont circle high heel drag race. yes, you heard correctly. drag queens. in high heels. sprinting down 17th street nw. well, some of them anyhow. there aren't any videos up on youtube yet from last night, but here's one from last year.



an accepting neighborhood. guys complementing ladies on their straight boyfriends. ladies complementing guys on their gay boyfriends. open praise of how "fabulous" the queens looked.

man, i love this city!