McSweeneys vs They Might Be Giants and the (215) Festival
Today was a magical day indeed...still is actually. Today - this weekend is unstoppable.
I woke up - too early. PSATs. I probably did badly. In fact, I think I used the wrong pencil for about half of it. That, however does not matter today or tomorrow. After that, it can matter as much as it will. But not now. Now is beautiful.
Lots of sitting around, reading, memorizing the names and charges of ionic compounds...fun, fun. Eyebrows, shower, hair, makeup, clothing...speaking with ELizabeth. After much anticipation, around 5:40 I finally left. Went to get ELizabeth. We waited for her mom to get back from McDonald's while I lint-brushed her in the driveway. After this, we picked up Alexander with little difficulty, but then...traffic. Apparently churchgoers trying to get out of the parking lot have the traffic police on their side. My mother was angered by this and commented loudly out the car window. It was amusing, yet irritating. I wanted her to shut up - so loud...
We went to go get Ryon, and mummy kept making wrong turns which set us back a bit, but it wasn't too bad I suppose. By the time we actually got to the city it was around seven I guess. We stood in line until 8:00. We were by the curb for a while just chatting. It was nice, but I was sort of outside of myself. I was angry about that at first, but I eventually came back. Alex kept trying to tell us about his dream. He kept being interrupted. There was also a store behind us selling veloure/velvet (uck). There were also all of these rave-in-a-car(s) - this is where the car-owner adorns their car with flashy blue or purple light and blasts music out of their window. It is quite laughable. Good times.
When we got in, we got fabulous spots right up against the railing and then went to purchase things two at a time. I got a Dogwalker, by Aurther Bradford and this other compilation thing. Then, sitting around on the floor for an hour or so still not in my mind.
When the show started at nine, The Trachenberg Family Slideshow (or some group with a name resembling that) opened. [please note that my mind came to me as soon as this band began to play and I was able to fully enjoy their performance and all that followed as well as the moment I am in right now in the best ways possible.] It was this strange woman, her husband and their eight-year-old daughter who may have been seven. The little girl was amazing - my idol. She wore this dress and these boots and an expression on her face that would lead you to belive she was a zombie. Hehe. She played on this mini-drum set, and sometimes she did backup singing. The dad played the keyboard and was the lead singer while the mother switched the slides. They were utterly amzing. We were so close. They were basically this family band (the best in the entire world) that had this idea to write songs based on old slides and photos purchased at estate sales, etc. Is there anything better than that? The answer would be NO, my friend...a definate NO. They did three song-like entities - or something. There was one that was regarding McDonald's executives from the 1970s and another having to do with traffic laws. Truly hilarious; I believe I am in love. They will be on Conan November 5th so that then you too can know their wonder.
Then a fifteen minute lack of performance.
[At some point, either before the first band or before TMBG, we lost most of our space at barrier separating the crowd from the stage. This caused us to come up with ways to get the space back from the man in the leather jacket with really bad teeth that had stolen the space. Here is an incomplete list:
-Elizabeth and I pretend we were lesbians, cling to eachother and squeeze into the space at the ledge which we still posessed
-Fall into the man with the leather jacket in hopes that he will be starlted and move, the quickly take his place at the ledge
-Grab leather-man's ass
-Start a heated debate with leather-man about the evils of wearing leather and how it made us sick in hopes that he would be weirded out and walk away
-push him
All of the above were discussed loudly in his presence as ways we could get him out of our space. Eventually, he left/we got him out. I forget exactly how this happened.]
TMBG came out first and played a song from issue six. Then, Dave Eggers came out. Where on stage was he? He was right in front of our faces. We were in the very front of the venue by the stage. There were no people between the stage and I. Dave Eggers was at a podium on the stage. A podium conviently placed right in front of me. I could have touched it. He was no more than two feet away - if that. Hehehehhehehehehehehhehehehehehehhehehehhehehehhehhehehehehehheh. At first he just did an intro about McSweeneys and 826 Valencia, etc. It was, however quite enjoyable.
TMBG were in and out...on the stage and off. Arthur Bradford was the first to actually read anything. He did a short story about a slug the size of a loaf of bread. He played guitar simultaneously. It was amazing. He smashed a guitar too. We had to stand back so it didn't hit us. Hehe. Yum...great night.
Some more TMBG, and Dave Eggers. Dave Eggers read part of his new novel. Awe-inspiring completely and utterly. He read the part about Champagne Snowball, which prior to the event I was hoping he would read because it is so good. All of it is that good...its just...mmm. Hehe. so, he read. He kept making mistakes, not a lot but enough that he was likable and delicious...hehehe. Dave Eggers is amazing. He had boots - or shoes. They were aged and kind of funny. There was also this woman with a Burberry scarf. Actually, before he read, a girl from 826 read some of her poems (mostly dealing with sex) she was good...I think I like her. Then Dave Eggers...he was amazing. I guess he could be called "emcee" of the evening, and it was just all utterly fantastic. Yum...heheh. I'm still giddy - except I was never giddy - I laughed the whole time just kind of staring up in awe with this feeling of inspiration, but never really giddy - not until later. It just felt so natural...so right for me to be there that it wasn't worthy of giddiness. It was not just this in-the-moment obsession (which I guess it really is) so much as a place where I belonged from the beginning. It was all just so good.
After Dave Eggers and some more TMBG, there was this guy that was dressed as a hobo who wrote a book about a hobo reading a story about a hobo. He had music and costume and this filmstrip in the background, and it could have been cool...kind of "artistic" but, I wasn't feeling the love.
After that and another issue 6 song by TMBG, there was a twenty minute break in which ELizabeth and Ryon went on a journey to get us some water. Alex and I stood there for a while trying to save space. This guy that I think was there alone - he was a bit overweight plus a couple of pounds and really not clean-looking - kept giving me creepy stares. I was a bit frightened. This guy on the stage was setting up for TMBG and he was warning Alex about how the confetti was going to shoot straight at him and that he should duck. A few minutes later he raised the machine thing. ELizabeth and Ryon returned and we were kind of just in awe, as we should have been.
Then, TMBG played a set. They are really good live - or just really good in general. I kind of felt bad standing there in the very front without knowing any of the lyrics or anything, but somehow I managed to have an amazing time anyway. Hehe...just...lots of laughter and .... great beats. [in between all of the segments of performances they played the oddest assortment of music that was enjoyed by all...well not quite all, but still great and worth noting upon.] The last song TMBG played went on about the wonder that is NY...it was complete and utter bliss...that was the last song they did before they left and came back out and played some more. The second time they did this thing where they tried to play the music of other bands that was found on the "radio" The greatest part of that was the facial expressions of the band-members when the lead singer would stop at a place they weren't used to or skip a song altogether. Hehehe. The facial expressions in general were really great as well - especially as I could see them - when they got really into it. The guys kept walking on and off stage randomly. Very nice indeed.
When the show ended, we went to hunt down Arthur Bradford and some other people for signatures, etc. But, unfortunately my mother walked in while we were talking to Arthur Bradford. She was very angry. Apparently, the show ended at 12:30 and she had been there since eleven. I felt bad but I really would liked to have met some of the other people and such.
We walked to the car and drove home. It was a strange drive. Mummy was really mad - more than she had a right to be. She still is, but she'll get over it. I am so glad she took us and I thank her very much but it was her bad plan to choose a pre-determined time to pick us up when no one could know what time it would end.
The whole night was amazing. I didn't know what to expect, but I expected a lot and I got more that I thought I would. Yes, it was indeed more orgasmic that Garbage, though in a different sense. hehehe. I will not get over the exuberance of this day - this weekend for a long time and that is a good thing. Just...yum. Great fun. More fun than could be asked for and I didn't even get all that I could have...so, so entirely good. Better than everything...hehehe. Nothing could kill my mood right now - the "good karma" - nothing could stop this feeling of admiration and fulfillment and happiness. So much fun!
I woke up - too early. PSATs. I probably did badly. In fact, I think I used the wrong pencil for about half of it. That, however does not matter today or tomorrow. After that, it can matter as much as it will. But not now. Now is beautiful.
Lots of sitting around, reading, memorizing the names and charges of ionic compounds...fun, fun. Eyebrows, shower, hair, makeup, clothing...speaking with ELizabeth. After much anticipation, around 5:40 I finally left. Went to get ELizabeth. We waited for her mom to get back from McDonald's while I lint-brushed her in the driveway. After this, we picked up Alexander with little difficulty, but then...traffic. Apparently churchgoers trying to get out of the parking lot have the traffic police on their side. My mother was angered by this and commented loudly out the car window. It was amusing, yet irritating. I wanted her to shut up - so loud...
We went to go get Ryon, and mummy kept making wrong turns which set us back a bit, but it wasn't too bad I suppose. By the time we actually got to the city it was around seven I guess. We stood in line until 8:00. We were by the curb for a while just chatting. It was nice, but I was sort of outside of myself. I was angry about that at first, but I eventually came back. Alex kept trying to tell us about his dream. He kept being interrupted. There was also a store behind us selling veloure/velvet (uck). There were also all of these rave-in-a-car(s) - this is where the car-owner adorns their car with flashy blue or purple light and blasts music out of their window. It is quite laughable. Good times.
When we got in, we got fabulous spots right up against the railing and then went to purchase things two at a time. I got a Dogwalker, by Aurther Bradford and this other compilation thing. Then, sitting around on the floor for an hour or so still not in my mind.
When the show started at nine, The Trachenberg Family Slideshow (or some group with a name resembling that) opened. [please note that my mind came to me as soon as this band began to play and I was able to fully enjoy their performance and all that followed as well as the moment I am in right now in the best ways possible.] It was this strange woman, her husband and their eight-year-old daughter who may have been seven. The little girl was amazing - my idol. She wore this dress and these boots and an expression on her face that would lead you to belive she was a zombie. Hehe. She played on this mini-drum set, and sometimes she did backup singing. The dad played the keyboard and was the lead singer while the mother switched the slides. They were utterly amzing. We were so close. They were basically this family band (the best in the entire world) that had this idea to write songs based on old slides and photos purchased at estate sales, etc. Is there anything better than that? The answer would be NO, my friend...a definate NO. They did three song-like entities - or something. There was one that was regarding McDonald's executives from the 1970s and another having to do with traffic laws. Truly hilarious; I believe I am in love. They will be on Conan November 5th so that then you too can know their wonder.
Then a fifteen minute lack of performance.
[At some point, either before the first band or before TMBG, we lost most of our space at barrier separating the crowd from the stage. This caused us to come up with ways to get the space back from the man in the leather jacket with really bad teeth that had stolen the space. Here is an incomplete list:
-Elizabeth and I pretend we were lesbians, cling to eachother and squeeze into the space at the ledge which we still posessed
-Fall into the man with the leather jacket in hopes that he will be starlted and move, the quickly take his place at the ledge
-Grab leather-man's ass
-Start a heated debate with leather-man about the evils of wearing leather and how it made us sick in hopes that he would be weirded out and walk away
-push him
All of the above were discussed loudly in his presence as ways we could get him out of our space. Eventually, he left/we got him out. I forget exactly how this happened.]
TMBG came out first and played a song from issue six. Then, Dave Eggers came out. Where on stage was he? He was right in front of our faces. We were in the very front of the venue by the stage. There were no people between the stage and I. Dave Eggers was at a podium on the stage. A podium conviently placed right in front of me. I could have touched it. He was no more than two feet away - if that. Hehehehhehehehehehehhehehehehehehhehehehhehehehhehhehehehehehheh. At first he just did an intro about McSweeneys and 826 Valencia, etc. It was, however quite enjoyable.
TMBG were in and out...on the stage and off. Arthur Bradford was the first to actually read anything. He did a short story about a slug the size of a loaf of bread. He played guitar simultaneously. It was amazing. He smashed a guitar too. We had to stand back so it didn't hit us. Hehe. Yum...great night.
Some more TMBG, and Dave Eggers. Dave Eggers read part of his new novel. Awe-inspiring completely and utterly. He read the part about Champagne Snowball, which prior to the event I was hoping he would read because it is so good. All of it is that good...its just...mmm. Hehe. so, he read. He kept making mistakes, not a lot but enough that he was likable and delicious...hehehe. Dave Eggers is amazing. He had boots - or shoes. They were aged and kind of funny. There was also this woman with a Burberry scarf. Actually, before he read, a girl from 826 read some of her poems (mostly dealing with sex) she was good...I think I like her. Then Dave Eggers...he was amazing. I guess he could be called "emcee" of the evening, and it was just all utterly fantastic. Yum...heheh. I'm still giddy - except I was never giddy - I laughed the whole time just kind of staring up in awe with this feeling of inspiration, but never really giddy - not until later. It just felt so natural...so right for me to be there that it wasn't worthy of giddiness. It was not just this in-the-moment obsession (which I guess it really is) so much as a place where I belonged from the beginning. It was all just so good.
After Dave Eggers and some more TMBG, there was this guy that was dressed as a hobo who wrote a book about a hobo reading a story about a hobo. He had music and costume and this filmstrip in the background, and it could have been cool...kind of "artistic" but, I wasn't feeling the love.
After that and another issue 6 song by TMBG, there was a twenty minute break in which ELizabeth and Ryon went on a journey to get us some water. Alex and I stood there for a while trying to save space. This guy that I think was there alone - he was a bit overweight plus a couple of pounds and really not clean-looking - kept giving me creepy stares. I was a bit frightened. This guy on the stage was setting up for TMBG and he was warning Alex about how the confetti was going to shoot straight at him and that he should duck. A few minutes later he raised the machine thing. ELizabeth and Ryon returned and we were kind of just in awe, as we should have been.
Then, TMBG played a set. They are really good live - or just really good in general. I kind of felt bad standing there in the very front without knowing any of the lyrics or anything, but somehow I managed to have an amazing time anyway. Hehe...just...lots of laughter and .... great beats. [in between all of the segments of performances they played the oddest assortment of music that was enjoyed by all...well not quite all, but still great and worth noting upon.] The last song TMBG played went on about the wonder that is NY...it was complete and utter bliss...that was the last song they did before they left and came back out and played some more. The second time they did this thing where they tried to play the music of other bands that was found on the "radio" The greatest part of that was the facial expressions of the band-members when the lead singer would stop at a place they weren't used to or skip a song altogether. Hehehe. The facial expressions in general were really great as well - especially as I could see them - when they got really into it. The guys kept walking on and off stage randomly. Very nice indeed.
When the show ended, we went to hunt down Arthur Bradford and some other people for signatures, etc. But, unfortunately my mother walked in while we were talking to Arthur Bradford. She was very angry. Apparently, the show ended at 12:30 and she had been there since eleven. I felt bad but I really would liked to have met some of the other people and such.
We walked to the car and drove home. It was a strange drive. Mummy was really mad - more than she had a right to be. She still is, but she'll get over it. I am so glad she took us and I thank her very much but it was her bad plan to choose a pre-determined time to pick us up when no one could know what time it would end.
The whole night was amazing. I didn't know what to expect, but I expected a lot and I got more that I thought I would. Yes, it was indeed more orgasmic that Garbage, though in a different sense. hehehe. I will not get over the exuberance of this day - this weekend for a long time and that is a good thing. Just...yum. Great fun. More fun than could be asked for and I didn't even get all that I could have...so, so entirely good. Better than everything...hehehe. Nothing could kill my mood right now - the "good karma" - nothing could stop this feeling of admiration and fulfillment and happiness. So much fun!