Baar Bazaar

The renovated Ferndale library opened Saturday for a "Community Preview" which I missed most of, but showed up to just in time to catch one of my favorite local bands The Pop Project put on a performance. As they prepared to play, they made a humorous statement that kind of encapsulated what was surely on everyone's mind. Having a rock band play in a setting that asks for constant quiet is certainly a paradox, and musing over "whether we're too loud or too quiet" only added to the quirky tension of the scene. As they opened with "Totally Awesome"; a song about a caterpillar turning into a butterfly; there was palpable nerdiness in the combination of venue and musical style. I ran into some friends from bike club who joined me at one of the tables scattered around the "multipurpose room", as the large, welcoming space at the front of the building was coming to be referred to. The addition was placed right in front of the library's old facade, whose carved stone was maintained in the new library's interior. I will be excited to return frequently to check out movies faster than Netflix can send them to me and perhaps some Vonnegut novels that I can never find in used book stores.

I walked home and then drove to my friend's house so the two of us could drive down to the Majestic. Her boyfriend's band Mod Orange was playing their first ever show as part of Baar Bazaar, a craft sale being held in the Majestic Theatre. We had some pizza from Sgt. Pepperoni's and met up with her friend, a German who had moved the the States. They talked about how the dialect of Southern Germany can be compared to that in the Southern United States in it's ability to make the person sound unintelligent. Around 9:00 we walked over to the bazaar where I ran into the lady who runs Sloe Gin Fizz. She is one of my favorite artists, and I have two works by her, one hanging in my living room and a second that she made large sized especially for me which I haven't decided where to hang yet. I showed her pictures of the frame my dad helped me make for it. I wasn't

really in the mood to shop for anything, so I just hung around until Mod Orange played. I made the comment that the Theatre's stage was quite a large one for a band's first show to be played, but they put on a worthy performance. I look forward to seeing them again, perhaps in a dirty bar that deserves to be smoke filled, if only to give it the proper gritty atmosphere. Before walking out the door I ran into some friends from bike club who had been next door at the Magic Stick and were stopping over to check out the fair. While we talked, the song "Cheap Like Sebastian" from Apostle Of Hustle's National Anthem Of Nowhere (my all-time favorite album) came on, and I was completely surprised and delighted. On the drive home my July mix played The Feelies' song "Let's Go", and I felt impelled to put in on repeat. Once I arrived I went for a walk and listened to the song some more. It played perfectly with the summer night calmly blowing around me. Several times this year I have had the feeling of wanting to just spread my arms and feel the air rushing past. It is a feeling of life that is magical and unforgettable. The kind you want to last but know it only feels so right because it never will.