Greg’s Happenings
If you’re going to do wine tasting, you need wine glasses! Sue Brown came all the way from Livermore, CA to experience the Calaveras Grape Stomp. And she brought her own wine glasses!
The rains came, and the music played on.
Several major events were scheduled for the weekend of October 4th and 5th. But promoters looked at the weather forecasts with fear and trepidation. Friday night the dreaded storm clouds moved into the Mother Lode. Overnight, soaking rains formed puddles everywhere. The ground quickly became saturated. A winter storm warning was posted. And just a little bit later both Sonora and Tioga Passes were closed due to snow. Within the Murphys-Columbia-Twain Harte sector, some people worried about the weather, and how it might affect the weekend’s scheduled events. I thought to myself: What’s a little rain? I mean, back in August of ’69, a half a million people (hippies) went to a music festival and got wet. Real wet. Drenched. Soaked. Saturated. Waterlogged. Muddy and wrinkled like a prune! And they had a great time! I wasn’t about to let a little rain ruin my weekend. Fortunately, a few other people shared my sentiments.
So, even as the rains fell on Saturday the 4th, Crazy Ivan rocked Eproson Park during the opening day of Twain Harte’s Oktoberfest! The park has a nice little stage with an overhang. Fest-goers sat in folding chairs underneath large canopies the promoter had erected. Oktoberfest went on! Whoa, man; a (black) light bulb just went off in my head! Why not call Eproson Park: Eproson Amphitheatre! Just the sound of it sounds rad! And I personally believe that if Calaveras has an amphitheatre, then Tuolumne County should have one, too! That’s just my hippy dippy opinion.
Columbia’s Fiddle and Bango Contest went on; as did Murphys Grape Stomp! Bigger concerns, however, were about the conditions for that evening’s Bonnie Raitt concert at Ironstone.
You know, the thrift shop karma was really with me in the days before the Raitt concert; as I found a couple of her cassettes at Mark Twain St. Joseph (MTSJ) Thrift Shop (on S. Main Street in Angels Camp): “Luck of the Draw”, her hot release from 1991, and “Road Tested” (1995)! They’re both great! Both were in excellent condition, and cost me only 25 cents each! Someone must have bought her music on CD, and then donated these tapes to MTSJ. But I still play cassettes, and I experienced Nirvana when I found these! Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, the weather. That evening, the clouds held back their raindrops, and the Bonnie Raitt concert (with the incomparable Blind Boys of Alabama opening) went on smoothly. The Blind Boys rocked the souls of the concert-goers; Bonnie enchanted them. And there was such incredible rapport between all of the performers and the audience! People brought their low-back folding chairs, or a tarp to be placed under their lawn blankets; so nobody’s derriere got wet. It was a spectacular finish to one great Summer Concert Series! Thank you to Ironstone, The Richter Entertainment Group and Black Oak Casino (the major sponsor) for bringing big name, legendary performers up to the Mother Lode! I can hardly wait until they announce the 2009 line up. Alas, they won’t make it public until about May. Any of you readers have any preferences, regarding who they should book? Call my reporter’s hot line (209) 559-8368, with your suggestions! I try to print your comments – and your name in my column!! (But please, spell your name, slowly; so I hear it/print it correctly).
The next big, awesome event coming up is Columbia’s 24th Annual Harvest Festifall! (Those folks in Columbia sure have interesting ways of spelling things!) Sponsored by the Columbia Chamber of Commerce, the Festifall’s festivities go on from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. both Saturday the 11th, and Sunday the 12th! For more info, call (209) 532-6604, or log on: www.columbiacalifornia.com.
Let the countdown begin! Only 49 days (as of this issue’s publication date) – until the 34th Annual Sonora Christmas Festival!! It’s the weekend right after Thanksgiving.
Was driving through Columbia and stopped at a yard sale along Parrots Ferry Road. I scored a Ziggy Marley CD called “Dragonfly” for only a buck! Truly, a lucky find! It was released a while back (2003), but it’s a pretty cool album. I recommend it to all reggae fans. And if you can’t find this title in the traditional retail “record” stores, boogie on up to Village Tunes in Twain Harte: music guru Robert Peters can special order the CD for you! Hey, there’s someone to book for a night at Ironstone: Ziggy Marley! So I’m groovin’ on this rad Rastafarian release, thinking this Ziggy music is rather infectious! And it’s a good thing! And then I remember: the “Growler” Craft Brewery (on Hwy 4 in Murphys) is gonna have another Reggae dance hall on Saturday, October 18th! It’s back by popular demand. Starts at 9 p.m. No cover charge! Irie! (Everything’s cool!)
Enjoyed the FREE grub at a recent Claussen’s Corner Monday Night Football (MNF); and read my copy of AARP magazine during the commercials. I’ve come to realize that if I take my eyes off the beer commercials, I won’t consume too many beers. So I’m skimming through the magazine, and I find an article titled “50 Reasons to the Age You’re At!” Reason #14: “Because if Keith Richards can make it into his 60’s, there’s hope for all of us!” The article chronicles the life-threatening events that Keith has survived; from the time (in 1965) that he was “knocked out by electric shock onstage after whacking microphone with guitar.” In 1998, “while reaching for a book in home library (Keith) gets pummeled by avalanche of texts. Suffers three broken ribs and punctured lung.” In 2006, Keith “falls out of coconut tree in Fiji” Those are just some of the ordeals this dude has gone through in his life, and he’s still alive – and rockin’ at the age of 64! He’s rather philosophical about it all, and “gives a key to his longevity: “I’m doomed to live.’” AARP reports. Whoa, that’s pretty heavy. So, when the commercial’s over, and the game’s back on, I continue to fill my belly with the FREE chow! One recent Monday night, Chuck and Cheri VonLatta brought their mouth-watering and delectable chili spaghetti! (Chuck reminds us that he won last year’s Calaveras County cook-off (in Uttica Park); grabbing first place for both his chili and his salsa!) The next week at Claussen’s MNF, Woody brought his famous 16-bean soup! The food at the events is always five-star quality, and complimentary! A word of warning though: Please support your local bartender, and order at least one drink. Freeloaders might be forced to don a frog costume and play “Frogger” (the game is conducted in the style of that old video game, where the frog hops back and forth, across the street–in this case, South Main Street – trying to avoid getting run over!)
O Thank heaven for 7-11! They’re making voting fun! Stopped into the Twain Harte branch for a cup of coffee, and discovered I had my choice of cups: a red McCain cup – or a blue Obama cup! And, when they scan your cup at the register, your “vote” is tallied! Then, the clerk puts a little sticker on your shirt (or blouse) that says “I voted in the 7-Election ’08!” If you want to see which is the more popular coffee cup (McCain or Obama), you simply go to www.7-election. com! Cool, huh? I’m not saying who I’ll vote for in the general election. I haven’t seen all the debates yet, and I prefer to let both candidates have their say; letting them clear up any and all misconceptions. But just remember: voting is very important. Here’s something that should blow your mind: ONE vote made America speak English – instead of German in 1776! And ONE vote gave Adolph Hitler leadership of the Nazi Party in 1923! For better, or worse, ONE vote can change the course of history!
Which cup did I buy at 7-11? One of each! Either one could become highly collectable. Then, after all the debates are concluded, then I might start to favor one cup over the other. Coffee cup voting! As Yakov Smirnoff would say: Only in America!!
