OK, what’s up with all the Reggae stuff happening on Sundays?! I used to be fine w/ it, b/c it all used to happen in the afternoons. There was one summer that Carlos Jones played every afternoon on the deck of Shooters. “Shooters on the water” was a place that if you went to at night, the girls there would look you up & down (2 feet away from you), then scoff, & make their remarks about you. Loudly. W/in 2 feet of you. And they were harsh. You see, the girls there were all sluts (well, not all, but mostly), & they dressed pretty trashy. Think Sienna Miller, but coked out w/ some Naomi Campbell attitude thrown in. But during the day, I think they were safely locked in their coffins.

Anyway, in the afternoons, it was quite lovely. Summertime, on a huge wooden deck, w/ the ships going up & down the river (the deck goes over part of the Cuyahoga River), & servers to wait on you as you bask in the sunshine. The weather was always temperate, warm but not too hot, & there was always a refreshing breeze that came w/ each sip of your refreshing beverage. Aaahh, it was the life. Also, I was younger (by a couple of years, but younger is younger none the less).

Anyway, back to Carlos Jones. I 1st saw him play back in the day in Kent, about 10 years ago. [I’ve talked about Kent before but in case you missed it, that’s where I gots my schoolin on.] In fact, I used to go see them w/ my dear friend Shan, who actually ended up in a picture inside their cd cover. I can totally mention her b/c she never reads this blog.

Complete sidenote: only 2 of my real-life friends actually read any of this. Is this a common thing? To not have your real-life friends read your blog? Maybe cause I don’t really promote it, or talk about it, or even acknowledge it. Oh, maybe that’s why. Never mind then.

So, back then, ‘Los played in a band called First Light. And of course, I didn’t know what his name was (I’m self-involved, remember?). So, 10 years later, when I would see him at Shooters, I didn’t make the connection that this was the same dude. But now I know. And knowing is half the battle (yo Joe!).

There’s another weird Carlos Jones/Kent connection. That place I worked at through college, Ray’s. [Yes, I've mentioned Ray's before too.] I worked in the kitchen there w/ this guy Dan. Well, Dan’s in ‘Los’s current band now, the P.L.U.S. Band. All the ppl at Ray’s were really cool, talented, & smart ppl. Well, except the ones that weren’t; but they were still ok. Well, except the one.

Anyway, this all started cause I was gonna talk about the reggae-fest I went to a couple of Sundays ago (Pookie inspired me to write about it). It all started w/ Reggae-brunch. Even though the show doesn’t start til 4 pm, you have to get there by 11:30 to get a table. Well, I did get there at 11:30 am, & it was packed, & we still had a little trouble snagging a table. Everybody just comes early (it’s at the Parkview every year), & grabs a table & stays all day. They do have a phenomenal brunch, & they’ve got these “crabby crepes” (light, delicious crepes stuffed w/ crab, chedda, & onion in a champagne cream sauce) that’s really incredible. You can click on the link to the Parkview & they have a link on that page to some pics from this year’s Reggae thing. Click on it if you will, I’m not your mom & I’m not gonna force you to. You don’t know most of the ppl there anyway.

To the left is a pic one of my friends took at the Parkview.

So, the band started playing at about 4 pm, & of course, they were amazing. I stayed until 9 pm (I didn’t realize what time it was until I was leaving), but I heard the band played til after midnight. NOW (finally), back to my first point, why do things like this take place on Sundays? I had to work Monday, & I had about 150 musicians flying in from all over the world that I was hosting & had to be alert for. AND, it was almost a 12-hour day for me (7:15 am to 6:30 pm). I was WHOOPED, beat, exhausted, & as one of my dear friends would say “le tired”. They need to either notify companies that there should be no work the next day, or just hold these events on a SATURDAY.

My idea of holding these things on a Saturday is obviously NOT a revolutionary idea. It’s not profound, or original. It’s completely logical. And of course, now there’s a “Buckeye Riddims: The Best of Ohio’s Reggae Rockers CD release party” coming up. Guess when it’s gonna be? Yep, on a Sunday! Starts at 7 pm, and w/ 8 bands! So you know it’s going to be a late night. I don’t think I’ll be able to go; but if it was on a Saturday, I would so be there.

If anyone is in Cleveland next weekend, you should totally check it out though. It’s def going to be a great time. The flyer’s below.

Another sidenote: I was a COMPLETE linkin-machine on this post. So, give yo-self a point for each link you actually clicked on. If you click on them now, it’s only worth half-a-point each.