Last night I went to Summerfest. It was supposed to be a happy night. I got free tickets from a friend. I ditched out of work early. I saw my friend's band. I was hanging with my sister. I raged for Timmy. I had a sampler platter from Saz's. I said to a young female "Settle down ya drunk!" when she called the Iceman sexy. I saw some fireworks. I saw some kid all partied out and commented that I remember my first Summerfest. Some people just aren't cut out for life on the road. I left the Big Gig to hang out with my buddy. We drank PBR 40s. He's a fan of my writing here on the blog and we discussed some of my work this month. I saw quite possibly the sweetest hotel Milwaukee has to offer. I sat outside drinking my beer on a perfect Milwaukee Summer night. I met the cast of Wicked. I talked with a band from San Antonio who had won a Nationwide contest to play at Summerfest. They are playing today (Thursday) and went to the Fest last night and were blown away. They loved the city of Milwaukee so far. I got some free eats (pizza) from the people at the bar who didn't finish theirs. It was approaching bar close. I was about to go home. And then came the Boom and the Cloud of Doom.
I need to take you back a few hours from this moment. That saying comes from watching the fireworks at the lakefront during Summerfest. As you know, fireworks explode in the sky and display a variety of colors, shapes and sizes and are often accompanied with loud noises. I love fireworks. I love fire. I love explosions. I basically love anything that is as big and obnoxious as I am. We're brothers. We're best friends. We stick together. We bother the "Normies" by being a spectacle. But still they cheer. This drives us. This compels us to be bigger, louder and more obnoxious. We are the center of attention. There was no wind down by the lake during the fireworks and the smoke hung over the area like a Cloud of Doom. Loud booms would happen inside of this cloud and you could see the faint outline of fireworks but it wasn't entirely clear. You heard the boom and could not see exactly what was hiding back there. Was it good? Was it bad? Was it dangerous? Should you stand and watch or turn and run from fear? We stood and watched. This was a controlled boom. The results were planned. This was entertainment. But the booms and dooms we witness in life are rarely planned like this nor are they entertaining. But they happen. It is a part of life. You have two choices - to stand and watch and be a part of it or turn and run from fear. I don't run. I'm too fat for that. But even if I could I wouldn't. I face my problems head on. I deal with it. For the most part I think I am able to exist with a positive outlook on life despite the shit I have to deal with. I'm doing it. I'm still alive. I don't know how, but I've lived to see another day. To live another adventure. But still the Boom and the Cloud of Doom was able to find me. It always does.
I'm not going to share with you what happened when I left Jackson's Blue Ribbon Pub, which is at the historic Pabst Brewery. If you are in Milwaukee I definitely recommend going there. They have done a fantastic job preserving the existing building while also adding a modern touch to it. They just don't build places like the Pabst Brewery anymore and it's great that the new owners were cognoscente of that fact that the old world charm was unique. This is my shit. I was planning on going home and writing about getting old. I was the old guy at Summerfest. I was standing in the midst of a crowd of teenagers (who were all probably born in the 90's) at the Miller Lite Oasis while some DJ/Rapper called Diplo was getting them all hyped. Is this what passes for music these days? A guy and his Macbook Pro? I didn't who that was and the assembled youth crowd knew that I was an outsider. They looked at me like I was a sex offender. But I didn't want to be anywhere near these fucking little kids. I wanted to be as far away from here as possible. But had I known the shit I had to deal with later this night I might have stayed here with these scantily clad children. Seriously. What the fuck is wrong with these kids? Put some god damn clothes on. Who let you leave the house like that?
And get off your phone. Stop your tweeting and instergramming. Enough with the Pinterest and Four Square check-ins. In my day Four Square was played with a kick ball on the playground. I don't understand these kids with their loud music and their Dan Fogleberg, Zima, hula hoops and pac-man video games. Don't you see? People today have attention spans that can only be measured in nanoseconds! And stop "wooing" and proclaiming this as the best night ever. You're 18. You've only seen like 6,575 nights in your life. I've seen 11,688. I'm the authority on best nights. Unless you really want to ask that old dude over there who really could be a sex offender. He's seen more nights than me. And he's seeing a little too much of you right now. Just saying. God damn kids and their drugs. And fireworks are too loud. Excuse me explosions in the sky, but I'm trying to have a conversation over here. Can you please keep it down?
But I didn't write about that. Life got in the way. I have more important things in my life to worry about than a bunch of stupid kids from the suburbs who are out way past their curfew thinking they are being rebels. I'm talking about the boom. It's unexpected and it hits you hard. Most of the time the shockwave knocks you on your ass and leaves you trying to figure out what the fuck just happened. As you pick up the pieces of your life the Cloud of Doom hangs over you. It's like the domino effect. Or the notion of "When it rains, it pours." Or the snowball effect. It's the wrong attitude to have. When you think negatively, bad things will continue to happen to you because that's the mindset you are in. Every little thing is now the biggest thing in the world and you set yourself up for a "seriously, what's next?" moment. All of the sudden you're in way over your head dealing with things that are out of your control. You worry about the future. If she really loves me. Can I afford to buy a Hybrid Car? Will my children go to public school or a private school? Did I invest in the right stock? Am I putting enough money into my 401k to retire someday? Are we doing enough to slow down the deterioration of the Ozone Layer? Will the Condor still exist in the wild in 2044? Slow down pal. You're not there yet. I'm not saying don't worry about the future. It's just that you can't get there unless you worry about yourself today and fix the problems that you are dealing with at this very moment.
Don't let the Boom hit you. Don't let the Cloud of Doom hang over you. Think positively. Embrace the little things. Live your life with boundless joy. There is so much beauty in the world and so many reasons to live. Every day, every moment is a chance to turn it all around and find that thing out there that makes you happy. Have so much love in your heart that it pours over into the hearts of others. Give someone a hug or a high five. Do something to make someone's day. Tell someone in your life how much you appreciate them. Live a good life and let Karma pay you back. Dance to your favorite song. Laugh about something so silly that you pee yourself a little bit. We've all done it. It's the coolest. Even Miles Davis does it. It's not the sickest thing you've ever heard. Do what feels right. It's your life. Or do whatever you want. You don't have to listen to me. You only have to answer to yourself and Jesus. WWJD? And WW(insert your name here)D? Then go out and do it. C'MON! DO IT! DO IT NOW! WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? C'MON!!
- pookon -
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