As you are well aware I was feeling quite depressed leading up to folk fest. I was sleep deprived, grumpy, and bitter about not camping. My heart sank further and further with each approaching day. My spirts were briefly lifted when my co-worker told me she was going to give me some (mysery) folk fest tickets and that I would pick them up at the police station on the way out to the festival wednesday night. They turned out to be two day passes, which would help my cousin out greatly. So Wednesday night me, andrew, charlie, and my parents beat the rush out to folk fest, secured a great spot, ate some delicious Mondragon and watched Elvis Costello rock out for over two hours, playing out song after another after another. By the encore everyone there was standing and he was playing hit after hit and i just about died when i heard Radio Radio. Fantastic performance. I can die happy now. Thursday I was so tired and grumpy at work there was crazy thunderstorms all night, morning, ending in the afternoon and starting again and I just wanted to go to bed. I toughened myself up, Jorin and i planned to go out together, we bit the bullet, and headed out. Of course by the time we got there the clouds were rolling back in and at then it got windy and we said uh oh! So we turned the tarp upside down and got under it, opened an umbrella, and waited out the storm, after which was the most beautiful (double) rainbow i have ever seen right behind the mainstage. While it was raining/when it was stopping, I notice my next door neighbour, the man of the house, sitting kinda in front of us and he wasn’t with his wife and children, but another woman that i had never seen before. They were holding onto each other (protecting each other from the rain) and I thought that was strange.We got some beer in the beer tent and enjoyed the rest of the evening. While in the beer tent I saw my neighbour and this woman again. I tried to smile at him but he looked away. He might not have reconized me though, since I haven’t lived at home in five years. Then later when we were sitting and enjoying the music at mainstage I noticed them sitting together again, alone. I start to think I am crazy. He puts his arm around her. Maybe I’m not so crazy, maybe she’s cold. They turn their faces towards each other. They kiss. I’m crazy. I’m not crazy. I feel like I want to puke. I think of his children.
Friday is really when all my stories begin. Got there about 10:30, set up our chairs in front of the stage that fred penner would be playing out and enjoyed hearing his songs.We watched lots of good music all day but were totally blown away by the young performers stage in the late afternoon. These kids were amazing! One band, From the Moon, were dressed up like aliens and played amazingly hilarious songs. I also really enjoyed seeing my friend, trevor friesen, play a set. I had originally met him at the folk fest a few years back and hung out with him and his friends all night playing guitar and making up silly songs and laughing. Nice to see everything come full circle there. Around 5:00 we participated in some tarp shuffle/run and secured a spot for mainstage. We brought Carlos, the dirty cop puppet as our spot marker. I had been carrying around Carlos all day and some cops walking around the site decided to talk to me about the puppet and ask “what does he say” to which i replied by waving Carlos’ hand at them and then walked away. So after setting up the tarp we wandered over to our favourite spot, the beer tent.This is where things start to get exciting.
We have one, and then we have two and then I look to my left and think I am crazy for a split second. I look over and I see two very familiar faces, yet i’ve never seen them in person. I see her necklace tattoo and know I am not hallicinating. It’s Stephanie from Steph’s Humble Opinion and her boyfriend Ryan. I go in for the plunge. Something along the lines of “i don’t want to be a creeper, but I totally read your blog….” and then i creep out later on and say something like “your eyelashes remind me of my old best friend’s.” I had a really great time talking with them and we talked about everything from fish to grossly cute folk fest couples cuddling and kissing everywhere (little did i know at the time that i was shortly to join that group of vomit inducing lovefest). I seriously could not believe that I actually ran into them since, a) I started read Steph’s blog when she was in Toronto and B) she now lives in Thunderbay. So naturally the idea of just running into them somewhere randomly had never crossed my mind so it was a really nice surprise! But yes i can’t believe we didn’t get a picture! My cousin was standing beside us taking pictures of herself yet we didnt think of it! oh well! maybe i can photoshop something. Anyways, Steph assured me that i wasn’t being as creepy as I thought I was being. We ended up talking for a pretty long time and I would glance over and see jessie buying some sausagues that girls were carrying around on a stick. Then Jessie being inappropriate with it. I drank some more since I was busying talking it up with Steph. Before I knew it all my friends had gone to mainstage and it was me and andrew and steph and ryan.
So when Steph and Ryan left to get something to eat, and andrew had a full beer and i needed to eat and pee, i ventured off on my own. I wandered to the porta”sands” and ran into annika, kayli, kelly, and ostry. They were covered in homemade sharpie tattoos and were gossiped away. When i finally got in line for the bathroom I saw andrew in a line a few yards away, i would have yelled at him but he was on the phone. So afterwards i again went on my jolly way alone again. I decided the best bet was a southern fried tofu sandwich sans plate – that was all i could handle. I ordered my food and moved to the side to wait.
Some boy with a silly (but extremely cute) haircut was also standing there. We started talking about what we ordered, he asked my name. I got my food, he got his food, i asked his name and he asked me to have dinner with him. I though, why the heck not! So we sat on a bench and talked and ate, got his phone number, planned to hang out later but he had to find his friends but would try to find out tarp. We hugged and I finally went back to my tarp where I gossiped galore. jessie and i were going to put on our spandex suits but i had to pee first. On my way back from the bathroom I again ran into this boy, who i will call r.a.d. (because he is). He dragged me to stand in the super long line for coffee with him and lo and behold my friend Jen from high is in front of us and rad and i are rambling on about how we’re new bffs for eva (or for evah like he claimed). Somewhere in the line rad was all like i am so sad you’re not camping and i was like i am sad i’m not camping, i would if i could. and he’s all like i have an extra camping pass in my car! so one thing leads to another and i’m like we need to make a plan. i was feeling something there (i believe it was something called good – was what i was feeling) and didn’t want to stop hanging out. So i found my friends, told them i wasnt coming home, gave andrew my keys, changed my clothes under a blanket, kissed carlos farewell and ran off into the night with radness. So rad had to go to his campsite, get his friends carkeys, walk to the car and get the camping pass and meet me back at the campground entrance – which took half an hour and the whole time i was convinced that he was never ever coming back. but he did and we skipping off hand in hand. we went to his campsite, grabbed a bottle of red wine and wandered around trying to find someone with an opener, it took about 15 tries. We hung around his campsite and his friends came back and i ended up playing guitar for everyone and i was having a great time. then at one point rad just disapears and i get a bit worried, but i am hanging out with his friends, whatever. finally he comes back and says that his friend is losing his mind and he took him to the first aid tent. everyone else was heading to the hill so i came back with him to the first aid tent, where his friend was horribly ill and puking into a giant bowl. fun times. after a while the first aid people said he had to leave so we took him and put him to bed. at which point we decided to just go to bed as well, as it was freezing. So we somehow managed to zip up a single sleeping bag with the two of us in it and spent the night tossing and turning in the freezing cold and just when i fell asleep rad was like fuck it i’m getting up – it was 7:30 a.m. and finally quiet and getting warm.
We spent the morning talking and drinking peach pear juice and i felt kinda sick.This is also when we “creeper” laughed at the same time much to Jonas’ chagrin. At one point i found our wine bottle from the night before with 2 sips left in it. I dared him to take one and if he i would. We did and it actually turned out to be the most delicious thing ever! It also totally cured everything that ailed us! So we were feeling good and ready to listen to some music! We headed over to the festival and met up with my bro and andrew who provided me with clear clothes and a sandwich. rad and listened to some music together and then i went off to see Mirah! She gave some good advice about warming up in shit filled portapotties when you get cold. We would later follow her advice numberous times. J-bot and Lauren met up with us at Mirah and we spent the rest of the day together. rad went to sleep and instead of sleeping i think i just started drinking again. After one beer i found my humour again (either that or everything became funnier) and i laughed my folk fest laugh (slow and effortless creeper laugh). Met rad at the whales tales at 5:30 and had some more beers, went to watch mainstage -which was amazing! We then celebrated our 24 hr anniversary. Andrew made barfing noises as we kissed and cuddled on the tarp. Ya, i admit it, we were pretty disgustingly cute. Unfortunately i had no shoes or socks and i was freezing my asss off. So during okervil river we went back to the campground where our stomaches hurt from huddling from the cold. we tried to have a beer but ended up deciding to go to sleep. rad passed out hardcore but i was kept up by the cold and ever opening zipper, which was on my side of the sleepingbag. This is when the arctic madness started creeping in. I became convinced that rad didnt want me there, was tired of me, that “my novelty had wore off” was my exact thinking, so he was trying to kick me out of the sleeping bag. i was literally whimpering and trying to crawl to the bottom of the sleepingbag. Finally rad wakes up and takes me in his arms and i warm up, we’re able to shut the bag and we have an amazing, warm, cuddly, folk fest sleep- our lulabies the drums and screams and random trumpet sounds (which was kayli at one point).
we got up in the morning and were fuck this back to sleep. it was warm by then and we could open the bag and lie on top and have a beautiful nap. in the real morning, rad and jonas packed up and left (with promises of meeting again at the whales tales). i wandered over to camp jesus/matthew mahconhey/same thing where i found kayli on her keyboard/matthew mahconey’s washboard abs …googling matthew mahconhey movies and playing music (yes a computer keyboard sans computer), she also had a jesus/matt candle and a spider-man pfd. i ate her salt and vinegar chips and laughed at her in the blistering heat!!
When i finally wandered over to the festival, trying to find my bro and andrew, i actualy sat down 3 people behind them for 10 mins before i realized, but we saw the best music of the weekend i think. the talent of c.r. avery, the hilarity of Vance Gilbert and Amelia (something) who was fighting back with her jokes. So goood!!! then i may or may not have said bad things about Steven Page (i mean cocainehead) when he was in the immediate vicinity of me. i didnt think he was close but apparently he sat down beside my bro and then moved closer to where i was…shit…haha serves the bitch right. i napped while listening to great lake swimmers and okervil river, they were playing perfect nap music and i drooled all over myself.
i met up with rad again and then 48 hrs after meeting him, introduced him to my parents (lolz). We then went off to see Patrick Watson and we were both absolutely blown away by him and his performance! Unbelieveable! He is just one of those artists that you cant really appreciate or get into if you dont see them play live! He was using a megaphone like a trumpet with a mute and crazy percussion and homemade instruments, while the sun was setting on a beautiful prairie night with a beautiful boy cuddling up next to me – ahhh what a folk fest!
Then we watched the great lake swimmers and everything was still so beautiful and amazing. Afterwards rad took me and i met his family! lol only fair right. his mom’s like how do you guys know each other? uh we just met two days ago…and are obviously holding hands…. i felt pretty awkward, but i am like that.
then there was the folk fest finale and we are totally making out and they are singing amazing grace and then go to announce the next verse and are like “I’ve already come” and we’re making out and just burst out laughing uncontrollably!
Then the time to say goodbye was approaching and my stomache was in a knot and we go to say goodbye and he’s like my stomache’s in a knot! Then we agreed to hang out again the next day.
So Monday, he comes over and him and andrew and i sit on the stoop reading the paper and listening to music, then go for a walk, get slurpees, put the last of the sour puss in them, make yummy tacos, watch TMNT II: Secret of the Ooze, and episodes of the United States of Tara.
What can I say? Life. is. fucking. good. muther. fuckers.
(p.s. i am not reading this over to edit – props to those who actually get through reading this!)
Radical