Thursday, August 23, 2007

Jester Music Festival

Oh what a crazy weekend we just had!!! I know it's Wedensday already, but I really needed these last few days to recuperate before I tried to even think about it again.

Saturday was the Jester Music Festival at German Park in Indianapolis. It was a festival with several local bands and Ekoostik Hookah as the headliner. The Hookah boys don't come to Indiana very often, so I was exstatic when I learned they would be in Indy this summer. I have been looking forward to this for months now!!!!

Ryan and I got up Saturday and started getting things ready for his birthday party which was Sunday. So, of course, we got off to a late start. I know that is a huge surprise that I'd be late for anything :-) So, we had our friends Matt, Liz, Dave and Kelly all waiting on us in Indy. Matt was the funniest about it. He kept calling Ryan and harrassing him about everything. They're both really good at giving eachother a hard time!!!

Finally, at about 2:00, we started heading to Indy. When we got there, we went to Dave and Kelly's house and hung out for a little while before we left for the show. The guys all drank a few beers, and then they were ready to go.

The park was gorgeous. I really liked it a lot, and I think I'll take my mom there sometime soon. Kelly told me they have live music every weekend, and sometimes have polka dancing going on. I think Mom would enjoy that a lot. They also had a German restaurant that I would like to take her to.

Ryan played designated driver Saturday night, so I actually drank. It's not often that I can just let loose and get toasted at these shows. I'm usually the sober one :-) Needless to say, I had a blast!!!!This is Dave, Matt, and Ryan before the show.Here's Liz, Matt, Kelly, and Ryan again.......Matt is always poking his head around to get himself into the pictures :-)It's always great to hang out with Liz. It seems like we hardly ever see eachother. I love her!!! And once again, there's Matt poking around behind us. Adam is the kid on the far left. It was his first Hookah show. We kept calling him a Hookah Virgin. I'm pretty sure we've got him hooked!!!
Hopefully this guy is starting to look familiar to most of you. This is the guitarist/genius, Steve Sweney!!! He rocked my sock off!!!!This is Nick Reynolds and Ryan. Nick is showing off Ryan's sexy, soapy legs. There was a giant foam pit that Ryan and Kelly jumped into while we were waiting for Hookah to start playing. My batteries in my camera were trying to die on me. I think that's why these next couple pictures turned out so dark.So much for that nice new pair of blue tennis shoes....they were a nice hue of brown by the time he got out of the pit!!!!!I wish this picture would have turned out better. The pit had a big bubble dipenser overhead, and lots of plastic around the trees to contain the bubbles. The kids at the show were all having a blast in there.Dave on keys. He's absolutely amazing, and a huge inspiration to me.And Cliffy on bass. He's the kid in the band. It seems like he's always the one dancing around acting silly. I love it!!!Here's a pretty decent pic of Eric...MY man. OK.....my OTHER man :-) But thats OK, 'cause Ryan knows, and he says it's OK :-) I was really happy to be able to get behind the stage. I danced back there for a little while. It was awesome to get a few good angles for photos that I can't get very often. It sounds totally different when you're back there. The sound is much better out in front. But the view back here was awesome!!!!Ryan and I hanging out on the hill in front of the stage.I think this is the cutest picture of Kelly!!! Aren't her nails pretty?!?!? I really wish we had more time to spend together too. We always have so much fun!!!!This is John Mullins. We actually had a chance to hang out with him for awhile after the show. It was a lot of fun. He doesn't drink while he's on stage, but by God, he does afterwards. He was hilarious!! In fact, he and Ryan both ended up in the middle of a hula hoop before the night ended. And remember, Ryan was sober :-)!!!!!Ryan and Matt....cuties!!!!!This is my friend Dani. Ryan and I met her threw some mutual friends at other shows. She was along with us for the trip to Atlanta last fall. We've really had a chance to get to know eachother over the last year or so. Once again, I am thankful to Ekoostik Hookah for bringing another great person into my life!!!!

This last picture is of The Max Allen Band. They're a local band, and have become a pretty common name throughout the music scene in Indy. They actually came outside during this picture, and were playing on the patio outside the German restaurant. I really enjoyed seeing them. There were a couple cops sitting in front of the bathrooms inside who looked totally bored out of their minds. They normally don't have to do much as far as crowd control at the Hookah shows. These crowds are just a bunch of tree hugging hippies who would rather hug you than cause any trouble. So, since the cops looked so bored, Max decided to go play directly to them. He walked to the foyer in between the reaturant and the bathrooms and starting ripping his guitar like Stevie Ray Vaughn or something. He gave them a very exciting personal show. It was pretty entertaining to see him in all his arrogance trotting around the cops like they were little kids or something.............................good times!!!!!

Anyone from Indy, or nearby, you should check the Max Allen Band out. I think all of you would enjoy their music.

Our friend Adam, AKA, the Hookah Virgin, lost his wallet during the show. He was freaking out when he realized it at about 1:00 AM. We were all just getting ready to head home when he ran up in a panic to tell us. I felt really bad for him. I have lost my stuff before, and I know what a huge sense of panic comes over you. The funny thing was, I had heard someone talking about having found a wallet while we were hanging out after Hookah got done playing, and I knew the guy had turned it into the bartender. I still don't know for sure if it was the same wallet, but sure enough, when Adam went in to inquire about his, they had it!! He was amazed. There was a little over three hundred dollars in there, and it had not been touched. THAT is why I love these people so dearly. Even when you think you're with strangers, we all look out for eachother in some way. And in turn, it seems like a huge extended family. Wow....I am so fortunate to have gotten to know such great people through this music. I love this scene, and I would be completely lost without it and the friends and family I have accumulated over the last few years because of it...........................................

Next up....the birthday bash......................

3 comments:

Andrea said...

Alli-Gal, Check out Oktoberfest at German Park. This year it's August 31st, September 1st,2nd, 7th and 8th. The German American Klub of Indiana does it every year. I've been several times, when I lived on the South side. It's a lot of fun, your mom would love it, if she doesn't mind a crowd. Big kegs of beer, german music, brats, authentic clothing, the whole ball of wax.

alli-gal said...

Awesome!!! I think I might actually be able to go on the 8th......I just hope it's a "good day" for Mom. If it is, the crowd shouldn't be a problem.

KellyAnn said...

Cool, I had so much fun. I can't wait til next weekend.