Mill-ee-wok-ay

So let's talk for just a second about Summerfest: the self-proclaimed "largest music festival in the world." We weren't sure if they meant largest as in number of acts playing or attendance. After walking around for a little while, we guessed they actually meant largest as in square footage.

So we were walking around, just people-watching and mullet-hunting (which was frightfully easy). I recognized a Frag Doll, then felt really nerdy and fanboyish that I recognized a Frag Doll. Our journey eventually brought us to a truly magical place: the classic rock stage. There, we were fortunate enough to catch one of the most amazing musical acts ever to perform on this planet:

NIGHT RANGER

Oh, excuse me. I don't think I made myself entirely clear. What I really meant to say was:
















Now imagine that logo on a giant backdrop onstage. Also, imagine about 800 mostly inebriated, mostly mulleted spectators in front of said stage. Finally, imagine that stage and all the people being rocked to the absolute core of their being. That's how amazing Night Ranger is.

Night Ranger, for those of you who aren't old enough to know, is pretty much the epitome of the 80's metal band that is still touring. They had a platform at the back of the stage - this is what Night Ranger uses because they're too old to climb on speakers. The bass player and two guitarists started the concert on the platform and rocked some opening chords before, not jumping down from the platform, but really just gingerly stepping down and running up to the mics. Remember, they're old.

Night Ranger songs basically consist of a verse, a chorus, then about 6-7 minutes of dueling guitar solos, then maybe another chorus to wrap up the song. And I'm not being facetious when I tell you that those solos were amazing. We only stayed for two songs, but I'm glad we got to see them.

(I make fun, but they were actually still really good...if you're a fan of 1980's melodic metal. And as any of my friends will tell you, I most certainly AM. Also, Night Ranger is really popular in Keri's family for some reason. Apparently, her sister checked out a CD from the library because she liked the name of the band, then ended up listening to it all summer because it was so funny. So there you go - Night Ranger, amazing music that spans generations.)

Anyway, we were really there to see Death Cab for Cutie, who were amazing. The show was really annoying because it was really crowded and we could tell that probably a third of the crowd was there because they saw the band play on "The O.C." We could tell because there was a huge reaction when they played their two "singles" but for anything else - crickets. At one point, I literally heard one girl ask, "Have they played any of the songs they played on 'The O.C.' yet?" to which her friend replied, "No." But at that point, they most certainly had. I'm sure I'm coming off really elitist right now, making fun of all the poseurs, but dang it, I liked them first.

Also annoying - the Summerfest setup. They have great stages set up with rows of metal, backless benches in front of them. This is great, because kids can sit down in between shows and still keep their spot. What would be even greater is if people didn't STAND ON THE FREAKING BENCHES DURING THE SHOW!!! We spent an hour staking out a spot behind the last row of benches, only to see our great view of the stage become a great view of rows and rows of butts. Normally, I wouldn't complain, but these were emo butts - good for crying, not for ogling.

Bottom line - we moved so we could see better and enjoyed a great show. Gibbard and crew played an encore of "Tiny Vessels" and "Transatlanticism" that absolutely made the show for me. Just amazing. So all's well that ends well.

The next day, we went to the zoo, which was a great time. I hadn't been to the zoo in a long time, and I forget how much fun it is. Especially the monkeys, who are always hilarious. We even got to see this special exhibit called "The Sting Ray Encounter," which is a great name for some reason. There was a shallow lagoon with a bunch of sting rays swimming around and you were invited to stick your hand in and touch them as they swam by. They kind of felt like a velour sweatsuit, which is strange, because I own one and never thought that it would feel like a sting ray.

After several aborted attempts, Keri finally worked up the courage to touch one. She did, for a split second, then squeeled and retracted the hand. Keri is a wuss. (I gave this bit its own paragraph to emphasize that point.)

That evening featured some head-to-head Dance Dance Revolution (which I have some surprising natural talent at), some eyeToy games (which I'm not good at, but am apparently really funny while I do it), and some Soul Caliber II. Let's see...did anything happen when we played that game? Let me think...oh yes, something of note did indeed happen. I believe I was crowned

SOUL CALIBER II GRAND CHAMPION OF THE UNIVERSE!!

And in grand fashion, too. I was Champion coming in and almost didn't want to play for fear of relinquishing that title, but Raph kept saying that he was on the phone during the arbitrarily decided "Championship Match" at the end of the semester. So it was decided that in order to be crowned Champion, you had to beat all three challengers in a row. (There were four people vying for the title.) We went back and forth for a while, then I hit a streak and had only one person to go: Raph. So it came down to what it always does: Mitsurugi vs. Talim. Strength vs. speed. 29-year-old samurai vs. 15-year-old wind priestess. The first two rounds were split and the third went down to the wire, but in the end, innocence (and awesomeness) prevailed. (I won.)

This may seem pretty inconsquential to most of you, but believe me when I say it is one of my proudest accomplishments to date. And Raph, I will brag about it until the day I die.

Okay, this post is way too long, but there's a reason: it might be all you get for a while. I'm leaving tomorrow to go visit my aunt, who is currently piloting her boat around Exhuma. Yeah, looks pretty rough, I know. We may get wireless Internet every so often when we're in port, but blogging may take a backseat to doing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. So uh...have fun. I'll be back in 12 days or so.

Thanks, folks. You've been great. Enjoy Night Ranger.