Tuesday, June 10, 2008

This year, Father's Day came on a weeknight

Let it never be said that The Holmes fails to find enjoyment in such good wholesome activities as running through a water sprinkler, scaling monkey bars, repeatedly pushing toy trucks down stairs, or any other such inner-child-embracing-hey-what-a-good-dad tomfoolery. I can run with the toddlers with the best of 'em, and I'll fight any man who says otherwise*.

But here lately, I've been craving some o'that non-wholesome explicitly-adult no-kids-allowed kind of fun. And thankfully, an opportunity for just that brand of leisure time came in the form of news from my friend Shayne aka Hip-Hop Show buddy, so called because he's, ya know, the buddy with whom I go to hip-hop shows. Or used to, anyway. It had been a while since I'd made my way to a show of any genre, so long in fact that when somebody asked me the other day who I saw last, I had to think for a few minutes, and I'm still not sure I gave 'em the right answer.

But then last week, the news came something like this:

Damn, a concert on a school night. A Monday, no less. That could make for a rather sleepy Tuesday. But as a very wise motherfucker once said, sometimes you gotta suffer for your fun.

The Ash must've sensed I was in need of a night out, because as soon as I told her about it, she blurted "You should go! Yes! GO! I'll watch the midgets!"

It felt damn good to get out and get a bit loose. Aceyalone was the main attraction for me. He's been a favorite of mine since college when I discovered his "Book of Human Language" album, a collection of tracks that opened my ears to just how amazing hip-hop could really be. And while I hadn't listened to much Dilated Peoples before, I'm definitely a fan now. And you know, you can call me immature, but I get a real kick out of joining in the kind of profanity-laden call-and-response routines that you can only find at concerts like this. Of course when I was younger and first started going to shows, I was much too earnest for any of that silliness:

Could it be that as I've gotten older, I've gotten better at having fun? Or that perhaps I've become a bigger dork? Or do the two go hand in hand?

By the time we left, Shayne and I were both a little hoarse and we smelled like, well, like a hip-hop show. Define that as you will. Downtown was oddly crowded for a Monday night, but we found the car no problem thanks to Shayne being all go-go-gadget foresight and typing our parking spot into his Bwackbewwy.

I only got a few hours of sleep, but I felt great this morning. Even as I type this, I have a pleasantly loose feeling in my normally tight shoulders. I guess a little hip-hop was just what I needed to knock my shit back into alignment

*Metaphorically speaking, of course.

8 comments:

Bubblewench said...

Sounds like you had a great time.. glad you got out for a night.

Life As I Know It said...

Good for you. Everyone needs a night out. Or two. Or Ten.

CroutonBoy said...

Dilated Peoples? Are they related to Naked Eyes?

sybil law said...

Hellz yes! I lov eit. The only thing I hate about going to shows lately is how much OLDER I am than most of the crowd!
But far cooler than most of the crowd. Of course. ;)

Whit said...

I've never been to a hip-hop show, other than seeing Tribe Called Quest at one of the 'paloozas. Sounds like it did the trick.

Radioactive Tori said...

Sometimes you just need to have some fun even if it is on a "school night". Glad you had a good time!

Keith said...

I really need to hang out with my friends more. I've been a terrible friend to most for the last five years or so.

E.Payne said...

Doing things just because despite the norms (weeknights, etc.) can often times be refreshing...now if I can only figure out a way to take this advice myself. Your blog is cool. I'm going to link it to mine.