Last week, The Washington Post ran this story on Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell's plan to privatize Virginia's state run liquor stores. McDonnell envisions a one time profit from the sale of $300 million to $500 million. The profit would be used for road improvements in the Commonwealth. At first glance, and disregarding how one might feel about a state government being in the business of distributing and selling liquor, this may sound like a good idea. But upon further review, this may be one of the most assanine fiscal ideas in state history.
The Post article states Virginia's liquour stores showed a profit of $248million in fiscal 2009. That number was almost $14 million higher than the 2008 profit. (As we all know, alcohol sales are immune to dips in the economy. One might even be able to argue that alcohol sales go up when the economy is in a downturn.) With profits running at that rate, McDonnell's planned sale of the stores would do nothing more than provide one to two years of profits in a one time payment to the State. Additionally, the large ongoing profit stream would be gone and only be partially replaced by taxes on the liquor sales, which could probably be estimated at $25 million per year based on taxes collected on liquor sales in Maryland (see the Post article).
As to the $300 million to $500 million being used to improve roads, that funding is just a drop in the bucket compared to the billions of dollars needed to improve roads and transportation in Virginia. For example, a $300 million inflow would be enough money to complete three and a third road projects such as the 2.5 mile widening project on I-66 between the Route 234 bypass and the Route 29 exit in Gainesville, which cost $90 million. Even with a healthy dose of matching federal funds, the profit from the sale of liquour stores wouldn't go far in paying for road construction projects. Here's hoping the Virginia state legislature has the good sense to kill this idea. If it does, I may toast them with a sip of Jack Daniel's.
Speaking of Jack Daniel's, a bottle of which was used as an example of what Virignia, Maryland and D.C. make per liquor sale in the Post story, a friend of mine emailed some friends and me the story I'm about to tell.
Much has been made lately of the fitness test the Washington Redskins required DT Albert Haynesworth to pass prior to taking part in training camp. The requirements of the test are that Haynesworth had to run a pair of 12 back-and-forth 25-yard sprints in 70 seconds each, with a 3 1/2 minute break in between. After the requirements and Haynesworth's repeated failures hit the headlines, it seems everyone and their grandmother set out to see if they could past the test. One of those who tried is my friend and former softball teammate, Billy. Let me preface Billy's story by saying he is a former college baseball player, in his upper 40's and in far better shape than most anyone I know who is that age. Here is Billy's take, in his own words, on the test from the night he attempted it:
Okay, so this whole Haynesworth thing is pissing me off. I decided at 11pm after 2 Jack n' Cokes and a huge plate full of Beef Ribs and Mac n' Cheese that I'd go to the football field at Madison High School with my stop watch and see how hard this can be. As Cody, my dog, as my witness, I was able to accomplish this feat, but just barely. I know that I don't weigh 360 pounds, but I thought the belly full of ribs, Mac n' Cheese and 2 tall Jack n' Cokes and a dog running by my side jumping up and biting my arm every 15 yards because he thought I was playing some kind of dog game would offset the issue of a very large man. I ran the first twelve 25 yards in just under 70 seconds. The last 25 yards was not easy. Then, after the 3 1/2 minute rest, I ran the 2nd set in 67 seconds, but seriously I thought I was going to die. During the last 25 yards, my legs felt like they weighed a ton. It's now almost midnight, and I doubt that I'll fall asleep before 1am!!
Maybe that was Haynesworth's problem all along. He didn't have the proper fuel in him. I'm sure a couple of shots of Jack Daniel's, puchased at his local state owned liquor store would have loosened him right up.
Showing posts with label Drinking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Drinking. Show all posts
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Midweek Time Killers: Elvis, Billy Lee and the Beach
First off, how could I let the 32nd anniversary of Elvis Presley's death go unmentioned this week? Of course, whoever wrote this wants you to believe The King of Rock and Roll is still very much alive. And, I thought the story about Elvis' long lost twin brother still being alive that I mention in this travel blog post was a little out there.
Second, rockabilly pioneer and overall wild man, Billy Lee Riley, died a couple of weeks back (August 2nd). I'm hoping to do a post on him in the near future, but in the meantime this lengthy interview with him covers most all of his career.
Third, it seems every year some local media outlet runs a story on the supposed debauchery that takes place in Dewey Beach and the locals' effort to stop it. The latest installment comes in this Washington City Paper article.
Finally, if you are really bored at work, you can check out the happnenings on the Ocean City, Maryland boardwalk on this Boardwalk Beach Cam.
Second, rockabilly pioneer and overall wild man, Billy Lee Riley, died a couple of weeks back (August 2nd). I'm hoping to do a post on him in the near future, but in the meantime this lengthy interview with him covers most all of his career.
Third, it seems every year some local media outlet runs a story on the supposed debauchery that takes place in Dewey Beach and the locals' effort to stop it. The latest installment comes in this Washington City Paper article.
Finally, if you are really bored at work, you can check out the happnenings on the Ocean City, Maryland boardwalk on this Boardwalk Beach Cam.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Midweek Time Killers...Old School Baseball Style
(No, that is not the blogger known as Shedd in the picture to the right.)Every year about this time, the Baltimore Orioles visit the District for a series the Nationals promote as "The Battle of the Beltways". Honestly, it's more like the "Contests of the Cellar Dwellers", but the series usually draws well and the fans seem to have a good time. When the Nationals were still playing at RFK, some friends and I would always take in the Sunday game of the series after a couple of hours of tailgating. On one of those Sundays, my friend "Drycleaner Chris" and I were approached by the weekend sports anchor for local channel 9. She wanted to interview Chris and me for a story examining the Nationals-Orioles rivalry. Weekend anchor girl was your typical nice bodied TV blonde type, so, in our buzzedness, we readily agreed to step in front of camera. Chris BS'd his way through what seemed to be a five minute answer, then I babbled for a while, hoping my drunkedness wouldn't show up on video. (Believe me, I have a face and a voice made for blogging, so if I would have been sober, there's no way I would have let myself go on camera.) Soon, interview time was over and we headed into the game. When I got home that evening, I set my DVR to record channel 9's late night sports show and then readily forgot about the entire incident.
A few weeks later, I was visiting my parents in West Va. when my mom told me a friend of hers had seen me on TV. I'm sure I had a puzzled look on my face, because I had totally forgotten the interview. (15 beers or so on the day of an interview will do that to a guy.) My mom went on to tell me her friend said it looked like I was "at a ball game or something". Then it dawned on me what she was talking about. I was truly expecting the next words to come out of my mom's mouth to be her friend said "and he looked like he was three sheets to the wind". But, I got lucky. Once I got back home, I watched the story on my DVR. My minutes of babbling was edited down to about 20 seconds for the story. And, geez did I look like a** in my drunkedness.
In honor of this weekend's "Contests of the Cellar Dwellers", we'll take a look back at some old school baseball items from the Washington and Baltimore areas. (I refuse to lump the two cities into one geographic region because the two cities could not be more different.)
First, there's the best ever of the buzzed baseball fans, Baltimore's Wild Bill Hagy. This Washington Times piece was written by Dick Heller shortly after Hagy's death in August 2007. But, even more interesting is this 1979 Evening Magazine story on Hagy.
Lastly, is this NationalsPride.com review of Stephen J. Walker's 1999 book A Whole New Ballgame. The book details the Washington Senators 1969 season, their first under the leadership of Ted Williams. Although everyone remembers the Senators as perennial losers, they actually had a record of 86-76 in 1969. Personally, my lone memory of the Senators was going to a game at the age of four with my dad and grandfather in 1971, the Senators final year in D.C., and spilling orange soda all over myself and being hot and sticky the rest of the day. I guess it could have been worse, I could have a memory of a loss.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Friday Frolics, Volume 6: The Beer to Have When You're Having More Than One
Remember the days before all alcohol commercials reminded you to "drink responsibly"? Personally, I like alcohol commericals like this one that deal with reality and tell you the beer to drink when you're having more than one.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Quickies
This week's quickies post covers all sorts of items from the past week or two...
First up, Etta James railed on Beyonce for singing the James classic "At Last" way too many times since the release of Cadillac Records, the movie in which Beyonce portrayed Etta James. James also lit into the new president at the same Seattle concert where she tore into Beyonce. Read what she had to say about both Beyonce and President Obama here.
Reading about Etta speaking her mind brought back a memory of the only time I ever saw her perform in concert. One summer while I was in college, I went with some friends to see a triple bill of Etta, Lavern Baker and Ruth Brown at Wolf Trap. I was sitting in the second row toward the right side of the stage, when Etta waddled over my way. And, I do mean waddled...she was pretty big at the time. She made eye contact with me, then pulled the elastic top of her pants away from her ample body, made a motion with her hand and a facial expression that basically said "you wanna piece of this?" Ooof....
Second, Sirius XM satellite radio is surviving to broadcast another day. For better or worse, this financing deal keeps the company out of bankruptcy for a while. It also means the company is still stuck Howard Stern's contract.
Third, the Country Music Hall of Fame's class of 2009 consists of Roy Clark, Charlie McCoy and Barbara Mandrell. One of these days, I'll have a full entry on this. But for now, let me just say Roy Clark once played the honky tonks of southeast D.C. Really, there were redneck joints in southeast, I swear. Read Eddie Dean's Washington City Paper piece "A Brief History of White People in Southeast" here to learn more about it.
Finally, Merle Haggard returned to performing this month after having surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from one of his lungs late last year. Here's the Hag singing "Swinging Doors" in 1967. (Hey, I had to sneak something about drinking in this entry somewhere!)
First up, Etta James railed on Beyonce for singing the James classic "At Last" way too many times since the release of Cadillac Records, the movie in which Beyonce portrayed Etta James. James also lit into the new president at the same Seattle concert where she tore into Beyonce. Read what she had to say about both Beyonce and President Obama here.
Reading about Etta speaking her mind brought back a memory of the only time I ever saw her perform in concert. One summer while I was in college, I went with some friends to see a triple bill of Etta, Lavern Baker and Ruth Brown at Wolf Trap. I was sitting in the second row toward the right side of the stage, when Etta waddled over my way. And, I do mean waddled...she was pretty big at the time. She made eye contact with me, then pulled the elastic top of her pants away from her ample body, made a motion with her hand and a facial expression that basically said "you wanna piece of this?" Ooof....
Second, Sirius XM satellite radio is surviving to broadcast another day. For better or worse, this financing deal keeps the company out of bankruptcy for a while. It also means the company is still stuck Howard Stern's contract.
Third, the Country Music Hall of Fame's class of 2009 consists of Roy Clark, Charlie McCoy and Barbara Mandrell. One of these days, I'll have a full entry on this. But for now, let me just say Roy Clark once played the honky tonks of southeast D.C. Really, there were redneck joints in southeast, I swear. Read Eddie Dean's Washington City Paper piece "A Brief History of White People in Southeast" here to learn more about it.
Finally, Merle Haggard returned to performing this month after having surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from one of his lungs late last year. Here's the Hag singing "Swinging Doors" in 1967. (Hey, I had to sneak something about drinking in this entry somewhere!)
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Facebook Frenzy
About the time my co-ed softball season ended last summer, one of my female teammates, who is a few years younger than me, told me in an email I should join Facebook. Among other things, she thought it would be a good way to stay in contact with her during the offseason. Being 40 years old at the time, I blew off the idea while thinking "why should I be on a social website with a bunch high school and college aged kids". For quite a while, I never gave the idea another thought until my cousin's wife and a woman I dated briefly began to repeatedly bring up the idea.
My cousin's wife continued to tell me I should "be on Facebook", even reminding me during our family's Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. Finally, after yet another email from the softball teammate badgering me to join Facebook in early January, I relented and signed up. After taking the few minutes to set up my profile, I immediately went searching on Facebook for the softball teammate, the girl I had dated and my cousin's wife. "Friending" them was easy enough and they were kind enough to make comments on my "wall" of something to the extent of "it's about time".
Within a couple of days, I had "friended" or been "friended" by over 60 people. Some of the "friends" were obvious...softball teammates, people from the neighborhood I had grown up in, and some college friends that I had stayed close with over the years. But, some of the "friend" requests I started to receive were a little more distant...people I knew in college but who I wasn't very close with, wives of some of my college friends and neighbors of current friends who I really don't know. It became readily apparent a lot people on Facebook search their "friends'" "friends" list just to see who they vaguely recognize in an effort just to enlarge their own "friends" list.
But, I can't criticize anyone for doing this because I was soon doing the same thing. Even worse, I was searching for ex-girlfriends, not to "friend" them, but purely to see their profiles to see what they look like now.
Word soon got to one of my best friends through his wife, who was on Facebook, that I had joined up. The next day this friend, let's call him Vern, was on Facebook after vowing for months he'd never join up. Vern's reasoning was that if I was on Facebook, he might as well sign up. Within days, Vern had close to 200 Facebook "friends".
Personally, my experience with Facebook hit frenzy status a couple of weeks after I joined up. A friend's wife hosted a 40th birthday for the friend at the piano bar in the National Harbor complex just south of D.C. in Prince Georges County Maryland. This was one of those events where all the married folks got a baby sitter (or locked the kids in a closet), booked a hotel room near the bar, and then tried to re-live their college or Dewey Beach glory days. Needless to say, many of party goers were way past buzzed not too long into the night. And, with each round of beer and shots, more cameras came out of pockets and the more the MILFs in attendance started hamming it up for the cameras. Most anyone who had a camera at the party came home with several shots of ladies drinking longnecks in a provocative manner, asses being shaken just for the camera and an abundance of cleavage in a digital format.
When I got home at 2:00 a.m. several "friends" were already on Facebook swapping emails, instant messages and posting pictures. By noon the next day, dozens of photos from the party were plastered all over Facebook.
All through my first few weeks on Facebook, I knew there was one friend of mine who would laugh his a** off when he found out I was on Facebook. Let's call this friend J.D and he lives in Richmond. A couple of nights after the party, I was talking to J.D. on the phone and telling him about the party when I told him pictures from the party were all over Facebook. J.D. immediately started giving me a hard time about being on Facebook and told me he would never be on Facebook. I guess J.D.'s curiosity about all those MILFs playing up to the cameras got the best of him because, a couple of nights later, he was signing up for Facebook as we again spoke on the phone. Since then I've noticed J.D. has become a Facebook "fan" of Pabst Blue Ribbon, Pointer Brand Overalls, Southern Culture on the Skids and WKRP in Cincinnati.
And back to Vern for a minute, he has become one of the most prolific thinkers on Facebook, often postng introspective thoughts like:
Vern is trying to decide, out of the 3 famous TV Shirleys (Shirley Partridge, Big Shirley from "What's Happening", and Shirley Feeney), which is my favorite.
Vern loves when you put your ipod on shuffle and the first song it plays is exactly the song you wanted to hear, even though you didn't even know 5 seconds.
Vern is wondering if Mike Damone has any Earth, Wind, and Fire tickets. I'm planning on taking my little brother...
On a slightly more serious note, my friend Steve Tuttle wrote this piece for Newsweek's website on his personal addiction to Facebook and his subsequent resignation from Facebook. I wondered why he disappeared from Facebook shortly after I "friended" him. I thought I had scared him off until I read the piece. (Read the piece, if for no other reason, to see the context in which Steve used the line "Spiffy McGee feels a deuce coming on".)
On an even more serious note, J.D. sent me this MarketWatch piece on the potential problems Facebook profiles and postings pose in the hiring process for many employers and potential employees.
Steve points out in his piece that Facebook just celebrated its fifth anniversary and that he thought that was a good time to quit Facebook. I've been on Facebook a few weeks and I have to admit it has become somewhat of a guilty pleasure. Maybe I'll hang it up when it cuts into my other guilty pleasure, this blog.
Happy Valentine's Day from Shedd's Spot.
My cousin's wife continued to tell me I should "be on Facebook", even reminding me during our family's Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. Finally, after yet another email from the softball teammate badgering me to join Facebook in early January, I relented and signed up. After taking the few minutes to set up my profile, I immediately went searching on Facebook for the softball teammate, the girl I had dated and my cousin's wife. "Friending" them was easy enough and they were kind enough to make comments on my "wall" of something to the extent of "it's about time".
Within a couple of days, I had "friended" or been "friended" by over 60 people. Some of the "friends" were obvious...softball teammates, people from the neighborhood I had grown up in, and some college friends that I had stayed close with over the years. But, some of the "friend" requests I started to receive were a little more distant...people I knew in college but who I wasn't very close with, wives of some of my college friends and neighbors of current friends who I really don't know. It became readily apparent a lot people on Facebook search their "friends'" "friends" list just to see who they vaguely recognize in an effort just to enlarge their own "friends" list.
But, I can't criticize anyone for doing this because I was soon doing the same thing. Even worse, I was searching for ex-girlfriends, not to "friend" them, but purely to see their profiles to see what they look like now.
Word soon got to one of my best friends through his wife, who was on Facebook, that I had joined up. The next day this friend, let's call him Vern, was on Facebook after vowing for months he'd never join up. Vern's reasoning was that if I was on Facebook, he might as well sign up. Within days, Vern had close to 200 Facebook "friends".
Personally, my experience with Facebook hit frenzy status a couple of weeks after I joined up. A friend's wife hosted a 40th birthday for the friend at the piano bar in the National Harbor complex just south of D.C. in Prince Georges County Maryland. This was one of those events where all the married folks got a baby sitter (or locked the kids in a closet), booked a hotel room near the bar, and then tried to re-live their college or Dewey Beach glory days. Needless to say, many of party goers were way past buzzed not too long into the night. And, with each round of beer and shots, more cameras came out of pockets and the more the MILFs in attendance started hamming it up for the cameras. Most anyone who had a camera at the party came home with several shots of ladies drinking longnecks in a provocative manner, asses being shaken just for the camera and an abundance of cleavage in a digital format.
When I got home at 2:00 a.m. several "friends" were already on Facebook swapping emails, instant messages and posting pictures. By noon the next day, dozens of photos from the party were plastered all over Facebook.
All through my first few weeks on Facebook, I knew there was one friend of mine who would laugh his a** off when he found out I was on Facebook. Let's call this friend J.D and he lives in Richmond. A couple of nights after the party, I was talking to J.D. on the phone and telling him about the party when I told him pictures from the party were all over Facebook. J.D. immediately started giving me a hard time about being on Facebook and told me he would never be on Facebook. I guess J.D.'s curiosity about all those MILFs playing up to the cameras got the best of him because, a couple of nights later, he was signing up for Facebook as we again spoke on the phone. Since then I've noticed J.D. has become a Facebook "fan" of Pabst Blue Ribbon, Pointer Brand Overalls, Southern Culture on the Skids and WKRP in Cincinnati.
And back to Vern for a minute, he has become one of the most prolific thinkers on Facebook, often postng introspective thoughts like:
Vern is trying to decide, out of the 3 famous TV Shirleys (Shirley Partridge, Big Shirley from "What's Happening", and Shirley Feeney), which is my favorite.
Vern loves when you put your ipod on shuffle and the first song it plays is exactly the song you wanted to hear, even though you didn't even know 5 seconds.
Vern is wondering if Mike Damone has any Earth, Wind, and Fire tickets. I'm planning on taking my little brother...
On a slightly more serious note, my friend Steve Tuttle wrote this piece for Newsweek's website on his personal addiction to Facebook and his subsequent resignation from Facebook. I wondered why he disappeared from Facebook shortly after I "friended" him. I thought I had scared him off until I read the piece. (Read the piece, if for no other reason, to see the context in which Steve used the line "Spiffy McGee feels a deuce coming on".)
On an even more serious note, J.D. sent me this MarketWatch piece on the potential problems Facebook profiles and postings pose in the hiring process for many employers and potential employees.
Steve points out in his piece that Facebook just celebrated its fifth anniversary and that he thought that was a good time to quit Facebook. I've been on Facebook a few weeks and I have to admit it has become somewhat of a guilty pleasure. Maybe I'll hang it up when it cuts into my other guilty pleasure, this blog.
Happy Valentine's Day from Shedd's Spot.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Drunk All Around This Town
This week's series of posts on drinking continues with a clip of Scott Miller performing his tribute to drinking, "I've Been Drunk All Around This Town". An interesting side note is that when I did a search on YouTube for Scott Miller, I found a clip of an infomercial by a Dr. Scott Miller in San Diego on breast augmentation. After watching this musical clip, you may have wished I would have posted the infomercial instead.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Newsflash: College Students Drink
At least that's what the latest edition of Washingtonian tells us.I was in the check out line at the grocery store last week when I looked up to see the Washingtonian's annual issue listing the 100 best restaurants in the metro area. I usually buy this issue every year with the intention that I'll go to at least one of the restuarants listed in the coming year. Of course, it never works that way and I usually go to exactly none of them. (But, I do better with the issue later in the year that lists the 100 best cheap eats restaurants in the area.) Just like a little kid in a grocery line wanting candy, I just had to have this magazine, so onto the conveyor belt it went.
I got home and started thumbing through the magazine only to find an article entitled "Where's the Party?". The first line was "college kids still drink a lot and stay up late...". I thought to myself "that's good to know, I'd hate for the youngsters of today to miss out on all the hangovers I had on a regular basis back when I was in college". So, I read on.
The basis of the story was the writers followed students around for a night at five area colleges, Maryland, Howard, GW, Georgetown and George Mason, to check out the party scene. Honestly, the article was relatively boring and I think any of you readers who did some partying during your college days would read it and agree. But, the funny thing about the article was the lame explanations of the different ways college students expedite the process of tying one on that accompanied the very tame party pictures contained in the article. So, for those of you who have never partied it up in college or otherwise, I offer you Washingtonian's definitions of some key party terms:
A beer bong-a funnel attached to a tube-makes the beer go down fast.
The game flip cup is a race: Each player on a team has to chug a beer and then flip the empty cup so it lands upside down.
Keg stands-usually performed once everyone is buzzed-involve drinking from the tap while balancing upside down.
When beer-pong players land a Ping-Pong ball in a cup, the other team has to drink.
Maybe I'm showing my age, but there was no mention of quarters or shotgunning. But, I digress...
I would love to include a link to the story, but somehow this masterpiece of reporting didn't make the Washingtonian website. I was sorta hoping it would be on there right next to the list of the 88 best divorce lawyers in area. Oh well....
(I'm sure you have figured this out by now, but the picture above of the naughty little vixens beer bonging is not from the Washingtonian article.)
I got home and started thumbing through the magazine only to find an article entitled "Where's the Party?". The first line was "college kids still drink a lot and stay up late...". I thought to myself "that's good to know, I'd hate for the youngsters of today to miss out on all the hangovers I had on a regular basis back when I was in college". So, I read on.
The basis of the story was the writers followed students around for a night at five area colleges, Maryland, Howard, GW, Georgetown and George Mason, to check out the party scene. Honestly, the article was relatively boring and I think any of you readers who did some partying during your college days would read it and agree. But, the funny thing about the article was the lame explanations of the different ways college students expedite the process of tying one on that accompanied the very tame party pictures contained in the article. So, for those of you who have never partied it up in college or otherwise, I offer you Washingtonian's definitions of some key party terms:
A beer bong-a funnel attached to a tube-makes the beer go down fast.
The game flip cup is a race: Each player on a team has to chug a beer and then flip the empty cup so it lands upside down.
Keg stands-usually performed once everyone is buzzed-involve drinking from the tap while balancing upside down.
When beer-pong players land a Ping-Pong ball in a cup, the other team has to drink.
Maybe I'm showing my age, but there was no mention of quarters or shotgunning. But, I digress...
I would love to include a link to the story, but somehow this masterpiece of reporting didn't make the Washingtonian website. I was sorta hoping it would be on there right next to the list of the 88 best divorce lawyers in area. Oh well....
(I'm sure you have figured this out by now, but the picture above of the naughty little vixens beer bonging is not from the Washingtonian article.)
Saturday, February 7, 2009
I'm Just Drinking
There's no more fitting way to start Shedd's Spot's week long series of posts on alcohol consumption than with a classic drinking number from The Master of the Telecaster, Albert Collins. I had the good fortune, and I do really mean the good fortune, to see AC in concert several times before his death in November 1993. The man never put on a bad show.
Due to me being in the state of "I Ain't Drunk (I'm Just Drinking)" at most of those shows, the memories all seem to run together, but a couple of things about Albert's shows at the old Birchmere stand out.
First, was the evening my friend Virgil and I were waiting outside the Birchmere in line. We could hear AC wailing away inside while he was finishing his sound check. As soon as he finished the sound check, he came out the side door wearing an engineer's cap. He went all the way down the line shaking everyone's hand and thanking them for coming to the show before heading back to his bus.
Second, was the show legendary Washington blues DJ The Bama was in attendance. It was near the end for The Bama and he was in a wheel chair and covered by a blanket, sitting by the front door of the Birchmere. During the first song of the encore, Albert did his usual walk around the audience while playing, aided by his few hundred feet long guitar cord (he never used a wireless transmitter). When he got to where The Bama was sitting, Albert stopped and played just to The Bama for little while. I can still remember the look of joy on The Bama's face as AC was playing for him.
I'll save the rest of my Albert Collins memories for another post. But for now, let the drinking begin.....
Due to me being in the state of "I Ain't Drunk (I'm Just Drinking)" at most of those shows, the memories all seem to run together, but a couple of things about Albert's shows at the old Birchmere stand out.
First, was the evening my friend Virgil and I were waiting outside the Birchmere in line. We could hear AC wailing away inside while he was finishing his sound check. As soon as he finished the sound check, he came out the side door wearing an engineer's cap. He went all the way down the line shaking everyone's hand and thanking them for coming to the show before heading back to his bus.
Second, was the show legendary Washington blues DJ The Bama was in attendance. It was near the end for The Bama and he was in a wheel chair and covered by a blanket, sitting by the front door of the Birchmere. During the first song of the encore, Albert did his usual walk around the audience while playing, aided by his few hundred feet long guitar cord (he never used a wireless transmitter). When he got to where The Bama was sitting, Albert stopped and played just to The Bama for little while. I can still remember the look of joy on The Bama's face as AC was playing for him.
I'll save the rest of my Albert Collins memories for another post. But for now, let the drinking begin.....
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