One Beautiful Day

“Our worth is not what we put on.  It’s not what we possess.  You’ll take none of them with you when you go, except the love you’ve received and given.”

Foreshadowing

A Timtwisted tale of what happens when two “creatives” cross paths for a night on the town.

My Saint Patrick’s Day adventure began in the driveway before I’d even left the house when I noticed the odometer reading on my trusty Mazda Protege as seen above.

Background

Setting the stage for today’s ongoing story of Tim’s travails requires a flashback to Facebook from a few years ago when I was still mopeding around Germany and Chad Wesley decided to friend-up with me.

Chad is a master of new-age jammin’ blues guitar who blends a refreshing and vibrant mix of Mississippi culture into his music.  He’s also the lead vocalist in the band that carries his name.  As he explained to me the other day, he added me to his friend’s list based on the proficiency of my polemic pushbacks against the forces of right-wing dumbfuckery which infect Facebook these days.

Over the years Chad followed along as I regaled the world with tales and videos of the good, the bad and the extremely ugly (which came in spades near the end of my stay in Germany).  He was a real source of strength to me in the final days of my wife’s failing health by offering a compassionate soul with which to commiserate.  One. Solid. Dude.

When Chad hit me up on FB the other day and tempted me with a friendly fajita dinner in exchange for nothing more than my company, I dropped my plans for “beans and weenies” supper at home faster than Kim Wade can defame a good ‘democrat’.

“Pick the place and time” was the gist of my text back to him.  His paraphrased response included a place, Babalu’s; a time and a disclaimer that included his wife’s right of refusal to grant him such a long leash on such a short notice.  Been there, done that. Seen that movie too.  I’d give anything to still be in a position where I had to ask permission from a loyal mate for such a late night foray.  Chad knows exactly what a lucky man he is to have such a supportive mate.  As he treated me to a private screening of his soon-to-be-released music video, he was eager to point her out to me as she appeared onscreen. Here’s an exclusive fifteen seconds of footage Chad offered as a teaser that I shared on my Instagram account.  I’m under a signed legal order not to release any blog reviews on the video exceeding one word, so I’m hoping ‘Kick Ass’ isn’t going to get me in hot water.  Hopefully this won’t land me on the shit list of Mississippi’s Media Mafia.

Dinner at Babalu’s

*CARNE EN PALITO “STEAK ON A STICK”
Aspen Ridge Natural Beef grilled skewered tenderloin, rostï potatoes, broccolini, pico de gallo.  I put Chad in charge of picking the night’s ale selections and he was as spot on with those decisions as he is with his decision to dine at Babalu’s.

We took our time working through our meal while catching up on each other’s many triumphs and tribulations.  About the time we were about to exit stage left, a tall thin brunette approached Chad and asked him if he was Eddie Vedder!  For the record;

I’m surprised she didn’t ask him to autograph her breast, she was so enamored of the situation.  I’m carrying a Sharpie with me next time just in case….

Seeing as how these hipster single girls tend to travel in pairs, and I’m Eddie Vedder’s photographer, there was a bit of love to spare for me as well.  Both Chad and myself are used to handling the fallout of our fabulosity and therefore accustomed to random groupies fan attention. We accommodated these fine ladies interests for a few minutes before excusing ourselves and rolling out of the place on the way to our next stop, Fenian’s Pub.

Won’t you smile awhile for me, Sara?

 Fenian’s Pub

I took photos and a short video of this gal’s performance while Chad retrieved the second of the evening’s several beers.  It was a young, raucous crowd on account of the St. Patrick’s Day holiday festivities, so we decided to step outside and do a little street drinking where we could continue our conversations from dinner.  I was also wanting to hit my vape a bit harder than the stealth mode I was operating under inside the joint, so I quickly agreed and we were soon standing on the corner of Fortification and North Jefferson.  We hadn’t been standing there long when I looked over my shoulder and spotted a familiar face.  It was deja’ vu all over again for me, but Chad’s slinky brunette was nowhere to be found.  Having already been introduced to Sara at Babalu’s, we quickly reconnected and chatted about the odd circumstance of having run into each other again so soon.  During that discussion she had a flash of insight and finally figured out who I was.  When she looked at me and blurted out, “Oh my god are you that guy from Kim Wade’s (Facebook) posts?”  If nothing else of consequence had happened that night, her shock when I confirmed her observation would stand alone as a cosmic moment of celestial other-worldliness.

Sara was sweet enough to handle the camera for this shot of me and Chad hanging and vaping under the Fenian’s sign.

Up On The Roof

We walked Sara across the street to her car and Chad grabbed a six pack of beer at the convenience store nearby and then we waved goodbye to Sara and headed to Chad’s friend Jim’s house for a late night three-amigos jam session.  The jam session videos are on my YouTube for those who wish to view them.  You can get to my YouTube link through the “Social” tab at the top of this page.  Here’s the view from one of the finest beer drinking locations in the greater Fondren area.

As Chad, Jim and I are all endlessly energetic and creative, we couldn’t just sit around and get hammered like the hoi polloi.  Instead, the three of us worked up this new intro piece for my vaping videos while simultaneously hammering down the aforementioned six pack.

Once we finished with the video production and ran out of beer, we said goodnight to Jim and thanked him for his hospitality.  It was a fantastic finish to a totally fantastic evening and I can’t thank Chad enough for the experience.  I was 35 years old again for several hours that evening.

Enjoy.