The evening of 10-21-05:

So if you're looking for new reasons to fear that the sky is falling, I am here to tell you that a new danger has plummeted down from the dark and mysterious heavens above. It has happened in Africa, and it has happened in Oakland. And no, no, it's not hail, I know what hail is, and this isn't hail. It's. . . megacryometeors. Obviously!

They're giant petards of frozen stratosphere, allegedly, that form for some reason or another that isn't really clear. But we're told, at least, that that they're not created (as hail is) inside giant thunderstorm cells.

I must say that the afore-linked articles tried very hard, but didn't quite succeed, to convince me that said ice bombs are NOT *frozen human waste* from passing jetliners.

-jw

Nothing like Orange County to rekindle the Irish spirit in all of us.

It was a hot, sunny SoCal afternoon and we were in Irvine -- yours truly, Gregg, Craig, and Liz. But as you've probably heard, we weren't there for the sheep dog demonstrations, the plentiful medieval weaponry, the dodgy foodstalls, or the many, many, many, men in kilts. We were at the Irish Fair to see the acclaimed band Gaelic Storm. And they were awesome. As always. But I have to opine that as much as I respect people's desire to revel in all things at once kitschy and Irish, this band is really too good for venues like this. We saw them at the Ford Amphitheatre last Labor Day -- phenomenal show -- and that's the kind of place they should be playing. Can they break out and find a large enough audience for consistently bigger shows? We chatted with lead vocalist Pat Murphy after the show, and he seemed to think so. (Hollywood Bowl, anyone?) But to his band's credit, they put on a fantastic performance at the fair, and everyone was on their feet by the end. The sound wasn't great, the facilities were pretty basic, but a blast was had by all.

We were disappointed to notice that bandmember Stephen Wehmeyer, whose songwriting, vocals, bodhran, didgeridoo (!) and overall onstage energy have been an integral part of the band since its inception, was standing on the sidelines. Apparently he's "taken time off" to spend with his family. It's gotta be tough when you have a young child and tour for more than half the year. But Stevie, we hope you come back!

The Fish and Chips were actually great, which was a pleasant surprise. Kudos to Craig for finding them. All I could find, initially, to satisfy my huger pangs was a styrofoam container with two giant bangers atop a mountain of mashed potatoes and a about a pint of butter. Not much flavor, but plenty of punch. Punch in the gut, that is.



Now, there's an inevitable element of freak parade at festivals like this. A bit of renaissance faire crossover, if you know what I mean. In addition to the plentiful kilts there were lots of beards, plaid berets, and the like. The sword shop dude was wearing a medieval tunic, hose, and a bluetooth headset. (Unfortunately, Liz said Gregg and I weren't allowed to buy wooden katanas for backyard recreation.) There was also a large contingent of Civil War reenactors (Union, of course), for reasons that were never clear. And there were lots of stalls selling Wicca-y stuff and Irish potato crisps and breakfast cereals and the other Irish stuff you can't get in California. . . and almost as many stands, it seemed, with sleazy pitchmen hawking knockoff designer sunglasses. There was lot of beer, of course. . . But only Bud and Michelob? Is it really that hard to get ahold of some Guiness? Is this an Irish Fest or Nascar?!

The other music acts were a bit dodgy, as to be expected. But we did stumble upon one Irish band that's actually more famous than Gaelic Storm. Wow, what were they doing there? Must be the first time in quite awhile that they've played a sheep pasture and not a massive stadium! I mean, that really is THEM, right? Hmmm, Bono is shorter than I remember. . .

[VIDEO TO COME. THERE IS VIDEO. GREGG, SEND ME THE VIDEO AND I WILL UPLOAD IT. AND THEN THIS ATTEMPT AT A JOKE WILL WORK]

There were pictures of the event, the band, us with the band, and more, but sadly they seem to have been lost to the void. This is quite sad. I'm going to go cry now.

-jw