Thursday night was my first taste of the local music scene in SF. Diana & I went to The Independent in alamo square, but not before stopping off for some Popeye’s across the street. We had quite the little adventure, complete with some extra-friendly bouncers who kidded me about not accepting out of state IDs. heh, they were really cool.

We walked in to a large empty room and immediately turned to each other and said “we’re so lame.” But we were able to secure a place to sit, even though it was invaded by a soon-to-be SF transplant from Europe. I thought he was completely creepy before he even tried to speak to us. Diana, however, is a nicer person than I am and entertained him with small talk. He overheard our discussions of Amsterdam and mentioned he lived there for a year. Pssh. He was so trying to impress us with the “oh, I’m european” line. Please. I work with someone from like every continent. I’m not impressed. We sampled some pear cider, which wasn’t half bad, although a bit too much like sparkling grape juice. The venue itself reminded me of a meld of The Vogue in Indy and Southgate House in Newport, KY. I loved it. Just the right size for a show.

DreamDate was pretty cool (for a chick band). j/k But yeah, they kind of had a beach boys harmony/surf rhythm feel with a hint of punk. Not a type of music I’d seek out, but I enjoyed their set. The bassist chick was pretty awesome and joined the headliner on trumpet later that night. I was most amused that it was 2 girls singing/playing guitar with a guy drummer. I deemed him “little drummer bitch” (little drummer boy in case you don’t get the hilarious joke). Seriously, though, that has marketing awesomeness written all over it “Dreamdate featuring Little Drummer Bitch”.

Thee Oh Sees were a trip, literally. The lead guitarist showed himself as a rock star from the moment he walked in to the venue. No one in any other profession could tolerate so much hair in their face. They took the stage as a sort of band of gypsies. Not much setup, just aimless meandering. They had that guy in the band who appears to have no real purpose, but he was a friend of everyone else so they let him sit with a tambourine in the corner. When I say sit, I mean it quite literally. He was more of a prop. Vocals were split between rockstar hair guy and a chick who could have been plucked out of the late 70s. Their voices combined in a sort of high-pitched, retro sound. It was a little Jefferson Airplane meets Pink Floyd. The guy’s stage antics were a little over the top for me, but I liked their sound. One of the songs stretched to full trance status at 10-15 minutes in length. It was sort of amazing and also, an endurance test for the drummer who was at full speed the entire time. It was completely surreal. All of us were completely in that moment with the band.

Before the headliner, I squeezed my way through the sold-out crowd to the bathroom, where I met Kayla. At least I think that was her name. The line was incredibly long, so I made friends. A drunk lady in front of us ended up taking our picture with Kayla’s camera, because it was her birthday. So I’m on some camera out there, known either by “that girl in line for the bathroom behind me” or “some girl that just drove here from Indy.” Or maybe she’ll remember my name. I’m not sure if it’s common to make friends in the bathroom line, or if I just have an extra knack for it. I feel like it happens a lot.

The crowd was going crazy as The Dodos took the stage. These guys seem to be the Margot of San Francisco, and I was happy to be joining in that crowd—lots of folks who knew the band personally and just as many others who had joined the cult for the music. The crowd looked like a Margot crowd, too. In fact, Kayla from the bathroom line had heard of Margot. Pretty cool.  The band consisted of 3 guys, but they made a big sound. I’m not sure what to compare them to, but I really enjoyed the show. The drummer seemed extra awesome. He was doing all kinds of stuff. I wish I had footage of one song in particular where he just killed with some crazy rhythms. I like it when you can tell the people on stage are friends and they’re just having a good time. I wish I’d known some of their songs so I could have felt like a more legit fan, but I had a good time all the same.

I illegally shot some video of the show. My little camera kind of shoots awesome video.

See all show photos

It was a great time, even though the bus completely left some of us at the curb, so I shared a cab home with 3 strangers. heh. Then I got an unexpected visitor at 1:30 am. And well, it turned out to be quite the night and I paid for it dearly yesterday.

But, I was awake enough to buy my ticket to Amsterdam!! Yep, Diana & I are officially going. Our vacation time is approved. Tickets are official. We’ll be heading out there at the end of July. We spent a lot more money than we had intended, but chalked it up to the price of a grand adventure. It’s going to be incredible.

And last night, I lost my pot virginity. I’d had a big debate about it for years. I was proud to say I’d never smoked anything at all, but I’ve realized I’m not gonna get any certificate for that when I’m crossing the life finish line so that’s just dumb. If I’m going to say I’m a borderline atheist, I should be all about taking advantage of experiences. Maybe it makes me a horrible person. Maybe there’s a hell and now I’m going. Maybe I’m just glad it’s not a big deal anymore. I coughed for like 15 minutes. It was pretty embarrassing. I’m pretty sure I experienced a “high” of some sort, but it was short-lived. Mainly, because I didn’t have that much and because I was sort of afraid I was dying. My right hand was noticeably swollen and then I was pretty sure my right foot was swelling too. I think the foot swelling was just me being paranoid, but the hand was definitely legit. I couldn’t make a fist. I’d never had that happen, but I think it was because of the heat. I had just walked about 2 miles in 92-degree temps. My hand is fine today, though, so no worries.

It’s going to be hot again today, but it’s so pretty. I get lots of sunlight in my kitchen/bathroom in the morning and the late afternoon sun/sunset from my living area. I got home late from work the other day and the tarp over the scaffolding had been removed so I could see the silhouette of Golden Gate against the setting sun. It was one of those moments where I realize “I’m really here.” The sky has been so clear all day so far, leaving a clear view of Golden Gate and the dome of the Palace of Fine Arts. I’m really happy with my apartment. It sucks that there are some field lights that interfere with my view, but I think if I had a completely unobstructed view of the bridge, it just wouldn’t feel quite as real. You can’t forget you’re in San Francisco with Golden Gate sitting quietly within your sight. And most mornings/evenings, the fog is so thick, it completely vanishes, so it’s always a pleasant surprise when it’s suddenly there. I have some other apartment photos up here.

I do wish my neighbor wouldn’t wear shoes all the time. I can hear him/her walking everywhere. Kind of annoying. Hopefully, when I have furniture, it’ll muffle the sound a bit more. Wow, strong closer, Mindy. Strong indeed. And sorry for saying “pretty” 900 times.