snow goose benefit concert
Add comment January 25th, 2007
Archive for January, 2007
shoo-ing of the flock festival
Add comment January 25th, 2007
Once again the return of spring will be marked by the migrations of the snow geese herds and the end of hibernation of the South End String Band. Huddled in the warmth of their dark shacks, the self described Philharmonic of the Nettle Fields will be ambulatory, or nearly so, in time to celebrate the 2nd Annual Shoo-ing of the Geese. The yearly event is an opportunity to welcome spring with the String Band as they create a cacaphonous noise that hurries the snow geese from the guano strewn deltas of the Stilly and Skagit to their summer retreats in the Arctic.
As Dr. Arnie Thologist, the Band’s resident expert on fowls great and small, pointed out, “Time to let the musk-ox wade through the droppings. If you thought the Valdez oil spill was a mess, take a hike onto Leque Island. You could grow Guinness record corn on the cleats of your boots.”
Notorious in the isolated nettle ravines as purveyors of their own brand of home-grown manure, The South End String Band will join forces once again with the Snow Goose Festival. Again, Dr. Thologist: “The Band sees this event as their civic duty. In their post-hibernative state they somehow believe the Shoo-ing of the Flocks will save the world from a bird flu pandemic. Sad, really, when birds of a feather think so much alike. I’ve stopped reasoning with them and learned to take their feather-based beliefs as unshakable. They’re simple musicians intent on playing as many songs about chickens and turkeys and jaybirds and cuckoos as they can. There seems to be some strange affinitity…..”
The South End String Birds will play at the Meadow Room of Four Springs Preserve Feb. 24th. Probably about 4 to 7. They’re not sure yet. A spokesman for the still somnambulant group stated that serious bird watchers might be forewarned that once the concert begins, bird sightings will be virtually impossible.
american legion benefit introduction
Add comment January 23rd, 2007
Good afternoon everybody! We’re the South End String Battalion, combat seasoned and ready willin and able. The Legion asked if we wouldn’t give a rallyin cry to those of you who made it today and we said sure, inspirational speeches are our bread and butter. Which is what they said our lunch would be if we refused……
The War on Terror isn’t anything new to us South Enders. We been on minuteman alert practically since Eisenhower. We don’t talk about it much. We don’t rattle the sabers and we don’t advertise our troop strength. Let’s just say we’re prepared for Anything the enemy can throw at us.
The enemy I’m referring to, of course, is Whidbey Island. They been engaged for a quarter century with arms buildups. Navy airforce base at our doorstep, Huey helicopters rumbling by low on the horizon, E-6 Prowlers intruding on our air space, and now this X-craft comin off the assembly lines of Freeland.
Oh I know, a lot of folks say hellfire, man, they’re on OUR side. We’re all on the same team here. You ever been to an Island County Commissioner hearing? They barely even HEARD of Camano. Much less the South End. We’re just a tax base. An uppity Colony. John Dean gets over there makin waves, you’ll SEE how benign the gov’t. is. You think Iraq has sectarian strife —- wait’ll Whidbey finds out the level of Camano discontent.
Pooh pooh it all you want. All I’m sayin is we got to be Vigilant. And on the South End we are. When the tyrants of Coupeville roll in with frogmen and ground forces, don’t say we didn’t sound the alarm. Don’t say WE weren’t ready. In fact, just to give you some idea of the megatonnage of our response level, here’s a salvo. Hit em boys!!!!
american legion benefit concert
Add comment January 23rd, 2007
My old man’s a charter member of the American Legion. Served in WW2, most of the war in the Pacific, then finished off in the Mediterranean. I thought maybe I could join the Legion, seein’s how I’m a veteran of the Culture Wars, but I learned PDQ I wasn’t gonna get let in. A pretty face doesn’t open every door.
I suspect membership here at Post 207 is dwindling, judging by my old man’s post. Veterans from WW2 and Korea are passin over. I know it’s a hard thing, watchin the ranks thin. My old man’s still kickin, but not field goals these days.
You might think it’s a SAD fact. But look at it another way. We don’t really want a high growth rate. We always liked to think we fought the War to End all Wars. Course, there’ll always be wars, but maybe, just maybe, there’ll be less and less. And someday maybe we’ll throw one last benefit dinner for the last two heroes of the very last war.
They might invite the South End Greater Metropolitan Area String Band to play, great grandsons and granddaughters of these geezers here. If so, I sure hope they play somethin like this rightchere.
