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by Ted Holteen
T onight is the big night, but did you
really think this is what the Democrats had in mind in March and
April during the primaries? The TV event of the summer (until next
week) explodes out of your set tonight, Thursday, July 29, as John
Kerry will attempt to show America that he's not just another
boring billionaire, not just another entrenched Washingtonian, not
just another politics-as-usual hand-pumping schmuck. Well, he's up
against it. As a citizen who clamors with the other rabble for a
regime change, I, for the second time in four years, must decide
between ennui and evil. Three-hundred million people in this
country, and the best two, the best, mind you, are George W. Bush
and John Kerry
. There's no joke here,
just read the words and think about it. This following 2000, when
only the dynamic Al Gore rose above the masses to capture our
hearts and even enough votes to be our leader. The Democratic
Convention in Boston winds up tonight with Lieutenant John
accepting the nomination for (gulp) President of the United States,
and if you can't be at the Fleet Center for the big event (and you
can't), then do the next best thing. Watch the well-scripted drama
unfold on the big screen at the Abbey Theatre with like-minded Bush
haters and feel the love as the theatre hosts a screening of
Kerry's acceptance speech. It's free, more or less, and begins at 6
p.m. Is it too late for Mike Miles to run for President?
If you're looking to
avoid all those godless liberals and still have fun somehow, fear
not. Music in the Mountains is well under way, with all the
political diversity of the Politbureau. Arkady Fomin makes another
appearance as guest conductor, but with a twist: Arkady must be
working off some community service hours for a DUI or something,
because he's conducting an orchestra of children. There are some
young adults to be sure, but some of these kids are 4 and 5 years
old! Fomin will conduct the Conservatory Gala Concert (See? they don't call it a
"liberalatory") on Friday night at the Fort Lewis College Community
Concert Hall at 7:30 p.m. Then on Saturday, the kids pile in the
school buses and minivans and head up to the performance tent at
DMR for the "Kids With Strings Finale" at 1 p.m. Admission is free,
but unless one of the kids is yours, beware: Soccer moms can't hold
a candle to a Cello Mom. Who do you think is going to be in an
audience watching a hundred children play classical music anyway?
Come to think of it, let's take the analogy one step further and
maximize our entertainment dollar. Soccer riot
 While you're at DMR on
Saturday, don't miss "Hike, Lunch and Wine with a
Llama." This is my
kind of hike. You go up on a chairlift, the llama carries the food
and wine, and then you learn stuff. It'd be perfect if you could
ride the llama too, but oh well. It's the brainchild of the San
Juan Mountains Association, which is one of the finest
organizations in the area, and someone from the SJMA who knows
stuff will educate you on the flora and fauna of the San Juans as
you devour wine and cheese and tease your llama. Contact Nicole
Smith at 385-1210 to sign up the llamas will run this Saturday and
again on Aug. 14. It's worth the price of admission just to meet
Nicole, so you can't lose.
So you hate animals,
kids and politics? Me, too. That's cool, because there is actually
some traditional nightlife to be had this weekend. On Friday and
Saturday night, Alex
Maryol returns to
Durango, this time at Scoot 'n Blues. Maryol plays straight-up rock
and blues, and you get what you pay for. I mean that in a positive
sense this time.
 If tradition for you
means the Blue Ridge Mountains, unhand your cousin and head back to
the Abbey on Friday for a bluegrass doubleheader featuring
Chatham County Line
and The Broke Mountain Bluegrass Band
. And Saturday at the Abbey
gives me yet another opportunity to display my cultural and
artistic ignorance. Stella Chiweshe comes to town via Zimbabwe, backed by
Mukwa. You may remember Mukwa they're the ones that play the
marimbas and other like soundmakers, comprised of former Jaka
members. Well, turns out that Stella is the Queen of the Mbira,
which I assume is a musical instrument but could just as easily be
a Zimbabwean ghetto. Regardless, she is the queen of it, and you
can see for yourself just what that means.
The bluegrass music
should provide quite a contrast to what goes on up at the Concert
Hall on Friday night. Take the tuxedo-coveralls challenge and try
to see both. The kids with the violins have bedtimes, and music at
the Abbey usually starts just before last call, so you shouldn't
have to miss a note.
Hate mail's better than
no mail ted@ksut.org. Hail to the chief big, golf ball-sized
ones. •
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