I realize that it’s becoming normal for me to be super late on my blog posts, so I took a long break to catch up on work, and now it’s time to catch-up with my blog posts! I have a long list. I am riddled with guilt on being so late – but screw it. My 2017 resolution is two fold in getting more done in a shorter time span, and take less bs. I feel like that is a pretty lofty goal, but here’s to challenging yourself and making things better for you, and not just for others. My problem is not realizing that working a more than full time job is demanding, on top of my personal life, and I need to be realistic in what I can juggle with the blog and photography. I love it, but it started to weigh on me. Taking a break really helped bring me back and I am energize and excited to begin again, and start doing some really creative stuff in the coming year! I also plan to launch a photography site, to showcase some of the really cool stuff I’ve been doing with my work, because I realize everyone here is missing out on all of that.

With that being said, let’s launch into one of many past-due blog posts with Ye Scallywag! It was the first of the punk-inspired beer event organized by my friends at OC Brew Ha Ha and this event was at the lovely Waterfront Park in San Diego. It was cool to make a weekend of it and stay down in SD, and the weather was hot AF but I had a great time overall. It was really cool to be able to have a photo pass that allowed media to inhabit the space in between the crowd and the stage, and get super close shots of infamous OC Punk royalty.

Like any downtown spot in a major city, parking was a bitch. But, as I get older, I just don’t care and realize parking close and paying $20 is better than walking a mile to save $5, especially after spending 5+ hours standing in the sun and walking all day taking pictures. So, we parked in the underground parking, and headed into the event. It was crowded, but not terrible. The lines that I did wait in went pretty fast. I enjoyed several delicious beers, the ones that stand out were the Mikkeller beers, the IPA from Clown Shoes, and the Unicorn Juice from Artifex. Maybe I was just feelin’ the IPA’s that day, which is certainly not the norm for me.

The worst thing for me was the sun, because I am so pale and even with SPF 50 or 75 or even 100, I somehow burn. I was able to sit behind the Ritual tent for a little while, that provided some much needed shade. I was missing the tree-covered venue that OC Brew Ha Ha is held, but it was cool to try a new venue every so often. I kept making my pilgramige over to the music stage to catch each band, with only missing a few acts because – well – beer. Reel Big Fish was as great as always, but my clear favorite act was Goldfinger.

I have a long history of going to shows, which started when I was 14 being a ska kid. I went to all the ska shows at Chain Reaction, The Galaxy, and the Hey Brother festivals, and later I was going to the big OzzFest shows in San Bernardino, NIN at Qualcomm, Tool, Radiohead at the Hollywood Bowl, etc. I’ve seen Goldfinger with Fishbone at the race track, and I remember enjoying them back then, but seeing them again they were electric. Perhaps Fishbone being the raucous and fun band they are overshadowed how great Goldfinger was, but either way they were by far the most enjoyable band of the day. The lead singer, John Feldmann, had more energy than most of the younger singers that performed and jumped around the stage in a full suit despite the sweltering heat. It was great to see an old favorite, Bad Religion, and hear those frequently played tracks like Sorrow and Infected. It was John of Goldfinger that rekindled the love of live music in my cold, dead heart that believed punk was dead. I then really noticed and appreciated all those punk kids that I saw wearing their jean jackets adorned with punk patches and I realized good music is still around, and young kids are still into it. Thanks for restoring my faith in humanity, and giving me that music buzz that I had been missing Ye Scallywag!