Weekends are starting to become my favorite past time. Great food, great drinks, great company, and weekend entertainment; who would want to stay in? Erin and I both managed to get in some really great coverage of some of this weekend’s events and can’t wait to dig in to some more!
See Spot Rescued
This Saturday proved to be quite the day for dogs and dog lovers. One of Jersey City’s own rescue organizations, See Spot Rescued (SSR), pulled off not one but two events to support and promote adoptions of man’s best friend. I had the absolutely terrible job of attending both, and got stuck dancing my tail off and hanging out with adorable pups. An awful Saturday, right?
For their first act, SSR teamed up with local fitness studio The Sports Barre for “Dance Your Tail Off!” This class was a popular one for sure—all of the spots filled up and a waitlist emerged early on in the week beforehand. Jersey City loves its pups! Before the class started, participants had the opportunity to take a look at the bios of some of the adorable dogs that SSR has available for adoption, with the exciting news that some of them would be across the street later that day hoping to find their fur-ever homes.
Every single dollar of the proceeds from this fun event went to funding for the SSR dogs, from food to transport to top-of-the-line veterinary care. In addition to a killer workout that promised to tighten everyone’s tails, participants walked away with a limited edition SSR/Sports Barre tank and a warm fuzzy feeling in their hearts.
After the class, founder Zarina and avid SSR volunteers (and some dancers!) scurried across the street to K9dergarten to kick off the afternoon-long adoption event.
Dog lovers and hopeful adopters came from all over to meet Topher Grace…
…and Jeff Buckley…
…and Melanie Griffith…
…and Darla Jean Hood…
…and Ashley Judd…
…and Sienna Miller…
…and my personal favorite, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, among other great pups!
It’s a miracle that I managed to restrain myself from taking home one of these cuties, but other attendees were lucky enough to find the best friends that they were looking for. There will be much more to come on SSR, their mission, and how you can get involved in the near future, so stay tuned!
-Erin
Prove It All Night One Year Anniversary!
This weekend I decided to head off to WFMU’s Monty Hall with a friend to see the Prove It All Night One Year Anniversary show; being that this was our first time we really didn’t know what to expect. I mean for most of these events you really don’t know what’s in store other than what is written on a flyer or Facebook event page. And I’ve got to admit, I’ve wanted to check out Prove It All Night (PIAN) since our interview with Pat Byrne. There was just something so exciting about the idea of being able to go to a live broadcasted show right here in Jersey City. Instead of spending Saturday nights on a couch with a sippy cup watching Saturday Night Live or a rerun of Conan, I’ve found something new to check out the last Saturday of every month.
I walked into a packed house and had no choice but to split up from my friend, which turned out pretty well in the end. With a great intro by Pat Byrne, their announcer Neil, and the All-Nite-Tears, and then the groovy Joe Cool, I knew I was in for a heck of a show.
Pat went into this bit about how he was still yet to earn his honorary Late-Night-Talk-Show-Host-Mug and to our surprise the All-Night-Tears went out and got a personalized mug for him. Unfortunately, AP Mike came to the stage bearing a letter from Tom Scharpling. The mug was swiftly removed and replaced with a Benadryl-sized medicine cup. Poor Pat.
The night’s first guest was Dan Licata of the The Dan and Joe and Charles Show. Who had the crowd laughing like no tomorrow. After his set, he took the PIAN pink couch and argued with Pat about the origin of the song Prove It All Night. Pat who was looking for a sincere apology got a guest appearance by Dan’s very own band—Bon Jobi (because he believes Bon Jovi was the singer of Prove It All Night).
The amazing Maeve Higgins took to the stage and rocked our socks. Her set involved a very skimpy sequin romper that had seen the underside of way too many women in Ireland.
I was probably as close as I could get from the stage without being chosen from the audience to help out the villains of the show. Unfortunately, the nights second guest Brett Davis couldn’t make it to the show, but Harley Tucker and SweetDaddy Longlegs made it there just in time to cause some havoc. Pulling guests to the stage and making sure Pat could get his share too; I gladly passed up that opportunity.
The final comedian to grace the stage was Joe Pera of Pancake Breakfast Critic and How To Make It In USA, showed off his acapella skills and ended up practically traumatized by Pat and his new puppy.
The musical guests were Sunshine & The Rain. Couldn’t get enough of them even as they paraded off the stage at the end of the night!
It was seriously a great show and I hope PIAN has a dozen more anniversary shows just like it!
-Crystal
The Historic Jersey City and Harsimus Cemetery’s 1st Annual Goat-Stock Festival
Combine five hours of music, eight bands, a cemetery with gravesites dating back to the 1800s, and a couple of goats, and what do you get? The Historic Jersey City and Harsimus Cemetery’s first annual Goat-Stock Festival! This gig also had food, drinks, and a kiddie pool for younger attendees, which was a welcome sight for many in the hotter part of the day.
RocknRoll HiFives kicked off the day, followed by The Fave, The Tribe of Uncles, and Lovari Lovari. Sean Kiely took the stage as the sun began to set, with a sound reminiscent of Jim James and complete with a string bass that was as beautiful to listen to as it was to look at.
Between sets, I took advantage of dedicated volunteer Eileen’s hourly walking tour of the cemetery, and learned far more about the location than I ever imagined was possible. There are thousands of soldiers buried here who fought in the Civil War and the War of 1812, and an old ammunitions bunker-turned-receiving vault adorns one entire hillside. The tour actually took us through the bunker, where there are still two coffins housed with histories that only Eileen can do justice to. If you ever get a chance, take a trip through the space—it’s definitely worth seeing and an experience that you won’t forget.
After the tour, I checked out the adorable goats that have been “hired” (that is, put in their version of paradise) to control the plant overgrowth in the cemetery. These friendly guys happily munched away all day, and were more than willing to take the food that concertgoers were dishing out.
The Porchistas took the stage next, and came dressed to impress in an event-appropriate pair of goat horns. These guys are so much fun—not only did they get the whole crowd on their feet and dancing, they went right out and danced along with them!
Jersey City-born Life in a Blender rocked out next, followed by Sea of Otters closing out the night, both putting on a phenomenal show for a great “fun-raiser.”
If you’ve never been to this historic site before, be sure to check it out—and pencil in what’s sure to be the second annual Goat Stock in 2016!
-Erin
Thanks so much for joining us & helping spread the good word of our all-volunteer preservation mission! What a beautiful day!