Music

Have you ever read or seen the movie Yes Man? Basically the main character has a string of crappy events happen and in a last ditch effort for happiness in life he attends a seminar that teaches him to  seize every opportunity presented to him by saying “Yes!” whenever he can. Fast forward through the rest of the book and the movie to see hilarity ensue.

This was my weekend to be the Yes Woman.

I started out Friday thinking that the long holiday weekend was going to be pretty chill. No big plans other to survive the upcoming heat wave we had coming our way. On that note…what up Boston?! Where did the four seasons go?! I missed Spring apparently.

Anyway, mid-afternoon The Scientist IMs me to say, “Hey, want to go to a music festival in CT tomorrow?” I wrote back “Yes” before he even finished typing. For me summer means the beach, flip flops, and music festivals. I was ready to start the music season in full force! So on Saturday afternoon I found myself in Hartford, CT with The Scientist and his buddy from NYC for a day of music at the B.O.M.B. Fest 2011.

There were tons of local bands that I had never heard of, but my main goal for the night was to rock out to Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros. I was kind of disappointed by the show though. Not only did they come on late, but they also only played for about half an hour. I did a lot of sweating all day (and people watching) to see them and was ready for a full hour! Possibly they should have said “Yes!” to being on time?

Any disappointment I had was quickly squashed by an AWESOME concert by Weezer. I didn’t realize I knew so many of their songs. I also didn’t realize The Scientist did either, but after hearing him sing all the words to several songs I have seen the error in my ways.  

One question though…what is the deal with mosh pits? I don’t get them. I discovered that I  really REALLY don’t care for uncontrolled chaos. Jumping around and hitting each other is fun? Rubbing on other people’s sweaty bodies. Eh. No Thank You.

After a LOOONNNNNGGGG day in Hartford, we all headed back to Boston. I found that the mutt is dealing with the heat the best way he can….by doing ABSOLUTELY nothing all day long. Bum.

Sunday I woke up bright and early to The Scientist calling to find out if I was interested in drinking some beer. I didn’t even ask questions and just said “Yes”.

An hour later I was at Harpoon Brewery waiting for my tour of the brewery. Despite the almost 6 years I have been in Boston I have never toured this brewery. Bad Bostonian! We toured, we tasted, and we tasted some more.

At the end of the tour there is quite of bit of tasting that can occur. Its kind of a strange set-up with the people coming for the tour and those leaving all mingling in the same place, but worth the craziness to taste beer fresh from the factory. My faves included the Uber-Bock and UFO Hefeweizen. Lunch time was calling as soon as we were done.

The Scientist’s friend requested lobster rolls for lunch. “YES!” Those suckers are perfect for a hot Boston day. It doesn’t hurt that I’m obsessed with lobster rolls too. We were in the waterfront area so we trucked down to James Hook & Co.  I’ve been wanting to try them for awhile, especially since many Yelpers have declared them the Best Lobster Rolls Ever.

Eh. It was good, but the best ever? That might be stretching it. I did enjoy the large chunks of lobster but not totally memorable. At $15 for a large one I was hoping for more. Best lobster rolls in Boston (IMHO) are at Charlie’s Kitchen in Harvard Sq. $12 for 2 and some waffle fries!  However, the stuffed scallop we decided on at the last minute was fantastic. At $3.50 it was a great snack or the perfect side to our lunch.

We did a bit more touring around the area before heading home for the day. After 2 full days of being the Yes Woman I was heading home stuffed with lobster, a new brewery glass for my collection, and a little bit of a tan. Woot!

Memorial Day was dedicated to just recovering from a couple of busy days. I didn’t have an BBQs on the calendar so when The Scientist suggested I ride my bike around to get some quality outdoor time I thought “YES!”. I rode around the neighborhood, stopped by the store, and rode along the river.

Being the Yes Woman for a few days was kind of fun. I’m not sure how long I could keep it up for without totally losing steam, but I was happy to just jump on a few opportunities that were totally unplanned.

I hope you all had a nice long weekend! I’ll be posting my Napa winery reviews this week along with a new recipe. Fun times!

Random Question of the Day: Are you a live music person? Do you prefer big name concerts or will you just head into a random music venue to find some new bands?

I love discovering new bands, but feel silly when I have to go to MySpace to listen to them.

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