Anyway, Pioneer Day is a holiday that celebrates "The Days of '47". There's parades, fairs (with funnel cakes!), rodeos, fireworks. Some people walk portions of the Mormon Trail and reenact entering the Salt Lake Valley while wearing pioneer clothes and carry handcarts (excitement overload!). Pioneer Day doesn't hold the same appeal it did when I was a kid. When I was a kid I was so excited to go to the parade and to pick up candy off the ground that was thrown to the crowd (which seems very vagabond-esque, now that I think about it). One year I even participated in the parade and dressed up like a pioneer (in a pioneer dress that my neighbor had made for me for a school play -- because my mom can't sew. She took Latin in high school, not Home Ec. She would rather learn a dying language than to learn how to sew a pot holder. Love it.). I thought I was so cool in my little pioneer dress.
As a kid, I also loved going to the Pioneer Day fair for the games and to see friends from school that I hadn't seen all summer. Now the only thing I look forward to about Pioneer Day (other than my family having the day off) is the fair food (did I mention funnel cakes?!) and the fireworks. Although, about those fireworks -- bless Utah's heart (the best Mormon way to draw attention to someone or something's shortcomings. "Bless his heart, but he is as dumb as a bag of rocks." Just like "She's a sweet spirit" is the best way to draw attention to someone's ugliness and/or weight problem), but those fireworks are pretty paltry and sad. They were always kind of paltry and sad, but I'm especially ruined now after witnessing the DC fireworks -- you know there's no fucking around when it comes to the Nation's Capital Fireworks (capitalization needed).
Speaking of how sad Logan fireworks are, every year Logan has their 4th of July fireworks the day before. So the closest you can come to 4th of July fireworks in Logan is the 3rd of July. They have it the day before because it's cheaper (the group that puts on the fireworks show charges less). Seriously. This year the 4th of July fell on a Sunday. And Utah is definitely not going to have fireworks on Sunday (It's da-day-uh-da-lord). So the fancy fireworks (in Salt Lake City and in Provo at the Stadium of Fire -- which was first created by an Osmond-brother-that-wasn't-Donny) had their shows on the 3rd of July. Which means Logan had theirs on the 2nd of July! Happy Independence Day Minus Two Days!
I was excited to go to Utah because I got to meet the latest addition to the family: A German Shorthair (German Shorthaired Pointer) dog named Tuck. My parents got this dog earlier this year. He's a very cute and nice dog. He's super fast. And he contorts his body into funny positions when he sits or lays down.
Look at how he likes to sit!
Another highlight of the trip was the Rocky Votolato house show with Holly and Davis (thanks guys!). What a great intimate setting for seeing Rocky -- just him and his acoustic guitar. No mic, no amp. Just him. He sounded amazing.
The show also made me feel really old (at age 26!). Based on the applause of recognition that would come before songs (and people mouthing the lyrics during the song), it was fairly obvious the crowd first started getting into Rocky when he released his Makers album and didn't know much stuff before that album. In fact, Rocky said at one point, "If you guys don't mind, I think I might play some old stuff. This song is from the Makers album..." And the crowd went wild. While they were going wild, I was thinking to myself "Makers is an old album?!" There were like four full length albums that came out before Makers. I was into Waxwing (Rocky's previous band) in high school and got really into Rocky Votolato's solo stuff my freshman year of college (early 2002). Makers came out after I already graduated from college (2006). And yet Makers was an old album? Ouch.
Another indicator of how old I was in comparison to the crowd: After the show, people were coming up and talking to Rocky and one girl said, "I love you so much! I've loved you ever since I heard you on The OC!" I was waiting for her to finish that sentence with "...when I was in middle school." But I'm glad younger kids are liking excellent music.
Regardless of feeling out of place age-wise, it was an amazing show and I'm so glad I went. He played for about an hour-and-a-half and he played songs from several of his albums (even the old, old, old ones). I've seen Rocky in concert so many times and this was probably my favorite concert of his.
So good
While in Ogden for the Rocky concert:
I forgot how ugly and retro the Mormon temple in Ogden is. Yuck. I'm going to go out on a limb here and predict that the least amount of people get married in this (Utah) temple. And if they do, they drive to another temple after the ceremony to get their pictures taken.
What a weird patriotic horse statue. Who thought it would be a good idea to paint the founding fathers on a horse?
The painter must have had a real problem with John Adams if he placed him on the ass.
And how bizarre that the statue-maker felt it was necessary to include the penis and balls on this horse. Were they worried that some passerby would say, "Hey, where's the penis?! This horse isn't anatomically correct. Sure, George Washington is standing up inside the horse's stomach...but I take real issue with the horse not having a penis and testicles!"
I do miss the mountains. And having this in my backyard:
The best part of the trip, of course, was seeing everyone that I miss. Annnnd eating at my favorite restaurants.
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I had the best time with you when you were out here! Let's do it all again next week.
ReplyDeleteP.S. I especially love Tuck's yoga pose in photo #2.