|
 |
Art Colony: Dear People Who Come to the East Side in the Summer
Wednesday, July 5, 2006
› by victoria
Dear People Who Come to the East Side in the Summer,
I was originally going to address this letter to everyone who was headed on their way to Summerfest, but I decided to widen the range to include the entire spectrum of annoying people who decend upon the East Side whenever they deem the weather clement enough.
Firstly, to tackle the subject of the Summerfest goers: I'm assuming that the festival opens its doors at a reasonable hour, say, around 12 noon. So why are you wandering around at 8 AM in the morning, yelling like a carnival barker in search of beer? I myself have never been to Summerfest. For some reason the idea of wandering around on 75 acres of enclosed, heat-condensing asphalt listening to mostly crappy bands while drinking overpriced beer and/or eating lard-fried eggplant strips...well, it never appealed to me. My younger sister went several times, and recounted to me how at one concert a drunk middle-aged woman was attempting to remove her (*my sister's) shoe believing it to be her own shoe. I am sure there are many other stories she did not recount. So I have no idea why so many people want to go, and fine for you if you want to be part of "the World's Largest Music Festival," but please don't act as though you own everything within 5 miles of the wretched Summerfest grounds just because you paid $12 to get in.
Moving on to the people who come down to Brady Street thinking they will see and be seen on the pages of MKE or info* magazine: you are sorely mistaken. Driving your souped-up crotchbuster does not impress people. Nor does hanging around the Nomad world pub (in a particularly apt summation of the Nomad, my friend Mike said that he was grateful for its existence because "flies flock to shit"). Those who decide to go bar-crawling on Brady dressed in their best will often leave behind souvenirs like one high-heeled mule sandal, its heel caught in a street grate. If you're going to visit the East Side, don't be disrespectful to the people who live here through rain and huge amounts of snow and ridiculous parking ticket fees. It's because of the residents that the unique local businesses are able to stay open.
Finally, to the desperate drug addicts who seem to crawl out of the woodwork as soon as the temperature stays above 60 degrees: please, get help. Especially the one guy who was running down North Avenue being chased by a random man clutching a chair leg.
sincerely,
Moi
|
