I met up with Grant and his friend Leanne who was visiting from Vancouver. Before the beach, we decided to start off with a ride on the Thunderbolt! Coney Island's new rollercoaster that's...
These girls were cute tourists from, er, somewhere in Asia and Tim The Cap'n sauntered over and offered to take a picture of them in the sunset with their camera. After he did that, he suggested that I take a photo of the three of them with my camera. If it had been a scene in Swingers, it most definitely would have been described as "Money." (He even managed a disco point and a Blue Steel.)
After we'd finished climbing around on the rocks, I suggested a jumping photo! Right after I'd taken this one, a guy walking by on the beach saw what we were doing and offered to man the camera so that I could be in the shot to!
I showed him my camera and explained how you have to time it to compensate for the slight shutter delay, and this is what he shot on his very first attempt! Well done, sir!
...like SHOOT THE FREAK! Hahaha. When the weather is nicer, this charming little alley is manned by a guy in a mask and other protective gear and he runs around this alley hiding behind garbage and other debris while the good citizens of the boardwalk pay money for the privilege of shooting him with a paint ball gun at close range!
Speaking of chowing down, check out the huge scoreboard on the side of the Nathan's building that simultaneously counts down the days to the next Hot Dog Eating Contest as well as shows the current male and female records. (66 and 39, respectively!)
Posh and I got hooked up with wristbands! Wristbands provide you with two luxuries at Siren Fest: One, you get to drink for free at the backstage tent. Woooo! Two, you get to watch the bands right in front of the stage in an area block off from the rest of the crowd with gates. The downside is that it's WAY TOO LOUD. The upside is that it's not very crowded which means you don't end up trying to watch a band with sweaty bodies pressed against you in the July sun. Score!
On Saturday I met up with Posh Tony and we headed out to Coney Island for the Siren Music Festival. Here's Posh on the boardwalk with fellow musician Jack.
Maybe I mispoke earlier. While inexpensive frosty beach beers are wonderful, you can probably find them at other beaches. But where else in the world will $5 enable you to shoot high-velocity paintball guns at a live human (trying his darnedest not to get hit) at a range of 25ft? Let's hear it for SHOOT THE FREAK!
When the boardwalk got too crowded, we retreated to the beach. Some guy that I think was a friend of Greg's, Sarah, Catrinel, and Greg (of the now defunct GregtheBoyfriend. Sniffle). The best thing about Coney Island (other than the Cyclone) is that there are these magical Puerto Ricans that roam the beach with ice cold sacks of beer. If you can manage to flag one down over the din, they'll sell you frosty beers for like $2 a piece! Some of you that were on the boardwalk might've heard Sarah screaming "Dos cervezas, por favor!" Actually, some of you in Manhattan might've heard her. Girl's got lungs.
After a few beers, Karen made the mistake of turning to Dave and saying "You know, I think you're the only one of Brian's friends whose balls haven't been placed in uncomfortably close proximity to my face for a photo." (For any of you newcomers see here) and here
Mah-mah-mobscene! I always swear I'm going to watch a few of the bands, but then it's always so hot and crowded that I instead opt to stand on the boardwalk and people-watch...
After our 2nd "frozen drink" refill, we headed for the water for a quick "swiss." (FYI: a "swiss" is when you go swimming for no other purpose than urination. It's a portmanteau of "swim" and "piss!")
All the people dressed up and participating in the parade start on the boardwalk, walk down the beach through three gated ribbons, each representing a season, and then march the entire parade right in the water, officially bringing in the summer.
Not being able to handle the fact that Grant beat me at videogame boxing, I insisted that we both do the strong man game (I figured I was a shoe-in for an easy victory...I mean come on, look at those rippling forearms, right?)
Too bad I forgot to take into account that Grant's Limey ancestors have spent the better-half of last thousand years hunched over in dim caves mining coal and whatnot on their god-forsaken Island country (aka - England). He beat me by a full ten points on the little lightbulb meter. Fack!
