1. This afternoon, I drove back to Rita's house. She was tired, in bed, and asked me to read to her aloud. For this very purpose, on Friday, I had purchased two books, Ross Gay's Book of Delights and Aimee Nezhukumatathil's World of Wonders. Rita's heart is failing and she's lost a lot of mobility, but her mind is sharp and receptive. We engaged in thoughtful and insightful conversation about the pieces I read and brought our time to an end when Rita said she was fading and I needed to leave in order to meet up with Jeff in Eugene. I told Rita that I'd be back another visit on Sunday.
2. Jeff and I met up at what used to be the Bijou Art Cinemas. It's now the Art House. When Jeff and I walked into the spiffed up, remodeled space, we immediately smelled popcorn, the same smell that always greeted movie goers at the Bijou. We entered theater #1 and the first thing we marveled at were the new plush theater seats and the way the theater had been cleaned up and newly painted.
We came to the Art House to be a part of the international Grateful Dead Meet-Up at the Movies. This year, on cinema screens in the USA and internationally, all of us who came out got to see the band play songs selected from their 04-17-1972 concert at the Tivoli Concert Hall in Copenhagen, Denmark, a show broadcast on Danish television.
This Copenhagen show was part of the highly regarded Europe '72 tour. I particularly enjoyed this Grateful Dead lineup: Pigpen, Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Keith Godchaux, Phil Lesh, and Bill Kreutzmann. Donna Godchaux was listed in the credits as a band member, but did not sing in any of the songs included in this movie, but we did see her dance behind the band. It was grievous for me to hear Pigpen sing and know that he would die a year later; likewise, I loved Keith Godchaux's piano playing, but he left the band in 1979 and died the next year in a car accident.
The movie was uplifting and fun in spite of the grievous future that lay ahead.
I especially enjoyed the Danish television's camera work. Frequently the cameras moved in close on the different band members and while the band engaged in frivolity during the show with clown and other kinds of masks, when the boys were unmasked I enjoyed seeing how serious they were about playing and especially enjoyed the intelligence that radiated from Jerry Garcia's face.
3. Over the previous four days, I had been so busy that I hadn't yet visited 16 Tons.
After the Grateful Dead movie, I finally stopped in and was I ever glad I did.
On tap, 16 Tons had a Double Hazy IPA on tap, called Life Goals, a collaboration between Great Notion (of Portland) and Other Half (of Brooklyn).
Drinking this beer came as close as any beer has in the last year or so to drinking beer in New York.
I enjoyed a couple 12 oz pours and bought two 32 oz mason jars of the beer, hoping it will hold up between now and when I arrive in Kellogg so that Debbie can join me in quaffing this splendid beer.
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