festivus (NOT the festival)

The Queen City Social Club – the “events and partying wing” of Burlington’s community radio station, The Radiator—is at it again tonight downtown. The “Festivus”* party’s already underway the Gezellig Theatre (294 North Winooski Ave.) As usual it’s free and open to the public, so bring a dish and drinks to share and enjoy the “live music, dancing, carousing and airing of grievances” until it winds down around 1am. Donations to The Radiator are most welcome, and help the station to pay for studio equipment like a phone interface, CD player repairs, and control board upgrades.

Live music by: Randall Pants Trio, The Prodigal String Band, and DJ Disco Phantom. For info: (802) 865-1140

*This is Festivus in the true spirit of “festivus for the restivus”, it’s neither solstice nor Hanukkah nor Christmas and it is UNrelated to the summer festival of the same name in Cabot every summer. But the good cheer and inclusivity abound regardless – it’s an ‘all play’!

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beneficial

Two benefit events tonight; each very different from the other but both musical:

Joel Najman, MC of the event

#1 – The annual car show with the Vermont Street Rodders at Libby’s Blue Line Diner in Colchester is also a benefit event for the local Ronald McDonald house, and a fun night outdoors with oldies rock-n-roll, a live band, and more cool cars in a single place than you’ll find in any Jan & Dean song. Free cake too, courtesy of the diner. I always look forward to that. It was my third year coming to the show. They raised over $1,000 for the House and eight proud rodders walked away with the show’s top prizes. Nice rides, all. (My pick of the lot: the sweet cherry Buick with the chrome grill, pictured top. Does it come with AC and a side-impact airbags? Only kidding.)

From there we moved on to…

#2 – Each November the Jeh Kulu West African dancers & drummers hold their annual festival, and tonight was the fundraiser for the festival. For four hours the barn at the Intervale featured live DJs and a band, along with the whole Jeh Kulu troupe in the kind of joyous performance that makes them one of the most popular local dance/drum groups in the region. In Vermont, barns are just as likely to house art exhibits and evening dances as they are livestock. This is how we celebrate summer and live up the longest night of the year – how do you do it? (The magic of the show was only matched by the firefly display in the darkened country fields on the way home. It is summertime. Happy solstice!)