Tuesday night was the library's big Autumnal Equinox Celebration and if you were not there, you missed a hell of a time. Last minute we did have some unforeseen changes. Mr. Rabbit Pete, local entertainer for children, had to cancel due to a case of paw and mouth disease. Our circulation librarian Brenda has some contacts in the music industry though, and a little band called Carnal Death Punch was able to fill in and rocked the dust off the library shelves!
Children's librarian Natalie came to me around noon with the bad news about Mr. Rabbit Pete's health. We took up a small collection for Mr. Pete until his representation told us his appearance fee was nonrefundable. Then we started looking for a replacement that would not mind donating their time.
We tried everyone. Eric the Amazing, child magician and lawn care specialist, had school that day, so his late night appearance fee was double. Taco and the Nacho Cheese Band had a gig over at the Whiskey Station, and we understood that bar room Taco Tuesday is not complete without live mariachi. We even asked Forky Frank, the gentleman who juggles knives in courthouse square, but he was already drunk having busked the trial of local Dixie mafia boss Bubba "Little Tom" Boudreaux.
Brenda stepped forward with her usual enthusiasm. "Fine," she said. "I'll call someone."
For those of you who don't know, before going to library school Brenda was a touring roadie for many influential bands of the 80s and 90s. She carried amplifiers for Megadeath and Rancid. She threw people off Motley Crue and Nirvana's stages. She fought to keep the most pits safe at every festival from Ozzfest to Lollapalooza to Lilith Fair. She once had to hold a group of Sara MacLauchlan fans from tearing apart a group of Tori Amos fans but that's her story to tell.
One call later, and Carnal Death Punch was doing a soundcheck in the library meeting room. Some patrons complained the noise was shaking the books off the shelves, but as Brenda says, "If it's too loud, get ear plugs because that's just safety." Our page Patty got a lot of running around fulfilling the band's rider which included two packets of Reece's Pieces per band member, a yellow submarine, a painting done by a child depicting the band under a volcano, and a vegetable plate. Patty worked very hard along with the rest of the library staff.
Thank you again to everyone that did come down. We do these programs for you.
In the words of frontman Les Saul, "I can't believe we're playing a library! Who brought the moonshine? I can't see my fingers."
A good time was had by all.