When you have a little, old dog whose routine is tv and couch time in the evenings, it’s hard to leave the house after dinner, so I haven’t… in a looooong time.
So, with some good friends coming over to make sure Mr Coco got his evening cuddle time in, I walked out into the dark evening.
The event?
Our friend Grant had brought his Grant Lawrence & Friends: An Evening of Story & Song to town, and he’d asked two of the members of one of my favourite bands, BUM, to play a couple songs. 

We've known Grant since the early 90's because Rob (my husband) and Andrew's band BUM used to play with the band Grant was in, The Smugglers. Neither band is playing these days, but the bond that was forged amongst smoke-filled bars and a type of #vanlife that would make current social media van-lifers run screaming into a picturesque sunset from their bathroom & kitchen fitted, custom, cozy home on wheels, has kept those friendships going.

Grant is an incredibly engaging storyteller and his subjects this evening ranged from musicians to BC Ferries line ups and the cast of characters he’s met growing up in Desolation Sound. Peppered throughout the storytelling his ‘friends’ at this show were singer/songwriters Joel Plaskett, Ashleigh Ball and Lindsay Bryan, as well as Rob and Andrew from BUM. 

All of the performances were so beautiful and heartfelt and the evening ended with a sing along of Joel Plasket's song, Hey Moon.

I spent most of the magical evening watching from the sidelines and exploring backstage… here’s a snippet of what I saw.

To see where Grant's playing next: https://grantlawrence.ca/events

i usually have a process when I use my real cameras... photograph people, place, dogs, event, etc... go home, upload photos, edit as needed and share.
but with only my phone as my camera back on may 13, i stood backstage and watched the return of the smugglers to their hometown crowd and lost my rhythm... so, here they are!
​> click image below to view all photos

Rob and I hit Tofino for an overnighter and the debut of Somewhere to Go: Punk Victoria.
Known primarily for it's surfing and storm watching, Tofino is growing a diverse arts community and the DIY aesthetic - one of the themes of this documentary - is alive and well in this town, The film was showing as a fundraiser for the Tofino Film Fest that happens in February and although it was a small crowd [in a town of about 1900 in the off season, competing for attendance can be tuff], it was an engaged crowd and the Q&A and chatting afterwards could've lasted longer than the skate ramp was booked for.
DIY from the start - from hanging tarps over the skylights to the gracious loaning of the projector and popcorn maker to BYOB and pizza, to clean up at the end. And when the screen wasn't big enough for the film, it was decided to project it INTO the bowl - pretty sure that's a first!
Thanks to Jill, Will and l'il Layla for being most excellent hosts and to Jill for working so hard to broaden the arts scene in the town at the end of the road.

Somewhere to Go: Punk Victoria will be shown in Powell River at the end of May so check out the link above for details.

The Victoria premiere of Somewhere to Go: Punk Victoria at the Roxy!
"By tracing the roots and continuing legacy of the Victoria BC punk scene, this documentary explores broader themes of rebellion, culture and community"
If you missed it, watch their facebook page for more showings!
So proud of Paulina Ortlieb along with Rob Nesbitt, Steve Bailey and all the people involved in bringing this film to the screen!

it's been 20+ years, but even the 'storm of the century', couldn't stop the show this time!
i really struggled because i was having such fun dancing and singing that i didn't want to stop to take photos... but i did... how could i not? especially when it came to rob's tap solo during 'dance the night away'... epic.
i also discovered a way to get some double-exposure looking shots - i kinda dig the result!
more photos of the show HERE!

I remember being little and going to wedding receptions in rented halls and falling asleep on a pile of coats while the adults partied and danced into the wee hours, then being carried to the car, then into the house and to bed. It always felt super special to hang with the grown ups but I could only do it for so long. The yawns would start and then I'd crash with the sounds of 70's classic rock lulling me to sleep.
I kind of think of last night as sort of a modern-day version of that. But it wasn't a wedding reception in a hall, it was an outside rock concert downtown at the end of summer... the little kids still danced and ran around as the sun went down, but you could see them fight the sleepies as they tried their hardest to continue to be a part of all the fun the grown ups were having.
My parents came to the show last night, but they didn't need to carry me to the car this time... I did it all on my own.
Amazingly fun. 
Great music, great bands, great friends and family. 
A perfect capper to the summer.

Full disclosure... although I carted my camera around, I really wanted to just BE in the moment and listen and watch all that was going on. It was a struggle for sure, because on both Friday night and Saturday my mind was being BLOWN TO SMITHEREENS and I wanted to capture a least some of it. First on Friday with Shawn Mrazek Lives!! and COOL TV and then on Saturday with Bum. I just couldn't help myself, so I tried my hardest to stop dancing for a few moments and click the shutter a few times (this may or may not be why some images are a little less focussed than others!). 
When it was time to sit back and revel in the sun and sounds of Saturday with friends, The Dum Dum Girls and The New Pornographers were the perfect soundtrack .
And the topper...  the boys of Bum hanging at Andrew's and reminiscing (last photo). 
A perfect couple of days.

In preparation of their upcoming show at the Rifflandia music festival this weekend, (so excited about this!) Rob and Andrew of Bum did a phone interview with Jake Hirsch of The Friday Night Lights Podcast... while Rob was on the phone,  I, of course, had to document it. These guys were so into the conversation and it went on for so long that Rob had to switch from the cordless to the emergency corded phone we keep in the attic.
Listen to The Friday Night Lights Podcast here!
More photos of Bum here!