2003-11-17 - 6:29 p.m.
Mexico, Mexico, Mexico. Two weeks ago I had one of the best weekends of my life. I then had an extremely busy two weeks and am just now sitting down to write about it.
On October 26th, Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers played a concert in Rocky Point down in Mexico. For those of you who know the band, the significance of that goes without saying. For those who don't -- picture seeing Jimmy Buffet on the beach in Tahiti, only with better music.
When we read about the concert I immediately planned on going, but at the same time was convinced I wouldn't. It's just one of those things you think about but never do, like going to New Orleans for Mardi Gras. I was sure something would come up - finances, work, travel, whatever.
But then two weeks prior to the concert I found myself buying tickets and checking out rental cars for the trip. And then the day before the concert I had a houseful of people all going to share the magic: Mi solita, Justin, Jezerfly's roommate and another friend, and Justin and my friend Shannon. Even better, we were going to meet three of my old buddies from college down there: Leiba, Matt (Peaches) and Collin.
It still didn't seem real the next day when we drove to Tucson, picked up our rental mini-van, and headed for the border. In fact, it didn't really hit me until we got to Rocky Point and found the bar where Roger was going to play.
We got into Rocky Point around 5:00, just in time for happy hour. We met up with Collin, Leiba and Peaches, had a round of drinks, then left them at the bar while we went to get a quick dose of the beach.
I love the beach. Even though the tide was out and we had to wade through tide pools to get to the actual ocean, it was worth it. Jez and I sat down and held each other while the warm water washed over us . . . pure goodness. We watched the sun go down over the ocean and I felt the tension roll off of me.
Then we needed to find a place to stay for the night, a place to have dinner, and get back to the concert. About a block away we found an RV lot that would let us park the van for the night. I changed clothes and discovered my only pair of underwear was the one currently soaked in salt water. . . the concert would be commando, but that was all right.
We ended up going back to the Sunset Cantina, where the concert was to be held, to have our dinner and some more unbelievably cheap drinks. The bar itself was up a flight of stairs inside the Mexican equivalent of a strip mall. Once upstairs, you could go through a patio door out onto a balcony that overlooked the stage. We thought briefly about staying up there to enjoy the show, but decided that would be blasphemy . . . Roger is best enjoyed as close as possible.
We had some time to talk with Collin, Leiba, and Peach, which was wonderful. I haven't talked to any of them in 2 years, so much catching up and reminiscing was required. Then we all trekked downstairs to wait for the concert to begin.
We ended up about 50 feet from the stage and a little to the right (I'm sure of this, because my right ear was ringing louder than the left the next day). As we waited for the band to enter, we had more drinks and more good conversation.
And then there was Roger. They took the stage at 9:00 and played for two hours before taking a break. Each song was punctuated by fireworks and the screaming of some 2500-3000 fans that had come down for the evening. Jez and her roommate got up to the stage fairly quickly, a trick that cute girls can pull off but big bald guys really can't. So I hung back and enjoyed the company of my college buddies. But when Green & Dumb, the band's quintessential love song, started playing, Jez came bopping back to slow-dance with me.
I don't think I've smiled so hard in my life. I've been on Ecstasy a couple of times, and this felt like all the euphoria with none of the teeth grinding. Roger & Co played for four hours - a two-hour set from 9 to 11 and a two-hour set from 11:10-1:00. They played all of my favorites (which would be 9/10ths of the catalog), including a few they haven't played live in the previous 10 shows I had seen.
After the show, Jess and I went back to the bar and Steve Larson, the lead guitarist, surrounded by a bevy of appreciative young women. After the crowd thinned out a bit, I went back and thanked him for the show. He was gracious and friendly - even friendlier when he got an eyeful of Jess' cleavage.
After a couple of drinks, Jess and I went for a walk on the beach. The tide had come in, leaving only a narrow stretch of sand between the ocean and the hotel. We walked under the stars, dipped our toes in the water, then just sat and held each other for a while.
We headed back to the van and inflated the air mattress that Justin had graciously provided for us. We stretched out under the open sky and intertwined. We decided to make out 'just a little,' then decided that we really ought to have sex just a little. As we started getting more intense, our third bedmate for the evening walked up. Given that this isn't a letter to Penthouse, she assessed the situation and offered to come back in a few minutes.
Then I had a couple of firsts - first sex in a foreign country, first sex outside. It was quick, a little bit dirty, and absolutely wonderful. Our bedmate came back afterward and we curled up for a couple of hours of sleep.
Somehow we all got up at 8 and got ourselves out of Mexico and back to Tucson, then back to Phoenix, then Jess and the others went back to Flagstaff. I passed out on the bed, still smiling.
The best part is Roger's going back to Mexico in May to record a live version of the new album that will be out in January.
Life is grand, love is real, and beauty is everywhere.
