Monday, July 11, 2005

The Honeymoon Capital of the World...

So I'm back from Niagara Falls, the watering place of swarms of khaki-clad Canadian honeymooners, harried middle-aged parents trailing sticky kids hopped up on overpriced ice cream from Denny's and exhausted from the overpriced activities available in town. But mostly everyone, Americans and Canadians alike are converging at the casino (luckily? for me) , while overhead, this dude with helmet hair and a blue sequined jumpsuit walks a tightrope above your head from the top of the Hilton to the top of the casino. And all the while an Elton John impersonator on the street sings Candle in the Wind, Can You Feel the Love Tonight and Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me. In a loop. For four hours a day. Everyday. Never at the same time, though. Only when you decide that you want to take a nap. Seriously, you can't make stuff like this up.

And now the aformentioned sunburn has darkened into a burnt toffee colour.
Update: And now the sunburn is peeling off despite my best efforts and my chest looks like a speckled bass. No pictures, please.


The day that we arrived (Thursday) the security people were all over us in the band, going through our bags before we went to dinner and whatnot. Yes, the good people over at the Fallsview Casino are a little gung-ho about security (they never fail to card me. Every. Single. Time. Though any sensible person, even one blinded in one eye could never possibly mistake me for a seventeen year old), but this went beyond the usual mindless adherence to policy and reeked of distinct overtones of fear.

"Well this is only because of what happened today in London."
"London? What happened? We were in the car driving all day to get here."
Sigh.
That night, as we performed, my throat was so tight I could hardly sing, and not because of stage fright while I watched the crowds drinking and partying in up on the dance floor at our feet. These are times when I feel like what I do is really frivolous.


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