I'm A Believer

We once again made a trip through the Massachusetts wilderness this morning, this time on our way to the Eastern State Exposition in West Springfield to see former Monkee singer/drummer Micky Dolenz. I got quite a surprise when we ended up parking in the back yard of an enterprising local family. That would NEVER happen in Wildwood or Ocean City. (For one thing, most of the remaining residents of those towns don't HAVE back yards.)

We got our second surprise of the day when we got our tickets and went into the fair. The very first thing we saw beyond the gates was the stage where Micky was to perform, and there were not one, but two times listed for his appearances. Lauren said the fair's site only listed an 8PM, but it would seem there was also one at 3PM. We decided that since we had all day, we would stay for both shows.

We had some time to kill before the 3PM show, so we walked around a bit and got to know the lay of the land. While most of the fair was your basic fairgrounds with rides, games, souvenir stands, and food booths of every description, the fair did have many unusual attractions. Because it was an Exhibition like the World's Fair, there were lots of animal rides. There were pony rides and a ride on an elephant. Lauren and I took pictures of the goats, camel, and sleeping kangaroo in a petting zoo. We later took pictures of sheep and dairy goats in the Farm-A-Rama building. One of the sheep actually bleated when I pet him! "You win," Lauren said after that.

One of the big animal attractions was the Budwiser Clydesdales. Lauren and I snapped pictures of the famous team of Clydesdale horses who pull the Budwiser beer carts. Lauren even bought a WebKinz Clydesdale from a toy dealer just outside the Better Life Building.

The Better Life Building was huge and busy, filled with people and stands selling leather goods, hot tubs, furniture, food, and small appliances. I didn't buy anything there, but Lauren bought three leather belts for $10. (She says they were the woven-like kind that she can't find anymore.) It was really too busy to hang around in, so after Lauren got her belts, we hit the bathroom and head out. (That bathroom attendant was awfully friendly - a little too much, in my opinion.)

We walked around and explored until it was time to sit down for the concert. Lauren insisted on getting there early in order to beat the crowds. We sat down an hour and a half before the show. In addition to the (uncovered) benches in the main arena area, there were picnic tables on the grass on either side of the stage. These afforded us equally good views with lots more legroom.

After the show, we stood in line and got Micky's autograph. Lauren bought a photo of him from around the first season of the Monkees show. I just had him autograph the notebook I usually keep in my purse for random lists of things I need. (That autograph will stay in my purse as a good luck charm.)

It started to rain lightly towards the end of the show. To escape the rain, we headed over to one of the few indoor restaurants at the Exhibition, the Firehouse Restaurant. It was, indeed, a sit-down, counter-service eatery. We had Grilled Chicken Sandwiches (which were tasty but a bit slippery - Lauren took hers off the bun) while looking at the footage Lauren shot of Micky's concert with her digital camera and trying to decide what to do next.

After we ate, we decided to just walk around for a while until the next concert. By that time, the showers were in full force. We did walk around and take in more attractions...but we also got quite wet doing so. We walked over to the Midway area. We weren't going to buy the extra tickets for the rides, but we did play a few games. I won a cute little orange bear on the balloon dart game.

We eventually made our way back to the Avenue of the States. Each of the New England states had an exhibition house here based after their state capital building, toting the well-known wares of the state. New Hampshire boasted Stonybrook Farms Yogurt and Milk. Lauren bought flannel nightshirts for her dad from a Vermont booth, and I bought maple sugar candy and saw a booth for Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream. Rhode Island had a Del's Lemonade stand and a poster about legendary local radio and TV personality Salty Brine (both often mentioned by my friend Linda Young, a Rhode Island native). People were lined up half-way out the door for Maine baked potatoes, even in the pouring rain. Kids built with Legos and crowded around the Pez Dispenser booth in Connecticut.

I was surprised how crowded it still was, even with the weather. This probably had partially to do with many of the major attractions being indoors. However, as Lauren pointed out, New England weather is notoriously fickle and most natives are used to it. In Wildwood, people flee the boardwalk (and in many cases, the island) the moment a raindrop is seen. Unless you plan on spending the rest of the afternoon in the arcade or grocery shopping, there just isn't much to do on a rainy day in Wildwood.

By 6:30, we were cold and wet and ready to pack it in. We debated it on and off as we made our way back to the Center Stage and the gate we came in. We saw musicians tuning up on the stage and electricians fiddling with lights...and we finally decided that if Micky Dolenz could say "what the heck" and perform, so could we.

It was more than worth getting soaked to stay for the second show. The rain let up long enough for Micky and his sister Coco to perform "without being electrocuted" (as Micky said at one point), Lauren got more footage for YouTube, and we got to talk to a fellow Monkees fan who had come up for the late show from Boston. He was a middle-aged man who had actually worked on the Monkees show when they got their star on the Walk of Fame in LA and had recorded some footage of it. (He also mentioned that this wasn't the first time the Monkees had appeared at the Eastern State Exhibition. He said Mike, Micky, and Davy appeared at the Exhibition in 1969 when it was just the three of them, which makes sense. From what I've read, the three played a lot of similar fairs and carnivals during that time period.)

And yes, I even got my autographed photo. I opted for one of all four Monkees. (I did tell Micky he could sign over Davy, if he wanted.) Lauren topped me - she didn't want to spend more money on another autograph, so she had him sign a dollar bill!

Micky himself was in fine form tonight. In addition to well-known Monkees hit, he sang "Johnny B. Goode" (which he says was his audition piece for The Monkees show) and kicked rear on a great "Gimmie Some Lovin'" in the second show. Coco Dolenz did nicely with her solo pieces, one of my favorite Linda Rondstat songs "Different Drum." (Which, coincidentally, was written by one of the Monkees, Mike Nesmith.)

Not surprisingly, we went straight home after that, this time heading down the MassPike and other well-lit, straight highways. It was a fun ride despite the lack of a view. Lauren cranked up the heat and the Monkees music, and we sang our way across the Berkshires.

(Lauren also discovered the Massachusetts E-ZPass tolls have switched to a card system instead of tolls - you take a card in one toll booth and give the card to the person in the booth in the next toll. Simple...and cheaper.)

It turns out Lauren's parents weren't idle today despite the weather, either. They put up some lovely curtains over the French doors that look out to their deck and large back yard.

Here's Micky's website:

Micky Dolenz

And the site for the Eastern State Exhibition ("The Big E"):

Eastern States Exhibition