I don’t want to take on one more project, so this idea is free to anyone who wants it… Next year, there should be a Totally Awesome Feast in conjunction with Totally Awesome Fest. We should close a street and do it up right. Maybe cook a tofu pig in a pit, or something.
As I see it, it could be anything from a big potluck to a more structured event, with regional chefs and local food entrepreneurs preparing special dishes inspired by the magical, multi-venue fertility rite known as Totally Awesome Fest. The only difficult part, as I see it, would be how to keep it free, like the rest of the almost ten year old, city-wide event. Maybe we could raise money online for the ingredients that can’t be grown in Ypsi, or donated. Or, maybe those with money could pay to attend, thereby subsidizing those that can’t. There are a ton of possibilities. At the very least, I’m thinking that local restaurants could be persuaded to offer discounts for folks during the festival. This would be especially cool if Patrick is able to make the event a full week long next year, like he says he wants to… Or, here’s another idea. Maybe Totally Awesome Feast is a ticketed event prior to Totally Awesome Fest, with all the proceeds going toward covering the travel expenses of bands and performers coming to Ypsi from far away… So many possibilities.
And, I’m not advocating that we actually do this, but here’s the first menu item that came to mind when the Totally Awesome Feast idea popped into my head.
Also, if Patrick is serious about growing this thing next year, and trying to fill an entire week with events, he’s going to need a lot more help. If you have ideas, food-related or not, as to how we do that, please leave a comment, or reach out to Patrick directly.
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I just wanted to use the phrase, “artisanal beard basket.”
Bet battered beard
We need more people in this area to step up. I know most of us are already working our asses off just to survive, but we can all do more. When I think what this area would be like without this blog and people like Patrick, Naia, Shelley, Dustin and a few others, it depresses me. There are so few people who actually make things happen. What would happen if we all got involved not with just attending these events but actually helping?
Petuchuli grilled Huron carp caught with beard nets.
One rule.
http://imgur.com/jSc3n74
Only if all the food is served on Mr. Elkins, like this.
http://www.thechinawatch.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Sushi-served-on-womans-naked-body.jpg
I’d also like to see some kind of sporting competition….. like an Ypsi triathalon.
Ultimate Cage Slacking
While we’re talking about changes next year, we might also want to discuss the evolving vibe of TAF. It would seem that some unwanted elements are creeping in. This comes from someone on Facebook:
“There were some people really not being respectful of the musicians by talking loudly in the front. I eventually said, “She’s playing right now. Could you stop talking?” and “Get off the phone…… It did feel a little wierd though. Like these weren’t ORIGINAL Totally Awesome Festers. There’s this new super super watered down hippie but not actually thoughtful hipster smirkbro. And it seems like there’s a lot of women who are trying to fit in and be “one of the boys” and not tell the manchildren to be quiet. Maybe that’s just part of being young? I hope not… Ugh. I hope TAF and Ypsi make it through. I believe it can though.”
Reminds me of what happened when the crusty punks started ruining Punk Week.
It’s not “someone.” It’s me. I wrote that. On my personal Facebook. I do trim / reevaluate my Facebook friends list often enough that I thought people who are still on it would ASK before posting something like that on the open web, but I’m not really too upset. If you are reading this and are the one who posted this, just send me an FB message just so I know who it is. No big deal.
Totally Awesome Fest has thrived on the hard work of a bunch of people and the good vibes that keep people wanting to come. I do generally feel like there is a continuity to the festivals and that those who hear about it each year want to contribute to the positivity of it. I remember hearing Patrick say it should always be “Free. All Ages. All Species. All Substances,” and loving that idea. I still do, but as years have gone on, I’m finding I’m loving the vibes of the daytime part more than the nighttime part. The year it was at Turkey Point was incredible. Pancake Walk, pancake brekkies with Mark Maynard, Booksafe making (which I did) as a craft for children, children everywhere, dogs everywhere. Very free for all. Very positive.
While I loved this years TAF, my experience hosting felt different than other times I have hosted. On some level, beer bottles everywhere and cigarette butts everywhere is too be expected, but I worry about if the newcomers would bring the same respect and reverence for the fest as TAF originals. The language I use up in the above post probably sounds psychotic but that’s how I think about things. Like, why would you talk through a performance? Just go outside! I don’t love every single performance, but if I don’t want to see it, I go outside or leave the area to talk so that others can enjoy it. Kids and dogs will make noise but adults should know better. Sometimes I worry that niceness gets taken advantage of. I want it to STAY positive and STAY the kind of place where children can be, where the energy isn’t dark and BRO-y. Where it feels like a community.
And I should say, when I use the term “hippie” up there, it’s not like a REAL hippie, like someone who’s connected to the earth and fostering positive things. Those are some of the people who make Ypsi great, people like Lisa Bashert, Jesse Tack, Jamie Berlin, Erica Mooney, Monica King, The Yodlish Clan, Transition Ypsi, Abundant Michigan Permaculture Ypsilanti, et cetera. And obviously the local art / music community is the community without which TAF wouldn’t be possible and Ypsi wouldn’t be such a rad, inspiring place to live. I mean more of the noncritical, permissive type. Anarchy without the anarchism.
Communities need values to thrive. That is why, while I’d be glad to host another daytime part of TAF, I’d probably have ground rules laid about about how the space should be used / interacted with. When I vision about other types of musical events to have back there, I’m also going to try for a more intentional space.