Salty Dog Cruise. Day 1
I’m doing something new for this post. I’m dedicated it to people who have brought me here.
1st my brother Andy. He pretty much introduced me to this music. Explaining who Green Day was, then recommending Blink 182 Dude Ranch and then getting into MXPX, NOFX, Rancid and more.
2nd is Robby. When I took the mantle of Eddie Love on KDPS in my senior year in high school he recommended a ton of music for me. Less Than Jakes Hello Rockview really sticks out.
3rd James. I remember one day at work he calls me and told me “you need to listen to this song!” It was Four Simple Words by Frank Turner! Since then I have devoured anything Frank Turner, even his books!
4th Chad. My oldest brother because he and I are a concert team and even went to see Frank Turner the week after mom passed away!
Right now, I’m sitting in the back of the Safari Room listening to Face To Face, legends I the punk rock scene, and I’m loving it! After that I’m going to checkout Pennywise near the pool! Still to come Frank Turner and Flogging Molly!
This has been huge for me! After Rob opened a gateway drug of punk rock I started buying all the completion CDs I could get my hands one. This is where I first learned of Flogging Molly. I really dig their music but I became a die hard fan when I saw them at Vans Warped Tour! I’m on day two of my trip and so far it’s been worth every penny. And believe me it took a lot of pennies!
Thursday I woke up in Des Moines about 3:45 to get onto my flight for Fort Lauderdale. It went smoothly. I watched Anna and the Apocalypse on the plane. A hilarious movie on the spirit of Shawn of the Dead.
Since I had to wake up at 3:45 by the time I got into my hotel I pretty much just passed out. I got to see a little of Fort Lauderdale but not enough to really talk about.
Instead I’m going to focus this first day on some of the most amazing people I got to meet. First off was Rob from the Punk Rock Saves Lives both. I got to talk to him in Des Moines a couple months ago when I saw Flogging Molly at 7 Flags. He not only remembered me but also greeted me by name at one point.
I also talked to a woman from South America who argued with me that vampires were demons. She worked for the cruise and took a picture of me, so I did my normal Thumbs Up which was made me the male Pamela Anderson. She was not impressed.
“No,” she said “you need to do that again. You need to do something scary. You are wearing shark socks. And your shirt has a shark eating a demon.”
“It’s a vampire,” I explained.
“Yes. That’s a type of demon.”
This started a feud between us, but Sunday she greeted me with a giant hug and said “ah my demon friend.”
I also bumped into musicians everywhere, I saw the singer for Flogging Molly shaking hands with fans, at one point Frank Turner was eating two tables away from me, I also ran into Beans on Toast at the urinals.
“Are you Beans on Toast?” I asked while urinating.
“That I am sir,” he said also urinating.
“Your awesome. I loved your set! I’d shake your hand but it doesn’t seem like the right time.”
“No I don’t think it is.”
Like I real creep I waited outside the bathroom to get a picture with him.
There was also Dylan who was selling merchandise for his Pass the Bass fundraiser for head trauma. I interviewed him for dogs I saw.
Podcast at
https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/dogsisaw/episodes/2019-11-14T07_40_09-08_00
http://mcleodmediacompany.com/affiliates/pass-the-bass-charity/
https://www.facebook.com/passthebassdylan/
Amanda, the singer from New Jersey giving away free songs. The Englishman from Texas who wanted to score the hot tub for Frank Turners show. An older couple that started dating listening to punk rock. A tattoo covered divorce attorney. People from all over the world. People rocking killer Mohawks. One guy complaining that he was being harassed and his bodyguards didn’t help him. An 8 year old pro skateboarder. And some schmo with a vampire shark comic.
Salty Dog Cruise. Day 2
Day two began with a trip to Secret Society Comics. I stopped in to spread the word of the vampire shark and picked up a Punisher TPB and Godzilla # 1 from Marvel.
https://secretsocietycomics.com/
Next I headed to the dock to get on our boat Serenade of the Seas. This was my first cruise so I wasn't really sure what to expect. It was pretty much the same process of getting on a plane. Hand them your boarding pass, get in line for security, and wait. But this time instead of sitting in an airport flipping through comics or watching old episodes of the Simpsons you can wait for take off in your room...flipping through comics and watching old episodes of the Simpsons. There's a new leave of privacy and comfort that you don't get in an airport.
The first thing I did was make my way up to the pool, apparently they were exited to meet me because they erected a statue in my honor.
I only spent a little bit in the pool before moving over to the hot tub, the pool water was freezing. Soon Flogging Molly hit the stage, which was right next to the pool, to begin with an opening toast! Dave King raised a glass to everyone promising a wild weekend.
I spent most of the night in the ship watching bands. I watched the incredible Brogue Wave perform while people danced in front of them, another two man group where one of the singers kept being handed shots. Someone said that he did a shot after each song and had 15 songs to do. Near the end of his set he pretty much stopped playing and argued that it was later than it really was, he was in for a long night!
Then it was Beans on Toast, I was most excited for him. I know he travels with Frank Turner a lot but I had never gotten the chance to see him. I did go down a Beans on Toast rabbit hole on YouTube so I knew I liked his style. He's a one man band, sings a lot of fun folk music about appreciating the little things.
At one point I noticed Dave King mulling around and I rushed down to meet him. As with everyone on the ship I am a giant Flogging Molly fan. In fact I say that Whistles the Wind is one of my favorite songs of all time!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFYdKwahMrs
Frank Turner was another person I was hoping to meet. In fact I brought him a wedding gift, I saw that he recently got married and one time he tweeted that he was a fan of stand up comedian Norm MacDonald. That was crazy to me, one of my favorite singer/songwriters was also a fan of one of my favorite stand up comedians. This might sound strange but I actually bought him a copy of Norm's DVD Me Doing Stand Up. I figured if I didn't see him or he didn't want it I could give it to Joel.
BUT... I did run into and I said "I kind of got you a wedding gift!" He seemed pretty moved that he actually hugged. I also hooked him up with the issues of the vampire shark comic He is now the second celebrity to get bitten by the vampire shark. The first being Gilbert Gottfried.
Last, do you love that vampire shark shirt I am wearing here? You can pick it up on my threadless store at
https://ahabvanhelsing.threadless.com/?fbclid=IwAR0ABAK6xBRrp02QFVFIrgHCrq4dLFAG1GT6OHP3p1ur0yM8svH2CHFOIXM
As always, thank you for reading! Next week I will upload the rest of the Flogging Molly Cruise shenanigains.