Open Mic @ The Comedy Club

A young friend got her chance to perform on Open Mic night at the Stardome Comedy Club . It had been a while since I'd been there. In the past the open mic people performed on the main stage before the headliner came out. This past Friday, there was a designated smaller room where blossoming comics performed. I'm unsure of how many open mic  performers there were . Nikki Nicole was number six. This lady has an outgoing personality that is infectious. A warm, open friendly person who is so good with people. Before any of the comics began the MC gave a pep talk about being kind  to the performers. As she said, it takes a lot of nerve to get  up in front of people and perform comedy. You're basically opening yourself up for emotional injury.  I put it right up there with sky diving.

As with anything some were good and some were not so good.  Most all dealt with adult humor.  Nikki's timing was good, She stayed on topic,interaction with the audience was good. There was one joke about credit cards to which she threw plastic out to the audience.
Stand up isn't something that I think I could  do.   Maybe I could be a joke writer but that too takes a lot of talent. I'd probably forget everything I was supposed to say, like one of the guys who actually admitted he'd forgotten his jokes and so he asked the audience to heckle him so he could give a good comeback. That didn't work out so well for him either.
THAT'S IT***

A TASTE OF 4TH AVENUE

The jazz was smooth and cool on September 22nd at the 9th annual TASTE OF FOURTH AVENUE.
Each year the street is blocked off and some of the most talented musicians perform.
Fourth Avenue was a bustling business district for Black people before integration  in Birmingham, Alabama. Whatever you needed, it could be found at a business located there.  Doing business within the confines of these few city blocks, people of color felt comfortable and treated with respect. Oftentimes business owners were neighbors or fellow church members and relatives whick helped to bond  people closer together.



photo copied from disboards.com

After integration 4th Avenue became something of a ghost town accompanied by a seedy reputation . Over the past 25 or more years, efforts have been made to restore the area and restore business and arts programs. The metamorphosis has been stupendous. Just a block away is the  Birmingham Civil Rights Institute which draws visitors from all over the world.

Additionally The infamous 16th Street Baptist Church is across the street from Civil Rights Institute.

Euge Groove performs. An artist paints as the musicians play

During Fourth Avenue's  dark days a decent person wouldn't think of walking the Avenue day or night. To see  all of the  positive renewal that has taken place is very rewarding. The one time Carver Movie Theatre is now the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame It stands to reason that an annual jazz concert would go hand in glove with the rest .

This year's  jazz festival began at 2 pm and was scheduled until 9pm.  I rode shotgun with a friend who preferred to wait until the sun was down and the climate was cooler. This was a great idea because there was just enough breeze in the air to stay comfortable. This year's headliner was  saxophonist  Stephen Eugene Grove better known as Euge Groove.  If you've never heard this man play you've missed out. His discography is endless. Who has he played with? Instead Who HASN'T he played with.? Need to relax? His music will mellow you out. His performance included tracks from his CD as well as an improvised arrangement of Amazing Grace .
Shielded by security Euge Groove descended the stage to walk through the audience serenading as he went. It was  a great performance by the headliner and the talented local musicians as well.  I always sleep well and have a warm fuzzy feeling after a great concert.

Upper left: Tekneek performs. Upper rt.: Carved wooden chairs with an African motif. :lower left: additional African crafts and art. Lower rt. Artwork

THAT'S IT***

Paper Beads

 YOU'RE WONDERING? What part does a cricket play when it comes to paper beads? In this instance none at all. I happened to have seen it sitting on the fence and was able to get a shot of ONE of the chorus of crickets that have kept me awake at night.  
At first it reminded me of camping in the woods by a lake, communing with nature and all that.

BUT!

Hearing this every night ALL night is disturbing. Even during the day I thought I heard them because the sound had become embedded in my brain much like a favorite song gets stuck and you sing it over and over and ...  I'm not familiar with the life cycle and habits of crickets but I'm hoping they've about run their course.

National Geographic has beautiful color pictures. The articles are interesting also. I torn these 4 pages out of an old issue  to use as colorful paper beads. I have become fascinated by the ones I've seen on You Tube.



These are fish not well known to man. The red item is a plastic drinking straw.



These are photos of unusual fish. I suppose I should elaborate but I don't remember what I read about them.

The You Tube videos showed more than one way to roll a bead. Two of my favorites are:

Hectanooga 1 and BeyondBracelets.

It's not good to watch too many methods of doing something because then you get confused. I had planned to place glue on the entire sheet and then use the straw to roll it into one tube. Then I would cut it while it was still wet into tube beads. As you can see, I didn't do that. No Problem.

Fold down a small edge of one strip and begin rolling it around the straw. Once you are past the fold apply school glue down the entire strip and roll until you get to the end making sure to keep the paper straight and tight.

Since there was no glue placed on the fold where you began it will be easy to slide the bead off of the straw and lay it aside to dry.

I know I've left out some pictures of steps you should take, so I'll just put the You Tube version from Hectanooga1 right here.

These aren't the best photos in the world but here is the finished product.

THAT'S IT***