Ja Man, Reggie Fest done.
04/21/2003
Wow, I can’t believe the Austin audiences. It was a full mist on Saturday, you could almost call it rain but it never actually become rain drops. We still ended up with about 5 thousand people at Auditorium Shores. Sunday was even bigger. We loaded the Tractor Trailer with food, last I heard about 15 pallets. That will feed a lot of hungry people.
Celia from the food bank told me the food from the weekend will be distributed to the pantries today. They are in great need right now. I always feel good about this event, I know where the food and money donated goes, right into the correct hands, hungry Texans. I was talking to one of the other workers from the food bank and they are looking for ways to raise more money. I have some ideas and will get with them later this week.
There were a few memorable events from the weekend. The first was on Saturday night. I found a young girl, maybe 20 face down in the mud in front of the stage. She didn’t do a good job combining her chemicals. She was doing mushrooms, Ecstasy, drinking and some prescription anti depressants. Well, I brought her to the medical tent, I thought she was just having a bad “trip” at the time. I managed to find her friends in the crowd and get her purse. There was no ID in it. By the time I got back to the EMS tent, her trip got violent. We had to call for APD to take her away. She ended up in handcuffs, restraints and on her way to the hospital then on to jail. It was a disturbing site, I had trouble getting to sleep Saturday night, I guess I have to think she brought this on herself. If I hadn’t intervened, she could have ended up in a worse state.
Sunday night, I got beer thrown at me. See you have to have a pass to enjoy the back stage party. If you have a VIP pass, you get to drink beer and have some food. Well this brat decided to give her pass away and tired to stay in the back stage party. When I challenged her at the gate and told her to find her pass or leave, she told me to FUCK OFF. Bad move on her part. I waited a little while, I was dealing with a band issue then I tracked her down. She was waiting for them to pour a beer she really didn’t need and I again asked her where her pass was. She tired to grab one off the guy she was with. I calmly explained if all didn’t have passes, the ones without would have to leave. Well, she didn’t have one. So I told her she had to leave. Boy did she get pissed. “I have been back here all day” Yup, I have seen you, but you don’t have a pass now. You need to leave. I grabbed her arm to take her “of age” pass so she couldn’t drink anymore beer and that’s when she threw a cub of beer at me. Again bad move. See, I have worked with most of the people at the fest for oh, 9 years and they all know me. The crowd parted, some of my backup showed up and she yelled and bitched me out all the way out the gate. She did manage to get another half a cup of beer and she tossed it on someone other patron. I thought problem was then solved.
About 10 to 15 minuets later there is a call for me to come to the front gate and bring security with me. Gee, her girlfriend thought she could make a complaint against me and the guys that threw here out. Hum, these people just don’t get it. Back stage is my area. When you try to leave with beer, you get stopped. You can’t take it out. There are 2 beer licenses, one for selling beer in the front and one for the free beer in the back. The two types of beer can not be combined. Well, I guess this girl and her boyfriend just don’t get it. I did listen to there complaint, how they wanted an APD officer to investigate an “assault” on the girlfriend. Yah right, I will call them today and explain when they are sober, they tired to break the law and got caught. No assault, no lawsuit, sorry you loose.
The final event I will share was the attempt to steal band equipment. Some guy in a pickup truck shows up at the back stage gate claiming he left an amp and a guitar back stage. The pickup had a set of drums in the back. I didn’t recognize him and I didn’t know who the “guy” on the phone was. He had the band name incorrect and that’s when I realized something was wrong. See all the musicians know who I am. They have to get the OK to get paid through me. That makes me VERY popular with the bands. He was claiming to have left a 67 Start, blond with a vintage case. Once I figured out the scam, I got the plate number of his truck. Guess who I am going to call today? The detectives. They must have done this sort of thing before. I hate people that steal, I especially hate people that try to steal someone’s way to make a living
