Ska Weekend

This past weekend was a ska weekend for me, Brandon, and Nate. On Friday evening we met Nate in Lansing and drove to Ferndale for some tacos at Imperial. The restaurant was crazy busy as usual, so we had to wait at least 45 minutes to be seated. Thankfully, the eight different types of tacos we sampled were well worth it. 

Selection of Imperial tacos

After Imperial we headed to Royal Oak Music Theater to see the ska band Streetlight Manifesto. Following two openers, Streetlight Manifesto took the stage at about 9:30 pm. Brandon and Nate had enjoyed the band in-person several times, but this was my first time seeing them. They put on a really good, fun show! It also helped that the venue is nicely tiered, so you can get a great view of the show without having to be in the mosh pit. 

Streetlight Manifesto show

We stayed the night in Lansing and hung out there for most of Saturday. My friend Christie and I met up for brunch and were able to catch up on life at her new townhouse. Nate, Brandon, and I then spent the afternoon sampling a few beers and watching Jurassic World. When the movie was done we drove back to Grand Rapids to see another ska show at Founders. Mustard Plug, a local Grand Rapids ska band, was the headliner. We showed up around 8:45 pm in time to grab some sandwiches and beers and locate a table before the first of two openers. Founders was pretty crowded, but I politely asked two older men if we could share their table with extra chairs, and they kindly obliged. We had a nice time conversing with them and enjoying the music. The first opener was Sailor Kicks, another Grand Rapids ska band, and the second was Rude Boy George, a ska/80's cover band from New York. Both bands had entertaining sets. But, by time Mustard Plug took the stage it was already 11:45 pm. About 30 minutes into their set I hit a wall of exhaustion, so I can't say I enjoyed them as much as the previous two bands. I did attempt some skanking (a special type of ska dancing) with Brandon to humor him. The band played their last song at 1 am, and we said farewell to our table mates and headed home to bed. 

Mustard Plug, a Grand Rapids favorite

The ska part of our weekend was finished, but we still had plenty to do on Sunday. We started our day by going to church with Jeremy and Alesha and then having them over for a taco lunch. It was wonderful to share worship and fellowship with them. Later in the afternoon we went to a birthday party for Pauley that included a wide selection of tasty dips and conversation with many of our Grand Rapids friends. Sadly, we could only stay at the party for a little bit before heading to Holland to reunite with our former church small group. Once in Holland, we enjoyed catching up with the small group families over dinner. Eventually, we returned to Grand Rapids and ended our weekend. It was a busy weekend, but a good one.