Grown and sexy

Cinder Bridge is doing a couple of benefits this month. The first one, on Saturday, December 10, is Gift of Love, a Christmas toy drive.

In addition to being a good cause, Gift of Love has introduced me to a term I wasn't familiar with. The print is probably too small for you to read here, but there's a note about the dress code on the poster:

This is an exclusive "grown and sexy" event
Dress to impress

I'd never encountered "grown and sexy" before. Maybe that's because I'm out of touch with the new and happening slang. Or, maybe it's because I've been living in Tucson, the capital of casual, for too long. At any rate, I made a mental note to dress up. And then it hit me ...

There's a reason I wear jeans and sensible shoes to gigs. I mean, besides the fact that I wear jeans and sensible shoes everywhere it's permissible to do so. Gigs aren't just sauntering onto the stage and playing. They involve much hauling of equipment. This is not something easily done in a dress and shoes that are designed to be worn with a dress.

I might be able to pull it off with slacks. But jeans are just better when it comes to manual labor. Before the fashion industry noticed that jeans existed, that's what jeans were for.

So, Ron and I look forward to seeing the audience decked out ... but we'll be dressed as the working class heroes we are.

* * *

Just in case you're in the vicinity and can't read any of the fine print on that poster, here's the relevant info for Gift of Love.

When: Saturday, Dec. 10, 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. (We play at 8)
Where: Whisky Tango, 140 S. Kolb Rd., Tucson, AZ
Why: Toys for kids who can't afford 'em!
Cover: Free if you bring a toy donation

Perks of musicianhood

A few weeks ago at Tucson's semiannual 4th Avenue Street Fair, I happened on an artsy patchwork denim jacket for sale. Price: $150.

The following internal dialogue ensued:

Me: I want it.

Me too: It's too expensive.

Me: So? It's an original design. By an artist. It's like ... art, or something. The price is totally justified.

Me too: It's still too expensive. I'm not the kind of person who blows lots of money on clothes.

Me: Jackets are supposed to cost a lot of money.

Me too: That's heavy winter coats, not light jackets.

Me: I want it.

Me too: I don't need it.

Me: I can bring it to outdoor gigs. I get cold really easily. When the temperature dips below 70, I can wear this instead of a dorky coat.

Me too: Okay.

Fast-forward to last night's gig, a benefit featuring a bunch of bands. To the surprise of all the performers, despite the rapidly dropping temperature, they had us play outside.

Being a bit of a geek, I'm not the best judge of whether I really looked cool in that artsy patchwork denim jacket. But I'm pretty sure it was an improvement over any of my other built-for-functionality coats.

Rationalization vindicated. Being a performing musician is awesome.