There are no words....

Ok, so this weekend was awesome for so many reason. The first reason... I kicked Mark's butt at miniature golf! The second reason... we got a new cordless phone! Say goodbye to constant static and dead batteries.

BUT, the best reason this weekend was awesome.... the Taste of Minnesota. So we heard about the TOM and decided to check it out. We had been to the Taste of Times Square on previous years and enjoyed it, and figured Minnesota has some good restaurants, so it should be a good time. Well, let me tell you... it wasn't like the Taste of Times Square. Here in MN, they seem to pride their Taste of, to be more like the county/state fair. The food vendors consisted of burgers, fried cheese curds, french fries, pork chop on a stick.... not quite what we were expecting, and it was a little pricey for what it was. Anyway, we won a coupon for a free pizza thanks to my inate ability for random celeb/tv/pop culture trivia, so it couldn't be that bad, right? Of course not!! Especially since I haven't even told you about the BEST. PART. EVER.

Yes, that is the ORIGINAL Village People! In all their glory. Here's some more of them...

I wish I had been able to get a clear shot of the Indian in his YMCA headdress, but the crowd wouldn't let me have it! There were arms everywhere, swaying back and forth, heads jumping up and down... there was just no good shot! There's nothing quite like 6 men all in their 50's or older, shaking their bums, and thrusting their pelvises (is that the proper plural form??) in our general direction.

Now the bonus part about this concert experience was the crowd. It was quite the cross section of people. There were the cool kids like us, the moms bringing their 10 year olds, random dancing guys by themselves, and the grandfolks like these...

This picture cannot do justice to the amount of entertainment this lady and her husbnad provided to us. From the moment the guys took the stage she had her camera glued to her face taking thousands of pictures and/or video, it was hard to tell. She did take the odd break from her camera but quickly went back to it when the boys started with the pelvic thrusts!! Never have I seen such excitement over the girations of 50+ year old men.. well not from someone wearing a fanny pack. In addition to this lovely lady, was her husband, who also had his camera glued to his face the entire time. I guess they thought one camera would not suffice in capturing all that is glorious about the Village People. Now don't get me wrong, I am the first one to sing along to Macho Man... but that night was probably one of the most fun nights ever. Just the crowd, the music... and finally seeing Mark let loose of his inner disco moves. It was like a Mastercard commerical... Priceless.

It did bring around a question to ponder.... do you think the Village People are having a great time, or do you think they feel a little bit of sadness to the whole thing. We tend to think there is a bit of both, but this group is constantly touring. The day after they busted a move at the Taste of Minnesota, they whisked off to a concert in California. They've been playing in Europe... it seems nonstop. I never would have guessed they still had such a busy touring life! I think it is just the younger crowd that might feel a little of the "sadness", not the tear inducing, tug at your heart strings kind, but the "sad", sort of pathetic, feel sorry for them kind. Looking around, the older folks were going to town loving it up. Maybe that's what we will be like 30 years from now, when any of the current bands we like go on tour and we find ourselves at the concert, rocking out while we wear our fanny packs being laughed at by all the young whippersnappers!

I am in possession of some great video, but can't for the life of me figure out how to upload it!! If anyone knows, will you please pass on the info either in the comments section or email me, video this good MUST be shared with the world.

Oh, did I mention the concert was FREE! Another reason it was so amazing!

One more thing, for anyone who finds themselves at an event when the YMCA is played, just a bit of advice, straight from the mouths of the Village People.... the "M" in YMCA is not done with your fingertips meeting on your head (like monkey arms they said) you make the point of the M in front of your body, elbos out to the side. So let's all make sure we do it right from now on!!