NICE

Often times when one remembers a special party there are many ways to describe the experience.
The first word that comes to my mind is...
NICE

On Saturday August 18th (My dad's 88 birthday) a Reunion of sorts was held at Mono Lake California.

It was called the.....

2007 MONO BASIN FAMILY REUNION
and it was the brain child of
Little John Adams

I'm not really sure of the time frame for the reunion because it was so diverse.

The intention was to reunite everyone who lived in Mono County from 1968 to 1980 (I think)
and especially to reunite the people who happened to be at Little John's first party in 1971....and specifically the 31 people who were arrested at that party and transported by bus to Bridgeport and incarcerated for the night and held for a court appearance the next day.

Having been one of those 31 people I was quite excited to attend the Reunion.

Of course perceptions of things that happened from 1968 to 1972 always have a slight hazy cloud that interfere with the ability to actually remember some important details....and often times the memories have a slight variation from the actual reality.

For example....I thought there were 100 people that got busted and that there were two buses that took us to Bridgeport. I remember everybody singing on the bus. I remember everybody was blazing.

By the way, the 1971 bus bust was a group effort on the part of Mono County law enforcement officers and park rangers.... and they surrounded us at a meadow. I thought there were 25 cop cars but realistically there were probably only 5. The bust was an effort to control and stop the use of drugs in the Inyo-Mono county jurisdiction.

I'm not really sure if it worked because I was placed on probation and basically was told to leave the county.
Which I did.

I'm sure the bust worked and that everyone who stayed......stopped doing drugs.

I, on the other hand.... moved to Marin County where the law enforcement people were actually distributing drugs to anyone who moved there....but of course that's an entirely different story so let's get back to Mono Lake.....

At the reunion party I never got to discuss what other people thought about that day in 1971....because of the 31 people who were on the original bus ride....apparently only 6 to 15 people were at the reunion....and we never got together for a group picture or for a group chat or for a group song.....unless of course the group song took place at the very end of the party....which I didn't get to see because the people I came with....wanted to leave early.

Now at this moment I've got to interject a side-bar.

I come from a long line of Irish party goers who have a horrible reputation for staying at parties until the very last drop is poured or the very last song is played...and leaving a reunion early, that took 40 years to occur, would not have been my choice.

Some people came from Australia.....some people came from New York and some people came all the way from Gull Lake.

And welcome to those moments that you blame someone else.

I could have stayed for the last 45 minutes and gotten a ride back to town but I didn't and I have no one to blame but me.

The only question I have, for those people who left early, is why would anybody leave a reunion 2 hours before it was over..... when it took 40 years to occur.

I understand Sharon's situation....and feeling sick is not the way one wants to approach a party....or a 10 hour car ride....so I make an exception on her part....and of course her loving husband Howard who wouldn't talk to me.

Maybe the next one in 2047 will result in everybody staying until the show is over.

I have to be fair and let you know that my friends weren't the only ones to leave early.

So before I go any further I just want to say one thing to Little John..... who was on the bus and who obviously loves to network....

LITTLE JOHN....I'LL BE THERE NEXT YEAR AND I PROMISE TO STAY FOR THE VERY LAST SONG....BECAUSE WHEN I HEARD THAT YOU DID GLORIA TO END THE SHOW....... I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO PUKE....

I MISSED IT!

AND SO DID MY FRIENDS.

AND THIS MORNING I DON'T HAVE THAT MEMORY TO ENJOY.

BUT...
I do have a ton of other memories to enjoy and most of those memories have faces attached to them.
Faces that look quite a bit different than 40 years ago....except for my friend Greg....(Wolf) who for some strange reason looks exactly the same. And I knew he looked the same because everybody who saw him recognized him immediately....and that also applies to Little John.

So that either means they look the same OR they were the most popular people ever to work at June Mountain.

Greg does have that kind of aura......and I think it comes from being the "HAY MAN".....NOTHING LIKE BEING A HAY FARMER TO KEEP ONE LOOKING FRESH AND YOUNG. OF COURSE THERE ARE OTHER SECRETS THAT I CAN'T SHARE, BUT HE WON FOR LEAST CHANGED PERSON.....BY A LONG SHOT. And I realize that hay isn't even his primary crop....buy being able to say HAY MAN every time you see him doesn't work if he grows barley.....I mean really..... BARLEY MAN sounds silly.

I will say that the babes really dig the HAY MAN. I watched a few of them as they talked to him and the sparks were still flying. I used to know that feeling when talking to the babes but somewhere in the late 90's it went away.....but I remember it and I love seeing it still happen to one of my best friends.

I've got to take some time soon and hook up with Little John and really chit-chat about 1971 and the first party.....I tried to talk with him on Saturday but the DUDE was overwhelmed by friends and family who obviously love him to the core.

He is a very lucky man and I think most of it has to do with a simple reality.

LITTLE JOHN is a sweetheart. A kind and gentle soul who not only loves life but really digs everyone he's ever known....and it shows and glows from within.

I can't say that about too many people.

But I can say...that its a really good way to be if you want people to care about you in the long run......and hopefully long runs will continue to be a part of his life.

The party was a total success and everybody, even those who left early, will have nice memory of a very special day.

Thanks John for all your efforts.

YOU ARE THE REAL DEAL.

I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE 2008 VERSION.

MICHAEL TIMOTHY MC ALEVEY