Laboring in the Vineyard

I have always held the philosophy that good things should be appreciated and respected, not neglected or wasted. This may be part of the reason I tend to overindulge. The fourth of January marked another First Friday. I decided that since I would be returning to the job and to school on Monday, that I should REALLY try to appreciate this particular evening and even though I was just making excuses for myself to once again go out and get down, and even though I was fully aware of this at the time, I had plenty of prearranged back up excuses for myself and decided to just settle with the one I previously mentioned.
Some of the crew I roll with (we're like a crappy gang but we do have matching jackets) was back in town after being away for the holidays and, early on, plans were laid (lucky ass plans) to hit the streets of the Downtown. The streets didn't appear too busy and part of the reason for that could have been the cold; I just figured it meant that I wouldn't have to wait as long for a beer. I dropped into The Rookery around 8:30 and grabbed a few beers while some friends and I exchanged stories of the decadence we had been a part of during the holidays. I had made earlier arrangements to meet up with Chris at The Hummingbird and the time for that was getting close so I decided to bootscoot.
Outside the bird I began shooting the breeze with Josh and Molly but the breeze was starting to shoot back so I ducked inside for a beer. Upon my reemergence I ran into Chris, who wisely suggested to Molly and I that we all head up to the office, where we could better introduce ourselves to one another without getting frostbite or having to scream over a crowd. After we had all become acquainted we went back inside The Hummingbird to check out the feature band, The Whigs. If you're not familiar with The Whigs they are a rising band from Athens, GA. They have been touted by the likes of Rolling Stone, Esquire and Blender magazines and they performed at last years Bonnaroo, which frankly didn't mean jack to me because I have seen some horrible bands in all these magazines at some point in time and, well, those ugly fur trimmed boots women wear are popular too, so I just had to see them for myself. Shortly after they took stage I realized what all the fuss was about. These guys could jam; it wasn't an overwhelming, "I can't hear the vocals, all I hear is a loud noise" kind of a show but it was the kind you could sing along to if you knew the words, and it appeared plenty in attendance did. I must say that not only was this the most packed I've seen the floor at the bird in a long time but I believe that there were more than a few people who had actually traveled to Macon FROM Athens to see these guys rock the bird. My only complaint about the Whigs set is that it was too short, then again, when I got a good thing in front of me I feel compelled to overindulge.