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Archival Abby
Abby's Bio
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New Year's Eve
24 Hour Party Person
For the third year in a row, I left Manhattan and Times Square and all
my crazy friends behind to spend New Year’s Eve in hippy dippy San
Francisco. And for the third year I threw my lot in – as well as 70 of
my hard-earned dollars – with the astounding cast and crew of Anon
Salon’s Sea of Dreams.
This year’s big event was held at a different venue from past years,
The Concourse, I believe it was called. Whatever…it was an enormous,
cavernous convention space with three separate soundscapes that worked
out wonderfully. Surrounding the dance floor were vendors, art, bars
and all sorts of interesting interactivity. It was impressive, to say
the least. And the decorations were amazing. Inflatables and draped
fabric filled up the airy spaces and everywhere you looked there was
entertaining eye candy. Of course, probably the most engaging were the
crowds of creatively costumed revelers. Nowhere on earth will you find
such a high commitment to costuming! I never got close enough to my
favorite ensemble, a Queen of Hearts-like blinking and flashing EL wire
extravaganza that wouldn’t have held up well to my camera’s flash.
Sigh. She looked spectacular from afar.
When I walked into the wide-open space, The Yard Dogs were onstage and
I was stupefied by their stage show. The musicians! The dancers! The
costume changes! There was a small stage to distract us from equipment
changes on the main stage and it was graced by a woman rolling around
in a giant metal hoop while we waited for The Dresden Dolls. I’d heard
so much about them and had no idea what to expect. Who would’ve thought
they consisted of only two humans? But their sound was huge!
When The Indigo Bellydancers took to the small stage they had the
audience mesmerized. Just watching these women gyrate makes everyone
feel sexy – and makes me want to take bellydancing lessons! Wow, they
can move! And their costumes and makeup are totally flawless. Mmmm,
yummy! Random Rab entertained the masses next with his live producing
and singing. I’m not quite sure exactly what he was doing, but it was
amazing and inspiring! And his music was complemented by the
trampolining, tumbling, tubing and dangling antics of The Vau De Vire
Society. I’ve booked them in the past and their numbers appear to have
multiplied! They are just breathtaking! El Circo accompanied the
spinning of DJ Lorin. His long wavy locks were swaying in time with his
beats and the dance floor was pulsing with energy.
In another space, The String Cheese Incident was jamming, with barefoot
hippies dancing in the aisles, hula hoopers twirling and lights
flashing on the Wishing Tree. I didn’t spend too much time in that
area, as I was more interested in the other performers, but what few
moments I did spend there were marvelously melodious.
To be honest, I would’ve loved to have been able to have it all. If it
wasn’t such a pain in the ass to get around in San Francisco – risk
driving drunk or attempt to find taxis! – I would’ve hit Debuacherama,
Carol Queen’s Queen of Heaven party and Kinky Salon. But alas, I felt
transportationally limited to one event and since Anon Salon is such a
spectacle, and the biggest event, I chose it. However, once the party
was over, I found myself out in the parking lot in an RV, drinking 2006
champagne with all the party VIPs. Now that I’ve met the men and women
in charge, I’m going to work on convincing them that they need to throw
bicoastal Seas of Dreams so I can stay in New York City next New Year’s!
Ah, but wait, ladies and gentlemen. Don’t think for one second that
this party girl let her evening end before the sun came up. Oh no!
After sharing that celebratory champagne with all the cool kids, it was
off to Space Cowboys’ Breakfast of Champions! Their party started at
6am and my friends and I were there as soon as the doors opened. Two
floors of pumping thumpy thumpy and I was jumpy jumpy and it was all
complete and utter dance animal bliss. There was an outdoor deck for
the smokers, complete with a stocked bar, and though it was a bit
blustery, it felt really warm and wonderful. The vibe was like a house
party, where everyone knew each other. I saw so many familiar faces,
which is nice in a city I don’t call home. Of course, given how often
I’m out here now, I’m pretty much officially bicoastal! If you can
believe it, the party ran from 6am till 6pm and I lasted the entire 12
hours. There was a moment on the dance floor when I just couldn’t take
it a minute more. Everything hurt! So I sat my exhausted ass down on
the deck and did the truck driver’s dance: grooving right there in my
chair! The music was so fucking good I couldn’t stop moving!
When the bouncers were literally shoving us out the door, I hailed a
cab and went to a friend’s for a wonderful home cooked meal. It was the
perfect way to segue between that thumpy jumpy mob scene and a big
empty house. Ah, what a wildly wonderful and deliciously draining way
to start the new year! Cheers!
[Written Jan. 2006]
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