First Friday = FUN!

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I've finally achieved a bit of stability here in Las Vegas, so I was actually able to go out and have some FUN last night! The first Friday of every month there is an event in Vegas called, oddly enough, "First Friday". I was going to write a brief synopsis of the event, but I think this text from the official website says it best:

The air is light, the spirit festive and the drinks cold in Downtown, where, once a month the pedestrian-friendly streets transform into a huge block party during FIRST FRIDAY. Each celebration, the entertainment shifts and multiplies as ice sculptors, fire breathers and fortune tellers serve as a back-drop for this ongoing festival of art perusal and appreciation. Local bands perform throughout the evening, and the streets turn into canvasses for children (young and old) to decorate with chalk. FIRST FRIDAY is a stage for local galleries and Las Vegas' vital Downtown cultural scene.

It was a very cool event. My roommate (aspiring pro poker player) Fernando and I ventured downtown around 8PM. We were joined by Casey, a new friend of mine from work. Since I work with a lot of visual artists, we also ran into a few other coworkers of ours at the event. I did indeed see a lot of art... some good, some bad, and some that was amazing. Of course that is all very subjective, right? There were also several bands. This event is not only very cool, but also free. Well, the drinks weren't free. It still feels odd to me to be able to walk the streets with open alcohol (totally legal here). It also seems strange that the bars keep serving all night (no "cut-off" time for alcohol sales).

Also interesting was the after-party at the Art Bar. This place was NOT a typical high-end tourist club that people associate with Las Vegas. It wasn't large, it wasn't expensive, and it was filled with "locals". There was a punk band playing... and not "punk" in the sense that every kid under 25 calls all rock bands "punk" these days... but an actual punk band. Their songs were fast, furious, and reminded me ever so slightly of a more aggressive Ramones. The lead singer was a very energetic woman, complete with a blue Mohawk that had white stars on it. For their final song, they pulled off a surprise by doing a good cover of Tina Turner's version of "Proud Mary". It was surreal seeing an African-American woman with a blue Mohawk singing a punk version of that song! Unfortunately, we were far from stage, the place was packed, and the sound system sucked, so we never could hear the name of the band.

Though I do enjoy a lot of the tourist activities here, it was cool to get out and see something primarily for the locals.

Please excuse my horrible photography, as these pics were taken with my camera phone:

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