Another Winner for The Barge

PARKING LOT CLOSURE FOR BARGE CONCERT -  A SAD, SAD SITUATION

     AT THE VERY LEAST, A COURAGEOUS TOWN COUNCILLOR, AND OR MAYOR, SHOULD HAVE BEEN STANDING AT THE BARRICADES OF THE SMALL, BUT USEFUL PARKING LOT, ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF GULL LAKE PARK TONIGHT. THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES IN PLACE, TO EXPLAIN TO CONCERT ON THE BARGE PATRONS, WHY THEY COULDN'T PARK THEIR VEHICLES IN THE LOT THE TOWN MAINTAINS. THE LOVELY SPOT WHERE I PARK FOR THESE CONCERTS, AND WOULD HAVE TONIGHT, IF THERE HADN'T BEEN BARRICADES, INDICATING THE LOT WOULD BE CLOSED FOR THE NIGHT. SEEING AS THE MANAGER OF THE CONCERT PROGRAM HADN'T BEEN NOTIFIED OF THE CLOSURE, WHICH BY THE WAY IS A PROTOCOL THE TOWN SHOULD BRUSH UP ON, HE WAS BLIND-SIDED BY COMPLAINTS FROM THE PUBLIC……THAT HE SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN…..AS HE WASN'T INCLUDED IN THE PARKS AND RECREATION DECISION. GEEZ. HOW SPECIAL IS THIS? DO TOWN COUNCILLORS REALLY GET THIS STUFF, OR DO THEY CARE ENOUGH TO OFFER THE PUBLIC FULL DISCLOSURE ABOUT THE REASON……AND WE KNOW THERE IS ONE, WHY THE PARKING LOT CAN BE CLOSED FOR SPECIAL EVENTS……AND TO HELL WITH ANYONE WHO HAPPENS TO HAVE A DIFFERENT IDEA. LIKE ME. I SERIOUSLY THOUGHT ABOUT TAKING THOSE BARRICADES AND TOSSING THEM IN THE BACK OF MY VAN, AND DELIVERING THEM TO MY LOCAL COUNCILLOR, WITH BEST REGARDS. FORTUNATELY, MY WIFE IS A PACIFIST AND HAS PROVEN VERY EFFECTIVE IN TALKING ME OUT OF SOME ACTIONS OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE, I FEEL JUSTIFIED TO PURSUE. SUFFICE TO SAY, SOME JUSTICE WAS DONE, AS PEOPLE STILL PARKED ON THAT SIDE OF THE PARK, ON THE CONNECTING STREETS, AND THERE WERE A LOT OF THEM. IT'S A SHAME THE TOWN DOESN'T LOOK AT THE HUGE CROWD ATTENDING THESE CONCERT ON THE BARGE EVENINGS, AND SERIOUSLY CONSIDER MAKING PROPER ACCOMMODATIONS FOR THE VISITING PUBLIC……AS IT DOES RELATE YOU SEE, TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT…..AND HERE GOES THE CONTRADICTION WHICH THE TOWN IS FAMOUS…..NO, LEGENDARY FOR. I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY HAD THIS IDEA TO BUILD AN AMPHITHEATER ON THE SHORELINE, ACROSS FROM THE BARGE. HERE'S AN IDEA. FIX THIS PROBLEM FIRST.

     BUT HERE'S A LITTLE SCOOP FOR YOU. THE TOWN COULD SHUT DOWN ALL THE PUBLIC LOTS AND PARKING SPACES, IN THE URBAN AREA, AND BY JESUS THE FANS OF CONCERT NIGHTS ON THE BARGE, WOULD HIKE WHATEVER DISTANCE WAS NECESSARY TO BE A PART OF THIS GREAT SUMMER TRADITION. SO THE BIG NEWS IS, SHUTTING DOWN A PARKING LOT, THAT IS CONVENIENT FOR SOME FOLKS, AND A FEW WITH DISABILITIES, IS JUST AN INCONVENIENCE AND ANOTHER HURDLE, BUT IT WON'T STOP THE CONCERTS. AND DESPITE A NOTICE ON A SIGN-BOARD THAT "THE PARKING LOT IS CLOSED," IT DIDN'T DAMPEN THE ENTHUSIASM FOR WHAT GULL LAKE PARK HAS TO OFFER……AND FOLKS, IT'S OH SO MUCH BIGGER THAN A PARKING PROHIBITION.

     IF A COUNCILLOR HAD BEEN STANDING THIS EVENING, OFFERING EXPLANATIONS TO PISSED-OFF CONCERT GOERS, WHY THE LOT WAS CLOSED…….WHAT WOULD THE EXPLANATION HAVE BEEN? "WE HAVE TO, CAUSE!"

     YOU KNOW, ONE DAY, A FUTURE COUNCIL IS GOING TO BUILD A HONKING BIG PARKING LOT TO ACCOMMODATE TRAFFIC AT GULL LAKE PARK. TREES WILL COME DOWN. I DON'T LIKE SACRIFICING TREES AT ANY TIME, BUT THERE WILL BE A YEAR AND OCCASION, WHEN IT WILL BECOME NECESSARY, BECAUSE RIGHT NOW, THE PRESENT LOT IS PATHETICALLY UNDER-SIZED, FOR LARGE EVENTS. JUST TELL ME THEN, HOW IN THE WORLD, WOULD HAVING AN AMPHITHEATER TO ACCOMMODATE PATRONS, BE PLACED AHEAD OF PARKING IMPROVEMENTS, TO MEET THE MOST BASIC NEED…….WHICH WAS CUT TONIGHT BECAUSE…….JUST BECAUSE.

     I WANTED TO PARK IN THAT LOT TONIGHT. SO HERE IS MY COMPLAINT TO THE TOWN OF GRAVENHURST. I WAS UNFAIRLY DENIED MY RIGHT TO PARK ON A LOT I PAY TAXES TO SUPPORT……..THE BARRICADES BEING PLACED THERE BY STAFF MY TAXES COVER.  SO YES, MY WIFE AND I FEEL RIPPED OFF. AND FROM SOME OF THE COMMENTS WE HEARD TONIGHT……WE'RE NOT THE ONLY ONES TAKING JABS AT THE COUNCIL OF THIS MUNICIPALITY.

A TOWN, A PARK, A BARGE, A BEACH AND THE ENTERTAINMENT THAT PULLS IT ALL TOGETHER

     FOR ABOUT A WEEK NOW, THERE HAS BEEN A FEAR-RAISING LONG RANGE FORECAST, THAT IT WAS GOING TO BE A STORMY SUNDAY NIGHT, FOR THE REGULAR CONCERT ON THE BARGE. THIS TIME BY GOLLY, AS MUCH AS WE LOVE THE CONCERT NIGHTS, WE ALSO LIKE FRESH GARDEN PRODUCE AND OUR LAWNS, FLOWER GARDENS, AND SHRUBBERIES. WHILE WE WERE HOPING IT WOULD BE CLEAR FOR THE SUNDAY NIGHT CONCERT, "WALK LIKE A MAN," IT WAS GENERALLY WISHED THAT RAIN WOULD FALL IN BUCKETS, BEFORE AND AFTER THE CONCERT, TO SPARE OUR DRY EARTH HERE IN MUSKOKA. IT'S NOT THAT WE DON'T HAVE LOTS OF WATER HERE.....JUST NOT ON THE LAWNS AND GARDENS, AND I IMAGINE THERE ARE SOME WOES BEING EXPRESSED FROM FOLKS WITH DRY WELLS.

     WELL, IT DIDN'T STORM AT CONCERT TIME, AND IT TURNED OUT TO BE A BEAUTIFUL EVENING AT GULL LAKE PARK, REGARDLESS WHETHER YOU WERE THERE TO BEAT THE HEAT, WITH A DUNK IN THE LAKE, OR TO PICNIC AS A GROUP IN THE ROTARY PAVILION. IF YOU WERE AT ROTARY GULL LAKE PARK, TO TAKE IN THE FRANKIE VALLIE TRIBUTE, YOU MUST HAVE HAD A BALL.....BECAUSE WE SURE DID, DOWN AT THE FRONT, WHERE THE LAKE MEETS THE BARGE.....ONE OF MUSKOKA'S BEST KNOWN AND ENDURING ENTERTAINMENT VENUES. THE CROWD WAS LARGE AND SO WAS THE PERFORMANCE. SUMMER EVENING MET NOSTALGIC CIRCUMSTANCE. IT WAS JUST ONE OF THOSE MEMORABLE OCCASIONS, WHEN THE MOSAIC OF PARK-LIFE AND TIMES, WAS A MAGNIFICENT WORK OF REFRESHING ART. BUT IT WAS LIVING AND BREATHING. WHAT GREAT FUN IT IS TO SEE SO MANY PEOPLE ENJOYING WHAT THE PARK AND THE BARGE HAVE TO OFFER. NO NEED FOR AN EXPENSIVE AMPHITHEATER TO BE CUT INTO THAT GULL LAKE SHORELINE, AS WAS PROPOSED EARLIER THIS YEAR. THE GRASSY EMBANKMENT WORKS PERFECTLY, WITHOUT THE NEED FOR REINFORCEMENT BARS OR POURED CONCRETE. JUST A BLANKET OR TOWEL TO SIT ON, TO SLOW DOWN ANY  UNANTICIPATED SLIDE INTO THE BRINE. IT'S ALL ABOUT BALANCE. I'VE BEEN GOING TO BARGE CONCERTS FOR A LONG TIME NOW, AND I'VE NEVER SEEN A CONCERT PATRON HIT THE WATER YET.....AT LEAST AS THE RESULT OF MISADVENTURE. IT'S ALL ABOUT ADAPTING TO THE SITUATION. THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT OF MUSKOKA, OF WHICH GULL LAKE IS A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF TOPOGRAPHICAL CONTRASTS, AND THE "HEAVENLY PICTURESQUE." ALL AMIDST THE DIN OF LAUGHING, YELLING, CAJOLING, RUNNING, LEAPING AND BOUNDING HUMANITY, PLAYING ON THE BEACHFRONT. THE WRITER FALLS UPON ONLY ONE SHORT SENTENCE TO COVER THE SENTIMENT.

     "WHAT A FASCINATING PLACE!"

     THE PERFORMANCE WAS A TEN OUT TEN, AS FAR AS SUZANNE AND I ARE CONCERNED. OF COURSE WE'RE BIASED. AND THAT'S PERFECTLY ALL RIGHT. IT'S A PACKAGE DEAL OF SUMMER CONCERTS, AND WE RATE THEM INDIVIDUALLY AND AS A SUMMER SEASON, WHICH I FEEL IS A MUCH MORE IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION. THERE ARE JUST EIGHT INTERMISSIONS.....AND A WEEK BETWEEN ACTS. BUT IF WE WERE JUST LOOKING AT TONIGHT'S CONCERT, ALL WE CAN SAY IS, "GADS, YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE, BECAUSE IT WAS FABULOUS." THE GROUP PROVIDED US A NOSTALGIC AND SENSORY-STIMULATED EVENING THAT WAS A TREAT IN ALL REGARDS. IT WAS A MURAL DEPICTING SMALL TOWN LIFE, WITH FRIENDS, AND QUALITY ENTERTAINMENT, IN THE BOSUM OF ONE OF THE MOST SPECTACULAR REGIONS ON EARTH. IT LOOKED LIKE RAIN FOR AWHILE, AND IT STORMED IN REGIONS SURROUNDING US, AND GOD KNOWS WE NEED IT, BUT CONCERT-GOERS WERE TREATED TO A DRY, SUNNY, WATER-SPARKLING NIGHT. WE DIDN'T NEED TO WEAR RAIN-GEAR, OR ANCHOR OURSELVES TO TREES AND ROCKS, TO WEATHER THE STORM. WHAT WE GOT WAS AS CLOSE TO PERFECTION, AS ONE MIGHT EXPECT OF MAN AND NATURE WORKING TOGETHER ON SUCH SPECULATIVE VENTURES.

     SUZANNE AND I HAD ONE OF OUR GREAT, MANY COURSE PICNICS, AND NONE OF IT ROLLED INTO GULL LAKE. THIS IS A GOOD OMEN FOR THE REST OF THE WORK WEEK.......AS WHEN WE HAVE A TROUBLE-FREE OUTING TO THE LAKESHORE, THINGS ARE POSITIVE AND SUCCESSFUL FOR THE COMING DAYS. IF, ON THE OTHER HAND, WE SHOULD HAVE DROPPED A BUN, A LOAD OF PRE-MADE SANDWICHES, OR LOST AN ORANGE OR PEAR, TO GRAVITY AND WAVE ACTION, WELL, WE WOULD EXPECT A PLETHORA OF INTERESTING EVENTS FOR THE COMING SEVEN DAYS. WE'RE SUPERSTITIOUS, YOU BET. MAYBE YOU'LL FEEL SORRY FOR US, THE NEXT TIME, WHEN YOU WATCH ONE OF OUR LAWN CHAIRS TUMBLE DOWN THE EMBANKMENT, WITH ONE OF US RIDING IT INTO THE LAKE. WE'VE ALREADY LOST A BOOK AND A BALL OF WOOL (SUZANNE KNITS THROUGH THE CONCERTS). THEY WERE TOUGH DAYS THAT FOLLOWED. A LAWN CHAIR IN THE LAKE COULD MEAN THE CAR'S TRANSMISSION WILL FAIL, OR THE MUFFLER WILL HIT THE DRIVEWAY ON A TWO BOUNCER.

     SO I'M GLAD TO REPORT, IT WAS A PERFECT SOCIAL / RECREATIONAL NIGHT FOR US, AND A GREAT EVENING FOR ENTERTAINMENT IN GRAVENHURST. IT'S SO GOOD TO SEE AND FEEL ALL THIS POSITIVE ENERGY, GLOWING HERE, FROM THE GOOD VIBES OF PATRONS, CELEBRATING IN GULL LAKE PARK.....ESPECIALLY IN A TOWN, LATELY, BEST KNOWN FOR PESSIMISM AND ECONOMIC WORRIES. THE ONLY WORRY TONIGHT, WAS THAT THE CONCERT WAS GOING TO END.......AS ALL THINGS MUST EVENTUALLY. THANK YOU TO THE GROUP, "WALK LIKE A MAN." IT WAS A PERFECT OVATION TO SUMMER TIMES IN OUR BEAUTIFUL DISTRICT. WE ASK ONE THING. WE WANT TO BE ENTERTAINED. WE WERE, INDEED. THANK YOU.

     AS FOR THE CLOSURE OF THE PARKING LOT………..I REALLY THINK IT'S TIME TO NEGOTIATE A NEW DEAL, OR INCREASE THE SIZE OF THE PARKING AREA GENERALLY IN THE MAIN LOT. FORCING SO MANY PEOPLE TO PARK ON THE ROAD, AND WALK IN ADVERSE TRAFFIC CIRCUMSTANCES, IS DANGEROUS AND GETTING WORSE. OR ALLOW PARKING ON THE BASEBALL FIELD, AS THEY DO FOR THE ALL DAY CAR SHOW. ONCE A WEEK, FOR NINE CONCERTS, WON'T KILL THE GRASS.