the CARNIVAL PRIZE and THE GRATEFUL DEAD

"One of the things about the name, right from the beginning, was that it had a lot of power. It was kind of creepy. People resisted it at first. They didn't want us to be the Grateful Dead -- it was too weird. But ... I don't think the connotation is nearly as creepy as it used to be, though sometimes the power is very evident." --Jerry Garcia

I have a thing for carnivals. Perhaps this is because, every thanksgiving from about age 8 to 13 my best friend and I would go to the Broward County Youth Fair on Thanksgiving Day. We chose that day, because that day was the day you could ride all the rides (everything) for one flat rate of, I think, 8 bucks. Imagine, all those rides, anything you wanted, all day long.

My best friend was David Singer. Some of you who know me from back in the day, obviously know that David passed away from cancer when we were 16. There's no question that moment, the moment I found out he was sick, was one of the most pivotal moments in my life. It certainly is a reason I have become such a creative force.

But this story is about the fun we used to have at the carnival. Specifically, this is about the Grateful Dead Tinfoil Mirror we stole from the "guess your weight" carnival vendor.

Among other things, Singer and I used to get into all sorts of mischief. If not for my mom, seeming to always catch us, Lord knows the kind of shit we would have gotten into. Her fearful presence must have kept me from going too far down the rabbit hole, but I can't tell you how much fun it was, to tempt the law. We were kids! We were growing up.

So anyway, the point of the story is, on one of these thanksgivings David and I decided we wanted to have some of those Rock Band Tinfoil MIrror things that they hand out as prizes if you win the "guess your weight" game at the "guess your weight booth." Now, obviously, we didn't have money to be paling around with the "guess your weight" carny and those shiny mirrors were just so alluring. You got to understand, maybe you remember being a child, the smell of it, the thrill of it. Imagine, you're at the carnival, free rides all day, cotton candy smell in the air. It's thanksgiving SCHOOL's OUT. How much more fun is allowed?

There we are. David was always more brave when it came to mischief. I was the scared one. But I was always there. So imagine these two boys, looking at all these 8" x 12" mirror things with all these ROCK band logos on them. We are standing right in front of them, you know all stiff like, getting ready to swipe 'em. I think David takes one and slips it under his shirt. The fear is rapturous. So then, I'm like, I want one!

All in all we each swipe two. I think I got one that was of "The Who." And the other one, the other one was a Skull and Roses Image of the Grateful Dead. Now, The Who, I knew about. But I had never heard of this Grateful Dead. I think I'm 11 years old at the time. And yet, I distinctly remember hanging this "stolen" Grateful Dead mirror in my room, having no idea who the band even was.

Like Jerry Garcia said, the name is powerful. And it's true. It's the real allure of that Tinfoil MIrror Prize. The entire thing was pure ecstasy in it's real form. There is an innocence to it. No chasing anything, it was instinctive joy / attraction to the Grateful Dead Skull and Roses image. I'm talking raw, realness.

I went on as, I got older to go to many Grateful Dead shows, and collect thousands of recordings of this Grateful Dead. I got turned on by the music, the festivity, THE CARNIVAL of it all. But truly the best of it was that tinfoil mirror that I stole from the carnival vendor, when, I didn't even know ... who the band was.