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I'll See You On the Dark Side of The Moon

Like many young people across the country and undoubtedly, around the globe, I discovered Pink Floyd's classic album from 1973, "Dark Side of the Moon". The themes of escaping youth, growing up, regrets and the ills modern society had struck a chord with me when I was in my later teen years as I saw my sheltered life forever altered by the events of 9/11 and my carefree youthful existence slipping away.
Now sitting here writing this at the wise age of 22, I yearn for the days when my biggest worry was where my buddies and I would be hanging out that weekend or how to skip out of school a few periods early. Anytime I hear a song from "Dark Side", I still think of the days spent hanging out with a couple of my best friends discovering this music for the first time.
When I heard the news that bassist, vocalist and songwriter from Pink Floyd, Roger Waters, would be coming to Philadelphia to perform "Dark Side of The Moon" in it's entirety I knew it was a show I could not miss. Purchasing my tickets in mid-February, it seemed like June 1st was a lifetime away.
But finally, the day had come. The parking lot was filled with a lovely aroma and throngs of baby boomers and teenagers anticipating the show. And what a show it was. From the opening chords of The Wall's "In The Flesh", the audience morphed into one of the loudest, respectful, attentive -- greatest -- crowds I have ever been a part of. As Waters continued onto such Floyd classics as "Wish You Were Here" and "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" it became obvious why Waters was able to fill an arena of 20,000 nearly 30 years after his last significant album.
We were all in search of the same thing. The seats were filled with people who all had the same memories that I had. We remembered what it was like to be just a kid, searching for his or her way in the world, trying to find a place where they fit in. When Waters finally kicked into the "Dark Side" material during the second set, every seat was filled and fully in tuned with what was occurring on the stage.
I had feared that this would be nothing more than a second rate Floyd cover band doing songs that only this one band could perform. Luckily, I was wrong; by the time he came out for his encore and the band broke out into "Another Brick in The Wall (Pt. 2)" it had been apparent for a long time that Waters came with an ample band. I would be remiss to not note the incredible pyrotechnics, lighting and enormous screen - but this writer would be unable to describe their usage and really, they don't get to the heart of the show.
The last song of the evening was "Comfortably Numb", a song Waters wrote with David Gilmour for 1979's "The Wall". It's a song that fits perfectly within the context of that album; the writer feels nothing for himself, for the world, vaguely remembers memories from his childhood and in the end accepts the way things are. We should hope for a more positive outlook on life, but in reality, the line "the child is gone, the dream is over" rings true for a lot of us. At least for this one night, Waters let us catch a "fleeting glimpse out of the corner" of our eyes into what it was like to once again be young and idealistic.

A Triumph for craft brewing

Do you know how India Pale Ale got its name? Patrick Jones does and that’s good news for Triumph Brewing Company.
As the head brewer at the newly opened Old City location, Jones is the man behind the scenes who creates the distinctive beers that now flow at Triumph’s third location in the tri-state area.
With eight beers on tap you are bound to find something you like. Over the past three years, Jones has helped the New Hope Triumph location win five medals at the Great American Beer Festival.
“When I got to Triumph, I was finally able to enter the Festival,” Jones explained. “The Kellerbier won the gold medal in 2004, something I’m really proud of.”
Triumph’s new spacious location at 117 Chestnut Street has two floors, with a bar downstairs running the length of the building and another bar upstairs that allows for a view of the brewery.
Sleek and swanky yet comfortable at the same time, Triumph has a menu that contains regular pub food like burgers and pizza. They also have sufficient seating if you want to sit down with friends and enjoy a more traditional meal.
Brian Fitting , one of the owners since 2001, said that the water in Philadelphia is conducive to great beer. That may help explain the city’s storied past with brewing. Old City Tavern was the hangout for members of the First Continental Congress in 1774. One hundred years ago, Philly was considered the largest brewing city in the Western Hemisphere. That title stood until 1920.
Prohibition wrecked the brewing industry across the nation. Jones explained that by the late 1970’s there were only about 10 craft breweries in the United States. Sierra Nevada was among the leaders of the craft beer resurgence during the 1980’s. Flying Fish in Cherry Hill, Yard’s in Kensington and Victory in Downingtown, PA are all proof of the renaissance. Consider Triumph Brewing Company part of that movement.
“I think the fresh beer alone will bring people in,” Fitting said. “The beer production has been phenomenal. We’re going to bring in a different crowd.”
Triumph was started in 1995 in Princeton, New Jersey by Adam Rechnitz, the first brewpub in the state. In 2003, the second location opened in New Hope, PA about an hour north of Philadelphia. The challenge of opening a brewpub in a major metropolitan area is not lost on the owners.
“(The main difference) was the cost, quite honestly. The other two locations are smaller suburbs and were pretty grassroots at the time,” explained Fitting. He added that getting acquainted with the city was part of the challenge.
He also sees similarities between Princeton and Philadelphia. Both brewpubs have downtown locations, are in an arts centered section of town and have Ivy League schools. The Old City location is surrounded by many other bars such as Mad River, Mint and Brownie’s Pub. Triumph isn’t necessarily trying to take customers away but simply offer them something they haven’t had before.
India Pale Ale, which this writer considers his favorite, was first brewed in the late 18^th and early 19^th centuries in Great Britain. It had high levels of alcohol and hops because both are natural preservatives. An export solely to India, it needed higher levels of these ingredients for the long sea voyage.
According to Jones, no one in England was aware of this process until a ship en route to India wrecked and bottles washed ashore. Britons quickly realized this was the best beer they had ever tasted.
Unlike our British cousins, we won’t need to wait for a shipwreck to taste some of the best beer in the city. Stop by Triumph Brewing Company and taste a little bit of history for yourself.


(PHOTO CREDITS: CODY GLENN)

New Season, New Hope

After attending the last six Phillies home openers, I was shut out from purchasing tickets for the game on April 2^nd against the Atlanta Braves. I had more or less resigned myself to the fact that I would not be carrying on the tradition that started in 2001. That is until a conversation about “On the Road” reinvigorated my life.
Since turning 22 this past February I have begun to feel, how do I say it? Old. I know that in the scheme of things 22 is not that old and looking back on this someday I will see how young I really was. But when your future job appears closer to you then your high school days, certain anxieties begin to set in.
I was having a conversation the night before the game with an old friend from high school who is about to graduate from Villanova next month. We were discussing as we often do, our lives, our plans for the future, and ultimately, the conversation turned to regrets and those moments in your life when you feel alive. It is difficult to define these moments. They are the ones when you have an out of body experience, when you can see yourself from above and know in your head that this is life, this is what living means.
He said how looking back, he had a good deal of these moments in his teenage years but like me in recent times, school and figuring out his career had become overwhelming demands on his mind. Basically, we both agreed that as the years have passed by, these moments had become few and far between. We talked about Bob Seger’s “Night Moves”, Van Morrison’s “Wild Nights” and Bruce Springsteen’s “Spirit in the Night”; how these songs seemed to describe a time that had somehow evaded us in our lives. Then we moved onto one of the great American classics, Jack Kerouac’s timeless masterpiece, “On the Road”.
We all know the story of Sal Paradise and his friend, Dean Moriarty and their travels across the country. How their lives seemed like an open book, how their futures seemed to have endless possibilities and compared this with the rigid demands that were placed on us by our society, our peers, our parents and more than anything, ourselves. Needless to say it was a depressing talk. My friend then said, “Where is that person in my life? Where is that free spirit to come and take me away from this normal life? Where is my Dean?” It was at that moment that I decided that one way or another we were going to make it into that Phillies game.
I met up with my friend around noon on the beautiful sunny day, about an hour before the first pitch of the 2007 season. We went up to the box office to see if there were any single tickets left for the game and told that they had all been gone since 9:30 in the morning. We walked to each of the entrances to the stadium, walked through a good deal of the parking lots and were unsuccessful in finding anyone at all who had tickets for sale. Then I had an idea.
McFadden’s Bar and Grille is attached to the ballpark and I figured somehow making our way from the bar to inside the stadium was our last shot. Getting in the bar was a problem, as a long line had formed outside to gain entry. Luckily, an old man was holding a side door open looking for his friend and we were able to slide inside ahead of the crowd. We made our way to the outside dining area and realized the only thing keeping us from entering right into the stadium was a metal fence and a few security guards letting people who actually had tickets into the game. Between the end of the fence and the brick façade of the stadium was a space of about a foot and a half. This was our ticket in.
Among the crowd of people drinking and eating we made our way back to the fence. Sitting for a minute to think of our plan and figuring out the right time to go, at around ten of one I decided, let’s go (and coolly, I might add), squeezed in behind the fence and walked right into the stadium. My friend followed behind. We walked to a spot directly behind home plate and as a sense of excitement and wild abandonment set in that we hade actually made it in, that we had made it to opening day, my friend looked at me and said something I will not soon forget: “I wouldn’t have done that without you. Thanks for being my Dean”.

(PHOTO CREDITS: ANDREW FRANKLIN)

New Bird Enters Flock

Kevin Curtis might not be a name too many Eagles fans were familiar with before last week. But Andy Reid and company are hoping that it’s a name everyone who bleeds green will not soon forget.
The Utah State graduate, who signed on the dotted line last Thursday down at the Nova Care Complex, comes to Philadelphia after four seasons with the St. Louis Rams. While backing up All-Pro wideouts Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce, Curtis was able to average 50 catches, 640 yards and 5 touchdowns the last two seasons.
The Eagles first plan was to bring back Donte Stallworth. That didn’t work when Stallworth signed a six year deal for $33 million with the New England Patriots. The Eagles signed Curtis at $32 million for six years. There was obviously something more than the difference of one million dollars going on here.
Earlier this month, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Stallworth is in the league’s substance abuse program. Joe Banner and his numbers crunchers figured that their money was better spent on a player who is 2 years older but comes without the injury history and off the field issues. The Patriots’ new deep threat has only played a full sixteen game season two times in his five seasons in the league.
Kevin Curtis is a burner who will give Donovan McNabb a down the field threat right away (that is if McNabb is ready for opening day). After playing mostly on the outside in college, Curtis was used primarily in the slot in St. Louis. This should give him experience as he will most likely be moving around the field a lot in Reid’s offensive sets. The Big Guy has always been hesitant to label a #1 wide receiver and this year will be no different.
Anyone looking for the Birds to make a big splash in free agency will be disappointed. Along with the acquisition of Curtis, Bethel Johnson was also brought in to provide some depth on offense, though his primary role seems destined to be on special teams. RB Correll Buckhalter, CB William James and DE Juqua Thomas have all re signed with the team. Don’t expect much more action until the NFL Draft in late April.