I was supposed to take a vacation to get away from the f**king heat here in the midwest (see last blog entry: Doldrums), so I did. To Cleveland. Now I know what you're thinking, not exactly a tourist mecca, and you'd be right, even though all the cute guys up there look a lot like Billy. And even though I went up there for a wedding (family thing...drank too much..puked...did it right) you may want to re-think that and make a stop at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

It's set on the waterfront adjacent to a cool Science Center and the stadium where the lame-ass Cleveland Browns play, a picturesque backdrop for the ultra-modern pyramid like building that houses the Hall of Fame. I liked some of the interactive displays, thought the "Mystery Train" movies were lame, and enjoyed the Hall of Fame itself, the signatures of famous rockers etched on a backlit wall. But what really got me were two displays, both in an area devoted to bands.

The first was the homage to Queen. Freddie Mercury: what a talented and tragic individual! One of my major life regrets: I didn't get to f**k him when I was young.

The second was the section for Michael Jackson. I guess it was because he'd just died that made it so intense. Seeing the single glove he wore when singing "Billie Jean," the jacket he wore in the video to "Beat It"...those kinds of things just made his loss seem as tragic as, well, his life. I remembered fondly the years before he'd turned himself into a freak and exposed himself as a possible pedophile, to the heyday of his career, to "Thriller." Personally, I like the old Jackson 5 stuff better, but that video of "Beat It" always sticks in my brain. I remember when he filmed it, how the story (I assume it's true) was that he used real gang member as extras at a time when gang warfare was rampant, and very much in the news. That kind of cutting edge music and cutting edge social activism is what I'm going to try and remember when I think of Michael Jackson.

So Cleveland....nice place to visit. Don't think I'd want to live there though (try ordering a pizza after 11 in the suburbs).