Case Time at the Apollo
Dec. 5th, 2015 12:58 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vovatBeth and I both took a civil service test for Office Assistant positions this past Thursday. We've taken several of them in the past, and nothing ever seems to come of them. But then, there are a lot of applicants, and veterans automatically get preferential treatment. I guess it's possible we'll be lucky someday, but I sometimes feel that Beth pushes too much for these. I don't know. I have another one next week that she isn't taking, and I have to go all the way to Queens for that. This one was in Downtown Brooklyn, hence much more convenient. It was also computer-based rather than on paper. It consisted of seventy multiple-choice questions, many of them about putting things in order and noticing mistakes. Pretty easy, although the system says I got two wrong. I'm usually one of the first to complete these tests, which is kind of a relief but also a little scary, like I'm just not paying as much attention as everyone else. I believe I was the second one finished this time. The third, if I remember correctly, was wearing a Sonic the Hedgehog T-shirt and running pants. Gotta go fast! There's a brief typing test after the main one, and I have to wonder why they don't do that first, since it takes the same amount of time for everybody. Instead, they have to wait until enough people have finished the other test to bring a group in to do the typing. Fortunately, I brought a book.
Last night was the Neko Case concert at the Apollo Theater, where the upper mezzanine was general admission, not something I can recall seeing before. We got there pretty early, though, so even though we were far from the stage, we were about as close as we could get in the farthest-away section. There were notices all over stating that photography wasn't allowed. According to the Internet, Neko has had confrontations with audience members over this in the past, so just outright not allowing it is probably the best idea. I usually do take a few pictures at concerts if I'm allowed, but rarely do they come out very well. I forget the opener's name, but he was a guy from Denmark who played guitar and keyboard, and was pretty uninteresting. Neko's band had three people, including mainstay Jon Rauhouse. Kelly Hogan wasn't there, which was strange since she's been at every Neko show I've attended for years. Apparently she's doing some recording and performing with the Decemberists. Neko played a good mix of songs, including "Duchess" from her first album and a few others she said she rarely did live. Neko's shows are always fun (at least if no one tries to take pictures, I guess) because she's really funny and personable between songs, then powerful when she sings, with most of her songs being on the dark side. Beth and I started seeing her when she was playing fairly small venues back in 2002 or so, and now she's performing in large theaters. I was a fan before she was famous! No, seriously, we all know the "I saw them first!" attitude associated with hipsters is annoying, but there is a certain bittersweet feeling when an artist increases in popularity. It's like you're glad for their success, but miss when the shows were more intimate, you know? By the way, even though Neko was playing at the Apollo, the Sandman didn't show up to sweep her off when she messed up on "Margaret vs. Pauline."
After the show, we went to eat at the nearby Harlem Shake, which was good. Beth had a cheeseburger and a peanut butter milkshake, and I had two hot dogs and a strawberry shake. The hot dogs were the kind with the thick skins, which I used to not like but later grew to appreciate; and the shakes were quite good. I also feel it worth mentioning that there was a picture of Ice Cube on the ice dispenser behind the counter.
Last night was the Neko Case concert at the Apollo Theater, where the upper mezzanine was general admission, not something I can recall seeing before. We got there pretty early, though, so even though we were far from the stage, we were about as close as we could get in the farthest-away section. There were notices all over stating that photography wasn't allowed. According to the Internet, Neko has had confrontations with audience members over this in the past, so just outright not allowing it is probably the best idea. I usually do take a few pictures at concerts if I'm allowed, but rarely do they come out very well. I forget the opener's name, but he was a guy from Denmark who played guitar and keyboard, and was pretty uninteresting. Neko's band had three people, including mainstay Jon Rauhouse. Kelly Hogan wasn't there, which was strange since she's been at every Neko show I've attended for years. Apparently she's doing some recording and performing with the Decemberists. Neko played a good mix of songs, including "Duchess" from her first album and a few others she said she rarely did live. Neko's shows are always fun (at least if no one tries to take pictures, I guess) because she's really funny and personable between songs, then powerful when she sings, with most of her songs being on the dark side. Beth and I started seeing her when she was playing fairly small venues back in 2002 or so, and now she's performing in large theaters. I was a fan before she was famous! No, seriously, we all know the "I saw them first!" attitude associated with hipsters is annoying, but there is a certain bittersweet feeling when an artist increases in popularity. It's like you're glad for their success, but miss when the shows were more intimate, you know? By the way, even though Neko was playing at the Apollo, the Sandman didn't show up to sweep her off when she messed up on "Margaret vs. Pauline."
After the show, we went to eat at the nearby Harlem Shake, which was good. Beth had a cheeseburger and a peanut butter milkshake, and I had two hot dogs and a strawberry shake. The hot dogs were the kind with the thick skins, which I used to not like but later grew to appreciate; and the shakes were quite good. I also feel it worth mentioning that there was a picture of Ice Cube on the ice dispenser behind the counter.
