City Council Meeting report
Ok ... so here is how it went down. This might be somewhat lengthy story, but I do believe it is a good one so hang in there till the end.
I wanted to arrive early, but when I went to start my car it wouldn't start - dead battery! No problem, I've got a spare battery sitting around for just such emergences, I hook it up ... turns over, but won't start - been sitting a little too long. Now its a problem. Losing time as I try to come up with an option to get to the meeting when I spot a taxi and offered $5 for a jump start - we're on the road.
I'm concerned about one thing, my attire. In fact Dana and I were up late discussing it. She tried to convince me that I wasn't performing and that I should dress up for this ... even though I know she is right, I simply can't accept that. JoeJoe is not some act that I can turn off and on, I am basically still just a kid that believes he can do anything he wants. It would be better to show up as JoeJoe than some stranger trying to look like a politician hiding the fact that he has long hair and tattoos.
Due to the cast I'm wearing on my right foot, I wear a pair of long shorts I often perform in - this way my leg is not uncomfortable - if shorts weren't allowed, I was planning on some type of American's with Disabilities privilege, as none of my pants really fit over the cast. I wear my black "Sometimes I Amaze Myself" tee-shirt - I assume hats aren't allowed so no top hat. : (
I knew my initial first impression wasn't going to be great - I used "JoeJoe" as my name, I'm not a resident of Myrtle Beach (I live in North Myrtle Beach), I don't own a business in Myrtle Beach, I'm dressed funny and walk with a limp. But overall, I do believe I delivered a good speech.
In the end, a member of the Council motioned for the City Attorney to investigate my concerns and report back to the Council. I was hoping that they might ask for an opinion on the spot at the meeting, but I can see that they would want the Attorney to have aqueduct time to verify the Court Rulings I presented. So overall, I consider it a victory - I basically have obtained exactly what I thought I was going to get, now it all depends on the opinion of the City Attorney which hopefully I have enlightened with specific Court Rulings that give street performers the full protection of the First Amendment.
Ok, so the story continues ... my plan was to wait till the end of the meeting, and attempt to talk to some of the reporters present. Every Council meeting has reporters, but they are not going to leave in the middle of the meeting to interview me. But I wanted to check the car situation, and as I feared ... the battery wouldn't turn over the engine. Now there is a problem.
I didn't really want to be at the City Council meeting trying to get a jump start ... so while I'm trying to figure out what to do, a nice lady that was leaving the meeting wished me luck. She said she had a son that played guitar and agreed he should be allowed to just take his guitar downtown and be able to play. I knew I hit a home run, my arguments really resonated not as something I wanted for my own benefit, but that the everyday citizen could relate to my plight.
So there is an Auto Zone down the street, so I go to buy a new battery. I tell the salesman my car was four blocks away ... he tells me I can't carry a car battery four blocks on a broken foot. I tell him I can. He goes to hand me the battery, little weakling using two hands ... HA! I grasp that battery with one hand and tell him I can carry that battery four blocks on a broken foot. Like I said, I am the Amazing JoeJoe and I can do anything I want!
Thus, I proceeded to carry that battery four blocks on a broken foot. Car started right up. Since I missed the reporters at the end of the meeting, I stopped off at the Sun News and left a copy of the press release and instructions to give it to the reporter that covered the City Council meeting. Thats the only media outlet that will really have any significant long term impact of this story anyway.
So that's my report ... yes I can do anything I want ... but for everything I do, there is a price to pay. So I'm going to go soak my foot in ice now. You can watch my speech online at my new site:
http://magicjoint.com/?a=articles&b=magic&c=read&d=5
-JoeJoe
I wanted to arrive early, but when I went to start my car it wouldn't start - dead battery! No problem, I've got a spare battery sitting around for just such emergences, I hook it up ... turns over, but won't start - been sitting a little too long. Now its a problem. Losing time as I try to come up with an option to get to the meeting when I spot a taxi and offered $5 for a jump start - we're on the road.
I'm concerned about one thing, my attire. In fact Dana and I were up late discussing it. She tried to convince me that I wasn't performing and that I should dress up for this ... even though I know she is right, I simply can't accept that. JoeJoe is not some act that I can turn off and on, I am basically still just a kid that believes he can do anything he wants. It would be better to show up as JoeJoe than some stranger trying to look like a politician hiding the fact that he has long hair and tattoos.
Due to the cast I'm wearing on my right foot, I wear a pair of long shorts I often perform in - this way my leg is not uncomfortable - if shorts weren't allowed, I was planning on some type of American's with Disabilities privilege, as none of my pants really fit over the cast. I wear my black "Sometimes I Amaze Myself" tee-shirt - I assume hats aren't allowed so no top hat. : (
I knew my initial first impression wasn't going to be great - I used "JoeJoe" as my name, I'm not a resident of Myrtle Beach (I live in North Myrtle Beach), I don't own a business in Myrtle Beach, I'm dressed funny and walk with a limp. But overall, I do believe I delivered a good speech.
In the end, a member of the Council motioned for the City Attorney to investigate my concerns and report back to the Council. I was hoping that they might ask for an opinion on the spot at the meeting, but I can see that they would want the Attorney to have aqueduct time to verify the Court Rulings I presented. So overall, I consider it a victory - I basically have obtained exactly what I thought I was going to get, now it all depends on the opinion of the City Attorney which hopefully I have enlightened with specific Court Rulings that give street performers the full protection of the First Amendment.
Ok, so the story continues ... my plan was to wait till the end of the meeting, and attempt to talk to some of the reporters present. Every Council meeting has reporters, but they are not going to leave in the middle of the meeting to interview me. But I wanted to check the car situation, and as I feared ... the battery wouldn't turn over the engine. Now there is a problem.
I didn't really want to be at the City Council meeting trying to get a jump start ... so while I'm trying to figure out what to do, a nice lady that was leaving the meeting wished me luck. She said she had a son that played guitar and agreed he should be allowed to just take his guitar downtown and be able to play. I knew I hit a home run, my arguments really resonated not as something I wanted for my own benefit, but that the everyday citizen could relate to my plight.
So there is an Auto Zone down the street, so I go to buy a new battery. I tell the salesman my car was four blocks away ... he tells me I can't carry a car battery four blocks on a broken foot. I tell him I can. He goes to hand me the battery, little weakling using two hands ... HA! I grasp that battery with one hand and tell him I can carry that battery four blocks on a broken foot. Like I said, I am the Amazing JoeJoe and I can do anything I want!
Thus, I proceeded to carry that battery four blocks on a broken foot. Car started right up. Since I missed the reporters at the end of the meeting, I stopped off at the Sun News and left a copy of the press release and instructions to give it to the reporter that covered the City Council meeting. Thats the only media outlet that will really have any significant long term impact of this story anyway.
So that's my report ... yes I can do anything I want ... but for everything I do, there is a price to pay. So I'm going to go soak my foot in ice now. You can watch my speech online at my new site:
http://magicjoint.com/?a=articles&b=magic&c=read&d=5
-JoeJoe
posted by JoeJoe at 6:11 PM
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