Always show up for the opener - Karina Rykman and Coyote Island at the Atlantis DC

Last night I went out, on a school night, to go see Karina Rykman at the Atlantis in DC. Worth it.

My friend Dave asked me "Does Guster know you're cheating on them," and he pretty much has asked me this every time I've gone to see a non-Guster show. Like Amythyst Kiah, Counting Crows, Ben Folds, and others. 

And to be honest I would hope they'd be super happy that I went to see someone who has opened for them. 

The chain of custody is: 

• Barenaked Ladies introduced me to Guster (officially)
• Guster introduced me to Marco Benevento, Karina is in his band
• Karina started playing out with her band, and now she's introduced me to her opener on this round, Coyote Island 

The Atlantis opened last year, in the same spot as the original 9:30 Club. And the 9:30 Club's current location is right in front of this spot. The capacity is about 450 people, so it is a super small venue. 

My friend Tim and I met for dinner, and we were waiting for another friend to join us but he was stuck in traffic. Tim and I got there right after the doors opened, knowing we'd have about 45 minutes until the opener would hit the stage. Hardly anyone was there and I was a little concerned. But, have a beer, check out the crowd coming in, and eventually the hearty hardy souls would arrive 

Coyote Island was a lot of fun. I mean, what a joy to watch these guys play. They're from Maine, of all places, and while I personally am not into a lot of the white-boy-reggae island jam kinds of groups, I really felt the vibe here and thought they were a perfect opening act for Karina. And remember, you should always show up for the opener. You never know who you're going to see! 

Karina and her band (Adam November on guitar, Chris Corsico on drums) took the stage. It is kind of funny to seem them rather spread out until you watch Karina at work. She's everywhere. She's bouncing, hair dancing, bending backwards, her bass is about as tall as she is, probably weighs more too. And they just do not stop. They do not stop. I wanted to leave the rail and go upstairs and look at the show from above but didn't want to lose my prime viewing spot. 

Her sister was standing next to me (I found her on Facebook and verified her existence and their relationship so that was kind of cool). The two of us just cheered and laughed, arms in the air, and big sister yelling at the little sister about all the things, and Karina hearing every word. Just watching her perform is outstanding. I always say to people I'd like to be as happy at work as Karina is. Oh and when they did Song 2 by Blur, the place exploded. Absolute roof blowing moment, and she seemed absolutely overjoyed. Also Genius of Love is a favorite of mine from the Tom Tom Club so standing right in front of her singing my ass off as she's channeling the Mother Goddess of Rock and Roll Bass players, Tina Weymouth, such a vibe. Thanks to the rando dude who took the picture of the set list and texted it to me so I can relive all the tunes. Goin' up, Goin' up, Elevator.

I took a ton of pictures, here are just a couple. Digits for today below. And please know, I got my "dedicated 10" last night plus a couple solid hours. Whew!

digits 

exercise: 12/12 hours of 250 steps.  No dedicated 10, ended day with 5200+ steps

blood glucose:

8:30am: 155
4:30pm: 162
10:30pm: 174

food:

coffee, water, hot tea
9:45: pbj sandwich on 647 bread
11am: bowl of mac&cheese w/bacon; metformin
7pm: roast chicken dinner w/ roasted potatoes, stuffing, carrots; metformin+jardiance