Sunset Junction a.k.a. Funnest Day Ever!

If there is one big lesson I took out of 2008, it was that it's much better to have a friend in a band, than it is to have a boyfriend in a band. Ilya and I decided to go see Mikel play at Sunset Junction, an annual Sunset favorite, and had one of THE BEST Ilya and Stacy days ever! We spent the early afternoon walking around people watching as we waited for Mikel and The Airborne Toxic Event to begin their performance. The day was a lovely, 103 degrees and all the beer in the world couldn't convince me that I wasn't about to pass out from heat exhaustion. At one point, I kept telling Ilya that the world was going dark and I was about to pass out. I downed a beer and a hot dog and all was well again.After ATE's performance Ilya and I, in rare groupie form went "backstage", which was more of a back gate than anything, and said hello to Mikel. Like a true rock star, the last time I had seen him was when he stumbled off into the night, pissed off for some reason beyond me. Ah, the life of a tortured romantic musician! Suffice it to say, Mikel was better to admire at a distance. Today, ATE is gaining popularity and has a regular presence on all the local radio stations. It is great to watch him succeed in something that is so dear to him, and it is well deserved, ATE is an amazing and talented band. Ilya and I found ourselves going with Mikel and the band to some random bar which felt like an oasi. The mixture of cold beer and air conditioning meant that we weren't about to leave this dark bar and venture off into the hot hot heat and LA sunshine anytime soon. Why do I look so much more posey in this picture than he does?But not in this one!!! Ah, the drunken Jollet's - Mikel and his big bro.Now this guy was hilarious, his name is Tim and he is from a band called "The Movies". Not only does he love to drink but he is a self professed lover of black girls...HI YO! This is the back of Anna. If you are a regular watcher of Leno, Letterman or Conan you would be more familair with the front of her. She is in Airborne and plays the violin...and the tambourine.You aren't truly a local of Los Angeles, until you have been drunk at some random person's, indie band house party in the bowels of Sunset Junction, dated a rising musician and vowed to never date another musician. And for 2008, I was a local Angelino...and in 2009 I am happy to say, I have moved away and onward.