Part One: Martha is Totally Underwhelmed
Last Saturday, we had a wee bit of rain during the afternoon hours. Enough to make me start worrying about whether I’d be able to head out for an evening of dancing at 2nd Saturdays Downtown.
I mean, come on. Do you call this a measurement of rainfall? Looks pretty paltry to me…
Best thing I can say about our underwhelming monsoon storms is that they’ve caused my big sunken garden to bloom.
What are those seedlings? Wish I knew. I tossed the seeds in the garden basin a few months ago, forgot about them, and now look…
Then there’s my Texas Ranger bush. Thing’s making a major move on the driveway. Not that I care. I don’t have a car.
Note to everyone else who parks in my driveway: Do not run over the Texas Ranger…
That’s the plant report. And the weather report for Saturday. Oh, yes, I danced up a storm during Roll Acosta’s set at 2nd Saturdays Downtown.
Part Two: All Hell Breaks Loose
I don’t think I’ve mentioned this here before, but I have this alter ego named Deejay Martha Jean. Said alter ego makes occasional appearances on Tucson’s community radio station, KXCI-FM 91.3.
This past Sunday afternoon, I had a KXCI show. Shortly after 3 p.m., I noticed quite the cloud deck along the southern horizon.
As noted above, I have been very unimpressed with the 2012 monsoon season. But I thought that it might be a good idea to get to the station a little early. Just in case it rains.
Well, I get down there, the Sunday afternoon public affairs programming is in full swing. I head into the KXCI library to find the music for my show.
After 4:30 p.m., I’m signed into the official station log, and what’s that outside? A big, black cloud. Adding a sinister backdrop to the pre-recorded LGBT community radio show, “This Way Out.”
And then…
…A-a-a-ack! A-a-a-ack! A-a-a-ack! Emergency Alert System! It’s a bad storm! Headed our way! The station’s power blinks out! Power comes back on! Whew!
And then it’s a little bit before 5 p.m., and…
“91-3 KXCI Tucson. Real People. Real Radio. My name is Martha Jean, we are having some severe weather outside…”
A-a-a-ack! A-a-a-ack! A-a-a-ack! Emergency Alert System butts in during my first music set.
It’s really pouring rain outside, and you know me. I have to tell tens of thousands of my very best friends that I rode my bicycle to the station.
My “Jazz Women!” special on the “Broad Perspectives Radio” show only lasts for an hour. And hey! Look who’s next! It’s Mr. Classic Vinyl his own self, Ron Cipriani!
If you’ve been around Tucson bicycling for a few years, you’ll probably remember Ron from his bicycle frame painting days. Suffice it to say that he was very good at it.
Any-hoo, Ron and I had to get caught up on all the gossip about the bicycling people we know, other KXCI deejays, the music we like, and so forth. Since it was raining cats and dogs outside, I sure as heck wasn’t going anywhere.
I finally left the station during the 7 o’clock hour. As I was passing by the Hotel Congress, I heard a loud thunderclap. And I yelled “Oh, be quiet!”
By the time I got home, the rain was really starting to come down again.
Okay, monsoons. Now I’m impressed.