Joan Jett - NYSF 2014

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Joan Jett Returns to the New York State Fair for the First Time in Six Years
Story & Fair Photos by Tom Carpenter - Joan Jett Photos by Natasha Lewandowski

The day began as overcast and looked as if we might get rain. I arrived at the Fairgrounds at 7:45 AM, because Dawn dropped me off before work, and it would be easier than taking the bus. Nothing much was open yet, and the only people there were Fair workers. A few places did do breakfast for the Fair workers, but their prices were, to say the least, cost prohibitive.
I wheeled myself the entire length of the Fairgrounds from Gate 6, (the furthest from the front gates), where they wanted people dropped off instead of the Main Gate as in previous years. It took me about 35 minutes to go the entire distance, which I probably could have walked in less than half the time. By the time I got up to the front gates, my arms ached and I was drenched in sweat. I went over to guest services and got a map and a schedule of the day's events.
I wheeled over to the Pride of NY building by the Main Gate and got myself a big iced coffee with a shot of caramel flavor from the Utica Coffee people, and sat a while, enjoying my iced java and taking in the smells of The Fair, as the vendors began preparing their foods. The wafting smell of Gianelli sausage, and onions & peppers made my mouth water.
I sat around and waited for the buildings to open at 10 AM. During that time I chatted with volunteers at the Disabled American Veterans booth, and few ladies that were stopped for a cigarette.

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Ten o'clock finally arrived, and I rolled into the Horticulture Building and was the first person in line for the day to get two of the $1 Baked Potatoes, with butter, shredded cheddar cheese, and sour cream. They were delicious and at only $1 each, one of the BEST bargains of The Fair, if you don't mind waiting in line. During peak times, the line can stretch through the building back to the door! So, you can see why I was stoked to be the first. On an average day at The Fair, they serve over 20,000 potatoes! I ate my potatoes and then, leisurely, looked at the flower displays and competitions, as well as the best of the State's produce before heading off to other buildings. My next stop was the Dairy Building to see the butter sculpture, and get some delicious, cold, fresh mild for a quarter a glass. Next up was the Aquarium to look at fish and turtles.
But, by noon, the skies had cleared and it was sunny and hot. I rolled around The Fair checking out the sights and the new attractions & midway. It was very different in many ways. Many places that had been in the same spot for as long as I can remember were NOT there, and the Midway layout was very different. They did have many new rides, though. Unfortunately, I could not go on any of them...
Being a Wednesday, not a lot of people I knew were there. Around 2 PM, I decided that if any of my friends were there, they would probably be at the Wine Garden. When I got there, just as I has thought I found my friend Billy and chatted with him for a little while before heading back out to look at things.
I bumped into Dawn's cousins Bethany and Michaela Decker. We chatted for a while and went our separate ways. I would bump into them many times during the afternoon, including on the way to the Center of Progress Building to see the sand sculpture. Bethany, a nurse, offered to push me for a while in the chair to give my arms a break. She said that she was used to it, and I appreciated it a lot.
The sand sculpture featured a portrait of the beloved author Theodor Geisel, better known by his nom de plume: Dr. Seuss, and many characters from some of his most popular books. Included in the huge sand carving were many scattered books, the boy and Sally from The Cat in the Hat, with the story's star: The Cat, holding the Fish in a pot, as well as The Cat's companions Thing 1 and Thing 2 on the front side. The right side was The Lorax on a stump, amid a bunch of fallen Truffula trees . Horton Hears a Who was on the back side. And, on the left side to bring you back around to the front: a camel from the island of Sala-ma-Sond, and Yertle the Turtle, who was king of the pond. (It is this writer's opinion that Yertle the Turtle is, without question, the greatest book ever written on the subject of turtle stacking. Honestly, if you can find a better one, I'd like to read it.)
It was a wonderful and playful sculpture that both children and adults loved! Being a major Dr. Seuss fan, I took many photos of the sand sculpture before looking at the various gadgets and such that they have in the Center of Progress building.

Soon, it would be time to meet up with the lovely Miss Dawn when she got out of work, so I made my way towards the front entrance of the Fair to wait for her...
She arrived and had to park WAY down behind the Grandstand at the complete opposite end of the Fair. I was all the way near the main gate, so I waited for her. Along the way, she also bumped into her cousins and chatted for a while before finding me. After we met up, Dawn and I headed for the Wine Garden to get tasty and refreshing wine slushies. While we were there, we bumped into many of our friends and spent the better part of an hour drinking wine slushies, talking with them, and catching up. We waited for Jerd & Dave Klien to show up, but they got to Fair, JUST before we were to head over to see the concert.
Finally, it was time for the main event: Joan Jett & The Black Hearts! We made our way over to the Chevy Court area. Because I was in a wheelchair, Dawn and I were allowed to sit in the wheelchair section, so we were able to see pretty well.

	The introduction was made and Joan Jett hit the stage. Joan and the Blackhearts came out swinging! Right off the bat, they jumped into three classics: “Bad Reputation,” “Cherry Bomb,” and “Do You Wanna Touch Me?” The crowd was loving it. Joan looked fantastic in a multicolor metallic jumpsuit. Joan never seems to get any older! My only complaint was with the cameramen that were shooting for the screen, so that those in the far back could see. Often, they would pull in for some EXTREME Close-Ups, and when they did, the illusion of agelessness was destroyed. The lines on Joan Jett's face became painfully obvious. But, don't get me wrong, she is still beautiful, and looking far better than many women of her age. And do NOT kid yourself for one second... Joan still rocks hard! She continued on with her set, and hard core fans sang along, obviously overjoyed with her performance. Songs included “TMI,” “Soul Mates,” “You Drive Me Wild,” “Make It Back,” “Fragile,” “Love Is Pain,” “Hard To Grow Up,” “French Song,” and “Any Weather.” The final three songs were again, huge hits and included “I Love Rock & Roll,” “Crimson and Clover” which is Joan's cover of the song by Tommy James & The Shondells, of whom her longtime friend and keyboardist: Kenny Laguna was a member. The final song was “I Hate Myself for Loving You.” The enthusiastic crowd screamed for more, and Joan Jett and The Black Hearts were happy to oblige with a three song encore that consisted of “Reality Mentality,” “Wild Child,” and Joan's rocking cover of Sly & The Family Stone's “Everyday People.” After the show, Joan thanked the crowd for coming out, and left the stage. They spirited her away quickly and she did not come out to Meet & Greet her fans and sign autographs as in other years. I made my way over to the merchandise tent and got myself a Joan Jet & The Black Hearts t-shirt, before Dawn, Jerd, Dave, and I headed to the midway to get some tasty Fair foods, before calling it a night. Dawn and I shared a Butterfly Potato with cheese on it, and I got a cheap hamburger to eat. Jerd also got a Butterfly Potato. I was amazed to see D-Klien not eat...LOL. After that, we made our way to the far end of the Fair, past the Grandstand and through all the Carrie Underwood fans in their short shorts and boots and cowboy hats. As we rolled past the State Police at the back side of the Grandstand, they joked with us that if we picked up the pace, we might catch the country star's bus. I laughed and told them, “We don't care about no Hairy Underwear, we were here for Joan Jett!” which made them bust out laughing, and they wished us a good night. We made it back to the truck, loaded in the wheelchair and headed home. It took us nearly 30 minutes to get out of the parking lot, but once we did, we hit the highway and were home within 20 minutes. Dave was waiting for us to crash at our house, and we all went to bed, happy with a good day.

The introduction was made and Joan Jett hit the stage. Joan and the Blackhearts came out swinging! Right off the bat, they jumped into three classics: “Bad Reputation,” “Cherry Bomb,” and “Do You Wanna Touch Me?” The crowd was loving it.
Joan looked fantastic in a multicolor metallic jumpsuit. Joan never seems to get any older! My only complaint was with the cameramen that were shooting for the screen, so that those in the far back could see. Often, they would pull in for some EXTREME Close-Ups, and when they did, the illusion of agelessness was destroyed. The lines on Joan Jett's face became painfully obvious. But, don't get me wrong, she is still beautiful, and looking far better than many women of her age. And do NOT kid yourself for one second... Joan still rocks hard! She continued on with her set, and hard core fans sang along, obviously overjoyed with her performance. Songs included “TMI,” “Soul Mates,” “You Drive Me Wild,” “Make It Back,” “Fragile,” “Love Is Pain,” “Hard To Grow Up,” “French Song,” and “Any Weather.” The final three songs were again, huge hits and included “I Love Rock & Roll,” “Crimson and Clover” which is Joan's cover of the song by Tommy James & The Shondells, of whom her longtime friend and keyboardist: Kenny Laguna was a member. The final song was “I Hate Myself for Loving You.”
The enthusiastic crowd screamed for more, and Joan Jett and The Black Hearts were happy to oblige with a three song encore that consisted of “Reality Mentality,” “Wild Child,” and Joan's rocking cover of Sly & The Family Stone's “Everyday People.”
After the show, Joan thanked the crowd for coming out, and left the stage. They spirited her away quickly and she did not come out to Meet & Greet her fans and sign autographs as in other years.
I made my way over to the merchandise tent and got myself a Joan Jet & The Black Hearts t-shirt, before Dawn, Jerd, Dave, and I headed to the midway to get some tasty Fair foods, before calling it a night.
Dawn and I shared a Butterfly Potato with cheese on it, and I got a cheap hamburger to eat. Jerd also got a Butterfly Potato. I was amazed to see D-Klien not eat...LOL.
After that, we made our way to the far end of the Fair, past the Grandstand and through all the Carrie Underwood fans in their short shorts and boots and cowboy hats.
As we rolled past the State Police at the back side of the Grandstand, they joked with us that if we picked up the pace, we might catch the country star's bus. I laughed and told them, “We don't care about no Hairy Underwear, we were here for Joan Jett!” which made them bust out laughing, and they wished us a good night.
We made it back to the truck, loaded in the wheelchair and headed home. It took us nearly 30 minutes to get out of the parking lot, but once we did, we hit the highway and were home within 20 minutes.
Dave was waiting for us to crash at our house, and we all went to bed, happy with a good day.

PHOTOS BY NATASHA LEWANDOWSKI