R.I.P CD World and Meridian Room

Yesterday was a sad day as both Meridian Room and CD World closed there doors for the last time.

 

The first time I made a purchase from CD World, they didn't even own a shop. My mother and I were at the intersection of Park and Greenville on the way home from a doctor’s appointment and there was a dude standing in the street with a Mariah Carey CD in one hand and I believe a Butthole Surfers album in the other. We purchased both, Mariah for my sister, and the Butthole Surfers/Sepultura/Ministry or whatever it was <> for me.

When I worked in the Ticketmaster call center in the late 90's I would get off work everyday and walk over to CD World and spend hours just looking through the CDs and stuff, most of my paycheck went to that store and I never regretted it. People can talk about CD Source all they want, but the environment has never been the same, and the people working there seem to only have a superficial knowledge of music. I guess from now on when I am shopping for music that we don't carry at my work I will have to make a visit to Good Records.

Meridian also holds a special place in my heart, from  watching Jason make a fool of himself there on numerous occasions, our annual Thanksgiving trips there with Adrienne,  the girls I met there and subsequently dated, delicious food, naked men dancing and singing on bars, it was almost always fun. I am sad it is closing, but I have to take some of the blame, due to the DART construction and inadequate parking I had stopped going there, evidently so had everyone else. Hopefully someone will reopen it and keep the same vibe that Meridian had, or maybe even improve on it. However knowing this city they will put in a Potbellies or a Chili’s and totally ruin Expo Park.

I forgot the time that Me and a certain lady were making out in the kitchen after close, and she heard the busboy coming with the dishes so she shoved me in the employee bathroom and told me she would be right back. 5 minutes later the bathroom door opens up and the busboy almost had a heart attack when he saw me standing in there, in the dark.

fun times indeed

Save the House Where Superman was Born

For years I have heard of people, customers usually sometimes a blogger, talk about how when they went on a trip to Cleveland they decided to stop and look at the house where Jerry Siegel created Superman. It is not a historical site, or a museum, but the couple who live there from all accounts are happy to let strangers stop by and look at the place, and sit in the room where 2 men created something that, whether you want to admit it or not, gave so many of us something to aspire to as children. Some of us never stopped using it as inspiration. I know it is cool to hate Superman, he isn't dark or gritty and he does the right thing, but no matter what comic book characters you looked up to as a child, this is an important historical place worth preserving.

I know if I ever find myself anywhere near Cleveland I would like to stop by and visit this house, and it sure would be nice to say "I helped Save this Place"