Lisa Denton and Barry Courter
BARRY COURTER: Lisa, when it comes to city parks, are you fer 'em or agin 'em?
LISA DENTON: I am definitely fer 'em, and possibly agin 'em, if you consider that "agin 'em" could mean rolling in the grass or climbing trees. Not that I do too much of that anymore. Too many ticks and chiggers. And critters like that seem to find their way to places where you can't pick 'em off unless you have the flexibility of a circus performer. Which I don't. But you were saying?
BARRY: Wow, that was a longer walk in the park than I imagined when I posed what I thought to be a fairly banal query, but now that you mention chiggers in places I can't reach, I'm rethinking the whole idea. Maybe I'm agin 'em too. There's also the whole thing about people not picking up after their dogs, and who does that? Seriously.
Our Miller Park will hold a reopening party on Friday, and I don't think I've seen a longer list of events associated with an event since I submitted my birthday requests before my 16th birthday. The actual event was much smaller than I envisioned, but no matter.
LISA: Was that wish list any longer than the one you've supplied for your next birthday? Goodness. There are only so many power tools one man could possibly need.
C-Grimey will be among the Hip Hop Cha artists performing at the grand reopening of Miller Park on Friday. (Facebook Photo)BARRY: Don't judge me. I can dream, can't I? Anyway, the event Friday is all-day affair with lots of live music, bellydancing, jugglers, an LED light show, food and much more. We had Jonathan Susman with the city and Hip Hop Cha artist C-Grimey on our Music Wednesdays show last week to talk about it. C-Grimey was amazing, by the way. Really powerful stuff. We definitely need to walk over and check it out on Friday.
LISA: Definitely. And I'm ready for the jugglers. I've always heard that if you're ever attacked by a mob of clowns, always go for the juggler.
BARRY: Now, that's funny. 'Cause if a mob of clowns attacks you, you're in a really bad horror film and there is no coming back from that.
LISA: Exactly. But I promise to behave. It'll be my nice jester for the day.
Yes, the Miller Park grand reopening should be tons of fun. They have a bunch of singers coming, including The Power Players, featuring Willie Kitchens, a former singer with the Impressions; Amber Carrington, a semifinalist on "The Voice"; Voices of The Creative Underground; Ogya World Music Band; and Hive Theory. And that's just the nighttime people.
Activities start with a ribbon-cutting at 11 a.m., followed by music by Carlos Colon & His Tropical Swing Band and the Hip Hop Cha artists.
BARRY: Seriously, it's going to be a really cool day with plenty of activity, and I'm pretty sure it will be chigger-free.
Get event details every Thursday in Chattanooga Now or online anytime at www.ChattanoogaNow.com.
Contact Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6354. Contact Lisa Denton at ldenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6281.