885 MMMM ~ Most Memorable Lollapalooza

In my hometown, there used to be a family restaurant/ice cream parlor named Bridgeman’s. The place was famous for its “diner” food and malteds. The kind of eatery where they have a counter with stools, loads of booths and an area just for eating ice cream.

They had a sundae on their menu called the Lalapalooza. We’re talking six scoops of ice cream. Two vanilla, two chocolate, two strawberry. Every kind of sauce you can image: chocolate, pineapple, butterscotch, strawberry. A whole banana. Nuts, whipped cream and the obligatory cherry on top.

One night, my grandma Rosemary took me and a friend there for dinner. I probably ate a cheeseburger and fries. Seeing that Rosie liked to spoil me, she had no problem with me ordering the Lalapalooza for dessert.

One of the incentives of finishing the behemoth: a button. The waitress would pin a button onto your shirt. You could exit the establishment head high, button glistening under the lights.

Looking back now, I’m not sure how I was able to stomach that much ice cream AFTER eating a meal. Most people would share a Lalapalooza. Going it along was intestinal suicide.

But I dug in, the spoon shoveling the dessert into my mouth. Eating quickly so as not to notice how full I was becoming. Vanilla, chocolate, strawberry. Bananas, chocolate sauce, nuts, butterscotch. Mouthful after mouthful, I attacked that gigantic dish with a vengeance. With a purpose.

To leave Bridgeman’s with a button. With a smile.

Of course, I left with the trinket, a smile AND a stomach ache.



Oh, I also went to Lollapalooza in the Twin Cities during the summer of 1994. Here are some songs by some bands that played that year.

Smashing Pumpkins ~ Soma, Mayonaise

The Beastie Boys ~ Sabotage, Get It Together (with Q-Tip)

George Clinton ~ Atomic Dog, Flashlight

Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds ~ Do You Love Me?

A Tribe Called Quest ~ Check The Rhyme

More 885 MMMM on The Late Greats

More 885 MMMM at WXPN

Many of these Lolla bands are eligible for some of your 25 FREE Downloads from eMusic.

CONTEST REMINDER!!! LAST DAY TO ENTER TO Win The Hottest State: Soundtrack and Novel!!!