So… here it is a lazy summer day. Our kids pretty much stepped on our last nerve (as kids LOVE to do to their parents) so we were not up to doing something THEY wanted to do. Instead my husband wanted to go to the park down by the Hudson River to walk around, relax and get some fresh air much the the mumbling and grumbling of the kids.
Since we were just going to hang out by the river I didn’t feel the need to get all dressed up or put on make up and do my hair. So I just wet my hair, tossed it in a ponytail and threw on an old t-shirt and shorts.
When we got to the park there was a lot of people there and TONS of motorcycles. We weren’t sure what was going on but then we saw there was a banner up for the March of Dimes. So we figured it was some motorcycle thing to raise money for March of Dimes. As the mother of a preemie I can certainly appreciate that a lot.
When we got out of the car my husband said to me “Look, that’s Dee Snider”. For those who might not know who he is he’s the lead singer of an 80′s hair band called “Twisted Sister”. If you are around my age (41) you probably remember them. They sang “We’re not gonna take it” and “I wanna rock”. Dee Snider had a head of HUGE crazy blond hair and wore a ton of make up. He also dressed really, umm… let’s say…interesting.
Of course I didn’t believe my husband but he said it again that he saw Dee Snider. Sure enough he was RIGHT! It was Dee Snider chatting to some people in the parking lot. WOW!
THANKFULLY my husband took the digital camera with him. Normally I carry my Vado with me too but this time I left my pocketbook (with the Vado) at home since we were just going to hang at the park.
We didn’t even really have to approach Dee. He looked over at us and walked up to US and said “Hey, how’s it going guys?” and shook my husband’s hand. Then he shook my hand and I said “Hello Mr. Snider” (yeah, yeah. I know. I was raised to be a proper young lady). He said “Oh please. Call me Dee”. We chatted with him a bit and he was talking to my son about the Sponge Bob Squarepants movie and how he did a song at the end of the movie called “Goofy Goober Rock” to the beat of “I wanna rock” (I never knew that!). My son knew what song he was referring to.
The above picture is me and my family and Dee Snider. For those familiar with him he still has the long blond wavy hair, it was just in a pony tail. Here is a picture of Dee Snider back from his Twisted Sister days (80′s hair band). WOW! What a difference!
He was SO NICE!!! He approached us and he hung out and chatted with us. How cool is that! Yes, I know. He looks so weird in the above picture, but that was his “persona” back in the 80′s.
Once Dee left we walked around the park, took pictures, got sunburned (well I did anyway). Then my daughter bumped into one of her friends and wanted to hang out with her for a little bit WITHOUT her parents around to embarrass her (ha ha) so my husband, our son and I just sort of stood there listening to a band that was playing. Then we noticed Dee go up to the band and talk to them. Then Dee took the microphone and talked a bit. He told everyone how two days ago he was performing in Spain in front of 25,000+ people and now here he is performing in front of the hamburgers (there was a BBQ going on right next to him). Ha Ha!
Dee went on to do “We’re not gonna take it” and then “Born to be Wild”. All the people were singing along, including me. My son was SO EMBARRASSED!!! Ha! Who cares! Dee Snider was singing mere feet away from us… of course I was going to rock along with him. WAHOO!!!!
Here are some pictures of Dee Snider singing. Wahoo! How cool is this! And yes, back in the 80′s I was so into the “hair bands”. Twisted Sister, Ratt, Poison, Winger, Judas Priest, Cinderella… I loved heavy metal. My good friends even had their own heavy metal band too.
We learned that he was there as the National Spokesman for the March of Dimes “Bikers for Babies” (http://www.bikersforbabies.org/). We have since learned that Dee and his wife of 28 years had two premature babies. As the parents of a premature baby (our son was 9 weeks premature and weighed 2 pounds 8 ounces) we truly appreciate all the word that the March of Dimes does.
To learn more about Bikers for Babies visit www.BikersforBabies.org. It looks like a fantastic organization. There are many ways you can help out.
If you are interested in learning more about Dee Snider you can visit his official web site at www.DeeSnider.com.
Twisted Sister is releasing a new anniversary album too (25 years!) called “Stay Hungry”. Click on the album image (below) to learn more about it. Needless to say you know we’ll be looking into getting is.
Wowie! Wowie! Wowie!!! First I got to interview Kenny Loggins. Today I got to talk to Dee Snider and listen to him sing a few songs. They say things happen in 3′s. I wonder what other famous musician I’ll get to talk to or meet? How AWESOME is that!
