As an intern at Oklahoma Today the magazine, I get to do many important tasks like fact checking, running errands, more fact checking, and the occasional small, very small write-up.  Glamorous, I know.  Being an intern is how most people start.  You have to start at the bottom to get to the top, and if you haven’t then I hate you.

On the bright side of my non-paying 20 hour a week job, I haven’t had to get anyone coffee (which is such a plus since I’ve never made a cup).  My boss is nothing like Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada, thank goodness.  Oh yeah, there’s that thing called experience that I’m racking up too…and the perks.

Experience, blah, blah, blah…let’s focus on the more exciting.  Did I say, perks?  Wow, I’m slightly shocked myself, but yeah, I did.  You probably think I mean a nice parking space (I park in a parking garage), an awesome letter of recommendation (not in my hands yet people), or the inside scoop on upcoming jobs (need I remind you this is a recession–no job in sight).  No I’m talking about Another Hot Oklahoma Night: A Rock & Roll Exhibit.

Who needs recommendations that lead to being on a payroll, when you have ‘drugs, sex, and rock ‘n’ roll’, right?  That’s what I told my mother when I got asked to work the pre-showing of the exhibit.  I was so excited: Who would I see?  What bands would play?  Could a rock star fall in love with me at first sight and sweep me off my feet?

More than my hopes of becoming a rock star’s wife, I was proud to be at an event that would celebrate, what I think is one of Oklahoma Today’s coolest issues, State of Rock.  So, I got the perfect dress, painted my nails dark purple, clicked my gunmetal heels, and was off to Oz…well, a deranged version of my typical Friday night that is.

At the Oklahoma Historical Center I was given a ‘staff’ pass, sat down at my assigned ‘N-P’ check-in station, and told to not act like maniac teenager cradling the MMMBop CD while crying at a Hanson concert…because yes, Zac Hanson would be there!

I tried to remain composed and cool.  In fact, I was doing very good until Wayne Coyne, the lead singer of The Flaming Lips walked through the door, and I began to take pictures of him…like a maniac.

After my brush with stardom, I calmed down enough to finish my job and enjoy the rest of the night.  The place was packed as I walked around with two Oklahoma Film and Music interns and everyone mingled, listened to the live music, or looked at the exhibit.

I know you didn’t have the perk like me to see the exhibit with the musicians there, but everyone should check out this exhibit that features artists like J.J. Cale, Leon Russell, The Five Americans, Dwight Twilley, The Flaming Lips, Jesse Ed Davis, and so many more.

I probably could have spent two hours looking at all the memorabilia and reading about music that came from my home state, but then Wanda Jackson got on stage, and I had to hear her sing.

A queen of rock, this petite singer/songwriter was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame February 2009.  Performing for over fifty years, this ex-girlfriend of Elvis gave a performance to shake your boots to, and I loved every minute of it.  Larry and Lorrie, The Collins Kids, a brother and sister duo from Tahlequah, Oklahoma that have been rocking since pre-teens and were regulars on the 50s Town Hall Party, also played at the event.

By the end of the night, I felt as if I had trashed a hotel room or gone on tour like a true rock legend with music always pulsing in my head, through my veins.  I was rocked out!  I also decided that my internship was better than ever.

Sure fact checking sometimes makes me want to ditch journalism and become a roofer, marine biologist, tap dancer…anything, but this perk showed my hard work has meant something.  So gosh, darn it, I’ll take a hot Oklahoma night any day, even if it means learning to make a Mocha or two.

Another Hot Oklahoma Night, Oklahoma Historical Center, 2401 Laird Ave, OKC.  Adults $5.00, Seniors $4.00, Students $3.00, Children FREE.  Hours: Mon-Sat 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., Sun 12:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

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Hanson, Music, Oklahoma Film and Music, Oklahoma Today, Rock 'n' Roll, The Collins Kids, Wanda Jackson, Wayne Coyne