Five years ago, May 5th 2009, Chad Collins Charlestown was on his way to San Juan for short celebration of Cinco de Mayo, where he was due to play a few sets solo, acoustic, headlining among a few local bands from the area. At the airport, Chad Collins Charlestown realized that he was in the presence of a huge opportunity: Duty Free.!!A Duty Free Adventure!!Perhaps buzzed already from a few complementary glasses of champagne from a guest two rows behind coquito, chad collins charlestownhim in first class, Chad couldn’t resist the temptation of a small discount from what anyone would pay for a drink downtown. The reason I say “perhaps buzzed” is because the entire event was already catered by the company that had booked him. So there wasn’t any need for more alcohol, or at least no need to pay for it!!!Regardless, Chad saw this as an opportunity to buy some local concoction. As he recalls it would have been Coquito, a mixed milk drink with high “on the rocks” potential. Chad Collins Charlestown had one issue, however, in mixing and mingling with the woman in first class who had bought him the drinks, he had eventually given her his boarding pass and signed it for her to tack up to her wall or bedside or something. Regardless, it was clear from a conversation with the duty free cashier that a boarding pass was needed to enjoy a taxless drink.!!Finding a Boarding Pass!!Stumped, but not for long, Chad Collins Charlestown ventured back into the gate area in search of a willing friend. He checked his watch, and it looked like he was due on set in another 10 minutes. He had to act fast.!!He saw a group of large Japanese men huddling over copies of Haruki Murakami. Nope. A tall man with one leg in a binding, resting on some kind of one leg motor scooter. Nope. Three Puerto Rican girls playing dominos on the floor between the seats of the waiting area. Yup.!!Getting the Duty Free!!To make a long story short, two of the girls came with Chad while the other sat and read his tracklist back at their seats and watched their things. He procured the Coquito with the girls boarding passes, and soon, Ding! over the intercom came a final boarding call. Panicked, Chad Collins Charlestown ran with the Coquito and got in line for the flight. As he handed the stewardess his pass she smiled at him and admired his eyes. He to hers two.!!On the Plane???!

!While taxiing toward the runway, and chatting with the young doctor next to him. The stewardess made an announcement, “thank you everyone for visiting San Juan. We hope you enjoyed your time, but next time you should stay for today! This evening will be an excellent celebration for Cinco de Mayo”. When he heard the words, Chad spat his drink out all over the doctor’s window (while she was taking in her last view of the beach) and unbuckled his seatbelt. !!“Get me offa this plane!”!!Offa the Plane!!!!!Chad made a mild scene and explained to the stewardess his situation. She refused to help, though when she went to inform the captain when she was unable to restrain him, the plane stopped. The captain came back and shook Chad’s hand. “I’m a big fan of your music, Mr. Charlestown. Investor Relations is a fantastic album, and am I correct in thinking you played a role in the band “The Dilettantes”?”. Chad nodded.!!In a gesture of admiration, the pilot turned the plane around and actually drove Chad directly to where the concert was supposed to happen. It turned out they had to be airborne to get there, so the plane took off and landed immediatley on the street just outside his to be beachside performance.!!Chad was just on time, and the audience loved him even more for his entrance. Those who didn’t know him surely then did.