On April 12th, 1982 I wrote a letter to Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat.   “Dear Ian, Could you please send me a copy of the Youth Brigade 45.  I have enclosed a check for $2.50.  A friend and I are going to be venturing to your beautiful city in the end of June, maybe earlier or later.  When I recently spoke with Henry, he said it might be possible for us to stay with you.  I am going to try to be there when Black Flag and Sacchrine Trust are going to be there because Rob H, the drummer of S.T. are old friends.  Sincerely, Kevin Salk   PS The Flex Your Head album is excellent!!” 

I was seventeen years old and was going into my senior year at Mira Costa High School in Manhattan Beach.  I was knee deep into the LA punk rock scene but also loved many of the bands of the DC Hardcore scene, especially Minor Threat.  Black Flag was on their east coast tour and they were playing at the Wilson Center in DC.  Black Flag was my favorite band and combining with seeing them along with Minor Threat and other DC bands would be an epic trip!

The big question that I still ask myself to this day is HOW THE FUCK DID I PULL IT OFF??  My former step dad at the time worked for one of the major airlines so I was able to fly for free…transportation issue solved!  The next was to get my mom and my dad to agree to it.  “Hi mom and dad, can I fly to Washington DC and stay with these punk rock guys who have a band?”… ”Black Flag is going to be playing and they are my favorite band”…“I would sleep on their couch at this place called Dischord House in Arlington, Virginia”…“They are part of this thing called ‘Straight Edge’ which means that they don’t drink or do drugs”…“I will only miss a couple days of school” “I would also go sightseeing so it would be educational too”…”I promise I will be safe”.  Well I guess I was a born salesman because at the end of August, I was on a plane from Los Angeles to Washington DC and ended up at the legendary place called Dischord House.  My parents were really fucking cool…To Be Continued