Now, for the REST of the story... (w/no apol. to p.h.)
What didja learn in school today, dear little boy of mine ???
What didja learn in school today, dear little boy of mine ???I learned the republicans have a plan
for health insurance for every woman and man
it'll save us money, you know why ??
when you get sick, you just die die die...
WITH apologies to tom paxton for misquoting...
Yesterday was the mens and womens partnershp seminar conducted by amanda smith. Despite a dissapointing turnout, (16 or 17), it was an educational day, dealing with the issues of gender inequality (Can (toss out) the inqeuality issue, doesn't matter who's ox is being gored, concentrate on how to become parners... Deal with the solution..) it's not opposite sex, it's OTHER sex.. it should not be an adversarial relationship... It's not JUST friends... friends is not a JUST situation... be aware, be open, be cognizant of feelings, be supportive, be just(ice)..
The evenings threadgill performers were from Vermont... It was vermont campfire night.. Steve gillette introduced the background of the evening, did 1 song (i think), and lisa Mccormick opened up the show... Very nice stuff with one song that s/b required reading for all... Sex and consequences is a killer song... with a full plate (or 3) of issues... She was followed by a DYMOMITE!!! Rachael (More later) And Louise Taylor who was great in her own right. (But how many of you have room for another slice of that choclate choclate cake they serve over at the coffee table after having a triple scoop of rachael, only a few minutes before... too full.. too full..) Steve gillette finished up with a set of his own, with lots of walkon guests.. It was a great show, but the highlight to me was Rachael...
Rachael's been in a heightened sense of anticipation ever since she arrived at the festival and heard jackson browne might be coming (he didn't)... She opened her set with a tremendous performance of "Jackson".. and in the intro to the song, even changed some of her usual words... (
for those of you who have heard her speak on the subject)... She finished her set with dancing with my mother... As she started the first line, (I was sitting in my favorite threadgill seat, first row just off center top section), i raised my arms to the sky, brought them palms together and lowered them in front of me... Rachael saw that, smiled, and sung the whole wonderful song right to me... Needless to say, it was a good thing i had changed hankerchiefs since steve seskin's song the other night... That started the evening off wonderfully... It was a very hot evening, since we had a lot of cloud cover (you could still see the moon, but it was partially obscured), which held the heat from the day in... So it was sweltering, even by the time the show was fisnished... But, first, we're not done with show stuff...
Today is the third thursday, and the ranch is again building towards a weekend, this time the final weekend. People are arriving, setting up campsites, and showing up, some for the first time this year... Josh white Jr arrived yesterday, as did Michael Camp (i think), Valdy, and many others, all of whom are too foggy to remember right now...
I crossed paths with ??? freeman who sings with chris chandler & told her how wonderful her performances had been this festival... No, she is NOT coming home with me, as she has nothing recorded in her current style.. She hopes the she & chris will do an album shortly.. (Yes, chris is coming home with me)
As always, the festival provided me with it's own surprises and reinvented itself with this new round of incoming people..
Cash nashville went dark, SingKerrnicity remained dark, Cuisine Not only picked up speed, but got out of control (they are a conrolled campsite) for the first time this year, and spilled out of the camp onto the big meadow..
During the threadgill show, i was handing out bread to friends when someone said "How old is that bread, you've been handing it out for 7 days now???" Are you baking it here ?? I explained that i had just received 6 loaves via fedex rom the CUSdoughboys and girls back home, and cut him a slice... I now have a new friend, Steve Gibson (i think) from tyler texas.. He can also recognize me in the dark, as i found out when I heard a booming voice shout "Hey Breadman" as i was walking through the meadow later that night with Rachael, steve, and marianne..
Barbara, the masasge thereapist, and barbara the other massage therapist, and others in their circle offered up a prayer for the bread and the CUSdoughboys and girls who baked it... Sorry renee, had they know your waterpump was about to die, i'm sure they would have had something to say about it...
too many brain cells got fried tonight... tripping the light fantastic with Rachael Bissex, marianne fleming and steve taylor... (didn't know where in the report to stick that, but here seemed like a fine place)
Strolled around for awhile after threadgilh finished, just connecting with friends, dropping off a candle gift to a campsite, and enjoying the sites... Tonight was Wild Women night at the Kerrntry store, and the wild women were out in force... Kevin So looked splendid in a full length white and light blue gingham dress with no artificial body work, while many of the other kerrntry regulars were fully stacked oops, i mean decked out in their female friends' finest .. The only thing i was somewhat worried about, was that some of these people looked entirely too confortable in their new genes... And of course some of the ladies looked splendid with charcoal beards, and groucho marx mustaches..
Kevin used Rachael's guitar to play one of her favorites, Shooting star, and the harmony was beautiful, even though kevin was way too far gone to stay in vocal key... He also was having a problem keeping his chest from falling out, as his strap kept slipping (i guess he's just not used to it
) But, before any of this happened.... (Hey, I'm not a professional writer, what's this timeline crap ???)
I started over at camp coho, which was still pretty quiet this early in the evening.. hopped over to camp cuisine. Steve, one of the regulars there, had invited me over earlier that night.. Heaven was here tonight... Chuck Pyle, John Ems, Valdy, Steve Gillette, John McVey (I think), melissa on the keyboards, doug on violin, and may others... it wasn't crowded yet, and i sat right next to chuck..
Something i think i forgot to tell you about last monday night (stop me if i told you this already)... When John Ems came on last monday, he did his typical intro chit, and then played his first chord, a dramatic, heavy, full arm, all strings thing..
and promptly blew out 2 strings...
His reaction:
"F**kin Elixir Strings!!" (elixir is a sponsor of the festival).. After everyone picked themselves off the floor, someone handed him a replacement guitar.. To somewhat understand john ems, suffice to say he would have felt right at home in the monty python dead parrot script..
but i digress...
back to tonight...
John has a wonderful song (NO IT'S NOT RECORDED AS ANYONE WHO HAS BEN READING THESE damb RAMBLINGS KNOWS!!
) about his mother in which the lines: "I thought she'd never leave"
"Be here for eternity"
"always lookin out for me"
"I thought she'd never leave"
change context from a child's complaint to a son's longing for his mother to survive in the hospital... Aside from the absolute brilliance of the song, i've seen it enough times to observe an interesting phenomenon... Those people who have heard the song before, painfully smile the first time the chorus is sung, those who haven't heard the song, laugh out loud at the first chorus, and then can't figure out why the other people have a strange faraway look in their eyes, until the second or third verse, when the song hits them full force...
damn...
Well, the rest of the cuisine circle as great, and i left right after chuck... (and before things got out of control).. got to coho, just as Edie (like jewel, a single name), was finished up a super number, (or maybe she was on when i returned later... oh well... so many details, so few unfried cells).. Rachael, marianne, steve & I decided to to a little traipsing around the ranch... While stumbling along, we made our way up to the crow's nest.. One of many campsites up on the hills, overlooking the meadow, and the rest of the ranch. I hadn't been up there yet, this year, and the view (as well as the breeze) was outstanding.. We crossed paths and picked up a couple more people as we wandered... Rachael's arrival changed this night from a "listening to the greatest music in the world in the greatest environment" happening to "Hanging around with good friends, listening to the greatest music in the world in the greatest environment".. Now that's wonderful... and results in the micro-conclusion: All is right with the world...
After hanging around in the crows nest for about an hour (it was deserted, so we just pulled up chairs, and everyone else played some tunes, some passing people stopped by, and voila, instant campfire... just add music, fully nutritional, and GOOD for you...
Don't remember much of the rest of the night (except to say that there WAS a rest of the night), but am feeling so wonderful today, it must have been just as good as the parts i remember...
Apologies to all who didn't have anything to read with their morning coffee..
Brian (Breadman) Wolfsohn http://www.cus.com
CUS Business Systems Ft.Lauderdale,FL
Software for Auctioneers (954) 565-5600 Email:blw@cus.com