“Aging is all a state of mind.If you don’t care, you don’t mind.” (S. Paige)
Item 1: Good news to the CBA readers of today’s Friday Welcome Column. I had an email from Mr. Cornish informing me he has narrowed the field of prospective Welcome Column writers from 364 to 360. Included in his email was his vow that a writer would be chosen before, let’s see, in his own words, it was either “When pigs fly?” or “When Hell freezes over!” SO if you are reading this…….
Item 1: The wonderfully talented super star, Megan Lynch Chowning and her frequent traveling music partner Mary Sue Englund will be performing at a specially scheduled matinee show at Greens Restaurant 953 10th in Modesto Sunday, December 6. Doors open at two P.M. show begins at three. This special event has been scheduled in the afternoon so folks won’t have to drive in that pesky nighttime fog or in that hard to drive in darkness. This show is a wonderful opportunity to not only see a fantastic show of sweet voices and fancy playing but a chance to show your support for the artists,as well as Greens as a Venue.Shows like this don’t come around often.
I am not one to boast, brag, or carry on but when it comes to my niece, Megan, what can an uncle do? I mean Megan has won every fiddle championship that’s out there, she has toured Europe, the States, and places yet to be mapped. Megan also holds a thriving and continually growing fiddle work shop several times a year in Tennessee. It will be a great show.
Item 2: Committee to select California Bands for 2015 Father’s Day Festival.
My sister, Maria Nadauld, (Above the Bay Booking) offered her home up a few weeks ago to host the annual California Band selection process. Maria lives in the home my father began building in 1952 and we moved into it in 1953. The home cost a bundle $5000. I lived in this beautiful place from 1953 until I turned 21 in 1969. My mother lived in it until her death in 1980 and my father remained there until his passing in 1995. My lovely older sister, Auntie Mame,purchased the home and she and Cap’n Bill have been there since 1996. I love the place. It is just a couple hundred yards from the wonderful Cal State Hayward ( changed to a terribly named Cal State East Bay— YUK!) where I obtained my B.A. Degree in English in 1970. The home is about 150 yards from the wonderful K-6 Highland School where Rick and I learned to read and write and performed Ricky Nelson’s “Poor Little Fool” to a standing room only audience of parents at the annual talent show. We were in the fourth grade. And Yes Rick was wearing a yellow tank top. I love the home and all its cherished memories. Thank you Maria for taking over the Judd legacy and making me (Mom, Dad, and Lisa ) proud. May the home stay in the Judd name forever.
Item 3: I think I digressed. I am sorry. A few CBA members showed up on a Sunday and were greeted warmly by Maria and Mark Hogan. Maria had carefully set numbered placemats with a set on instructions at each place setting. There were cups of munchies and a wealth of liquid to lap up.
We all took our seats. Maria and Mark were operating a CD player that would for the next three solid hours play three snippets of songs from each of the 41 bands that we were to objectively rate on a scale from 1-10. I mentioned that Maria had offered up a list of instructions to all of us. We were instructed to listen carefully to each selection and then decide if we liked the band because it resonated with us personally or if we liked it because we felt the band would be appreciated by a much broader and diverse blue grass audience at the Father’s Day Festival.
I am glad Maria took the time to not only write the instructions but to go over them with all of us. I say that because a couple of the bands that I really liked played a little bit of Grateful Dead bluegrass style which had my toe tapping until I thought about all the folks who maybe weren’t Dead freaks. Maria’s instructions were not wasted on me nor any other members of the committee. Good job Auntie Mame!
After we were through grading the 41 bands, Maria and Mark took our grade sheets (No names of bands on the sheets just numbered 1-43, and our own grade sheet had us listed by number not by name.)and spent a while calculating the total points for each band. When the top five were culled from the rest of the group it was up to Maria and Mark to take the results to the next CBA Board Meeting to have the Board vote on the 5 bands.
I loved doing this and it was fun sharing the day with friendly CBA folks. I hope I will be asked to partake again. I do have favor to ask all of you who do attend the Father’s Day Festival. Let someone on the CBA Board know how you felt about a particular group. If you liked a group drop us a note and tell us why. If you weren’t happy with a group let us know. It would be a big help. Thank you.
Until December 4, 2015 or until pigs begin to fly or Hell freezes over:
Read a book, hug a child, pet a dog, stroke a cat, eat a bar of chocolate, and smile.