Folklife.

Had an interesting time at Folklife this weekend. Saturday, got there early for some French Canadian foot stomping dance music. Then after wandering around listening to jazz, rock, marimba, violin, cello, saxophone, banjo, guitar, ukulele playing musicians in bands, trios, duets, and soloists, around the center, I settled on the grass for a set of rockabilly bands. Was a wonderful warm day, I left before the gunfights. Got home to find my house keys not in my pocket. Good excuse to go back Sunday. Sunday, I went to the lost and found, but they didn't have the keys, so I decided I might as well listen to some tunes to take my mind off my loss. Noticed in the program that there was an exhibition of "Shape-Note" singing. Always wondered what that was about, so I headed in that direction. As I closed in on the event I heard massed voices that didn't sound any different than any other massed voices, those massed for the purpose of singing anyway. Quite different than voiced massed for yelling at sporting events, and very very different than 10'000 massed voices making blood curdling howl as the rush down slope at you with bayonets. Turns out the "Shape-Note" refers to the shape of the notes on the score, little squares, triangles, circles, and squares. Leaves me out of the choir, cause I flunked geometry in high school. Not true, I got a good grade in geometry in high school. I got the same as the teachers cheer leader pet. Teacher's name was Eisele or something. She embarrassed me in class by telling me I shouldn't "hide my (something or other) under a bushel I have to this day no idea what she was talking about, but I knew she didn't appreciate me messing up her prejudices. Or her thing for miss pom-pom. What we didn't know about puberty back then. Anyway, the singing was very nice, reminded me however of church and its sinister seduction. I'm not planning on going to church however, I've learned my lesson there. Their strange rituals, this weird "prayer" thing, and their blood thirsty Bible stories put my back hairs up and I do not feel welcome there. And since my run in with Meighan Pritchard I don't feel safe. Found I had left the keys in a pie shop when I made change. Day ended up with Sousa's "Star Spangled Banner" march played by the Ballard Sedentary Sousa Band. Always a good closer.