On the fifth day of Christmas Ear Trumpet gave to thee, Frontier Folk Nebraska…

Shrouded in a blanket of twang and desperation is Frontier Folk Nebraska’s album Pearls that came out this past February.

Comfortable and down home, this album should be played by candlelight as you rest your feet after a hard day in the fields. Lyrics that embrace the listener with tales of a slower time, when one could appreciate the simple things in life, such as the way a dress revels in the night (Rummage Sale).

Yet slower times don’t equate to slower music. The song Ballad of a Dead Man could make any barn come off its foundation as slide guitar and thundering drums square dance across the mean guitar of the rugged field hand. Or listen to On the Devil’s Time and you’ll be taken through the rain and thunder to a plateau of solitude where one can be alone with their thoughts.

Soulful and sorrowful, these four Kentucky boys plant a mid-western sound deep into southern roots with vocals that swallow up the sky and the airwaves.  So break out that jar of moonshine you’ve got tucked away, enjoy your Saturday, and take a moment to check out Frontier Folk Nebraska.

Upcoming Shows
Dec. 17 – Mayday (the old Gypsy Hut) – Cincinnati U.S.A.
Feb. 20 – Northside Tavern - Cincinnati U.S.A.

Check out F.F.N.’s Lounge Act on WOXY

Follow Frontier Folk Nebraska

Hype Machine /  Lala /  Myspace

Well, I guess I can officially type that I’ve seen it all now.

A geriatric North Dakota square dance group is using flash mob moves that they saw on Oprah (Thanks O!).

I’m not sure I’ll ever hear this Black Eyed Peas tune again without thinking of this AARP rug-cutting crew.

Personally the dancer in the red skirt is captivating for some reason, but once the gang on the outside of the circle gets in motion, that’s where I tended to focus my attention.

Seattle Times
On a Monday, the lights are up inside one of Ballard’s best-loved watering holes. The better not to step on your dance partner’s toes — not that you’ll be entirely able to avoid it. A sizable crowd has braved the chill of an early fall night to go square dancing. While attendees appear to range in age from 21 to early 50s, they skew young and attractive, and a Joan Jett T-shirt is as apt an accessory as a cowboy hat. Twice a month, The Tallboys (a self-professed “old time string band”) and their special guests provide the soundtrack for an event called Monday Square Dance. A different “caller” — who speaks over the music with dance explanations and cues — accompanies the band at each event. Don’t know how to promenade? No problem. “I like to sing my calls, and I want people to figure out the dance,” says the caller on this particular night, Suzanne Girardot.

Precision Dancewear has what you need!

We have all the basics and we are stocking more every week.

TuTu Tuesday is awesome! Come in on Tuesday & get 10% off any skirt or tutu in the store!!

Wacky Wednesday- get 10% off any dance bag in the store!

We look forward to serving you with the best in customer service! If you don’t see it in the store, just ask! We will get what you need.

Some of our brands include but are not limited to: Eurotard, Danskin, JB Bloomers, Dance Class by Trimfoot, Grishko, Sassi, Whirl a Style…. & Growing every day!

Ask us about our in store birthday parties!

Stop in & see what we have to offer. You will be glad you did!

Members of the Union County Chamber of Commerce

Ontem dava a minha olhada básica no Nico Nico Douga que é um site de compartilhamento de vídeos estilo Youtube, mas que foi criado no Japão e pra poder ver os vídeos e entrar no site você tem que se inscrever e tal. Meio complicado. Enfim, lá dentro tem milhões de vídeos como nos outros sites com a diferença de ser regional (só Japão!). E quando eu entro num site como esses a primeira coisa que eu faço é pesquisar a cultura brasileira. Então, entre vídeos de japoneses ensinando a capoeira, entrevistas sobre a crise econômica e receitas de brigadeiros e afins, encontrei a versão japonesa da Dança do Quadrado! O que eu achei interessante é que o vídeo é antigo, mas a música encaixa direitinho na dança dos integrantes. Dá uma olhada. Eu achei muito engraçado, mas é porque é bem bobinho. A música japonesa chama-se Do Dai e é interpretada pela personagem Azusa Miura daquele game de simulação da Namco chamado The Idolm@ster, onde você faz o papel de um produtor e tem que escolher 10 garotas aspirantes a ídolo para se tornarem cantoras. O game é famosíssimo no Japão.

Um coisa que eu acho bacana no Nico Nico Douga é que os comentários das pessoas passam no meio da tela. Então você está assistindo e o cara tá falando ao mesmo tempo. Isso até que é bem legal!

60-year-old Lynette Alice “Squeaky” Fromme was released from prison today after serving over 30 years for the attempted assassination of President Gerald Ford in September 2005. Wearing a red robe, and brandishing a semiautomatic .45-caliber gun, she was wrestled to the ground by Secret Service agents before she could fire. At the time of her sentencing she was the very first person sentenced under a new special federal law dictating a life sentence for assaults on U.S. presidents. The statute was enacted after the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy. She was granted parole in July of 2008, but because she had escaped a West Virginia women’s prison in 1987 (and captured 2 days later about 2 miles away trying to be near Charles Manson whom she heard was dying), additional time was tacked on and she wasn’t released until today. “Squeaky” Fromme had been a member of the Charles Manson “family” where she was given her nickname probably because of her voice. She was deemed a “model inmate” by prison officials in 1978, and was moved from West Virginia to a prison in Pleasanton, California, but was sent back to the West Virginia prison when she hit another inmate with a hammer while gardening on the prison grounds.

As a young girl in the late 1950s, Fromme was a dancer in a square-dance group called the Westchester Lariats, who appeared occasionally on “The Lawrence Welk Show” in 1955 and toured the United States and Europe. She attended Orville Wright Junior High School, was A and B student, and actually befriended the late comic Phil Hartman (News Radio, Saturday Night Live) and the two took an acting class together! Mr. Hartman once described Fromme as “very sweet, very shy.”

(Sources:  Associated Press;  The Internet Movie Database; Rottentomatoes.com; and TRUE CRIME: The Very Strange Story of Squeaky Fromme by Kara Kovalchik)

WOW…..HOW WILL THIS EVER END JOEY ?

This blog will be a mixed bag of information.  I like to give useful info and comments on a variety of current, timely and useful topics.  Some topics may include internet marketing, health issues, world news or maybe Square Dance notes!

Just keep checking back.  I add posts randomly and in no certain time frame.  You really don’t want to miss a single post!  But, if you do, there is always the Archives.

Add a comment, link me to your blog (I’ll return the favor), tell me what you would like me to comment about or just say Hi.  I would love to hear from you.

***** Let’s Talk! *****

]]> http://witgeek.com/2009/07/07/just-square-dance/ Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:10:33 +0000 sahern http://witgeek.com/2009/07/07/just-square-dance/

Yes, you read the headline correctly.

Recently I have found myself going to a local swing dance night at a club here in Albany with a few of my friends, and while I am aware I have two left feet my friends believe that they can cure that ailment with hard work and a good time (and beer, lots of beer).

Overall, its a great way to get out with my friends and hang out while doing something more active to balance out the hours of wasting away in front of the computer. Swing dance is relatively easy and is pretty darn fun, but it did remind me of a less fun time in my life when dancing and puberty clashed and wrought nightmares for years, when I learned to square dance.

Yes, this is the seventh circle of hell

Let me explain.

For those of you who do not already know, I grew up in Arizona. While the Grand Canyon State is remembered for the…well…the Grand Canyon, it is also known as the retirement center for anyone from New England and the place where episodes of Cops were filmed in the 80’s.

Oh and square dancing is taught in gym from 7-9th grade.

Yes, square dancing is a part of the Gym curriculum in middle school and the one year of Gym that is mandatory in high school. Not only do you have to worry about the onset of puberty in all of it’s magic and wonder, but you have to worry about doing so while having what quite possibly is your first experience with girls. It’s enough to make a guy sweat profusely and freak out worse than a junkie on bad speed.

Which is exactly what I did. Awesome!

I think school board officials in Arizona asked themselves what the most scarring regional activity was, scratched out “Beating Up Mexicans” from the list, and added square dance to P.E.

7th Grade Sean Ahern was not the lady killer we all know today, far from it actually. With my Johnny Unitas-esque haircut and ungodly coke-bottle glasses, the only “sex” I was getting was the abstinence-only education of the Scottsdale Public School System. Of course, this education on what not do to with ladies did not help when I was thrown towards the harpies in P.E.

With old records playing, shouting out calls such as “Alaman Left,” “Swing your Partner,” and “DoSiDo Neighbor;” I found myself cornered with cute girl after cute girl in class, hands sweaty, and unable to keep a balanced pitch in my voice. I could never fathom why everyone else was O.K. with square dancing. To me, it was a horrible, horrible experience that left me willing to shoot myself in the foot if it would get me out of this mandatory conscription to country music.

Typically, it looks retarded

One of my favorite memories came in my Freshmen year of high school. After my first season of football (yeah, I know right? Moving on) and before my move to Upstate NY, I found myself almost done with Gym for the semester and ready to pack my bags and head east.

But not before one last cultural clash with the west. The final two weeks in gym were designated for square dancing.

Dammit.

I found myself dealing with scratchy recordings and girls way out of my league once again, only this time after two years of experience you look a bit better at this asinine activity than before. I once found myself dancing with the uber-babe Shannon, who was also going out with the quarterback of my freshmen football team at the time and I had probably known since 4th grade. Blond, tan, traditionally beautiful and smart as hell, they don’t built them like that in New York. However, they do give them taste on the east coast and one wonders why she was going out with a guy whose favorite pastime was rat tailing linebackers in the locker room.

Ah youth.

So I was dancing with Shannon, smiling like a motherfucker all the way, thinking they’re might be some upsides to this repulsive dance, when suddenly-

“Hey Sean, why are your hands so sweaty?”

-Gasp!- She’s on to me!

“Um, well, you know, just because and, and and (goes on like this for about 15 minutes)”

“Oh that’s so cute, haha, oh you’re so nice”

Win.

Well sort of, it was win until I saw the quarterback love interest looking at me with the I’m-going-to-fuck-up-your-life stare that so many in high school would give me (but not usually over girlfriends sadly).

So I square danced my ass off, smiled politely (a part of the dance, you have to be ridiculously happy), watched “Sunshine” over there curse my good name and counted the days until I was on the east coast.

Square dancing is by far one of the worst things you can make someone do. First off, its more yelling than music really and secondly, it is just the worse way to scar socially awkward kids like yours truly. You get mixed with random girls, who are also going through puberty and the awkward stages of life, and it just makes life harder.

Although, how many people can say that they square danced?

O.K. a lot really, so fuck the moral of the story.

Last night, I sat in my living room watching the lightening bugs flicker in the misty twilight filling the hills with flecks of gold through darkened hues of green, brown, gray and black.  I watched the spectacle and thought about those who live away from here.  Sure, every place has beautiful scenes that the world should see, but I’m partial to the Kentucky mountains because they are home to me.  If I had to pick ten things to share with outsiders to help them understand where I come from, these would be them.

What I’d Love to Share with You…

1. An evening of just listening… Sitting on an old timer’s porch swing just as it starts to turn off dark, we would listen to their tales of “making do”, playing in the mountains, courting their sweetheart, and working their fingers to the bone because that’s what you do.  We’d listen and learn that there is more to life than celebrity, money, what you have and what you can buy, and whether or not you live within a short driving distance of a strip mall with a Super Wal-Mart.
2. The view from the mountain in front of my cabin...  We’d hike the steep hillside in front of our cabin until we reached the large rocks placed on the mountaintop by movement of earth and time.  It would be early fall and we’d be quiet there letting the strong breeze work its way through our bodies with a sweet purity that fills us up with serenity and appreciation.  We’d learn that yes, there is something bigger than all of us, that made us a small part of this beautiful creation.
3. Bad Branch Falls… I’d love to take you up Pine Mountain by Wiley’s Last Resort and on down to Bad Branch Falls.  The small falls is a local respected landmark that is a public park that in many ways still feels like you are the first person to see it.  We’d let the falls rinse us clean and play with our children in the little pools of fresh mountain water.
4. A morning on George Gibson’s porch listening to his banjo ring… After a “full” breakfast, we’d walk down the holler a piece to visit George Gibson at his cabin.  He’d play his banjo for us in the old-time Knott County way (that isn’t Bluegrass which was created by the likes of Bill Monroe in the 40s).  I’d have to ask him to play “Jubilee” because it hits you in the chest and makes it unnecessary to breathe.  The music breathes for you.
5. A dinner of Appalachian soupbeans, cornbread, kraut, fried potatoes and onions, pork tenderloin, and fresh sliced tomato and cucumber… The meal of all meals that makes you wiggle while you eat.  All of it will be cooked in cast iron with bacon fat.
6. Scare the pants off you with a bobcat hollering in the night… Sounds like a woman screaming for her life.  A banshee woman.  It’ll scare the bejezus out of you for a few minutes until you realize (only because someone’s told you) it was only a bobcat.
7. A mountain church service… You’d have to stay two Sundays because I’d want to share with you both the Old Regular Baptist and Pentecostal traditional services.  I’d want you to hear the mournful sounds of the Old Regular’s lining out their hymns (you will cry whether you want to or not) and the soul catching sounds of a Pentecostal band with all the instruments playing in such a way that draws you up out of the depths and makes you dance with joy and praise.  Oh, and then dinner on the grounds.
8. Experiencing mountain hospitality… You’ll never go hungry or lack for a place to lay your head.  We’ll be waved at by those in passing cars.  We’ll pull off the side of the road for funeral processions.  We’ll always have time for a few words with a neighbor.  If the car breaks down, we won’t be long or scared on the side of the road.
9. Carcassonne Square Dance… We’ll go to a real mountain square dance called and played by some great folks.  We’ll dance ’til our legs give out and then we’ll dance some more.
10. Coal Mining… I’d share with you both a mountain top removal (strip mine) site and an underground mine.  There is great dualities in this issue.  On one side coal is the largest employer in the mountains, but on the other side strip mines are ruining our mountain landscape and causing havoc in the balance of things.  I’d want you to understand the sacrifices our people make in bringing you your electricity.  I’d want you to understand that when you turn on the light that you are using an non-renewable resource that comes from a real place and is pulled out of the mountains by real people.  Our miners deserve respect as do the people living in coal producing mountains.  It is my personal belief that most coal companies have placed us in a situation of indentured servitude and they abuse our people and our homeplace.  Solutions have to be found so that mountaintop removal becomes unnecessary, and our people can still be gainfully employed.

I believe there is magic in these hills.  Sure, we are a clannish bunch, but for those who take the time to listen and pay attention you’ll find a place.

OK, I admit it!   I love to Square Dance!   You already know that I love to Flamenco dance and I have several beautiful costumes. 

But I also love to Square Dance.  It is the State dance of Oregon and several other states as well.  It is a great way to meet wonderful people, get exercise,  have fun and exercise your brain, too.  And for singles or families the cost is quite reasonable.

I bought this house because it had enough room for me to store all of my beautiful costumes from Flamenco, and another performance group I have yet to tell you about, and all my square dance dresses.  Well actually the dresses are not the most difficult thing to store… it is what goes on underneath the dresses that takes up all the room!

Yes, I do wear those short skirts with all the fluffy petticoats underneath.  And actually it was because of one of my square dance dresses that I first noticed my swelling abdomen (and waist) which was for me the first sign of my Primary Peritoneal Carcinoma.  I noticed that my belt for my skirt was tighter than normal, yet I weighed about the same.  That made me go Hum?  “ What is happening?   Oh well, I guess my body is just changing.”  but that is not what happened.   Now I have to store all my beautiful petticoats and dresses away for a little while, but here is a picture of them before they go into the closet!

Petticoats by PDXFireefly

Kürzlich unterhielten wir uns über “ausgestorbene” Hobbies unserer Jugend. Steppen, auch Tapdance genannt, stand ganz an erster Stelle. Erinnerungen an weiße oder bordeauxfarbene College-Schuhe, die je nach Geldbeutel vorn und auch hinten mit Eisen beschlagen wurden. Die Priviligierten hämmerten dann im Unterricht laut drauf los, während diejenigen, deren Taschengeld nur für “vorne ” reichte, mit der Hacke mächtig auftreten mussten, um sich zu Gehör zu verschaffen.
Dann – musikalische Ausflüge in den Blockflöten Bereich. “Ich habe Piccolo gespielt”, “Ich Alt”. Die Flötengröße spielte schon damals eine große Rolle. (Hier wird nicht ins Sexuelle abgedriftet).
Musik. Musica. Träume. Träume von Musikinstrumenten, die nie erfüllt wurden. Hier die Erinnerung an eine “Melodica”, der verstümmelten Kurzversion eines Akkordeons. Akkordeon = ausgelassene Party, wilde Zigeuner mit Schnurrbart – der Traum eines jeden jungen Mädchens der Achtziger. Dann Tränen, als eine “Melodica”, dieses schrecklich Anti-Instrument, auf dem Geburtstagstisch lag. Ein anderer Betroffener schließt sich den emotional gesteuerten Berichten an: Eine Gitarre in einer Klavierverpackung. Wie groß war hier die Enttäuschung des neuen Richard Clayderman, als er unter dem Weihnachtsbaum die Klampfe entpackte?

Dann – ganz plötzlich – die Offenbarung geheimer, unerfüllter Hobbie-Träume: Banjo spielen, Square Dance tanzen. Was ging hier in den Köpfen der Jugendlichen vor? Freiheit, wilde offene Prärie? Verschwitzte Cowboys am Lagerfeuer? Rüschige Damen, die zum Vierviertel-Takt von dominanten Herren übers Parkett geleitet wurden? Ausgestorben. Einfach ausgestorben.

People!! It feels so good to be back. Ladies and Gentlemen, introducing the new and improved, you know who
Never been the type to bend or budge, the wrong button to push, no friend of Bush
I’m the centerpiece, you’re a Maltese. I’m a pitbull off his leash, all this peace talk can cease
All these people I had to leave in limbo, I’m back now, I’ve come to release this info
I’ll be brief and let me just keep shit simple, can-a-bitch don’t want no beef with Slim? Noooo!
Not even on my radar, so won’t you please jump off my dick, lay off and stay off
and follow me as I put these crayons to chaos from séance to séance, aw-a-aw-sh-a-aw.
C’mon now, let’s all get on down, let’s do-si-do now, we gon’ have a good ol’ time
Don’t be scared, cus there ain’t nothin’ to worry ’bout, let your hair down, and square dance with me!
C’mon now, let’s all get on down, let’s do-si-do now, we gon’ have a good ol’ time
Don’t be scared, cus there ain’t nothin’ to worry ’bout, let your hair down, and square dance with me!
Let your hair down to the track, yeah kick on back. Boo! The boogie monster of rap, yeah the man’s back
with a plan to ambush this Bush administration, mush the Senate’s face in, push this generation
of kids to stand and fight for the right to say something you might not like, this white hot light
that I’m under, no wonder I look so sunburnt, oh no I won’t leave no stone unturned
Oh no I won’t leave, won’t go nowhere, do-si-do, oh, yo, ho, hello there
oh yeah don’t think I won’t go there, go to Beirut and do a show there
yah you laugh till your muthafuckin’ ass gets drafted, while you’re at band camp thinkin’ the crap can’t happen
till you fuck around, get an anthrax napkin, inside a package wrapped in saran wrap wrapping
open the plastic and then you stand back gasping, fuckin’ assassins hijackin’ Amtracks crashin’
all this terror America demands action, next thing you know you’ve got Uncle Sam’s ass askin’
to join the army or what you’ll do for their Navy. You just a baby, gettin’ recruited at eighteen
You’re on a plane now, eatin’ their food and their baked beans.
I’m twenty-eight, they’re gonna take you ‘fore they take me
Crazy insane or insane crazy? When I say Hussein, you say Shady
My views ain’t changed, still inhumane, wait, arraigned two days late, the date’s today, hang me!
C’mon now, let’s all get on down, let’s do-si-do now, we gon’ have a good ol’ time
Don’t be scared, cus there ain’t nothin’ to worry ’bout, let your hair down, and square dance with me!
C’mon now, let’s all get on down, let’s do-si-do now, we gon’ have a good ol’ time
Don’t be scared, cus there ain’t nothin’ to worry ’bout, let your hair down, and square dance with me!
Nothin’ moves me more than a groove that soothes me,
nothin’ soothes me more than a groove that boosts me
nothin’ boosts me more, or suits me beautifully, there’s nothin’ you can do to me,
stab me shoot me, psychotic, hypnotic product I got it the antibiotic,
ain’t nobody hotter and so on and yada yada, god I talk a lotta hem de lay la la la,
oochie walla um da dah da dah da but you gotta gotta
keep movin’, there’s more music to make, keep makin’ new shit, produce hits to break
the monotony, what’s gotten into me? Drugs, rock, and Hennessey,
thug like I’m ‘Pac on my enemies on your knees, got you under siege,
somebody you would give a lung to be hun-ga-ry, like a fuckin’ younger me, fuck the fee,
I can get you jumped for free yah buddy, laugh it’s funny,
I have the money to have you killed by somebody who has nothing
I’m past bluffing, pass the K-Y, let’s get ready for some intense, serious ass fucking!
C’mon now, let’s all get on down, let’s do-si-do now, we gon’ have a good ol’ time
Don’t be scared, cus there ain’t nothin’ to worry ’bout, let your hair down, and square dance with me!
C’mon now, let’s all get on down, let’s do-si-do now, we gon’ have a good ol’ time
Don’t be scared, cus there ain’t nothin’ to worry ’bout, let your hair down, and square dance with me!
Dr. Dre, wants to square dance with me.
Nasty Nas, wants to square dance with me,
X to the Z, wants to square dance with me
Busta Rhymes, wants to square dance with me
Cana-bitch, won’t square dance with me
Fan-a-bitch, won’t square dance with me
Canada-bis, don’t want no parts of me
Dirty Dozen, wants to square dance with you. Yee-Haw…!

Never entrust your sense of humor to people you don’t know.

I attended W.P. Scales Elementary from Kindergarten through the Fourth Grade. At the end of every year, each grade invited the parents to the special presentation the grade as a whole had been working on for weeks.

One year, we wowed them with a square dance in the gym. Rumor had it, Amanda B. was crushing on me, and that’s why she chose me as her partner. She was a pretty blonde girl about six inches taller than me. Holding her hands felt like digging a soda out of a cooler full of ice. “Cold hands, warm heart”? Well, her bloodpump must have been hot enough to make Satan green. With envy.

I also have hazy memories of performing on a stage of some sort—costumes made from construction paper; singing songs about American freedom or Johnny Appleseed; the tone-deaf kid causing all the songs to bottom out, bless his heart; flashes of light from the dark, gently quaking audience.

Another year, we painted a map of the United States on the playground blacktop that doubled as a basketball court. Each state was a different color. We were very proud.

On the big day, the parents met us in our respective classrooms, then we filed out in a mass of excited children and faking-it parents. I lost my parents in the tumult and ended up walking beside a girl from another homeroom.

An overweight woman was lumbering up the hill in front of us, one step at a time. We had to slow our pace to keep from bumping into her.

I turned to the girl and said under my breath, “Boy, that lady is struggling,” and chuckled to myself.

Her eyes flashed daggers as she responded, “That’s my mom.”

I slackened my pace to let my new friend walk on ahead.

What is Contra Dance?
“Contra dances have a relaxed, family-like atmosphere, where the emphasis in on dancing, a welcome relief to noisy and smoky dance halls. Each event is a combination workshop and dance. No experience is required to participate. The caller teaches each dance (called a walk through) before the dance. Then the caller calls the dance (as is done in square dancing). Contra dancers form a community of friendly, active, people that welcomes new dancers. Most dancers range from 25-60 years old. Contra dance was a popular tradition of the nineteenth century dance culture.” Click here for a Contra Dance primer.

Where can I participate in a Contra Dance?
Stuart Johnson from Owego organizes a Contra Dance on the third Monday of each month (except February) in Tioga County, New York at Tioga Trails Cafe. The Cafe is located at Lake and Main Streets, Owego, New York. Beginners are welcome and no partners are needed. Admission: $7; Students & Seniors (55+) $5; Family max. $15. Next dance – January 18, 4-7 pm – Caller: Bob Nicholson – Band: Grietzer Selby Hodgson. For more information call Stu Johnson (607) 687-4034, or April Swaney (607) 657-8067 or visit http://dance.clarityconnect.com/owegocontra.html

This project is made possible, in part, with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts’ Decentralization Program, administered locally by The ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes.

Thirty years ago (in 1978), I was very much involved in square and round dancing.  For my Christmas gift that year, I asked my oldest daughter to work her magic with needle and thread on a skirt I could wear to all the Christmas dances.  She helped me choose a heavy cotton fabric in Christmas green and I made a 12-panel full-circle skirt.  She decorated each of the panels with a different design in embroidery and fabric paint.

My favorite designs were the little folk girl and the angel, although each image was unique and charming.

I wore the skirt for many years at dances and various Christmas parties.  Each time, I would have to stand still while other women made a circle around me, picking up the panels and admiring my daughter’s handiwork.  After my husband became too ill to dance and after the waistband became a little too snug, I hated to think of storing the skirt away and never seeing it again at Christmas time.  That’s when I decided to just cut it apart up the back and use it as a tree skirt.  It’s wonderful and makes an appearance every year encircling my Christmas tree.

I’m so glad to be able to sit and look at the skirt each year, remembering all of the happy dances and parties from so many years ago.

As I try to get myself out there with folks, I am approaching my next big event with a mixture of emotions. I am going to a Christmas Square Dance Party and I haven’t a thing to wear! Oh yes, I have just enough lessons to not kill people in my square. (Although, at my last lesson I did manage to plow into my friend Charlotte and thank God she stayed on her feet.)

So I go to the foreign world of the Tractor Supply Company. I am immediately transported to a land of John Deere tractors and pigs ears. Even the piped in Alabama Christmas album was unique. It’s quite the culture shock – who knew they make pink Carharts? As this is the only western shop readily available, I go looking for a ladies shirt for the dance. Once I pass all the t-shirts that say “my other car is a John Deere”, I do manage to find a sparkly western shirt. Only problem is that it is not the right size. I have to admit by the time I left the store I was starting to see the appeal. I found cute little horse and cow toys and I did find some puppy treats made of sweet potatoes. I don’t have a puppy and I don’t have a kid that would play with a cow but still it was fun.

This reminds me of when I was a kid and Dad would take us to the “Big Blue Store”. It was kind of the same thing. Lots of different kind of toys and out door stuff. I have to admit, the nostalgia did me good. So now, I am headed to the Cracker Barrell. I figure if I don’t find a shirt there, at least I can have some chicken and dumplings! Today, right now, life is good. And always, my God is good!

May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.  2 Thess. 2:16-17 NIV

Seattle’s dance scene will be represented at Wintergrass 2009 with The Tallboys. The Tallboys have been playing old-time music featuring Appalachian style  fiddle and banjo dance music in the Seattle area since 2003. They have played many of the festivals up and down the coast including winning the band contest at the 2004 String Summit Band Contest and appearances at the Portland Old Time Gathering,the  San Francisco Bluegrass and  Old Time, The Fremont Solstice Festival among others. This style of music the band plays is where Bill Monroe based his bluegrass music on. You can often hear the members of The Tallboys busking at the Pike Place Market in Seattle.

Aside from the great traditional fiddle playing by Joe ,the clawhammer and 3 finger banjo of Charlie you get to see Charmaine buck dancing to the rythms being held together with John’s bass.

Joe Fulton-fiddle, Charle Beck-banjo, Charmaine Slaven- guitar, buckdancing, John Hurd-bass

November is . . . . International Drum Month, Peanut Butter Lover’s Month, and Slaughter Month

November 1 is . . . . . Plan Your Epitaph (what’s said on your gravestone) Day

November 2 is . . . . . National Deviled Egg Day

November 3 is . . . . . Sandwich Day and Housewife’s Day

November 4 is . . . . . Waiting For The Barbarians Day

November 5 is . . . . . Gunpowder Day

November 6 is . . . . . Saxophone Day and Marooned Without A Compass Day

November 7 is . . . . . National Bittersweet Chocolate With Almonds Day

November 8 is . . . . . Dunce Day

November 9 is . . . . . Chaos Never Dies Day

November 10 is . . . . Forget-Me-Not Day

November 11 is . . . . Air Day

November 12 is . . . . National Pizza With The Works Except Anchovies Day

November 13 is . . . . National Indian Pudding Day

November 14 is . . . . Operation Room Nurse Day

November 15 is . . . . National Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day

November 16 is . . . . Button Day

November 17 is . . . . Take A Hike Day

November 18 is . . . . Occult Day

November 19 is . . . . Have A Bad Day Day

November 20 is . . . . Absurdity Day

November 21 is . . . . World Hello Day and False Confessions Day

November 22 is . . . . Start Your Own Country Day

November 23 is . . . . National Cashew Day

November 24 is . . . . Use Even If Seal Is Broken Day

November 25 is . . . . National Parfait Day

November 26 is . . . . Shopping Reminder Day

November 27 is . . . . Pins And Needles Day

November 28 is . . . . Make Your Own Head Day

November 29 is . . . . Square Dance Day

November 30 is . . . . Stay At Home Because You’re Well Day