Sep 29 - The Gathering - Day Four

We looked forward to this panel discussion all week and were not disappointed.  The two men on the left talked about what Mountain View was like when there were no roads in the area - they didn't get paved roads until the 1960s!  And they told us how they would get together once a week in one of the courtrooms to play music because it was the only place big enough for an audience.  A bunch of the musicians from Mountain View went to Washington DC to perform and lobby for opening the Folk Center and that must have been quite an eventful trip because their memories of it were still so bright and clear and fun to listen to.  The discussion was videotaped and I'll come back with more information after I watch it and think to take notes.

As you can see, Pam is not an old timer but the man in the photo above is her Dad so she grew up with all the old timers and is an excellent musician herself.  Stay tuned for updates to day four.

Sep 30 - The Gathering - Day 5

Today was the last day of the first week of The Gathering and the day the drawing was held for a McSpadden dulcimer.  Enough money was collected from the raffles held all week long to pay off the expenses and donate some money to three local charities.  Jack turned the drum and Thomas Ahern drew the winning tickets.  That's Mary in the background and her numbers were drawn three times this week.  Wilma, who had arrived only that day, won two prizes.  Thomas Ahern performed a mini-concert just before the drawing.  He uses unusual tunings on his dulcimers and plays Beatles music!  Very cool!  He said he ordinarily only plays for the possum that lives beneath his trailer and it was a treat to play at The Gathering.

Frances Mack - the lucky winner!

After the raffle everyone but the instructors left and we sat and talked about what worked and what didn't work during the week and we shared comments we heard from the students.  Except for the annoying gnats, the week was wildly successful, and there were very few negative comments.

Meeting over.  Pizza time!  We take a break for the weekend and start again on Monday. 

September 18 - Studio Tour

The Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour has gone on in and around Mountain View for ten years and though we always talk about it, we have never taken it until this year. I don't believe we'll make that mistake again. We only visited three of the studios, but thoroughly enjoyed each and every one of them. We visited David and Becki Dahlstedt's Stoneware Pottery. David works with the clay and Becki comes up with incredible glazes. Mugs are her favorite thing to make and they are so unique and it was difficult not to buy several of them. Dana Shaeffer's Tapestry and Weaving Studio was our next stop. Dana's designs come from photos and Photoshop and end up as original and beautiful tapestries made on a loom imported in pieces from Sweden with directions all in Swedish. Our third and last stop was Common Threads where the process goes from "sheep to shawl".

I grabbed this quick shot before they noticed me.

As soon as they noticed me, they took off.  Not pictured is a lama and some angora goats.  The fleeces are kept in large plastic bags with cedar chips to keep the bugs out.

Shawn makes crochet hooks that are little works of art.

Another crochet hook in the making.

Three of Jeanette's beautiful shawls.

Shawls are made on a triangle loom and the stick that pulls the thread through is like a large crochet hook.  She uses commercial yarns for some of her shawls for people who are allergic to animal fleeces.

A few of the fleece rugs Jeanette has made.  She first washes them in the bathtub and then washes them in a large front loader five or six times before they are ready to be sold so there is no worry about them shrinking after you get them home.

It takes 16 hours to get all the warp threads onto the loom, longer if you should miss a loop and have to take half of them off.  Jeanette was 12 when her aunt bought this loom, but her aunt was only 5' tall and the loom was too big for her Jeannette has used this loom to make her beautiful rugs for 20 years.

September 16 - The Gathering

We've been in Mountain View for a month now and we have played a lot of music but not taken many photos.  Right now we are involved in helping plan the Ozark Dulcimer Gathering that begins on the 25th.  We'll be playing in a couple of mini concerts, teaching, managing the stage, and working in registration during the two week event.  I have put together the logo, name tags for the hosts, and an informational brochure to give people when they arrive.  All the concerts and workshops are free and the whole event will be very relaxed, not too rigidly planned, and lots of opportunities to learn, teach, and just have fun.  We have no idea how many people will show up since registration is free and no one will register until they get here.  About 20 of us are involved and we'll have a good time even if no one shows up.

A Gathering meeting in the pickin' shed taken from both ends of the table so you can see everyone.

August 13-14: Missouri to Arkansas

We stayed in Pontiac Park on the Missouri/Arkansas border for a couple of nights before heading to our second home, Mountain View, Arkansas.  We had a really nice site up on the hill and by itself.  Another plus is that it has electricity and water.  Not all sites had water.

Home again in Mountain View.  Fred and Kathy (yellow and pink shirts in the background) came to visit for a few days.  That's Galen playing his washtub bass in the foreground.  After six weeks of moving around quite a lot, we are happy to be settled again until the first of November.

August 11: Amazing Omelets

We took the Amazing Omelets recipe, the one we got from Sonny and Crys, and introduced them to Ron and Donna and their grandson.  The recipe:  Two eggs smooshed in a ZipLock back.  Add bacon, cheese, veggies, whatever you like.  Put into a pan of boiling water and boil for 13 minutes.

The finished product.

August 10: Columbia, MO: Ron and Donna

This is a view from the door of our RV.

We are parked right behind our host's RV.

Our hosts:  Ron and Donna.  This photo was taken at Bandana's, a yummy place for barbeque.

This is a home in their neighborhood.  We liked the creative flower gardens.

But even better was the barbed wire fence covered with stuff!