finally to the end

Of my catch up posting for all of February when life overtook us and we had no time to spend - sometimes not even a computer to be found to make notes upon LOL -

So on Superbowl Sunday when we are always seeking alternatives to the horror of football on TV we went to a concert-

Held at Fogartyville- we heard RUNA- this is what the Fogartyville website said-

Quickly gaining recognition as one of Irish music’s new “super-groups,” RUNA has been enchanting audiences by pushing the boundaries of Irish folk music into the Americana and roots music formats since their formation in 2008. Interweaving the haunting melodies and exuberant tunes of Ireland and Scotland with the lush harmonies and intoxicating rhythms of jazz, bluegrass, flamenco and blues, they offer a thrilling and redefining take on traditional music.

RUNA consists of vocalist and step-dancer, Shannon Lambert-Ryan of Philadelphia, Dublin-born guitarist, Fionán de Barra, Cheryl Prashker of Canada on percussion, Dave Curley of Galway on mandolin, vocals, bodhrán, and step-dancing, and Maggie White of Kentucky on the fiddle. Check them out on their website: http://www.runamusic.com/2016/

We had heard them play here a few years ago and here is my review- The male singer David Curley had several lovely numbers that I really liked,  Their instrumentals were excellent.  But they lost me when the female singer (center of the top photo) sang because I couldn't understand the words- even when Phil pulled up song lyrics on his phone I still could barely follow along her speedy pace made them a blur. I know that this sounds like the criticism of an old person who can't hear but I have excellent hearing (as did my mother until the day she died) and have no trouble telling Phil minutes ahead of the UPS truck arriving that is almost to our house... so it is not that.  When I had the lyrics in front of me I could see the words and also could see she left out a fair number of the words on the paper in order to reach the inordinate speed at which she sang. 

http://blog.semifreelife.com/2016/02/runa.html

sadly Dave Curley seems to have left the group and has been replaced by Maggie White's husband or brother or whatever- a shame since Curley and Prashker were my favorites of the prior concert-

and that is exactly as it turned out again- I really didn't care for the lead singer- although she had gotten more understandable- and I liked the new guy Zack White pretty much- although he doesn't dance like Curley did - but overall I still liked the percussionist and the male singer over the female...

so they were a nice way to get together with friends (Jean and Barb & John) and pass a few hours on a Sunday when it absolutely poured rain at dinner time but not much more.  And that is the missing month in five or six quick posts- sorry I took so long...

a concert, a meal

Anything to distract at least me from the news cycle and the election! Anything!

Off we went to Fogartyville to hear a Celtic music group called Brock McGuire.  Three old guys and a lively skinny youth who danced and sang.  We love the intimate venue and the warm welcome from the local volunteers.  Arlene, the young woman who runs the Peace Center, and Francis, the Goodwill Ambassador who must be 85 if he's a day and is all of about 5 foot 5... he is so upbeat just seeing him makes you smile.

The group was good- all excellent musicians and as charming as only Irish men can be,  The tunes got repetitive to me but all were very listenable.  The songs were classic mournful songs of wanting to return home- with one exception- a lovely song about the fifteen year old Irish girl who was the first person who came through on Ellis Island when it opened in 1892.  The singer was Dave Curley and the band was made up of three guys- one being Brock (last name) and the other last name McGuire and the third guy on keyboards was a music teacher as well as a musician. I kept saying to Phil "I know that guy from somewhere" and he agreed that the young man looked very familiar.  So when I googled him I found out we had seen him on January 31st at the same venue- with the group RUNA.... post address below to copy into your browser- I had really liked his work that previous evening although not the female singer's rushed delivery of the lyrics- again I will look to find his recording of Black River...

http://blog.semifreelife.com/2016/02/runa.html

We wanted to get dinner after the concert since we had a  big lunch later in the day so we headed over to the Starlite Room where we knew the bar was open and serving food after 10 PM. This is not a late night town....LOL We had a nice meal there and arrived home around 11:30 now one more day of the election torn from our calendars like the old movies---- it can't come soon enough for probably 99% of Americans- but for sure for me....

for apps - Phil had the tuna and I had deviled eggs

we split a salad

then I had mussels and he had the grouper sandwich

we whiled away the evening and are headed out tonight to see our buddy Dan at Blue Marlin for a late dinner.... it is really now the first week back in the regular routine for Phil - off to see his trainer (no I haven't sent him to obedience school LOL) and his usual forays to the grocery/drug/banks/costco etc....  School registration starts this week and I think I will take one class and see how it goes. Our school has undergone some traumatic changes this summer as USF ditched us (we took up too much room in their facility) and we had to find a new home which we did - with the Ringling College but the new facility isn't ready yet so classes are scheduled all over the place... the "main campus" has moved to Temple Beth Sholom.... so we will see how this works out- it is about twice as far as we are used to going for classes and that could be an impediment.  So as always- stay tuned....

RUNA

The concert tonight was RUNA.  The venue was one of our very favorite- Fogartyville.  Here are some photos of the group from their website- (and this BTW was the order of the group onstage last night) percussion to the left and the guitar on the right...

here is the blurb from the promo the venue sent to advertise the group-

Quickly gaining recognition as one of Irish music’s new “super-groups”, RUNA has been enchanting audiences by pushing the boundaries of Irish folk music, since their formation in 2008.  Interweaving the haunting melodies and exuberant tunes of Ireland and Scotland with the lush harmonies and intoxicating rhythms of bluegrass, flamenco, blues, jazz, they offer a thrilling and redefining take on traditional music.  The group has been honored internationally, winning Top Group and Top Traditional Group in the Irish Music Awards and an Independent Music Award for Best World/Traditional Song

The male singer David Curley had several lovely numbers that I really liked,  Their instrumentals were excellent.  But they lost me when the female singer (center of the top photo) sang because I couldn't understand the words- even when Phil pulled up song lyrics on his phone I still could barely follow along her speedy pace made them a blur. I know that this sounds like the criticism of an old person who can't hear but I have excellent hearing (as did my mother until the day she died) and have no trouble telling Phil minutes ahead of the UPS truck arriving that is almost to our house... so it is not that.  When I had the lyrics in front of me I could see the words and also could see she left out a fair number of the words on the paper in order to reach the inordinate speed at which she sang.

so Phil loved the concert but I probably would pass on them the next time.  I may download the David Curley songs-one was called Black River but I wasn't prescient enough to note the other song when I heard it...

so here are a few less than stellar photos from my phone - and a short video clip -

they played to a packed house - both indoors and outdoors were sold out!

we will also be hearing Mark Erelli on Friday night coming up-

we heard Doug MacLeod last summer at SPACE and he was amazing- so we will be returning for that concert- and Phil says Aztec Two Step (named for a Ferlinghetti poem I hear) is also excellent - so our calendar stays full...

and finally the video clip-

tonight I am off to the ballet- my first Sarasota Ballet performance so I will let you know how it goes- as I said in a prior post I am very picky about ballet - keep your fingers crossed.  And stay tuned...

really big tides

I may have mentioned that tides are a really big deal in St Martin and the Bay of Fundy in general- and that they have the highest tides in the world... this is due to a geological formation and the funnel shape of the bay itself along with the location being so far north of the equator.  But what I haven't mentioned is exactly how high the tides are- seriously impressive...

this from wikipedia says it quite succinctly-

The Bay of Fundy is known for having the highest tidal range in the world. Rivaled by Ungava Bay in northern Quebec, King Sound in Western Australia, Gulf of Khambhat in India, and the Severn Estuary in the UK, it has one of the highest vertical tidal ranges in the world. The Guinness Book of World Records (1975) declared that Burntcoat Head, Nova Scotia has the highest tides in the world:
“The Natural World, Greatest Tides: The greatest tides in the world occur in the Bay of Fundy.... Burntcoat Head in the Minas Basin, Nova Scotia, has the greatest mean spring range with 47.5 feet and an extreme range of 53.5 feet.”

On morning two of our class we had an excellent lecture from a local lobster and scallop fisherman who discussed all kinds of things related to the trade... then we walked through the town of St Martin - guided by local historian Eric Bartlett, who discussed architecture and history along the way, and the lives of lobster fisherman when we were in the area of the local harbor. 

just a tinge of fall colors starting here-

on the way down to the harbor- 

do you think they are all LOL inside the Orange Hall? LOL

we saw several of these in St Martin - apparently a program started to get the kids involved with reading and sharing and staying away from vandalism (the kids build them and take care of them)

down in the harbor all the lobster pots/traps are ready for the fall season which begins in November and runs until mid January... I found it interesting how each lobster man's traps differed - both on the exterior and what was held inside awaiting the work months-

a small park in the harbor honored the local fishermen-

you may recall the earlier photos being at much lower tide level -

still not full high tide- but the boats are getting some water under the keels (see I learned ship terms yesterday at the museum! LOL)

a picturesque spot where tourists stop for photos will always engender a place for them to also leave their money and so it goes with the harbor in St. Martins...

there are (as I think I mentioned in a prior post) two covered bridges in the Harbor area-

and even near the touristy gift shops the working port is still evident-

we bid farewell (for this morning) to the local lighthouse and head back to the Inn for lunch and a lecture on cooking scallops and lobster along with information about local favorites fiddlehead ferns (which we get on rare occasions in the Chicago area and always buy when we see them!) 

these ferns are so treasured locally that they appear on the bottom of the provincial crest- (being trounced by local elk?)

later that night - our lobster dinner- the bib and then the big guy (or gal) --- LOL

then the evening's music- a Celtic singer named Keith Facey who was thoroughly entertaining- 

tomorrow we are off to the Fundy Trail and will visit the St Martins lighthouse (which is for sale in case you had an interest in making a purchase of real estate in New Brunswick...) so plenty of reason to return to semifreelife...