Been awhile, hasn't it? A lot has happened since I last posted: We had to find a new site for FARM 2009 so we could keep it in the Chicago area over Columbus Day weekend--and we lucked into a sweet one: the Holiday Inn of Bolingbrook, IL. We'll have the run of the place as the only event booked, reasonable room rates with flexible rooming arrangements--bookable directly with the hotel (that is, if you want to stay on site); a la carte dining with a plethora of nearby options (with free shuttle to and from them) or use the fridge in your room; full pool/sauna/spa and fitness facility; plenty of meeting space and a staff eager to please. Th-Su, 10/8-11. More innovations too numerous to detail here. Rates and registration info & forms (and mailings) out imminently. Have had some marvelous performance experiences: Green Earth Fair, Live From the Living Room (where we shared the stage with Steve Deasey and an amazing performance from Foxfire---get well, Denise, we're all praying for you!), Folk It! My best friend Bob Berlien (follow the saga on his and Kathy's LiveJournals) underwent lung-reduction surgery for COPD and blessedly, the pulmonary nodule discovered during pre-op testing proved to be benign. We all gathered at my place Memorial Day to rejoice in each others' company and grill dinner between the raindrops. A good time was had by all. No raindrops were harmed in the production of dinner, nor were there any inadvertent encounters between the gas grill and respiratory equipment. Can't ask for much more than that these days. Traveled around the Madison and Detroit areas; got some great starts on rehearsing and planning the next Andina & Rich CD; and attended the wedding of my cousin's daughter in Salem, MA just this past weekend (at the beautiful, elegant and historical Peabody-Essex Museum and Library (and got to formally welcome her handsome and multi-talented husband into our family). It was a delight to be with family members I hadn't seen in months, even years. Those experiences have reminded me that friends and family are our most precious resources: life is short, share it with those you love, and reconnect with those with whom you've fallen out of touch for whatever (or no) reason. Bummer is that it's getting tougher and tougher for me to walk these days--developed a nagging soreness on the side of my left foot that has progressed to a downright painful nodule (bone bruise?), plantar fasciitis, and perhaps even a metatarsal neuroma (meaning a swelling on a nerve) . Waiting for word from my podiatrist as to whether I should "pass Go" and head straight to my orthopedist instead (whom I feel I should ask for frequent flyer miles). Hoping that taping, ice, and the right shoes will help---and that I'll be able to spend enough time on my feet to get through an hour's set this Sunday at Mill Brook State Park in Tomah, WI. Sure hate sitting down to sing--standing works sooo much better for the voice. All in all, though, it's not life-threatening--it's just a foot, and it's only pain. (I've observed enough that can go wrong this past month to be sincerely grateful for that). Also, for reasons we won't go into around here Andina & Rich (and Red Starr Productions) have opted out of this year's Nashville Songwriters' Festival--we felt that circumstances dictated that there would be ways to use that week in late June to best advantage. Those better ways include both more preparations for recording and a long-overdue visit from my sister and niece, whom I haven't seen in a year and a half and who haven't been to Chicago in twelve years. Had a bit of excitement around here with Bob's dad--let's just say that long walks which one has been urged not to take, when one is elderly and dehydrated, don't lead to the most pleasant of experiences and are quite inadvisable (a lesson well-learned). On the bright side, he did get to meet quite a few of Chicago's finest (and EMTs) who came to his aid. He sincerely hopes not to see them again except on a purely social basis. You will notice I have said nothing tonight about the major issues of the day, whether political, criminal, sports or religious. At nearly 4 a.m., I fear I might not be as articulate about them as I'd like, that I would be so impassioned about them as to cause misinterpretations and hard feelings, and that plenty of people (including yours truly) have posted about them ad infinitum on various internet forums--not to mention countless others who have held forth via more widely publicized channels. So I'm sticking to what I know best, going micro-and-not-macro. Besides, my foot hurts.