Rough morning--went to the funeral of a friend's mom. She'd had 11 kids--and when her husband died, raised 10 of them on her own. She suffered the pain no parent should--outliving 2 of her adult kids (and one is dying). Like her daughter, she was a dedicated nurse, loving and generous soul, and outgoing and gregarious. She had an enormous heart, and at 83 it gave out. I don't think any of us made it out of the church without tears. Tomorrow is the official Day 1 of the Fox Valley Folk Festival. I probably won't be formally performing Sunday (unless someone sneaks me on to a workshop stage if a space opens up), but come to the CSC Showcase at 11 am on Stage 2 and I will be emceeing. Afterwards, I may be continuing to emcee the open mic, or holding down the fort at the CSC booth across the lawn. Expect jams to break out at the drop of a pick. As to tomorrow's open mic at the Little Owl and its adjacent pub, that'll depend on the crowd and noise level (they normally have rock bands). It may be an acoustic song circle. Or we might find a more amenable venue nearby, in which case I'll set up the P.A. system. Monday is the big performance day for me--CSC Showcase at 11 am on Stage 2 and Dulcimer workshop (sharing the stage with David Massengill!) on the Pavilion Teaching Stage. My new song will make its debut at the Showcase (unless I'm slipped into one of the topical song workshops tomorrow).