Surprise. No, everybody. Surprise!

Let me tell you about cool friends. Cool friends will invite you out and not tell you where you're going. You have to trust them. But they will make certain you have a good time.

Let me tell you about doubly cool friends. Doubly cool friends will invite you out, tell you where to meet them, but pull a bait and switch to make sure you have a special day.

Now let me tell you about triply cool friends. Triply cool friends will be cool friends who organize a group outing, then be doubly cool friends to make sure you and your friends get there, and then make it all one big shindig.

The Ringleaders

I know all this because of my agent. Let's just call her Mom. She got me a gig that would be nearly all women and where I would be fed. I nearly jumped at it before I asked what was involved. It sounded pretty good to me already. Here was the catch. According to my agent, I would need to lead the group in singing Happy Birthday. Mom sometimes forgets I'm a bass player and that I rarely know the chords to anything. Also, I don't sing in public. I don't have restraining orders or anything, I just make it a point not to as a charitable act. I said yes.

On the Right ... My Agent

The event--the doubly cool event--was for a friend I'd just met last weekend. I don't want to infer that the event was decadent, but our friend is celebrating a few decades. Today. How many is immaterial. At some point, we all deserve a party. And so it was done.

It was my first solo gig and I played a D chord. The song kind of took off by itself after that. All to the good. Later, I was asked to speak about my blog. This blog. The one you're reading. So I did. And I told the gathered crowd how fulfilling it is to be able to post the occasional picture and also tell the story behind it. Like this.

Some people are fussy about having their picture taken. I didn't pay much attention to that. However, as a husband, the father of a daughter, and a brother between two lovely sisters, I'm aware that I should be particularly careful about showing people in a bad light. If your picture is in the following group and you don't care for it, please thank me next time you see me. I've already removed the less flattering ones.

Today was beastly hot and humid, which is not atypical for southern Indiana. We just call it Summer. Thankfully, there was a pleasant breeze blowing at the Don Gress Pavilion beside the lake at Eastside Park. When I arrived, people were hanging decorations, setting up the serving table, getting the drinks ready, or supervising.

Soon afterward, we had appropriately serenaded the birthday girl, prayed over the food, then made it disappear. After my brief explanation of blogging and an invitation to visit here, I was off to help set up for the 4-H fair. This was at the request of the only other carrier of a Y chromosome in attendance.

The Man

Here are some candid photographs of the people who attended. 

 

 

  

 

This group was nearby, if not exactly in attendance. I'm a bit envious. A quick paddle would have felt good today.

I've no idea if this one ever thought it was a duck.

And finally, a fowl version of a bad hair day.

So there it is. A brief catalog of the festivities, some photos, and this. If you are not already blogging, I encourage you to try it. It doesn't have to be every day. I'm strong testimony on this point. But it's a nice way to share some of the goodness of life, which includes really cool friends. Get one. Be one.