There were far too many wonderous things which happened over the weekend to list - lots of them were not on the program. In many cases I was getting to visit some of the 'Catters for the third time in the same year; others, for the second time. What a privilege! It was good as well to renew acquaintences with some I had seen at last year's Getaway. But it was especially cool to see some Mudcatters for the first time - some of whom were quite new to the Mudcat.

It is simply amazing to discover/rediscover the incredible diversity of interests and talents of the people who attended. There was so much music within these folks that there simply was not time to hear all of what was presented.

The surprises were many. I think nearly everyone's voices were challenged by both the intense use and the cold night air. I found myself (normally a tenor) singing basso profundo, hitting notes formerly unknown to my throat. Folks who had been spoiled in previous years by excellent food, prepared with imagination and amazing talent, were somewhat disappointed by what was made available to us.

On the other hand, the facilities were all we could have wanted. Heck, there were so many buildings and gathering places that some were never even used! Although it seemed that anyplace you needed to be was uphill from where you were, the exercise was good for us and the trips were always worth the effort.

My personal favorite moments were:

listening to Pam Swan singing in the shower

watching Mick work incessantly to "nail" a song he wanted to do for his workshop

seeing and hearing Glenn Hammil (Anna's "Honey") as he got with the spirit of "Wade in the Water"

witnessing the almost-physical change Max made whenever he sang some blues. He virtually becomes an old black man at times.

sitting with Sandy as he described a young man named Art Thieme who had asked Sandy how to be a folksinger

watching JAB as he thumped the night away on his washtub bass

listening to Joe as he traded gospel songs with Sandy

watching Caroline - just watching her do nearly anything is a pure joy; she exudes joy at every turn

hearing Barry Finn put heart and soul into every note of every song

singing a few with Moonjen, Vixen and Tim

listening to Tinker speak of her travels into the not-so-nice parts of a southern town

seeing Dani's rosy cheeks glow as she sings

noticing again how easy Roger in Baltimore makes it look to play blues guitar

having my heart shredded by Ferrara's singing of a poignant song of struggle

finding that once again Dick Greenhaus can dredge up a song from a zillion years ago and play it in such a way that I feel as if I have known the song all my life

discussing music theory with Songster Bob

hearing Jeri's blending in of her fiddle on a tune or two

sitting among 'Catters until the wee hours as we traded songs and quips

...so many more