A couple of things at random…
First off, it is with much relief that I can report that father’s surgery yesterday went well. For those who didn’t know, over the last 4-6 months he’s been having terrible pain in his lower back, to the point where he wasn’t able to walk. It was diagnosed as spinal stenosis, which means that there were bone spurs on his spine that were compressing the spinal cord. Yesterday morning he went in for a decompressive laminectomy and when I talked to him last night (!) he said he had been up walking around and it really seems to have worked. Amazingly, he’ll be out of the hospital this afternoon (barring complications) and then it’s several weeks of convalescence and physical therapy. The prognosis is pretty good, though, and I have really high hopes. I’m hoping to make a weekend visit to Mom and Dad’s in South Carolina the weekend of August 27th – it’s been far too long since I’ve been down there.
Secondly, Dan and I were looking ahead later this month and it looks like the weekend of August 20 is Milwaukee Irishfest! Woohoo! I will definitely be going on Saturday the 20th – anyone interested in joining me? This will be my third year going and if you like Celtic music at all this is THE PLACE to go. The lineup on Saturday includes some of the biggest names in Celtic music: Schooner Fare, Tommy Makem, Danu, Green Fields of America, Cherish the Ladies, Gaelic Storm, Leahy, Seven Nations, Black 47, Young Dubliners, Wolfstone, Liz Carroll, and the list goes on. The only problem is going to try to figure out who to see among the great stuff that’s all scheduled on top of each other!
Finally, I can say that in regards to the event I mentioned last week – we’re going to have some good news in the next few days, I think.
Hmmm… I think I might be there at Irish Fest… 😉
BTW, this is only your 2nd year, isn’t it? You weren’t there for 2003, because that’s when we saw Carbon Leaf. (Or did you just mean 3rd time overall, not necessarily in a row? 🙂 ) Sorry… I just know you weren’t there the year we saw Carbon Leaf, because it’s all your fault that we saw them, since we were calling to taunt you about being there when you weren’t. 🙂
I meant the third time overall. The first time I went was, I believe, in 2000 (or maybe it was 1999?)
Very happy your father is doing well. 🙂
Yay for Celtic music. We don’t hear enough of it. My mate and I like it very much indeed. Irishfest always falls in the middle of the county fair season, though, so I’ve never been. And I find I can’t face the kind of mob scene you get at Chicago music fests or Taste of Chicago, so I haven’t been in a hurry to go try it. That’s a stellar lineup of performers, though.
The timing is unfortunate, then (though I really do need to get to one of the county fairs around here this year!. It truly is a sight to behold, certainly, and not quite the beer-soaked revels that tend to be held at the Festival Grounds, I’m told. I really like it because if the crowds get too much you can always go down by the lake (Lake Michigan, that is) and relax a bit in the shade. If you’re lucky, they’ll be showing the Irish wolfhounds, too! The unfortunate thing is that for the really popular bands (e.g. Gaelic Storm) it is very much a mob scene around the stages when they play.
Well then, let me recommend some fairs. If you want to see the real thing, not just a couple of stages with overamplified performers and a drag race/demolition derby track, then you’ll have to get out away from Cook County a bit. Lake, Kane, and DuPage have lost the focus of genuine county (country) fairs, in my opinion. McHenry is failing fast too.
I heartily recommend the Boone County Fair in Belvidere, which will be August 10-14 this year, and the fair at Sandwich (DeKalb County?) which will be at the start of September (I haven’t checked, so I’m not sure of exact dates.) The Winnebago County Fair in Pecatonica is pretty decent too (August 17-21.)
Which fair you like depends on what you’d like to see. Winnebago has the best old-fashioned harness racing, I’d say. Boone and Sandwich have the best displays of baking, preserving, quilting, etc. Boone has an ARBA-sanctioned rabbit show, while the others just have smaller 4H shows. Sheep and cattle are big at Boone and Winnebago, and Boone has large goat and poultry exhibits. McHenry (in Woodstock this week) has the only llamas and alpacas of the bunch. Boone has a wonderful showing of big draft horse hitches on Saturday afternoon, but you’ll be at Irishfest then. Antique farm and tractor equipment is exhibited in quantity at Boone and Winnebago fairs.
All have large midways, commercial exhibits, and the usual county fair food booths. I generally avoid the junk food, but my mate recommends the cream puffs and doughnuts at Boone County in particular, and the large Eastern Star open air diner at Sandwich does a good fried chicken or barbecue beef dinner. Everywhere has corn dogs and lemon shake-ups, fried cheese curds, elephant ears, polish sausages, and so forth.
Oops
That was me. I forgot I wasn’t logged in on this machine.
Strangely enough I live in Wisconsin and part Irish and I have never been to Irishfest, I would like to go. 🙂
Yay! Glad you’re dad’s doing OK!
Damn, I’d like to, but going on the Noah’s Ark trip. Harumph. Oh well. We need to do dinner again sometime.
-Woof