Third straight year at the Walnut Valley Festival and the timing could not have been better. The day before departure was the disastrous Montgomery County primary election, so leaving town felt good regardless of the destination. The weather was most cooperative, I did not run across one nasty person the whole time, and the music was the best I've heard yet. Victoria was into it, which makes it more fun, too.

How about a Brian story? He's weird, is all. We got to the fairgrounds after 1am or so and started to set up the tent. We had a lantern on the ground and a little flashlight in case we needed it, but we've set up the tent many times and could probably do it blindfolded if we had to. AND it's not impossible to set up alone, but it's an easier job with two people. Two regular people, of course. In my case, we had inserted the diagonal poles and were in the middle of erecting the structure when I noticed a sudden lack of tension. I waited for Brian to regain his purchase. Nothing. I asked if there was a problem. Silence. I put my corner down and walked to the other side. It was quite dark everywhere that the lamp was not and I didn't feel like walking back to get the lamp, so I felt around with my toes for an inert form--I figured either he'd had a stroke or been felled by an errant early morning bowhunter. The ground was clear, so I resumed assembling the tent and eventually Brian returned from wherever he'd been. A vignette illustrating what it is like to be me.