Then I went to pick up Ger at the hotel and bring him back to Jim�s for an interview with The Express, a weekly newspaper here in St. John�s and left for �my� meeting at the Fairmount. The room was full when I got there but I managed to find a seat in the middle of the room. A panel of people introduced themselves and explained how the Department had changed since its merger with other government offices. I felt pretty excited because I even had a nametag with MY name that said �Lillian Fidler Designs� underneath. I was official! I like being official � I had represented Lillian at the ECMAs earlier in the year at the Industry Awards Brunch in Sydney, Cape Breton and had my own nametag there, too. She had been nominated once again for a Graphic Design Award. She didn�t win unfortunately, but it was a thrill, nonetheless.
The meeting was a couple hours long and by the time I got out of there, it was almost quitting time for Lillian. I wandered around the hotel's ground floor, in and out of the shops and lounge and had an excellent view of the Narrows from the lounge. Talk about fancy! Whew! I probably can't afford a napkin in here! Then I headed out to Lillian's office but she had already left. As luck would have it, I met her on Water Street and she had a ride the rest of the way home.
When we got back to the house, Jim and Ger were happy about their interview. Seems they chatted to the interviewer about 5 million topics, only one of which was music. I listened to an Emile Benoit tune on a low D whistle and Jim played Brian Boru�s March on the low D as Ger played on a nylon stringed guitar. In a conversation that followed, Ger mentioned that his ancestors were not Irish, but from a part of France/Germany called Alsace-Lorraine. Jim�s ears perked up at that since that�s where HIS ancestors are from. An interesting discussion of languages and cultures ensued. The two of them were like little boys who had discovered something neat with their chemistry sets. Yes, there�s definitely some chemistry here. They are two peas in a pod, these b�ys.
Then we all went out to the Big R, where Jim swore to me I�d love the fish and chips with dressing and gravy and fried onions. I had tried the same meal at Leo�s and Ches�s and was not impressed. But Jim swore that I�d love the Big R�s version and he was right. It was absolutely delicious! It was also a heart attack on a plate, I think. We traded stories about plays on words and Ger explained how some English words were so similar to Irish ones. �And Scots is enough like Irish so that you know a good few words!.� We learned a bit about inflection and verb tenses in Irish Gaelic as well as conjunctions. I tell you, talking with Ger every time is an education, but he�s such a natural teacher, you don�t even feel like a student!
This interview thing will go on tomorrow also. Jim and Ger have an early morning interview on CBC at 8:30 AM. Hope I�m awake to hear it! Tonight is bound to be like all the others so far - a late night.
Jim didn't schedule himself to sing for Monday or Tuesday because of all the loose ends to tie up for the Gala on Thursday. I just cannot believe how much work is going on and how much still has to be done. Jim gave me some info earlier today and asked me to write up a little blurb for the Gala program because he likes the way I write. I was happy to help. I feel like I am earning my keep. I also helped write up a Press Release to be sent out tomorrow in emails. Little did I ever think I'd be doing any of this stuff when I learned about Newfoundland music 8 short years ago. Trust me, I'm not complaining. I am, for the most part, enjoying the ride that is my life. But poor Jim and Lillian were trying to tie up all the loose ends today so they wouldnt have to worry on the rehearsal days about anything. We tried to get out of the house to pop over to Colleen Power's but it was impossible. Colleen was entertaining the gang tonight for supper. All of the Newfoundland musicians would at some point in the week, entertain the Irish guests. Some great food was eaten all week.
Before we went out to enjoy the singers this evening, we went to McDonald's and celebrated Jim and Lillian's ninth wedding anniversary with ice cream. These two really belong together. Happy Anniversary, Jim and Lillian! |
