| Islands of Song Newfoundland 2005 |
| When the Gala was over and everyone was leaving I �pulled a Mom� as my daughter says. An online friend from the mainland was coming to the Gala this evening and I was anxious to meet her. It occurred to me that I didn�t know what she looked like. So I formulated a plan while waiting for the show to start. I knew Lisa was in good physical shape and was young and her seat was about in the middle of the auditorium. That�s all I knew other than our mutual love for Great Big Sea. So I figured I�d just yell, �Lisa!� and see who turned around. It worked! Lisa looked around and I called again. I waited till she noticed me waving at her and then said, �I�m Anne!� In the meantime, Shawn (futon) had come over to say �Hi!� Shawn had had the BEST seat in the house tonight � front row center! We arranged to meet at Erin�s in a bit. |
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| I found my way backstage but didn�t find Jim and Lillian. They couldn�t have gone far without the car, so I went out and checked to see if they were waiting at the van. Nope. As I waited outside, Darrell came out with his lovely wife and, to my surprise, I discovered I had parked next to his car! �Whoa! I didn�t know that was your car!� I said. �I figured it was yours with the Pennsylvania plates,� he countered and introduced me to Sandy. She is personable and lovely. They make a great couple! I asked Darrell if he had seen Jim and Lillian but the answer was no and we parted ways. |
| So I went back inside to search, running into Ron. He said he had seen them going towards the front lobby and asked me for a ride home. So Ron and his guitar hopped in. We drove around to the front but Jim and Lillian were greeting old friends and not ready to go yet. Ron was anxious to be home and pack and get his dog, Iris, to his daughter�s house before he had to catch the 6 AM plane to Halifax. Graham Dilabaugh appeared with his van so Ron ended up going with them to his house.
Jim was on top of the world and in no hurry to leave. The Gala had gone well and even though only 500 people came, everyone enjoyed the show, everyone went home happy, and many people went home with a new CD or two! We picked up the goodies we needed for the after-party and arrived at a packed Erin�s Pub. I couldn�t believe how crowded it was! Everyone in the show, band and dancers included, came to celebrate a successful show, a job well done! Lillian and I put the snacks out on the table as people chatted about the week behind and the weeks to come. Niall, Mick and Ron were all leaving in the early morning � Niall to Montreal, Ron to Halifax, and Mick to New York City. Niall is becoming quite the world traveler! We had seen him just two weeks before in New York City and then he had a show in Rochester. Ron was performing at Stanfest tomorrow and Mick was hoping to strike it big in New York City, the next Bob Dylan. But the airport isn�t open till 5:30 AM so they all joined us at Erin�s till the wee hours. Lillian walked around armed with the mic to interview people for Jim�s podcast as I made sure the plates stayed full. Darrell tried to get a session going and Kathy (Hugh�s wife) urged me to �take a photo, this is the opportunity of a lifetime!� So I did! But the session went nowhere after a couple songs because it was just too noisy in the bar. Guitars were put away and moments together were celebrated. Niall really didn�t want to leave and I don�t think anyone there wanted him to leave either. I wish he could have stayed till the Canada Day party at Wayne and Sheila�s tomorrow. It�s supposed to be a blast! |
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| Darrell fools around trying to get a session started |
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| The funniest thing that happened in those early morning hours was trying to get Ger out to the cab. I think Ger must have spoken with every single person in the bar that night. By the time the cab came to take the troupe back to the hotel, Ger was still deep in conversation. They had to come in three times to get him, the last time literally dragging him out the door by the arm. We sadly bid goodbye to Niall and Mick and went back to nurse our drinks till 4 AM or so. Jim worried about what he was going to do now that it was all over. �Sleep� said Lillian. And we did. |
| Shawn looks on as Ger gets interviewed for the podcast on Republic of Avalon Radio - Darrell sang the theme song for us, so we know he's a listener! Click here to listen to the podcasts. |
| Ger chats with Susan as Niall tries to hide his beer. That's one of the dancers behind him. |
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