Life is good

Before going on the business trip to Nashville, Judy took me to Celtic Women at the Mayo Civic Center here in Rochester. It was beautiful. They put on a great, energetic show. That was Wednesday evening. Then Saturday it was the Grand Ole Opry. Another very well done and very professional show.

That was last week. This weekend Judy and I took the weekend off for a much needed time away. We had not simply gone away for years. The cares for Louie, Jim and Lucy simply took precedence over R&R time. This was our first foray into vacationing.

Just like the prior weekend, music played a major part of the time. On Friday night we went to the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in St. Paul. The McNight Theater was playing Blues in the Night. The performance was knock your socks off excellent. We thoroughly enjoyed both the music and the venue. It's a very personal space, close to the stage.

This morning we got up early to go to church. The son of a friend goes to Central Lutheran, next to the convention center in downtown Minneapolis. More fabulous music. Two selections from Handel's Messiah and a rocking Bach postlude, Praeludium in G Major on their 108 rank pipe organ. The instrument had just been rebuilt and it was fantastic. They are hosting several recitals this summer, including an American Guild of Organists event. One of those recitals may make it onto our calendar.

The rest of the weekend was wonderful. No end to good food. Nice conversation. A beautiful hotel. Great places to shop. A wonderful museum with an exhibit of Russian Impressionism. And much more to do on our next visit.

Life is good. Very good.