Bright lights, big city...

O.k., so despite the drive up and back, we did have a blast in New York. On Friday, Sharon thought that I could use some calming down ( I was extremely nervous about the panel discussion on Saturday), so she took me to Coney Island and we stared at the water for awhile and then went to the aquarium where we saw walruses, otters, seals, and a great exhibit on Jellyfish. Very soothing to be with animals for awhile.

Saturday was a whirlwind of activity. In the morning we went out to score some Ukuleles for our friends Keith and Marilee, who are now completely assimilated in to the cult. Nice! Then, there was a huge photo shoot involving all generations of swing dancers from the 1920's to present. A lot of folks came out of the woodwork for the photo and it was great to see all those generations of dancers laughing and carrying on together. Problem was that it took forever and left me very little time to eat, shower and get back for the panel.

I was a wreck before the panel. I usually perform fairly well under stress, but this time I was feeling pretty overwhelmed. Luckily, six out of seven panelists turned out to be really nice guys and GREAT storytellers. Clark Terry, Benny Powell, and Albert Murray are three of the nicest guys I've run across and they made it very easy to get through fear I was feeling. So, it went off without a hitch. People seemed to like it, so, job well done.

Saturday night was a dance with 1200 people. No room to swing out, so I sat in the balcony and dug the band. Later, I went backstage and got to meet George Avakian, which was unbelievably cool.

Sunday, we went to The Strand bookshop and then proceeded to Central Park to get coffee and see some jazz. The band was great and happened to include some ukulele playing. Awesome! That night, we had a little jam session at Keith's house with Marilee and I on Ukes, Keith on Sax, and Sharon on bongos. Hilarious!

Monday, we drove, and drove and.....