Loose Leaf Notes

1. The Blue Fairy (aka my friend Alina) makes wishes come true. It’s a tall order, but she can handle it. She walks on stilts.

2. Most of the teens in this group attended the recent Earthsong Teen Meditation Retreat that my husband organized. Another group of teens I spent some time with were lobbying for a glow in the dark laser tag tent at the festival next year.

3. I felt like asking young Ben and Jackson for their autographs, after seeing their photos so often on their Aunt Deana’s blog and their Dad’s Life in Mayberry. It was my first time meeting them all in person, although I feel like I have known their mom Amy forever. She regularly reads my blog and read my book, The Jim and Dan Stories: A Journey of Grief and Faith, at a time when she needed support for her own grief after losing her mom. This spontaneous meet-up was a real heartwarming highlight for me.

4. FloydFest volunteers and friends, Rosemary and Walter, manning the onsite parking tent figured out the best way to pass the time. Walter got a BINGO, I heard.

5. The amazing Vivian of Spiral Hoop Dance said she was a cheerleader in school. Now she makes her living with hoops. She makes them, teaches classes, and performs (sometimes with fire).

6. After snapping this photo, I noticed these guys’ shirts read “Patrick County Sheriff.” “Patrick County? Not Floyd? Oh, I think I’ll delete this then,” I joked. “Just where do you think you are?” one in the group joked back. Yes it’s true, the Festival is on the Floyd/Patrick County line, but mostly in Patrick.

7. Mother and daughter, Tamra and Lotus, share a moment.

8. My two month old grandson Bryce and his family didn’t make it up to the festival this year, but Elisha and Jamie’s baby boy, who was born around the same time, did. I caught him looking like an angel in the arms of his “Uncle” Jeff.

9. I would have missed this reunion with my son Dylan’s favorite elementary school teacher (who I hadn’t seen in fifteen years) if his wife hadn’t recognized me from reading the blog and pointed him out to me.

10. The teacher and his wife, Mike and Carol, were volunteering in the beer garden. That’s where we were when one of Dylan’s best friends, who also had Mike as a teacher, showed up with his daughter and brother. Mike didn’t recognize him. I think those big arm tattoos threw him off.

11. My Asheville potter son made it up for the festival. In this shot he’s with a longtime family friend and Blue Mountain School alumni classmate, Sayulita, who was part of the FloydFest staff this year. I did creative writing with Sayulita and others at Floyd’s Blue Mountain School. She ended up as a columnist for the Charlotte Observer, but is now running her own marketing business. Both Josh and Sayulita are bright lights in the world. Josh’s Clayspace Co-op webpage is HERE. Sayulita’s is HERE.

12. The people who make FloydFest happen, aka The FloydFest Class Picture, taken on the Hill Holler stage after the last act, The Avett Brothers, played. My husband Joe, who coordinates onsite parking, is included somewhere in the shot.

13. And this is the crowd that enjoyed Amos Lee’s performance, as seen from the main stage where I was watching him from. As you can see FloydFest is well attended and enjoyed by many.
Post notes: Read more about FloydFest HERE. Click and Scroll down HERE for photos and stories from other years.