One thing I’ll say about my wife: she works hard for the money. As some of you may know, she retired as a teacher of English as a New Language at the end of June 2022. After a fall, getting COVID, and spending four days in the hospital during her six months “off,” she went back to work.
She’s been the program director of Wizard’s Wardrobe, a one-on-one afterschool tutoring program in Albany’s South End. The tutoring takes place only during the school year. So you’d think that the summer would be relatively easy? Not so much.
She has to compile reports about each student and get them to the parents and the teachers. There are three Saturday field trips in July, including one today.
Additionally, she is doing “tabling,” showing up at various community events trying get more students, tutors, and other volunteers. I know this well because most of the material is currently in our house, specifically in her office, because the Wizard’s workspace is being renovated over the summer. Her “off-season” is exceedingly busy.
Sometimes she is so focused on doing the next thing on her agenda that it is difficult to have a present-tense conversation.
Take a break
When she takes a break and says she wants to go to the cinema, I always say yes, because movies. Still, she totally surprised me when she suggested attending the Old Songs Festival. If we were going to go, it had to be on Friday, because Saturday was a high school graduation party and Sunday was likewise busy.
For the uninitiated, Old Songs, taking place at the Altamont Fairgrounds, is “a family-friendly festival of folk, traditional, Celtic, and world music and dance. ” It “is known for its relaxed atmosphere, interactive sessions and workshops, hands-on experience and participatory nature. In addition to evening concerts each night, there are over 100 daytime workshops, dances or performances. Also featured are craft, food and instrument vendors, and a well-run children’s activity area.”
It’s been going on since the early 1980s. I had attended it several times, having purchased music there. But I had not attended it in two decades, before our daughter was born. My wife had never been there at all.
It had been so long since I had been there that I forgot that we could bring our own lawn chairs. We sat in the Dutch Barn and saw Rum Ragged, a very fine Newfoundland band, followed by the ‘genre-bending” Gaslight Tinkers on the main stage.
We checked out the West African Drum Circle at the grandstand before returning to the barn for Open Mic, with lots of fine musicians. You can download an album by Drew Jacobs, my favorite of which is Dylan’s Just Screwin’ With You.
That evening
After eating some very good Jamaican fare, we listened to the Main Stage Concert. Forty Degrees South from Australia, Matt and Kim Watroba, Andy Cohen, Steve Gillette and Cindy Mangsen. Then Tret Fure who used to play with Cris Williamson, who I have on vinyl. They were all fine sets. we left around 8:30 pm, not before the rain came.
My wife LOVED it! She wants to go again next year. We saw our churchmate Harriet, and our friends Broome and Jay were also around somewhere. The power of recreation is quite strong.
i’m sorry she’s doing work on her birthday, an aforementioned field trip, but I hope she enjoys the day regardless.
The pic, BTW, is of my father, Les Green, and my fiancee shortly before our wedding. Song.