Patty Griffin at JazzFest

One of my favorite musicians is Patty Griffin. It was an incredible treat to see her at Jazz Fest. She did an amazing set and added some Acadian songs as well.

Since she was playing at the Fais Do Do stage, we were able to get really close to the stage. Her set was incredible. The combination of her voice, lyrics and overall passion is astounding.

The best part of is when she sang "Heavenly Day" because it couldn't have been more true. Sun shining, no clouds, great music and all my siblings (and their spouses) with me. Amazing!

Napping in the Blues Tent at Jazz Fest

Jazz Fest is an amazing event. There is a ton of music to hear, a lot of food to eat and more things to see that you can every hope to get around to. With the sun, the dancing and the cocktails, it can take its toll on you.

In the Gospel and Blues tents, you often see people taking a quick refresher nap. This women, with her requisite Jazz Fest straw hat, looked exhausted when she sat down. It wasn't much later that I noticed she was napping and snapped this photo.

Dancing at the Fais Do Do Stage

One of the great things about Jazz Fest in New Orleans is that the people are great. Yes, the music is great, however, I think the crowd of people makes it that much more enjoyable. With more than 400,000 people over a period of 7 days, you would think people would get into the occasional squabble.

I have never seen it happen - or even come close. Everyone is enjoying the music and just having a good time.

The Fais Do Do stage is a great example. Everyone is dancing and having enjoying the music. Mostly, they are dancing with friends, but a fair amount are dancing with total strangers - like the couple in the photo. He just walked up and asked her to dance, and away they went.

As you can see from the photo, they are both having a great time. Gotta love Fest!

Rib Cook Off Counter Help

Against the advice of every weather person in town, I went to the Rib Cook Off to see K. C. and the Sunshine band yesterday. The weather was great. It was warm and sunny. Some of the ribs were amazing.

I won a ticket to the Taste of Cleveland by playing the APL's Slide the Beer Mug game. With the lovely weather and good ribs (I think Bubba's Q was the best), I was inspired to have a nice margarita. While I was standing in the long line, I noticed the hair style of the counter help. This picture reminded me of the many times I was at New Orleans Jazz Fest.

The whole thing felt very reminiscent of that festival. Good music, good food and good drinks! You can't ask for much more.