It's Amazing the Things You Can Get Into on the Weekend

1. Saturday morning was the End of the Soccer Season - for both Tink and BrainyBoy v10.3. Tink's 6-yr-old girls team was the usual mass of mayhem and confusion, with all the little girls running in a pack here and there like the hunting dogs in the old cartoon about catching a fox. They won, although sometimes it's difficult to tell who's scoring when all the kids fall into the goal along with the ball...
   
   BrainyBoy's 10-yr-old team was somewhat more refined, however that it a relative term. The best part of his game, however, was the goal he scored near the end of the game. Now, you have to understand BB isn't the swiftest kid on the block - he's become a competent goalie and is rather intimidating because of his size but he's always been a defensive player. In this final game, the coach promised him if they got a lead he'd let him play offense. Up 2-0, BB took control of the game and the ball, dribbling downfield and promptly placing it between the other team's goalie and the inside bar of the goal. It was the team's final score of the season, and my son was all smiles.
   
   So were we. Plus I have it on videotape!
   
   
2. After the game was the team party and cookout for BrainyBoy. More mayhem and confusion.
   
   
3. After the party the four of us drove to Gatlinburg for the Mountain Craft festival. Laura bought one of these:
   
   quilted maple top, walnut bow - Photo by Robert Batey
   
   It's a bowed psaltery, a string instrument originating in Scandanavia that has been imported to America and a built by a very talented craftsman named Rick Long. If you've never heard of one, go to the website and listen to some audioclips - it's a gorgeous instrument.
   
   
4. The rains came and forced us soon back to our car. The same rains fairly well washed out the Gatlinburg Highland Games, but we drove up to check it out anyway, even though it was getting late in the afternoon. When we arrived most of the participants were packing up to go home, but we were very lucky to see the last event of the day - the mass bagpipe band performance.
   
   
   Sitting in the stands at the football field, we saw and heard the amazing spectacle of over a hundred bagpipe players in full regalia playing several numbers, including the traditional "Amazing Grace". Truly spectacular.
   
   
5. Back home and disappointed because "Lost" - Season 1, Vol. 2 was supposed to arrive from Netflix today, but it didn't. I've determined Netflix is not great on their shipping promises... Have to wait till Monday...