A perfect summer day

Dear Husband plays with an Argentinian folk-jazz fusion band called Tierradentro, which was invited to the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts. This is a large street fair of handcrafts plus performances around Penn State held every July. Luckily, I finished 2 weeks of hospital service the day before the gig, so after a quick dinner, we packed up the car and headed east. Actually, I had to do some work on the computer while he drove, but then I could relax until we got to the hotel. I'll spare you the ordeal of the room keys, the dead-fish smell coming from the trash can in the hallway, and the bathroom ceiling that dripped condensation.

"You are loved. You are welcome here."

Mural on the side of the United Methodist Church where we parked.

In the morning we went to the home of a dear friend who used to pastor a church we attended. He and his wife fixed us a delicious breakfast to enjoy while we caught up with each other. Then it was off to walk the streets, ogle the art, and be hot in a way that I enjoyed, because I missed a week of vacation in June and felt like I had thus far spent the whole summer in office buildings. Yuck.

Left: colorful fabric banners hang above the streets.

Right and below: sidewalk chalk drawings are one of the festival's specialties.

So much art! Garden sculptures. Animals made of driftwood. Paintings. Glass on metal "sketches." Photographs. A metal armadillo. Handbags made out of old record album covers. Woven wool blankets.

Lunch was a delightful affair of food truck fare eaten at a shared picnic table under the shade of mature trees while a toddler blew bubbles all around us. Summer magic. We had ice cream from the Berkey Creamery for dessert, natch.

Back at home base, I played Ticket to Ride: Rails & Sails while DH prepped the set list with the band. Then it was off to campus to listen to them play. We finished with dinner at a brewery before everyone scattered. It was a perfect summer day.