Friday at the Phest

The Philadelphia Folk Fest is in year 53 but it's my first official visit to the event. I'm spending four days and four nights here enjoying the music and experiencing the fellowship at the campgrounds. I'm at the half way point. Thursday is a warm up night with camps being set up, old friends reuniting and new friends being made. The night comes with a concert of four performers. Friday feels like the beginning of the full festival experience. We began with an entrance through a crafters , organic, home made paradise. It took all my willpower not to start burning through cash on dresses and hats, maybe my very first instrument but I persevered and made it to the stages. Music is every where you look. I felt a bit overwhelmed but the mood surrounding this event is a feeling of ease and friendship. The mood here is devoutly focused on the community. There is a family feeling here. The crowd is multi--generational. There are third and fourth generation "festers". People greet each other with hugs and the saying "Happy Fest!" like we all just arrived at our universal grandmother's house for Thanksgiving.

Wednesday in the Middle- One Year Later

The last time I wrote a blog post was a Tuesday in August. Well it's a Wednesday in August. Just one year later.  I am sorry for abandoning this project in the whirlwind of life change that happened in the last 365 or so. Who hasn't looked back at a period of time and only after everything has gone down have you thought to yourself  "Damn, I should have stuck with that, why did I stop? Why didn't I at least document the events for my own memories?"  We can be busy experiencing things in the moment. Pursuing a new career. Falling in love. Moving to a new city. Life is full of these distractions.
Which brings me to Wednesday. You know what I always need on Wednesday? Distractions. Distractions have a bad reputation. It's unfair. I'm  going to set the record straight. Distractions create inspiration. Distractions are the life events that help us color outside the lines.
Whatever your plan is it's probably beautiful but what if you want it to be more than beautiful? What if you want it to be breathtaking? Unique? Innovative? Well then you need something to inspire you. Inspiration may not come from more time at your desk or at the library or in a fortress of solitude. Inspiration may come from distractions that come your way. The last year I was distracted by so many life changes. Those life changing distractions have become the inspiration for the rest of my blog. The Tao of Gia still remains I'm growing and learning more than ever. The coming days will feature posts about learning new recipes, learning how to speak Spanish, learning how to engage in activism and social justice. I may learn even more as this blog continues and I'm happy to share my experiences on my never ending quest for knowledge with the internet also known as The World.
And what about Wednesdays posts? . Wednesday on The Gia Spot will be the drawer in your house where everything that you can't find resides. Wednesday is for thoughts, meditations, musings,articles, jokes. Wednesday is for distraction. Wednesday is the middle of the journey. Wednesday is the Kansas of my cross country road trip. Anything can happen on a Wednesday.