We Nearly Didn't Spot This Event!

One of the favorite festivals the city of Knoxville, TN puts on is the Rossini Festival. It supports our opera and fine people that keep it going, year after year. The actors and singers dress in period costume, roaming the closed off main street in downtown Knoxville. They perform little skits, and operatic moments from some of their shows are sung on the street corners. Green balloons arch over the street, and the sides are packed with vendors selling Italian food...and soooo much more! People wander down the street, greeting friends, kids wander next to their parents taking it all in, and babies strapped to their mom or dad bob their little heads as though nodding to the music! People bring their dogs on leashes or just hold them. There was a real variety this year...beagles, dachshunds, terriers of all sorts, a beautiful big black great Dane, and another silver one belonging to someone else (the big dogs were the best behaved!) There was one pup that had a huge coat on him and looked like a blown up stuffed bear. I was unsure exactly what he was, but he was very convivial. Frax and a mixed-beagle person hit it off and greeted each other nicely, when allowed. Everyone was listening to music, eating food...and drinking wine. As time went on, the wine drinkers got even happier, but were no issue. There were plenty of police around, and it's a family-oriented event. I was surprised at the number of canines attending. When the festival started, it was rare to see one.

Jet attended Rossini with me one time in our short time together. It was a blazing hot day, which is more typical for this time of year around here, even in April. We enjoyed it but got in and out. Jet enjoyed a lemon shaved ice, we got a traditional Rossini shirt, and Bill got his usual Italian meatball sandwich. We darted back home, I had to work online that afternoon in my nursing consultant job, so it all worked out well for that hot festival day.

* I had to leave nurse-consulting after a bad seizure scrambled my ability to write numbers down correctly and total them right. It's impossible to work as a nurse like that...so that was the end of my career in 2011. I worked 24 years, so that's not too shabby...anyway...

We nearly forgot all about the festival this year, until we were watching the news about the bad weather systems around the south last night. We used to go all the time to Rossini, in fact I had a art booth with a friend either the first or second year that they had the festival~ it of course got rained out, and we never had another chance to have a booth.

Pinkie (my wheelchair) was loaded up, Frax and ourselves, and decided to give it a go. It was breezy and pleasant, in the 60's with low humidity early in the day...just my kind of weather, and perfect for man and beast. As the weather guy said this morning “dog's just love this weather!” lol.

There was our usual handicap spot, quite close to the start of the blocked street. We wandered and enjoyed the scene with everyone else. Frax's brain short-circuited for a moment, then he was ready to 'bark like it was 1999'! lol. He loved the smell of the vendors, and all the wild people (no they weren't the actors either!) Other folks had brought their pet dogs, and we spent a lot of our time giving him the 'no big deal' and 'leave it' commands. He is always safely attached by a carabiner to the 'heel' side of the wheelchair, but he's a big guy, and little kids and little dogs often don't know when to back off. I had my left arm on the harness reassuringly much of the first few minutes till he figured things out. I had lots of little mbdb's (Milk Bone dog biscuits), his favorite. That helped with all the overwhelming scents he was experiencing. People like to stop suddenly when distracted. When your are in a wheelchair or with a canine...well, they don't seem to see you. It will happen all the time, you just have to get used to it. We were the only service team there and aimed to show them what a good canine citizen was all about!

Frax appeared flummoxed about what opera was all about. The first time or two that an aria warbled out he alerted, sure the singer was in some sort of trouble. We reassured him that this indeed was a normal occurrence, that many of the humans attending really liked to listen to it. He gave me one of his thousand yard stares, as if to say “I wouldn't howl in front of people I didn't know, and scare everyone half to death!” It was another 'no big deal' moment to reassure him on.

One of the best experiences was an elderly man who sat in a chair and played awesome music on a saw with a violin bow...the old timer's 'round here all could always be counted on to be able to figure out ways to play music. He played the old standards like “Yellow Rose of Texas” and “Blue Moon”. Tennessee folks love their music. It was such a treat. I asked if I might take his picture, and he smiled and said it would be OK. I really love the pictures, and I will share them with you.

#1 Papaw w saw 4-25-15_edited_edited.JPG

In one of the tents with trinkets from south America the vendor played a wooden Pan flute. It was eerie and beautiful at the same time. What a joy to be able to hear such beautiful music! The colorful wares seemed to swirl around him like an impressionist painting.

Frax eats shaved ice @ Rossini 4-25-15.JPG

Frax was the first to sample the goodies displayed. We got him cherry shaved ice! In a huge bowl. He wasn't too neat about it, but he really enjoyed it. I fed half of it to him with a spoon, and the rest he finished on his own. I wound up using a napkin to wipe the side of the chair down. It wasn't too bad, since the chair is pink! I sampled a bite of the ice and it was terribly bitter...I'm glad Frax liked it. Bill saw me grimace, and declined to taste any.

Resuming our walk, we found a quiet spot off to the side, behind some of the tents, in front of one of the historic Bijou Theater. Bill had a cheese steak, which was very good, and I had half a Italian sausage, and a bite of onions. I should mention here that I have had some really scary tummy issues the last few years, so I am very careful. I took medicine before and after eating...and lo and behold no problems...yet! Cross your fingers. You will notice that I was a bit of a chunk in my pictures with Jet that I managed to post on April 22nd. (Still have some tech issues with the server...hang with me. We are under severe weather watch tonight, so I expect to lose power soon, and am typing as fast as I can!) Anyhoo...I'm ninety to a hundred pounds less than what I weighed when Jet and I were a team. Not that I didn't need to lose it...just in a healthier way. We left the street, and went back up on the sidewalk, where it was less crowded. The festival started at 8am, and we got there at 2pm leaving around 4pm. It's not a good idea to stay past dinner-time, folks get a bit rowdy. They close it down at 8pm, and the weather was already looking dicey, the wind picking up and jostling the home-made wind-chimes and fluttering the tents. A new influx of people leaving the orange and white UT football opener were beginning to arrive just as we were leaving later in the day.

Bill and Frax sat on a curb, half-way back to the car since they were pooped, and for the first time in a long time, I zipped down the street to buy a few goodies for both of us. (I had my pre-programmed emergency cell on me.) It was wonderful!

I had spied some darling air-plants in a booth. I bought a baby one that was in a tiny glass candle-holder for mom, figuring that would be just her style in the assisted living. I also got a little bromeliad to plant in a shoe planter I have...too cute. Lastly, I indulged in a plant I haven't seen in forever~ its in the cactus family, called a 'Hindu rope'. Neat. All told the damage was only a bit over ten dollars! A bargain! Plus all can be replicated and make more neat plantings!

On the way rolling back, I got Bill a chocolate cannoli, and held my breath and ordered a plain one. I reconnoitered with Bill and Frax, and we loaded up into the car, tired but happy. Frax had his well deserved bowl of dog food when he got home, and we indulged in the cannoli. Bliss.

More meds, and crossing of fingers...but the tum is so far so good...a day to file away in the 'wonderful times' file for when I have a sick day. Those memories are dear to me, and a great distraction when I don't feel so hot.

An odd thing occurred as we returned to the van to go home. We were walking/rolling up the sidewalk, and seated on a bench was an elderly fellow, his chin resting on his chest, slumped over a bit. His camera was slung around his neck, and his hands rested gently on his stomach. His camera case was right up against his side. Bill and I both slowed down a bit, concerned that he might have, well...passed away! Remembering again though, I had a service dog heeling just as pleasant as you please next to me, and he definitely would have alerted big time if he thought the man was in trouble some way or God forbid~ expired! Just then I saw his chest rise and fall and a gentle snore or two emanate from his mouth...all was well. Bill shared on the way home he had nearly stopped and shook his shoulder to make sure the fella was alright! He figured the same as I, that Frax would have let us know. I advised him that the snores were a giveaway he was fine as well. Lol. If one has to die anyway, it seems relaxing on a beatiful day with your stomach full of good food is a pretty good way to go!

We've all rested and watched some comedy tonight when we got home...and digested! Frax has been one big snooze all evening. We figured he would rest well tonight. He isn't very happy that the storm has finally arrived. We give him a cue “no big deal” and act like nothing is happening out of the ordinary. He's doing fine with it. One of these days soon, we will chat about 'thunder fear' and how bad storms need not make your pup miserable.

I'm all typed out, and don't want to push my luck with the storm or the cranky website, so we will log off now, and chat again tomorrow. Hopefully the technical issues will allow me to post this. I attempted to post several days of blogs last night and had to give up after four hours. We'll catch up. It will give you more to read...Yay!

The tender Tennessee rain is softly plinking on the roof, it's time for man and beast to pile into bed and rest now. Have a serene peaceful night, I know one little gold dog that has plenty to fill his dreams with along with his tummy.

Here are a few more scenes from out outing:

Getting ready to roll!

One of the worst selfies ever done! I look like I'm channeling Yoko Ono!

#3 Strange Frax look @ odd people RF 4-25-15_edited.JPG

Here a strange looking woman in a scrunchy hat with a purple sash, wearing a black floor length duster, and black skinny pants just passed by. She had a silk scarf flung about her neck, and a peacock blue shirt on! Frax couldn't believe it~ look at those eyebrows! The humans watching her progress down the street looked as bewildered as Frax. I couldn't take her picture...it would have been rude~ so I will sketch a picture of her...it was amazing!