because david is busy...

and I'm bored but not ready to go to bed and my brain is too tired to work, i'm blogging. Does that happen to you, too?

Tonight we went to the Pioneer Village as I'd heard from Mary that they were having a Family Dance. I confirmed it in the newspaper (I love the newspaper!) and we decided that it fit our criteria for Friday night fun being, (1) out of the house, and (2) FREE! So we went. We got there and we were the ONLY people who weren't a part of the production/music. Undeterred, we got the kids to dance with us (they had a nice little fiddle/guitar/banjo/etc band playing) and had fun. After a couple of songs, we went and explored the buildings, as we'd never been there before. They really have quite a lot of neat stuff in that tiny space. The owner of the place came and talked to us about a number of things, which was really fun. I've decided that it's hard for me to not like people who are passionate about something. It seems the more unusual or obscure the object of their passion, the more I like them. So, this fellow, with his immense passion for pioneer shtuff, was quite likable. I think there is a lot of value in learning in depth about pretty much anything. (Pop culture and TV shows and the like excluded. I have yet to be swayed on that..) Most things, when studied in depth, teach a lot of profound lessons and open a person's eyes to the vast knowledge that is out there that they could never hope to learn. It's humbling.

Anyways, after touring the buildings & seeing the artifacts, we danced some more. The head guy also gave Spud a whirligig, which was fun. We are studying pioneers for Liberty Girls this fall, so I'm hoping we can arrange an evening field trip with the families to the Village. It was really neat to see the items and realize how much stinkin' WORK everything they did back then was. Our lives are so different than theirs were. Our work is so different. You have to wonder how it has affected our psyches, being so disconnected from working the land and being so often dependent upon the mercies of nature.

Oh, eventually some more people did come, but they all sat on their duffs and just enjoyed the music, or toured the buildings. Not a single other person danced. We stayed until the end, though. I hope we were able to convey our joy & appreciation to those who put it on. It's hard to do something that doesn't get fully appreciated.