Sal Goes to JOA's Picnic in the Park

Yesterday some of the Cleveland Jumping Fleas played and sang at the 7th Annual JOA Picnic in the Park.  The picnic is a benefit for John Owen's Adventure.  I hope everyone will click on the link and read about the organization and its purpose. 

The picnic was taking place at German Central in Parma.  As Sal and I made our way thither, the weather was extremely variable.  Some parts of the trip were dry, others were drizzly, and there were times when the rain was pouring down.  This was not an auspicious preview to an hour of playing outside with no shelter. 

As we arrived at German Central, it was drizzling, and then the precipitation stopped.  We got all our stuff from our cars and prepared to play.  The first song went just fine.  As we began our second song, a few drops began falling.  By the end of that song, it was much more than a few drops!  After some discussion, we ended up playing the rest of our set under the overhang of a nearby shed. 

Some people smiled and seemed to enjoy our music.  Others walked by without paying any attention.  They were on their way to raffles and beer and pizza and a myriad of other delights!  A camera guy from a Cleveland TV station filmed a bit of our rendition of This Land is Your Land, and a reporter from the local paper talked with a few of the Fleas.  It will be interesting to find out if we ended up getting a second or two on the news and/or will receive a mention in the paper.  Overall it was a fun experience -- even though it was decidedly damp! 

Wonder if they'll invite us back next year?  Hope so!

Sal with the gang before the rain began.

Instructed to do something silly by Nick, our guest photographer, we didn't have much trouble complying.

A damp Sal, with the similarly damp Fleas in the background.  We did most of our playing under this narrow overhang.  The lighting in this picture was really bad, so I cropped it and used some iPhoto effects.  I think I actually like it now.