Day 11 -- Garden party/The Adriatic, Rockford IL

Tuesday July 9

SO the plan was to haul ass down to Rockford IL.

A singer-songwriter friend of Rick's named Kelly Steward was playing an outdoor garden party at the Anderson Japanese Gardens. She would have us get up and play 2-3 songs on their gear in the middle of their set, then we'd have a club gig at The Adriatic later that evening. Her lead player had offered to put us up for the night, so a free place to stay def helped sweeten the deal.

Drive uneventful, the Anderson Japanese Gardens were beautiful and idyllic. But the heat/humidity had even us thin-blooded Texans squirming and uncomfortable. Kelly's band had a good crowd, 300 or so people, they were set up outside a pavilion. Our 2-song set was met with a very warm reception, and it wasn't just the weather. We hoped people would then want to come see us later on... fingers crossed!

View from the pavilion, photo by Rick Hornyak:

After the songs I finally got to wander around the various trails garden grounds and take in the scenery/pics. The beauty and peace of the place helped settle my mind a little, still dealing with what I am dealing with and don't want to get into it yet.

The Adriatic was a pretty good venue, one of the main hubs for blues and rock in Rockford. Good sized stage and sound. We hoped some spillover from the Anderson Japanese Gardens would take place, but alas. Kelly brought some friends out and some others wandered in off the street. So there were people there, which is always good!

Partying like rockstars at the Adriatic:

Rick checking sound, photo by Eric Rietman

Fun sets tho, felt good to turn up and rock out more \m/, Hung out afterwards and thanked Kelly for her efforts. But we decided to power back to Wisconsin Rapids afterwards, and be where we needed to be rather than have to make the 3 hour drive the next morning. Wise decision, would mean more pre-gig downtime the next day.

Drive was uneventful, traded off with Rick in getting us back. Soon as we crossed back into Wisconsin the heat and humidity was gone, and the air was chilly. Muuuuuuuch better.