I got up as usual and got ready, then picked up Papa and went to Church. I always take him home after Sacrament meeting because it hurts his back so to sit in the benches for too long. So after Sacrament meeting I took him home but I stayed with him to visit.
This Sunday I would need to be home by 1:30pm to help Claude and Sadieville. We are working to restore the Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church so it can be Sadieville's Community Center. The old church was full of benches and we put them up for sale. When the building is the Community Center, we will have folding chairs to use there.
As it turns out, Harmony Christian Church, right near Papa, is adding a little chapel to their building. Their building was the first Walmart in Georgetown. When Walmart built their huge new store on the other side of Georgetown, the building became The Peddler's Mall. That is what it was when Claude and I moved to Georgetown. Then Peddler's Mall moved to the Outlet Mall in Georgetown leaving this big building empty. I was so happy when Harmony Christian Church bought and refurbished the interior. It was now a church and a school. It also meant there was not a large empty building in that neighborhood. Harmony Christian Church is using a bit of there space to make a small chapel for special occasions or a quiet place to worship. Nice idea and the benches from Mt. Pleasant Baptist will give them the feel they want of a rustic chapel. Plus the benches will stay in Scott County.
The Pastor for Harmony Christian Church could only get a crew with trucks to remove the benches on a Sunday after they finished their services. Hence the need for someone to unlock Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church for them. Tag...Sandi can do that! I took jeans to Papa's and changed while at his apartment. I left in just enough time to get to Sadieville by 1:30pm.
I found the Harmony Christian Church people ready and waiting for me to unlock the door. I parked up the hill by the Rosenwald School and walked down to the church from there. As I got to the front of the church I asked if they were there to get the benches, duh!! I told them I had a special connection with the Mayor of Sadieville so I was able to get a key. I think they thought Claude was coming to unlock the building but Claude had Church meetings in Lexington all day. They all seemed impressed I had this connection and then I told them, "I am his wife!" Then they understood and we all had a laugh.
We got the door unlocked and they immediately went to work. I also gave them the extra hymnals and Bibles and a box of fans on a stick that are very useful when it is hot and there is no air conditioning. I had already saved some of each of these items for a history display after the church is restored. They were great to work with and we had a good time as they quickly did what they came to do and then headed to Georgetown.
James Taylor was performing at Rupp Arena that night. Claude headed to the Kentucky League of Cities parking lot. He has a sticker that lets him park there for free. The man out front was fairly dancing as he used his flashlight to direct us into his parking lot. He was really rocking out. As we left the parking lot to walk to Rupp Arena, I told him he should be playing some music with all that dancing he was doing. Then he laughed and told me he was listening to James Brown while he worked. I had not noticed the ear buds. Way to enjoy your job!
Security is increased at Rupp. I left all things at home and only had my cell phone. Made entry a lot easier. We were about a half hour ahead of start time. This was my first James Taylor concert and I was ready to enjoy his music in person.
When it got to be time for intermission, he told the audience he didn't understand why they had to do that but they did. He then confessed he usually stands right behind the curtains during intermission and looks at his watch to see if it is time to go back on and perform again. The band left and we stood and stretched for a bit. Then Claude noticed a crowd at the edge of the stage opposite where we were sitting. It turns out James Taylor didn't stay behind the curtain. He walked out to the floor and spent his 20 minutes taking selfies with fans and signing autographs. No wonder everyone loves him so.
One little thing I noticed was on the amplifiers by band members closest to us. The two little old guys that are Muppet characters that sit in the balconies and make jokes and laugh were sitting on the amplifiers in doll form. As I watched throughout the evening, I realized the two band members resembled very closely these two characters. Cute.
People's lack of etiquette is always amazing to me at concerts. This was no exception. The first was the two ladies who came in about 20 minutes into the concert. There were four empty sets to my right. These ladies came in and one sat beside me. While James Taylor is singing she decides she should ask me how much she has missed. Really? Does she not have a watch or cell phone to tell her that she is 20 minutes late? Then after she and the other lady talked for a bit their guys entered and they all shuffled around so they were seating like they wanted. They ladies would continue to talk during the performance. This really irks me. If you want to sing along, great. If you even want to dance a bit, great. But you can't talk without yelling louder than the music. It is very rude to do that to those who paid to listen to music and not to hear you talk over the music. There are lots of spots outside the arena for you to talk. There...one pet peeve.
The second was the lady who had obviously had one too many beers during the second half. Our noisy neighbors to my right had not returned during the second half. Claude and I were seated in the middle of a long row. A lady came down the steps to our left looking for her seat. The lights were out because, well, James Taylor is performing. She noticed empty seats beside me and thought that was where she belonged. During the performance she proceeds to climb over the feet and legs of each of the people in our row causing some to have to stand to be out of her way. Then she plopped in the chair to my right. Am I a magnet for weirdness or what? She sat there for a while and realized she didn't recognize anything. She kept turning around and leaning forward and trying to get her bearings. Then, with a lot of beer breath, she asked me if she had been sitting by me before. Really? I just looked at her and said, "No!" She thought for about 10 seconds and then she got up with her cup of beer and proceeded to walk out over everyone to her left as she exited the seating. I was taught as a child that when entering or exiting a performance you only did that IF you REALLY had to and then ONLY between numbers. Minimal distraction for everyone. People, these are simple acts of courtesy. Learn them and use them.
I realized I loved James Taylor because he is just a mellow vocalist for the most part. Don't get me wrong. He can rock with the best of them. Toss out a smattering of Blues or Jazz sound. But in the end, I truly love that mellow music that pulls at your heart srings and James Taylor does that soooooo well. Great concert. Well worth the price of admission and then some.
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