{"id":1748,"date":"2013-05-01T08:28:02","date_gmt":"2013-05-01T14:28:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.appleattic.net\/blog\/?p=1748"},"modified":"2013-05-03T16:25:58","modified_gmt":"2013-05-03T22:25:58","slug":"boise-felicity-music-and-more-long-post","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.appleattic.net\/blog\/boise-felicity-music-and-more-long-post\/","title":{"rendered":"Boise. Felicity. Music and More. (Long post.)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last week Pam and I drove to Boise, Idaho, to visit with Felicity and listen to her group, Northwest Harmony, sing at the regional Sweet Adeline convention. Some sight-seeing time was scheduled since there were only certain times we would be able to meet with Felicity; her schedule revolved around practice, meetings, and event-related activities.<\/p>\n

We had all three dogs with us. Pam had made reservations at a Motel 6 in Meridian, Idaho (about 10 miles west of Boise) as they were advertising as dog-friendly (no extra charges\/elevator to the second floor) and had reasonable rates. Three nights, with all taxes, came to a bit over $200. This Motel 6 \u00a0had a very good dog walking area and turned out to be very well-situated for all our travels, was near eateries and\u00a0a dog park, and a Winco food store was – literally – across the road. (Winco is a warehouse-type grocery store. \u00a0We bought breakfast food and \u00a0fruit from them + great muffins. They also have killer salads for about $3.18.)<\/p>\n

In more or less \u00a0chronological order: packed up to head out. \u00a0(Lime green rectangle is doggie crate.)<\/p>\n

\"Car<\/a>

Car packed up for trip. Grey case is a cooler.<\/p><\/div>\n

We arrived in Meridian, Idaho after a 12-hour drive, checked in, then relaxed. Next morning (Friday) we found a local dog park and let the dogs run off-leash, giving them some much-needed exercise.<\/p>\n

\"Pam,<\/a>

Pam, calling for Bru, is trying to get the dogs to drink some water.<\/p><\/div>\n

After lunch we picked up Felicity at her downtown Boise hotel, The Grove, and drove over to a local park to talk, catch up on family news, and enjoy the beautiful day.<\/p>\n

\"Jer,<\/a>

Jer, Felicity, Pam and the dogs enjoy a few hours in the park.<\/p><\/div>\n

The park was great. It had geese, squirrels, plenty of places to sit, and good bathrooms. We spent several hours there, had lunch, and were able to catch up with Felicity’s news and generally had a good visit. \u00a0We hadn’t seen each other face-to-face since January 2012.<\/p>\n

During one of our walks around the park we came on this scene:<\/p>\n

\"Duck<\/a>

Duck boats in Boise city park.<\/p><\/div>\n

You don’t see duck (and pelican) boats like this very often anymore!<\/p>\n

The next day (Saturday) was the “Big Sing” for Felicity. We made arrangements to be at the venue mid-afternoon and meet Felicity\u00a0after she completed her part of the competition. (Felicity stayed at the venue, The Boise Center, for all the judging and post-competition festivities but Pam and I stopped at the competition only briefly to see Felicity perform.)\u00a0This left us with some unscheduled time Saturday morning to fill so we decided to take a trip out to the Snake River Canyon.<\/p>\n

We made two stops, the first at Dedication Point which is in the middle of a raptor refuge. While we didn’t see any raptors, the walk and educational signage (and view!) made this a nice stop.<\/p>\n

The second stop was at the first hydroelectric plant on the Snake River, Swan Falls. This was a green oasis, a swath of \u00a0park along the river where the dogs could run and I could walk around the plant. \u00a0While the original plant was decommissioned in 1994, a newer facility built at one end of the dam continues to supply power today.<\/p>\n

\"Swan<\/a>

Swan Falls power plant on the Snake River<\/p><\/div>\n

Here is a photo of Pam and the dogs taking a break on the steps of an old four square house located in the small park-like green space along the river. We hope the authorities who own this house take steps to preserve it. Right now it looks somewhat bedraggled; it would be sad to loose this old place. \u00a0Pam loved the “grandma house” feel of it.<\/p>\n

\"20137\"<\/a>

Pam and dogs taking a break from walking around the Swan Falls power plant grounds<\/p><\/div>\n

Many switchbacks out of the Snake River Canyon – and a light lunch – later, we headed into Boise to listen to the Sweet Adeline groups sing, including Felicity’s group, Northwest Harmony.<\/p>\n

The singing was great. Since this was a competition and not a concert, each group sang only 2 songs – one slow, one up beat. We listened to several groups and enjoyed some pretty amazing musical renditions. Felicity’s group placed 3rd over-all, not bad considering there were 18 groups and the competition was close.<\/p>\n

Here are Felicity and Pam sitting in the hall after Felicity was done singing. \u00a0Felicity calls this her “clown in drag” make-up, with false eyelashes, bun hairdo, and lots of foundation.<\/p>\n

\"Felicity<\/a>

Felicity in makeup sits with Pam.<\/p><\/div>\n

I had planned to record Felicity singing, but found the Sweet Adeline organization would not allow either recording or digital pictures to be taken in the hall! I was very disappointed, but I should have guessed the \u00a0competition was being professionally recorded (with multiple cameras and sophisticated sound equipment). Still I would have liked to be able to have a clip of Felicity singing — \u00a0that will have to wait for another time.<\/p>\n

Felicity introduced “her parents” to several members of the Northwest Harmony group. Their age demographic is more our generation, all very nice people with only good comments about Felicity. The most unusual event occurred when we went to get our tickets. A man and a woman were at the ticket desk, and the woman looked at Pam and said ” You must be Felicity’s mother.” Pam was a little taken aback, but acknowledged the relationship. Considering the number of attendees, we thought this was sort of cool. We later learned the lady was one of the event organizers who had worked closely with Felicity’s group over the last couple years and knew Felicity as a member of Northwest Harmony. (The family resemblance must be stronger than I thought.)<\/p>\n

We left Felicity to enjoy the remainder of the competition and took off on our scenic ride up the Payette River Canyon. This drive follows the river and gets progressively higher and into more timbered country. It was a very pleasant, if not spectacular, drive. \u00a0We were running out of daylight (which lasts until 8:30 p.m. – yes) which necessitated a return to our Motel 6, dinner, and time to hit the sack.<\/p>\n

Sunday we packed the car, checked out, picked up Felicity at her hotel in Boise, found a Denny’s for breakfast, then dropped Felicity off at the Boise Airport. We headed east and arrived back home at about 1:00 AM Monday morning.<\/p>\n

Overall this road trip was better than anticipated. We were able to spend some time with Felicity, see some scenic Idaho country (that wasn’t interstate), listen to some good music, and enjoy some splendid Spring weather.<\/p>\n

I am going to close with a short (1:35) video clip. This clip ends abruptly as\u00a0I had intended to have a video of Felicity singing as the ending. Still, it is what it is…<\/p>\n

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