Okay, Okay, Okay....I know you're sick of hearing about Blissdom! Bear with me through one more post then I promise to move on to the more tedious areas of my life - homeschooling, depression, dog poop, living with teenagers, weight gain, laundry and politics - because I know that is what you really want to hear about. Right??????
Originally, Harry Connick, Jr. was scheduled to be on a panel discussion group on Saturday and perform Saturday evening, but when his beloved Saints advanced to the Super Bowl he was asked to perform there and had to return to New Orleans on Saturday. Although he was unable to join the discussion group on Friday, being a gentleman of his word, he did move his performance at Blissdom to Friday evening. Lucky us!!!!!!!
Not only is Mr. Connick a talented musician (that's putting it mildly), he is one of the leading humanitarians in the post-Katrina rebuilding efforts. He, along with Bradford Marsalis, established Musicians' Village which has become the cornerstone for New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity (NOAHH) providing homes for talented musical artist. We were not only entertained by Mr. Connick, but by a few of the Musicians' Village residents as well, which I must say provided amazing eye and earcandy!
The private performance was held in the FUSE nightclub housed within the Opryland complex, with only Blissdom attendees allowed. Security was tight and while we had our Blissdom badges to identify ourselves, we were also required to bring a photo ID to this event, something I did not know until I reached the entrance line. The ladies around me had their ID's and promised to hold my place until I returned. Not wanting to make the mile hike back to my room and be sweating profusely upon return, I decided to take my chance hoping my Southern charm (but mostly my cleavage) would get me through the door. Let's just say, IT WORKED, and leave it there. We were asked NOT to throw undies on stage....not that I was wearing any....JUST KIDDING!!!!!!
Meticulously staged and ready to entertain!
With my little camera, it was difficult to get a good photo,
but I like the blurriness of these.
Shamarr Allen on trumpet, Calvin Johnson Jr. on
tenor saxophone, and Harry Connick Jr. on piano.
Oh when the Saints go marching in, Oh when the Saints go marching in.....
And they did, didn't they? Sorry Colt fans :(
Mr. Connick took a moment to talk about Musicians' Village...
And then weakened our knees by crooning to us......
He is as handsome and polished in person as he is in his photos! WOW!
For those of us who desired our photograph taken with him (there were some who did not), we were allowed behind a roped off section backstage and introduced six at a time for a handsake, soft word, and group photo. Because his publicist is so particular I do not have, in hand, that photo; nor can I seem to copy it to "My Pictures." If you are interested in searching through the 3,000 uploaded photos to find my "deer in the headlights" shot, feel free to go to http://www.flickr.com/ and do a Blissdom 10 search.
Saturday was spent in four informative breakout sessions and a lovely luncheon served in the Governors Ballroom.
The final keynote and was given by Jennifer McKinney (Mckmama) at My Charming Kids. You should really go to her blog and read her amazing story. On a side note, Sarah Palin was also in the building for the First Annual Tea Party Convention. I know! You either love or loathe her. Personally, I am in the former category. I could hear her speech but I would have very much enjoyed seeing her too. It seems that my Southern charm would not work on the stoic doorman. My ego was CRUSHED!!! Crushed, I say! But I am completely recovered now. Mostly.
So what did I gain from this journey?
- A brain overload of information. It's taken me a week to sort through it all!
- New friendships. Always a plus in my world.
- Confidence to step outside of my comfort zone. I find one-on-one small talk with complete strangers, believe or not, DIFFICULT!
- But, more important, interaction with like minded women; the sense of belonging and community that reverberates with women bloggers. We have a mutual need to sound our barbaric yawp online for the world to scrutinize.
Here's to you girlfriend bloggers! Now go forth and BLOG!
Thanks for reading, Rosie.
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