The Concert in the Grotto

a piano concert in a grotto on the Colorado River

this is an event in the Moab Music Festival

at noon we meet at the park / we board buses and go down the river road to the "put in" / we board barges to travel down the river through red rock canyons to the grotto, a natural cave-like amphitheatre at the end of a wooded path

on the way the guide points out Dead Horse Point and Thelma and Louise Drop off / we oooo and aaaahhhh

the grand piano and the musicians and their intruments have already traveled to the concert site / after the concert there will be a buffet

now i am getting ready : i decide this year to take a chair instead of climbing up on the rocks / viewing from up upon the sides of the grotto is very popular / i have done the rock climb the last couple of years / i consider bringing a chair this time

if i bring a chair / a folding chair / the kind that goes camping and on river trips / i will be able to wear a dress instead of trousers

today will be warmish / 88 degrees / dresses are more comfortable in warmish/hot weather / the last two years it was coolish / even cloudy / one year it rained on the way back creating extraordinary waterfalls streaming down the red cliffs / it was spectacular / maybe even more so than the concert / smile

let's see about the chair

i practice taking the chair out of its carry bag and opening it up so i wont be a dork when i get to the grotto / i test its comfort level / oh / comfort level is pretty low / almost non-existent / maybe if i sit kind of sideways / this chair doesnt exactly have a sideways / other than it doesnt have any arms

sit in it and do some of the activitease you might do at the grotto / get out the camera and take a picture / write in journal / open back pack and have a snack / have some tea from the thermos / get up and stretch without knocking the chair over / hmm / get up and applaud / shift your butt four dozen times / get up and climb onto the rocks / so what if i am wearing a dress

(remember to keep my knees together)