Percussion Summit 2008

I am a happy girl! Recently my husband surprised me with tickets to Percussion Summit 2008. As if that wasn't wonderful enough, he made a quite a date out of it! First he took me shopping for appropriate attire. The event was held at the Naples Philharmonic, which is quite the ritzy place. They did loosen the dress code somewhat for this event, but we didn't want to look dowdy. So it was off for a day of shopping and lunch, too. Then on Saturday we took a scenic route down to Naples a few hours before the concert. We strolled around the Waterside Shops, which feature places I've only heard of, such as Cartier's, Tiffany's, Louis Vitton and restuarants whose menu offerings I couldn't even pronounce. There was a live band and a beautiful, meandering fountain of sorts, more like an elaborate stream, flowing along through varying configurations of blue tile, surrounded by benches and greenery. We went to dinner and then to the show.

We had fabulous seats, 10 rows back, front and center. We could see everything and there was plenty to see. The entire stage was set up with percussion instruments of every description. Snares and bass, tom-toms, gongs and cow bells, marimbas and sets and timpani, finger bells and cymbals and steel drums. Different sets featured different arrangements of instruments and ran the gamut from lullabies (!) to marches to Earth, Wind and Fire and Harry Belafonte arrangements. The headliners were Gordon Campbell on a large set and Taku Hirano, the premier hand drummer. Both have performed and toured and recorded with just about every big star you've ever heard of, everyone from Barry Manilow to Fleetwood Mac, Kenny Loggins to Chaka Khan, Sean "Diddy" Combs to LeAnnRimes to Jessica Simpson to Earth, Wind and Fire. And let me tell you, they were GOOD! Amazingingly good. The concert went an hour before intermission, where we stretched our legs and heard people ordering Chardonnay; then there was another hour of pure entertainment. All of it felt like about 20 minutes, I was enjoying it so much. The place was packed with enthusiastic people as diverse as middle school boys to elegant dowagers, and they all joined in a standing ovation, earning us a great encore.

But finally it was over and we had to leave. I felt like a kid on a roller coaster, saying, "I wanna go again!" On the way home we stopped for what my husband dubbed "a decadent dessert," something called Caramel Apple Crisp alamode and basically it was "diabetic coma on a platter." Boy, was it good! Then it was home and to bed, lulled to sleep by the steel drums still reggae'ing in my head. My husband really knows how to show a girl a good time!

Service With a Smile

Remember when service was an integral part of the shopping experience? Say you went to get gas in your car. Young men would literally run out to fill your tank, wash your windows, put air in your tires, and smile happily because you were gracing their place of business. If you went to a restaurant, someone greeted you, led you to a clean table, brought you water without being asked, and smiled warmly at you because you were gracing their place of business. Clothes or shoes shopping - someone rushed over to see if they could help you in any way at all, sat you down to put the contemplated shoe on your foot, Cinderella-style, or came to the dressing room door to see if they could fetch another size or color for you - yep, all with a smile.

Well, that's the way fond nostalgia remembers it anyway, especially in comparison with the recent past, when surly clerks glared at you for taking up space in their department, if they glanced your way at all. They shrugged their shoulders at your difficulties, ran from your approach, didn't know where anything was and didn't care to look or inquire of their clueless co-workers, and certainly did not smile at you for choosing their store to shop in. The attitude often seemed to be, Of all the stores in all the shopping centers in all the towns in our State, why'd ya have to come bother me!

But now times are tough. There are so many shops, so few shoppers! Gone are the days when the stores needed the employees badly enough to overlook certain deficiences, like promptness, courtesy, attention to customers. I have been becoming more and more aware that clerks all over town are - yes - SMILING at me! Asking me if they can help me, and then actually doing so! Rushing over to help me without even being asked! Giving unsolicited assistance with knowledge and courtesy! I actually enjoy shopping again. The whole atmosphere has changed, and I don't know whether the formerly surly ones are beginning to truly appreciate their jobs, or whether they have been let go and the hard-working, knowledgeable, friendly clerks that were always there somewhere are being given a chance to shine. I just know I really appreciate the new attitude toward customers, and I, for one, want to give a very sincere "Thank You!" to all of you in the often thankless service industry.

Ten Thousand Villages Part II

Took another trip to He, She and Me and used my gift cards for a Ten Thousand Villages purchase. As you can see above, it is a bud vase, made of polished onyx. It is so pretty! There were also apples and pears in onyx, smaller in size (the size of a real, small apple or pear). There were a million things I wanted - I'll definitely be going back.

Ten Thousand Villages

I went to a little shop locally called "He, She and Me." It is a delightful shop, part customized clothing, part coffee shop and part showroom for craftsmanship from all over the world. A great deal of the very artful displays consists of merchandise from Ten Thousand Villages. This is a way for true craftsman from every corner of the world to sell their art for fair market value. The variety and beauty of the items is truly amazing. The craftsmanship is impressive. And the prices are very reasonable. With each item comes a Romance Card, telling a little about how the item is made. There is jewelry, scarves, candle holders, vases and teapots and baskets, musical instruments, planters, stationery, journals and photo albums, pictures made of straw, Faberge eggs and stacking dolls from Russia, and on and on it goes. I bought a little paperweight, made of a river rock from Vietnam. The artist puts 8 coats of varnish and iron oxide, with each coat taking up to a week to dry. Then he painted the koi and covered it all with a clear coat. It's so smooth and unique! Going to the shop is like visiting an art museum, only with pieces you can actually afford to buy. Especially since I got gift cards to the shop from my youngest son for Mother's Day!