Goodbye Friends, Hello Snow

The Nashville audience may not have been our largest, but hearing them cheer when Yanni announced the hometown boy - Charlie, and home state boy - me from Chattanooga, was by far the highlight of my trip so far. I consider myself to be rich with friends. Among those at the concert were Ken & Carla Pritchard, Brian & Madeline Green, Bryan McConkey, Brent Brumlow, Phillip Luckey, Diana Fish, Ricky & Pam Crook, Dennis & Cathy Schreiner, Rob Mottice and Nora McCarthy, Jeff & Susie Parker, Jerry Grekowicz & Mary Clor . . . I know I'm missing a bunch of other Chattanooga folks but you get the picture. It was sad to walk away from all you guys and get back on the bus.

It was also the first time Angie and Missy, wife and daughter were able to see the show. My son, who's away at college will see us in Rochester, NY in a couple of weeks.

Here are a couple of email messages I received after the Nashville show:

"Hi Dan! I can't tell you how awesome it was to see you up on that stage. It will definitely be a high point in my life experiences. (Now don't smart-off about what that might say about my life.) You shined up there. Karen, Pedro, Ming, Bradley, Samvel, Rick, Victor, Walter and Charlie were all amazing too! Seeing you all performing on stage at the same time was an incredible high. Yanni's music was energizing and thought provoking, and his ability to bring together such a high level of musicians is a true gift/talent."

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"My husband and I were in the 2nd row at the concert last night (directly in front of you) and it was fantastic!!! My hands are severely bruised from clapping so much, but it was worth every second. You are definitely an excellent addition to the band. I hope your wife and daughter enjoyed the concert as much as we did."

Angie and Missy said they had a great time. Missy enjoyed David's didgeridoo playing the most. I'm just glad she wasn't too embarrassed to see her dad on the stage dancing and wearing shiny clothes!

I spent most of my day off in Dayton catching up on emails and working with my friend Phillip Luckey on some changes to the web site that we'll reveal in a day or two. Several of you have asked for more pictures so that's one of the areas that will be improved. In the meantime, I'll post a family photo at the end of this journal entry.

After the Nashville show we boarded the tour bus and rode all night to Dayton Ohio. When we arrived it was raining and cold with piles of snow still in the parking lot. We have another all night trip tonight as we head toward Buffalo, NY where the temp will be in the teens. I've experienced no winter at all this year because we were in Palm Beach for January and part of February. Now I get to pay my dues. I've got to close now. It is almost 4 O'clock in the afternoon and my shuttle will be here in a few minutes to take me to the arena to tune. For those interested, my pre show, help me settle down music tonight will be Eva Cassidy, from the album Songbird. ¶ 5:05 PM