DAY TWENTY-FIVE: February 13, 2008 Trip to Chester, IL

On the road again… we’re either truckers or troubadours; take your pick.

We just got out of a friendly McDonalds. Some young kid held open the door for me! While I was in the rest room, Frank got us two coffees to go, and the woman automatically gave him a senior discount! Oh, dear. Aren’t we a cute couple, now!

We’re in great spirits today because we spent the night in the most cloud-like bed ever, after some home-cooked meals at Suzy and Frank’s house.
Much of the drive there was under ice-laden trees with underbrush and crystallized grass sparkling in the sun. There had been an ice storm for hundreds of miles that we somehow missed. What had been a nightmare for so many, including power outages, hundreds of trees being severely damaged and road closures, for us was a sparkling, crystal wonderland!

There was Suzy, standing in front of her house which sits on four and a half acres of open paradise, waving frantically for us to find her driveway. A familiar face! Dear friends we haven’t seen for five years! After big hugs and a few tears, we entered their cozy home built into the hillside hungry and exhausted. By this point in the tour, we were more like a couple of stray dogs than houseguests. We couldn’t believe the huge changes they had made; from the California beach scene to the fields of Kansas! Their house is less than ten years old, is beautiful, and overlooks a lake that catches the sunset. They scored a great value for their money, and they’re lovin’ it. The people there seem to be lovin’ them, too. No wonder. We’re so happy for them.

After some much-need love and attention that afternoon, we left for Joplin, MO., just 30 miles away to check into our venue. It was a large hall in a College that also held an annual International Piano Competition. A perfectionist who wanted me to be totally happy, and was willing to stick around to make sure, was still tuning the nine-foot Steinway. The National Symphony had played in this hall recently, as it held over 1200 seats.
This was one of those intimidating situations that I wasn’t sure I deserved. This was serious! Would the audience laugh at my silly stuff? Was my piano technique up to snuff? We practiced, as usual, with the tuner standing by. I’m sure he has heard all the really great pianists of our day.

In the first half of the concert, I quietly apologized to the piano for not being as good as one of those top-flight competitors who plays on it every year. The audience was responsive and I couldn’t believe it! Suzy and Frank were in the front row, and Frank’s big, hearty laughs were encouraging.
Something strange and wonderful happened in the second half: I started to relax, and then the piano began leading ME, as if saying, ” let me show you what I can do with this piece.” I was taken for an incredible ride! I feel last night that maybe our musicianship rose to a new level. What an honor it was to play under those circumstances. The tuner stood backstage for the whole show, and I told the audience that he was standing by to fix any of my wrong notes!

We had a great sleep back at Suzy and Franks, and woke up to a gourmet breakfast with good, strong Starbucks coffee. We wish we could have stayed longer, but today’s drive was almost 400 miles. We pulled away from their log driveway, all of us waving until out of sight.

We’re now resting at the Best Western in Chester, Ill. It turned out to be a seven-hour drive, including a missed turnoff and some windy roads across the entire state of Missouri. We missed the ice storms and the snowstorms by one day. Someone’s looking after us up there!
No concert tonight, thank goodness! Good
Night
All