Birthday and Vandalia

48°f/9°C, clear. Such beautiful Spring weather we're having!

The weather was perfect for Vandalia this year. We have attended when it was searingly hot, and when it poured rain, but no one could have asked for a nicer day than yesterday. With the temperature never getting above 68f, it was perfect for an outdoor festival. This is Larry's birthday weekend, so Vandalia was part of his celebration of his 74th trip around his star.

This group of young men were playing and singing oldtime gospel music. Here they are singing "I'll Fly Away".

Where does the name Vandalia come from, you might wonder? For a while, some people referred to West Virginia as Vandalia. During the early days of European settlement in America, a plan was proposed to create a new colony to be called Vandalia, which would have included most of current West Virginia. The name was drawn from the ancient tribe the Vandals, with whom the Queen of England at the time of this proposed plan claimed heritage. So it was basically a ploy to get royal backing for the new colony. However, about that time the American Revolution broke out, putting an end to any future British colonies.

Vandalia wasn't the only thing happening in Charleston yesterday. There has been a week-long national bike road race going on all week, the 2025 USA Pro Cycling National Road Race Championship. It has brought in thousands of people, and snarled traffic something awful, but it also brings in about 24 million dollars so no one is complaining! The State Track and Field finals were also in town, so it was a very busy weekend in Charleston. 

But the traffic and congestion seemed far away at Vandalia.

The Vandalia Gathering was the brainchild of Kent Sullivan, longtime director of the arts and culture division of state government.  It has been a mecca for musicians, who gather on the Capitol grounds in jam sessions under the trees, perform onstage, and enter contests for banjo, mandolin, deliver, flat pick guitar, fiddle, and more. Old-time music differs from bluegrass in that the tunes are, well, old. I am no expert on this but I would say that the playing style, although similar to bluegrass, is also different, as is the singing style. Old-time doesn't use any electric instruments either.

Square dancers in the Great Hall of the Cultural Center. Mack Samples, a longtime friend is in the center with his back to my camera. At 86vyears old, Mack continues to dance, play fiddle and guitar in his band The Samples Brothers,  write and grow a garden. He's quite a guy. We differ politically,  but that's okay. 

He threw me a wave as he moved through the set.

This young fiddler was practicing before the youth fiddle contest, being backed up by Jesse Milnes,  a stellar player of multiple instruments.

We forgot to bring our folding chairs, so after a few hours I was pretty worn out, and we were hungry.  We decided to leave the festival and find a restaurant downtown where we could sit down and enjoy Part 2 of the birthday celebration. As we walked to our car, part of the race came zipping by.

My son tells me that this crowd of bikers in a race is called a pelaton (not sure if I spelled that correctly).

Getting downtown proved to be impossible, with so many streets blocked for the race, and so many people in town for it. We ended up at a restaurant called Soho's in the farmers market, and it proved to be an excellent choice. We chose a table outside, overlooking the market. Perfect, and the food was delicious. Part 2 of the birthday celebration was complete.

My pizza bread was so big I gave half to Larry.

He ordered a fritatta, and thought it was excellent. I tried a few bites, and agreed.

The minestrone soup was to die for. We shared this big bowl.

We returned to the festival for a while but finally called it a day and headed home. Feet up, wine and beer and an episode of Grantchester finished off a fine day.

Today the birthday boy was treated to breakfast by our son Derek, and guess what? I got to have breakfast too! It was brunch really, as it was 11am before we ate, but it was a nice leisurely start to our day. I had not yet given Larry his main gift (I got him a nice cap at Vandalia) but tok him to the store to choose the power tool of his choice. He chose a new circular saw as his was pretty ancient. A stop at the grocery store, my first time there in a month!, and we came home. I made an apple pie which is now baking, and Larry is working on repairing a dresser. Even on his birthday he won't take it too easy!

Tonight we'll roast hot dogs over the firepit again and make a salad, then maybe we will have some of that pie with ice cream, and I think that will finish up this year's celebration.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.