Happy Birthday, Bill!

It's that time again, that cold dank rainy/snowy/precipity time in March when the scent of cooking pork ribs and cake rises up from the Indigo Hill kitchen. It is Bill of the Birds' birfday.

photo by Timothy Ryan, who has an eye.

Thing is, he is in San Diego ogling crested magpie jays and western bluebirds for his birthday, which is today. He's  working a bird festival. I think he's taking a bunch of kids birding today. It's what he was made to do. That's OK. He had enough birthday last year to last him for several.

I thought it would be fun to revisit last year's big party, which was ossum beyond ossum. It's the party he's not having this year.

I had a lot of help in pulling the party off. Wendy Clark and Jen and John Sauter came over and worked decorating magic on the Galley's party space. There were flowers and pictures of Bill everywhere. And the Galley staff was terrific.

I'm so thrilled that Marietta has a wonderful place like The Galley and the Adelphia Music Hall, where The Rain Crows are wont to play.

We wont to play there more.

I got a big blowup picture of Dave Tipling's shot of Bill, doin' what he likes to do best--lifting a pint at an English pub.

the RealBillies came over from Athens to play, and they were ridiculously great. There were all these Telecasters going full tilt 

and the beautiful voice of Mimi Hart rang out through the room

and then the beautiful voice of Elsa Thompson did, too.

I think she had as good a time as Bill did.

Bill's best music friend John Kogge came and they played together which was terrific. They played together in the Cenozoic Age.

The music flowed and flowed. Kids danced and danced.

Black Bart showed up in costume. Anybody recognize this specimen (the big male)?

Phoebe got hijacked by Vinnie, with Oona and Erin looking on. I love the Eew face!!

The cake was over the top CakeBoss redonk. Todd Horvath of Bittersweet's Chocolate and Pastry in Canton, Ohio made a mocha cake with coconut cream filling and a fondant icing that was a perfect replica of Bill's new Samik hollowbody. The strap is chocolate. Everything edible. And so delicious.

Bill loved his party, seeing all his friends from near and far. I think the best birthday present, though, was the newly-pressed copies of The Rain Crows' CD, "Looks Like Rain." Hard to believe our CD will be a year old today, too!

We've told "Looks Like Rain" that she will soon have a little brother or sister. "Dream of Flying Dream" is well on its way to being realized. And with all that's happened in this year, that is cause for celebration.

Celebration of the drive and vision of a very special man. A great father and husband, an imbiber of life, and an exemplary human being. He moves through the world, hair on fire, leaping to the next square, then the next...

Happy birthday, Bill!! Where'd you get the little monkey?

Pirates, if you could see your way clear to not breaking his heart this year....

that'd be greaaaaat.