sdelmonte | Brief Contata Report

Just sneaking onto the hotel computer for a moment...

Contata is going reasonably well. If you can overlook the fact the hotel scheduled loud events in the ballroom next to the main function space for the con for both last night (till 5 am!) and tonight (only till 11 pm). But aside from that, things are quite of the good.

And I have tell you about this: we did a benefit concert to help Tom Smith pay his medical bills. I was part of a group singing his song "Rocket Ride." First time I was ever on a stage, and was with Batya, Ben Newman, Harold Feld, Mark Bernstein and Randy Hoffman. If you are into filk, you know this is not a shabby group at all. If you aren't, suffice it to say that I was in great company.

But it got better. We were the last act, at which point the guest host for the concert, the fabulous folk singer Christine Lavin, kept us all on stage. So we could sing a song by Tom Paxton over the phone to Tom. (This was the song Tom was about to do when he slipped and blew out his quad.) What's more, while we called Tom Smith, Christine called Tom Paxton.

In short, I was on stage with Christine Lavin. Singing. To Tom Smith. And to Tom Paxton!!!

How cool is that?

Anyway, should get back to the filk. Later, friends!!