Playing in the Wings

In an unusually auspicious set of intersecting circumstances, I'm traveling out to Vancouver and back, with some new stops in both directions. Theboy, given less than 24 hours' notice, decided to join.
More on that, later. For now, Father and Son hit the highway for Swift Current.
¿Swift Current on the way to Vancouver?, you say? It certainly wouldn't have been my first choice. Drumheller and Edmonton both hold a certain nostalgic allure but on this occasion, novelty: A kite festival! And the inconspicuously (incongruously?) concurrent Long Day's Night Music Festival. I might never have made the trip just for kites, or even for an unfamiliar music festival, but Joel Plaskett(!) was headlining (even the festival organizers were pinchmeImustbedreaming shocked - actually saying so while introducing him - that they'd landed such a phenomenally entertaining Canadian singer-songwriter as Mr. Plaskett (complete with his band, The Emergency).

As we neared Swift Current, we scanned the horizon in search of signs of the kite festival (kites, for one). None were visible, so we continued admiring the surprisingly captivating and beguiling clouds surrounding us. Dragons. Submarines. Huge Fire Nation icebreaker ships. And the remarkable "siege beaver" spotted by Theboy. If you'd seen it, you'd understand. Needless to say, if we ever form a band...
Passing through the tiniest bit of rain, we arrived at the Kite Field.

Kiting had already finished for the day, so we settled in for the musical performances.
Bombargo opened. A treat, as the band includes a talented bass player whom I taught (on saxophone) in beginner band.

Beginner band didn't exactly work for young Sam Folkersen. Nor did Sam work for beginner band. To whit: Mr. Dietcoke: "Sam. Why is your saxophone so dented?" Sam: "I threw it down the stairs."

And then... Joel Plaskett and The Emergency!

I wish I'd had my camera ready shortly after this, when Joel, randomly pressing the fingers of one hand into the tent ceiling and circling chaotically about, proclaimed, "I'm a bumper car!"

I've seen Joel perform live thrice, now. He seems to get more playful and entertaining, every time.
He's witty, fun, unabashedly quirky, and extremely good at what he does. I don't know the story behind the habit he has of referring to the group as the "Joel Plastic Energy Band", but I, having had my own name mispronounced so many times, imagine it as a wry nod to venues and reviewers who have done the same.

The Next Morning
We awoke to the sunny brightness of a cloudless day. It was hot, already, by the time we'd converted the car back into driving mode, so I suggested a quick walk down the thoroughfare.
It was magical. There's definitely something emotionally buoyant about dozens of kites flying simultaneously in close proximity.

So awakened was Theboy's sense of childhood wonder he allowed himself to be photographed!

Favourite kite of the day.

Conversational highlights:
How do we access memory?
-----
Is there a recurring place in your dreams where the same specific thing always happens in that place?
-----
"Butter stick!"
...
"You just made me yell 'butter stick'."
-----
"Siege Beaver"