Pre-Worlds Dinner

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The day started with a brief gathering of the parents to open wallets and hand over some more money. Costs had been finalized for tonights pre-worlds dinner so "please pay £10 each" i.e. for band member and parent.
After the regular morning band practice we fed the kids early (11:30) and Robb and I ended up not scattering like everyone else so we decided to go play a round of golf on the Airthey Golf Course which forms part of the university grounds and is only a couple hundred yards from our residence. It is only a little par 27 9 hole course but I has many little challenges being built in a small valley and the banks of the valley. Robb actually asked me to play a round with him which was pretty good but all the kids are starting to have somewhat strange and not normal behaviors. (a little stress as the big one gets closer) Besides asking me to play a round with him, Robb is also practicing his Grade 2 tunes for an hour or more each day. Today while the SFU Band was practicing he was even playing along with them for the tunes he knows.
Today Kathy Moscrips "Dan" arrived complete with a copy of the Vancouver Province which had a banner photo of the band at the top of the City Section. We also hear that the Province had a front page photo and page two story of the band around August 5th - 7th. (Check those re-cycle bins folks!!)
About 5:30PM the group of parents and band members walking to the restaurant for dinner left the residences. Those of us who were not so energetic waited and took the 6:18 bus meeting up with the walkers at a bus stop about 5 blocks from the restaurant. The Birds and Bees (the name of the restaurant) was at one time an old stable and what used to be the paddock is now a rear outdoor patio area. This restaurant was perfect for our group because there was a private function room towards the rear for the kids, the parents took the outdoor patio in the former paddock area, and the rest of the establishments public bar/lounge/pub, restaurant, and front outdoor patio was able to function normally.
The restaurant provided a really good spread of grilled hamburger, chicken burgers, and for the meatless, veggie burgers along with tandoori chicken, really supberb chilli with a gentle kick, salad, sauces and garnishes. All finished off with by ice cream.
A few of the usual speaches and pep talks and it was time to go in order to meet the 10:00PM kids curfew.
A group of us who had taken the bus from the university decided to walk back because by some fortunate coincidence the William Wallace Pub ( www.williamwallacepub.co.uk ) . Well we got to the pub and found some members of the Grade 2 band along with parents Cindy M and Michelle Y. What was Micheal L doing there ? Anyhow the place was full. Yours truly behaved himself admirably, had one pint, said thanks, goodnight, and walked home.

I'm usually a day behind doing these little journal entries so a little insight into the next couple days. Friday will be pretty low key in an effort to keep the kids calm and/or have them calm down. Then on Saturday its on the busses about 8:30AM for the short trip into Glasgow where the RMM Pipe Band will do their performance for the Juvenile World Pipe Band Championship about 11:44AM. The massed bands where the results are announced are scheduled to start at 5:00PM but with over 200 pipe bands it will be close to 6:30 / 7:00PM at the earliest before we know.
The RMM Band will do there best at the worlds and regardless of the outcome it will be on the bus at 9:00AM Sunday to make our way to the Crieff Highland Games. Monday is another travel day starting at 9:00AM en route to a performance in Pitlochry. Along the way the band will also perform at Blair Castle ( www.blair-castle.co.uk )
So it may be Tuesday or Wednesday before I have a chance to add anything after tomorrow.

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