This past weekend was the Old 280 Boogie, just up the road in the tiny town of Waverly. It’s a fun local music festival with artist selling their wares, food trucks, and a laid-back, picnic kind of atmosphere. This is my seventh year living in Auburn and my seventh year heading up to the Boogie — I’ve never missed a year of my favorite local event.

This year, CW and I headed up there with a couple of friends and met up with more folks there. We had coolers full of snacks and drinks and some camp chairs and…all our warm clothes and rain gear. See that cloudy sky?

It stayed that way basically all day. It had been drizzling rain all morning on Saturday after a Friday of storms and constant downpour, so we counted ourselves lucky that it stayed dry throughout the afternoon.

When we got there and got settled in, the Shivering Timbers were playing — an Ohio band I wasn’t already familiar with, but that I liked immediately. I’ll be looking for more of their music, for sure.

My favorite Alabama band (who plays this festival every single year) is The Pine Hill Haints. They have a unique sound they refer to as “Alabama Ghost Country Music” and they bring things like a washtub bass, a saw, and an accordion. I know, it’s all too hip to stand, but I do really love their music.

Spending a few hours hanging out in the country, drinking champagne out of a plastic cup, and listening to good music is one of my favorite things about the beginning of Spring in Alabama.

Even if the weather didn’t cooperate, we still managed to make a lovely day of it.

And then we all went to dinner where, while trying to hand the waiter my sushi menu, I fell directly out of my chair and onto the floor. A little too much excitement for one day, perhaps. It’s OK; I only injured my dignity and reputation. My well-padded backside was just fine.