bliss

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Oh man. I'm still speaking in full on slow motion and I can hardly talk about anything not related to the weekend that I just spent.

There's a tradition at Hillside whereby people talk about their 'Hillside moments.' These are basically seconds or minutes or hours that pass and are perfect for you and you will remember them forever.

Some examples from previous years... the first time I ever danced in a drum circle at 2am with a bonfire on one side and drummers on the other (first night, first year). It was fully sublime and left me blissed out for days.

Last year it was much more serene. I was sitting at about 1pm on Friday on the platform that was becoming the soundbooth and just watching them build the stage and erect fencing and build sinks and and and ... and I was SO happy because I was in my favourite place on earth watching it get built. [eventually I will have to volunteer for site crew just to do it once]

This year I almost have to say that the ENTIRE festival was my hillside moment. That said, if I had to pick moments there would be two. Swimming in the lake on friday and feeling my body move like a kid again. I actually went swimming like 8 times this weekend because of that!

But the other.

Wow.

This man walks onto the stage all rigged out with a djembe and three didjeridoo's and a couple of other drums and a guitar and a harmonica all set up on stands and he starts to play this ethereal and beautiful music. And then he made me dance. And dance. And dance.

So there I was dancing my face off with a sellout crowd and listening to this phenomenal music when this man appears and starts ska dancing beside me. He and I went apeshit for a while to this music and then more and more and more people started dancing with us. IT was wonderful. So amidst a sea of bliss, during a sublime weekend and with mother nature smiling at us this guy showed up so I didn't have to dance alone. Don't know his name or anything about him but I feel for a time we were kindred spirits.
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Nothing controversial to say. didn't meet anyone with spark but that's all right, Hillside isn't really about that. did run into a man that I went out for a tea with a year or so ago. he took my number and never used it. Funny cause he doesn't look cute anymore... in fact I find myself a little indifferent.

Funny how rejection gets you over someone in a second flat.
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In case I didn't make it clear... XAVIER RUDD fucking ROCKS! Go see him if you can. He rocks so much that for the first time in SEVEN years I shamelessly abused my all access pass to the festival so that I could track down this man and tell him how wonderful he was. And I had to line up with board members and senior staff to do it! [and he hugged every one of us... such wonderful energy].

Happy Hillside y'all.