Sunday in the City

Sunday, Feb 19…

Our hosts attend a Pentecostal Church, so I decided to join them for this morning’s service, and I found it quite interesting. The first 15 minutes were what I’d call the “welcome warm-up” – live music (elec piano & organ with percussion), 5 women w/ mics singing (words on 2 large screens above the stage), and most of the congregation standing and clapping to the music. The songs were more like camp songs (very repetitious lyrics) with a “praise & call to worship” theme. No regular hymns at any point in the service. The speaker was very good – a woman probably in her 70s whose topic was “Let’s Wait on the Lord (Too Late Now to Faint).” Aside from the extemporaneous hallelujahs, amens, and thank-you-Jesuses, it was a great message. (For my LDS readers… I found myself subconsciously “translating” her thoughts into words that Scott Perry would use to convey the same idea.) Service closed with another 10 minutes of prayer/praise/come-to-the-front-for-special-blessing time, again with live music (loud live music)

Highway to Heaven? (momentarily eerie -
we were on the top level of another
multi-level interchange)

Spent the afternoon downtown. Toured the Alamo (and also the Battle for Texas Experience Museum, which was excellent). Took the tourist trolley to get an overview of the city and from that made plans for what to see/do tomorrow. Spent some time on the River Walk (which extends 28 miles along the S. A. River – much of that outside the city itself), including a delightful hour or so at Durty Nelly’s (not a typo), an Irish piano bar (replica of the original in County Clare, Ireland). What fun!!  

Can't remember the venue, but these
musicians were motorized and quite
humorous. (girl is playing a triangle)

Steeple of St. Joseph's Catholic Church
(from River Walk)

Our troubadour at Nelly's
(for one number, he made the
piano sound like bagpipes!)

"Coming Home to the Briscoe" - beautiful 3-ton bronze sculpture along the
River Walk (and part of the collection of the Briscoe Western Art Museum)

BlogThoughts… I didn't realize just how much I missed singing until we popped in to Durty Nelly's. The live music called to me like a (Gaelic) siren song, the crunchy tortilla quesadilla stilled my tummy rumbles, and this gentleman restored my creative soul. Being Scots-Irish, I knew several of the songs he picked, and even if I'd belted them out, no one else could really hear me (he's mic'd; I'm not). It felt so good to sing. 😃
This guy's been an entertainer all his life. His piano style reminded me of the Billy Joel classic:

               Sing us a song you're the piano man,
               Sing us a song tonight
               Well we're all in the mood for a melody
               And you've got us feeling alright.