There were showers in the forecast for my monthly gig at Hackett Winery, so I checked in with Bob and he said that a tent with lights was set up, and that rain was supposed to hold off until later in the evening. So, I packed up and headed up to New Tripoli.

As I pulled in, there were only a couple of women in the club house, and as I started to figure out where to play in the tent area, the skies opened up with a torrential downpour. I figured out where to plug in and not get electrocuted, find a spot where there wasn’t any creeping puddles and started in to an empty space.

As I began to consider packing it in, a couple of acquaintances showed up so, as they got some wine from inside, I settled in for the evening. John runs a local guitar shop, so I was pleased to have an intelligent audience with he and his wife. As I played, we shared some good conversation, while a few other couples came on out and sat down.

Still, I don’t have the popular repertoire for folks who don’t know me or my reputation. Beatles, Tom Petty, and I often only know one Prine song, etc. Still, I try to play my best material and I play it well.

In better weather.

A small van from a nearby hotel dropped off a whole bunch of young women, and they headed inside the club house where they had a grand ole time. I was glad that I was outside since the noise got to be pretty loud.

As the evening came to a close, with only three folks in the tent, I packed it in, headed inside to get paid.

Bob checked the till and said that it wasn’t a particularly good cash night, so I ended up settling for less than my fee while he offered me a bottle of wine as a tip. I’m willing to make a deal on my fee when there is a small crowd due to the weather, but, frankly, I came away feeling somewhat dissatisfied with the arrangement. This rarely happens and reminded me of the nature of playing in bars (and, apparently wineries) for a living.

I wish I had more of a draw and a repertoire that is more suited for these kind of gigs.