jjw v leaf

Or, more verbosely:

"Jump, Jive, and Wail, versus the Lake Eden Arts Festival"

They're both fun!  I'm going to JJW this weekend.  To be honest though, if it were possible, I would love to go to LEAF instead.

But since it isn't really possible, and since I do want to spend some time in Charleston and with Anastasia, I am happy to be going to JJW.  It's a pretty awesome event.  My first JJW was in my sophomore year of high school (2005).  Jackson took me, and I remember that Sytske was the first person I danced with.  I didn't get to go the next year, but I went with Anastasia in 2007 and we're going again this weekend.  This is seriously a high class event; much nicer than any other school event I've seen put on (except, of course, Harmony Fest).  If you haven't been, and you get a chance to go, you should definitely take advantage of it.  It's a great night, and you get to dress up but not uncomfortably so.  It's in bus depot by the visitor's center (I remember being scared of "The Bus Depot" the first time Jackson told me its name).

Oh, and if you don't know how to swing dance, it's okay.  All the cool people from contra are there, and - just like at contra - they'll help you out.  That's how I learned... although I'm actually not too good.

LEAF... god.  Leaf is like heaven.  It's the most amazing event of the year.  It's just full of art, music, nature, rhythm, life, harmony, beauty, humanity, poetry, euphoria, peace, and oneness.  If you ever - ever - get a chance to attend, please do it.  You won't be sorry.  As soon as you take up the courage to remove your shoes and turn off your blackberry, you'll love it.  It's definitely a release from technology, as Araba advocates in her recent draft article.  You can learn to heal, to dance, to love, and to listen, to play, to poet, and to eat all around the beauty of Lake Eden in the mountains of North Carolina.  

If there was any one place I could go, Leaf is pretty well tied with Charleston.  

Man, why did you put so many tags on this post, Matthew?  Well, probably because Leaf represents them all.