Today began quietly, with the sun shining softly. Not too hot, not too humid. Should be a nice day. Kip, Tad, and I spent the morning reading. Kip and Tad are into some very deep authors, like Tolstoy, while I was reading a Stainless Steel Rat novel. (Chewing gum for the mind?)

After Rick got up, we all headed for the showers. The showers at Cornerstone have not changed much since the first festival, about 14 years ago. They are in converted semi-trailers, with very little privacy, and use water which is pumped from the lake on the grounds. The first year the festival was on the Cornerstone farm, the lake water had such a smell of sulfur that it was difficult to shower in it. I don't know what the JPUSA have done since then, but every year the smell is better. This year, there is only a little smell from the water.

When we got to the showers, there was a line waiting for the women's showers, but the men's was empty. This was a little unusual for the men's side, but very welcome. There's nothing like waiting in line for a luke-warm, slightly pungent shower (at least nothing I have experienced yet.) After we got out and dressed, Kip told us that while he was in the shower, a woman came in, told him she was going to shower in here, and proceeded to. It is fortunate that the JPUSA have installed shower curtains to create little shower "stalls." In the past it was all open, and this would have been a very embarrassing incident for all involved.

Since there wasn't much going on today, we decided to head back into Macomb. Rick had bought a microphone last year at an electronics store in Macomb, the one he refers to as his "$30 microphone from Macomb." He decided to invest in another this trip, so that he could do interviews without having to share a mic with the interviewee. Plus, we decided that we need to get a flash light or something for the evenings back at camp.

Getting the microphone went smoothly enough. We had to cross the square from the electronics shop to Radio Shack to get a splitter to run two mics into the camera, though. While we were in the RS, on the TV was playing a video featuring Kathy Troccoli and the Beach Boys! Cool song, but I and the Brothers Odell thought it a strange combination, to say the least.

After the electronics store, we proceeded back to Wal-Mart, where we debated the merits of a gas powered lantern, verses a battery operated one. Finally I bought the battery one, and Rick decided that we needed to have a Tikki torch for camp. Cornerstone at Gilligan's Island, or Gilligan's Island at Cornerstone?

As we were getting to the checkout, I grabbed some Gatorade -- the one essential for the trip that I had forgotten to buy the day before.

Driving back, we decided to again visit the IGA to see if Molly was working. We grabbed a couple bags of ice (our "real reason" for stopping) and I noticed that Molly was working a couple lanes over from the line we were in. After we took the ice out to the van, we decided to try to get her on an on camera interview using the "man on the street" technique. We asked her how the festival affected the town, etc. She tried to get us to ask another cashier, but Rick held his ground. He decided not to pose Randy's question, though.

Back at the van, Rick said that he didn't remember her being so cute. I told him that I remembered she was pretty, but he went on to say that he didn't remember her being "to die for." I am not sure that I would go that far.

Back at camp, we set up the Tikki torch and the screen room. The screen room is one which has seen many C-Stone festivals, and it shows. On one side the zipper has been sewn shut because it quit working, and we decided that one entrance was enough. The corners are starting to rip out, and this year, the other zippered entrance decided not to zip too. Next year it might be wise to invest in another screen room, and retire this one. We decided though, that we didn't really need to worry about the zipper too much, we wouldn't be spending a lot of time at camp, anyway. We finished setting up the screen room (over the already set-up tables, chairs, and assorted coolers!) If nothing else, it would at least give us some more shade from the sun, and should it rain, our supplies hopefully wouldn't get (too) wet.

With that finished, we had time for a quick bite to eat, and headed off to the exhibition tent. We browsed through the offerings at the Cornerstone music store. I managed to pick up about 8 CDs, including VegiTales, Dime Store Prophets' "Love Is Against The Grain," and several sampler CDs. Rick surprised me (well, sort of) by buying me the Steve Taylor "Now The Truth Can Be Told" CD set (thanks, Rick!) By the time we finished, it was time to head off to the first concerts of the festival: The Electrics, Over The Rhine, and Adam Again at Encore 1, then Caedmon's Call at the Compassion stage. Along the way, I saw an amazing tee-shirt. It read "Body Piercing Saved My Life" and had a drawing of open hands with a large nails through each.

When we got to Encore 1 we found out that, ironically, the Electrics were set to go on, but there was no electricity! In fact, the whole grounds were without power. We watched as the techs worked furiously to regain power. Meanwhile, a trio was pulled up out of the audience to lead the crowd in praise choruses.

Back stage, I watched Rick as he tried valiantly to not stare at Karen from OTR. As he put it, "I am so over the Rhine, and I've stopped Carin' for Karen." Yeah. OK. It was fun, though, to kind of tease him, and Kip and Tad joined right in.

Finally, at 8:40 p.m. the lights came on! All of the shows were pushed back to allow all the bands the "full concert." This was going to be a LONG night!

The best line of the night came from the Electrics. During a break between songs, the singer asked the audience, "any Scottsmen in the audience, raise your hands." A few people raise their hands. Then he added, "Any Irishmen in the audience, put your hands in your pockets, there are Scotts in the crowd!"

Over The Rhine did a pretty good set. I must admit that while I like some of their songs, I find that most of their music is just too pretentious for my taste (or maybe it's the pretentious attitude that Linford and Karen seem to project.) Rick and the Brothers Odell seemed to enjoy it, though. Rick was even talking about joining the "fan club" and becoming a Rhinelander.

After OTR, Adam Again took the stage, and "rocked the house," as some are wont to say. They were pretty good, but the lead singer/guitarist managed somehow to blow-out two amps in the first 10 minutes of the show.

It was late and the night had grown cool by the time we headed back toward the Compassion stage to see Caedmon's Call. They played a cover of "In God's Country" by U2, while outside, under the biggest sky east of Montana, there were more stars visible in the night than many people see in a lifetime.

Back at camp, we had the "ceremonial lighting of the Cornerstone Torch" (the Tikki torch) and I stumbled off to sleep. It was a very pleasant finish to the first full day of the festival.