The forth of July is often the official start of the tourist season here. In addition to it being a long holiday weekend this year, it is also referred by many locals as "James Taylor weekend" .

Tanglewood (summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra ) is the behemoth of tourists draws here, so until it opens the tourist business is on the sluggish side. Having kids that now work in local restaurants, we have become attuned to things like this. There are many theater and other cultural venues in the immediate area but none are a large or draw the crowds like Tanglewood.

While the BSO season officially starts next week, one of the big Tanglewood events in the popular music series is James Taylor and this year with Carole King. The sold out concerts bring many thousands of out-of towners. In a past year, Taylor teamed with John Williams and the BSO for movie night and the crowds were so large that highways and local roads were jammed and the symphony itself had difficulty getting there. Subsequently a local ordinance was passed requiring a cap of ticket sales at I believe 18,000 and when that is reached, it must be marketed as sold out and signs are on the highways. This year it is 2 concerts so the crowds will be spread out but still the max is reached and one of the concerts is a charity event with the proceeds going back to the BSO.

So as drove through town this morning to drop off one kid for breakfast waitstaff job the increase in numbers and runners on the streets was noticeable. If you were from the city you'd think nothing of it, but this is a small town and even a slight increase in people is noticable.

Tomorrow is my 3rd 5k race. It is part of the beginning of the 4th of July Parade in Pittsfield, one of the largest in the country complete with floats and big balloons. It is interesting being in this race as there are already hundreds lining the parade route clapping as a thousand runners come along.

My attitude has really changed since my first race. Then I wanted to make sure I didn't come in
dead last. Now I am pretty confident about the distance and its more about seeing if I can trim some time off of last year's time. I have more experience and training though I also have one more year on me. It will be fun and I often see all sorts of people either in the race or on the side that I never expect to see.

Happy 4th of July all.