11 am
Ok, I've now been waiting an hour in line for the shower. There is one bathroom and shower for EVERYONE--crew and artists included. Haven't they ever held a concert here before? Now I'm really looking forward to leaving for home tonight. This I will not miss.

Noon
Anthony and Jennifer are trying to talk me into going to the fairgrounds next to the venue and go on the rollercoasters with them. I haven't been on a rollercoaster in about seven years, and this is the new kind where your feet dangle in the wind. I need some time to think about it. . . . In the meantime, one of the crew members goes and takes his radio with him, and they broadcast his screaming over the main stage p.a. system. Good to know the crew still has a sense of humour after so much time on the road.

1:15 pm
Messy tacos for lunch today. Mexican food is a typical lunch item, since it's easy to make veggie and non-veggie versions of it. We have a quick production meeting with Aliza and go over how we do things. Aliza takes it all in, and I hope she's not too overwhelmed by the situation she's in, and that she feels like she will enjoy this week with us. Jennifer has a bad cold so we decide that she'll take it easy and I'll cover her performance shooting as much as I can.

3:00 pm
Aliza asks a great question at the press conference: Who is a woman you admire? Surprisingly enough, most of the artists name their mothers or sisters, and not a woman in music.

4:30 pm
There's a new jewelry vendor at the show today, and they have amazing chunky silver rings--a big weakness for me. I plop down $35 for a beautiful, handmade work of art. I justify my purchase by the fact that a ring like that would cost me, oh, twice as much in Manhattan. I have to stop spending money!

5:30 pm
After a busy day of running around a cramped venue, shooting the performances and interviews with Aliza, I call Lane to check in. I end up changing my plans to leave that night since Jennifer's sick, and she'd be on her own for shooting the next 3 days of performance and interviews. I scramble to cancel my ride to the hotel and my room for the night.

6 pm
I go shoot Liz Phair's last song, and Sarah and N'Dea Davenport come out onstage to sing along. The three of them dance like crazy during the guitar solo, hug, and leave the stage arm in arm. The audience goes nuts as they should -- at what other concert could they see three talented women having such a great time and showing such genuine joy from joining forces onstage?

8:30 pm
I make an appointment at the House of La La, the hairdo-ers, to get "la-la'ed" at the Milwaukee show. I'll be the model for the day and all I have to do is tell everyone where I got my hair done. Cool. Jennifer will document the transformation.

10:30 pm
I watch part of Sarah's set from backstage. You get such a better sense of the applause noise level from back there, and the sound is deafening. Emmylou sings on Angel, kisses and hugs Sarah, and runs off stage straight to her bus, and she's gone. This was her last show for a while, and I know she must not want to leave, since she's been saying to the audience everyday that she wishes she could always tour like this, surrounded by women she admires.

Midnight We leave for the long drive to Milwaukee. . . should be close to 12 hours, but tomorrow's a day off. I've never been to Milwaukee and don't really know what to expect. A few chips and drinks and chatting, and everyone's off to bed.