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The sky is enormous. Everyone you meet is your host. All around are fresh smells of alfalfa, evergreen trees, and a bit of horse manure. Well, that's how I picture Paradise, anyway.

Paradise is what you'll find in "Yellowstone Country," agricultural valleys of southwestern Montana (info at www.yellowstone.visitmt.com and www.wintermt.com). With new "agri-tourism" offerings from Montana Bunkhouses, today visitors have opportunity to experience ranching life for a few days (or weeks), arriving as guests and departing as friends.

At Carriage House Ranch, we were served a marvelous pot-luck meal in kitchen/dining facility built into huge steel barn. After dinner we were given a quick demonstration of wagon driving by co-owner John Haller. He took a one-horse buggy through a short slalom course of yellow pylons to show us how to maneuver precisely. As these ranch vacations are designed for hands-on enjoyment, I was offered reins next. I didn't knock any cones over, but my wheels got pretty intimate with one of them. Then young Josh Richert, member of a neighboring ranch family, showed us some fancy moves with a rope lariat. Wow! These skills aren't just for show, as I would see later.

The community pot-luck reminded me of something: do you know your neighbors? The ranch families I met in Yellowstone River Valley live miles apart, but they know one another. They have to. Ranches here are subject to vagaries of weather, government policy, market, and even predator dangers, and they depend on one another for mutual support. They live a challenging but rewarding existence.

The next morning, at Laubach Ranch where I was staying, I helped Ken Laubach adjust small dams that control irrigation in his pastures. He explained system of water rights that originated in 1800s and still exists today: each ranch gets a certain allotment from Yellowstone River according to its acreage. Water is so important to their hay crops and pastures that violations of others' water rights is a serious matter: "In years past, people have been shot for taking more than their share," said Ken.

Around here, "A.I." stands for artificial insemination, not artificial intelligence. The rancher's smarts are very real and hard-earned. Ken and his son Marvin had recently disassembled and rebuilt engine on their tractor. Their equipment works as hard as they do and has to last a long time.

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From opening note of violins, cool and smooth as a frozen pond, San Francisco Symphony exuded depth. A dozen violinists playing same note, and attaining richness of multiple instruments while staying in perfect tune and time, takes tremendous talent - and these people have it.

Today's performance was one of many at Kennedy Center this 2002 Fall season by some very prestigious organizations, including Vienna Philharmonic, Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, and cellist Yo-yo Ma. The playbill featured works from Bela Bartok, Carl Ruggles, and Richard Strauss. The performance was one of many sponsored by Washington Performing Arts Society (www.wpas.org), an ambitious organization whose purpose is to further development and enjoyment of music, theater, and dance in greater Washington, D.C. area, and to make city as much a cultural capital as a governmental one.

I sat between wife of a foreign embassy official and a young percussionist studying under WPAS's youth fellowship program. Funny, I didn't meet people like this at monster truck rally...

Michael Tilson Thomas has been Conductor and Musical Director for San Francisco Symphony since 1995. It is a treat to see him in action, arms waving about, hands moving expressively and passionately as he conducts. He not only draws very best out of his musicians but visibly enjoys every minute of it.

I think this afternoon's Bartok piece, 'Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta', should be called 'The Bipolar Symphony'. The opening movement, played 'Andante tranquillo', or "calmly", can best be described by a color: grey. Gently overlapping chords in minor keys, and some very artistically dissonant tones, lend an air of resigned despair until volume rises toward a surprising intense climax. Then final, graceful note of violins trails off like quiet death of hope. The melodic celeste (think of Nutcracker Suite's 'Dance of Sugarplum Fairy' by Tchaikovsky) helps to make movement sound pretty despite its mood.