Every now and then, I venture south of the city. Yesterday I went for the 14th Annual African Festival of Arts @ Washington Park (51st & Cottage Grove). In that it was raining and I’d never been to Washington Park, I almost didn’t go. But then, I reminded myself that there were going to be more than 200 artists “displaying crafts, fabric, jewelry, masks and more for the annual celebration of African culture.” Plus Chaka Khan was going to be performing. As I headed south on the #4 Bus, I couldn’t help but think that it was such a shame that certain sections were so run down. To be fair, I did see new development, but that was much closer to the loop. In any event, by the time I got there and paid my $10 entrance fee, some of the vendors have covered up their booths as the rain was relentless. In that I had rain gear, I walked around for quite some time and even make several purchases. Then after getting something to eat, I headed over to the Dee Parmer Woodtor Stage where Chaka Khan would be performing. This was around 7:30pm. She was slated to perform at 8pm. When I got there, there was hardly anyone there. I suppose the weather had kept most people away. But that was fine with me as I had almost a front row view of the stage. Before Chaka came out, there were performances by: Vinx with Les Nubians and Phil Cohran & Hypnotics. When Chaka finally came on around 9:15pm, I along with those in the audience were not to be disappointed. She totally rocked until about 10:45pm. Since then I’ve been singing: “I feel for you” and “I’m every woman” over and over again in my head. I had a great time. Thus, I’m really glad the rain didn’t keep me away from the concert. It was such a good deal.