wertbob:

You’re right.  It doesn’t make much sense.

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Just ask sometime.

wertbob:

Santa Barbara

LA II

Phoenix (AZ roadside)

Albuquerque

Norman

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…

Oklahoma to Missouri to home:

Rocks and sand turned into trees as we eased towards home base. Quicktrip hot dogs for lunch and Sonic for dinner. Some of the first road food I’ve eaten on tour. Stopped in at Cesspool Castle. Gene was a sweetheart. I played a very loud noise set. We met up with the Foreign Theaters and caught up. It was nice to have a part of home be part of our journey home. Headed out around seven thirty and moseyed on.

Missouri hills and lush trees are beautiful in the night time. Saw the first fireflies of the trip. Fireworks welcomed us in the far distance. Listened to Pineapple Explode’s “South Inglewood” on the exit. Felt like a dream.

While we were driving a few days ago (out of Los Angeles, I think), Mike mentioned the idea of a charmed life. He said something along the line of, “We both lead very charmed lives.” At that moment, nothing could have been better than where we were. Still applies to this moment, and hopefully the next.

[Radio silence]

Woke up around ten and headed out. Tried to find fruit. First grocery store had moldy blueberries. Next was a health food store that didn’t really have food. Only vitamins. I got a chia greens bar. A heavy bomb for breakfast. Eventually found another health food store and got a hummus wrap. Why was the tortilla red? Blech.

Outta dodge. On the road. Drove through a beautiful national park. Arrived in Albuquerque and accidentally got on the wrong “Coal” road. Most towns we have visited emerge from vast abysses. There is no sign of them and then they magically appear in empty fields. Found the right one and rolled up around eight thirty. Fortunately not too late. Set up. Everyone set up at the same time. As far as I can remember, this was the only show on tour that charged money at the door. A blessing. All Kinds collective. An amazing space. Run very well by very good people. Show was great. Good audience, good bands. People were really engaging. Talked about circuit-bending, running show spaces, folk music. All good. Thanks Joe, Derek, Chris, Mike. Talked to Mike, the sound guy about Knife City. Knife City!

Weather was cool, which was surprising. Pagan Holiday and Yoda’s House played. Stayed with the dudes from Yoda’s House. There were African drums everywhere. Hung out all night. Laughing, eating corn cakes and rice&beans. Gaiety ensued. Went to a party with the Yoda dudes, but it wasn’t a party. One guy with his shirt off on a futon with two girls. Another girl, who was the host hung out. We talked to the shirtless guy, Jake, who we called Cake and Drake. He constantly mentioned how he wasn’t wearing a shirt. I guess he thought we were blind. Kind of him to explain our surroundings in such focused detail. Went to sleep around four and woke up around eight. Woozy from no sleep. Sloop.

Phoenix:

Arizona is hot. In most states, bridges cross over roads or rivers. Signs often say, “Fishkill Road” or “Really Small Creek/River”. In Arizona, bridges cross over ditches. There is no water. It is the red moon. “Ghost Ditch”. Gorgeous hand-painted signs advertising Indian gift shops. They successfully tempted me twice. The first time, I wanted to find wind-chimes, but couldn’t afford them. Second time, they promised Ortega tacos and frybread. When we got there, there was neither. Both were closed. I ended up buying the worst jerky of my life. Only jerky of the tour that I purchased. It was so dry that it would chip off like bark. I had to chew it for a while before it would moisten up and eventually turn into meat. Bogus. Really wanted some frybread.

Got to Phoenix around nine at night. Still hot. Over ninety degrees. Show was show. Thought about sleeping out in a field, but Mike was smart in deciding that it might be hazardous to our health to wake up at seven in the morning to hundred degree heat. Stayed at Jeremy’s house. He set up the show. Very nice guy. Mike hopped int he pool at two in the morning. It was still in the nineties. Sleep.

Leaving Santa Barbara:

Woke up around nine and ate breakfast with my grandma. Headed out around ten thirty and stopped by Rebecca’s studio at UMBC. It was refreshing to hang out with someone who shares a passion for book arts. A very nice morning.

Mike and I left for LA around twelve and arrived around one thirty. Accidentally ended up driving down the main drag of Hollywood and peeped at the China theater. Blech. We stopped in at Family and browsed books. I saw Phil Elverum’s Dawn for the first time. I flipped through a book of Ed Templeton’s photos, which were mostly of butts. Expected that. Nice store. Met up with Ellie afterward and she drove us around town in her chariot. We ate tamales on some famous street and made up songs about having sex in sixth grade. Appropriate.

Met up with Ellie’s friend, Bradley, who had recently ridden his bike from Los Angeles to New York. He was brimming with excitement about everything. Very positive to be around. We went to this Latino alley. I bought an horchata. Seconds after I bought it, I was trying to dispose of my straw sheath and I accidentally knocked my drink straight into the trash. Bought another one, sadly. It was tasty. Eyed the panama hats, but couldn’t bring myself to haggle down the price. My head is unfortunately panama-less. Ate Mexican candy and went back to Ellie’s. Showed up at Synchronicity Space around eight thirty. Cool art on the walls. Friendly people immediately when we walked in. Great show. Black Church, Emily Lacy, The True Drone. Thanks to Ezra for setting up the show. The room sounded like a cave. I broke a string and ended up playing my electric guitar for the first time on this tour. It sounded great. I sang sans-mic over top the warm amp swells. At the show, I met a pen pal that I’ve had for seven years. It was the first time we met in person. A real treat. Crazy to know someone for so long and then to know them in a completely new way after meeting them in person.

After the show, Ellie, Mike, and I went hunting for a taco truck. Mike and I had been trying to find a taco truck all tour, but to no avail. We went up and down Echo Park’s main drag and found nothing. As we were turning around, we were stopped at a stoplight. We all saw the glow of a taco sign in the distance ahead. An oasis in the taco abyss. $1.50 tacos. Tried four kinds with tamarindo soda. Delicious! The spot! Hit!

The tacos made me have weird dreams about making fun of cops, getting in car chases, returning to Hampshire College, receiving text messages in “Old English” fonts, and hanging with Grealdo. Taco fever. Sleep.

Woke up and made breakfast with Ellie. Green tea, fruit salad, hummus, sourdough bread, and tofu scramble. We sat on the back porch of her Silver Lake vista and basked in the sun as we chowed on the perfect morning meal. Said long goodbyes and hit the dusty, hot (110 degrees), and lonesome road… very slowly. Traffic out of LA was harsh.

Phoenix, AZ to come. More sleep for now.

Yours,

Jordan

Santa Barbara (day 1):

As I may have mentioned before, I woke up and was on my Grandmother’s street. She immediately offered us food when we arrived (a theme that arose throughout our stay… magnificent!) We threw clothes in the wash for the first time this trip, chowed on some grub, and I caught up with my mother’s mother.

Around three, Mike and I met up with my two cousins and we played croquette on the beach (a personal favorite of mine). It was about sixty-eight degrees out and we stood by the water. Eventually my cousin got in her bathing suit and jumped in. Mike and I gawked at the ocean while she egged us to come in. Somehow, she was terribly convincing. We both dropped trough (sp?) and dove in. We swam in our drawers in semi-warm salt water, waves, wind, and all. We eventually got out when my cousin’s top lost it’s strap and Mike underwear could no longer contain him.

For dinner, we got Thai food. I enjoyed my drunken noodles up until I accidentally munched a pepper and turned red. I continued to enjoy my noodles about fifteen minutes later. We got frozen yogurt for desert. Mike’s first time. It took him by surprise and he found himself hefting a heaping mound of cookie dough and brownie bites atop giant glops of fro yo. Yummy. After desert, we went into the hot tub under the stars. Then sleep.

Day 2:

Finally got to sleep in. Woke up and played some guitar. Shared a few songs with my grandmother in her living room. Caught up some more before running some errands. Oil change. Saw a guy whose natural hair was the stupid blond wig Mike and I have been wanting. Almost offered him five bucks for his mane. Eventually met up with my cousin and she took us to a gorgeous beach. I recorded the ocean while Mike and her debated about jumping into it. We stood on rocks in the water as waves crashed as deep as our knees. Jetted back in time to get cleaned up and get monster burritos at Freebird’s in Isla Vista with the family. After food, said goodbye to the family, except for my cousins.

Headed over to Biko Garage and met up with Duchampion and The Shade. Ben from Duchampion is one of my greatest benefactors. He had me on his radio show at Wesleyan and also booked a show for me there. It was comforting to see him across the entire country. The show was great. The first performer was both funny and musically good. Duchampion and the Shade both killed it was well. The crowd ruled. The weather was splendid. There was fire-spinning/blowing/dancing practice/choreography/filming happening in the back yard of the space. I think Mike got video. One woman’s dreads caught on fire.

The folks who ran the show at Biko Garage were wonderful people. Thanks to Rebecca, Kira, and whoever else was behind it all. When the show was over, a mob of us walked down the street and feasted on burritos. Sleep was heavy and good.

wertbob:

Vancouver, WA

(skip a few)

San Francisco, CA

(skip a few)

Santa Barbara, CA

(skip a few)

Maybe the moon…soon.

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‘Pologies bout the greys.

CVS done me wrong.

wertbob:

Seattle down to Santa Barbara.

Everywhere in between.

Met some incredible people.

Seen some incredible things.

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“and so it goes”

wertbob:

Down at the swimmin’ hole in Chico CA.

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Fell asleep in the car and woke up in Santa Barbara. Heaven. The smell of clean clothes is stuck on my hands.