Coeur D'Alene: The Forbidden City

When we look back on our trip to Canada in the summer of 2016, we will remember the hikes to the tea house at Lake Louise, the "fancy" room service at the Chateau, the family reunion in Banff. What we won't remember (selectively) will be the scenery in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho.  Why? Because the damn place banished us before setting foot in its city limits. 

If you'll recall the deer incident en-route (see: "Deer 1, Me 0: http://beyonddwheel.blogspot.com/2016/07/deer-1-me-0.html) we didn't quite make it to Coeur D'Alene. And alas, on out way back home from the "great white north" we once again didn't make it. 

Bonner's Ferry, ID: about 30mi south of the Canadian border. "Blondie" needed to pee and there wasn't a gas station in sight. I did what any attentive dad would do: I pulled into the nearest vacant lot (which happened to be a Menonite church) so the boy can relieve himself. About 3min later or 2miles down, the car started making s rumbling sound, emanating from the rear left tire. As fast as it was happening I had noticed. Then just as fast, the tire blew out and low pressure light went off. 

Pulling into the nearest parking lot, of course there was no food establishments for Prudence and the boys to sit and eat while I changed the flat. She called Enterprise right away as I jacked up the car and put on the donut. As she got off the phone, I could tell it was going to be an even more interesting trip. 

Enterprise's policy for roadside was to change the flat, but I'd already done that. Next option was to find a car repair close and have them put new tire on and Enterprise would reimburse us. Option three was to drive to closest Firestone or Tire-Rama and they'd replace the tire and directly charge Enterprise. The final option was to find another Enterprise and get a different rental. 

We opted for option 2: find a Tire-Rama. The closest location was in Coeur D'Alene, ID about 50mi away. We packed the. boys up and started to make our way at a snails pace of 50mph-the suggested speed limit on a donut. Within the first 10min, something wasn't feeling right (besides the snails pace at which we were moving). I decided to call the Tire-Rama and (I'm sure you can assume what transpired next) after talking to the clerk on the phone, he told me that "18-in tires are an odd size. We don't have that here, but can get it in about a day-and-a-half."

In what country is an 18-in tire odd for a SUV?! To my knowledge that's standard sizing for a Sports Utility Vehicle....

....so option 3: drive to Spokane, WA for a new vehicle. This was an additional 47 miles on top of the 50 to Coeur D'Alene. You can get about 100 miles out of a donut - were pushing the boundaries here. 

So once again on this trip, we didn't make it to Coeur D'Alene, ID. At this point, I don't even care if I ever get there in this lifetime. 

Deer 1, Me 0

As I sit here on I-90N about 50mi from Butte, MT waiting the wrecker to come for the van, I am reflecting on how fortunate I am. Unlike the buck that decided to cross the interstate mere feet from my bumper. 

Looking into that poor s.o.b.'s eyes, still fixed on the full moon he was chasing, I am reminded how short life is. How precious each moment is. That poor deer was just going on a moonlight stroll, albeit in the middle of an interstate. There can always be other outcomes of this same scenario. Those eyes fixed upon the full moon, while bleeding out on the side of the road could have been me (or one of my precious passengers). Everything amounts to a series of moments - what if we hadn't stopped before Butte so baby can stretch and "Blondie" can pee? What if we drove past Ennis to find more vegetarian options or spaghetti? Would I be writing this? 

I was alert, awake and defensively driving. Determined to make it to Coeur d'Alene, ID in the next 3hours. I lucked out. Many other people have their noses in the phone or are nodding off on a dark, rural interstate at 11pm. It's all a series of moments and the choices we make within those moments. I'm not 100% sure this is one of those "better him than me" situations, but when I turned around to see my family, in one piece and unharmed, it made the previous 30-seconds fade away. I didn't think about the car or the buck. When I eventually did come back to the deer, I exhaled deeply and thought "better him than me. 

So maybe it's more like Deer 1, Me 5

Tents and Tentacles

Roman had fall break this past week, not quite sure what the hell that means, but we took advantage anyway and decided to go camping. We'd had reservations -2 to be exact- at Palomar Mountain State Park down near San Diego, but last Saturday afternoon, Prudence received a call notifying us that the park was closing permanently on Tuesday. Great! Our reservations were from Sunday through Wednesday! In a whirlwind of finishing shopping for supplies and getting packed, it was up to me to find a suitable new campground for us and our friends The Engels. The difficulty lies in the fact that Liz has a fear of heights which meant Big Bear was out of the question. Up until this point, I'd spent more time that week researching fishing spots, bait, styles, lures, hooks, etc than I had audio equipment. Now with few hrs to spare and a very energetic 5 year old boy on my watch, I had to research campgrounds.

Josh had recommended Lake Isabella, but the pictures Prudence pulled up on her BlackBerry looked like beach or desert camping - alas, another hurdle: it had to be woodsy, autumnal and lower altitudes. After hours of searching and 30+ tabs open on my browser (and a few cold beers) the back and forth brought us to Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park. It was about 3.5hrs north, just past Kern County....this turned into 5hrs because of the drive up and over the mountains...eek.

We arrived Sunday night about 9pm and Roman was asleep in the car. Prudence and I scurried quickly to set up the tent and he awoke midway. I finished and then started a fire for the boy to warm up. We opted for soup and grilled cheese sammiches on the fire. DELICIOUS. Followed up with the appropriate S'Mores explosion. With our bellies full and bodies tired, we locked up the dirty dishes and all our food in the designated "bear box" for washing in the daylight. We washed our hands and faces so's a bear doesn't smell us and tear open our tent like a sardine can in search of 'mallow-scented family.

The Engels were due to arrive in the afternoon so we decided to go for a hike. It was a really nice time, we found acorns, skipped rocks, saw grasshoppers, growing bamboo, climbed and snacked. We saw some deer running across the meadow, but I didn't get a picture so my credibility better stand up.

Back at camp, we moved our tent off of what felt like a concrete slab, but for better visibility of the stars. I rigged my fishing rod with sinker egg, swivel clasp, leader and hook while Prudence and Roman played soccer. We were slowly getting more and more concerned that the Engels weren't showing up due to the drive up to 7,000 feet then back down to 4,600 feet. Just when I was getting ready to go to the store to use a PAY PHONE to check my voicemail, they arrived. They barely parked and Dash was jumping out of the car towards Roman.

They set up their tent and we started the fire for dinner: hot dogs and portabello heads (for Prudence), baked beans and grilled onions. After dinner we had S'mores and grownup beverages while the boys played with glow sticks, peed in the trees and coloured in the tents (Liz put together a cute little art kit for the boys, she's so crafty!)

Tuesday we started the fire, made coffee and nutella-banana open-faced sammiches for breakfast; Dash and Roman had trader joe's 'pop tarts'. Our excursion for the day was driving to find fishing. I'd asked one of our neighbor campers who seemed very fishermanly where we could go. I got the name of 2 places and we drove to the first--after parking, it turned out to be a 2mi hike each way to get to the watersource; that wouldn't bode well for Roman & Dash or the multitude of gear we had (4 rods, tackle, snacks, booze, extra layers, etc.) So, off we went to the next location 10mi on the other side of our camp. It was cold and rocky - did I fail to mention to the fishermen neighbors that we were taking two 5-year old boys fishing?! After much deliberation, we decided to go back to the place Prudence, Roman and I hiked the day previous as there was the stream there. We hiked a little, fished a bunch - caught NOTHING - but had a BLAST. Dash & Roman had matching Transformers fishing rods and they had so much fun. It was a success in my eyes for 2 reasons: nobody got hooked and everybody had a good time.

Since we caught no trout, dinner turned into quesadillas, grilled onions, corn on the cobb and baked potatoes. (I can totally get used to cooking on an open fire). We did the dishes before it got pitch black and then the fun ensued...S'mores, adult beverages and nearly-bouted fisticuffs....(which is another story). Nobody was hurt, just a little mis/ill-communication between neighbors and one of our party who will be kept nameless....

Tuesday night the rain started and i had to put rain cover on...it didn't stop. We packed up in the am IN THE RAIN and made the drive back....no food for 2.5hrs.

All in all, it was a great time and I'm looking forward to smelling like campfire again.

check out some shots from our trip:


the family


no jokes


"here's a good rock to skip."


this 12" stonehenge replica is drawn to spec....it's also in dobly.


showing Roman what happens when you go to sleep with s'mores on your face...a bear comes and eats you.


snack time.


"curl of the burl" ?? (see: Mastodon)


"now, that's niiiiice."


"Bear Face!"


"Bear Face! (part 2)"

For full photos, check out my flickr page

also, check out Liz's blog at Little Dash.

-Uncle J.

Blizzards and Benchpresses in NE

Well,
I'm home in LA and it's a been a week since I flew back out of Denver. Tour was great. Lincoln, NE almost was going to keep us captive--the snow was coming down, as my Dad would say, 'like gangbusters'. Cody, Tim and I set up the bench and did a chest workout which promptly scared everyone else off. Cody and I were hoping to get to Lazlo's for a good steak and some good beer for my last night of the tour; to no avail, we were snowed in the parking lot--it was a 90min wait for a cab. We ended up running across the snowy road to Ruby Tuesday with Brandon and drank like fish....also managed to eat a meal, too.

here are images of a Hoth-like tundra just outside our tour bus. No es bueno.



It's been a great trip, for the week it was. Looking forward to REVOLT! Tour in April. Being away form Prudence & Roman for 2 months will be tough, but we learned a lot on this week excursion and thankfully, I'm in LA after the first couple weeks, so it's a nice half-way point.

Until April 5th, I bid you a fond adeu. Until then, do your homework in the dark and eat your cereal with a fork.

-Uncle J

Baconaughticals

Minnesota.
Mini Soda.

brought to you from a parking lot in Lincoln, NE....

it's definitely cold in MN - first stop yesterday was at a radio station in Mankato. Then on to Minneapolis for the show at Cabooze. Early show, again, so soundcheck was around 4, doors at 5, band on at 5:30. My friend, Sara, lives in Minnapolis, so we made plans to meet up for dinner & beer at Triple Rock Social Club after the show. Apparently, weds is "Bacon Night" at the Triple Rock; all you can eat bacon from 9p-11p and $3 PBR tallboys... of course, Molson cans were on special for $2.50 so I had a couple of those. I was generously rewarded for my thriftiness by the Molson reps: first a grey Molson beanie and 2nd a red and white Molson hockey jersey...which i'll never wear.



the board I used was an old Soundcraft board-pretty easy to use once the house monitor guy told me the correct sends. Show was really good, lots of energy. At soundcheck, Tim thought Bruno's g-string (haha) was a little wonky, but didn't want to change it before the show. On the 2nd to last song, both Taylor and Jason broke strings on their bass & guitar (respectively). I got a really decent shot of Bruno standing on the crowd.



back to my day off....
-uncle j

Takehomeasack

Thank you, Steak n Shake for the delicious meal last night.

Sauget, IL (a.k.a. St.Louis) at Pop's. GREAT show and a great board I got to work on. It brings me back to my Aesthetics of Live Sound Reinforcement class taught by "Feedback" Jack Alexander at Columbia College Chicago: Allen & Heath GL2800M. Such a great board and really easy. Monitors sounded great last night, and was a really fun show.




The day was really low-key. We parked in the am behind the venue and were there all day. There was nothing around but stripclubs and a truckstop with an OTB facility attached. Everyone stayed in and was on their laptops, ipods, etc. since it was cold and nasty. Load in went well and load out went well.

After the show, I got some bills paid, cable/internet setup appointment for the new town home and changed my address (as well as Prudence's). Some fans/friends of the band took Bruno & Jason to Steak n Shake 15min away from the venue to get food. Bruno texted, thankfully, and picked me up a steakburger, fries and a chocolate/banana shake--f'ng delicious. I got to talk to my lovely bride yesterday for a while, it was nice and I am grateful that I got to hear her voice. I spoke with Roman lastnight, too, and that was awesome. He's SO stoked about his new bedroom and sheets on his bed: Star Wars. Prudence is working really hard to make our home beautiful and comfortable and I appreciate it wholeheartedly; I try to tell her as often as I can remember to.

On the bus right now, post rice & veggie sausage lunch; Jason & Bruno did a live interview/acoustic performance at WIIL Rock in Kenosha, WI this am. We're en route to Wisconsin Dells for our day off. Tomorrow there's a live interview/acoustic performance in Minnesota and show in Minneapolis; hopefully I will get to see my friend Sara, she rules.

Here are some crappy photos of the St. Louis Arch I took lastnight in the dark when I remembered I wanted to....






that's it for now -i'm gonna go read in my bunk.
-uncle j

She smells really nice...

....sounds kinda perverted, even if it's a genuine sentiment.

Rainy day in Chicago, parked across from the Vic Theatre on Sheffield at Belmont. Vinnie was dj'ing in the front lounge whilst the boys were at JBTV & Fearless for interviews. Michael & Krystle came by and picked us up for lunch. We went to Penny's Noodles on Sheffield & Clark. SO good - I had won ton soup and have leftovers which i'll stuff down my throat later today/tonight.

Back at the Bus by 3p for load in, everything was pushed up 1 hr due to Chicago's curfew. So now doors were at 5p & show at 5:15p. There was no room backstage for our deads (cases) so we kept them all outside under a tarp in the alley. I can't recall what the board was that I worked on, but soundcheck went really well and everything sounded great. Tim said that he hates when things sound perfect at soundcheck and then go to shit during the show....jinx. Come showtime, there were technical issues, thankfully, NONE of which were in my control. Taylor's vox were too loud in monitors which i handled immediately. His bass went out and his wedges were crackling and putting out static. As it turns out, there were issues with not only his cables but the house cabling for the monitor system. I troubleshot that by cutting his wedge out completely and putting his bass and more of Bruno's vox through the stage right sidefill. The show was great, but the crowd was iffy-they didn't seem very into the show though Bruno did an awesome job, as usual, getting them to move and react to the music. That's the sign of a good frontman--quite honestly, I don't know how any band could or would want to follow Drive A.

We had our FASTEST load out ever. Tim was impressed. It was cold and rainy, but we persevered and got the job done. As soon as the guitars and heads were packed up we stacked them and rolled em to trailer while Tim & Cody finished the drums. We were done by 6pm and on the bus to thaw out. Vinnie and I went in for a few minutes to hang out with Alex & Chris who I'd not seen since October at the wedding. Was good to see friends.

We met Dad at Leona's for pizza and salad and beer. It was great to see him and Sandy and get some PIZZA. (The band also filmed a segment at Giordanno's and there's some leftovers in the fridge- yum) Vince and I walked down to Clark and I got my Dunkin Donuts, but no Boston Creme (EPIC FAIL!!) Sprinkles on chocolate frosting will have to suffice. About 10p, Michael & Krystle picked us up and we went to Delilah's, my 2nd home in Chicago. This time I managed to keep my food and liquor off of the curb in front of the establishment.

Pat, Dan D., Joe & Jenny, Nancy, Andronike and Mo showed up - was SO much fun to see everyone but hard to bounce around a lot. Thank you all for coming out and for the drinks, my liver thanks you. And per usual, I had a shot for Evie, amongst the other shots I did that night. Cody, Austin and Brandon came out to Delilah's and had a blast. We all went to Clarke's for breakfast at 2am which was yummy - french toast, well done bacon and chocolate milk.

Back on the bus, I miraculously flossed, brushed and changed for bed. I was nodding off up front while we all hung out and chatted. I excused myself and went comatose in my bunk-it felt great.

Up around 10a and texted with my beautiful wife, whom I miss immensely, for a bit. We're in Sauget, IL (over the bridge from St. Louis), it's rainy, cold and there's nothing but strip clubs, a gas station w/ OTB and the venue in sight. Thank goodness for Monster energy drink and morning star buffalo nuggets. and Rock n Roll.

-uncle j.

Heavy Metal Banana Bread

"So, do you come to Milwaukee often?"
"Well, I'm a regular visitor here, but Milwaukee has certainly had its share of visitors. The French missionaries and explorers began visiting here in the late 16th century."
"Hey, isn't "Milwaukee" an Indian name?"
"Yes, Pete, it is. In fact , it's pronounced "mill-e-wah-que" which is Algonquin for "the good land.""
"I was not aware of that."

Milwaukee was great. Got picked up at 10:30a by mum, bill, vince and mom-mom; we proceeded to the casa de miller. I was greeted with hugs and "uncle j"'s from pint-size munchkins. I got a hot shower, good burrito and some star wars/my little pony action. I'm pretty sure there are some photos & video of this tattooed rocker combing the mane of a my little pony with a certain little blonde niece... she rules. David is SO into Star Wars and it's rad.. we played with light sabres and ran around like wookies...hoth was just outside our window.

Was great to see family and i hijacked vinnie for the night. Dude was already hungover from friday night (ha!), but he marched on. We got back to the Rave about 2:30p which was the goal - load in was at 3p (or so)...soundchecked at about 5:15 and we're ready to rock. The venue started letting people in early which was good so more kids would see Drive A.

I don't recall the board I worked on, but after working on about 3-4 different ones, they're all pretty much laid out the same with minor differences here and there. The board wasn't too tall for me, but a stool or something to stand on would have been helpful. It was off the side of stage right. The show went great, monitors sounded great and I think it was the band's best show of the tour.

Cody and I went to the liquor store to get some beer for the bus as chaos was to ensue that evening....and it did. I think we went through 2 30-packs of Miller High Life..amazing.

got to sleep around 6:15a. up around 10ish - and in Chicago!

no pictures to speak of, sorry kids.
-uncle j.

Xylophone(s)

Well,
We're here in Milwaukee, WI parked next to the Rave/Eagles Ballroom. I've seen many shows here when I lived in IL. I'm looking forward to seeing another one.

Yesterday we were in Grand Rapids, MI; a pretty low-key day. Bruno & Jason did an acoustic performance for a Lansing radio station which went pretty well which will air on Monday. We pulled into the parking lot of the Orbit Room in Grand Rapids about 30min later. Walked across a busy street in wind to get to a mall for some lunch--I finally got into a Bank of America....

Lunch yesterday was annoying: The night before (or 4:30am) we went to Meijer (a superstore similar to walmart) for groceries. It's nice to be able to save some PD by eating on the bus. Fast forward to about 11am and Cody was trying to make some hot n'spicy veggie sausage patties. After about 15min they were still frozen so they went back into the freezer. Our microwave died. This sucks because everything I bought at Meijer (aside from the Slim Fast and hand of bananas) needs to be nuked. So now i'm back to either starving or buying crappy food. In the mall, I grabbed a buffalo chicken sandwich from The Great Steak And Potato. Half of which I ate, half of which was going to be for dinner. Moments after getting back on the bus (which also followed a stop to the Shell station where a skinnier, balder Jim Gaffigan was working behind the counter) John, our beloved bus driver, came back with a new microwave. Yay. I also was upset because I bought a crappy sandwich.

Load-in went well, I was doing more today as Tim was on a conference call. I was able to plug Bruno's Les Paul in and hit a few chords on the Marshall.... sweeet. The monitor console was not only in a really weird place, but I needed a step stool to use it. The location of said monstrosity was off to the side and BEHIND the stage (on the floor, not on the actual stage). This made it difficult to see the band and their cues for "more vocal", "more guitar", etc. Tim was relaying messages to me, but my back was to the stage and his flashlight was just being seen by the local guy who was "helping" me. By about the last song (25min into a 29min set) I got the board and it's layout. I also realized that my monitor level kept getting turned down by Opie, my "helper". I couldn't hear what the band was hearing so I couldn't tell who needed what.

...it's now 2 days later and i can't remember what i was talking about - here's a picture of the board I worked on:



on to Milwaukee & Chicago....
-Uncle J.

Michael Jackson Is Still Alive

...that's the topic of conversation right now.

First show came and went. First night of monitors went great. Truth be told, I had a little help - the local sound company had dudes there and Bill, one of the guys, showed me around the board, a Yamaha M7(photo below) and got me started.



Last night's sleep was great (aside from missing my lovely wife): ground level coffin/bunk. Pitch black. Perfect.

Showed up to Royal Oak, MI around 12:30p (25min drive from the hotel) - walked to the CVS and got batteries for the flashlight. Party Time: I grabbed a sammich from Jimmy Johns. 1st JJ sammich in over a year.

Loaded in. Learned things, met people, did stuff. Loaded out.

here's some pictures - you can see my new home.

i'm hungry.

(and, Rick Lane, if you're reading this, I punched detroit in the balls for you. It didn't flinch--I guess it should have been the throat?)






&hearts,
Uncle J.

Detroit Rock City

Tour starting (again) -

flew out with the band from LAX to Detroit. My seat was in desolation row...i could have laid down across the seats. I guess nobody wants to go to Detroit, i can't imagine why....
...the lady in front of me farting didn't really help my flight, but hey, gotta take the bad with the good.

We got off the shuttle from the airport to Spring Hill Marriott and we felt immediately at home....the bus was in sight.

I've got a bottom bunk, so I'll get more road noise than the rest of them, but that's fine, i'm on tour! We're just chilling out in the front lounge listening to music. I'm hungry and can use a beer....welcome to tour.

That's it for now; tomorrow we head to Royal Oak, MI for the show.
-uncle j.

A Quick One, While He's Away....

Here's a lil update for you all:

1. I'm going to Burbank tomorrow to see some folks I used to deal with at Warner Bros/Warner Music Group.
2. I sent my resume out a whole bunch yesterday, let's hope that lends to fruitful things.
3. I encountered my very first earthquake, today.  The epicenter was in Chino Hills and was a 5.8 on the Richter Scale. (I'm fine, by the way--thank you to all who called, texted, and emailed.)

If you're curious as to what the quotes were from on each of my blogs, here's a list for you:

Intro: "Highway 101" by Social Distortion

Day One: not actually a song, but a quote from a Ditty Bops t-shirt.

Day Two: "Man on the Silver Mountain" by Rainbow

Day Three: "Free Fallin'" by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

Day Four: "Viva Las Vegas" as recorded by Elvis Presley, Dead Kennedy's, etc..

Day Five: "Oh Yeah" by The Subways

Day Six: "Building A Legend" by Bullets & Octane

Day Seven: "L.A. Woman" by The Doors

Day Eight: "I Feel the Burning Sun" by Crowbar

Day Nine: "Hang On to Yourself" by David Bowie

and this one was "A Quick One, While He's Away" by The Who

Rock & Roll!

-Uncle J.

Day Nine: "Come On, Come On, We've Really Got a Good Thing Going. Come On, Come On, If You Think We're Gonna Make It, You Better Hang On to Yourself"

Well, this is it...the last day of vacation.  I woke up and laughed at my misfortune upon my torso.  Vince got a little, but his arms are way worse from the drive here.  First on the agenda was to check out, then head to Hollywood and walk around.  I had promised Vince one last In-N-Out journey before he left.

We parked near Amoeba Music on Sunset and Ivar and walked around the Farmer's Market for a few minutes.  We made our way towards Hollywood Blvd.  and walked towards  Highland.  We saw El Capitan theater, Grauman's Chinese Theatre, and the Kodak Theatre.  We cut down Highland to Sunset and went to In-N-Out for lunch, where Vince ate an identical meal as his first one in Vegas: A 'Double-Double' and a Cheeseburger.  I was starting to really feel my appetite dwindle, and got through a cheeseburger, but barely touched my fries.

We made our way towards the Guitar Center and Hollywood Rock Walk on Sunset, then back towards Amoeba Music.  We went in and I consoled myself with some music purchases: Backyard Babies "Stockholm Syndrome", High On Fire "Surrounded By Thieves" and when I found the 'Rockabilly' section, I nearly lost my sh**, but narrowed it to one album from there, The Legendary Shack Shakers "Believe."

Heading back to the car, slowly, with new music and food babies in tow, it took a few minutes to find the car.  We payed the parking fee and Delilah got us to LAX in decent time, but not too quick, either.  We laughed in the car a little bit, but it was for the most part, a quiet ride.  Our arrival at the American Airlines departure terminal was about 3PM, just as planned.  I helped Vince get his suitcase out and he said "No long goodbyes, bro.  I'll see you soon.  Good Luck." and he hugged me then turned around and went inside.

Leaving LAX, alone, I didn't know what to do or where to go.  I set Delilah for Tim's address, as that's the area I know the best.  I ended up going to the Old Navy in the Beverly Connection which is across La Cienega from The Beverly Center.  I picked up some flip flops and a shirt, then sat in the patio and made some phone calls.

Jackie said to come down by her and crash at her place, if I wanted to.  That was the only thing I had left in my agenda, so I made my way down to Santa Ana.  Jackie called and had to pick her friends up from Huntington Beach, but said she'd be back shortly after I arrived.  I said it was fine and I'd find parking.

It was really good to see Jackie and Wrigley, her dog.  As promised, I gave Jackson (my nickname for Jackie) a big hug.  We went in and fed Wrigley, and caught up.  I played with the dog for a bit and the 4 of us decided to order pizza for dinner.  It was decent, but at that point, my brain didn't really care.  The girls were all watching Gilmore Girls DVD's, and I sorta passed out on the couch half watching them.

I got up about an hour later, washed up and brushed me teeth and laid down on the floor with Wrigley.  I fell asleep petting him, and I guess he kept scooting towards me all night.  When Jackson woke up in this morning, Wrigs was laying right next to me.

That's about all I've got right now, but there may be more to come.  Any traveling I do, I will record on this blog.  It's been quite the journey and I'm glad I did it; T'was a long time comin'.  I miss certain things, here and there, about Chicago, but I haven't quite gotten 'homesick' yet.  Maybe I will, maybe I won't.  Who knows?  I'll miss my friends and family, but they're just a phone call away, and I love them all.

Til next time, Rock & Roll!

-Uncle J.

Day Nine Photos

Day Eight: "On to the Road I've Paved, I Feel the Burning Sun. It's My Own Life I've Saved, I'm Not the Only One. I Found a New Man Underneath."

 ...woke up yesterday feeling fine.  Couldn't say the same for Vince--that $5 champagne did him in, something fierce.  Went to Panera, down the street, and blogged the previous day's adventures whilst munching upon an asiago bagel and lemonade.  Vince was a bit shaky, still, slowly huffing on some water.  

After leaving Panera, we started to make our way towards Venice Beach.  We were meeting my friend Bridget and some of her friends there.  After about a mile, Vince asked me to pull into a gas station, so I obliged.  He got out calmly, went to the bathroom, and returned within 5-minutes.  "I guess it was all the water and no food." He says.  "Oh, but it had nothing to do with the bottle of champagne you practically guzzled yourself?"  As long as he was feeling better, that's my concern, and he said he was.  Continuing on towards the beach, there was traffic, heat, more traffic, and more heat.  Getting off at Venice, we started the long search for parking, which was hilarious at best.  Turns out Bridget and her friends haven't even left North Hollywood yet, but were going to call when they got down there.  We ended up parking at California and Abbot Kinney, which was roughly a 10-to-15-minute walk to the beach.

Finally getting down to the beach, we didn't have a care in the world at that moment.  Where we were going to sleep that night, where we were going to eat later, getting Vince to the airport on time the next day, nothing.  All we saw were water, sand, waves, and sunshine (not counting the many people around us).  The ocean, our boundary from driving any further, was a sign for me, of freedom, of growth, of a new beginning.  I snapped some pictures of seagulls, waves, water, whatever, then found a spot in the sand and just relaxed.  I relaxed my mind, my body, my soul, everything.  I just let it melt and blend with the soothing sound of the waves crashing.  Not using my brain due to the calming hypnosis of the sights and sounds before me, I removed my t-shirt and laid down on the sand.  A nap in the sun was just what I needed.  Vince nabbed the camera and walked around.

Upon my waking up, Vince was back, sleeping in the sand just feet away, and I had some text messages.  It was Bridget updating me on their whereabouts, at that point, I didn't really care.  I laid back down and napped for another 20-minutes, then opted I should get up, realizing that the only sunblock I had used was on my arms and neck: ingenious!  I checked my phone again, and Bridget had told me where they were on the beach.  Vince and I opted to get up and look for them, but after walking about 100 yards, we figured it was like a wild goose chase and we'd meet up with them for dinner.  We sat back down and chatted a bit, Vince was feeling more like himself, again.  We were trying to figure out what to do that night and where to sleep.

Bridget called and said they were heading to the Pizza place that she loves.  Abbot Kinney Pizza, 1407 Abbot Kinney St., which I ended up plotting into my phone's 'google maps' application.  Turns out this pizza joint was 2 blocks from where I parked my car, so it couldn't have worked out more perfectly!  We got the the pizza place and waited about 15-minutes for the remainder of the entourage.  We went in, and it was a 'pizza-by-the-slice' kind of place, with racks of pizzas on those rotisserie pans with the lights.  You know the ones, they put pretzels on them at carnivals.  I asked Vince what he planned to get, he wasn't sure, but opted at the last second to get 2 slices, both of which he inhaled.  I got 2 slices, as well: 1 slice of goat cheese, mushroom, and garlic, and 1 slice of sun dried tomatoes, spinach, and goat cheese. 

After the pizza, we bummed around the neighborhood for another 30-minutes digesting and clowning around.  We said our goodbyes, and were possibly going to meet up later in the night, but did not.  Vince and I decided to just head back to the same motel that we were in the night previous, seeing as it was only $70 per night.

En route, we thought about just taking it easy that night and maybe going to see Dark Knight again.   Pulling in to the parking lot about 30-minutes later, we went to the office, and were told they had one room left--we took it.  This room, just as creepy as the last, but for different reasons, coaxed some sick jokes out of us.

We checked under the mattress for dead hookers and corpses in general.  An ongoing joke throughout our trip was which motels had bibles and not.  This one managed to have one, in this room, but not the last.  Not only did we find a bible in the drawer, but burn marks around it.  This is where my hypothesis of  the previous tenant was a junkie came from: the burn marks were from incendiary spoons being set down upon injection of mood enhancements. [smack]

Our sick sense of humour had creeped us out enough to decide that we wanted to spend as little time in this room as possible.  Earlier we had asked Delilah where to find an AMC movie theater, since I had 2 free movie passes.  (Long story, short: Some dude came into Estelle's and tried to buy drinks with a stack of movie passes.  It didn't work, but I guess he left them anyway, or as a tip.  Tommy gave them to Berger or vice-versa, and somehow they ended up in Derek's hands.   He gave me a pair, and that's how I got them, yay.)

Our movie destination: Burbank, CA, a mere 10-minute drive from our junkie haven in Studio City.  Getting off the highway, we saw Warner Music Group buildings, so I had a good idea of where I was.  Getting to the theatre, the area reminded me of Schaumburg or Woodfield area, so that was sort of comforting.  The theater was decent, just as I'd expected, we saw a lot of younger people, I just hoped that they'd be quiet during the movie.  They were, but there was one guy a few seats down from Vince that was on his phone in the beginning.  I asked him to take it outside because we didn't pay $10 per ticket to listen to his conversation.  He didn't hear me or chose not to hear me, but the kids a couple rows up got his attention by chucking candy at him.

After the movie, which we both loved all over again, we headed back to the motel.  I showered and my sunburn hurt--BAD.  Yeah, with all that soulful hippy crap I went through at the beach, my better judgement was clouded and i turned myself into a lobster.  Aside from that, the shower was decent.  I felt like 'Kramer' with all the sand all over me.  I laid down and Vince went to shower.  I must've been tired because when I woke up, it was the next day.

Gotta take Vince to LAX later, but first Hollywood...until then, Rock & Roll!

-Uncle J.

Day Eight Photos

Day Seven: "Well, I Just Got Into Town About an Hour Ago. Took a Look Around, See Which Way the Wind Blow"

Mile by mile, this journey to my new beginning slowly comes to a halt.  It's been an interesting ride, full of excitement...

Departing Henderson, Nevada around 11am, as planned, we got on the highway.  My poor car hating Vince, me, and life in general, she managed to keep up the pace despite the heat, weight load, and trashed front brakes (from mountain driving).  Delilah was pretty quiet after getting us onto the highway while Vince and I had our way with the remainder of the beef jerky he had purchased in Page, AZ.

I've noticed, as the days progressed, Vince and I became quieter and quieter.  We were, as Agent Smith in "The Matrix" would say, "delaying the inevitable."  California was getting closer and closer, and the end of a chapter was drawing do a close...enough of that emotional crap right now...

We tried to hit up In-N-Out, again, for lunch, but the line was out the door, so we hit up the "BK Lounge."  I was slowly starting to lose my appetite, not just for fast food, but in general.  The nerves began to kick in; looking for work, living arrangements, and new friends.  I tried not to dwell on it, but it was in the back of my head, and still is.  

Furthering into California, I made some phone calls and got some semblance of a schedule formed for the week.  I still haven't heard back from Tim, my friend in West Hollywood, who was going to be letting us crash on his and Laura's (his girlfriend) couch.   I set Tim & Laura's place on Delilah's destination point and she took us right there.  

En route from the highway, I gave Vince a short off-the-cuff tour of Hollywood from the car.  He saw the "Hollywood" sign in the hills, as well as the Guitar Center on Sunset, the Capitol building at Hollywood and Vine, and the Kodak theatre on Hollywood and Highland.  

Getting to Tim's, we parked by his house, got out, and walked around West Hollywood for a bit.  I was getting worried, as I hadn't heard from him still.  So I called my friend, Mo, who's pretty close with Tim and he said he hadn't heard from Tim in 3 days.  Mo continued to text or call Tim and called me back.  He got a weird text from Tim that neither of us understood, so I just figured we'd better find an alternate option.  

My friend, Devin lives in Studio City, and he said it was cool if we crashed at his place, but from the sound of it, he or his roommates weren't too keen on the idea, let alone it was very last minute.  We asked Delilah to help us find some motels in the area and she did.  $70 per night at "Studio City Inn" on Ventura and Cofax.  Needless to say, we were both nervous to stay in this joint, and didn't feel confident in sleeping, so we did the next best thing: drank.  We went to a mexican joint down the street, "Mexicali" which was pretty decent.  So decent, in fact, that it was a 40-minute wait to get a table.  Asking for 'first available' we ended up getting a table outside on the sidewalk, and immediately ordered a pitcher of margarita.  We both ordered 2 kobe beef tacos and they came pretty quick.  After we were each one taco into our meal, we looked up and without blinking an eye, we ordered a 2nd pitcher of margarita.

If the booze didn't help us sleep, I don't know what would.  We giggled and staggered back to the motel.  Vince got a phone call from Tony, so he took it and walked down the street to Long's drugstore to get some bottles of water.  He got back and we were both still sort of awake and bored--not to mention buzzed--so we took the walk back to Long's.  Vince bought a bottle of $5 champagne, which I questioned all the way out the door.  Illegally, j-walking across Ventura, due to the hilarity and sheer rebellion of it, Vince popped the cork on the $5 "instant hangover".  We were drinking it all the way back to the motel and for the next hour or so.

Vince kept on it while I slowly fell asleep between hiccups and giggles.  I had a bottle of water next to me which I'd started on just to insure no hangover would ensue.  Needless to say, I was fine today, but Vince was an utter mess....

...read more about his splitting headache, barfing at a gas station, and our day at Venice Beach.

Rock & Roll!

-Uncle J.

Day Seven Photos

Day Six: "On the Run With Nowhere to Go. 'Cause I'm Building a Legend in Slow-Mo. Always Waiting Here For Someone to Save Me- I'll Go it Alone."

"Is this a God Dam?"  

Hilariously enough, we did NOT ask the tour guide that question at Hoover Dam...

..Upon M2's advice, we went to Boulder Dam (a.k.a. Hoover Dam) earlier in the day.  I was there on a tour with Dad 11 years ago, and I was rather bored on said tour.  I was 16 and could care less about Lake Mead and the dam and the cooling rods within the dam it self.  Now, that I'm older and more curious, I retained more info from the tour.  I found it interesting that Lake Mead was the largest man-made body of water in the U.S.  They had men working on the construction of the dam, diverting of the river, and everything else 24/7 for 5 years.  I don't want to give away the entire tour, but you can find more out here.

Vince really wanted to walk on top of the dam and see the Arizona/Nevada border.  Unbeknownst to us, we could have done that without the tour, but it was interesting to learn about the dam and its power plant.  We saw turbines and generators as far as the eye can see, it was actually a lot cooler than I remember it--probably because I am older and was awake for the whole thing!

Lake Mead was gorgeous, just glimmering in the sun.  Our view atop of the dam helped that much more.  Got some great views of the Colorado River meandering into the dam.  The colour was so crisp and the lake looked so refreshing; We'd joked about jumping off the dam into Lake Mead, seeing as it was less than 14,000 feet!  Alas, we did not and our knees, ankles, and spines are still intact...for now.

On the way back, we stopped at Best Buy to get a wireless router for M2's computer.  It would make using the internet a lot easier on my laptop.  Vince fell asleep in the car due to the heat and all that dam excitement we had just endured.  Our evening plans were to go for dinner with Mom-Mom to a restaurant she likes called White Chocolate.  After dinner, we were tentatively meeting up with Vince's cousin, Ron, who was living out in Las Vegas doing electrical work.

Dinner was delicious, as were the cocktails with it.  We got Spinach & Artichoke dip for appetizer, along with a soup we split that sounded delicious: Tomato & Gin soup.  The menu instructed that whomever ordered it had to be of drinking age (21).   I inquired as to why if they were cooking with the Gin, knowing that the alcohol would cook out and all the liquid would be reduced to just the flavour.  Apparently they add the gin after the cooking, and its flavour compliments the rest of the ingredients: bacon, tomatoes, and a cream base.  After the 3 of us demolished that bowl of soup, we all agreed that it really was delicious.  

We got back to M2's house and relaxed for a bit.  Ron had fallen asleep and called Vince back apologizing that he would not be coming out since he has to get up at 3:30AM to start work.  Vince and I decided to head downtown for a night on Freemont Street for some 'grown up' activities.  We started at Fitzgeralds, probably my favourite stop on Freemont, then moved up and down hitting all sorts of black jack tables.

Opting to be awake early enough to actually leave on time, we made it an early evening.  We both cleaned up and hit the hay within 25 minutes of our return.  With a fun filled day of dams, power plants, and Las Vegas fun, we were asleep in no time.

Next stop: Sunny Los Angeles....stay tuned!

Rock & Roll, as always,

Uncle J.

Day Six Photos

P.S. Dad- just because I was sleeping through the tour last time, didn't mean I didn't enjoy it..also, I found a 'widescreen' setting on the camera that looks more panoramic...dig it!

Day Five: "Wasting Time, Hanging Out, Oh Yeah Oh Yeah. These Teenage Years, No They Don't Last, Oh Yeah Oh Yeah"

Well, I hate to disappoint, but today, we didn't do a whole helluva lot. We slept in and helped M2 with some 'house chores'.

Things Mom-Mom needed done:

• Change kitchen cabinet light bulbs
  
• Emissions/Smog test
  
• Oil Change
  
• Re-grease garage door chain and rollers
  

Before the chores began, I took M2 and Vince out for breakfast, with some of my winnings, to one of my favourite diners in Henderson, "Blueberry Hill." I had some ridiculously large Mushroom and Cheddar omelette, while Vince inhaled his typical steak and eggs. Mom-Mom had some ham & eggs which looked pretty good. We stopped at the Ace Hardware for replacement flourescent bulbs and WD-40, then off to the Smog testing booth. After passing that test, we dropped M2 off at home then made our way to get the oil changed.

While waiting for the oil to get changed, we ran across the street to Walgreens to get shaving cream since mine exploded in the trunk--eew. I also made some phone calls to people in LA warning them of my impending presence, as well as inquiring about employment.

After getting the car back, we returned to M2's where I crossed off the remaining chores on the list. We also had plans to go to dinner with Marilyn and Bill that night. Upon my entering Mom-Mom's house lastnight with 40lbs of In-N-Out, she asked me what I wanted for dinner Wednesday night. How could have I known before eating dinner I was just holding? I opted for the easiest answer other than "whatever is easiest": Italian.

We picked up Bill at 5:30 and met Marilyn at the restaurant. The girls working there were pretty cute, most of them very tan and had some blotch of different coloured hair (i.e. purple, pink, red, or blonde). I had lobster raviolli and 2 glasses of Cabernet, along with some hot bruschetta and a salad. After stuffing our faces, we went back to Mom-Mom's to relax.

Our evening plans were to meet up with my friends, Jenny and Johnny [yeah, I know], at Elephant Bar for some cocktails and/or dessert. Of course, the glutton I am, I had dessert: hot fudge brownie with ice cream and sauce. We hung out, caught up, chit-chatted, and put on 90 lbs. It was great to see them and hear that they were doing so well. They're planning their wedding, which will be back in Chicago next summer. After splitting up with them, Vince and I opted to go to Green Valley again to play some more Black Jack.



We had a little more difficulty finding tables, but after some patience and perserverance, we were fruitful in our findings--at 2 separate tables. After a little bit, I moved over to Vince's table, because the dealer at mine sucked and pulled 2 black jacks on a new shoe. Rule #1: Know when to walk away.

At the new table, I moved positions a couple times, as I dislike the earlier positions and I wanted to sit by Vince, who was in the 'power seat'. He was doing okay, as was I, and we liked April, the current dealer. She was friendly and earned her tips by being entertaining and joining the banter b/t Vince and I. We were the only lucid people at the table, the only other guy there was not only falling asleep at the table, but kept pulling 21's. I was rather appalled, but so be it. Some girl came up, in an inebriated fashion, and asked "What's this?" to which Vince replied sarcastically, yet humorously "A casino." April, the dealer chuckled a bit and the young passer by retorted "The game, d**khead. I know it's a casino, I work here."

By the look on April's face, she didn't know this girl, so she obviously didn't work there. After she walked away, our friendly dealer joked with us saying that that girl "worked" there as a "working girl" haha. Good times for all. Some 30 minutes later, that girl walked back up and asked if she can sit at the table and play, to which I'd said "Only if you're polite." She looked at me in question and I expanded on my statement: "You were rather rude to my buddy on your last pass around. It was unnecessary. We're here for fun, not verbal abuse." She asked the sleeping man with cauliflower ears next to her "Was I rude earlier?" He just nodded and mumbled "Well, sorta, yeah." She sat, then disappeared 5 minutes later when her dude showed up. He watched her chips, we played, won, pushed, or won. More time went by, and she still didn't show up. He was calling her and looking for her, then he started to grab her markers, to which April, our friendly dealer said he could not because they weren't his. He said she was playing with his money and blah blah blah. The pit boss came over and okayed the 'color up' and asked him to leave. It took a minute or two for the dude to comprehend, but he got it and left.

A few more hands and Vince left the table with his buy-in, but I was still strong. I always separate my buy-in and play with winnings. At one point, I was making $40 bets and that's when the fun happens. I will always put more $ into my pile to be 'colored up' so I not only walk with my initial buy-in, but I have extra, too. I did well and when April was done with her hour slot, I colored up, as well.

We headed home and opted to watch some "Robot Chicken" on the laptop, as we were both not very tired. Needless to say, a day of doing nothing but eating, we both passed out within the first 30-minutes.

Tomorrow: Hoover Dam...until then, Rock & Roll!
-Uncle J.

Day Five Photos

Day Four: "Bright Light City Gonna Set My Soul, Gonna Set My Soul On Fire"

Woke up in Page, Arizona, today.  Showered, cleaned the car, and did some photo uploading.  Got both batteries for the camera charged and ready to go.  "Why?" you may ask, because we're Grand Canyon bound...

I've been there once before--11 years ago with my Dad on our 'bonding' trip--and I'll tell you what: it's not changed one bit.  It's still a magnificent piece of nature.  I love it so much, for some reason.  Yeah, I know it's a giant gaping hole in the earth, but it was created by nature, and it lets you know how small you actually are.  The road there was another story all together.  They closed off one lane of highway, and had 2 directions of traffic going on it, lead by a 'pilot car' or a pace car for you race fans.  We lost about an hour because said 'pilot car' was taking about 10-20 cars at a time around a 10 minute drive around this mountain in order to get the opposite direction's traffic where they needed to go.  Needless to say, it was annoying.  

We got bamboozled into stopping at one of the little Navajo art huts on the way to Grand Canyon.  Who was so crafty as to lure us?  Our gluttonous stomachs.  I saw a sign for "Buffalo Jerky: Next Right" so I stopped.  "How was the Buffalo Jerky?" I don't know, I wasn't about to spend $13 on 4 pieces that wouldn't last me the 30 remaining minutes to Grand Canyon National Park.  

Making our way through the rest of Kaibab National Forest, we got to the GCNP and forked over the $25 fee to set foot in the park.  Looking in the maps, we opted to stop at the watchtower to see the Grand Canyon at 360-degrees (that's geometrical, not temperature, but it felt close.)  It was breathtaking.  That's the only (compound) word I can use as an adjective without a thesaurus.  Vince was even taken aback at the grandeur of the 'big friggin' hole in the ground'.

We made a few more stops at some different vantage points, even pulling over and making our own.  Vince and I utilized nature as a tripod at, where else, Moran (pronounced: Moe-Ran) Peak and snapped a picture of the 2 Morons (pronounced: Moe-Ron-zz).  After said vantage point, we made a couple more stops and even brought the gnome out for some photo ops.





 

Bye bye Grand Canyon, it was great to see you again.  Hope I can come back again, maybe less than 11 years, eh?  

Our voyage continued west to Las Vegas, Nevada, and we were going to see one of my most favourite people in the whole world: Mom-Mom!  That's right, my lovely grandma, aptly named "Mom-Mom", some of you may know her from such evenings as "Jordan's College Graduation Party" or "Sneezing after sweet food lady", or "Madam Voice of Reason"..I know her as Mom-Mom, and she's one of a kind...but I digress..

After getting out of GCNP and regaining cell reception, I checked my 8 voice mails and returned my Mom-Mom's phone call.  I told her we should be in Henderson, NV around 8pm.  She asked me to pick up dinner at In-N-Out Burger, which was like pulling teeth with me, I'm sure...

We filled up the tank, cleaned the windshield, and Vince took the wheel for the remainder of the day.  I shot a bunch of photos, none of which included any freakin' cacti.  I love cartoons, especially the old Looney Tunes where Wile E Coyote chases the Roadrunner around the desert (Arizona).  What do you see (other than a slew of Acme-brand dynomite and anvils)?  Rocks, dirt/sand, mountains/cliffs, and a slew of cacti!  Where are all the cacti?  Not even ONE cactus, and you'd think "who cares?" Well, my loyal readers, I do.  

Moving on...

We edged closer to Nevada, but in order to get there, we must cross the Hoover Dam.  I completely forgot that the border of Arizona and Nevada were ON the dam.  Vince was stoked to see it, for some reason unbeknownst to me, but cool, whatever gets his boat afloat.  I was at Hoover Dam 11 years ago on afformentioned 'bonding trip' with Dad, and there were some changes I've noticed.  

1. There was a security post about 10-miles prior to entrance of dam.  [upon exiting, we noticed an identically plotted security post]
2. They're currently building a by-pass bridge going OVER the whole dam(n) area.

Getting out of the car a few times at Hoover Dam for some pictures was like stepping into a dry-sauna.  The pictures were difficult to take, as the sun wasn't in the most opportune location.  I will say this about digital cameras, though: shooting into the sun, you get a percentage of decent looking photos if you time it right.  Try shooting into the sun with film: you'll ruin your entire roll.  Crossing the Nevada border, I had forgotten that we gain an hour for being in the Pacific Time Zone.  So, I called M2, and informed her that we were going to be an hour earlier than I'd initially stated.  She didn't mind, nor did we.

The anticipation grew as we headed through Boulder City, NV and got onto I-215 towards Las Vegas.  Delilah was a real trooper, helping us find In-N-Out on Eastern Ave., then back on the I-215 to Mom-Mom's in Henderson.  When we showed up with our case of food, we were very excited to eat.  Vince had a 'double-double', a cheeseburger (animal style) and fries.  I had 2 cheeseburgers (animal style) and fries.  Mom-Mom had a burger (animal style) and fries.  We were all quiet and munching for at least 20-minutes.  Chatting for another 30-minutes or so, we caught up and made plans for the next day.  

Vince hopped in the shower and I made plans for us to see my buddy, Johnny, at Tailspin, a bar in Henderson.  He runs a 'free rock jam' every Tuesday night.  After a couple of beers, I ended up on stage rocking a few tunes.  It was easier knowing there was only 4 people in the whole bar.  It was great to see him, and hear that he's been busy playing music everyday.  He moved from Chicago to Las Vegas for a couple reasons, but I can definitely agree that he's found more opportunity for himself out West.

After leaving Tailspin at 2AM, we were still restless and wanted some action.  We headed to Green Valley Ranch to play some blackjack.  I love blackjack, and no matter when anyone says "Oh, I don't gamble." My response is always: "Neither do I.  I play cards for money."  

Blackjack, as well as poker, is 95% skill and 5% luck.  It's statistical and knowing what moves to make when.  This is all that I will say because just as it is with religion and politics, everyone has their own thoughts.  The only thing more that I'll say is that I know when to walk away from a table, and I walked away with quadrupling my buy-in.

Heading back to M2's, we definitely felt the exhaustion setting in.  Bedtime was the best end to a great day.

Until next chapter, rock 'n' roll!

-Uncle J.

Day 4 Photos