Twas a surreal shocker to pull into New Orleans and unpack the bus for the last time. Despite its short comings, (mostly lack of shower and closet space), it had become home. Or, kind of a cross between a home and a pet. Like a home, it had everything we needed right there at all times: Bed, bathroom, kitchen, all our stuff, music, Internet, A/C etc., and like a pet it came every where with us. Rural traditional theater in Charlotte or funk fest in Manhattan, DriverJim had managed to keep that bus within 50 yards of us at all times. I had let it go a little too much the night before in Charlotte, so I was prone for out of body kind of experiences, and going from the bus of the last 2 weeks to my own hotel room was just that. Adding to it all was that New Orleans was the coolest place temperature-wise that we had seen on the whole trip, save our first evening in NYC. How strange is that? Knowing that I would have a 6.30 wake up call the next morning, my afternoon was devoted to packing everything up. That meant dis-assembling my bike, doing some laundry and getting used to the idea that the bus portion of this performance, hence the largest part of it, was about to be over.
I suppose it was good to have a few hours to put the mindset homeward. But there was one more show, at Le Chat Noir that night. The mood was very festive, and like it seems most all did, the place filled to the brim with all sorts of nice and noteworthy people. It was great to see such a vibrant turnout. Again it was a reunion of sorts when Tom Cole of Republic National showed up, and a bunch of other people whom we have known for many years. Like Brad Johnston, Tom is younger than Dad by a decade or so, and has grown to great responsibility in the years since they first met. Mark delivered another mind-blowing performance, and the crowd was fully engaged and enthralled. Performances and venues change, but the reaction has become consistent. People are touched, moved, impressed, occasionally surprised, and ready to drink wine afterward.
NOLA street art-human statue. Note the beer belly on this guy.
Sister Katie who came in from Texas and Driver Jim
Karen Stone and Greg Lucia, Two NOLA rockstars
Grandpa Towle with grand daughter Katie
