Tour Diary - Part 30 - Final Entry (Patreon)

Home. 

Pulled into Tujunga, just north of Los Angeles to JP's house, the site of our original departure, around 7:30am this morning. 

Yesterday was a nice wind down in Flagstaff, AZ. We Uber'ed into town, which was mobbed with college kids and parents moving into their housing.  Walked around. I scored a last-minute gift for Charlie, having already picked one up for Amelia earlier in the trip... A heavy lunch of pasties and beers and an annoying call from AMEX fraud alert for a 500 dollar charge at a Flying J... yea, it was gas! All good, thanks! 

Back at the Holiday Inn Express, Ellie and I had a nice long talk about stuff and played some music on her little acoustic guitar. She's also a great songwriter and played me a few. Really nice. Then I played her a few Trump songs, Sentencing Day and Trump's Private Pilot, which made us both a little weepy. 

Later,  we took over the pool and hung out, ate a wee bit of mushrooms, had Thai food delivered, and got mildly bitten by mosquitos. But I didn't let it get me down. 

Later we started cleaning out the bus, packing, throwing away half-eaten bags of pretzels, and reminisced about our favorite moments from the tour.  I hit the sack early and had a fitful sleep, my ear hurting from the altitude and many bumps along the way.  

This morning we unloaded and my mom, of all people, came to pick me up in the mini-van. Some tearful goodbyes and many hugs later, I was in the car and back home. My Millie greeted me, so excited on the steps and I hugged her hard.  Marilyn appeared dressed in a CUB SCOUT UNIFORM... she and Charlie were on the way out to a den meeting. And Charlie was hiding, waiting to scare me. I saw him and had to redo my entrance.  We had a nice reunion and then everyone went their ways, Charlie and Marilyn to their Cub Scout meeting, and Millie to her drama camp. I was left alone to relax,  unpack, and watch the Dodgers beat the Red Sox. 

This week I will try not to dwell too much on this magical summer. Not much else to do though, with the strike still raging... I'll take the kids to school and pick them up. I'll get back into my workout routine. I have Office Hours to look forward to and prepare for. I have some work to do on the record and will try and meet up with Eric, and also Gregg, and Eric N, to figure out our next moves.  

I'll also try and plant some seeds to do something else with the band: a live taping, a little residency in some city sometime soon... Everyone left so happy and grateful so I know there's a will to keep what we've started going, but it's gonna be a minefield of other people's schedules to contend with. 

If you, the reader attended one of these shows... thanks. Every night, I was moved by your enthusiasm and the goodwill you extended me to do what I wanted to do.

And eternal love to Vic, Ellie, Josh, Conner JP, and Luke for going along on the journey with great attitudes, great humor, and warmth.  Humor: It's maybe not something I've mentioned before but each one of them is tremendously funny. JP, with a dry, quick wit, often playing my straight man and pretend, aggravated serious man.   Vic, of course with his good time, energy, and quick with an insane video to share, Ellie my needling provocateur pal and fellow prankster, quick to film me doing something stupid, giggling behind the lens,  with her own style of wit -  a little "new age" energy (with her various potions and herbal... THINGS) mixed with self-deprecating, funny honesty.   Josh, a really great impersonator and voice mimic, who can quote all the good comedies, and Conner, our Harpo Marx, quiet, but a great reactor and foil... Often when Ellie and I would be fake fighting, Conner would take the role of worried child, eyebrows raised, stressed and worried.  We had so many laughs this year. And is there anything much better than that? 

So long, diary. See you Thursday Office Hours Heads.