Lancaster City

It's really good to be home. Last weekend was Music Friday in Lancaster, and my friends Katie Becker and Cliff Lewis each played a set of music with their bands at Building Character, a neat grass-roots venue with a really cool vibe that started up just at the beginning of the new year. It was tons of fun to simply hang out with people and not have to play music - just enjoy it.
After the concert a bunch of us went across the street to The Belvedere, where our friend Matthew Monticchio was playing jazz with a bassist and drummer up in the martini lounge. I brought my video camera along and managed to get some footage of them playing (and riffing off of) Duke Ellington's tune 'In a Sentimental Mood'. It was a great night and it's good to be back in community again.

Things I've Learned from Tour

For 68 days, beginning on March 2nd, I was on the road - driving down the east coast and around through the midwest (as far west as Tulsa, Oklahoma) up to Chicago and back through Ohio to good ol' PA. I kept a log of each day here on my blog (scroll down) and took video as well. Some days I got better video footage than others.
I traveled 6,347.3 miles, according to the mileage I wrote down on my receipts when I filled up my tank in whatever place I happened to be. Some other data from those receipts (for you data-gatherers): the average price of gas during those two months was $2 per gallon, my car used 181 gallons of fuel and I averaged 35 miles per gallon. Not bad for a 1985 Toyota Tercel.
So what did I learn from the experience? Here's a few bullet points:
1. The United States is a big place. I never TRULY realized this until I started driving around on my own - the land itself is incredibly varied. Soil and land/elevation differences cause flora and fauna to change as you go south from PA through the hills of VA to the clay soil of North and South Carolina to the sandy and more tropical Georgia and FL. Tennessee is halfway tropical and then Arkansas starts into the plains and open spaces, which is what Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and most of Ohio is like - only when I crossed back into PA did I start getting back into mountain areas.
2. GPS is the way to go. I have to say that for this trip it was awesome to have a GPS to navigate for me - took a lot of the guesswork out of getting from one place to another. You do have to keep your wits and an eye on the road though - it's not a perfect system and there's lots of change in names of roads, etc... that still happens in the US.
3. Originality was not a strong suit for many of the early settlers. Everywhere I went I kept finding names repeated - of towns, cities, roads, etc.. I guess settlers were more concerned about having a name than that the name be unique. It makes me realize that our value of uniqueness may be a rather recent phenomenon.
4. NJ drivers are not the only bad drivers. Wherever I went this was pretty similar - there are always a few people on the road who are either completely oblivious to what's going on around them, or they aren't paying attention. There were a couple pretty hairy spots that I managed to escape from intact simply because I was paying attention to other drivers who obviously weren't paying attention and maybe didn't even care that they almost caused an accident.
5. People are friendly wherever you go. This was definitely true in every place I stopped, even when I was the only white person around - be friendly and direct, and people will return the favor. Probably my favorite part of the trip was spending time with friends and family along the way - sleeping over, sharing meals, helping out around the house, building community. It makes me realize how important it is to stay interested in people and to invest in each others lives, and that community only exists (and can even exist on the road) when you invest in it.
All in all, the trip was a great experience. I got some really positive feedback, played about 25 shows, sold about 250 CDs (10 per show on average, though some places I sold a lot more and some I sold a lot less). The average crowd was 20 people, which means I sold CDs to about half the people that came to my shows. It was extremely encouraging to me as a musician to have that kind of response, and it makes me think that I'm writing and performing music that really connects with people, which is exactly where I want to be.

Vlog Day 68 - Home

I drove from Grove City to State College, where I spent the afternoon with my friends Paul and Katrina and their daughter Anna. We went to the book sale (which I forgot to take video of, unfortunately - tons of books in a big agricultural arena) and then had lunch and I hit the road again for Lancaster.
On the way home my 1985 Toyota Tercel hit 100,000 miles! Pretty cool - it is now officially broken in to life on the road. I must say it is really good to be home, and I made it in time for Mother's Day!

Vlog Day 67 - Grove City

I arrived in Grove City, PA on my way home from Ohio. My brother Seth lives here with his wife, and I also have some friends that go to school here. My friend Rachel was in the youth group at Wheatland where I have been a leader for the last year or so, and she showed me around the campus, talking a bit about the buildings and interesting practices ('creeking' for example) that have become part of life at Grove City College.

Vlog Day 66 - Jim's Coffeehouse, Elyria

My friend Brandon grew up here in Ohio, near Elyria (it's his family I've been staying with). He told me about the open mic at Jim's Coffeehouse, so I stopped by. His friend Dan Sams shared some poetry and I played some songs. There were some other good acts too. Brandon's girlfriend Katie also made an appearance. The coffee is excellent, btw.

Vlog Day 65 - Bob Holmes

I'm staying with some friends in Amherst who work for Math-U-See. We went to watch Bob Holmes play volleyball against a couple teams by himself. Then he gave an inspirational message and the gospel. Here's some shots from the event.

Vlog Day 64 - Polymers, Quaker Oats, Wonder Bread

Jonathan Crissman showed me around the University of Akron and the town after his shift at the library. They have the science building sponsored by Goodyear (polymers used in modern tires were developed here) and down the street is the old Quaker Oats plant that has been turned into a hotel and tourist town. Apparently they don't get a whole lot of tourists anymore.
On the way home for dinner, we stopped at the Wonder Bread outlet as well - they bake bread here in Akron and it smells pretty good. Jonathan's favorite is Pumpernickel. I have to admit it is pretty good.

Vlog Day 63 - Akron

I visited my friend Jonathan Crissman in Akron, where he's getting his master's degree in guitar performance from the University of Akron. We hung out, made some rice and beans and celebrated the coming of Cinco de Mayo. We're not Mexican, but we celebrate St. Patty's Day too, though we're not Irish.
Jonathan's a cool guy though. We went to college together, and besides his classical training and hymn arrangements, he recently released an album of folk tunes. He also is finishing up a project with Kendall Ludwig called Stories of Clockwork in which they both play the Appalachian Dulcimer. In a couple weeks they'll be on tour in the Northeast, so definitely check them out if they get out your way.

Vlog Day 62 - Yellow Springs

Today I drove through Indiana to Ohio, where my mom's cousins (Carolyn's parents) live in Yellow Springs. I took the skyway from Chicago along the lake, and then headed south to Indianapolis. Once I got into Ohio, the landscape started to remind me of Pennsylvania, though very flat.
Yellow Springs is off the beaten path but near some major cities in Ohio. It's the home of Antioch College (which has closed recently, unfortunately) a really cool national park, and has a friendly small-town feel. I went to the horse barn with my Aunt/secondcousin (I always get confused by that kind of terminology) and got to hear the brass quintet that my Uncle/secondcousin is in practice for their upcoming Father's Day performance.

Vlog Day 61 - Lucha Libre, Moody Bible Institute

I took the elevated train in to Chicago city (the Loop) from Pilsen. Down below the track there was a block party going on, and Lucha Libre was just getting started. The Mexican version of WWF, part soap opera and part fight choreography, it would have been fun to see. However, I rode the train instead and met up with my friends Anna and Emma at Moody Bible Institute, where they're finishing up school.
They showed me around the campus, which is bigger than it looks, and took me through the tunnels and around and about. They seem to know everyone and kept introducing me to people as their friend from Ghana (we grew up as fellow MKs). There was a fair being put on by the student government for students and the community, so we partook of cotton candy and popcorn and watched people on the bungee swings. They mentioned they wanted to see 'Wolverine', the latest X-Men movie, and so we walked downtown to the theater to see it - a really good film, if you haven't seen it yet. I would review it, but this isn't the place. Or maybe it is and I'm just lazy. If you comment on this post, I'll review it. Afterwards, dinner was Go Roma, a great pizza/salad spot downtown.

Vlog Day 60 - Chicago

I drove to Chicago, from Gridley (the kids made me a really great card, so just for that I have to go back to see them at some point in the future) stopping in Peoria along the way to get an oil change at Firestone. It was probably good I stopped, because they also changed the battery, which was leaking acid. Ended up being a bit more expensive but not terrible, and now my car runs again like a dream.
In Chicago I'm staying with my cousin Carolyn, who lives on Peoria street in the Mexican part of the city. We had a great time catching up - visiting Kristoffer's Cafe (which has Tres Leche Cake - very good!) and generally hanging out. I haven't seen her in 4 years or so. I love reconnecting with people, which has been kind of a theme of the trip.
In the evening I played at Uncommon Ground in northern Chicago, opening for my friends Lucrezio. Jennifer and I went to college together, and they have a really great acoustic sound. I also got to see my friends Anna and Emma, whose parents were missionaries in Ghana as well. They go to Moody Bible Institute and kindly took some video for me. It was a really vibey place, but the sound was a bit hard to get used to. We (I and the sound guy) figured it out halfway through, fortunately, and ended strong.

Vlog Day 59 - Goat Fence

I helped Duane put up the goat fence today. It was pretty windy - I had to wear my knit cap to keep my ears from freezing. Beautiful day though. It's been rainy, but it hardly rained at all today. The goats will be coming next week - they're planning on milking them and making cheese.

Vlog Day 58 - Ithaka Fellowship

I slept in today, then got up and went with Duane, his son Calvin, and his father to pick up some things from Normal - fence for the two dairy goats they are getting next week, the PA system for tonight, and some bricks and mortar for repairs around the house. We drove four across the front seat through mile after mile of fields that are empty, waiting for the rainwater to drain so that the fields will be dry enough for planting to begin. Duane's dad is full of knowledge about the area and the process of farming, so I learned a lot on the drive.
On the way back we drove part way on Route 66, which goes right through here on its way south to St. Louis. Then we made preparations for the event tonight, and at 7pm people started arriving. Here's a piece of the event - my car song 'Steer Into the Curve'.

Vlog Day 57 - Illinois

I drove to Illinois today, through Springfield to Gridley where some friends of my friend Tom Becker live. Duane and Julie host monthly talks and discussion groups in their home under the name of Ithaka Fellowship. I am their speaker this Wednesday, and was able to meet them tonight for dinner with some friends who live down the road that spent a couple years in Ghana, of all places!
Gridley is in the middle of farm country, where corn is king. Duane is the 5th generation of farmers, and moved back to learn farming from his father, who has a lot of knowledge about the land and how farming has changed over the last thirty years.