4 on Tour Day 5 - Maumee, OH

It was great to have a few hours to hang out and relax at Joy's friend's house outside of Cincinatti. We hit the road around 2pm for Toledo, and arrived safely at St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Maumee, OH around 5pm. Shaun is the guy who helped us set this concert up, and is one of the most enthusiastic people I have met. He and Steve, the sound guy, had set up a great stage in the foyer of the church and we put on a great show for some wonderful people.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgmk8eo2-vc

Baltimore and Xenia

Saturday afternoon, after packing my things in the car, I drove from Lancaster to Baltimore - an uneventful, hour or so drive on a beautiful day. I played at The Patterson, a renovated historic movie theater that is now home to The Creative Alliance of Baltimore. I was one of the artists/bands performing for Grace International Church's website release party, which was tons of fun. Also performing were Parris Bowens, Prayz1 and The Underdogz, and Failure to Excel. Here's a video tour of the building:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvxIt1G0hp8
Sunday morning I got up really early and drove to Xenia, Ohio (near Dayton) where I played at my friend Hannah's church, GracePoint. They meet in what used to be an apple restaurant, and there was a decent crowd - I was really blessed to be there, and the sound was some of the best I've experienced. It also happens to be near Yellow Springs, where my mom's cousin Bruce lives, so I got to spend Labor Day with family.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jfb4bbXnLAQ

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.