i suppose i should give a brief overview of february first? geez...its been that long. i recorded in seattle. twas fantastic. it snowed while i was there...and it didn't stop. i seem to alway bring bad weather. i prefer to look at it as an area weeping for it knows i will soon depart. Eric and Nate (the guys from Incorporated Elements) are the coolest. working with them is a lot of fun. we got tons of work done...and you shall hear it soon enough.
i flew directly back to georgia and then took off for Maryland and Virginia. Grace Community Church in Frederick, MD was a blast. i got a video of some of the people there who created their own Heath McNease t-shirts. it was awesome. Eric Miller is a great guy...he put on a great show for his outreach night. i can't thank those guys enough. After that it was straight over to the University of Maryland. i have to say that i was truly excited to play there. i've always loved U of M's campus. i got to run around and film stuff in the freezing cold. my sweet goodness...it was windy that week. Matt Adler is one of the coolest student activities people you could ever hope to meet. as a matter of fact...the whole crew was. thank you guys so much for making me feel comfortable in my own skin...which is no easy task. i can't wait to come back and play there. Matt informed me that U of M is the "rabbit's foot" for a lot of artists...so i shall keep my fingers crossed. i love you guys!
Next...I had saturday off, so i went to Arlington Cemetary. one of our dearest family friends lost his life in service to the country in November of 2004. Dan T. Malcom was a hero...and a brother. it was a really emotional experience. i don't typically talk about my personal life much, but seeing the scope and range of the sacrifice that was made by so many...and having it shift from a painful memory to an immediately personal reality was a huge emotional swing. it was cathartic, but the reality was all over the place. so many young faces. so many names. so many men and women with families and lives to live. and a friend. i won't reduce anyone's sacrifice to a bumper sticker or a flippant blurb. but...from the bottom of my heart...God bless all the men and women who gave and continue to give of themselves for the good of something far bigger than any one person.
The following Sunday was great.  hung out with my cousin and her family for a bit since they live near DC. then i went to play at Fairlington Presbyterian Church in Alexandria. Dave Porter...you, sir...you are the man! the porters were the most gracious hosts ever. Dave is a great guy...former military...and an amazing tuba player! they gave me advice when visiting downtown DC, told me what the best movie theatre was, and they got me chinese food. anyone that knows me knows that beef and broccoli is the way to forever cement yourself in my heart of hearts. the show was awesome. there were a couple of opening solo acts...one girl and one guy. they were awesome. we had a great time, and i can't wait to go back. it was so fun to hang out with everyone and just joke around. we took some really odd/creepy "family" pictures. i hope they turned out just as odd and creepy as they felt.
i wanted to do an entire synopsis of my past three months...but there is just too much info. i saw the movie Taken while in DC. it was great. Liam Neeson is a beast (as Aslan and as this guy). i saw The International also. i don't care what critics or anyone else thinks...it was a taut and exciting thriller that uses the Guggenheim as a soundstage for the most raucous shoot em up scene ever. i ate at chipotle three times and my only regret is that it wasn't four.
after the show in Alexandria i drove straight through to Georgia to beat out some really treacherous looking weather. back in the penguin pajamas. but only for a bit. my thanks to the guys in Seattle and all the promoters and new friends that i made in Virginia and Maryland. let's do it again soon.