Galveston, TX

I’ve found palm trees, seagulls and waves crashing on the beach right here in the great state of Texas. The spring 2008 tour if off to a great start, and here are some highlights from week one:

- Great crowds and cold beers in Des Moines and Kearney, followed by the usual laid back Sunday evening show at the Meadowlark in Lincoln. Speaking of Lincoln, it was there where I joined forces with one of the best roadies in the business: my dad. He’s been tagging along on his way to a warm vacation in Phoenix, so we caravaned all last week. In addition to handling the merch duties and holding back the "throngs" of people attempting to bumrush the stage during performances, he may also be sitting in on triangle when we join forces again in New Mexico and Arizona. thanks Dad!

- Rain and floods. Another fun wrinkle on week one of the trip was going to be watching my brother’s baseball team (he’s the head coach at Augustana College in Sioux Falls) play some warm-weather games on their spring trip to southern Kansas and baseball-happy Arkansas. Mom Nature had other ideas however, and nearly all the games were rained out this past week. We still enjoyed following them from town to town though, and the drive on Tuesday from Missouri to Hot Springs was interesting as we choose to drive right into the eye of the huge storm system that flooded Dallas. The Ozarks were surprisingly beautiful when we weren’t being blinded by sheets of rain, and there were miniature waterfalls pouring down the high rock cliffs reminiscent of Thunder Canyon at Valley Fair. We chose our lanes as best we could to avoid hydroplaining on the narrow highway 65, and we managed to stay just ahead of the worst weather as they closed 65 behind us just after we pulled into a small town gas station. The flooding was so bad that even the gas pumps wouldn’t stop flowing. After turning the pump on, I made the critical mistake of going inside to get a bottle of water as I was still fueling. Well, apparently the mechanism responsible for stopping flow of gas after the tank fills was broken, because after the 12 gallon tank was completely filled, an additional 7 gallons of gas continued to poor out everywhere like a faucet. Oblivious to the situation, I was focused in on whether or not to get an ice cream cone from the Baskin Robbins inside the station. Luckily my dad saw the gasoline geyser as he was filling his car and he was able to turn it off (Again, he’s the best roadie in the business) The moral of the story is do NOT leave your car unattended while at the gas station, or else the people inside the station will think you’re crazy before reluctantly paying you back for the 7 gallons of extra gas that didn’t make it into your gas tank.

- Monday was St. Patrick’s Day, so my dad and I decided to do what most folks do on March 17th: we went and saw an Elvis Impersonator do a show at the oldest theater in Branson, Missouri. Dave "Elvis" Elhert has been performing as Elivs for FORTY years--he started in 1967 10 years before the king passed away. He’s appeared on Oprah and was the first Elvis Impersonator ever inducted into the Elvis Impersonator Hall of Fame, which apparently exists. This guy had to be in his mid sixties and he was doing Elvis moves and saying Elvis things and belting out "In the Ghetto" and "Heartbreak Hotel" note-for-note, all to a crowd of about 25 people on a Monday night. His grandson was the drummer. Overall, I would describe the performance as tacky and inspiring. If this guy can leave it all out on the stage 6 days a week for 40 years, I can certainly do the same on a 24-day tour.

- Texas has been awesome so far, and I’ll be seeing much more of it this weekend. Shows at cozy little cafes in Dallas and Houston were well-received with good sound. The Houston gig in particular was a blast as I shared the stage with Colin Gilmore from Austin and his beautifully twangy folk songs. Huge thanks to the folks at Mojo Risin and to my cousin and her friend for making the trek up from Galveston to see the show. I shall be back again.

My cousin Eleanor (getting her PhD down at the U of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston) just took me out to a delicious brunch at La Estacion. We both ordered the "Surprise Burrito." Not sure what the surprise was as the ingredients were listed in parenthesis on the menu. Here’s hoping a belated surprise does not await me later today.

Time to head west to Austin, followed by a journey across all of Texas before I reach the desert.

Talk to you soon and take care,
John

PS. my Final Four picks are Kansas, Louisville, Texas and Duke with Kansas over Duke in the finals.