Back Yard. I later went to the forest and stream behind the house with Phil before dusk. Big mistake. I got eaten alive by bugs. I took shower and it wasn't so bad. This was right before a big communal dinner.

Saturday - September 4, 1999 - Des Moines Rock Island Club - Last Show!

We got up at a decent hour and had breakfast. I tuned the autoharp to the piano after breakfast since we had time prior to our leaving for Des Moines. Jim took Phil, Alex and I on a tour of Ames and particularly the Iowa State campus which was very pretty. Too bad that it was Saturday. There were no students (read: young women) out. We then went to a tobacconist for Phil's organic cigarettes as well as Wal-Mart so Alex could purchase post cards. I got an ISU t-shirt and baseball cap.

Louie, Karen, Douglas and Jim Doin' the Kitchen Thang. We went back to a big group lunch consisting of chicken and other stuff and then off to Rock Island Club right near the freight train line. Rebecca showed up herself by car. Luis the proprietor (but probably not owner) did everything. He cleaned up the floor, set up the bar stools and tables and finally set up everything for the sound check. The coolest part of the sound check was a huge freight train coming by as we played. We could see it out the side door near the stage where we loaded our equipment. It's too bad I forgot my camera...

After we were done it's the let's look for a place to eat time. Doug and Milo were on their own so it was Louie, Rebecca, Phil, Paul and myself. There happened to be a street festival nearby where bands were playing, people were selling stuff like salsa and beer. The main restaurant that Rebecca said was good was Spaghetti Works but it was crowded and had a 30 minute wait. Meanwhile Paul said he had some good coffee earlier at Java Joe's. We continued down sort of this restaurant row but all the restaurants had long waits except for a steak type place which we weren't that interested in, so we ended up at Java Joe's which had lots of vegetarian fare, ice coffee and was OK. I had a ginger curry pita something or other with corn chips.

The Bolluyt's showed up at the club with some adult friends but although we would've started later 'cause it wasn't that crowded at that time we started to play for them and we played very well! The place started to fill up to a decent crowd through the evening as we played even better and Luis the sound man do-it-all was dancing! People were hanging out all over even outside near the caboose! During our third set another freight train came by and I mimicked a horn with the organ and pitch bend on cue from Milo. We even did a late night Bob Marley jam set which was fun. We packed up and went home in one of those god awful rain storms where we had to go slow. Paul decided to stop in the Wal-Mart at 4 in the morning and everyone went crazy in the store. I thought Milo, Alex and Douglas would never leave and man, I was tired or so I thought. We made sure everyone was on board so we got home. Rebecca also went to her folks.

When we did arrive, the Bolluyt's changed the sleeping assignments so some would sleep in their bedroom, very nice but sleep wasn't on our minds. We raided the ice cream and had a blast. Rebecca showed up and we had a great time with the whole band together at her house.

Sunday & Monday - September 5-6, 1999 - Time to go Home

We left around 1:30 with Paul leaving earlier. Plenty of flies around and goodbyes after a nice lunch again. I decided to take the back where I could stretch out and take a nap after the first Iowa stop 'cause I was tired. I got some rest and took over around Morris, IL, another long stint for Louie. We had a cheap spicy chicken sandwich from Hardees and I moved on through Chicago and most of Indiana as day turned into night. There was a live broadcast of the Chicago jazz festival on a public radio station but all they were doing was talking while waiting for the band to start. It was torture. Finally they introduced the band and then the conductor started talking! I wanted to change the station which I did briefly but Louie was interested in the musical piece being presented, an Ellington-Strayhorn classical type jazz number involving Japanese instruments and inspired by Japanese music that was written in the 60's. It finally started but by that time we lost the station and heard precious little. WXRT had a live Dire Straits concert from 1985 which sucked...

Louie took over again in Indiana to the beginning of Ohio and there was minivan trouble. He accelerated and the car didn't change gears, it was revving up. We stopped at an exit and put some transmission fluid in it. It still didn't turn over so we went to a service area and had another chicken sandwich. It was getting late now and Milo secretly wanted me to drive and I did! Louie looked visibly tired and I had some coke (Coca Cola, you smart asses) of course. Inside the service area it said the gas attendant could call for help if needed. I informed an attendant we might have transmission problems and he said most of the gas stations around "these parts" were closed due to it being Sunday night and then Labor Day. He said no gas stations would be available until the Toledo area 60 miles away. Ugh.

We stopped for awhile. I then started the van, revved it a little, put it into the low gear, put it into the second low gear which is called "3" and then put it into drive and started out very slowly. As I accelerated slowly to get back onto the Ohio Turnpike, the gears kicked in! I then accelerated some more and the transmission kicked in again! We were OK and cruisin' with the cruise control at around 74 mph in a 65 mph speed limit. I did one more stop in Ohio for coffee and Louie still looked tired though he volunteered to drive. Paul said he was planning to stop at the first truck stop in Pennsylvania for rest. We must have passed him but never saw him on this trip back. I got us into Pennsylvania and the first real truck stop was at Barkeyville where I pulled in for gas and for Louie to take over as he mentioned he wanted to but for one thing. Everyone was asleep! I gassed up and pulled the van into a lot and we all slept for a couple of hours, with me in the reclined driver's seat.

When we awoke around sunrise, Louie started driving again after some coffee drink or diet coke or something. He drove for a couple of hours to Kylertown (again) where we had breakfast. I had french toast while everyone else had eggs. Louie had breakfast burritos as well as runny scrambled eggs, the way he likes them. Louie was tired again so I drove through most of Pennsylvania stopping once at a truck stop for orange juice and perhaps our last gas up. Paul called Louie on the cell phone and they were at Williamsport about 1.5 hour away. No way we were going to wait. I continued to a rest area near New Jersey for a pit stop while Louie was sleeping in the back. I was playing Milo one of my 80's tapes and I was explaining lyrics to him like Generals and Majors by XTC and Girls Talk by Dave Edmunds written by Elvis Costello. He was intrigued.

Well I drove all the way home. Milo got a little stir crazy near the Holland Tunnel yelling "Barbados" after seeing his native flag on another vehicle from the West Indian parade that was taking place in Brooklyn as we were driving. Since Milo was in the front seat he was the EZ-Pass guy and "shined it" as we sped into the Holland Tunnel and shortly arrived at Louie's. He didn't want to help with the equipment and was agitated. I got him to help. I offered to wait for Paul but Louie said I could go home. I drove Milo and Alex to Brooklyn to get their baby, Nira and I then drove them home.

Milo gave me accurate directions to Atlantic Avenue so I could get home via the Jackie Robinson Parkway. It was slow going due to traffic being rerouted there instead of Eastern Parkway where the West Indian Festival was taking place. WBAI had a live broadcast but instead of music there was talk talk talk and then a recorded treatise on the history of Grenada. Bor-ing. I slowly but surely made it to the Jackie Robinson Parkway and negotiated its twists and turns at 25 mph speed limit to Metropolitan Avenue, to Ascan and home. Whew, the trip is over...