So after a long drive Mike got into Roanoke about 7PM. He shows me his van full of instruments. I just look at it and go “wow, this is going be a damn good trip.”
The following morning we hit the road about 10:30 a.m. and set off with all that we think we need. On trips like this I always bring the basics but in trying to go down the list one sometimes forget the simplest things. Like one time Al and I forgot the maps. Now you would think, how could you forget the maps? But it happens. So this time around I forgot my sleeping bag…oh well. We are not turning around to get that. The important thing is your ax and your strings and a change of underwear but there have been times I forgot that too.
Anyway Mike and I have a long drive and we get to know each other. We have the time so we tell each other about a host of things. Well, before we know it we are in the state of Mississippi and it’s very early in the morning. That happens sometimes. Miles just melt away like the lines you are leaving behind. Time seems to fly on by and Mike was making good time. So we find a gas station and pull up and fall asleep for a few hours before we have to get into Slidell.
Before the sun got up we somehow woke up grabbed some coffee and hit the road. We were only an hour or so before we got into town so I called our host Gordon who runs the (Link)
Hi there! Mike here…. I am such a city boy! WOW! You get used to the good life and just don’t realize how good it feels to just get a shower and shave! Life is rather sparse here, since the houses are mostly destroyed and taken down so the little things mean a lot! Anyway, now that I have made my confessions… Once we touched down at Gordon’s place I got to meet Jim who does something like what we do, but with books instead of instruments. I had some people ask about books and if they could send them down, so I will get back to everyone and let them know that there is an outlet. Keep that in mind, if you have books that are good for the kids, there is a place to send them!
Phone calls are a big part of our life, and we have to constantly re-charge the cell phones. Things change so fast down here that it is very difficult to make arrangement in advance. Everything is done on the fly, so we just have to stay loose and let them happen. Bill is on the phone constantly working out people for us to see and ways for us to get in and out of places.
We got to see Peter Spring http://www.stevenspring.org/ yesterday. He was much more of a help than I thought. He gave us the opportunity to pull all the instruments out of the van and he went over all the woodwinds and horns that I had no idea how to check out. He made a couple of adjustments on some of them and some we have to send to the repair shop and he is taking care of that for us. The good news is that most of the instruments will be able to go directly to the kids!
We are working out a deal with Peter to help him out. He has promised a piano to one of the schools that we are going to, so we are going to bring the piano to them from him, along with our instruments. It is so neat that there are people to work with down here. Bill has really put together the contacts. We are all in this together!
Bill here, Mike is right that’s how it sort of works down here. Everyone seems to know each other and word gets around fast, which is a good thing. This has been our 10th time down so people know who we are. WWOZ http://www.wwoz.org/ did a story on us and it sure has helped.
Last night we were invited to a party and Mike and I went along. It was in New Orleans and this guy just finished his home, so we went along to maybe meet more folks and tell them what we are doing. In a way down here it is how it works. People want to know who you are and why you are here. So, you just have to hang out and make new friends. And things being the way it is here, there is always a party, its how folks down here socialize. So Mike and I were up pretty late but we met some cool folks and some very cool New Orleans musicians
Anyway so we are at Gordon’s place Bio Liberty http://www.bioliberty.net camping out and by camping out I mean just that. Gordon is rebuilding and what that means is he has taken down most of the old buildings down and there a camper that he lives in and Meg’s house is still there so at least I have floor space. So there is no shower and things like that so Gordon has a place that we can shower at which Mike and I went for, and the day and time went way too fast.
Still Pickin'
Bill Hudson
Mike Mead
http://www.dragonfly.com/ is sending entertainers to the devastated areas in
0 comments:
Post a Comment