Arrived in Bend; some brief thoughts

So, got to Bend, Oregon a couple hours ago; tonight I play at the Mountain's Edge, with the Boxcar String Band, a rockabilly duo from the area. Pretty stoked to play with them.

Glad to be off the road for a few days; I get to hang out in Bend until Saturday, when I head to Portland for three days, and more time to chill. Three gigs here in Bend: Mountain's Edge, the Parilla Grill, and Strictly Organic Coffee. Very good stuff.

Last night at Waldo's in Klamath Falls was pretty cool; I really enjoy playing in smaller towns. Met several extremely cool people there at the bar, and the folks who ran the place were really happy with how things went. It was kinda shitty out, rainy and cold, drove through some snow to get there, so it wasn't a banner night, but cool all the same. As I expected, quite a contrast to the shows I played in San Francisco, where people can be so blase about new stuff - despite, or because of, being surrounded by interesting cultural experiences. The folks at Klamath were interested and talkative; while most people I talked to in San Francisco were to wrapped up in themselves to take an interest in you. Not true for all, certainly, and I met a few notable exceptions; but the overall vibe is, simply, that people just don't have time or energy enough to take an interest in you. I got much more in tips in Klamath, too. Just goes to show.

One extremely cool thing at the gig on Monday in Frisco (yep, I went there) was, folks from various points & periods of my life elsewhere turned up; Anastasia, who was in Germany when I was there; Nick, who I took some classes at NAU with (he was present when i almost got into a fight with some rude, noisy, fellow students in a Differential Equations class - and had my back, too); and Shawn, who had lived in Flagstaff years before, and had played in various bands over the years - most memorably to me was Vena Cavae, a 12-piece noise band who took over the Alley open mic one of the first nights we had it. Pretty incredible. They all hung out, and we went for a drink afterward; it had been seven years since I had seen Anastasia, and at least four since I had seen Nick or Shawn, I think. Very good stuff.

Snow on the ground this morning in Klamath Falls; fucking cold, and misty and drizzly on the way over the mountain. Once I got within 25 miles of Bend the sun came out. I went straight to Strictly Organic Coffee, where they pay musicians with an account you can access the whole time you're in town. I'll be eating there pretty much every day, and drinking their excellent coffee.

Well, anyway, off to get ready for the gig.