Our return to Northern California welcomed us with warm weather and abundant sun shine. This would be our second repeat venue from last year's tour and we were happy to be back in this sleepy coastal town mostly because we had fun last year plus we had a friend to see. Friends, whether you see them everyday or once a year or hardly ever, they are still your friends when you see each other again. On the road we meet people, sometimes as briefly as over a beer at the bar, but our paths intersect like invisible endless strings that cross and they stay connected forever even if they travel away and never cross again. John was such a friend and we were happy to be able to hang out with him again.
The owner of the Logger Bar had us last year on a whim after hearing about our show at the local brewery. She had opened up her venue to us as well as her house for the day and without question or concern had left us there to use her laundry and kitchen when she went to work for the day. It has been moments likes this in our travels that renews my faith in human goodness. Not that it had been completely lost, but it has been seriously weighed down with occasional undesirable encounters and experiences. But it's these moments when I'm reminded that most people ARE good. And most people have faith that other people are good. And THAT is a good feeling. We didn't get a chance to see her this time around but we were happy that she had us back. The crowd at the show was eager and attentive. There is nothing better than having people genuinely and actively listening to what we are playing and this night we had just that.
We stayed in the RV that night across the street from the venue since we'd had our share of drinks but we parked it up at John's house the next day. Within a few days we had gotten to know his room mate and some friends and felt so welcome that we almost felt like we lived out in his driveway.
And as if life might actually be a series of planned events with certain situations triggering a tangent experience, we went out to The Lost Coast to watch John and his friend Dave hang glide, a mind boggling encounter in it's own right (people flying for goodness sakes) only to meet a new person that ricocheted us to the tiny coastal town of Petrolia.
People Preparing to Fly
SONTANEOUS PETROLIA
Talk about a place tucked away into the countryside. This little town was snuggled between the hills and western coastline so comfortably that I could have just stayed there forever and been content. The people here were has as comfortable and welcoming as the scenery, perhaps the outcome of a symbiotic relationship between the two. We met our new friend Yarrow on the hill where we were all watching people fly when it came up that we were traveling through playing music. She literally made our show happen. Through the small and tight knit community, using word of mouth, posters and some internet advertising the town of Petrolia knew that we were booked to play at The Yellow Rose the next Wednesday.
The Yellow Rose, Petrolia, CA
This has been one of my favorite shows thus far. This town, as cliche as it sounds, practically lost on The Lost Coast didn't get a lot of live music from what we heard. And it wasn't a huge surprise considering the miles of tight twists and turns winding you nauseatingly to your destination. But it was well worth the travel. Despite the last minute promotion for a last minute show people came out and appreciated the music. They seemed to have a blast as did we. I had some genuine connections with people that I very much hope to see again. The bar fed us well and made sure we were well lubricated well into and after the show. Thanks to our new friend, the bartender, Dan. Well, we were thankful, until the next afternoons hungover and naseous drive back down to sea level. LOL. It was worth it.
Winding Roads Leaving Petrolia
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