A. The Dark Pioneers & I played a good show at the Comet on a Friday night. I got home after 2am.
B. Got up Saturday morning and finished mixing the CD with Brad Zeffren. It took us until 2am.
C. Sunday was spent in a mental fog; during this fog, I bought long underwear for the impending trip to Sundance. It would be worth every penny.
D. Landed in Salt Lake City on a Thursday. Jodi came with me this time, so it would be like a micro-vacation (and people-watching extravaganza). Since it was opening week at Sundance, the airport was crawling with hipsters, film geeks, and the freshly botoxed.
E. After an hour in line at the Hertz station, we finally drove away in a very sleek rental car; I nearly blew up the car's engine a mile away from the airport as the gear shaft made it very easy to shift into low gear. Driving 60 M.P.H. in low gear is bad.
F. Our hotel was located in downtown Salt Lake City. It was only a block away from The Rose-Wagner Center where I played last year. (That was a terrifying gig that I'll write about someday.)
G. Since Jodi had been up for nearly 29 hours straight (she came from her hospital shift and got on a plane), we ate dinner and called it a night.
H. Friday afternoon, I found my secret parking area from last year; it was a mile outside of "No-Place-To" Park City and we could avoid the $20-$50 Festival lots. We took a bus to Main Street and traversed the sea of people to get to my showcase at the Spur. It was great to see Burton Hurner again--he is the driving force behind Radical Rat (who put on this showcase).
I. The show went great, but the altitude (7,000 ft.) had me winded by the first song. I still had 45 more minutes to play and felt like an octogenarian the whole way.
J. Stayed at The Spur and had dinner with fellow showcase-ees Teresa Storch and Andrew Frink. At the bar: a bearded Robert Englund (Freddy Kruger) and Randy Quaid--also bearded--who was wearing a floor length fur coat. Randy Quaid is a giant.
K. Returned to Park City Saturday for my second showcase; many people had discovered my secret parking area. Luckily, we found a new one up the hill.
L. The second showcase was...Full bar and it felt like hardly anyone was listening while basketball played on TV. The game got a lot of applause, usually in the middle of a song.
M. After my set, I signed my first autograph. It was on a Sundance program and my name was just below Michael Keaton's--I've long suspected I was just a rung below Michael Keaton on the entertainment ladder. Also had my picture taken with a group and felt famous for a few minutes.
N. Hit heavy traffic on the way back to SLC. That night, we had pizza with our friends Joe & Shelley and their kids Max & Amelia. The kids were extra-extra rowdy just for us; I was asked if this was effective birth control.
O. Sunday morning, I played the most awkward gig ever. It was in a movie theatre lobby at 11am. The floor was covered with plastic and I kept getting in the way of people in line for popcorn. No stage, no mic, no signs. Saw Ashley--we met last year when I played at the Rose-Wagner gig--and some of the Sundance volunteers seemed to enjoy the music; I think I made all the other ticket holders uncomfortable.
P. Back to Park City to utilize our Sundance credentials. Saw Jesca Hoop and Sondre Lerche at The Star Bar/ASCAP Cafe showcase.
Q. Ate a delicious cinnamon and caramel-coated apple while two rappers walked down the street. They posed for pictures and were apparently well known...I didn't recognize them. We would keep running into them over the next couple of hours; they clearly wanted their picture taken.
R. It was around 20°F that weekend. Some young ladies in town for the film festival (usually wearing too much make-up and sporting fake tans) like to wear almost nothing in the freezing cold.
S. Hypothermia occurs most commonly at freezing temperatures, but can occur even at cool temperatures (above 40°F) if a person becomes chilled from rain, sweat or submersion in cold water.
T. Taking one last walk down Main Street before heading back to the car, we saw Jodie Foster signing someone's pants; she's very petite. I've had a crush on Jodi Foster since Freaky Friday.
U. Back in SLC for our final night and snow was in the forecast. Went out for Sushi with fellow music maker "Chicago" Mike Beck (one hell of a cool guy) and his friend Piper. Had an incredible dinner at Ichiban where I ate sushi for the first time in over ten years. It was delicious.
V. Woke up Monday morning to six inches of snow. Cleaned off the car using a little stick with a brush at one end and then we checked out of the hotel.
W. Jodi had wanted snow and she got it; she closed her eyes while I made the hazardous drive to the airport.
X. Got a plane and flew back to Seattle.
Y. Home again and either Miles or Bella had crapped on the floor outside their litter box. It was their way of saying welcome back.
Z. The End.
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