Day 7
I think it was a Wednesday... a rainy Wednesday. We left my aunt's house in Maryland and headed north for NYC.
When we got there we were greeted with more rain and of course, traffic. Not too much traffic, but more than we are used to! We managed to find our way with out too much trouble and played for some nice folks. After that we got to hang out with my favorite Emily and my favorite Todd.Day 7
On Thursday, we explored New Jersey... Hoboken to be specific. The advantage to being in New Jersey is that you have a great view of the city, and fortunately the weather warmed up and we had a beautiful day for exploring!
Day 8
On Friday morning, we braved the City. We rode into town on the Path Train and walked all over NYC following a map
drawn for us by my cousin, Emily. Nothing like a walking tour of a city guided by someone who lives there! We saw street vendors, statues, bridges, weird buildings, weird people, but the thing that stuck with me was this girl playing piano in a park. The piano was on wheels... so my guess is she rolled it from somewhere. I hope not somewhere far. I thought that carrying a bass around was a pain, but at least I don't have to roll a piano around New York City, or any other city for that matter. Later that night we met up with Emily & Todd again and went out on the town. The funny thing about New York is that places stay open a whole lot later than anywhere else. When you think to yourself, "man, I'm tired... Why am I so tired?" its because its 4 in the morning and you expected to be kicked out of the place two hours earlier!Day 9
Needless to say, Saturday morning came earlier than anyone expected. Bright and early we drove straight through Manhattan to pick up Grace Van't Hof, banjo player for Della Mae, and drive up to Rhode Island where I was to sit
in with the ladies of Della Mae. It was a long drive, but a beautiful one. It was a good festival for a good cause and a good time was had by all. And they had all sorts of awesome vendors. I thought we had lost Matt for a moment, but then found him where cheese is found. Leave it up to him to find the one and only booth at the entire festival that had cheese samples! Very sleepily, we headed back to New York that evening... very sleepy and Matt very cheesy.Day 10
We got up late. Very late. Ate some breakfast and wandered around the neighborhood and before long, it was time to take the public transit to our gig. We played at a little place called the Parkside Lounge. It was a very cozy show with friendly faces and... Mrs PACKMAN!! we were sure to get a few games in before we took to the stage.
Day 11
This was the day we'd been waiting for for a long time... since we started the tour, to be exact. It was time to go to Boston! The drive flew by and we were there before we knew it. Met up with some awesome old friends, hung out on a porch and played some music. Couldn't have asked for a better welcome back.
Day 12
Cantab Tuesday! The Cantab Lounge is one of my vary favorite places to play. In fact I used to live across the street from it and hung out there every single Tuesday. In addition to getting to play at the Cantab, we got to play with the lovely and talented Courtney Hartman. We got together with her at her house a few hours before the show and picked some tunes, hopped in the van and drove over to Cambridge where we played for the usual rowdy Cantab crowd. We had such a great time, and the audience must have as well, because they wouldn't hardly let us off the stage! As is pretty normal for this gig, the picking went on until they kicked us out of the bar, and then relocated and went on until the wee hours.
Day 13, 14 & 15
We had some down time. Ran all around Boston, went to all my favorite places, and then left early Friday morning. Anytime I hear tell of a hurricane headed straight for where I am, I'm usually pretty eager to leave, even if the hurricane has a cute little old man name like Earl.
Day 16
Saturday very well could have been the highlight of the little tour. We picked up the two best guys we could have ever even imagined playing with us: Bill Keith, and his guitar player, Brian Hollander. What a show! and on top of that, some of the best food we've had in a long time. Getting to play with legends is always a good thing, but to top it all off, after the gig we caught the tail end of a concert at a barn in Woodstock, NY, that just so happens to be owned by the one and only Levon Helms. Not only that, but the band that was playing this particular night was the man himself, along with a full big band, guitars, pianos, a full horn section, and singers galore! This was particular high point for Matt. He's been talking about this place for as long as I've known him, and this was the first time he's gotten the chance to go.
Day 17
We got up. Got in the van and headed to Maryland, back to my aunt's house to sleep a little, and then we drove straight home. We drove through the night and ended up in Six Mile South Carolina picking up my furry little friends at eight in the morning. After a little nap, it was back in the car, back to my happy little home in Asheville.
Well, that was the trip. Consider yourself all caught up. Check back again, for more exciting stories and pictures of our silly little adventures.
-Ashleigh
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