Tramps Like Us

after the neil young concert and leaving panama city from cynthia’s house, i was half way to my dad’s when i decided to take a detour to my soul-sister ashley’s place in macon GA. I arrived about 9p.m. or so, at a bar where she was attending a wedding reception. i scarfed down some free b-b-q, drank a few beers, and we were later joined by her husband colin.

we left the bar im guessing around 2, maybe 3, and i was immediately pulled over for not wearing my helmet. charmed my way into a warning, and made it to their place avoiding a dui.

we woke the next morning, had some breakfast, visited indian mounds, paid our respect to the grave of an Allman brother or two, dropped by the otis redding memorial, ate pizza and split towards my dads.

spent a couple days visiting with family, mawmaw included.

right before heading out on friday morning, i remembered how imperative it was for me to spend some quality time with one of the best people in the world, starla skelton. So i unpacked the bike and accompanied her through her work night. She bought me dinner and got me drunk off of craft beers, and we exchanged stories of travel, love and loss.  it was in the midst of the evening’s debauchery when i agreed to join my dear friend Harvey, via text message, on a short trip to NY. Starla and i had mexican the following morning for breakfast, i met Koral(her totally awesome daughter) for the first time, said hello to old friends Jamal and Audra(or “Rodger”), and then spent the next couple days with the fam.

Tuesday morning dad dropped me off at the airport. i spent most of tuesday walking around various neighborhoods of the city, met up with Harv about 9, checked into the sublet, had dinner, and then saw the amazing Stanley Clarke with incredible Hiromi at the Blue Note. Harv and i spent the rest of the evening sampling “private” bars, that took Harv’s persistence and business cards to gain us passage.  The next morning we spent hunting down tickets to go see the Broadway spectacular FELA!  Then after engaging  “operation: cool hand luke” we spent the early evening hunting down a blazer for harvey.  FELA! was insane. FELA! was visually and audibly one of the greatest experiences anyone could ever have. Since Harvey is rolling in the dough these days, he offered to cover the bill on both shows…not to mention the sublet. What a great guy?

We met some really cool kids on the way to the airport, Asy and David, that showed us the way(got us lost) and arrived in ATL around 11:pm. There was a deportation on my flight, a cat from Nigeria. We spoke of Fela Kuti. He was a cool guy. Too bad America thought otherwise.

The next afternoon i split town westward bound. I ended camping half an hour into Alabama. I settled at the edge of a tree lined field next to a creek. The night was beautiful so i chose not to pitch my tarp of a tent. I stared at stars till i passed around what im sure to be 9:00ish. Woke up at 8:30 covered in heavy dew, packed the bike and hit the road.

Today’s ride was long and beautiful. In P.C.Beach again, probably heading to New Orleans tomorrow.

this afternoon began with a send off from great pals chad brewer and josh brennan in Lake County Florida.    the 9 hour ride that followed was intense. there was a moment there that ranked at the top of my all time favorites in life. in panama city beach now. Tomorrow, Neil Young! and very happy to be staying with my best friend; thanks cynthia

taken by a life guard, crookedly

“There’s a race of men that wont fit in, a race that can’t sit still;

So they break the hearts of kith and ken, and they roam the world at will.

The range the field and rove the flootd, and the climb the mountain’s crest;

Their’s is the curse of the gypsy blood, and they don’t know how to rest.”