Stranded? Don’t think so.
Really enjoying this tour. Spent the better part of yesterday doing a photo shoot with my friend, Rachel. Really have been wanting to update the website with pictures for quite some time now. She took me out to this old abandoned chemical plant for a few hours.
Accidentally ran over Sam’s case while moving my truck to a better location. If I had just kept going, instead of pulling forward, it might have been fine since the *crunch* sound didn’t happen until I put the truck into 1st gear. Bottom line of tour, shit happens. Guess that’s the bottom line of life really.
Ooops…
After shooting, we went back to her place for yummy fruit and veggie smoothies before I had to head back towards Yakima for my show.
I arrived at Northtown Coffeehouse around 6:40pm, thinking I was going to start playing at 7, and was going to have to rush, but it turns out set-up wasn’t until 7:30, and the show didn’t start until 8, so no rushing. The staff was friendly, and so were the patrons.
It was kind of an awkward show for me, there’s something about playing in a brightly lit room that throws me off quite a bit. Something I’m just going to have to get over…but everything is a learning process. I didn’t have time to plan my set, and I had 2 hours to fill. I had about 20 people filtering in and out to the downstairs portion of the coffee shop. They censored the ‘Bastard’ portion out of my name, so I wasn’t really sure how they would respond to my set. But no one ever came down and told me to stop. I was stoked to see my friend Holly, and her boyfriend Mike. Rachel made the drive out too. So it was nice to hang out with some friends, especially ones I don’t get to see very often.
Had an interesting character in the crowd as well, that made for a very interesting evening.
At the end of the evening, there was some confusion over the guarantee I was told I would receive. As I mentioned before, I’ve been calling this the “Broke Bitch Tour”, where I somehow miraculously make it to the next town. I arrived in Yakima with less than a 1/4 tank of gas, and nothing in my wallet (still got the half a sandwich bag full of quarters). So I was very much looking forward to free food, coffee, and a $100 guarantee. Got the food and tea, but when I asked about pay, there was no check, and no one knew anything about it. I’d say I’ve come a long way, and I definitely kept my cool compared to the old me. I felt the smile leave my face, and even with as angry I was, I politely, and sternly said to the barista, “I am literally stuck in Yakima, and I have a show in Spokane tomorrow. I have an email confirmation that says I was guaranteed pay from this show, and there’s no way I’m leaving without it.”
After a few phone calls, about an hour later the owner showed up and paid me. Everything turned out to be a simple misunderstanding between the booker (who was not there that evening, but apparently is a really nice guy who rarely forgets things like this) and the owner. I ordered another tea before leaving and the barista who cleared everything up for me thanked me for not cussing and creating a scene over the mishap. Slow to anger is a good thing.
Hugged Rachel goodbye, packed my things into the truck with the help of Mike and Holly, and followed them out to their place. Stayed up talking and catching up until sleep got the best of us all, and passed out in a bed that’s comfier than the one I have at home.
Now I’m getting ready to head out to Spokane for a show at The Ogre’s Den. Super stoked to see Piper, Jeff, and Hotbox. I played a show with them back when I was on tour with The Assasinators. It’ll be good to see those ladies again.
I love being on the road, I wish I had more than 2 shows left on this tour.