I woke up this morning realizing that it was going to take some time to get used to sleeping on a bus again. It usually takes me a couple days to get to where I can sleep well inside a coffin sized bed on a moving bus. I woke up nauseous, and with a headache that lasted until about five this evening, but other than that today went great.

Phil and I have gotten really close to The Myriad guys pretty quickly. It will make traveling together for the next 3 weeks really fun. The Crowder guys are really cool to hang out with also. So far everyone on the tour seems to be getting along really well.

We didn’t do much sight seeing in Austin today, but walked down 6th street to a hotel and back. It seems like a cool town. I think some of us are going to run out for a while before the bus drivers get back. I heard the downtown area is cool, even at one in the morning.

I have put up several new pictures over on my photo blog, so make sure to check that out every once in a while. Right now, Phil, Mark (from DC*B) and a couple of The Myriad guys are going to head out.

Until tomorrow….

We just finished sound check and everything seemed to go smoothly. Phil and I have been hanging out taking a bunch of pictures and making sure everything is in it’s place. Which basically means keeping our junk out of every ones else’s way. I am running a few tracks from side stage for Phil’s set, which is fun to be a little more involved. They did a great job making tracks that fit well with the songs.

New Orleans is a pretty amazing town. It’s got a really cool vibe, but in a creepy way. Part of me wants to walk around a little after Phil’s set, but the other part of me is eager to catch Crowders set. Not like I won’t have time to see it again though.

I think it will be cool to be in all of these different House Of Blues venues for this tour. There is so much history and the vibe that every room creates is awesome. Other than that, it’s been a pretty mellow day. I haven’t heard of any tragedies yet, and everyone seems to be getting along. The Myriad guys are all really cool and it will be fun to share a bus with them.

Oh yeah… and we hung out with this guy a little. He was actually off the bus.

Phil and I flew into New Orleans late last night and got a cab to our hotel at about 11.

Shortly after that we realized that neither of us had eaten dinner so we decided to walk through downtown New Orleans to find some food. Our hotel is less than two blocks from where the show is tonight so we walked by that just as the Foo Fighters were finishing up their show and getting on their busses. Behind one of their busses was a pizza place that looked decent so we did that. After that Phil and I went over a few things to get ready for the show and went to bed. Pretty exciting so far huh?

Phil does have a sweet mustache though.

It’s always a little weird sharing a room with someone new for the first time. Especially when they play air guitar. Old habits have to change, things are laid out differently and the little details go away . I have now, found myself with the bed closest to the bathroom which weirds me out. Maybe that’s why I didn’t sleep well.

Upon Brian, and Jeff’s recommendation I bought “Long Way Round” the other day and started it on the plane last night. It’s pretty entertaining and I am excited to work my way through it. It’s great so far.

Other than that, not much here. We will be heading over to the venue shortly, and get going from there. Until then…

I’ve traveled a lot this year. I’m coming off of twenty-eight shows in two months, and now I am sitting at the airport heading out again. This time for longer. It will be for twenty-seven days straight. Normally I wouldn’t choose to do this but this year it seemed to work out well, and will enable me to have half of November and the entire month of December off. That’s the only reason to do this. It will be good tour with Phil, but walking away from the car after being dropped off was brutal.

I hate saying goodbye to my wife, and my kids. My five year old has started to say, “Daddy, I don’t want you to go”, while the other two don’t seem to care much. I know there are several people reading this that know what it’s like to be away from your family for extended periods of time, so I would ask you all to give a few prayers for the health and safety of my family. Also that the kids don’t drive my wife too nuts.

I am glad that there are plenty of friends and neighbors around that Kristin can lean on and that will check in on her frequently, but it still doesn’t make leaving easy.

I appreciate the prayers, and will be sure to blog from the road.

Then Abraham tied Issac up and laid him on the alter over the wood. And Abraham took the knife and lifted it up to kill his son as a sacrifice to the Lord. At that moment the angel of the Lord shouted to him from Heaven, “Abraham! Lay down the knife”… Then they returned to Beersheba. – Genesis 2:2

How about some ice cream, Isaac? No? Are you sure? I’ll tell you what, I’ll get us some ice cream Want some ice cream? I’ll get us some ice cream.

Wow, there’s nothing like camping! Cooking your own lamb, building your own prye… and no women! Just a couple of guys in the woods, lighting fires, doing stuff and keeping it between themselves! Speaking of which, do you ever notice how your mother sometimes gets ideas? I mean, she raised you and I love her, but she’s a very nervous person. All I’m saying is sometimes it’s alright not to tell her about certain things. Like guy things.

Wow, I just noticed that you have huge muscles! You’re really getting strong! When did you get so big and strong? Soon you’ll be a real strong guy!

Let me explain something to you. Sometimes grownups have to do grownup stuff that children don’t understand. I think there’s an ice cream place coming up. Like, what happened on top of the mountain? Do you remember? Of corse you… of corse. Anyway, that was a thing for grownups.

How about some Rocky Road? Chocolate? I’d get you some strawberry, but hey, your name’s Isaac not Isaac Marie right? Ha! Seriously though, if you want strawberry I’ll get it for you. I’ll get you whatever you want.

So let’s rehearse. I’ll be your mother. “Isaac, how was your trip up the mountain?” Okay, then you would say something like, “Pretty normal.” That’s not too hard right?

We’re almost home. Listen, I probably shouldn’t be telling you this, but your mother is very sick. She’s sick Isaac. And the slightest shock might kill her. Hey there she is, waving at us. Hi, Sarah, we’re back! Put a couple lambs on the spit – you’ve got a couple hungry lumberjacks on your hands. Ha ha. She’s very ill Isaac. Very ill. Wow, camping.

Ant Farm by Simon Rich