Typical Day on the Road

January 2007

< - December 06 - January 07 - Febrauary 07 - >

Jan. 1

Still visiting Kimberly's parents in Reno, slaving away in their garage to get the new show ready. Said goodbye to our "daughter" Ellie, who was an overnight guest after conspiring with Zephyr to drive over the hills and surprise Kimberly, and now drove to San Diego.

Today we heard the staggering news that the American death toll in Iraq has reached the 3000 mark, well past the number killed on 9-11. (Nobody is even counting the Iraqi death toll, which could be as high as 100,000.) It sounds like a grim way to start the new year, but the good news is that we are about to see a major shift in direction in congress. Let's hope this means the beginning of the end of this insane and obscene "war" (as it almost always is erroneously labeled) and a repairing of the damage done to the good name of this great nation.

Jan. 2

Our last full day of preparing for the show. We said goodbyes to Joey and Jenny, our niece and nephew who have been staying with their grandparents for the past week, and who drove them home to Sacramento.

Kimberly's old high school friend Tania, who also came from Oakland to visit for the holidays, called to report that her mother has passed away. This was quite a shock, as her mother had just treated us to lunch about a month ago, and she seemed fine.

And speaking of seeming fine, so does our radiator for the time being, so we didn't use up precious time by taking it into the shop.

Jan. 3

Finished packing up our things, amid gale force winds, and said goodbye to Kimberly's parents. Then made a final run to our storage unit to drop off some things. Then filled our larder at Trader Joe's and headed out toward Las Vegas via Highway 95. Dennis did the driving for once, so Kimberly could hand-sew the dragon we're using in our new production. Spent the night in the historic town of Tonopah, where the winds were even stronger and the dust danced furiously along with it.

Jan. 4

Arrived in Las Vegas and did some last-minute prop shopping and preparations for the premiere of our new production, "Quizzical Quests", tomorrow. Also had to edit and burn a revised CD of musical accompaniment to "Simple Ivan", which will be one of the stories we'll feature in the first performance. To do this, Dennis had to take his laptop into a Borders bookstore and plug it in and work in an awkward spot in front of the comic book rack, dodging customers who came to browse. We then ran the story in the parking lot of a YMCA, where we went to get a workout.

Jan. 5

Our first two performances of our new show, "Quizzical Quests", at St. Christopher School in North Las Vegas. The premiere went quite well, as did the workshop we presented afterward to a group of teachers. (Today's performances both featured "Simple Ivan" from Russia and "The Golden Pitcher" from Mongolia, two stories that we've done previously, years ago.)

Afterward we headed to Henderson, where we got online at the library, shopped at Trader Joe's, bought dinner at La Salsa, and spent the evening reading up at Borders. Upon hitting such familiar haunts, it seemed that after several weeks of being rooted in one community (the Bay Area), we were returning to a "normal" lifestyle.

Jan. 6

We began this Saturday by driving downtown to visit the discount ticket booth on Fremont St. to purchase admission to a couple of Las Vegas "must see" attractions. One of them was a ticket for Zephyr only to patronize "Star Trek: The Experience". (Mom and Dad were content with already having boldly gone where everybody else goes .) The other was half-price admission for all of us to see Penn and Teller this evening. Then we drove on to the Hilton, where Zephyr indulged in the Star Trek fix all day, including a backstage tour that gave away the closely guarded secrets of how the rest of the attraction operates. (Shh! Don't tell.) Meanwhile, his parents went to lunch at an Indian restaurant, and contemplated taking a ride on the new monorail, but discovered that there was a fare of 5 dollars each way. We used to ride the free monorail that ran along The Strip, and are appalled to see that there is a charge for this one, considering how much commercialism is involved.

This evening we headed to the Rio to see Penn and Teller, a hilarious (but too brief) blend of madcap magic and goofiness. Unlike most magic acts, at which a seasoned observer can usually figure out the secret of most stunts, their act often leaves you truly mystified.

As we walked into the auditorium, two jazz musicians were onstage playing a piano and a bass viol, and several members of the audience also were onstage, signing their names to a large manila envelope pinned to a bulletin board. This, we learned from an usher, was a prop to be used in the show, and everyone was invited to autograph it. As we waited onstage to do just that, Zephyr commented that the bass player looked like Penn Jillette - and indeed he was. (Teller later demonstrated his own musical skill by playing the xylophone in the middle of the act.)

One of the funniest things about this duo is that they use volunteers (and/or victims) from the audience for certain stunts and gags. In one such bit, Penn illustrated his assertion that ESP and mind-reading feats are invariably fraudulent by having a man from the audience (chosen in a random fashion to insure he wasn't a plant) select a joke from a joke book and read it aloud. Then, just as he reached the punchline, a banner was removed from the envelope to reveal that the punchline was printed on it. And a woman from the audience was selected ostensibly to participate in a knife-throwing routine, and she found herself to be the butt of a very funny joke.

After the show, the stars mingled in the lobby to greet and pose with folks from the audience. Yes, this included Teller, who never speaks onstage, but is quite articulate offstage. Dennis had seen these two, who were then a trio performing under the name Asparagus Valley Cultural Society, in San Francisco in 1980. (And as they were not yet celebrities, he also spotted them sitting unrecognized in the audience of another show.) He asked Teller what became of the third member, Weir Chrisemer, and Teller replied, "We killed him and took his clothes." (Reportedly, they actually split from him because he was very conservative and objected to some of their more risqué humor.)

Jan. 7

Met up with a family from the online group Families on the Road (FOTR), who drove from Pahrump (about 50 miles away) just to meet us. We browsed through Bass Pro shop, which has an extensive line of merchandise of interest to sportspersons, campers and general outdoorsy types like us.

We then headed to the RV park at Circus Circus (now a KOA), hoping to spend a day and night camped on The Strip. But we arrived to find that the rate for one night is 52 dollars, for the off-season! (This is about double the rate we paid when we last stayed here, before KOA assumed ownership.) Not willing to pay such a stiff price for what was just a parking lot with hookups, we drove on to check out other prospects.

On the way, however, we experienced a slight delay when Kimberly, driving the RV, took too sharp a turn at too high a velocity (She seems to have been undertaking a physics experiment.), causing a rear tire to impact with a curb and get a huge gash ripped in it. This was one time we were glad to have dual wheels on the rear (normally they're considered an inconvenience, as they're difficult to air up, among other things) as we were able to continue driving and exit the freeway we'd just entered and look for a tire shop. And presto, we happened to see one right near where we exited; moreover, it was still open (open 24 hours in fact). This establishment was operated by and patronized by members of the Latino community, and it was difficult to find anyone who even spoke English. But once we finally did, the tire was replaced within minutes, and at a cost of "only" 125 dollars which is not as bad as it could have been on a Sunday afternoon.

So finally we arrived at the Silver Nugget RV Park, and found it to be a facility only slightly inferior to the Circus Circus KOA, at a nightly rate of only 18 bucks - about a third of the KOA rate!

Jan. 8

A last-minute run-through of our new story "The Fourth Question" which we premiered this afternoon at Eva Simmons School in North Las Vegas, in the first of our two performances there. The rest of the afternoon, and a good part of the evening, we spent at It's A Grind coffee shop, in a conquest of the Internet.

Jan. 9

Two more performances at Eva Simmons School, this time in the morning. We arranged to have three guests come to see us perform: the parents and the brother of Kristin, the friend of our "adopted daughter" Ellie. (We went biking with the two of them on Cape Cod in the summer of 2005.)

On our way out of town, we paused in Henderson to do our banking and to stock our pantry at Trader Joe's, then we headed toward New Mexico.

When we drove through Kingman, Arizona, we saw that the Arizona Inn is still in operation, and we chuckled as we recalled a road memory associated with that place. For some reason, Arizona Inn was one of Zephyr's favorite places to stay when he was much younger (perhaps it was the Route 66 era design, or the park across the street, or the historical feel of the whole section of town, or a combination of the above.) and every time we passed through, he wanted to spend the night there. This included one winter night many years ago, when we were in a rush to get somewhere, and wanted to travel quite a distance beyond Kingman before stopping for the night. Our little boy was rather disappointed when we passed up Arizona Inn and continued east. But a few miles out of town, we entered a mountain pass and suddenly encountered a blizzard that was so fierce we hardly could see 100 feet in front of us. We crept along to the next exit, which was only about 5 miles, but took us half an hour, then turned around and spent another half hour heading back into town. We opted to hole up for the night at - you guessed it - the Arizona Inn. By this time, Zephyr was snoring away, but when he woke up the next morning, he immediately realized, with delight, where he was. (And despite the delay, we made it to our destination - near Phoenix, as we recall - in plenty of time.)

Speaking of mountain passes, tonight we drove over that dreaded one just before Flagstaff, but for once there was no snow. Stopped for the night in Winslow.

Jan. 10

Drove on to Gallup, another town that holds a few road memories. When we did a 7-state tour of "A Christmas Carol" in 1994 (a full-scale production with a company of 8, the only time we've ever undertaken such an undertaking) we spent our first night on the road here because Gallup offered the closest hotel rooms available to our first performance at the Navajo Nation Fairgrounds in Window Rock, AZ (about 50 miles away). On another occasion, we (just the 3 of us, not the Christmas Carol cast) spent the night at the campground at Red Rocks, a state park just outside of town on which a major Native American convention center, complete with rodeo facilities, is located. We took a hike in the "red rock" formations that looked almost like being on a foreign planet - and the strong winds we encountered were rather otherworldly too. Even so, the sound carried extremely well through these canyon walls and we could overhear an argument emanating from a couple about 1000 feet away. As we pulled out of the campground, a blizzard appeared out of nowhere and chased us out of town.

Today, however - although it was about the same time of year - the weather was much milder. We took care of some shopping in preparation for some workshops we have scheduled tomorrow at a school after our performance. In particular, we stocked up on so many paper plates and so much foil (to be used in some Arts and Crafts projects) that the store personnel must have thought we were whipping up a picnic for the National Guard.

After putting in a couple of hours working at an Internet café, we drove on to Kirtland, where we spent the night at a little RV park a few miles from tomorrow's show.

Jan. 11

A full day at Bond School in Kirtland, NM. We began with a performance of "Simple Ivan" and "Golden Pitcher", followed by each of us conducting 6 workshops in performance, sign language, writing, and/or crafts activities pertaining to our stories.

In the evening, we presented another performance for students and their families, and it was quite well attended. This time, we did "Fourth Question", and the premiere of our revival of "Luck and Money" a story originating from New Mexico that we first performed several years ago.

Jan. 12

After trying a couple of shops to see if they could patch up our transmission fluid leak, we drove on to Albuquerque, stopping every 50 miles or so to check the fluid level.

Arriving in the Albuquerque suburb of Rio Rancho, we stopped at the post office and picked up our mail.

Then we drove around town quite a few miles in an attempt to find another wi-fi place, for which we always have a heavy demand. But the first place was closed, and the second place was about to close, so on to option three: an independent bookstore called Page One, which is about as large and varied as a Borders. It also featured a coffee shop - which, curiously enough, closed at 2:00, but the wireless was still available until the store closed at 10:00. And we stayed almost that long, after which we just spent the night in the parking lot.

Jan. 13

First thing today, we made more attempts to have our leak repaired, but unable to find a place that could do it today - everyone was either too busy until Monday, or else just didn't have a lift big enough to hoist our vehicle. (We're remembering why we swore off buying RVs in the future many years ago.)

So we returned to the bookstore to get some more work done, and then in the afternoon we went to the YMCA for a much-needed workout.

After this, Kimberly still felt the urgency to get more Internet work accomplished, so we scouted out yet another location. And we ended up finding a gem: a coffee shop/ restaurant called The Blue Dragon with tasteful and imaginative vegetarian and vegan menu items. It's a spacious 4-room establishment with a pool table, a fish tank, and one room devoted to showcasing musicians. We ordered an excellent whole wheat crust pizza and settled in for the evening, which went on almost until the 11:00 closing time.

Jan. 14

Returned to The Blue Dragon for a while this morning, and even on Sunday there were musicians playing. Their audience, like last night, was sparse, but this venue seems to be a readily available place to jam. It's also a "hip" hangout, full of bohemian types with earrings of every conceivable variety.

We then bought a few groceries at Wild Oats, and headed to a campground just outside town, up on a hill just high enough to afford a panoramic view of the city.

Jan. 15

One of those rare instances when Martin Luther King's birthday actually falls on his birthday.

We decided to rendezvous with a local group of homeschoolers (actually they call themselves "unschoolers") at a bowling alley, and rode our bikes the whole way (nearly 10 miles), even though the chill factor was about 20 degrees - definitely the frostiest ride we've had yet. Our itinerary took us along old Route 66, with motels that still sport classic neon signs form the Fifties (we especially loved one shaped like a cactus), through Old Town, which is rather similar to Santa Fe with its adobe buildings full of gift shops and restaurants, and its gathering of Native Americans vending jewelry on the sidewalks.

On we rode past the Explora children's museum and the Atomic Museum (Just duck and cover, kiddies), until we reached the bowling alley about an hour later than we'd hoped. By this time, the kids were tired of bowling and were preparing to leave. But we at least met everyone and warmed up before heading back.

This time we took a more scenic route along the Rio Grande. At first we wondered why it's called the Rio Grande when it appeared to be so dinky. Then we realized we were actually riding along a drainage canal, and the actual river was on the other side, and had been obscured by trees. Oh well, it still didn't appear all that big.

Jan. 16

Still holed up at the campground, and the weather is still nipping at our noses and ears. We recorded and edited our 29th podcast, elaborating on our adventures in Las Vegas last week. Kimberly is sewing costumes for our Shakespeare show, which opens in one month, and Dennis is still wrapping up the script. Fortunately, he has a pretty competent collaborator.

Jan. 17

Headed to Rio Rancho, where we have performed at the library at least a couple of times in the past. But this time, we were in the brand spanking new building. In the audience were local author Mark Dunn and his wife, Mary. Dennis invited them because he remembered that he and Mark were in a music theory class together many, many moons ago at Memphis State University (now the University of Memphis). Mark is the author of numerous plays and 3 novels: "Ella Minnow Pea", "Welcome to Higby", and "Ibid; a Life". He told us that he also is now at work on a children's book.

After chatting with the Dunns for a while (and hearing the sad news that Mark's twin brother Clay died 3 weeks ago), we went back to spend another evening at the Blue Dragon.

Jan. 18

Finally, finally found a Firestone that would repair our transmission leak (turned out fortunately to be just a loose fitting) and do the oil change. Across the street was a bike shop that quickly fixed the front brake on Kimberly's bike. For free!

Then we went to the recently opened Trader Joe's and stocked up as much as we could, since we won't be seeing another one for a few months. (First time we've ever bought 7 boxes of cereal!)

After an unsuccessful attempt to locate a place to buy propane, we went to the YMCA and then finished out the night at Barnes & Noble.

Jan. 19

We're delaying our departure of Albuquerque because there's a snowstorm moving in - and it's coming from the South, where we are headed, so we don't want to drive into it.

Today we took a tour of the National Atomic Museum near Old Town. We found it to be a mixed bag, with an imbalanced view of nuclear energy and the bombing of Japan as being necessary and beneficial. There are plenty of opposing arguments to those assertions, and it would have been nice to see a pro and con approach, such as the museum did offer nicely on the subject of food irradiation. Especially enjoyed the display of atomic medical quackery and the films, but we were a bit disturbed by the heavy emphasis on warfare.

In Old Town, we found a quaint little tea shop called New Mexico Tea Company, and we bought some wares for our caffeine fix after chatting with the proprietor, a young man who said he used to work on a cruise ship and started this shop only back in November. He seemed very knowledgeable about his tea. After teaing off, we went to a bakery for a loaf of Southwest Chile Bread.

Then, after several unsuccessful efforts, we managed to find a place to get propane. And, after a brief rehearsal for our new Shakespeare show (It would have been longer, except Dennis has been battling a nasty cough for the last week or so, and now Zephyr seems to be coming down with what he's got), we returned once more to the Blue Dragon to work on our computers while listening to live folk rock music. We're beginning to feel like regular Dragonheads.

Jan. 20

Decided to leave Albuquerque and head south, since the snow, some of which fell on us last night, seems to have abated. In late afternoon we landed in Roswell, where we purchased a new table to use in our upcoming Shakespeare show. And then we rehearsed in the middle of a chilly parking lot.

We were in a movie mood tonight, so we made our way to the mall, which much to our astonishment we discovered locked up tight at 6:00 on a Saturday. We each went to a separate film, none of which we particularly enjoyed. (Except Zephyr, who always seems to like the flicks he sees.)

Jan. 21

Stopped briefly at the UFO Museum in Roswell. (How can you visit Roswell without going to the UFO Museum?) But we discovered that, unlike in the past, the facility now charges admission. It could be that this is because they are planning to move to new quarters. A shame, because the current location, an old movie theater, seems ideal. (NOTE: We've done extensive tours of the museum on two previous occasions, and have already written about it on this website. There is little more to add, except to note that the government STILL apparently has not come clean about whatever actually happened here 60 years ago, but has continued to cover it up with explanations more implausible than "Little Green Men", and has changed its story several times.) We bought some postcards with pictures of aliens on them to mail to folks we know across the country and even in Japan.

After spending some time doing computer work in the local Hastings bookstore (the only Hastings we've ever seen with an Internet café), we drove on to Carlsbad.

Jan. 22

Up early and into an RV repair shop, one of the few we found in town. Our "house batteries" (which operate interior lights, water pump, water heater, furnace, etc.) have not been recharging, even though both of them are practically new - not even after checking their water levels and cleaning the terminals. The mechanic replaced a relay switch under the hood for a measly 90 bucks, and now we have heat and water again.

We'd planned to take a tour of Carlsbad Caverns, since it's been at least 5 years since we'd been there. But we found that the Caverns are closed today (What are the odds?) because of allegedly icy roads leading there, even though the roads didn't look icy at all to us.

So on we pressed into Texas, and yet another time zone change and another hour "lost". For once, Dennis is doing the driving (just like in the good ole days) so Kimberly can take advantage of the electricity produced by our inverter to churn out Shakespeare costumes on her sewing machine.

In the middle of the afternoon, we stopped in the sleepy but picturesque historic town of Pecos, and rehearsed our Shakespeare show in a parking lot next to the West of the Pecos Museum (closed) and the Texas Rodeo Hall of Fame (ditto) - it seems that this town has as its claim to fame the distinction of being the site of the first rodeo on this planet ever!!

After warming ourselves with hot chocolate, we continued our long haul across the Republic of Teksizz, with few towns to impede our progress. We did pass through Odessa and Midland (which proudly proclaims itself the home of George W. and Laura Bush - Shhh! Don't you dare tell the locals that he's actually a Yankee!) and Big Spring, after which we stopped for the night.

Jan. 23

Spent most of the day in Abilene, holed up at the library and getting some computer work done. We were fascinated by a young man seated at a table near us with a neat stack of magazines, which he slowly and deliberately shuffled one at a time into a new neat stack, again and again. We guessed that he might have been autistic, but in any case he took great pleasure in the task he was performing; and we thought what a rare gift it is to be able to be so thoroughly engrossed in such a simple activity.

Jan. 24

Went to the Abilene YMCA, where we had a good workout inside, and a good rehearsal in the parking lot. Then we drove to the Dallas area.

Our first stop was the Guitar Center in Arlington, where we hoped to get Zephyr's electric guitar ("St. Jimi", named in part after Jimi Hendrix, who played a very similar model) repaired. Its jack for the amplifier has been kaput for several weeks, and we need it in good working order for our new show. (Yes, the Shakespeare show. It's a long story.) But we arrived there and were told that the technician probably could not get to it for a week or so. On the other hand, since it was a rather simple job, he might be able to knock it off tomorrow if we got to him in the morning.

So we stayed in the area, spending part of the evening at a Barnes & Noble, where a group of chess buffs were playing games.

Jan. 25

Headed back to the Guitar Center, but first did some shopping at the Whole Foods across the street. In the Guitar Center, we talked to the repairman, but he said he didn't do any work on the premises - he took everything home with him. Thus, he couldn't take care of it anytime soon, and we were back at the familiar location of Square One.

From thence we went to a nearby Atlanta Bread Company and spent the better part of the day (at least we think it was better) doing Internet work.

After we left, we noticed that there was a fabric store near it, so Kimberly bought some more odds and ends for the show. We also noticed that next door to it was a music store, selling mostly pianos and band instruments, with a few guitars as well. And there was a repair station inside as well - a fulltime repair station, as opposed to the catch as catch can situation at Guitar Center outlets. Dennis went inside and inquired about the possibility of repairing an electric guitar on short notice. He was referred to a young repairman, a college-age fellow who said he certainly could do the job and it probably wouldn't take long - but he wouldn't be in tomorrow because he has classes to attend. Dennis asked what time he would be leaving today, and he said he had to leave at 6:00 to get to another class (it was then 5:20). When asked if he could repair the guitar if it was brought in within 10 minutes, he confidently answered in the affirmative, so Dennis rushed around the corner to grab the instrument - alerting Zephyr in the process, who also came into the store - and the young man was as good as his word. The problem was finally solved, for a mere 32 dollars.

Spent part of the evening at Barnes & Noble, although Dennis went across the street to Target to ask about getting a replacement on warranty of an Internet module Zephyr had purchased for his computer back in January. While the warranty was good for a year, we were a week or so past the cutoff point for a replacement/refund from Target. Nonetheless, the fellow at customer service agreed to let it slide and allow an exchange. Two technical problems solved in one day!

Jan. 26

Laundry, rehearsal and YMCA workout in Arlington. (One of our new swords is broken already, but fortunately we have a couple of spares.)

Then on to the clubhouse of the Dallas KOA, where we attended a potluck gathering of FOTR (Families on the Road), meeting in the flesh several RV-type folks with whom we've been in touch online.

Jan. 27

After spending an hour or so at Panera doing computer work, we drove to Houston. That is, Dennis drove while Kimberly did more sewing on costumes for the new show.

In late afternoon, we arrived at the home of the FreeRange Family, another FOTR family, who are preparing to go on the road fulltime. They (or at least mom and kids) came to a couple of our shows in New Jersey when they were living there about a year ago.

Jan. 28

Before leaving Houston behind, we and our hosts went to play Laser Tag - only the second time we've ever done it. We didn't do terribly well this time - in fact Zephyr did downright terribly, ending up with a negative score and NO hits at all - it was obvious that his equipment was malfunctioning, so he was given a refund and a coupon for a free game at one of their franchises in the future.

Then we said our goodbyes and made the drive to New Orleans, where we are scheduled to do a couple of days of volunteer work rebuilding with Habitat for Humanity. We arrived about midnight at their base camp in Violet, just south of the city, and after getting clearance with the security guard, settled on the grounds near some other RV's to sleep for what was left of the night.

Jan. 29

Up early to volunteer at Habitat for Humanity. They were unable to place us on an assignment for today (through no fault of their own - it was we who made an error), but they referred us instead to another organization called St. Bernard Project, in the nearby town of Chalmette. So we drove there in our own vehicle (volunteer workers are normally transported in vans) and had an experience that was stranger than strange.

Arriving at SBP headquarters, we saw that parking in the neighborhood was, contrary to what we were led to believe, rather challenging. So we pulled into a temporary spot across the street, and went inside to check in and find out where we could park for the day. Remembering that we'd left some paperwork outside, Dennis went right back out to retrieve it, when he was accosted by a fellow who demanded that he move the vehicle at once. Dennis assured him that we'd only be there a minute or so, but he insisted that we move NOW, if not sooner. (He did not identify himself at this time, but he turned out to be the director of the project; thus he should have been able to direct us to a more appropriate parking location. He didn't.) So Dennis said he'd go inside to tell Kimberly about the apparent urgency, rather than cruise the neighborhood for who knows how long while the rest of the family wondered where he was. By the time he went back inside, Kimberly already had been informed about where to park, and was preparing to do so. In the meantime, this fellow apparently had become enraged because Dennis didn't move the vehicle quickly enough, and started yelling at him about his "attitude", saying "You act like you think you're doing someone a favor" by volunteering. (No, we're not joking - this is an actual quote!!) After several minutes of this, with Dennis trying all the while to calm him down and wondering what on earth he'd had for breakfast, he said, "I don't want you here. Go work somewhere else."

Thus, rather than spending the day with hammer and nails, we decided we'd hunt up an Internet café, since we might not be able to get online for another two or three days. In driving toward one, we got a good look at St. Bernard Parish (a parish is basically what they call a county in Louisiana), which was one of the areas hardest hit by Katrina, and our jaws were agape at what we saw. Except for the fact that the water had receded, many neighborhoods looked as if the disaster had struck only yesterday. Gutted houses and buildings were everywhere, and some areas looked like a ghost town. The residents appear to be living mostly in trailers supplied by FEMA, and most of these trailers are located in encampments set up in the parking lots of abandoned shopping centers, or even on school lots. Despite all we'd heard, we'd never imagined that so much work remains to be done.

Passing through New Orleans, we decided to take an impromptu cruise through the French Quarter, despite its precariously narrow streets. We were pleased to see that whatever damage was done here appears essentially repaired. It may seem inequitable that a touristy section of the city is thriving again while so many lower-income citizens are out of their homes. But the French Quarter, in addition to being a source of badly needed revenue, is also a symbolic beacon of the region's morale. If it's okay, then maybe things are not quite as bad as they seem.

We found a CC's Coffee shop, and got online for a little while, but somehow got booted off and were unable to reestablish a connection. So we went to another CC's to do a bit more Internet work, before heading to a YMCA for a workout, and then back to base camp for a good night's sleep, and hopefully a less bizarre day tomorrow.

Jan. 30

It was indeed a much better day today; in fact the unexpected turn of events was as pleasant today as it was unpleasant yesterday.

We went inside Camp Hope (as it is called) to see about a job assignment, and were referred to a bulletin board with about 6 prospects posted on it. We settled for one that was basically a miscellaneous category (we might have ended up cleaning toilets if we'd stayed with it) but as we were waiting for a ride, along came a gentleman named Danny who said who was looking for someone to work with him. When he found out what we do for a living, he was quite interested in taking us along with him.

It turns out that he's a volunteer himself, and he and his wife are also fulltime RV'ers (retired). And he's been working at a school with a program called Play Helps that is partnered with Habitat for Humanity.

Play Helps was established by the Children's Museum of Manhattan after 9-11. The objective is to use the arts as therapy for children affected by catastrophe. And the school to which we were dispatched, Andrew Jackson Elementary, was in the midst of a neighborhood that was eviscerated by the disaster.

We parked outside the school lot, which was taken up largely by FEMA trailers where folks are living, and went to one of the geodesic style tents in back of the school building which are serving as makeshift (and rather chilly at the moment) classrooms. Typically, Danny would begin the session by demonstrating a Native American flute (which he says he often plays for lengthy periods of time without really playing a tune - just expresses himself) and then he also showed them a Tibetan singing bowl, which they found quite fascinating to witness its mysteriously produced tone.

Then Dennis would take the "stage" and illustrate principles of pitch with a lap harp, his flute, and a bottle partially filled with water. There was a heavy demand to play "When the Saints Go Marching In" on the flute, and we realized it's because the New Orleans Saints use that tune as a pep song.

Then it was Zephyr's turn, and he'd wow them with his electric guitar. In fact, they were pretty impressed with just the sound that came from it, even before he actually played a tune on it.

Finally, we'd hand out percussion instruments to the students and have them shake, rattle and bang for some wild rhythm effects, with and without Zephyr playing along. We conducted five such sessions during the school day, plus one during the after-school program.

This evening, the school was holding a special event featuring sports-themed games and activities, and we were invited to offer such an activity if we could come up with one. We racked our brains for a while and finally invented what we call Theatre Baseball, in which two teams compete in an effort to score points by advancing around the bases by acting out concepts which their teammates try to guess (a la charades). It was a big "hit".

Jan. 31

Another interesting day of working and playing with the kids at Andrew Jackson Elementary.

Then we were off to Mississippi, where we checked into a campground and met up with some more folks from Families on the Road (FOTR). They are a family of 6, but the kids are pretty young, and they are traveling in a huge bus, which has been converted into spacious, rather luxurious quarters.

This evening, they brought over some absolutely delicious homemade spinach lasagna, salad and whole wheat garlic bread. (Amy and Devon met while both were working as cooks, so the level of culinary skill in the household is quite high.)

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