what a busy busy few days. have felt continually grateful in general, tho when under-rested, like right now, the enemy between my ears tries to attack, so will write a bit & not allow it any space… the wk @ work was amazingly busy!!! arrgghh!! :tho all in service to the kids, so all bearable… fri i left a bit early (as opposed to always late) bc my kind boss said he owed me some time, picked up my dear bud jani, & we drove thru biblical downpour to long beach, she chatting amiably away so i wouldn’t be scared by the deluge, cause she’s that kind of dear friend. nighttime across the channel via catalina express was dark & fun & we pretended we were on a train so we wouldn’t be scared & had a quick friend in lovely jennifer from sta cruz, who also was going over to the island to do the buffalo run… when we got off the boat, it was pouring still, but balmy, magical, the village’s windy streets lit up w/ moonglow & rain dollops. we decided to hoof our bags to the rm rather than wait in the taxi queue, & the walk was enchanting! i kept exclaiming, “this is like disneyland!!” which is a place i never go, but our nighttime raintime avalon trek felt like maybe the magic kingdom does to those who love it so… the streets were empty & lovely & our rm was beautiful & we returned to the night to walk & had coffee & little tacos w/pico de gallo at an outside table as music echoed from the bars & the rain drizzled off the eaves… back at the rm the bed was huge & we had 6 pillows & many extra blankets, so my friend who’s always warm could leave the windows open & i who am always cold wrapped up like a mummy & slept soundly. the next morn the view of village & ocean & billowing clouds stunned us; we ate steel-cut oats @ a hawaiian-themed joint & marveled at how clean & lovely & nostalgic & also vacant everything seemed. mexican locals zipped around on carts (few autos on the island) & we registered & i snapped photos of all the dazzling tile. we watched the ½ marathoners take off, old young fat slim brown white yellow but all grinning & all getting soaked from the continuing rain, then it was our turn. the 1st half of the course was uphill & very rainy & i had a good strong feeling of fuel in the muscles, made it all the way to the top, amazed as i passed many folks tho i was not at a racing pace, but on the way down the puddles were deep & i was slowed as my laces came undone EIGHT TIMES, even after i started double-tieing them, & i was glad for the finish line because in the last ½ mile or so, i could feel that my oats were not fully digested. yet there’s little better feeling than after a run, & i waited w/exhilaration for jani to return. she showed up w/a new friend, mary; they’d walked together, & mary, a school nurse, had encouraged jani to finish! that was just one more lovely thing that happened… we got cleaned up, checked out, & were strolling & window-shopping when they began to announce the medals. as i listened, i noticed many of the medal-winners’ times were slower than mine… they called my name! i’d gotten a 3rd place! then they called jani’s name, & mary’s name, & we all laughed! mary grinned, “see? if you live long enough, you get rewarded for it!” … we grubbed on peanut butter waffles, then napped on the boat back to LB. the weather gods were good from then on & we got to the rock & roll pizza gig w/more than plenty of time. jani convinced me to change into my show togs at the neimann-marcus across the road: the restroom was more like a posh dressing rm! i put on a shirt i made w/lux interior’s face on it, to honor the recently departed cramps genius… brian arrived w/philbert & they both looked really handsome in western-piped shirts, & since everyone was dressed nicely, we took a few band shots then they had some pizza (i only had a bite bc it kills my energy to eat before a show). r&r pizza put our name up on their marquee & displayed the newest poster permanently in the john, so we felt quite special & happy!... the show: tho the sound wasn’t the best ever, & phil didn’t even have a mike!, i feel it was totally fun, & like the last one there, one of the more happily memorable ones we’ve had. i asked phil to help me get up on the stage & he reached under my arms & tossed me up there like a cat! we started & after a few mins got the sound mixed to where i could hear that wanda jackson squalling-feline sound coming from my pipes as i sang, so i went w/that. the audience was beaming, & little girls kept coming up w/little notes they’d written to us, notes w/hearts & smiley faces on them. phil was killing on the guitar!! he's just unstoppable, the greatest, when he's in his groove! (moreover, several people including b commented phil & i have great stage rapport: another blessing). when we finished, the owner autographed the awesome poster he’d made for the show (below) & booker steve gave it to me... we loaded up, got some dough, some cookies for the road & caravanned back to bako, readied to be snowed in & have to get a giant rm for all 8 of us (band + brian, jani, geanna, julia), but like i said, the weather gods were good & so back to the barn we sailed under clear black sky… today i’ve had that after-show hangover feeling, but it’s most all good (tho like i said the brain attacks at times), b & i brunched at los cabos the pupusa house, over on brundage/baker, a lovely salvadorean eatery w/food every bit as good as mama roomba’s, & then we saw the wrestler, a gory but beautiful movie that just killed me, w/the most gorgeous ending i’ve seen in any movie lately, like it didn’t have to be stupid & obvious, & best of all, best of all, my dove has come back & is cooing outside right now as dusk settles… bella bella bella, todo es bien.
