The Road | Two Djinn

Frequently asked question: “Why are you doing this?” I have several canned responses each which is true but offers increasingly more information. “I like the dead quite a bit….” is my elevator pitch and the least helpful, since most people already assumed as much. A second, more complete response, is that I love American history, literature and culture, all of which can be enjoyed in surprising ways on a trip like this. But my ‘full monte’ reply is that living on ‘the road’ is nothing less than the quintessential US American experience. Lewis and Clark, Huck Finn and Jack Keroac created the wake I’m following. The idea is that there’s land a’plenty out there and we must see it. This sentiment is reflected in hundreds of years of American letters, but here two modern examples in song: “When I found myself in possession of these car keys, I just naturally assumed I could drive” (Big Finish, Todd Snider). “…going where the climate suits my clothes…” (Goin’ Down the Road Feelin’ Bad, Traditional).

Last night we saw our second show in Brooklyn. Chad slightly favored the first, I slightly favored the second, but both shows were great fun and we approached them differently. Whereas we hung out at the venue much of day 1, for day 2 we went hiking in the state park where we’d been camping and then drove into Brooklyn to the home of some new friends and rode the subway/train together to the venue. So far, the trip has definitely been relaxing, stress free, simple.

Next stop: Bethel, NY, the site of the original ‘Woodstock’ festival. They’ve built a state of the art outdoor venue that also features an on site museum of the 60s, Woodstock, etc. I saw a show there last year exactly 365 days ago. Last year’s show was a great one, hope to get the same tonight!