9/27/07 Hollywood, CA

After the San Fran show we drove for about 70 miles and then got a motel, first one of the tour! That’s pretty good, sometimes we get several motels on the road, and that's expensive. Luckily, we've known some very fine people all along the way that have graciously offered their domiciles to us. I don't know if I touched on this before but in Salt Lake the couple we stayed with actually have a room in their house that is just for traveling band. Two bunk beds, wireless router, and a board for staying bands to leave notes tacked to. It wailed. Anyway, that was a while ago, back to Pacific Standard Time. I don't really like staying in motels because my overactive, over-vivid imagination over thinks the idea of the literal thousands of people who have slept in the bed I'm sleeping in. Laid their head on this pillow. Coughed into it. Copulated on it. Died in it. Eeeewwww.
Luckily, I had some drinks that helped put me to sleep at the bar after the show so I got some z's in the back of the van and then I just walked in when we arrived at the motel room and immediately fell asleep. I woke up at 7:00am feeling pretty skeeved out so I got up, washed my beard and brushed my teeth and messed around on the ol' lappy tappy until the other dudes woke up. I remembered at 9:05 that these places have breakfast until 9:00. I said, "shoot".

It was a good drive from San Francisco to Hollywood, we didn't listen to any music almost the entire way until we were getting into town and I put on Cat Power's Covers Record. We got here kinda way early. Like, 3:30 and load in was at 5:30. Luckily the promoter at the Knitting Factory was there and let us come in. The Knitting Factory is a weird place. The way to the green room is verbatim the Cleveland scene in Spinal Tap. A winding catacomb littered with pipes. The green room even had big pieces of meat and cheese and tiny pieces of bread. It wailed. Becky, I think it's just about time you see that movie. After loading in and sitting around for a while, Scott and I went down the street to get some slices of pizza (this is before we found out that they had disproportionate sandwich ingredients). Hollywood Blvd is more like the state fair than any Californian would like to admit. A culmination of textbook stereotypes, any food on any stick and an endless supply of crazy peppered with sadness. And lots of American Apparel stores.

So on to the show. This bullshit band fronted by a rejected American Idol backed by Nashville session musicians opened the show with their lavish video shoot. Evidently, instead of renting the Knitting Factory out for their shoot, they piggybacked on our Tour's show to make their video without telling anyone. It was ridiculous. And pushed the show back an hour. That was lame. Other than that, the show was good. I've been getting to play tambourine in Zookeeper on the song Î live in the mess you are. I love that song.

We are staying with George and Lauren in Pasadena, That's always nice, I love them. Tomorrow is a day off of funness. I'm stoked.

09/26/07 San Francisco

Short Drive. Played Bottom of the Hill. Tons of killer bands have played here. Its a really cool venue.
We didn't really get to see the city except from the highway so we could have been playing anywheresville. But, but, I did see the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz.
It was a fun show, I got to play tambourine in zookeeper on a song I really like. That wailed.
Got an oil change. earlier.
Sleep isn't really coming to me these days. I need some sleepytime tea with valerian root stat. Tomorrow, Hollywood. Last time I was there I (literally) ran into Andy Milonaukis on the street. My hopes are set high on a collision with someone A list.

09/25/07 Roseville CA

Roseville is a suburb of Sacramento.
It was a long drive. Scott and I enjoyed listening to some comedy, old bands, new bands, learn spanish CD.
Good show. Jamba Juice.
I don't know. My brain is Anxious.

09/24/07 Portland OR

Rolled into PDX (why is it called that?) around 5:00 today. We played downtown at a venue called the Satyricon. Portland is a rough town for music, small indie bands anyway. So the show was a little rough, which was expected. It was actually better than we could have expected. And a few people that were there for us were so stoked we were there so that always feels good. We get to stay with the almighty brewcaster which wails. We unfortunately have to get up at 6:00am to drive to Sacramento. Sick. It's a really beautiful drive though, that helps. I'll probably just take a crucial nap in Apartamento Del Sethy. So yep. There's my Portland post. Wasn't really here enough to formulate anything substantial. Although, there was a girl with hair that looked like my friend Becky's dog Lucy. I really wanted to pet that girl's hair. I was vibing her but she didn't seem into it.

09/23/07 Day Off Seattle

So Chad, the guy we stayed with last night and are staying with tonight tends bar at a private country. Said club sometimes has overstock on wine so the employees get to take it home. What does that mean for Sethy? He gets to imbibe Italian wine that costs $150 a bottle. Ho-lee Shit. I'm used to bottles of Tisdale Cab Sav back home which cost approximately 37 times less than that. Man it was so good. And so kind of Chad to share because I'll probably never to get to try something like that again. So that's what we did last night, Had a nice pasta dinner and enjoyed fine wines while listening to vinyl. Yes Please.

Today we walked from Freemont to Downtown Seattle, which is a really long walk. I think we all were feeling very stagnant after all of the long drives and just wanted to be active. I think had we known before that it was going to take 2 hours, we maybe would have reconsidered. I'm personally glad we didn't. I love the exercise. So we walked around downtown, by my old apartment and some of my old haunts. It was really awesome to see it all again. That's a really great city. We got coffee at the first Starbucks by Pike's Place Market, I think I was in the background of 50 photos taken by international tourists. Starbucks is such a strange phenomenon. But that rant is for another blog. Probably called boringyawn.blogspot.com

Tonight we ate Burritos and drank beer and wine and champagne while deeply discoursing about goals, dreams and success. It was good brover analysis. Get a few drinks in me and ask the right questions and I just might expatiate about self actualization for an hour or two.
Is that why I'm always drinking alone? Just kidding.

22/09/07 Seattle

Wow that was an early show. Doors at 5:00, we played at 7:00pm. we were done and out of the venue by 8:15. It kinda rocked. Helmet had a show right after us so we had to clear the hell out of there. Helmet is still around? Pretty sureal, all of it. We are staying with an old friend of Scott's that has such a killer music collection. He rocks. His name is Chad.

It's been wonderful being Seattle. I've really missed this town. Tomorrow is a day off in which we will explore and I will bore everyone with "Ooh, I used to by chik-o-sticks there!" and "I saw a homeless guy pee straight into the street right here!"
I'll give you a detailed pic post soon.

21/09/07 Boise ID

Today on the Drive I finished "In the Miso Soup" by Ryu Murakami. It was very enjoyable. And, kinda gross. More and more as I get older I have a harder time watching movies or reading books with gratuitous violence. I'm just turning into a softy I guess.

The show was good. The attendance was strange, mostly teenagers that stood outside all night looking cool smoking. I have to admit, they kinda looked cool. Not that cool though.
Tonight was the first night where I really got the chance to attentively watch and take in Zookeeper. Dang. It was awesome. We ran into them at a rest stop somewhere in iowa earlier today, we're all already at the stasis of hugging. That's the best.
Girls in Boise really love the glasses. Typically, one or two people in any given place will sometimes notice them, and I'll notice that they notice. Not here, no one is bashful. One girl even went as far as really wrapping her arms around me and calling me her "nerd boyfriend! Get a picture of me and my nerd boyfriend!" She hugged me so hard that I could feel feel the clasp in between the cups of her bra. That's right, exploit me baby. Actually don't. It made me really uncomfortable. I'm sure the picture is hilarious because i'm probably making a very pained face.

Once we got to our friend Dustin's house where we were staying we hung out with a bunch of cool kids. A very calm circular congregation on the couches in the living room. I was sitting on the floor with my laptop where it goes and all of the sudden a very realistic, very large, very pliant dildo emerged. The only pictures I've taken all tour are of that icon of illicit sinew stuck to the living room ceiling by its surprising suction cup. Worst part: they found it in a field. Said they washed it in the washing machine. Still so gross.

Have to get up at 6:30am to drive to Seattle tomorrow. hhhhhghhhjjhh. It is a beautfiful drive, I am looking forward to that.
If I had my way we'd listen to the entire owen catalogue.
I do not have my way.

Here's pictures of ceiling wang.

Salt Lake 20/09/07

Man. I love family times. Just getting to go to the grocery store with my sister Emily and my niece Natalie is for some reason such medicine for my soul. So staying at their house with their whole family for two days was like a big love hospital for sethy.

The shows have been great. I really enjoy watching zookeeper. I appreciate muchly their ragtag, non-chalant professionalism they carry themselves with on stage. Their an easy listen and watch. Plus we're hitting it off with them which is always nice.

Drives are long at this stage. I've read a lot. I started "In the Miso Soup" by Ryu Murakami today, I'm already 2/3rds done. I won't lie, it's a tough read. Not in a level of scholar way, but a brutal murder scenes sort of way. Very smartly written though. I'm enjoying it. Tomorrow I'll either start "the Unbearable Lightness of Being" or "To Own A Dragon". My sister bought me the latter for my birthday because she read it and really enjoyed it. She said "this book is about growing up without a father, You'll love it". Funny how that's true. The author (his name escapes me at the moment) wrote a book called "Blue Like Jazz" that a lot of people recommended to me, I tried that one but couldn't passed the nondenominational comedy shtick. I guess I'm in a literary dark period.

Wait, this is a tour blog. Sorry friends.
I had a nightmare last night. IT was LAME.
I am not being good to my body so far. Too much coffee. Too much food.
Boise tomorrow. should be fun.

Sorry for the typos, spellcheck's not working.
be well.

Denver 19/09/07

Today is Day 1 of the Umbrellas, Zookeeper, Lydia west coast tour. We had a drive day yesterday, I finally finished a book I was reading. White Teeth by Zadie Smith. It rocked. I have four books I'm going to try to read on this tour. Pretty ambitious, I know. I'm a deliberate reader.

We're at my Sister's House in Superior, about 30 minutes West of Denver. There's a lot of love in this house. I really enjoy being here.

I'm interested in meeting the other bands tonight. I hadn't really even thought about that until today. Hopefully they're good people.