- A day of meeting, eating, and mixing.
- Trying out cymbals at Chicago Music Exchange, still not finding the one I’m looking for.
- Driving to Columbia for True/False Film and Music Festival, where Sammy, Casey, Liam, Lane and I are playing.
- The amazing documentary about one of the pioneers of bullet-proof vests, Richard Davis, called 2nd Chance. The bravery and goodness and sincerity of the people in Davis’s wake, putting a kick in my pandemic-dampened heart.
- A great show at Cafe Berlin drumming for Liam, watching Little Mazarn, and playing guitar with Casey.
- Sammy’s and my first synth-and-drums duo show ever, at True/False Film Festival’s “Sanctuary” stage in the First Presbyterian Church in Columbia, Missouri. It felt great!
- The sound engineer’s 3D-printed drum mic enclosures.
- Mija. Doris’s dad! It is worth seeing this documentary not only for the story but also because Doris’s dad’s love for his family, his selflessness and gentleness, is an antidote to the pessimism and disappointment that years of national friction and insensitivity can instill in us.
- The two splotches of water on the floor outside the hotel elevator. Wondering how they got there. Then, a few minutes later, seeing a kid gingerly carrying two cups of water toward the elevator — second attempt.
- Driving home from Missouri, making up songs and listening to podcasts with Casey and Sammy.
- This is exactly the kind of creative company I want to have: “CW&T is itself just a container for our creative practice. Sometimes we make a piece of software, sometimes a painting, sometimes a tool or a toy we want to use around the house. We don’t think of it as a large or growing endeavor, but rather as a sustainable practice that allows us to be creative, supports our family, and gives us a way to relate to a community.”
- Casey playing at the Glam Slam variety show at Cafe Mustache.
- Rehearsing for the upcoming Ripley show.
- The “elongated, bone color” toilet seat on steep discount at Home Depot.
- Casey and I futilely blowing on the hot toddies in our fancy vacuum-sealed thermoses, trying to cool them down.
- Crying so hard at Dad’s new song that FaceID couldn’t recognize my face anymore.
- The movie Coda. Loved it.
- The miniature cracker-and-chocolate hamburgers that Casey and I bought at World Market.
- The BILLIE EILISH show at United Center. Her and Finneas, singing together with nothing but acoustic guitars (for a portion of the show). Finneas’s awesome beats. Billie’s sweet banter and of course her voice.
- Rey, from my favorite discount power tool shop, talking about the sound of the aquarium in his shop giving him energy in the mornings, “even more than coffee.”
- On the road from Chicago to Austin, Texas, stopping for the night in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
- Eating lunch from Crown Candy in St. Louis, a beautiful, old-school malt shop.
- The old brick homes surrounding the store, some of which are vacant but still stunning and regal, some of which are lovingly maintained.
- Waking up before the sun rose to finish our drive to Austin. Arriving at Spider House in Austin for our first SXSW showcase, a half-hour before getting on stage to play (not our MO!).
- The ultra-kind proprietor of Cafe Yaya in Austin, who, after asking about the name of our band, ran out to the van as we were leaving, blasting “Shoes Too Tight” from his phone, telling us he likes the music.
- Jason harmonica-soloing at a jam-hang at the end of the day. Max kazoo-soloing.
- Showing up to Thor’s house in Austin and meeting a new, awesome dog every couple of feet.
- The gamer kids shopping in the army surplus store, remarking excitedly at different clothing items.
- The tiny blond chihuahua guarding the store.
- Kevin Morby and Katie Crutchfield performing at a totally packed coffee shop patio with a line around the block. The super cool abstract projections on the ceiling and PA, my favorite combinations of colors.
- Three more SXSW showcases with Liam, including one super good-feeling, stripped down house show.
- The Slaps. Tongue-in-cheek, funny, but also earnest, not douchey. I believed that their humor and attitude is real.
- Sometimes I think I’m smart, then I can’t figure out how to use a shower handle I haven’t seen before.
- The “clean dirt wanted” sign.
- The adorable, little smiley face formed by two screws and a crescent in the metal bar of a venue’s wheelchair lift.
- The cat outside the venue, donning a bandana bib, thanking patrons as they left the show.
- Driving to New Orleans overnight in order to avoid a storm that later led to tornadoes across the South.
- The copious po’ boys, oysters, gumbos, and Bloody Marys we ate and drank across New Orleans.
- Wandering around the Fairgrounds neighborhood in New Orleans, gawking at the nationally registered historic houses, warding off a hangover.
- The dulcimer-like sound generated by something rattling inside of a flagpole in Atmore, Alabama.
- The sun-faded image of a zillion peppers on a grocery store window looking like flappy, used condoms.
- Wondering what personal objects remain in the cars crushed, stacked, and wrapped up for recycling.
- The super sweet staff and great sound at Eddie’s Attic in Decatur, Georgia.
- Our hosts in Atlanta don’t know when their house was built because city building records were destroyed in a fire (maybe the Great Atlanta Fire?).
- Liam cooking two gourmet pastas and a salad for band dinner.
- Reading this, being confronted with the fact that some of the people we expect to keep us safe with their expertise are actually audaciously, arrogantly making it up as they go along.
- The digital billboard with broken pixels right where the mouth of a model in an ad was meant to be, giving her roiling, strobing digital teeth.
- Capturing and releasing perhaps the biggest spider I’ve ever seen, as a band, from our friends’ bathtub.
- The tin of cookies from a group of super sweet fans. (Diane, Beth, Chris, and “friend.”)
- The telephone pole in Richmond, VA covered almost entirely with poster staples (sans posters), like a barnacle-laden pier pillar.
- Walking around the National Mall with the band.
- The delicious lentil soup that Henry made for us to eat after our NYC show.
- The frantic stuffed-nose puppy breathing of the radiator.
- A band viewing of National Treasure in honor of our being in Philadelphia.