Middle March, 2010 A.D.
Dear Happy and Important Person,
I write you from my backyard. It’s sandals weather again here in Arizona. I put on shorts today for the first time (off the soccer field) in 2010. I’m almost through the fog of jet lag and my feet have finally dried off and thawed out. Though, I must admit, I was not really fond of the idea of having to leave the bloom and buzz of Spring’s arrival in the Arizona desert to visit the damp, grey, cold UK, our tour of the UK was great.
Our little tour van had no insulation on the floor (and the steering wheel was on the wrong side!), so from the time I got off the plane in London until I landed back in Phoenix, my feet were damp and cold. The British Isles had a soggy chill that got into this desert son’s bones and took awhile to thaw.
But that was really the only cold we felt. Though I saw (no kidding) a total of about 3 hours of sunlight in 3 weeks, and the air was cold and wet, the English, Scottish, Welsh and Irish audiences were warm and welcoming, the food was hearty and good, and the cities were a unique combination of ancient and modern and bustling and mysterious. I’d like to send out a very special thanks to all our American fans and friends who made the trip across the Pond, attended the shows and demonstrated to the Euro-audiences how to rock and roll, American style! You all really helped us break the ice.
We saw castles, the Tower of London, dungeons, the North Sea, Stonehenge (!), hedgerows, lots of sheep and very large hogs, Roman walls, the Moors, ancient battlefields, lots of football (soccer) games, Jim and I each drank about 100 pints of tasty ales, I tried all the local fare I could find including bangers and mash, fish and chips, shepherds pie, I actually drank whisky (Scotch single malt something-or-other…yes…when in Glasgow…), and I even ate haggis. I truly enjoyed every moment and am looking forward to RCPM’s next tour of the UK.
I am glad to be back in the good ol’ U S of A, in my beloved Sonoran Desert, and in my own neighborhood and backyard where I can find Mexican food, coffee (enough tea already!), tequila and strum my acoustic guitar from the comfort of my own hammock. And it’s time to give the big winter boots a rest and take the flip flops out for a spin.
Other stuff:
RCPM will be traveling to Nashville to begin recording a new album on April 7th with Ray Kennedy. I’ve admired Ray’s production work from afar for many years now and am very excited to work with him. He has won 3 Grammys and has produced albums with and for some very illustrious artists including, Lucinda Williams, Steve Earle, Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Sheryl Crow, Waylon Jennings, and a couple of my very favorite more-obscure artists, the V-Roys and Six String Drag. Truth be told, I’m kinda nervous. We’ll be rehearsing quite a bit before we depart AZ to record and we plan to put a few of the new songs on the set list at the Marquee Theater shows (3/26 & 3/27). We hope to give the songs our hometown’s blessing before we put them on tape.
What else?
I don’t personally blog or Twitter or FaceBook very much. My modus operandi is to write long and rambling letters. However, trivium without context can be fun. So here’s some miscellaneous spring-time mental detritus from me to you.
Spring begs for margaritas. I may have said it before, but the best margarita around can be found at a family Mexican food restaurant called “3 Margaritas.” It’s on Rural road in Tempe. Order the “original” and bring a designated driver if you’re planning on more than 1. I ride my bike.
Battles with Nerf dart guns are fun. The weather is a bit too cool yet for water balloon fights, so until it warms up, get your friends, kids, parents, nieghbors together in a friendly front-yard melee. It’s good exercise and good clean fun in the sun. Our neighborhood will switch to H2O balloons and squirt guns when mercury rises to about 90º.
I love soccer and am conspiring with our cantina-owning friends to host a beach soccer tournament-for-charity at our next Circus Mexicus. It’ll be an “everyone’s invited, co-ed, don’t take it too seriously, have fun” kind of tourney. The tide swings are going to be extreme that weekend so we’re in the process of making sure the “fields” won’t be underwater. Stay tuned.
There’s a bee in my coffee.
This Spring, I am making another attempt to finish “Don Quixote.”
Speaking of tilting at windmills, I still pursue the dream of one day sharing with those amongst you who enjoy tequila, a vivifying, ambrosial, recipe we can call our own. We’re making our way, little by little. Again, please stay tuned.
The same bee, or one that looks very similar to the aforementioned bee, is in my coffee cup. It’s after noon, anyway. Time to switch beverages….something sandal-worthy…
Salúd!
Roger
