chicago

moon roof

We got to chicago late on a saturday night and thanks to the unwavering hospitality of Michelle Menzies got right to setting up what was to be our double double bed of salvation in the front living room of her hyde park headquarters (yes, just around the corner from Obama’s house). After NYC, we were pooped and were happiest at our laziest. The next day Jake played his show at the Moon Roof (with Danny Malone, check him out, listen to “Baby Bleu,” this will probably be on the next mix I make for you), where we got our first glimpse of the famous chicago skyline. We roasted some weeners and corn on the roof, rendez voused with old Davey and my dear old friend Liz! bathed in the sun, felt like no time has passed since we last saw each other, it was peachy.

beets and beans

The Sadocks invited us over for a visit at their lake side highrise and checking out the lake on our way over I said “I wish we could go sailing!,” which the genie granted to us in the form of some very generous parents of a brother in law, a spiffy little seaworthy boat named Voila and some old friends who were happy to have our company out on the water. It was then that we realised, after a few months on “the mainland,” how much we missed the water!

so, voila!

don't give up the ship

Chicago is a city that Chicagans are proud of. It’s also a city that neither Jake or I knew anything about. Architecture, prairie school, what building? It’s always been a stretch for me to see beauty in skyscrapers. But skyline, that’s another thing I think. And I do remember the moment when I noticed how thoughtfully designed the chicago skyline is, driving along lake shore drive and seeing the river cut through buildings that looked like they had actually just been carefully put there by a giant hand. Good work. Not to mention all the good I heard about the city’s mayor. Anyone who can seamlessly incorporate bicycles and wildflowers into city planning deserves mad props.

the mayor loves wildflowers

the bean

the inevitable

bunny!

cupcakes with friends!

tell you all about it

It was in Chicago that Champ developed the need to be turned off in order to go into reverse. We allowed the poor vehicle this quirk after all the miles we had traveled and moseyed on our way to Minneapolis, and onward, where the quirk culminated in a little bit of an epic breakdown. So stay tuned amigos. And rest assured that as I write this we are in fact back in the pacific northwest, with a maxed out credit card yes, but still happy as clams and grateful as all get up.

philly

city hall?

Pennsylvania turned out to be one my favourite states. I think it’s because it was full of small and sweet surprises. We got to Philly from NY just an our before the Rosenbach Museum was closing. Jake dropped me off while he looked for a place to park and I threw on a dress over my shorts and tee shirt before walking in, so as to look respectable when I asked to speak with the head librarian and basically tell her that my MA thesis supervisor, who spent several weeks a year here poring over the museum’s collection of unpublished letters and manuscripts, “sends her love.” This earned Jake and I a personal tour of the museum which, to our utmost pleasant surprise, turns out to be a beautiful 1860s townhouse once home to the Rosenbach brothers, a couple of art and literature aficionados who lined their bookshelves with things like: the original Ulysses manuscript in Joyce’s slanted scribble, Jefferson’s draft of the Declaration of Independence, hundreds of Lewis Carroll’s letters (they sold the original Alice in Wonderland to the British Museum), original drafts of Don Quixote, Dracula, Where the Wild Things Are, and most importantly to me, Marianne Moore’s living room in it’s entirety. The whole place was just beautiful. It was a treat just to see the inside one of those townhouses let alone see Moore’s toys and trinkets and remember them in her poems.

philly has the most murals of any u.s. city

Then we get a message from Lafleur about how she’d feed us burgers and beers if we came to her ma’s house just outside of the city in Media. We tried to get there as quick as we could, but googlemaps sent us the extremely long way (as it likes to do), through the “bad neighbourhoods” where people seemed to be pretty into the idea of hanging out on the sidewalk in tight groups. Nevertheless, we got there just in time for a delicious bowl of chicken soup (with peas and carrots from the garden and chicken from the Amish farm down the road), acorn squash and maple syrup (tapped from the maple trees in the back yard!) and to be convinced that we needed to stay an extra day in PA. Lafleur’s ma Hazel has the best garden this side of the atlantic and she loved Jake’s music and plus, her home was sort of in the woods and we were happy to be there.

our guide on the ever elusive red trail at tyler's arboretum

We went on a long walk through a nearby arboretum and got lost without knowing it more than once, grazed all day long on berries like bears, chowed down on homemade burgers, and went in search of the neighbour’s life sized dinosaur collection (he made the dinosaurs for Jurassic Park). Nobody was there except the gardeners, so we had a quick look around and when we didn’t see anything, theorised that the dinosaurs must have been moved for the summer and even thought we saw the patches on the grass where they once were . (We’ve since been notified that we were at the wrong neighbour’s house!). So we went and played scrabble instead.

Turns out there was an open mic happening at the local coffee shop so Jake signed up for the last slot and we got to catch some interesting folks. One woman propped her doll, who looked and was dressed exactly like her, up on an arm chair to watch the show. A lot of other characters were kind of indescribable and interpretative and gave us the giggles.

yum!

have you ever seen a purple pepper? all in an afternoon's harvest

catching up

lafleur takes nice pictures

Miraculously, it was also in PA that we FINALLY got our boombox hookup working in the car! It was amazing (and very short lived, stay tuned). We hadn’t had any music on the road for over two months! and however many thousands of miles, so our drive to Chicago that day just flew by.

new york city

welcome to brooklyn

The Big Apple. The apex of our tour. Brace yourself this is kind of massive. I could give you a short version, in which we play the dreamy farmers who cashed in all we had out in the country to hit the bigtime on Broadway. But really we came to see these guys, in Queens…

and they showed us everything

From Queens we explored the neighbourhood and beyond: checking the Kaufman studios where Sesame Street is (now) filmed in hope of getting a glimpse of Big Bird, we watched Broadway singers in Bryant Park, saw the original Winnie the Pooh and friends all tattered and well-loved in the Manhattan library, checked out the driveway where John Lennon was shot, sampled Roti Boti in Jackson Heights (purely because Jake and I got a little lost in this neighbourhood when we first arrived and got a full waft of its deliciousness), watched eccentric people dance, roller blade, hula hoop and be melodramatic in Central Park, ate bucket loads of ice cream, strolled Columbia campus, hiked through Harlem, walked across bridges, wished we were the kids who were surviving the summer heat in front of cracked fire hydrants, and rode the subway, everywhere.

if it wasn't for the N train

Jake busked at Central Park for gas (and toll!) money and got to play “Knockin on Heaven’s Door” for a teenager on her birthday. We also hit up Washington Square Park but an unexpected Sufi Convention botched plans by staging an interval indie rock show. We met Lafleur in NoHo for bubble tea and cruised the strip at St. Marks. Ann actually read our myspace bulletin and surprised us at Jake’s show (see below). Other surprises included getting to see Love as Laughter play in Brooklyn and not only hear the live version of our favourite song, “Coconut Flakes,” but witness the opening band Cheeseburger get showered in full cups of beer by adoring fans. That was something new. And I kept wondering how to go about catching one of those people before they flung their beer and scolding them, being someone who couldn’t dare waste four bucks on a pabst (especially if I wasn’t going to drink it!) after already dipping into our emergency funds to see a band play just because I thought it somewhat fate to be in the same place at the same time. Huhhhh. Anyway, Love as Laughter gave us a free CD just as they promised months previously via correspondence, and we were more than satisfied.

When we were babysitting Max one day we took him to the east village to seek out a photo exhibit of wild horses from Sable Island, a remote island off Nova Scotia known by sailors for being the site of some 350 shipwrecks. The horses are the castaways or, as I like to think of them, the ultimate pirate survivors. Or as Roberto Dutesco the New York fashion photographer might have thought of them, the ultimate beautiful models. He was so smitten with Max and the fact that we’d come to see his photos that he gave us video footage of the island and the horses and again, we were more than satisfied.

After our first lunch date with Rachel, who took breaks from the Oxford University Press building to meet Jake, Ben, Max and I at any number of Manhattan’s parks, we checked out the Eminent Domain exhibit (“contemporary photography and the city”) at the NY public library. I loved photos of the subway by this guy, Ethan Levitas, check them out. And now, finally, some of our photos!

reading room at manhattan library

central park

hoola

this guy's a regular

round and round

(eloise) at the plaza

waiting for the subway above ground

decapitated crow

decapitated larcenist

bow daba bow bow bow ba bada

notice garbage in ny

sunday subway sermon

butts

jeff koons on the roof

self portrait

these boots

these feet were tired

uncle jake makes for good lounging

Jake and Ben played at the open mic at the Sidewalk Cafe in the east village, where the likes of Regina Spektor and The Moldy Peaches gave the place it’s title as the home of “Anti-Folk.” It was the most eclectic open mic ever, with beat boxing, song and dance (booty dancers), and a whole range of quirky songwriters. Because Jake was playing a show there the next night, he got to play early in the set, known to last often till 3 am. It was great. The Sidewalk also wins an award for having the best sound of any other venue on the tour. Kudos to the sound man. It was great to hear Ben too. In my unbiased opinion Jake and Ben were the stars of the show. Which reminds me, Ben Sadock has a new album, “You Are The Beneficiary of Us,” it’s tops. Jake got to play a nice long set at his official Jacob Perkins & The Nobody show the next night. Rachel and Ben rallied their troops for the occasion, Max hooted and hollered, it was just lovely.

blown up booya

the white house

Our personification of Champ became full fledged when we decided to take him to Washington D.C. on a short field trip to the country’s capitol. We told him that we probably weren’t going to see the president but “you never knoooow.” Funny thing is we totally ditched him parked in front of a nice bank while we wandered around Independence ave.

for the first president of u.s.a

The license plates in D.C. officially say “taxation without representation,” we found that perplexing and/or a sick joke.

ladies and gentlemen...

We were actually quite surprised to find out how much we could wander around the surrounds of the whitehouse, especially when we’d unexpectedly bump into someone with a weapon the size and shape of a concrete slab and felt like we might get killed just for looking. We did get kicked out once though, but only to make way for a whole caravan of tinted s.u.v.s, sirens, motorcycles, the works. I’d like to think it was Michael Jackson, was also happened to be in town for a visit.

champ was just tickled

great smokies to the appalachians

On our way to finding a place to camp in the great smokies, we passed through Chatanooga, Tennesee, where there were signs posted for “Choo Choo.” We had to stop for a visit, for the sake of Glenn Miller. It was just as we suspected…

"pardon me boy is that the chatanooga choo-choo?"

"won't you choo-choo me home?"

we got lost

And after unintentionally exploring Backroads Tennessee the rest of the evening, we didn’t find our campsite till near midnight. By that time we had fully scared ourselves silly driving past houses with confederate flags and up dark mountain roads covered in Thriller-esque fog. When we got to the top of the small mountain we were looking for, we were happy to see families doing their night time camping thing. Fires dwindling and ladies blowing drying each other’s hair in the bathroom. In the morning we realised that the place we were staying at was both a Cherokee national forest and historic confederate camp. It was the beginning point of the “Trail of Tears” which ended where we were in Oklahoma. Creepo. We bailed early and just missed the ranger.

sugar loaf mountain

In Roanoke, VA, we stopped in a Best Western to hijack the wi-fi connection and find a campsite near the base of the Appalachians. We were determined to get there a little bit earlier this time, but got distracted on the way by an amazing back east sunset.

virginia is for lovers

Back mountains Virginia was actually one of the most beautiful fairytale places we had found in the whole country. We were happy to be there. Slept near Sherando lake in the Blue Ridge Mountains, it was awesome. Cooked up a little feast on our microscopic stove, read a little Bourdain aloud and had a good night sleep in the cooler air. The next morning we tried to bail early again, thinking we needed to make it to Philly in time for a show. But the show turned out to be cancelled (it’s hard for touring bands right now!!!) so we decided to head straight for New York, with a stop in D.C. to visit the prez.

to roanoke

name those clouds

not buffalos

n’awlins

photo taken with the cellular phone!

New Orleans marked the beginning of what we were calling The Unknown Frontier, that stretch between Louisiana and New York where we didn’t know anybody and didn’t know what we were going to do. The show in New Orleans was scheduled for 11pm at Neutral Ground, a sweet coffee house near the garden district. We rolled in from Houston at around 9pm and immediately started scoping out our options for a place to sleep. The air was hot hot hot and sticky so the van wasn’t a very desirable option (especially since the engine is under the driver’s seat) but we’d do it if we had to. But then the bar tender, who was pretty young and hip and reasonable, told us it was a bad idea. Even in the fancy neighbourhood, the street lights would go out at 3am and it would be kind of awkward to be sleeping in the van when somebody tried to break in.

this is bourbon street

the quiet end

As we were packing up our gear after the show, we met a young 17 year old tuning his guitar. This led to that and next thing we know we were following him to his Band Practice Room or, his Friend’s Mom’s Garage in the Burbs. We had to sneak in because they didn’t know we were coming. Turns out David, that little angel, is in a post-rock band called Good Day for an Air Strike. The least we can do is to tell you to check him out, love him and appreciate this fine example of a good Samaritan. In true slumber party style we chatted the night in the way in the dark, cosey on the carpeted floor.

After this fine stroke of luck we decided to spend another day in n.o. (yes!) and treat ourselves to something like a hotel. We ended up at a B&B for gay men, in an old southern house whose halls were lined with Mardigras costumes. It couldn’t have been more perfect.

jake's impersonation of...?!

love this town

imagine living here

or here

or here

or here

or here!

lucky dogs

Can you tell I’m jonesing for the next place to call home? Well it’s in the works dear readers, we’re scheming for 2009, so stay tuned. So far papua new guinea and paris hope to make their way on the itinerary.

texas

Whoah Texas. We eased ourselves in to this gigantic state by stopping in Fort Worth (“Dallas’s retarded little brother” to quote a South Texan) for a night. Justin took us to dinner at the legendary Joe T Garcia’s where we gorged ourselves on fajitas and got crosseyed on Everclear margaritas, were treated to more beverages during our visit with Honea at The Moon, and round about midnight we hit up the new art museum where Jake and Justin battled strings in The Vortex, a giant sculptural shell with crazy acoustics.

j-lo's boot collection

On our way to San Marcos the next day, Champ took one for the team at a traffic circle in Waco, where one big truck drove straight into our side door because couldn’t see us through the other big truck that was next to him. Classic. Needless to say, it was his bad, and as a result Champ would get a new muffler and we would beat the shit out of the door enough to be able to open it again.

takes one for the team

We were just tickled to death to see Margaret in her natural habitat in San Marcos. Right away we hit up the river, which springs up right around there and stays a steady 72F degrees all year long. It’s very invigorating and we would visit it many times during our visit. We also went to some local open mics, including the legendary Cheatham street bar, which rattles with the passing train, and where you can go to sympathise with all those cowboys who know what it feels like have the screen door slammed in their faces. Ouch.

after hours at wonder world

catching up over jelly bellies

To celebrate America we floated the river with the whole population of the hill country. The combination of bbq smoke, river weeds, spray on sunscreen and obesity in bikinis made me speechless and slightly nauseous. To take it up a notch we went to Wal Mart and purchased a giant watermelon, key limes, a $2 bottle of white wine and a lilo for Lake Austin. And then finally we met Babe aka Bird aka Ranger who took it upon himself to be our local guide. 4^th of July entailed its (un)usual festivities. (Fireworks should be left to the pros). We wandered from bbq to lake to bbq to lake and back to bbq for a nightcap of some five million odd jalapeno poppers and pina coladas. We slept at Babe’s empty childhood home and the next morning he took us to check out the crick and the speculated site of a Native American camp, with hellof shards of old old glass, some arrowheads if you’re lucky and a rock scorpion sculpture facing dead west. What’s that all about.

can't you just smell em

babe loves his model cars

hm sweet creek

Jake had his first Austin show that night at the house of Natrix Natrix Records hosted by the lovely Rhonda, who made us guacamole and roasted corn and pioneered the after party dance party. Then we finally made it to Austin proper and met up with Sleazer at the bar after about 5 years. Jake and I slept in an empty apartment renegade style with a note on the door that said “Talk to Mike at #4 before opening this door. My friends are sleeping in here. Thanks.” It was a little awkward expecting the new tenant to move in the next morning so we slept behind the closet door.

The next morning we migrated to my old friend Coutney’s house and spent a few lovely days partaking in her life with her fiancée Will and falling in love with their pug babies Gomez and Hermes. With car repairs underway we got to cruise around in a hybrid 50mpg Toyota Prius courtesy of State Farm Insurance and dragged our hot bodies to Barton Springs, the heart and soul of Austin in the summer. Ah!

hermes love

Meanwhile Jake played two more shows at the Spider House and The United States Art Authority. Despite the fact that he had to set up his own p.a. the first night, that the electric guitar suffered technical difficulties and that the staff weren’t informed of his show the second night, j.p. & t.n. still managed to rule. And plus we got to try the frito burrito and ultimate grill cheese on the house.

despite technical difficulties, at least the lighting was beautiful

welcome to flint ridge, oklahoma!

When Jake and I rolled into Flint Ridge (Cherokee nation in east OK), we had been driving for about 13 hours, mostly through the hot and dry of Kansas. We were sure that everyone else would have arrived already and would be waiting for us. We pulled over before our arrival to deodorise ourselves with some wet wipes (I had to meet his grandma for the first time!). And when we got to the house, just as the first of the evening’s fireflies were flashing in the dusk, and the picnic tables were set for thirty people (as they’d remain for the whole weekend), we found that Champ had won the race! I met my extended family that night over The Most Delicious home fried chicken, biscuits, gravy and sweet corn under the oklahoma stars. I’ll never forget it.

max the star of the show

starlets of the show

cousins

we canoed the river

j.p. was stoked

so were the humming birds

the rockies

Jake’s aunt and uncle took us into their home in Denver and we enjoyed breakfasts of strawberries and melon on the back porch, riding fancy bikes through the burbs and to top it off, a romantic getaway to their cabin in the Rockies. We hiked around and got lightheaded in the high altitude, checking out the wildflowers, and psyching ourselves out with imaginary bear sightings.

i was impressed

rocky mountain irises

jake got right to whittling

i got right to the water source

indian paintbrush

we got right into it

bear scratchins

this isn't walden

We came back to the city to converge with multiple members of the extended Perkins family, get in some good swimming, and rally a substantial crowd to Jake’s Denver show the night before our early morning departure for Oklahoma.

this is denver

pre-show at the old curtis st. bar

played with some sweet bands in denver, check them out

to salt lake city

We hauled ass through Vegas (“what a stupid place to build a city”) and Death Valley, to make it to Salt Lake City in time for a show at The Boing! Collective. What a place. We got there with time to spare, to help ourselves to some dinner a la Food Not Bombs and establish that we were at the coolest place in Utah. Billy Mack Collector showed up for the show and banged away furiously on their toy pianos, homemade drums, knitting needles and other slapsticks. They’re pretty wonderful. After hours we had a sneaky 90s dance party with hits such as Heaven is a Halfpipe, Glycerine, “put my tender heart in a blender, watch it spin round to a beautiful oblivion, rendez vous now I’m through with you…”

i'll take you there

check that out

Jake and I slept in the van on the street under a beautiful tree and hit the road the very next morning for the state of Colorado.