Arizona Travels...

There's a storm on the horizon - you can see it in the distance to the west of Tucson - where I am this evening. Clouds that are supposed to bring rain cover the sky and wind is blowing the dust through the streets. The wind feels good though as I sit at the Sky Bar on 4th Street waiting for my turn at the open mic.
Yesterday I drove to Jerome, Arizona from California. It was a nice easy drive - up through the middle of the state and through towns like Salome, Hope, Prescott - and the scenery changes from desert and cactuses to pine trees and mountains. The skies were clear, it was warm out and for a lot of it I drove with the windows down.
The town of Jerome is very unique. It's an old mining town and it sits on the side of the mountain as you go into Verde Valley. The streets wind back and forth - there are restaurants and shops - and couple of bars - and I was to play at The Spirit Room right on the corner of Main Street. What was also cool was that I had a room at the old hotel right above the venue/bar - the Hotel Connor
I had been through Jerome several times before but had never stayed the night in town. It is supposed to be full of haunted buildings so I was looking forward to it - well sort of. I have stayed in several "haunted" hotels in Arizona: the San Carlos in downtown Phoenix, the Hotel Congress here in Tucson, and the Hotel Monte Vista in Flagstaff but had never had a ghost sighting. The room was nice and big and I was able to catch a quick nap before I had to go downstairs and play for the night.
The bar was cool - a classic western bar - the kind you see in the movies. The bartender was nice and some bikers from Canada were there hanging out - I would find out that they were also staying at the hotel. It started a little slow, but as the restaurants closed down for the night more people made their way in - including a friend of a friend who lived there in town. At 1am I finally made my way back to my room and passed out. If there were any ghosts around, they didn't wake me up - so I guess I can thank them for that.
This morning I was able to sleep in a bit and then got ready for the day. I decided that I was going to head down here to Tucson since I had the day off and like it down here. I went across the street for breakfast, after checking out, to Bobby D's BBQ at the English Kitchen and had an amazing breakfast. It was huevos rancheros with smoked brisket mixed in, breakfast potatoes - and it all tasted so fresh and good. The brisket tasted awesome and I wished that I had gone there for lunch yesterday and had a sandwich.
The drive down here from Jerome was also easy, I passed through Phoenix and kept on going. I found this place, The Sky Bar online when I was searching for Tucson open mics. It's a nice place - all run by solar power - and has a good patio. Now that the sun has gone down the temperature is perfect. I'm looking forward to my 15 minutes.
yours truly,
Jeremiah
and you can follow me here too: https://twitter.com/jeandtheredeyes

The view from Jerome

That's the Spirit Room on the corner and the Hotel Connor right above it

The Canadian bikers at the bar

Huevos rancheros at Bobby D's BBQ

Heading back to Arizona

Tomorrow morning I get to head back to Arizona. I was just there in Cave Creek which is outside of Phoenix to the north to play out at Janey's Coffeehouse and Bodega on Friday night. But I had to come back and work over the weekend - so early Saturday morning I got in the car after a shower and headed back to LA from the Phoenix area to make it in time for my afternoon shift.
My original plan was to take a week off and hang out in Arizona - do some song writing, relaxing, and some playing. But after the trip to Austin I realized I needed to work instead. So I didn't really mind the coming back - since I knew it was what had to be done - and tomorrow I head back to play in the interesting town of Jerome and on Thursday up in Flagstaff.
Jerome is a town in the Sedona Valley area - an old mining town that sits on the side of the mountain. It has a unique feel to it and I've always enjoyed passing through. Tomorrow will be the first time that I actually will be staying in Jerome - I get to stay at the hotel above the Spirit Room where I'll be playing. It's reportedly haunted too - so it could be an interesting stay.
Then on Thursday I'll be back up in Flagstaff at the Flagstaff Brewing Company - which is one of my favorite spots. I really love it up there - and glad that it has become a regular spot for me to play. They also have good beers - which I've been meaning to write about my other travels and food and beer adventures lately - and there has been some great stuff that I've come across - hopefully on my next day off when I have some real time.
But now I have to get to bed - get my rest for the drive tomorrow.
yours truly,
Jeremiah

On the road to Arizona along I-8
Black Mountain in Cave Creek, AZ.

Part 3 - and back home

It's been a couple weeks since I made it back home to California and some more thoughts I wanted to add. It feels to good to be home and to have caught up on my rest. About a week after I was back on my first real day off - I crashed and slept the day away - I had nothing I really had to do and I just enjoyed laying around like I hadn't been able to for a while - it was nice.
In the craziness of running around town doing this and that, I missed seeing quite a few people that I had wanted to see. I had really wanted to see my friend Izzy Cox, who used to live here in LA but now calls Austin her home. She had a few shows around town but never at times that I could make it over to see her. Then The Hems who I had met in Memphis at the Folk Alliance conference. I've listened to their e.p CD that they gave over and over while driving around town. They are really great. JP and the Gilberts were another band I missed seeing. They're from NYC and I met them last year when we played a show together in St. Louis on a snowy night. They were awesome and I'm glad I got a CD from them - which I also listen to a lot cruising around town.
There is just so much happening during that time in Austin and it's hard to get around from point to point quickly - and cheaply. I look forward to when I return to Austin - it is such a cool town - and I like the feel of things there. It's a pretty big drive from here to there though. I wish it was closer - but I know at some point this year I'll make that drive again.
In a couple weeks I'll be heading back to Arizona for a few shows - Cave Creek on the 20th, The Spirit Room in Jerome on the 24th, and Flagstaff at the Flagstaff Brewing Company on the 26th. I'm looking forward to being out there again - it should be the perfect time of year out there too.
In June I'm planning on going to England - my first trip overseas - and I'm really looking forward to it. I need to get some things together before then but I should be ready by the middle of June. I'm ready for a new adventure

Yours truly,
Jeremiah

Izzy Cox

The Hems

JP & the Gilberts