Just East of East Nowhere, PA

Where to start? O.k., back in New York. As you know, we broke down in East Nowhere, PA on our way to upstate NY. Here's a photo:



Don't ever go there. There is nothing for you. It's an exit with a Sunoco station where lots of teenagers come to buy cigarettes. Although, two good things did come out of that gas station. First, we were able to get food. Well, if you call Funyuns (I'd like to kill the person who came up with that name. Just spelling it makes me angry) and little Debbie's snack cakes (Sharon, not me buddy) food. Oh, and peanuts too and Diet Coke. Second, the owners wife was really nice and gave me a ride to a nearby garage which ended up doing us no good, but a nice gesture nonetheless. So, stuck for the night, we stayed here:



The sign is the best thing about the place. In the morning a nice kid (in that PA sort of way) from Enterprise came and picked me up (they really do pick you up! Even in East Nowhere, PA). He had been an english major at some no-name college near East Nowhere and decided that renting cars would be more lucrative than anything that actually related to his degree. He is, undoubtedly, correct and happy was I that he'd decided to go into the transportation industry and that I was reaping the rewards of his career choice. Anyway, I rented a nice, white Kia minivan which ended up having a kick ass stereo and air conditioning that worked, so I was happy and we were on the road again to spend a week here:



Ah, but not before we dropped off this puppy at Sharon's parent's house near Albany.:



The next morning we were off to Ashokan and spent a wonderful week there, playing music and reuniting with old friends. Man, what a place. I miss it all year. Anyweasel, when the gig was done, Sharon headed to Lake Placid (no picture) to spend a week with the family while I sped home to turn our garage in to a birthday wonderland for her. Here's a photo:



But to really appreciate the enormity of the task, go see the whole slide show here:

4 days. Lots of late nights. Kudos again to Ryan and Barry for helping out. She loved it. Totally speechless for a minute and then cried like a really happy girl. Totally worth it! After I slept for three days, I started working again, in earnest, on my ukulele playing. I've learned some new tunes and am inspired to get better again. Here's a couple of crappy recordings if you are interested:

All of Me
Sunny Side of the Street

I'm partially inspired because I scored a totally sweet 1934 Martin Style 1 off of EvilBay for a great price. She sounds incredible and I couldn't be happier with her. She doesn't have a name yet. Perhaps you have suggestion? No, "dorky-ass little guitar" is not a good name. Here she is:



Well, that about brings things up to date. Hopefully I'll be updating more frequently now since our interweb got straightened out.