Monday, April 21, 2003

New England!!! I'm feeling randy in these hills of New Hampshire-- you'd have to see it to believe the beauty that surrounds this mountain farm! I showed up two nights ago (at 2 am) after my long drive from Philadelphia; Senayit and her mom, Sally, waited up. A fat, orange moon lit the dirt road to their cabin and slid me into a cozy bed. In the morning I met Senayit's Ethiopian-born father, Tekleab, who is a 70-yr.-old who looks 45. He and Sally own 240 rolling acres filled with woodpeckers, moose, beavers, and black bear. I saw a monster-sized wild turkey in a field. This is the New England people might fantasize about. (On Golden Pond was filmed forty miles away). Tek and Sally also have a family of friendly animals: two dogs, three cats, and two horses. Eventually, Senayit and I crossed the river into Bradford, Vermont and prepared for our show at The Middle Earth. By 8:45 Senayit was singing and playing on her 12-string guitar and my ears danced. I ought to mention that this venue was definitely one of the nicer places I've ever played. It was built to resemble a British pub out of Lord of the Rings. I followed Senayit and played for over an hour. The seventy or so people who came were enthralled with my unique style and I sold more CDs and received more compliments than at any other show so far. The owner, Chris, wants me to return and play an official (non-rental) show in the Fall. Most the money made at the door went to pay off the rental of The Middle Earth, but I did receive $30 after expenses. After me came the jazzy Ordinary Magic who had what it took to make the people dance and the kazoo player was rad. After them I was asked to play again and I did for another half hour.

Today I took two long walks and a horseback ride through the trails with Senayit, Sally, Sedalla (Senayit's sister), and Dan (Sedalla's friend). Andromeda, the appaloosa mare I rode (bareback), pulls to the left just like my car. She trots good, but my groin is sore anyway. Now Tek is preparing a huge Ethiopian feast with the spongy bread and everything and I'm ready to eat it.

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