Southwards in Springtime

Pleased to report that April Road Trip '08 turned out to be a grand success, indeed!



First stop, just this side of Olympia, was the uber-fantastic Shipwreck Beads, which actually managed to exceed my high expectations-- imagine a vast airplane-hangar-sized building full-to-bursting with just about any type of gorgeous glittering shiny and sparkling bead imaginable, by the strand or by the piece.... I'd actually set aside a chunk of money from my birthday cash of 3 years ago to be used (sometime!) when I'd have the chance to visit this bead-lover's paradise-- so this was one of those dream-come-true kinda' moments! Most definitely worth a repeat visit, especially as an hour's shopping only resulted in making it to row 8 out of 31 rows-- lots more to wade through next time, too! But this time we were on a bit of a schedule, and needed to head on down the highway to Olympia proper for...


Procession of the Species, a wonderful, celebratory annual community event a little bit like Vashon's own Islewilde, with weeks' worth of workshops leading up to the big spectacle-- in this case an astoudingly long and varied collection of people of all ages dressed up to represent all manner of creatures from an impressively wide spectrum of species, with the final group being a sizable contingent of pink flamingos doing the samba!

After some yummy spicy noodles we drove on out to Sasja's dad's place out in the countryside near Olympia-- the pretty rolling hills and fences reminding me of my old Kentucky home-- to spend the night in entertaining conversation and a hearty next morning's breakfast before making our way back to I-5 and on down South to the lovely state of Oregon. Pleasing scenery along the way, including a stretch that actually reminded me of yet another beloved region-- farm lands along the corridor just beyond Portland are increasingly becoming devoted to picturesque vineyards, so of course Italy sprung to mind as we cruised along, quality tunes like Plans providing a fitting soundtrack as we drew ever nearer to our ultimate destination, the raison d'etre for this escapade...

Eugene, Oregon!!! Home to the fine-and-fancy McDonald Theatre for a truly magnificent performance by The Swell Season. And let me say this was one for the books-- on The Patented Perpetua Scale of Concert Awesomosity, wer'e going to have to go with a perfect 4 out of 4 checkmarks for Things That Make For The Best Possible Live Music Experience.... Those little extras that make the event extra-special!

1. Of course it is necessary for the performances to be of the spontaneous-and-heartfelt variety, not merely a rehashing of the songs on the latest album played in a different order-- and boy howdy was this the case to be sure! Gorgeous, stirring lyrics/ impressive musicianship/ witty banter/ the whole package!!! I was exceedingly pleased that the opening act featured Liam O'Manlai of my long-beloved Hothouse Flowers (barefoot, as usual-- just like back in Dublin's Phoenix Park clear back in '91....) along with another clever yet deeply soulful Irishman named Ronan O Snodaigh (who has sometimes toured with Dead Can Dance!) Sooooo.... a definite checkmark YES for item #1
   
   


2. Placement within the venue is most certainly a key component in one's enjoyment... so.... Being as we were right smack on the very front row, mere inches from the band, we will certainly award a checkmark YES for item #2! :) General admission rocks! Patience to queue up early can definitely be rewarded by a ridiculously right-smack-dab-in-the-midst-of-it-all vantage point. Nothing like being able to see every little wisp of an expression that crosses the performers' faces, each little detail of their interactions as the show progresses. Love it!!! So.... on we go to...




3. Set List in hand after the show-- check YES #3! Quite fun to have that tangible souvenir of the event-- and you can analyze the hand-writing if your'e so inclined! ;)




4. Umm... meeting the band is awfully nice! (Bonus points for photographic evidence! :)
   
   

Yup.... 4 out of 4! :) Now, after all that excitement, some tasty Cajun food and a frosty cold beverage-- outside on a patio, mind you, after midnight, Eugene having blessed us with sunshine/ 70's on this fine day whilst up north on Vashon 'twas cold and raining! Short walk back to The Downtown Inn, then some sleep before checking out Eugene the next morning (excellent vegan breakfast at Morning Glory Cafe and a quick stop at Buffalo Exchange (adorable Dansko Mary Janes in *exactly* my size at oh-about $100 off retail price!) before heading back up Northward, stopping in Portland for the oh-so-crucial triumvirate of VooDoo Doughnuts (all kinds of crazy and creative toppings like Fruit Loops and Mango Tang-o--- YUM!) and Powell's Bookstore and Whole Foods....


And, then, finally, homeward-- only to encounter the first rain in days as we entered Chehalis.... sigh.... Good to be back on the Island, though, to see friends and loved ones.... So glad to have had the chance to enjoy this action-packed few days, especially as I can't help but think that The Great American Road Trip may soon be a thing of the past. Gasoline had climbed up past $4/ gallon while we were away, and who knows how high it is likely to go. The great news, though, is that a lot of these destinations could have been reached fairly easily via mass transit-- wer'e fortunate to live in an area where train travel is still possible, as Amtrak shimmies up and down the coast, from Seattle to Eugene and lots of other interesting places farther north and south, as well....

Sooooo.... 'bout all for now-- more photos from the trip can be seen on my flickr account, and will upload additonal photos soon of the procession and such soon. (Bit of a challenge to get their uploader to interface with my digi-cam software, but working on it!) Pics and post from wayyyy back a month ago @ ArtFest still to come, as well! Ciao for now to each and all!