Category: SLR 2008

 

1. Steph cuts veggies for our pasta lunch
2. A pair of dancers enter the pow wow during opening ceremony
3. Solar panels to the right, pow wow center tent on the other side, the Roadshow represents on the res
4. Winona LaDuke tells the Roadshow that Callaway, MN has huge potential for wind powered turbines
5. At the rice processing facilities for the Native Harvest organization

A new week begins and the Roadshow has finally left its humble parking lot HQ in Minneapolis for the big city of Chicago. Hit Yocum Oil to top off Pricilla before laying miles into Wisconsin. Fifty-five miles out of Eau Claire at the moment and cruising at our smooth 60-ish mph under beautiful puffy cloud cover and rollin fields of corn. We hope to make Madison before evening to refuel the vehicles at a station that has remnants of B100 biodiesel. The bio supply chain has dried up for anything over B20 due to the seasons changing into the cold months.

As I have learned on the bus, our vampiric addiction to electricity and wifi has caused me to finish this post from the Maui Wowi cafe in Chicago. Both buses have electrical nuances so all my tech was drained when we rolled in late last night. Got the phone and laptop charging and will finish up this post so I can get on task for Chicago promotions.

Got a feel for a cold Minnesota night when eight of the crew took Priscilla and the truck north to Callaway for the Niimiiwin Pow Wow. Winona LaDuke saw the Roadshow at Ripple Effect in St. Paul and offered an invitation to come to her home land of White Earth to be part of their small gathering. We had invitations to Wookie Foot’s Harvest Festival but opted instead to have our third gig on the reservation up at White Earth Nation. Tom and Zach stayed on Julia to do advance admin for the upcoming dates. Tyler had gotten sick so stayed behind to sleep and lay low.
Continue reading “Side Trip to White Earth Nation, MN”

No secrets exist in a 320 square foot apartment for eight people. Once the Roadshow crew got thrown into the motor bus pot, all masks flew out the window. I’m not sure if the lack of personal space is a good thing or bad thing, and wonder what other people think about this subject. I have lived in tight quarters for the past three years, having five room mates in a “three bedroom” flat in the Mission District. But here on the bus, we’re literally packed like salty fish. I need to re-read Wolfe’s “Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test” to see if he mentioned personal space. Like toilet moments in Hollywood movies, I haven’t experienced the sordid details of compact living via any type of media.

So, two nights ago, when I started spewing liquid out of my body, everybody knew about it. I got food poisoning after eating a store-bought sandwich at our gig in Lisbon Park, which started out as heart burn and ended up as a night filled with puking sessions. I chilled in my cubby as the crew had a supper, complete with mushrooms that Nick found at Clear Lake State Park in Iowa. Zach, Moe, and Veronica totally supported me, going to the store and buying juice and medicine, rubbing my stomach with peppermint, and making me tea. This was totally a sweet thing to do, and the true meaning of community.
Continue reading “Sordid Tales On The Bus”

Greetings from somewhere in the middle of Nebraska, USA. Chilling in Julia the Roadshow bus after doing a bit of logistical work via the creaky slow Verizon modem. Just booked two RV units outside of Des Moines, IA for tonight. Has electricity, pay wifi, and laundry facilities. Oh, and showers too. Pricilla ran great last night from Denver to Ogallala, NE, so the Roadshow (three vehicles) clocked out at a sweet 60 mph the whole way.

We got walkie talkies in Denver for the two-day festival so had one on for each vehicle. I found CB lingo on my Blackberry and shared the slang to the other vehicles while riding shotgun in the truck for Tom and Nick. Jonathan and David took the slang and turned it into a mongrel language full of poo and pee jokes, urban flavors, and David’s alien mumblings. We all enjoyed riffing on the various terms for a prostitute, “free ride” “pro beaver” etc. Not too PC but it kept all the drivers up for the 4 hour shlep across the state line.
Continue reading “One Roadshow Down, Convoy Onward”

For some more amazing photos of SLR and the DNC in Denver, check out our official photographer Darren Miller’s blog.

This (Republican?) Obama stencil showed up in our Highlands ‘hood overnight this week. The photo is reappropriated from the TIME magazine cover.

Continue reading “Some DNC-Denver Photos”

The Daily Show meets the Roadshow, as Jonathan freaks out Rob Riggle. Who’s the freak, tie-boy?

1. freewheel!n has a free bike program set up all over Denver, only from 7 to 7, so I haven’t gotten to hope on for a ride
2. The carnival games at Green Frontier on Sunday, under the enjoyable sculptures
3. An interesting display at Green Frontier, letting us know how bad a bottle of water really is

Continue reading “Slivers of Denver”