Week two winds up for the CarnyMobile and the current rains may once again spoil some of the fun. The past few days have been mixed, with an actual “weekend” trip, one gig, and lots of time killing.
Finding the Rhythm; Breaking the Boredom
Day three winds down here in Concord, the Granite State’s capital city. I just finished watching another second season episode of ABC’s hit “Lost.” Guess you could say that this is my TV fix, a balm for the boredom of a small town. I’ve spent a good deal of time online, finding episodes, and wasting time with the crap that gets incorrectly labeled (iTMS is so much easier, but expensive). I’m also learning how to tie knots and juggle, but I’d rather be outside with the carny games.
This job has developed a sink and swim cycle: four 10-hour days of gigs, four days of nothing to do except errands and busy work. Rain washed out a few days of gigs this week, though I did manage to drive to Portsmouth, NH and table for a Dave Lippman show. It was an 11-hour day that ended with me driving back to Concord in pouring rain. The early part of that day was spent driving around buying things that I needed. I did that a lot in Burlington too, and am a bit over having to consume.
Meet the PieMobiles
This photo just dropped into my in-box. While Sensible Priorities’ national office is located in Burlington, VT, there are two smaller state offices in Concord, NH and Des Moines, IA. The folks working in those offices will get their very own “educational vehicle” to drive around, the PieMobile. Sure to knock ’em dead in the city and hopefully not catch a gust on the highway, these wonders will add to the spectacle of ubiquity that Ben and Duane hope to amp up for the next few years.
Meet the OreoMobile
The CarnyMobile’s older sibling, the OreoMobile, awaits a professional photoshoot in the Magic Hat Brewery (founded by one of the creaters of 7th Generation products) parking lot. This ride went to NH and IA last year for six months, complete with a blow-up baby and missle.
Landing Into a Burlington Spring
Once again, I arrived to a new place at a perfect time to see nature herself bloom into maidenhood. During my first day in Burlington, VT, my host Bram got his daughter to tell me that Vermont has extra seasons. Seven-year-old Tasha had just met me, so she shyly recited “summer, fall, stick, winter, mud, and spring.” Winter left mildly this year, so mud season wasn’t that muddy. I got to see the last throws of mud season my first few days here.
Meet the CarnyMobile
Burlington, VT
More of a mobile billboard than an art car, this van and high-striker-as-a-trailer will be my new “home” for the next six months. I shot this photo on the road to Ben Cohen’s house (outside of Williston village) yesterday; a farmer in the orchard behind the van gave a wave as I walked into the muddy field to frame this photo. I had just spent about 15 minutes backing this thing down part of Ben’s driveway, and it wasn’t easy.
The CarnyMobile is the latest addition to the Business Leaders for Sensible Priorities grassroots auto-art fleet: the Oreo Mobile (photos soon), the Piggy Banks van (photos soon), the Pie Mobiles, Pants on Fire, Spank Bush/DeLay Mobile, and a few other earlier buses and autos.