Tonight I started looking at the footage from the trip. It’s taking a while to sort out everything (there’s 28 hours), but it’s all looking good. Hopefully there will be a solid piece of work ready by there end of August. I know that seems like a while, but it takes a long time to look at all the tape, categorize it, make the movie, correct all the color, create a sound track, and mix it all together. It will be done, though, and it should be a solid piece of art. I would have put another piece of video up to view, but Charter internet has been a bit shaky. There will be a new one up soon. In the interim, thanks for all your support. I’ll update the video status soon.

Here’s a picture from the Philadelphia gig.

Wow. What a week. Today we played Charlotte, but there’s not a ton to speak about there. I played on a sidewalk, a few people passed by, and I got to see a wreck happen on an adjacent street while I played. That was kind of cool. (No one got hurt.) Tonight at 10pm I was scheduled to play at Nuci’s Space, and a couple of people came by. I’ll post some video tomorrow. Maybe then I’ll have something profound to say about the trip. It’s late now and I’m excited about seeing my bed for the first time in seven days. For now, thank you to everyone who has followed our progress, and thank you to everyone who has donated to the cause. It has all been greatly appreciated.

Until tomorrow…

This will be the last entry from the road, which is kind of disappointing. On the other hand, Patrick and I have seen our share of the road this week, and we’re ready to get back to our lives. We spent most of the day in Washington D.C. visiting monuments and playing songs for tourists. Interestingly enough, most of my guitar time was spent making up songs about people as they walked past me. I did it the first time to pass time while we took a break, and continued when people stopped to see if I was actually singing about them. People were very responsive to our cause once we told them what we’re doing, and no one seemed to mind being the subject of a cheesy country song. Maybe I should have been doing that all along…

Since the novelty approach to playing music had such an impact on people I decided to step things up a notch. I walked around singing about people while my friend Jessica (who happened to be in D.C. today) held up an Imagine Something Tour sign I set up in each city, and walked behind me. That’s when we really started getting stares from people. I got really excited about how interested people were with the music until Patrick brought up a good point: Jessica was wearing a strapless shirt and shorts and looked nude when the sign was in front of her. So…evidently that’s the easiest way to get noticed in a big city. Play strange songs about people while a naked girl holds a sign behind you.

Patrick and I were completely exhausted after D.C. and made a quick detour to visit some extended family near Richmond. Tonight we finished the trip to Richmond, and played for a bunch of drunk college students. Some people signaled their enjoyment by bobbing their heads toward me as they passed by. Some bleary-eyed people were indifferent to me. Only a couple of people were disappointed that I can’t play any Tom Petty or Dave Matthews songs. (For the record, it will probably stay that way.) Overall it was a fairly classic downtown sidewalk gig. After a half hour we waved goodbye to the city, packed the car, and hit the road.

At the moment it’s 4:00 am, and we’re in a hotel two hours outside Charlotte. Tomorrow we visit the city, then head back home for our final gig at Nuci’s Space. I’m a little nervous about the last show, because I’ll being playing to a semi-captive audience for the first time ever. If I get too nervous about it I’ll just ask everyone to simulate a real sidewalk gig by walked past me repeatedly. Or, I’ll just talk a lot and make everyone be interactive while I play. I mean, who wants to go to a concert just to listen to music, anyway?

The excitement of Orioles fans was palpable tonight. To help their team to a speedy win I sang them a team song before we left Baltimore. The YouTube link is below.

FYI: the Orioles won 5-3 tonight. Coincidence? No way.

David wins the game for Baltimore

Tonight Patrick and I are enjoying an evening in Virginia. We’re at my friend’s house, sitting on a couch, watching Cartoon Network while we wait to fall asleep. Last time I checked we had driven almost exactly 3,200 miles this week. That means we’re almost home. This week’s schedule has made the last five days feel like two weeks, but it’s been a really nice two weeks.

We’ve been getting some really cool news from Athens over the last couple of days. People have been really responsive to the Imagine Something Tour, and have been donating to Nuci’s this week. Thank you incredibly much to everyone that has donated to the tour, and to Nuci’s. This has been one of the best things I’ve had the opportunity to experience. Thank you to everyone. Seriously.

Back to news from the tour… Around noon we made it to Philadelphia and played in a nice park with some decent foot traffic. We didn’t stay very long, though, because it was raining. We made it to Baltimore around 6:30, in time to play for Orioles fans headed to the baseball stadium. That’s the second MLB game we’ve accidently hit this week. Baltimore was my favorite gig today. Playing next to a red light with fans passing by in droves is always fun. Since everyone was excited to get to the game they were very receptive to the music. (Everybody loves listening to street music when they’re in a good mood.) Patrick and I probably would have stayed out there for a while, but I broke a string, my guitar was out of tune, and I was out of picks. So, off we headed to the great state of VA. Tonight we rest while watching cartoons. Tomorrow we play Washington D.C.!

I’m currently sifting through video footage from today. I’ll post another YouTube video tonight if it doesn’t get too late. One more fun fact: the sign welcoming us to Delaware said it was the first state ever. I should have already known that after two decades of school, but I didn’t. So, I was incredibly impressed. That’s your fun fact of the day. Enjoy!

A night’s rest makes all the difference in a day’s quality. I didn’t realize how shady my reasoning had recently become until I slept a full (almost) eight hours last night. I woke up ready to play again for the first time since Monday. (Sleep deprivation can get to you.) Since Monday morning we rushed the tour to make sure there is enough time to get back home in time for the Sunday night Nuci’s show. Ironically, we’ve unintentionally gotten a full day ahead of our original schedule. Now, Patrick and I are taking our time and enjoying our last dates on the road. It’s a good, chilled time.

Patrick and I left Connecticut for New York at 11:30 and met up with my friend (now tour guide) Robbie around 2:00 pm. I have to say, off the bat: Robbie York is the best tour guide I’ve had in my entire life. For almost four hours he led us through the streets of NYC, supplying us with a lifetime of New York history. We jammed out in Times Square, ate street hot dogs twice, visited Radio City Music Hall, and watched a guy on a skate board jump a U-Haul truck for the David Letterman show. It was incredible. I could go on and on about the sights and sounds of New York, but instead I’ve uploaded a YouTube video of one of mine and Robbie’s soon-to-be-famous Time Square performances. I hope you enjoy Johnny Cash…

Johnny Cash Duet

I assume the appreciation is evident, but I want to say again: thank you Robbie for taking time to show us NYC. Patrick and I are eternally grateful. It was a blast.

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It’s almost 4 am here, but I am not exactly sure where “here” is. I thought I was in New York, but the Comfort Inn I’m sitting in says it’s in Connecticut. Hmm. It’s probably a good idea we stopped for the night.

So much happened today I’m sure I’m forgetting a lot already. I’ll give the brief summary. We got to Detroit by sunrise, left as quickly as possible, and made it to Canada by 8:30. At the border we were greeted by two officers that welcomed us by searching our car for smuggled contraband. Thankfully the Imagine Something Tour bus is a drug free zone; we made it in to Canada safely.

By early afternoon we reached Niagra Falls in Buffalo, NY. That place is incredible. The water is a beautiful green, and the air smells incredibly sweet from the impressive landscaping. It was a fun place to play because I got to enjoy the waterfall. That also made it an incredibly poor choice to play because everyone walking around was busy enjoying the waterfall, too. In Syracuse I regained my composure and played a gig in front of a restored music venue downtown, and later we played a short set in Boston, MA. Patrick and I made a short push toward NYC around 2am, and stopped in - err - Connecticut to rest for the night.

It looks like the hard part of the trip is over. I only slept six of the last eighty-six hours in order to loosen up the remaining schedule so our days can breathe. Tomorrow we’ll hit the road around noon (hopefully) and get to NYC in the early afternoon. After that we’ll chill, do nothing, and get some much needed rest. Oh, and I’ll finally get to upload some photos. I got a USB cable…

It’s 1:52 am on Wednesday morning. Patrick and I are sitting in a Flying J somewhere in northern Indiana chugging coffee and using the $5 internet card I bought to write this entry. Today was another action-packed day. This morning we found Saddle Creek records in Omaha and took a quick look inside, then went a few blocks over and played in front of the Qwest Arena. (Now, later this summer Celine Dion and Sting can cherish playing the same venue as the Imagine Something Tour.) We got back on the road and made it to Des Moines by mid-afternoon.

Des Moines wasn’t exactly an ideal place to play. First, we tried to play at a local art gallery, but no photography was allowed. We picked a different sidewalk that had a “Sidewalk Closed” sign on it. I started playing anyway, but got kicked off by a security officer that, again, told me I wasn’t allowed to film near the building I was standing beside. We dusted off our shoes and left Des Moines, but quickly got pulled over by a State Patrol for driving 78mph in a 70mph zone. Thankfully he was a fan of the tour idea; he let me off with a warning. Des Moines will not get a promotional copy of the documentary when it’s released!

Chicago was the highlight of the day. We made it to Wrigley Field as the Cubs finished playing tonight so our corner was ripe with baseball fans. We met quite a few nice people and got some impressive donations. If the rain hadn’t picked up so much I’d probably still be playing there now. So, speaking of now…

Now we’re sitting in a Flying J somewhere in Indiana, and will get back on the road to head to Detroit. I expect we’ll get there around 6 am and find some interesting, semi-safe place to play at that hour; a police station, maybe? After the donations tonight we finally have cash to get robbed. I don’t want that to happen. After the gig we’re going to cross the border into Canada and head toward London, ON. My guess is we’ll keep on going after that. If the sun’s up there isn’t much reason to get a hotel room.

Again, there are no pictures tonight. I am very sorry. We stopped at Wal-Mart, Radioshack, and Best Buy today and none of them had the cable we needed. We did see an incredible sight today that I wanted to share: the world’s largest truck stop. At that moment I knew regardless of what happens this November in the presidential election, I am damn proud to be an American.

God Bless the USA.

It’s 1:41 am on Tuesday morning. I’m sitting in a Comfort Inn in Omaha, NE staring at a computer monitor, figuring out what I can write about at the end of day one of the tour. Please forgive any of this that doesn’t make sense; I haven’t slept since Saturday night. I’ll try not to be a baby about that in here, though.

On Monday, May 12 at midnight Patrick and I played our first sidewalk gig at Philips Arena in Atlanta. Some friends and family stopped by to see us off (thanks Dad, Katy, Stephen, and Carey), and at 12:30 am we rode out for Nashville. Nashville was a really great time for me, because I played in front of the Grand Ole Opry. (Them country music fans ain’t got nothin’ on me.) By 8:00 we made it all the way to Memphis, and I looked pretty crazy to a few sleepy Elvis fans at the Graceland entrance.

After bidding The King farewell we hit the road toward Little Rock, AK. (I hope the abbreviation for Arkansas is actually AK. My brain is burnt at the moment.) Little Rock was an incredibly fun time. We set up base on a fairly empty corner that got tons of backed up traffic at the red light. Playing there was a really unique experience, similar to a drive-thru concert. Fans gathered in droves at the red light and rolled down their passenger windows for the free show. Within a minute the show was over, and the audience left. Within another minute the cycle repeated and I was a happy man. Some people were very supportive, and interacted with me from a distance. There were a few go-get-’em arm pumps from guys, some smiles and waves from ladies, and confused looks from almost anyone wearing a tie. I thanked and waved to them all.

After Little Rock we made the seemingly endless trek to Springfield, MO. Springfield had a pretty hip downtown area that reminded me of Athens. I only got through two songs there before I started talking with a nice local named Travis, and a very polite homeless man named Donnie. Meeting Donnie was probably the biggest deal for me today (yesterday?). After reading the cardboard stand-up I stand beside at each show Donnie asked me if Nuci’s Space helped musicians who have mental problems. I assured him that that was the exact reason I’m taking this trip now. Nuci’s cares about musicians, and has tons of services and programs that help them daily. Donnie thought deeply and handed me something: two one dollar bills. It was his donation to Nuci’s Space. I didn’t know what to say. I stood there and took money from a homeless man who thought so highly of the purpose of Nuci’s Space that he gave me his last $2 in his pocket. What can you say to that?

I left Springfield in a daze. Donnie had me thinking, a lack of lunch left my stomach growling, and sleep deprivation made me incredibly stupid. Patrick and I were about to make a run for Omaha when our good friend Travis reminded us our tour t-shirts had Kansas City listed before Omaha. That was good news to get in Springfield, lest we get back to Athens and say ‘Oops’ next week. Kansas City was cool, I think. I’m not sure I can take many real impressions away after 20 minutes of parking and standing on a street corner. The city sure is bigger than I expected, though.

OK, I’ve got to get through this last part quick. It’s 2:15, we leave in seven hours for Des Moines, and I haven’t showered in two days. Oh yeah, and I am sleepy.

So finally, at midnight, we got to Omaha. I told my GPS to take me to Saddle Creek Records, but I landed up in some fancy subdivision in Papillion, instead. Grrr. I will try again, tomorrow. Also, I took a ton of (awesome?) pictures to post on here, but my USB cable used to release them from the camera is a long way away in Athens. I’ll try to put some video up on here tomorrow, barring we do not pull another all-nighter. We’re really trying to get some extra time on the east coast. I’m dying to play in front of Radio City Music Hall, Time Square, and the Statue of Liberty. That’s a three-hitter that might take a while, so I’m trying to shave a day off the already packed schedule to make time in NYC. Here goes.

*Deep Breath* Day Two!