Nacogdoches, TX
Welcome back out with us as we find ourselves here in chapter 240, of the continuing novel of tales and lore. Friends always say, “the life of being a musician must be pretty cool, that you only have to work 1.5 hours a day”–well, that’s not so accurate, as the start of this day was a sign of another 24+hour day. Stoney did a couple of acoustic shows before we all met up in various places, then landing at the oldest town in TX. Known by many as “Naca-nowhere,” it always sticks out as a great place, and very beautiful with rolling hills and pine trees, as we anticipated a possible freeze later in the night. Cuz “42″ (Keith) picked up NT, JB, and I, somewhere I don’t know, in a different bus, which is what you will now be seeing us in, the time was up on Vertigo, and our new ship is Black and Blue, which I was told was just on the Widespread Panic tour, dropped the guys off in Vegas, then picked us up. So there we are, rolling down the road counting historical markers (there are many in TX), when Cuz sez, “look in the mirror”– all we see is a cloud of haze, and upon investigation, it was not smoke, thankfully it was steam–we blew a radiator hose 10 miles from Nac.
That completely shut us down, and Cuz took off in search for a replacement with a stranger that was kind enough to stop and see if we needed help. Then came the highway patrol, beating on the side of the bus, when Stoney fended them off. Whew… Late was the word, but our superstar line-up of Nathan, Mike, Dusty, and Kyle, we made up lost time and even worked up a new tune. Lunch was at Clear Springs, and they picked up the tab–thanks guys!–then everybody split in different directions, in which JW, JB, and myself took the hotel option, and turned out to be great. If you go to Nac and need a bed, check out the Fredonia, get a room by the pool, enjoy, you’ll feel like a movie star (I pretended I was Gene Autry). It was like cross between California and Key West. With the town shutting down at midnight, the show started early and with Brison Bursey kicking it off, and we the took the stage around 10 pm or so, with plenty of dancing going on, not us, the crowd. The band sounded great, and we had a good time. An earlier mention of the gentleman who took time out of his day to help someone, brings me to this–get your face out of your cell phone and pay attention to what’s happening around you. A good deed on your behalf, can make the biggest difference in somebody else’s life. We understand the blessing we have been given to have you let us into your lives, and can never thank you enough for the love you provide. Take care Nacogdoches, we’ll see you down the road……….elstevo
