Chapter Twenty Four NORTHWEST ORIENTED September 2004

Dateline: Wednesday, September 8, 2004

My plane arrives early at SeaTac, so instead of waiting 90 minutes for Richard to arrive, I hop an express bus to Downtown Seattle (only $1.25 – god, I miss mass transit) and transfer to a Wallingford bus. It’s a gorgeous day, unlike the clothesdryer weather I left in Los Angeles a few hours ago, and I stop at the new and improved Diggity Dog in Green Lake for an awesome Italian sandwich before walking a few blocks to Matthew’s place.

The new flyer for our “Rhapsody in Bob” show is back from the printers – using the Bobs’ erstwhile Mikeman logo drawn by Berlin based artist Henning Wagenbrecht and some stills from the filming we did last year (see Bob Tale,“Worcester? I Hardly Know Her!”). It’s very cool. Our new agent is selling this show at the Western Arts Alliance this weekend out in Spokane.

Matthew’s wife, Fiona, has an art show on display at Hiroki’s, a wonderful dessert oasis, so we check it out, meeting my pal Eben (see Bob Tale, "North by Northwest") there. He steals me away for a Hawaiian influenced dinner at a new restaurant in Wallingford called Clara's – affordable and highly yum, I might comment – then drops me off at a rehearsal at Dan Bob’s place.

Dan has a rather violent new pitchpipe attached to a large, watchfobby metal chain. “You Vill Sink de Correct Nohtz!” It is the subject of much mockage. Dan's wife makes sweetly acidic remarks to him about his errors as we rehearse. It’s totally hysterical. Allison is a talented actress and recently turned author of Shaking Hands with Shakespeare, a newly published tome about teaching Shakespeare to high school students. (The Bard Meets The Bored?) We sing for about 90 minutes, then I am deposited at Eben’s place for the evening, where I sleep blissfully in the cool, cool night, with rain falling softly outside. Just thinking about Alex at home in the heat makes me sad!

Dateline: Thursday, September 9, 2004

Alex tells me that Sitka’s second play date with our neighbor’s new chocolate lab puppy, Frankie, did not go so well… We want to get a doggie eventually, so on Monday night, we had Frankie and Sitka about 2 feet apart, separated by a screen door, and it was great. No growling, hissing or airborne fur. Sitka was not aggressive or defensive about witnessing his first doggie up close and smelling his toys. Good Kitty! Apparently Alex, a bit too anxious for them to be dear friends, pushed Sitka a little too far during the second encounter and he hissed and ran downstairs. We’ll try again next week when both of Sitka’s mommies are there to comfort him.

We meet up at Matthew’s place to prepare for our photo shoot at beautiful Gasworks Park with Seattle photographer Dana Neely. Fiona helps the guys coordinate a decidedly uniform look (kinda Miami Vice, but they make it work!) whilst I am an ironing fiend with my ballgowns. The shoot is great fun. We may even make T-shirts out of one of the Skyline with Power Tools series. Dana is a hoot, the weather is spectacular, and I get a freakin’ sunburn after three hours in the park!

After a serious nap at our hotel, Richard and I chow down at McCormick & Schmick’s on the harbor, reveling in the absolute glow of the day. Must To Move Here Someday. I get way too caught up watching The Ring on HBO when we have to leave for another rehearsal Chez Dan. Now I gotta rent it to find out what the crap happens!

SILLY SIDEBAR!!!!! THE RING was based on a Japanese movie called RINGU. Soon after it came out, Alex had to watch a movie for work (he’s in the movie biz) called THE EYE. I asked him if the Japanese version was called EYEGOO. Yeah, I crack myself up. Oh, and one day I'll really learn HTML so this text box isn't so spastic. But I'm sure you'll admit that story was totally worth the time it took me to look up the text box code!

Allison has made evil chocolate chip cookies (a tangible bonus of having Dan Bob) and tea sandwiches. Can I borrow her? Looks like we won’t be around to re-enjoy Steve this weekend. Steve is a brunch dish she makes involving eggs, cheese and meat. It’s a Wyoming thing, I suppose – hey, they gotta do better in the export column than Dick Cheney!

Dateline: Friday, September 10, 2004

Back on Bob Rivers morning radio show on KZOK (and you can hear archived clips from The Bobs’ previous visits to this funfest using that link) we crack up some more…. Our new agent calls to tell us the flyer is a hit at the conference… And Richard and I walk downtown. We ask a man who looks to be a local where we might find a nice breakfast place. The most Seattle answer comes back, “Well, there’s sushi down that block and a Moroccan place three streets up.” Jeez! Can’t we get some freakin’ eggs and bacon?!?! We eventually find a nice sidewalk café mit quiche in Belltown, only to be verbally accosted mid-conversation by a rude, elderly woman with a serious chip on her shoulder. Man, I hate that!

I spend the day on the phone with various friends including Josh Kornbluth, in town doing a run of his Love and Taxes show at the Intiman. Several years ago in San Francisco, we Bobs workshopped a show we called The History of Vocal Music: Survival of the Loudest with Josh as a Narrator-type figure. In this lecture/demo type presentation, Josh became increasingly personally involved with the group (something to do with a freak oboe accident) as the evening progressed, derailing the “serious” nature of the show. Great fun – but then Josh and his brother got the money to do a movie version of his Haiku Tunnel and he literally fired himself from our project! (The concept eventually turned into the show we workshopped with the Flying Karamazov Brothers. No hard feelings – Josh went to Sundance with his film.) Our schedules won’t mesh even for coffee (what else does one do in Seattle?) when we take our respective states of exhaustion into account. Oh well… I head up to Ballard for yet another Archie McPhee's fix – a must do since I missed it in July – then snarf a nap before heading over to Triple Door for the shows.

The Triple Door is GORGEOUS – and we are sold out! After an incredible gingery, garlicy, yum dinner, our first show ramps to a splendidly rocking finish and the second spins into laser-like insanity (as always). The Harris family (a.k.a. My Sparkly People from Jazz Alley – see Bob Tale Silver Bobs, Part One,), the babes from Acappella Go (congratulations on your engagement, Ginger!) the Alexanders (looking oh so relaxed since moving out to the San Juans from Reston, VA) and our Seattle homies are all in attendance. “Prisoner of Funk” has newfound trip hoppiness thanks to Dan Bob’s urban leanings. Matthew forgets the words to “Krishna” – UNBELIEVABLE! We premiere “Drive By Love” and “Turtle Cycle” with Dan, always working tunes in. Back pain ensues between sets – the floor at the club is rock hard – so Richard and I run the Bach duet stretched out on the floor, much to everyone’s amusement.

Allison gives me a lift home in the pouring rain…Alex tells me he has been a machine this weekend – vrooming through his work – and that Sitka is very meowy and sweet. I miss them both! I drift off as LA Law reruns on A&E…

Dateline: Saturday, September 11, 2004

I wake up feeling weird - I had all these bizarre dreams about something being in my left eye - so much so that I actually woke up and splashed water in it at one point. Eyegoo indeed! Anyhoo it's 9:45 and I know Richard's up so I invade his room. We copy the photos onto my computer and burn CDs for Dan and Matthew to peruse, marveling at how really great this shoot was. It's a great feeling to have so many choices - that almost never happens. Richard and I head back to the harbor but there are no breakfast places open but Starbucks, where two fairly large dogs entertain us with unfettered humping as we pass by. Back at the hotel we brunch, talking about this Steely Dan tribute band I sometimes sing with in LA, Doctor Wu. Killer tunes, killer band. Lots of fun. It better be - we don't make any actual money doing it!

We drive down to Portland, looking at the pix on Richard's iBook as the green, green greenness passes by. Must to live in the Northwest. Make it So. We finally find the hotel near Waterfront Park and it's a total score - a Residence Inn with a full kitchen. I think it can't get much better when Matthew knocks on my door with cheese from our Dealer up in Seattle. (Cue: open weeping)

The Bones and Brew Festival has amazing BBQ and lots of Rogue ales - what's not to like? The promoter, Bill, greets me with A) food vouchers and B) "Sing quick - it's gonna pour," which it... doesn't. We hang out at the Borders booth signing CDs, and I find my erstwhile neighbors from Los Angeles, Barry and Susie, who sold their place next to us and headed north about a year ago. They look so happy, relaxed. (Sensing a theme here...) Barry's a photographer (he took these black and whites of our show) and Susie's a painter. We rap about everything...so great to see them...and call Alex at home in LA to say hello.

SECOND SILLY SIDEBAR!!!! This Just In From Dan Bob: "In Portland, as Richard and I were walking to the gig from the hotel, I was looking up at all the bridges and overpasses that dominated the area and I said to Richard, 'You know, I used to have a minor irrational fear of bridges.' Richard Bob very quickly and dryly responded, 'I just have a fear that I’ll come out of them in the wrong key.'" (AMY BOB NOW LIKEY THE TEXT BOX FUNCTION!)

The show rocks the rowdy crowd including Atomic FOBs Josh and Stephanie English (who met at a Bobs show at the Aladdin!!) as well as Janie Bob Scott. Janie always comes to our Portland shows and it's always great to see her - even if she didn't join us onstage this time! She is now a fab redhead. Dan confesses to me that he got nervous doing "Boy Around The Corner," which is now in the set, because she was there... how cute is that? You know, the only Bob I haven't met is Lori. Kind of odd since we play Santa Cruz so often. Apparently we share the same birthday... Bizarre but true! I really wish Alex had been here tonight - he would have loved the microbrews and the cool, greyscalish views. After the show we hang with various fans and Janie. A girl demonstrates for Dan her vocal trumpet with a Harmon Mute. I nab a cool poster as we walk back to the Marriott. Dan yawns something about wanting to find a bookstore so he can take a picture of Allison's book there. Matthew finishes a beer and Richard does yoga poses while smoking a cigarette (he's trying to quit). The security guys lock the gates behind us as we discuss repertoire for Dan to learn for the next tour.

Alex tells me the blue moose art I ordered for his birthday hasn't arrived, sadly, but that he and Sitka eagerly await my homecoming. I pack, shower and end up watching that great movie Nobody's Fool until 2am.

Dateline: Sunday, September 12, 2004

Naturally the huge breakfast buffet would have been free but it's too early to be anything but nauseous... I bring the car around...Richard is comically grumpy... Matthew and I will see each other next weekend in Long Beach - at a surprise birthday party for his Mom (whose coolness far surpasses her age). I get the upgrade to Los Angeles...but as we descend into the smog I am a different sort of Prisoner of Funk. Can't collapse when I get home like usual - I've got a five hour rehearsal later today for something else...

It'll be a long, exhausting week in Los Angeles singing for the Big Three: Yahweh, Jesus and Steely Dan. But there's more Bobbing to be done soon... and I'm glad about it. It was a long, hot summer in Smogtown that kind of sucked. I am so happy to be back on this bus again with these guys, who totally crack me up. I needs to be out on the road with mah boyz and mah fancy dresses and boots, yellin' for the peeps. I ain't tired of it yet.

See you out there!

Amy Bob

(c) 2004 Amy Bob Engelhardt