Life's a beach....

Hey, yes, I know... all the thousands of people reading this blog and emailing me wondering what the hell the band is up to. Sorry folks... sometimes my "other life" gets in the way of being a rock star...

So, if anyone is actually reading this... Uh, I'm right now in Waldport, just up the road from Yachats, where the band is rockin' the house at the Landmark. I'm here because the cafe I'm sitting in has wireless internet (Waldport Seafood Co.), and it was a great excuse to try out my new wireless network card. What can I say...it works!!! Then I spied Eddy and Sherry strolling by, so I tapped on the window, they came in, had some coffee, talked some gig shop, and then headed down the street to the flea market, after we watched the Waldport Days Parade: kids, bicycles, fire trucks, national guard/mobile equipment, some horses with striking characters as riders, more kids, the mayor and his family in a truck, and the high school homecoming queen. It was so damn charming, I couldn't stop grinning.

The Landmark is a funky, rambling joint right down on the beach of the Yachats Bay. As I sat eating dinner, two gulls took up residence on the deck railing about two feet from my plate, eyeing it hungrily. They apparently are aware of the concept of GLASS, since they looked pretty damn brave, if not a tad smug peering in on my fare.

Googling "Landmark Yachats," I find out that the place has been named one of 23 "best fish dives" in the nation--the gulls seem to agree anyway. I just had the shrimp salad sandwich (it was yummy), so I can't vouche for the whole seafood dinner deal, but the service was certainly snappy.

Eddy arrived shortly after I finished dining with the gulls, we loaded in, and got set up. Beds were offered any band members who wanted them upstairs. Ray and I opted for those, part of a two-bedroom apartment-style space where the Landmark has its offices. Walls plastered with posters of past bands who have performed there, everything was in active disarray, with quite an array of collateral flotsam and jetsam inherent in keeping a restaurant and live music venue operational: broken neon lights, boxes of invoices, a couple of computers, a stash of toilet paper... The beds were interspersed among within the mess, but it looked like someone was at least trying to keep things relatively organized.

The gig was lightly attended, but the folks that were there were vocal about their appreciation for the band, so it was happening. We're hoping word will spread through the town, and perhaps into surrounding communities, and we'll have a bigger crowd tonight. Nathan's mom and dad showed up to proudly watch and listen to their prodigy. Nathan's dad even sat in. It was obvious what side of the DNA Nathan got his chops from. (In the pic, L to R: Nathan's dad, wife, mom, Nathan).

I was awakened by the owner's little brown terrier around 10 AM. He had wiggled his way into my dreams--something about chasing a runaway horse being chased by dogs--so it was a little disorienting to wake up to the frustrated barks of a couped-up dog. When he realized I was there, he looked at me suspiciously and then laid stomach down with jaw on floor, eyebrows shifting in that classic poor-me dog look. I figured I'd better not let him out, so once I'd left he resumed his lonely solo chorus.

Anywho, I'll attempt to be more forthcoming as we continue on the odyssey we call The Kid Lopez Band...

Oh, check out the stage we're on at the Landmark...something for every holiday: