Days 264 - 267 (Thu 4/11/13 - Sun 4/14/13)- Clarksdale, MS

With careful planning we arrived in the 'Home of the Blues' just as their annual Juke Joint Festival was beginning. Juke Joint consists of four days of almost completely free and terrific blues music with acts playing throughout Clarksdale's four downtown blocks. This festival is amazing for many reasons but most of all because Clarksdale is a tiny and economically depressed town, but that doesn't stop them from throwing a hell of a party.

Over the weekend we heard all kinds of blues; sultry woman blues, gritty old man blues, not-as-gritty young man blues and even a guy singing about skinny jean blues. On the first night we got to hear Grammy award winner Eden Brent, whose performance moved the audience (for us literally, so that we could get closer and avoid some distracting chatter behind us). While watching Blind Mississippi Morris we were treated to a 13-year-old kid (though he looked 10) playing fiery lead guitar, heard Rip Lee Pryor sing the dirtest song possible without actually swearing ("Mother-fuya" was the name of the dirty dittie) and saw LC Ulmer sing into a tin can. At times there was almost too much good music, especially Saturday when there were 12 stages going on simultaneously all day.

As if the music weren't enough of a treat there was also a petting zoo, sweet faced chefs from the high school putting out samples as fast as we could scoop them up and liberal drinking laws (so much so that I sipped a Miller while talking to an Officer riding a segway).

We will never forget the music but there were two other things that we are unlikely to forget. The first was meeting a couple who walked past our van, stopped, stared into it and started asking questions. When I responded back, they nearly fell over astonished, apparently they had been talking to the van. "Didn't see you there" the couple replied and asked us to come party with them. It was 5p and it didn't take long to see they were at the very least drunk. This would not have been so unusual except they continued to explain that they were from out of town. This too was not unusual, but then we started doing some math. They bragged about having to drive 90 mph to get into town and had only just arrived. Our math was unnecessarily when they specifically stated they were on coke and ranted about how the new MS drunk driving laws were cramping their style. They were also, if it matters, in their mid 40's. We managed to ditch them in the crowd. (They were easily distractable). They were also hyper focused and came looking for us. We got away again but not as discreetly.

The second unforgettable moment was far better. We were sitting listening to music in front of an old theater. An old man came up to us and began to talk about his history with the theater. He told us that when he was about 10 years-old the theater was segregated with "blacks upstairs and whites downstairs." He and his friends would throw popcorn down below and the white kids would throw some back up. He went on to say that later as a young man he met Martin Luther King Jr. across the street from where we stood, who told him that one day he would have the rights he deserved and that there would even be a black president. His final words to us: "And I lived to see it." It gave me chills.
 
 

 Amazing guitar player from the audience who is like maybe 13

 
 

 

LC Ulmer and his can

 

 Rabbit?

 Hard to tell but this woman is getting her groove on

Monkeys riding dogs traveling show

Days 262 & 263 (Tue 4/9/13 & Wed 4/10/13)- Oxford, MS

There are many reasons to love the town of Oxford. You could choose to admire the deeply rooted devotion the town has for it's university "Ole Miss," or that William Faulkner chose to spend his life here and the town featured in his writing or just because it is a beautiful town. We chose to love it for it's Walmart.

Finding a prime parking spot in a fairly quiet and serene spot we were surrounded by the lush green of Oxford. Here we set up our base camp as we spent two days exploring the city. We visited a gallery in the old town square, walked the grounds of William Falkner's home, Rowan Oak, and visited a museum at Ole Miss where we found the most unique art collection, which included primitive art and pictures of color spectrums.

Under different circumstances we would have found it difficult to leave, but we were spurred on knowing we would be spending the next four days in Blues paradise and were further motivated when we woke up Thursday to torrential rains and flash flood warnings. Goodbye Oxford!

Rowan Oak

Day 261 (Monday 4/8/13)- Holly Springs, MS

Billed online as "just like Graceland without paying $80" (yep that's right, Graceland is as much as Disneyland) and also "like a fever dream" we arrived in tiny Holly Springs and knocked on the door of Elvis' biggest and creepiest fan. We knocked for 10 minutes. We had been told to keep knocking, eventually someone would answer. Turns out our museum guide was taking a nap (he often stays awake for days at a time since his "museum" is open 24/7). Paul finally answered the door and we immediately regretted our decision. His collection of Elvis memorabilia was a hoarder's paradise but made me desperately want to start organizing. As he led us through the house he spoke not only of celebrities and "loads of money," but also of his large gun collection, which was especially scary considering he is clearly unmedicated. His claimed "sponsorship" from Budweiser, evidenced in his can littered back yard wasn't helping matters. He might need another kind of sponsor.

As the tour went on we began to feel a little more safe having built a rapport with our eccentric tour guide who started referring to Isaiah as "you" and to me as "foxy" and began feeling comfortable enough to start making lewd comments (thankfully he made me "earmuff" for most of these disturbing digressions). It is hard to describe what we saw. For one it was bizarre. For two Paul seemed to have various strategies to keep anyone from looking too closely at his treasures. There was the strategy of shining lights in our faces. Also the one where whenever you turned around to look at things he would whistle, snap his fingers like he's beckoning a waiter three blocks away, and punch you in the shoulder, indicating he wanted you to look at him while he is talking. He is, of course, always talking. I belive the shoulder attack was some sort of karate move, he being an Elvis afficionado after all. This leads us to distraction strategy #3-Paul talks in 4th gear without letup for over an hour and rarely makes sense. Conversational topics, in order of frequency-money, (garbage bags full of it, discovered in the trunks of various cadillacs which decorate his front yard like shrubs) cadillacs, women, family, women in his family, his ex-wife, celebrities with only the loosest of links to Elvis, Elvis, guns, the government, other quasi celebrities.

From the start Paul shared his interest in dating my mom and went on to talk about his plans to marry her, how they would have a hundred children together and how Isaiah would pay child support. This was not the only proposal during the visit. He also suggested we team up in a vague but extremely lucrative business partnership. There was a brief musical interlude where he serenaded us.
The final room on the tour was a mural of photos of previous visitors. To our amazement the visual visitor's log covered several entire walls. The tour is popular with drunk students who pop in at 4 am. Defintely something you "try a few times in college." And if you go three times you get a free lifetime membership as punishment. Before we left, Paul wrung our hands, thanked us for being nice and told me to go sit in the van while he proceeded to tell Isaiah the most foul things (un)imaginable. A pirate Larry Flint having been at sea for 20 years might come close.

Days later we were horrified to find that "a mentally ill Elvis impersonator from Missippi" had sent poisoned letters to the President. After fearing we had been infected with the Ricin Paul had been whipping up prior to our visit, we learned it was actually a different mentally ill Missippian, who we further learned wasn't himself responsible, but who had been framed by a karate instructor over a disagreement about a political bumper sticker. This place is nuts.

For visitors who don't get along with Paul

 

Actual part of the "Museum" tour

Days 255 - 260 (Tue 4/2/13 - Sun 4/7/13)- Memphis, TN

Leaving Albuquerque in shorts and worrying about sunburns we were astonished when the weather dropped 30 degrees within an hour. Spending a few days driving through Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas we were chased by a hail/rain storm all the way into Tennessee.

Having high hopes for Memphis you can say we were a little disappointed. After visiting the Lorraine Motel (the site where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated), Sun Studios where legends like Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash got their start and walking along the riverfront we had only spent a few hours when we had initially planned to stay a few days.

There was still Beale street and this, as expected, was a highlight. In just a few small city blocks we heard an extraordinary amount of music. In the early evening we found several artists playing on patios, street corners and at a tiny city park. There were enough bands, in fact, that it was a little hard to hear at times. Young kids and teens did back flips in the street as hundreds of tourists looked on, some tipsy girls broke into a spontaneous dance routine and one night the area was littered with film students. The street was alive and dense with good times.

Though the music was solid, my favorite part of Beale street might have been a small photo gallery tucked away on an unpopulated block, where we found a collection of photos from the Civil Rights movement, many of Martin Luther King and all extremely moving.

Isaiah got barbecue that was top billing despite, or maybe because it nearly burned his face off.

We also spent the weekend anxious for Sunday when we planned to attend a special church service. There was some trepidation as online reviews claimed that the Reverend would publicly shame you if you tithed less than $20, that services lasted 4 hours and that the congregation broke into tongues. Thankfully only one of those things happened.

Having turned away from his addictions and to the lord in the late 70's Bishop Al Green has a baptist church tucked away in a residential Memphis neighborhood. Bishop Green has a surprisingly small congregation of about 60 (with an additional 20 or so tourists each week). Isaiah thought it might be the best concert he has ever been to.

Hard to say how much Al Green is a rock star and how much rock and r&b have stolen from the church. Rev did the whole James Brown thing where he claimed he was just too tired/emotional to go on anymore, like he was going to collapse or give up and then, only after our encouragement, bam, he's up singing, louder than ever. Regardless of who influenced the other, more bands should pattern their shows on the dynamics of this church. Not to mention more churches should have the enthusiasm, energy and joy of this place. I can see now how Ray Charles just had to change "God" to "girl" and make church songs rollicking and racy.

About a third of the congregation are gifted singers and almost all of them had their chance to impress us, before the Bishop had said even a word. Though talented as they all were, hearing Mr. Al Green himself was untouchable.

His sermon consisted mostly of words of praise (where in response the congregation said strange but encouraging words like "preach it master") inter spliced with his unbelievable, goose bump inducing singing. I've heard some singers described as being so good that they could sing the phone book and still be captivating, imagine them singing the Bible. At one point Al mentioned a song he had heard on the radio and the congregation spontaneously broke into the song with several people (including the reverend) speaking in tongues. After two hours (that somehow felt too short) the service ended leaving us with our feet a tappin' and glad to not have to have had a math lesson with Al Green--"Well, you see Reverend, 10 percent of nothing is nothing."

"Carhenge" outside of Amarillo

 

Site of Dr. King's assassination

 

 

 

 

Legendary Sun Studios

 

Recording artists include Elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis

 

 

 

Beale St.

 

 

 

 

Day 254 (Monday 4/1/13)- Breaking Bad Part 2

Isaiah:
I am such a nerd I would have been happy just hanging out and watching the crew and cameras and seeing how they make the show. I am such a glutton I would have been happy just with the free catering.

I started off my early morning putting in a petition to get the van into a parking lot scene. Then there was wardrobe. While Amanda looked fitting for the screen during her extra gig, me not as much. I will blame the casting guy, who told me to look like I did in the picture I sent him (wearing a beanie, parka, and a look of disdain for having found New Mexico frozen). We've been waiting so long for the call back NM was now hot and the wardrobe department was disgusted with the clothes I had brought. "It's wrinkled," the wardrobe lady more spit at than spoke to me. "They told me it was casual," was my weak reply. We had been unable to find a laundry mat. I guess they didn't want me upstaging, or I guess more accurately, down staging the shows lead (see Cranston below). Of course the one time in my life I might be on TV also happens to be the one time in my life I'm homeless. But of course if I look frumpy, its only because hair and makeup conspired against me.

Next, my intended foresight turned disastrous. After hearing how Amanda nearly peed herself and got scolded for having to go (see free catering above. See also limited bathrooms below) I decided to be a good extra and ensure I was drained before leaving for set. Though when I returned from the bathroom everybody was gone. I was despondent and angry with myself, especially because by the time I was finally shuttled over to the restaurant, some extras were already sitting at tables with food and I was, with a group of others, swept into a waiting room, where you couldn't even see anything. This lasted only a couple of minutes though. The PA came in and said "they" wanted me. "They" then sat me alone at a table and gave me a computer and headphones.

Now remember I was sworn to secrecy. I had to sign a waiver and everything. The show's paranoid about details getting out, this being the last episode, and them having reason to be paranoid. Somebody broke into Bryan Cranston's car and stole his script. The other reason I don't want to say too much is I'm kind of upset by what I saw. The scene itself wasn't too monumental, I didn't, for example, see Walter White die in a barrage of bullets, but I think I pieced together some things that might happen after the scene I was in--that or the director is obsessive compulsive.

From across the room I'm trying to figure out what's going on, I see the crew, I recognize the director, I see a rough looking kid in the corner and marvel how good a job they did finding a stand in that looks like Bryan Cranston. The guy sits down a couple of seats down from me. Holy Moses, it is Bryan Cranston. All I can say about what he looked like--he's going to win another Emmy without even having to open his mouth. This is so cool, I am three tables down from Walter White. "Action." Crap. Focus. Look at the computer. Look like your doing something. I hear a scraping sound. Keep typing. Shoot, I shouldn't be making any noise. Type silently. "Cut." Whew. It was then I look up and see Bryan Cranston right in front of me. I was also startled to see another actor, one who was a favorite character in another show and one I was completely unaware was now on Breaking Bad, one who hadn't even been in the room when "action" was called (I haven't seen the first part of the final season. For one we are in a van. For two I want to watch the whole season all together. I don't even want to watch this episode until I see all the other ones first). He, unlike Cranston, looks exactly like he does on TV.

Ok, take 2. This time I am ready. An attractive woman walks in front of me. Naturally I look up from my computer. The creator of the show, who is also directing, comes up to me and says casually, "Hi. I'm Vince" and says that he likes that I looked up at the woman.

I found out, however, I wasn't to look up even if a sketchy guy starts making a racket or a nerdy guy is inexplicably hanging around a woman far physically superior than ought to be in his vicinity. What do I know. I'm just an average type guy from Albuquerque, who is annoyed there are weird people interrupting me from my very important computer work.

Not that I think much if any of that will get on camera, but you kind of have to make up things to do to entertain yourself, because you hear and do the same thing over and over all day and you can't openly gawk at the actors. Actors are so close I can hear dialogue. The talk was not appropriate for public, but I suppose my headphones are turned up real loud. I was tempted to rock out in the background to this nonexistent computer music, instead I thought the character(s) were nervous and me looking suspicious would be best.

Even though it was the same over and over it remained exciting. Then I realized I was the only extra left on set. It was hard to gauge time, but they shot like that for an hour or so. Then they brought the camera to film from my table and kicked me out. I managed to hide in the back of the kitchen for a while and continue watching before they turned the camera around and sent everyone but the restaurant staff out. I don't know to what degree the parking lot was filmed, but our van might make it on the show too. I stayed as long as I could inside, even though that meant ignoring a food truck outside. Another bonus of hanging out in the back was the narrow hallway leading to the sole pair of bathrooms, so at one point or another all of the actors brushed past me.

Bryan was funny, even though he stayed physically more or less in character. He told a bunch of jokes, but two specific ones I remember: He was on the periphery of the scene and didn't realize he was on camera and when he was told he had to put away his reading material, he yelled, "What Walter White can't have an Ipad!" Later when I was sent outside and was trying to avoid being sent to extra purgatory and instead make use of the snack truck, Cranston comes wandering out of the restaurant, perhaps still on camera, and mumbles how Walter White would definitely go to the food truck in this situation and how, as he reached for a bag of chips, deep in character he was.

We broke for lunch and the food was excellent. But after lunch I was stuck in the back with most everyone else and have no idea what else happened. I felt bad most of the people there were only extras for a few minutes. It was a short day, compared to the 12-14 hours they often do, so I had some time to kill as Amanda wouldn't be meeting up with me for a couple of hours. I debated whether to get a ride back up to base camp or get the van and which option might give me a better chance at seeing something cool. I went to the van and ran into the writer/creator/director Vince Gilligan, who was very nice and remembered my name from earlier in the day. I scrambled to get a camera and paper out of the van as Bryan was leaving the set. He too was very nice. He looked really tired, and having seen just part of his day, I know why, but still he posed for pictures and signed autographs and was charming. There were a dozen people, some from Venezuela, who had been camped out all day, though they couldn't have seen much. I felt bad and uncool but I too badgered him into a picture and signature. It was worth it. Amanda was super excited when I surprised her with proof of my unbelievable day. When I got back to base camp to finish up I saw Jesse Pinkman. A pretty awesome day.

Amanda:
As my day did not include meeting famous celebrities it's clearly not as exciting as Isaiah's but there were a few things worth mentioning. For lunch I had an amazing Doner Kebab at a Turkish place downtown. It was stuffed with fries and salad and was one of the best I've ever had. In the afternoon I watched Oz the Great and Powerful (terrible) and then snuck into The Croods (surprisingly good). After a communication error I found Isaiah circling the block searching for me. It was sweet that he thought I might have been kidnapped and though I did get some lewd comments and people following me, they seemed harmless enough.

After hearing just a portion of Isaiah's day, my shrieking may have alarmed some passerbys who were surely confused as to why I was screaming "VINCE GILLIGAN said hi to you! BRYAN CRANSTON was HOW close?" Being a covert romantic, Isaiah waited until the next day to show me the autograph and weeks later to show the pictures he took with Cranston. Guess he thought it would buy him some long term good will. It did.   

Days 251 - 253 (Fri 3/29/13 - Sun 3/31/13)- Albuquerque, NM

Isaiah will be filming for Breaking Bad on Monday and so we spent the weekend back in Albuquerque preparing. This involved sharing a 4-foot public pool with a rowdy group of 12 year-old birthday party guests, staking out the filming location and working on our base tans in the beautiful sunny weather.

Easter Sunday found us at the First Congregational Church enjoying a nice service and a welcoming atmosphere. Following the service we toured several popular filming sites for Breaking Bad which we couldn't previously access due to filming or home owners.

Happy Easter!

                                                    Hank and Marie's House



                                                                The Carwash


       
                                                                Walt's House