So I wasn't going to do this but I figured what the hell. Turns out, there is going to be a little bit more of this big story to tell. Like the mini-series reboots of 24, X-Files, and Twin Peaks, this is kinda like a little encore to the big show, I suppose. The cast will be similar, and the hijinks will be familiar, but the storyline will be fresh. Or, at least, that's the idea. This will hopefully not be the first encore, however. I don't imagine us ever actually concluding this story. But that will be dealt with in due time. Now, to the matter immediately at hand.
In less than two weeks, we will be on our way back to Newfoundland. We are flying this time...no time to drive....but it will still be quite the adventure and I could not possibly be more excited. The months that have gone by since leaving the road have seen us settling back into normal life with jobs and responsibilities and social calendars and all that business. But we continue to hold dear to our time on the road, despite it fading from our consciousness with every passing day....in a way it now all feels like a dream. In this regard, I could not be happier that this blog exists, and I have re-read it several times, just to keep it fresh in my mind. While the road mentality might be a somewhat distant memory, our love for Newfoundland, on my part especially, and the people we met there, has never faded, and probably never will. In fact, it's gotten even stronger over time and rarely a day goes by when one of us doesn't touch base with at least one friend that we made on that trip. I am constantly trying to dream up ways to justify moving there, and that dream will be kept alive, in one way or another, until it finally happens. So, in a way, it feels like we are heading home.
And so, with that, we make our way back north. The main point of this trip is to hang out and get up to various shenanigans with all our friends in Trinity East. Unfortunately, due to our jobs and our limited paid vacation time, our time up there is confined to two weeks, so we won't be able to make it to the west coast of the island or really spend any decent amount of time in St. John's, but we are looking forward to hiking the Skerwink trail, Murphy's Cove, and all the other great spots on the Bonavista Peninsula. We might even hike the super-long and intense British Harbour trail. We are excited to dine at the Bonavista Social Club and get lunch at the Trinity Mercantile. Krissy and I are planning on having a "date night" at the Twine Loft and take in a show at the Rising Tide Theatre. And you better believe that I will be getting some chocolate almonds from Aunt Sarah's. During our brief time in St. John's, I intend to visit Fred's Records.....oh my I can't wait to go there...and we will get breakfast at Bagel Cafe or Rocket Bakery. Maybe even stop by Smoke's and get a poutine to go. I'm also looking forward to eating some fresh cod and lots of moose burgers and such. Our fingers are crossed that someone will whip up a jigg's dinner while we are there and I definitely need to get some bakeapple pie and some partridgeberry jam. I am also looking forward to foraging for wild raspberries and blueberries....so delicious. And, of course, the Black Horse. I've been laying off the beers for the last several weeks, just to prepare for that bit of ridiculousness. We are going to get right good and stupid and I can't wait. Mostly, we are looking forward to playing games and hanging out with all our good folks, as well as meeting new awesome folks as well. It's going to be a wild, wicked time.
This time out, our time spent there will be strictly vacation. We won't be working at the hostel this time, though we plan on hanging out there quite often. Instead, we will be staying with Mel & Melanie and we will also be spending a great deal of time at Justin's place as well. There has been talk of a camping adventure, sometime in the days after my show. We'll see if our energy levels and the weather allow for that to pan out. Newfoundland is in the midst of their coldest summer in over 20 years. Rarely has the temperature gone over 60F. For us, it will be a nice reprieve from the brutal heat we've had this summer down here, but I'm sure they are pretty well sick of it up there, and I'm not sure how likely camping will be in that cold (Krissy is not with me now but I can still hear her saying "#*$@ NOOOO"). If that doesn't work out, we shall find plenty of other ways to occupy our time.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot. I am totally playing a show while we are up there. That's right, FDM goes international for the first time ever. Monday 17 August, 7:30pm, I will throw down two sets of my original brand of nonsense at Two Whales and I am both excited and nervous about that. There are plans for guests and it should be an awesome evening. I am looking into ways to webcast the show on YouTube or something. At the very least, it will be filmed and uploaded to YouTube soon after, for those at home who want to see the show. I only hope, as it is to be on the Monday after the Trinity Fest weekend, that I am in decent enough shape to bring IT. If last year's fest was any indication, it will be quite the long slog. But it will be done and it will be awesome.
So right now we are just dealing with all the last minute arrangements but I think we are in good shape. We have a cat sitter. We have a place to stay when we first get in (which will be after midnight on Sat 8th). And our friend Alicia, who lives near St. John's, has offered to drive us to Trinity East on Saturday, after we take care of our St. John's business. Once there, we need to get a new sim card for our phone, so we have a working one there. And, on this end, we need to figure out our packing solution (since I am bringing a guitar and all). That is all little stuff. The rest will work itself out. I am nervous but very, very psyched about this.
So I guess that's about it for now. I can't say for certain just how often I will update this while we are gone. It all depends on what is going on. But I hope to update it at least a few times while we are there. I'm sure Krissy will have some amazing photos to post and we will have several ridiculous stories to share. I can't wait!
