Some of these long trips to CT are worth it, and, actually fairly brainless when I decide to do them. I had a nice day care in N. Branford, near my old home town, who asks me for an annual gig pairing this relatively rural center with a more urban center at a nearby community college. It’s an inspired way to mix the two communities, one all white and the other mostly black and Hispanic. It always turns out to be an interesting mix of kids and teachers, and one I enjoy stirring up. the kids got up at the end and danced and used the rhythm instruments, and it served as a good mixer when I would stop the song and ask them to trade instruments with a ‘new’ friend. It turned out, in hindsight to be a very effective way to get the kids to drop inhibitions – which kids usually do at this age. Lesson learned.
I did get to drive down to Madison to drop of Jaimie’s 20th birthday present and I almost literally ran into him at his job as car hop at the upscale Madison Beach Hotel. He was about to walk across the street as I pulled in. It made the trip doubly worth the drive.
I was thinking about the long drive, morning and evening traffic in PA, NJ and NY and figured out that 10 hours on the road, 400 miles meant that while I was doing my gig at the daycare, I was averaging 40 mph. Cool.
Tomorrow, back on the same roads for a RR in NY along the north Jersey border.