Trip Home in Three Chapters

(Man, settling back in is more work than I remember. And learning how to resize photos on the Mac isn't as easy as I'd hoped.  I must be doing something wrong. )

Here goes...the trip home in three chapters. 

Chapter One -- Week One

My usual strategy for combating jet lag involves much late night TV and plenty of naps. As you can guess, there are some serious flaws in that methond, but discovering Craig Ferguson isn't one of them. 

Mostly J and I hung with my mom and newly-retired dad and attempted to avoid the flood of home improvement jobs they had lined up. 

J in a moment of deep reflection.

J and Dusty. 

Dusty and J. 

Chapter Two -- Week Two

Called and began meeting friends. Truly, my friends are Gold. I wish I had had more time. There's never enough time. 

Then at the end of the week there was the book signing at the Bookworm, a fantastic bookstore I'll frequent every time I go back. The reading/signing was an absolutely surreal event in itself. The books sold out and all kinds of new and old friends came out as well as my uncle and aunt all the way from Arkansas. 

I wasn't terribly looking forward to it, just scared I suppose. But I ended up having a stellar time and the day just flew by. If I had one complaint it was that I couldn't spend more time with each person and then everyone all together. I'm thinking a book signing/sleep over next time.  We'll do popcorn. Bring your jammies!

I hired my mom to do the stamps in the books and pass out feathers. She did a great job. A couple of my golden buddies.

The milling around. Oh, my gosh, is that two members from the

band the Dead Aliens? 

The actual reading. Is my mom crying yet? 

Chapter Three -- Week Three

And then J, my parents and I flew to New York to spend a couple days. 

Wow. 

I've only been to Manhattan once before (in high school), so I was stoked about the city and pukifyingly nervous about meeting my agent. 

NYC impressions: Fantastic food. Fell in love with the Wuup Wup Wup! of the ambulances/fire trucks attempting to get cars to move. Was surprised at how many times I smelled patchouli while walking down the street. Got to see some of Nicholas Cage's new movie and ride the subway a couple times. Oh, and J's favorite -- we saw a white man who had very recently spray painted himself brown, all drippy and smiley. Boy, we wanted to know the story behind him.

Here's Soho where my agent's office is. You can actually see his door. Meeting was inspiring. More than even I realize it's time for me to step up. 

J. being all New York City cool. Or maybe just ticked off that I keep telling him to pose every five seconds.

Really one of my best trips home. Again, not enough time. And then there was the airplane that came down on one wheel and almost rolled which planted a new and crippling seed of panic in me every time I got on a plane. I do hope that goes away. But if not, it's nothing a couple five dollar airplane beers can't sing into submission. Because I'm on a quest to hurry and make enough money so I can go back real soon !

I'll end with this picture. In the middle of Time's Square they were having some sort of free auditions. Here's J, the back of my mom and Elvis.