Count Down!

We are just a few days from departure for our spring-summer-fall tour. It's hard to believe three years ago this started as a three week trip to KY and NY. This year we will perform in at least 15 states and pass through at least 26! I grant it that we still have a few holes in our calendar so we are going to be stuck at hotels or camping sites more often than I would care for, but who knows what is waiting around the corner.

Today I got the RV back from my neighbor's shop. He installed some cool air springs which will allow for a softer ride and lift the tail end higher for towing. We are taking two trailers this year. I also installed racing seat belts in the seats of the RV for the kids since all they had were lap belts and one hard stop and they could whack their heads on the table. It was quite a job. The cool part is they each got their own color belt. Pink, orange, purple, and blue. I can let you guess who gets which color.

We have found house sitters!

We have decided to bring a clown-in-training with us, Lucas Valdez. He is close friends to all my kids and is stoked to be able to come. He will intern with us for the whole summer. The extra set of hand and extra driver won't hurt either. In the same light, Midori, from the Japan Fundraiser show will also tour with us this summer doing the trick Cynthia doesn't care for (Impaled) as well the hypnotic Lyra routine. Both are excited to come and we are happy to have them.

I must confess the decision to bring both was postponed after the Los Angeles Spring Fair where promoter, David Jackson, cheated us out of our pay. We start the season out in debt because of him and we don't like to do that. he is a very bad man. I found out that not only us entertainers and the generator man (who lost $20K) the grand stand stage-lights-sound man lost out on $40K....This David Jackson needs some jail time. In the old days someone would've punched him in the nose....but today anyone doing that would end up getting sued by him.

So with trepidation about bringing extra crew and the fear that gas is going too high to make any kind of profit we prepare to move out on this adventure anyway. Pray for us.

I will share one more scary thought. In the middle of September we have one of the craziest drives we have ever taken on. We have less than 50 hours to get from MA to CA for a five day fair. You might wonder why we would do that. Well, the booker of the CA fair is a person I have wanted to work with for fifteen years. This may be my only chance now since we have their attention. So we do the crazy drive. Pray for us.

I want to wish my friend Bill Jackson a "get well fast" wish. He came over today and had to leave shortly after coming as his body became virus ridden. So I wish him my best...and I will pray for him.

Best wishes to you all and I will talk with you again real soon.