Thursday, August 30, 2012

Drive to New England

We awoke to the quite cool mountain air of Eastern-central PA. Dew was on the clover and grass and we had to pack up, load up and get going. We had a 6+ hour drive. Turned out to be almost exactly 7 hours to Northampton, MA.
The weather here is likewise fabulous. Our regular spot was all set up but there was a compliment waiting for us. We were the only act with not only two sets of large bleachers but extra plastic seats (over 100) set up plus grass seating.  Two years ago we broke records for single act attendance of shows....I mean it was packed. And so it was cool to see so many extra seats set up.
The kids had the place set up in record time. Mami made Jambalaya for dinner and I picked up mail and packages from the main office....turns out our wholesaler sent us a big bag of Halloween sample stuff.  The little ones had a field day messing with the stuff...cheap wigs, scarred rubber arms, fake cigar, sequin headband, etc.

Here are some pix from the drive here:
 co-pilot.
 Love the name of that road.......notice the traffic. It was insane! Bwhahahahahahahaha

Olivia asleep.

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Yogi Bear, Boo Boo, Cindy and Fiends

Jellystone parks are the best RV parks to take kids. Lots to do: games, swimming, crafts, movies, and the list goes on. The one here in Milton is fabulous. It's big, and like all Jellystones very clean. You feel safe when you are here too.  I can tell you stories about some rv parks where you had to sleep with your gun under you pillow.   But This joint has been great.  The kids have had a blast all day.  And there is something about the mountains and trees and ponds that makes this particular park quiet and relaxing.
Our time off ends tomorrow and we head to MA for the Three County Fair. I just read the line up of acts and they have a magic act coming in. His website shows an impressive stage but that same list of tricks we are seeing all other magicians do across the county.  But his website promises a unique magical experience and a forerunner in setting standards other magicians will have to try and beat. So it should be a good act.
I know there is magic in our show but with all the stuff the kids have put into the show we really are more of a vaudeville-circus hybrid. But getting more and more of a traditional circus every season.
There will also be an alligator wrestler.(love those acts). And the regular lists of top names and no name bands on various stages.  It's often those no names that turn out fabulous shows and you wonder why they aren't big names yet.
We were at this fair 2 years ago and I recall the audiences were really fantastic.
Here are today's pix:

 Some repair work









another tooth bites the dust.

yogi bear park day off

The kids are having fun as we older ones relax (and get a little work done) at Jellystone park in PA. They have games, crafts, interaction with Yogi mascots and more.

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Monday, August 27, 2012

just a bit of fun from days gone forever

The best moe on mike douglass show

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Road Trip

Why is it the short drives sometimes seem the hardest.  I don't know what it was but I slept like a rock last night...a rock rolling down and mountain side and off a cliff!
I suppose since the carnival was packed up and gone before I went to sleep I wasn't able to be lolled to sleep by the sound of rides being torn down and Spanish words being bantered about. I woke up a lot. Any way my sleep would had been short lived anyway because the electric pole that holds the transformer that provided power to the park we were at was hit by a car the night before and the town crew cut all power that morning...early. That meant not air con...no thank you.
We had to drive an old dirt road out of the park too because the work trucks blocked the main drive in.
But the 4 days of shows were not a loss by any means. We made a lot of friends and enjoyed the beautiful river and the great work of the artisans at the event. I'm sorry I missed out on the frogs legs...they sold out early.
If you are near southern Indiana in August I highly recommend you visit the Vevay Swiss Wine Festival.

Other entertainers included a lion-tiger act, a strolling magician, musicians, a cheer contest, a strolling potted plant, very interesting, a bronze statue man, and us.  Oh there was an African contortion act that was out of this world, Zuzu.

Our drive was just to northern Ohio for just tonight as we casually drive over to MA. We will spend tomorrow in PA.

Our church is putting Cynthia on the prayer closet for student of the week (month)? So join in and keep her in your prayers.

Miles has joined the extreme Frisbee tram for fun.

The rest of us are tired.
Good night.

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Time to Whine, Cuz Wine is is over

 (click on pix to make bigger.)
Well, it was a Hot Hot Hot few days and they flew by. I had a bout with a stomach thing one day but that too passed a day or so ago. We are packed up and are pretty much the only vehicles on the park grounds. We packed the crowds in today. Especially for a Sunday. Mami attended the open public service and told me about an autistic young man who snag praise to God at the service. Little did I know he was one of the two kids Invited up to the new "knock knock" routine with Titus.  His knock knock joke really made Titus laugh.
We asked him to sing a quick 10 second piece of one of his songs and wow what a voice.
I am glad someone in the family took the pictures of them together.

The heat was a strange dry-wet heat that wore all of us out. We are all completely ready to collapse. Because of my back and because Cynthia and Miles are now at college the majority of the work fell on the backs of Jim and Nick and they both came out swinging.

The girls became friends with the carnival owner's granddaughter, Brittany and even got a couple of carnival toys as gifts. I wish our sales table wasn't packed in first so we could have given her a gift too.

Victor is trying to expand his act and even tried stilts today. I had forgotten I had bought the stilts for the kids...first time we used them this year. (click on the pictures to make them bigger)
Tonight Mami and the little one rest their heads on soft pillows at a 5 star hotel as the boys and I rough it out here.   Jim is in a tent....Nick is in the van and I am in the RV, Don't ask me why they don't all get in the rv...but they don't ////maybe I snore.

tomorrow we head to New England...we will make some stops on the way since we aren't due for 4 days. We are gonna have some fun.
below is an Anti Monkey Butt ad we made.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twWOVGMzfdU&list=UUuyBlAVCgypOCU5HQ3UJbPg&index=1&feature=plcp

Saturday, August 25, 2012

no blog today.

Very long, very hot, very tiring day. I have great pix and some fun stories...will post tomorrow.

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Friday, August 24, 2012

Swiss Wine Festival Day 1

We had thought we had lost Buttercup it turns out he escaped and hid under the dashboard. Jim and I had to remove the dash and with contortions and a lot of sweat got him out.
Earlier in the day Vic Jr and I did the laundry at the laundromat just at the park's entrance...cleaning the many things that suffered mold from the va rainy load in.
The town is a very cool village. More of a hamlet...no big stores. 30c40 miles for any big shopping but they have a great little hardware store over 100 years old.
The towns folk are mostly very nice folk. A full range of personalities. Very different from many places we perform. But you have to be lucky to live in a town so lovely and with such a great waterfront. Just don't swim in the river.
They have a nice library I visited with one of the kids.
The area seems to cater to the RVer.
The hotel they have mami at is definetly very rich and luxurious.
A lot of older homes, some maybe 100 years old or more dot the river front and town.
Like all towns they have their very rich and their poor. But we have been treated well by every one.
Since we will run only on show this Thursday night every will start late so the little ones spend a lot of time in the park and also practicing.

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Thursday, August 23, 2012

Swiss Wine Day one (end of day)

First:
Reunited! The two six year olds (Olivia and Buttercup) back together again.
Next:

Our set up.: the 2nd photo shows a vendor setup behind us.  We a re line on two sides by vendors, one side by a pic nic shelter and one side by the carnival.  We are land locked.
It was standing room only as we packed the joint.



My day to stroll as I took the bike out for a spin in era correct costume. Only one obnoxious kid in the whole time out.  I'm sure his parents are proud of him..they brag about him at the AA meeting. Everyone else was great. Olivia, Amy and Victor run along side to clear the path....after all no brakes.
Here are some missing Kentucky Pictures for fun:
 This was at the Richomond Battlefield....apparently you can still get hurt out there.



And some rian:


It was laundry day today as we found some costumes that didn't escape the VA rain....mold.  One of James; shirts is a rag now.

early photos

Our stage, Nick half cyborg, the river with a coal plant in the background,a festival pc, a sign on the laundromat post board,various town pix, and a video showing the long walk from the elevator to the hotel room....

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Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Buttercup Gone!

This morning we all awoke to clear skies and brisk morning air. We slowly packed up doing our regular rv last day stuff...you know disconnect everything, dump grey and black water, clean up and go. It was at this last clean up and go that Olivia screamed, "Snakey is gone!"   Yesterday I had given permission for her to play with him (he rides in the loft in the rv). She apparently closed his cage wrong and sometime during 18 hours Buttercup made a dash.  
Since the rv is pretty contained we were sure he must be in it somewhere...however we had just installed those magnetic screen doors that a snake could easily get through and he had a lot of time to do it even though the door rarely stays open for long periods. But opportunity was there and after a quick search at the rv park and a thorough at the show site it was confirmed he is gone.
Olivia cried several times today and I won't lie it broke me up too.
Well, I drove Mami and the gang to the hotel Nick, jim and I are doing the rv showgrounds thing. A strange idea came to me. Look under the dashboard. I
But what could it hurt. At first glance nothing but then way up in the hardest to reach area was snake skin. I touched it...it moved.  It took 30 munutes and removing a good chunck of the dashboard to get to him. Jim and I worked from two impossible holes and I discovered ,since I was on the pulling end, that Buttercup is strong.   He's out with a minor scratch...me too. And once back in his tank he went straight for the water....how he survived the engine heat where he was is a miracle.
We made it to Vevay, IN for the Swiss wine festival...starts tomorrow

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Monday, August 20, 2012

Cynthia's Turn

I thought we might be heading off to Indiana today. But when I realized that our venue is only 2.5 hours from Berea I decided to stay. And that meant we had the opportunity to help Cynthia move her stuff from her coaches house to her dorm....and she had a lot of stuff.
We also got to spend time with Miles helping him with some stuff. So we got to spend time with him. I even crashed the president's ice cream social just to go see Miles by myself.
This tour has really been full of longer breaks (thanks economy) so the family has been able to get a bit closer.
I did notice a screw in the back tire. So I had to have that taken care of.
I'm glad I noticed now instead of it when it got deeper while on the road.
The weather has been perfect....82 no humidity fluffy clouds

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