we need a theme song: eye of the tiger?

WIMPY
Originally uploaded by faithful nomad.

today WE DUG OUT WIMPY.
this car was the valiant ride of our favorite band Dispatch, tragically left to sit and chill for a year in the weeds and kayaks next to the garage of one of the bandmates after clocking in literally thousands of miles for them. Shane, Shawn and i drove out, way way out east of Boston where there are people who live and grow up with dogs and barns and horses and live surrounded by trees and hay. my morning had a prevailing taste of "i have never seen this kind of life." for a girl who grew up in the suburbs, went to school in the corn and then moved to the city, this was new and enchanting to think about a childhood against this kind of backdrop. we drove up and three dogs pranced out to roll around our feet and beg for affection. there was a white house, a garage, and a barn, and by the garage there was evidence of people who know how to make things, big things that were made to move. there were kayaks hanging from the rafters... and Wimpy.

i almost forgot that this was the home of one of my favorite musicians ever. it was strange because no one was there, so it was extremely anonomyous. it was wierd when we went inside the house to leave a note, kind of a "we were here" and i glanced around and saw family pictures and the dogs' water bowls. not that there should have been gear lying around or anything, i'm not disappointed i wasn't tripping over guitars, but it was a little odd that my whole impression of the guy and his music is so vibrant - and when i overlapped his life there were three dogs and a kitchen table. but i wouldn't say this conflicts with my impression. what am i trying to say here? i'm not sure. sorry.

i think it's just that the kind of person that i am. i was hungry to learn more about this life i saw, and there was no one to ask about it. i'm very used to being able to ask, the travel i usually do includes a lot of that. maybe that's it.

anyway, the drive was really beautiful. we jumped Wimpy's battery and after about 30-40 minutes of juicing it, the engine turned and we... well, we drove home using back roads and a little highway without ever going over about 40 mph. but Wimpy, she's all right. shane found a classical music station and there we were, waving to the passers-by, pumping this lush music from this beater van. it was seriously fun. and the blinkers are out, so we had to use a lot of hand signals, which was fun too.

we hosed Wimpy down when we got back to the house, and then Anna took Shane and i to get some groceries. Intern Brian showed up as we were unpacking. he's cool, he doesn't say a whole lot yet, but if you say something like, "maybe we should move this mattress to the other room," he's already on his feet before you finish the sentence.

the three of us worked out the sleeping arrangements, moving furniture for a few hours before renting a few movies from down the street. we watched Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and now here i am. in my lovely large bed that i have to myself for a whole week before i aquire a roommate. this will be interesting.