Despite the ongoing debate of the roles of giant republics and their place in the emerging global marketplace one has to look out upon the landscape that stretches from the Atlantic Ocean on its east coast and the Pacific Ocean on its west coast.

What we call “the continental USA” is one of the most beautiful places on the planet Earth. Every kind of environment (except for super-arctic tundra) exists in the lower forty eight. Yes, even rain forests exist in Oregon and Washington if you consider it based upon rates of rain fall.

So they stopped along some river. It was most likely The Eel River. There Jack smoked a cigarette, Adam tried to stretch his sore driving muscles and Matt went cavorting down the steep river bank like a mighty mountain goat.

Such stops are sometimes necessary.

So over the course of thirty two states and over 11,000 total miles, we made our way around this great country of ours. We got to meet wonderful people, we got to play music, we got to eat great food and we got to see the gorgeous expanse that is the continental United States.

So I’ll be revisiting the trip by city. However I will not be doing it in order. I might skip some, that doesn’t mean we didn’t like it. It was a long trip and it broke part of my brain.

Here’s a video from LA. It is in the THIS gallery. Jack and I probably look tired. Aaron is a cool dude (you can’t see him):

<object width=”400″ height=”225″><param name=”allowfullscreen” value=”true” /><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always” /><param name=”movie” value=”http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=12933069&amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;show_title=1&amp;show_byline=1&amp;show_portrait=0&amp;color=&amp;fullscreen=1″ /><embed src=”http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=12933069&amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;show_title=1&amp;show_byline=1&amp;show_portrait=0&amp;color=&amp;fullscreen=1″ type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowfullscreen=”true” allowscriptaccess=”always” width=”400″ height=”225″></embed></object><p><a href=”http://vimeo.com/12933069″>Adam Arcuragi at THIS</a> from <a href=”http://vimeo.com/thislosangeles”>THIS</a> on <a href=”http://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a>.</p>

We’re also making our way into the Black Hills in August to make the next record. Everyone is very excited.

-The Davis Sisters ‘I Forgot More Than You’ll Ever Know’

So between people moving, heart surgeries, new phones, dead batteries and planning to hit the road; we’re going to make a new record.

Saw a gorgeous suitcase mixer…$5000. Oh rats.

By the way, Willow goes totally dark side.

See you soon Oregon.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122365099

So it has been a while since the posts have been flowing. There has been much going on. Lots of road touring. Many pictures to be enjoyed. But the thing we’d like to bring everyone’s attention to at the moment is the article from Rolling Stone Europe. It’s in German.

No one’s been able to translate it yet. Not many German speakers I guess.

They talk about the European tour we’re embarking upon in January. To all of you in Europe, we can’t wait to get there and have a great time.

This will be my first trip abroad.

Being naked rules.

Nothing is better than no clothes.

Maybe endlessness.

Why is it that Neil Armstrong just doesn’t talk about being the first man on the moon? By all accounts he was an exceptional fellow in quite possibly the most famous situation of all time. He was the first human being in recorded history to set foot on extra terrestrial soil, was selected out of countless applicants, trained and honed his body and mind for that moment but then when he came back he went into a sort of hiding. Quite possibly the one of the most singularly unique and admirable people that has ever lived and who experienced something that so few will ever experience again and yet he remains almost completely silent about it.

Don’t get me wrong; if Odysseus doesn’t want to recount his journey, he has certainly earned the right to do as he pleases for the rest of his blessed days. On the other hand though, one could make the argument that there is a certain weight and urgency to have him share that as an almost singular representative of such a momentous occasion. The moon has been a part of our collective myth, consciousness, daily life and spectacle since before recorded history so it would seemingly follow that the first of us to actually go there would have somewhat of a duty to recount the feeling at least.

I can’t speak for Mr. Armstrong, but I’m sure that there is an equal argument that could be made for the inability to describe the feeling of seeing ones home from such a completely framework-less perspective that attempting to describe it might actually denigrate the experience. I also in no way am begrudging the man his silence. But it does make one wonder.

Did he see something that he feels impossible for anyone to believe? Does he fear for his safety, sanity, family, peace of mind…for us? Numerous astronauts have claimed to have seen signs of sentient extraterrestrial life on their missions; perhaps he did so as well and either doubts his own faculty to comprehend it properly or figures no one would believe him. Maybe he found himself in the predicament that so many prophets find themselves in; you’re faced with trying to explain something, to people that couldn’t possibly understand, that you yourself don’t have the capacity to fully grasp. So in attempting to describe it or relate it to others you fall short and perhaps ruin the memory for yourself while befuddling those that you’re trying to whom you are trying to reach out.

There is also a somewhat common experience told of by astronauts where they look down upon the Earth from way far away and are overcome by a sudden sense of super connectivity. In seeing the world from such a comprehensive and detached place that all of the sudden there is a wash of feeling where their place in the universe becomes so clear and their connectedness to everything that exists galvanizes and they become “one” with all that exists. It’s much like what many mystics call “enlightenment”. It must be too powerful to ever be able to be sane again. To come back from that must make driving to the grocery store and watching some lady yell at her kids seem almost unbearable.

The moon was full two nights ago.

I have serrated teeth; much like a dinosaur or a survival knife, I could probably cut through sinew or a length of semi-thin rope. You can’t tell in so far as it is cartoonish. There is no way that you’d be able to tell unless you were dentist/girlfriend/wrestling close. If you were to hold a Shure SM58 microphone to the edge of my two front teeth it would match perfectly.

I close my eyes when I sing. Whether on stage or in private it’s just how it’s been. Granted, I trained myself not to do so in choir. I’ve tried to do it like an old-school country singer, where I look around the room and smile and look everyone in the eye. It seems like the way I’d rather be in terms of making that tacit agreement between the audience and the performer that we’re connected.

But like a hand in the fire, my natural reflex is to close my eyes. I think my face is too weird and pained-looking when singing. So over time I’ve closed my eyes and gotten way too into the moment and forgotten where I was in space…[clunk].

Playing without microphones is my favorite way to play a show. If there’s a small enough space that has the right shape and material composition that makes a great sound…oh momma. One time recently we played in New Brunswick NJ at this little wood-walled place with just vocals, guitar, accordion, singing saw and harmonica; it was truly wonderful.

There was a great feeling when vocal harmonies are mixed, in frequency, in the room itself.

Long times ago, they called it magic.

I took a typing test today and it really shed light on how little I know about typing. I always took for granted that it might take me longer to type since I rarely did so under a timed deadline. Also took a test letting me know how little I know about short cuts through spread sheet programs. It’s a weird time out there. Lots of people from all walks of life, trying to get jobs and points in their lives where they don’t want to be taking tests to show just how little they know.

But, fingers and toes work. The sun did shine and when he sweats the man smells like life.

Spider bites stay with you for a long time if you have sensitive skin. Venom is a crazy thing. You’d think that the chemical structure for venom could be elegant and simple like caffeine or uric acid; but have you ever seen the molecular diagram of melitten? It’s huge. Like two-helix huge.

So complicated that it takes so long to make the bump go down and all you did was scratch yourself in your sleep while sleeping on a foreign floor. Misunderstandings are such bummers.