Last night we arrived in LA about an hour earlier than scheduled after an uneventful trip. We landed at 11:00 LA time (2:00 a.m. NY time) and didn't get to bed until after 2:00 a.m. (5:00 a.m.) So it was quite like pulling an all-nighter, and when I finally got to bed was not sleepy at all. This morning started early, with a phone call, a text from a hungry son and the pounding on the door by house keeping.
Today was a day of waiting and preparing. We waited to hear about equipment, times, and drum set. We took the boys out for breakfast where they ate their weight in eggs and hash browns. Then it was back to the bizzaro California Sullivan Family Home to wait. (John Sullivan looks just like Pat Sullivan, Aiden looks like Genevieve, and there is a little bit of similarity between Anne-Marie and Mary!)But one thing holds true on both sides of the country- the Sullivans are a very nice bunch! The boys played ping pong and played in the pool while Chris contacted music rental places, the organizers of the DAY OF PEACE festival and tried to figure out our equipment needs for tomorrow.
When we signed up to follow through with this gig, we had been made several promises that have since been broken. The boys were promised the use of a drum set and amps. They were promised a set length of 30-40 minutes. In the last few days we've had to scramble to borrow a drum set, amplifiers, and today when we saw the final schedule, discovered that they had been alloted 20 minutes. Chris called the woman we've been dealing with and got the okay for our guys to play their entire set. Anne-Marie Sullivan called in some favors for us and found a fabulous Remo drum set from a friend and a guitar amp from a neighbor. (Who happened to have an Emmy sitting on a table in his living room.) We found a musical equipment rental place on Sunset Blvd. and got another amp and some cords. The disappointing thing is that our boys are playing tomorrow along with other youth bands, and none of the bands were willing to share any equipment with our guys. At the DAY OF PEACE Festival. It's okay now, but initially it was frustrating. Trevor made the comment that if the tables had been turned, that just about anyone we know in NY would have been happy to share equipment with a group of young people from out of town. No matter, our guys now have Fender amps and a really fabu drum kit to play. Nice stuff. At one point during our waiting game today Robin took Art's guitar apart and fixed a connection with John's soldering tools. After a practice of the set, they finally packed up the equipment and at 4:00 p.m. we set out for some sight seeing.
Robin managed to get us a very large white Ford 150 van. He is our driver and is familiar with this car, as it is exactly the size he used to drive all over when he was a chimney sweep! (Ancient History!) We keep referring to it as the terrorist van. It seats 8 and has cargo room. The boys are taking turns sitting in the back, because there are 9 in our party. The repartee is lively and fun as we travel the LA freeway. We first picked up the amp and cords, then headed to Hollywood Blvd to see some sidewalk stars. After a dinner of Mexican food, we cruised into Beverly Hills and Rodeo Drive before taking the boys back to Anne-Marie's for the night.
Robin and I are staying right next to the VanNyes airport. This is the airport where the tarmac scene in Casablanca was filmed. Our Tburg boys are high spirited and sound ready for tomorrow. What a delightful time it is for all of us! It will be another sunny 85 degree day! And now, my computer is telling me that it's 1:14 a.m. and the clock on the table tells me it's 10:16. Either way...time for bed!!
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