This farmers market seemed to have more craftspeople than farmers, so I didn’t get the usual van load of produce, but it was really ok. I’m kind of up to my neck in peppers and tomatoes right now from last Thursday.

Next on the schedule is Six Plates in Durham on Oct 16 and then the band show at the Pittsboro General Store on Oct 18.

I’m always surprised at how hard it is to coordinate my band’s schedules for rehearsals. Can’t imagine leading a band with more than four people. The Polyphonic Spree must have mad texting skills.

As a footnote, yesterday was also Day 2 of mixing the new record at the Mockin’ Bird Recording Co. It’s coming along, and will probably smell like incense.

This is The Beatles, singing “She Loves You” in German.

“Sie liebt dich, yeh, yeh, yeh
Sie liebt dich, yeh, yeh, yeh
Sie liebt dich, yeh, yeh, yeh, yeah…”

I like how “yeah yeah yeah” and “oooooo!” are the universal pop language and don’t require translation. By the way, I didn’t get to play at the Pittsboro Farmers Market yesterday, due to the nor’easter that’s been blowing rain for the last couple days. Fingers crossed for the weather at the Holly Springs Farmers Market on Oct 4.

California University of Pennsylvania, woohoo! Having a town named after a state is a step beyond the usual confusion of Athens GA, Oxford NC, Rome TX, or London OH. We’re talking Illinois, TN. Arizona, CT. I’m sure it’s an old joke to them, but it was new to me so I enjoyed it.

The show was awesome. Behind the rows of seats, they formed a circle and tossed an enormous beach ball thing around like an oversized game of hacky sack played with hands instead of feet. Or a slow-motion, noncompetitive version of volleyball without a net. So I basically got to watch a surreal sports channel while I played.

This show was also notable for the inclusion of the song “Play To Remember” for the first time in forever and for the fact that nobody left! It’s a long, sad, strange song. It was cool to have an audience amenable to more than one mood. Speaking of California, I’m sure my aura was Day-Glo by the end of the show.

I played this show on Sept 11, 2008. On this date, I also ate unfortunate beef with broccoli at the local Chinese place. Photo by M. Jade McGinnis. Thanks!

I’m on the road right now in Pennsylvania, and I passed through West Virginia on the way up yesterday. I really wish Budget Car Rental had a rubber arm option. I’d totally spring for it.

Creepy note: when I got out of the shower this morning at the Royal Motel, the bathroom mirror was steamed up, except for the old impression of a nose and lips. Clearly a ghost was kissing the mirror while I was in the shower.

I didn’t remember her name but did recognize that she’d cut her hair since I played there last year. Babylonia, not the puppy. I don’t think the puppy existed last year. Me and two other girls figured out the music for Still Alive, by Jonathan Coulton, from the game “Portal.” The sun was setting when I first walked up to the gazebo and when you walked away, you’d disappear into the shadow of a tree and reappear seconds later on the other side in orange lamplight.

Here’s a video. I play at this coffee house in Mobile, Alabama about once a year for family members who are in town (I have lots of extended family in Alabama and Florida) plus all those friends of friends who still remember me and come out even when I’ve been away for eleven months. As a bonus, there’s a decent barbecue place next door.

Satori Sound used to be a record store AND coffeehouse, and I was always impressed by the crazy art on the walls. There was one display a few years ago dedicated to dead rock stars that included a picture of Chris Bell from Big Star, which instantly won my enduring affection for this venue.

Join the team: get a perm and go on the road as “Tad Dreis,” performing my songs, while I write new material for you in my underground bunker. We’ll split the gig income. Only high-caliber applicants will be considered - as you know, the Tad Dreis brand has a reputation to maintain. I’m joking, of course, but part of me thinks this business model really has legs.