Wednesday, November 23, 2005

ROAD TRIP: The Eagle Has Landed

We finally made it to Barrie. In our infinite wisdom, we didn’t have a place to stay. We searched high and wide, yet every roach motel we could find was booked solid. Jeff had the idea to call up his stepsister who lived in Barrie. He hadn’t talked to her in about ten years, but it was worth a shot.

We lucked out, Jeff’s sister had a vacant apartment next to her place and we could crash there for the night. The trade off was, there was no furniture or beds. At least it was a roof over our heads.

We dropped off our crap, picked up some booze, and started drinking. It was late afternoon by then. I do not recall the name of Jeff’s sister, but her best friend Michelle looked exactly like Bif Naked. She was short, cut, and wild tats all over her arms. She was dynamite. A small house party ensued from there.

By 10pm, we headed off to The Roxx for a night of sin.

Samitch was so gonzo by then that he handed the bouncer his girlfriend’s health card without even noticing. The bouncer laughed at him and sent him on his merry way. Samitch arrived at the coat check a few minutes later, victorious at last.


Tuesday, November 22, 2005

Raod Trip: On We Go

“Shit dude, I feel like shit” Well, we all felt like shit. We just had breakfast at McDonalds. Everyone had a McStomach ache.

Our early departure time was tossed to the wind. We were on the road for no less than 30 minutes before our driver took sick. Well he was already sick, but sick in the extreme way. As the only other licensed driver, I took over the wheel and on we went. I guess I should mention that I wasn’t covered under Trevor’s insurance. “Shit dude, I don’t care. Just drive and worry about that crap later on”.

An hour into the trip, the joints were lit and everyone become mellow. Jeff started strumming on his bass. The McAches were gone and the road trip really began. We were loaded with weed; assorted mixed cd’s of old school tunes, a carton of smokes, and a thirst for adventure.

Fifteen minutes later, I pulled over so Samitch could throw up. He was TKO for the next three hours. So yeah, good weed. We all had quite a few laughs at Samitch’s expense. On we went. Our crew was hurting, but things could only get better.

Monday, November 07, 2005

Road Trip: Getting Started

It was Friday night and I met up with a few of my buddies at a local house party. We were sitting around, shooting the shit and drinking to our hearts’ content. Out of the blue, Trevor asks me “You want to go see Tool on Sunday?” Eagerly I replied that I did and Trevor told me the tale of how he snagged 4 tickets but one of his friends had dropped out at the last minute. “Fuck dude, you mean we leave tomorrow morning? In like, 7 hours?” Trevor just smiled. “Yeah dude, just crash at my place and we'll set off”

The road trip was set, and I would be off to see Tool at Molson Park in Barrie. The only problem was that I had to twist a few arms to get Friday night off, how the fuck was I to obtain Saturday and Sunday as well? I did the only natural thing that came to mind.

“JP, it’s Tavis. I’m in Barrie, my tranny is shot and I don’t think I’ll be making it out of Barrie for a few days, looks like you will have to fill me shift. Sorry Dude”

I figured it was a good enough excuse. Everyone knew my car was a little unreliable at best. I guess at my current state, I didn’t really care if the boss believed me or not. I was leaving town to venture forth on a road trip. The night winded down and after the second visit by the cops for noise complaints, we headed to Trevor’s wilth a crew of 10 people. During our journey, we lost 3 or 4 followers. At Trevor’s, a new home base was erected and we drank until the early hours of the morning. During this stretch of time, 15 people showed up, a window was broken and a couch went missing, A small price to pay for a night of merry cheer.

I was awoken by some big native guy who I had never seen before. It turns out that I was sleeping on this guy's jacket, and he wanted his smokes. “Alright chief, no problem” I got up, every muscle in my body ached, my head was pounding. It was 11:30am, a full three and a half hours after we were to leave. I woke Trevor, and he was still piss drunk. So much for our driver.

Samitch showed up a good hour later with some weed. Jeff showed up a short time after that. The crew was assembled, and our driver was intoxicated. I guess nobody really knew when we were leaving in the first place.



Thursday, November 03, 2005

I'm Poor

I think back on my financial situation when I was bouncing and it almost mirrors myself today. I had a job that made good money on paper, but when it came to all my expenses, I was a poor vagabond at the end of the night. It’s funny how things work out.

“All right Tavis, your tip out is $110” I would take my money and slap a $20 down on the bar to cover the last round for all the crew. I would hop in my car and put $20 worth of gas into my gas tank. A slurpy and pack of cigarettes would be purchased as well. Another $10 down the drain. I would get home at 4am, watch TV until 5:30am, and then hit the sack.

When I awoke the next day, I would take Lindsay out for lunch $45, then to an early movie $15. After ice cream (all the ladies love ice cream) I would be back to square one. It’s funny how money just goes when you’re having fun.

I guess it didn’t help when I kicked my roommate out and had to spring some serious dough for a new transmission for my lame car. As I recall, the whole summer pretty much went like that. After drinking and various girlfriends, I was dead broke. I was behind on my rent, my cable was switched off and I could hardly afford to feed myself. Yet, there was plenty of money for beer, woman, and all those other luxuries.