Jeremy Porter Road Blog

Road Blog: Friday October 18, 2024 - Vancouver, BC

Road Blog
October 18, 2024
Vancouver, British Columbia

I had one of the better motel breakfasts of the run after waking up early in Moses Lake, Washington and watched the sunrise over the plains from my room. I texted JakeE Jacob back home because he’s a big fan of the lobby biscuits and sausage gravy, and they were really good. I miss these adventures without the boys here, so sometimes I send them mushy messages or digestion reports just so they don’t feel left out. The smell of cow manure still permeated the air as I loaded up my luggage and take-in gear. The air was crisp, below freezing, and a layer of frost covered the ground.

I drove through about an hour of organic alfalfa fields then ascended into the mountains and through some of the most scenic land I’ve seen. I crossed the Columbia river and got an awesome view of Mount Rainier in the east before turning north just west of Seattle. By now it had started raining, and it wouldn’t stop for the rest of the day. I hit Bellingham ahead of schedule, around noon, and stopped at the UPS Store where I paid too much money to send 20lbs of dirty laundry, un-needed gear, and other things I won’t be needing for my last 2 shows home. That’s gonna be a pleasant box to open next Friday. Dude who helped me is a Lions fan and we talked NFL for a few minutes, but he didn’t give me the fan discount.

I checked into my motel and it’s a dirty, depressing, ridden-hard joint just north of town. The hallways are dirty and smell like BO and cigarettes, and the WiFi sucks, but the front desk lady was pleasant and happy to get me into my room early. I brought almost everything in so the border crossing into Canada would be as simple as possible, called TrooperGirl22 back home, who’s planning for a night out in the city with the girls, ate a banana and some peanut butter Ritz cracker sandwiches, and left for Vancouver. I was at the border in about 20 minutes, and like last time TG22 and I went to Vancouver as tourists, it was a lengthy wait to go through customs. Dude was pleasant, wanted to hear about my tour, seemed impressed, and sent me on my way. Always a big sigh of relief when you get your docs back and the “Have fun.”

Vancouver traffic was every bit as terrible as I remember, and it took me an hour to get from the border to the north-side, about 15 miles maybe. By now it was raining heavily, and my streak of amazing weather was over. If you know me, you know I hate rain. Not gonna get into it here, so don’t @ me: I’m glad it rains, I know we need rain, it’s just depressing and consistently obtrusive to any plans I have. I wasn’t going to get those beautiful downtown Vancouver-mountain and inlet views while enjoying a stroll on the river walk, as I’d planned, but I had to remind myself that you can’t control the weather, and I had a job to do, so I resigned myself to dealing with it and finding some dinner.

I found a parking spot, took half an hour to download the Vancouver parking app, register my rental, add a payment method, and set myself up for an hour in the pouring rain where no meter maid was gonna be checking anyway. I had dinner at PAUL Café which is a European style, mostly Euro-located café franchise that TG22 and I discovered in Paris a few years ago and always try to hit when we can, where they have one. I had an awesome decaf latte (can’t do caffeine that late in the day or I’ll be awake until Tuesday), a chicken club sandwich, and some truffle fries. It was very good, albeit a bit pricey, and a nice place to get out of the rain, that was nonstop and heavy. I tried to do a lap around the block but it was just too shitty out and I was getting drenched, so I got back in the rental, drove by and checked out the riverfront for a bit, and took my time finding a parking spot 3 blocks from the venue.

Trees Organic Coffee and Roasting House is a narrow, brightly-lit room with a little clear spot in the back where they have live, mostly acoustic music a couple times a week. There was already a good crowd gathered when I loaded-in at 7:30 and said hello and thanked the owner Marq for having me and supporting touring independent musicians. He gave me the lay of the land while juggling the needs of his customers and setting up the modest PA. I met Evie From Earth (can't tag) and then Victoria Carbol, both also playing, and then my pal Brock from SLIP~ons and Doughboys came in, drenched to the bone, and we had a great night talking, sharing war stories, and making plans. Last time we were in the same room was likely August, 1988 at Blondie’s in Detroit, when Doughboys opened for ALL.

Evie went on a played a great set of originals to a full house and got a great response. She’s a really nice girl who works in audio engineering and we talked studios and technology for a few minutes before her set. I played second, also to a full, attentive, and responsive room, and while my fingers weren’t doing everything my brain was telling them to, and my guitar was struggling to adapt from mountain blizzards and desert heat to salt-water ocean-downpour humidity, I played ok and had a great time with so many faces in front of me. It was easily one of the best nights of the run. Victoria and a friend (sorry – not sure I met her!) went on 3rd and played a great set with amazing harmonies and synergy, and got a fantastic response. I don’t think anyone left from the time the music started until it ended, and it was a great, positive, supportive night, and I was really grateful to be a part of it. Thanks Marq and your staff at Tree’s! It was a special night!

I said hello to a couple people who loved the set and wanted my Spotify info, then said goodbye to Brock. We both got a little emotional thinking about the roads that led us to that moment, over the last 35 years, and headed out into the pouring rain, and 3 blocks to my rental. I was drenched. I hydroplaned through the city, onto 99 South, and up to the border, where there was a line of about 20 cars and just one lane open. It went pretty fast, and after about 15 minutes, and explaining to the customs guy that all I was bringing back was a Slip-Ons record and some leftover fries, I was back in the US. 25 minutes later I was back in my room, drenched again from the 20 yard walk from the rental to the door, but grateful to be back after a long and intense 7 hour trip to Canada.

This morning I ate a shitty, frozen/microwaved Jimmy Dean sausage croissant sandwich and some yogurt from the breakfast bar, took care of some business, and made arrangements for my last day and last show of the tour and the year. Thanks again to Marq, Brock, Evie and Victoria for a great night in Vancouver, and I hope to come back some day!

Tonight we wrap it all up at Blue Moon in Seattle. My pal Joe Reineke (The Meices, Society of the Silver Cross, Alien Crime Syndicate ) is playing, and I haven’t seen him play in 20 years, so I am stoked for that, and Mike Spine band, and Laurent Chavannes/Moving in Slow. Doors at 7, music at 8, so let’s end the run in style and have a blast Seattle! Xx