Well, I got my car yesterday--THANK THE SWEET STARS!!!! It took me 6 hours on public transportation to get to my mom's & about 2.5 driving it back!

The bad news is that on Monday I took my guitar to get it looked at and fixed and it turns out that it needs to be restored because the neck is coming off the body!! All this is to the tune of $850! So I freaked out & now am just trying to look at my options--getting 2nd opinions & looking at other guitars to buy. My mother flipped out. She's afraid I am giving up on being a rock star & threatened to go out & buy a guitar for me. I am trying to weigh all my options.

YES! I! AM! ALIVE! #5
Well, I'm here in Sonoma, CA. I drove almost 3500 miles--unbelievable, but true.

I drove through Kansas on Friday which was nothing but dead grasses, corn fields, and swirling winds. I stopped at a gas station and a man in front of me asked the hefty guy at the counter, "Is it always this windy?" Without hesitation the attendant said, "Only two things change in Kansas. The weather and the direction of the wind."

Somewhere outside of Topeka my muffler sounded like it wasn't muffling anymore. I stopped at a rest stop and found the middle pipe that went from the catalytic converter to the muffler was hanging down. Since I was literally in the middle of nowhere, I decided to pray for the best & keep driving to Denver, CO. Well, about 100 miles outside of Denver, an unexpected bump sent Django landing hard on the asphalt, creating a loud roar of the engine. I limped on to Denver & found a muffler place, the next morning. It turned out that the entire exhaust system, from the catalytic converter (in the front) to the muffler (in the back) had been
ripped out by the bump. What was a gal to do, but to pay the $400, eat breakfast while they worked, and keep on going?

I stopped that night West of Salt Lake, having driven through Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. The entire day I listened to David Sedaris, while I raced trains and rain storms. Wild lightening flashed in the steel blue horizons, while giant Fed Ex trucks zoomed by. I fell asleep barely
remembering how the lanscape that day had turned from mountains, to vast prairies, to red cliffs, to white desert.

Yesterday I woke up at 6 & rushed out to the car to beat the heat. It was supposed to be over 100 in the desert. I yelped when I passed the CA border some 6 hours later. They took my apples away at the Agricultural Check, but gave me "A Fancy Map of California" as consolation.
Now I am in the wine country, at my mother's, where chickens cluck & the stars seem so near they look prickly. I slept last night heavily & without waking for the first time in 3 weeks.
The next chapter begins. Thank you to all of you who helped me get here.

I send you all love.

Summer

Hello Friends & Family--

Yes, it is the third installment of Yes! I! Am! Alive! Otherwise known as the adventures of Summer Pierre & her trusty car Django.

I'm still in Kentucky. Unbelievable, but true. I think road trips are meant for the unexpected paths, but also the unexpected stays. My friends Eric & Betti have given me a place to catch up on sleep & to settle myself before embarking on the real unknown trip of motels & corn country.

Recent discoveries include: Dreager's Ice Cream (mint chip is the best); Borsia Shake (Orange juice, Coffee, & Vanilla ice cream); There are many Historical Markers throughout downtown Lexington, but they are all for buildings & monuments that were tore down a long time ago; Mint Juleps aren't served before or after Kentucky Derby Season in May; NEVER EVER lean down on the handle of a French press coffee pot to push down the press for brewing (especially wearing a tank top). It went down too quickly & the scalding liquid squirted all over my chest & wrists. My wrists were okay, but I look like I have an iron-burn on my chest.

I'm just about done on the biography of the photographer Diane Arbus. Very readable, good stuff. Today I read about her taking a 2 week trip across the country in a greyhound bus by herself to photograph & it really inspired me. I keep thinking of this waitress I saw at a rest stop in Pennsylvania. She was young, maybe 16, with exotic bright blue eyeliner that went beyond the reaches of her lids and were accented by glitter & rouge. I really wanted to photograph her, but didn't have the guts. I don't know how photographers do that--you have to reach beyond your comforts & extend yourself to at least introduce yourself & ask for their picture.

Today we went to Louisville & perused bookstores & cafes. In a used bookstore I heard "Sweet Jane" by the Velvet Underground & the groove hit me just right, that I had to have it. So I bought the CD entitled 'Loaded' & I am not sorry. This album is amazing. I feel like I've discovered something obvious like the Empire State Building. It's been there forever, but I just caught whiff of it.

I'll either leave tomorrow or Monday & then head out to sleep in the corn country. From there, on to the rockies, and then the Salt Lake Region. If I get up early enough from there I can make it into the Bay Area by that evening! Yippeee! My goal is to get back in time for my dad's birthday on July 6.

The painted horses of Kentucky wish you well & so do I.