Anaheim, CA Week 1

[taz_39]

Wednesday:
We arrived almost on time, despite leaving several hours late!
I was called to do the elephant walk last-minute. It was a short one...basically across a large parking lot. There were some protestors there but none of them had signs, they all seemed to be focused on getting video/photo footage. Not that there was anything exciting to witness; the elephants lined up and walked over as usual, followed shortly by the horses. Quick and easy.

After that, I went back to the train to change clothes,
then met up with Slick, Jameson and Rebecca for dinner at El Torito!
Had some delicious chicken fajitas and strawberry margaritas, and fantastic company :)

Thursday:
In the early afternoon, Jameson and I rode our bikes to a nearby grocery called El Super.
The produce there was VERY good and VERY cheap. I got three apples, two nectarines, a banana, cucumbers, grapefruit, a cookie, and a bottled water for $4!!! Will be going back there again before we move on!
The bike ride was nice. I was nervous...didn't want to KO in front of Jameson! But I didn't, phew.

After we got back, Brett, his wife and son, and Aaron (drummer) and I went to the LA Farmers Market to see Bill Watrous play! Other performers included Rob Stonebeck on trombone, Rich Eames on piano, Jennifer Leitham on bass, and Randy Drake on drums. Jennifer was AWESOME. I'm buying her album. Incidentally there is more to her than meets the eye...maybe I'll watch her documentary too!
Bill was sick good but that goes without saying ;)

Short vid of Bill soloing
Short vid of Bill singing



While listening to this seriously awesome live music, we got to enjoy some tasty treats :)
I got a turkey, swiss and tomato crepe from The French Crepe Co.
Theresa (Brett's wife) and I got ice cream from Bennett's Handmade Ice Cream stand; she got some kind of chocolate awesomeness and I tried Fancy Nancy, a coffee/banana/caramel combo that was REALLY good!

All in all, I had a GREAT time. Thank you Brett for a wonderful adventure!
Friday:
Rode my bike to and from the arena. That was really nice :)
I'm still wobbly and slow and cautious, but that's ok. Others can pass me :P
We had rehearsal and one show, a regular Friday.

Saturday:
A three show day. It felt short, maybe because we've only got two shows on Sunday.
Jameson joined me for the bike ride home, that was nice :)
Many people are biking to and from the arena this week.

The Wheel act is back in (they were out last week) so we don't have to play Emergency music
or make any other modifications.

At the beginning of this week, some of our performers were featured on the Kris Jenner Show!
Full episode (GREAT job guys!!):

Watch on YouTube

Sunday:
Enjoyed waking up a little later than usual,
then biked over to the arena for the last two shows of our first week in Anaheim.
Gave my 'mimic' trombone to Brett
(we call it 'the mimic' because it's supposed to be a copy of a Minick trombone),
who kindly offered to take it to Anaheim Band Instruments for some minor repair work. Thanks Brett :)
Slick brought in doughnuts today because it was a Slick Sunday...that is, the train isn't moving.
Thanks for the treats Slick!

We'll be in Anaheim for another week. We have Monday and Tuesday off!
Tonight there is a 'punch party' at the train, because we have two birthdays (Kelli the Clown and Melissa from Production) and two dear friends leaving us (Chris in Wardrobe and Toy Store in Lighting).

So if you'll excuse me, I'm off to join in the fun :)


Photos from this week:

The elephants enjoying some sand and sun :)

(photo courtesy Ryan, animal trainer)