Maji's blog: "Majifornia"

.I just finished having brunch on the roof. Whilst Im eating churros & flan topped with mango purre, a mexican duet seranades me with a spanish version of CheapTrick's "I want You To want Me".....played on a gigantic wooden harp....a fucking harp!!! hahahahaha

I can honestly say, there is not much left to accomplish, today. (waits for juggling midgets to show up at the door)

I was meant to attend a meeting arvo to ascertain whether a pending site visit was required.

Instead as Im typing in my other blog, I get the mail saying to parlay that and can I leave today.

So change of plans. Ive got about an hour n half to pack, shower, shave, shoot off and shag ass.

Looks like I'm gonna huff down some lunch in Va Beach, and by 4 I'll be sippin drinks at the HieneyHole in Atlanta, and when I sit down for dinner, I will once again, be in California. At least another lil break from the winter weary.

So I better get my ass in gear. :s  I will holla tonight I reckon.

Now that that training camp for the Dallas Cowboys is over, I was able to get back in to hotel I was at on my trip before last.

Had a pretty warm welcome back, everyone here remembered me, and they even saved my old room for me when they found out I was coming! I didnt think I'd get back in the same spot, with the hot tub/pool/bbq literally 50-60 ft out the patio door.

I like when life smiles on ya in lil doses.

This trip will also put me over the top as a platinum member, so Im gonna have to see what kinda goodies are available thru the reward program.

So tomorrow I embark on my last trek across California for awhile. Im finishing up all the jobs there, and the bulk of new work will be occuring back east.

During the coming week, I'll be bouncing between LA, Ventura and San Diego areas.

I thought it might be nice to drop in on a few fu-folk while Im mobile. I'm aware of a few in that area, but havent seen them online in a bit.

So Im sort of enlisting whoever may read this to help me spread the word, to our collective friends that you know are in Cali, and send them to this blog or my way, so they can drop me a line and their digits and we can go from there if theyre interested.

I tried like hell to have a beer with Seamus last trip, but he relocated to arizona, so is a lil out of reach now.

Anyway, I'll be hittin up the ones I know off top of my head, maybe you guys can help me the ones that may have slipped my mind at the moment, or Im not aware that theyre in that area.

This is just for novelty, and the coolness of putting a real face with the persona. Would be a shame in retrospect to be that close and not stop and say hi.

If youve got some complex about the internet boogeyman, Im not really interested in jumping thru alot of hoops to give you the warm and fuzzy. Im just a dude, making all the memories I can. Think/do/smile cause you did.

Anyway, just throwing that out there, holla, we'll see if can get it going.

After 67 days on work travel, Im back in what seems to be my residence.

The house seems, strange, stale. Echoes of the toss-about of hurriedly getting ready to leave 2 months ago, frozen in time. Much reorganizing to do.

After driving from Ventura to Palm Springs to San Diego earlier in the week, I had one afternoon/evening left  in SD to go walk about. Tired of course, but still feeling the obligation to fill every moment with, something.

So on a whim, I rode down Tijuana.  That was, ....an experience.

The place has its own, aroma. An ever changing climate of wafts shifting between between musty old city concrete, with clouds of street fajitas drifting by, followed directly by the sewery pungence of the aqueduct.

The vendors are very persistent, and hungry for a dollar. The streets are lined with miles of trinket shops, and bartering abounds with every step down the sidewalks. Mexican Monty Halls, all up in your face, lets make a deal. If they say something is 35 dollars, just start walking away, it quickly becomes 6 dollars.

I parked and walked in the border, vs driving, which turned out to be a good decision. The re-entrance was a traffic jam of epic proportion, and plus the street traffic is very bustley and aggressive, and pretty much ruled by lil taxis zipping around everywhere.

I made it to the end of Revolution Ave, where the city's huge Mexican flag is in plain sight, and then over the plaza where the monument arch is located.

I only had one slight altercation, where a young marketer agreed on a price of 8 dollars, handed him a 20, and he tried to do the flip over with one dollar bill in hand, and inform me that he needed 7 more dollars. I caught him by the other wrist and asked him to unclench his fist before he could get it back in his jacket, revealing the 20 I handed him. He ensued with the ole family to feed bit, and we kinda laughed it off, to which I changed my offer to 4 dollars, and he stopped laughing, paused,  I turned to leave, and he agreed to the latest offer, with an "ok, I guess I deserved that" scowl upon his face.

After much apprehension, I finally became subdued to the fantastic smell of the real mexican food in the marketplace, and braved a fajita thingy, cant remeber what they called it. So far, no gastric upheaval, looks like I survived.

Then back to the Hacienda, hotel in SD from my pics. Took a qucik walk thru Ole Town again, and after a few bars coolapsed back in the very nice room.

Yesterday morning, I embarked on my journey home, a 10 hr flight connecting in my rabbit foot airport Atlanta. Once again, I landed within eyesight of the escalator bar, and plopped down for my 3 hr layover. After about four 12" tall mugs of draft I was humming along pretty good boarding the last flight.

My band mates picked me up for the airport, and soulful reunion to top off a long day. I really missed, my car. I sat in the lot getting to know her again, and apologizing for leaving her alone for so long, to which she warmed up finally and settled down into her very attractive low end rumble, to which was an affectionate purr to my ears.

My long-term fee was 476 dollars. My travel dept is going to shit BBs. I am prepped for next week to remind them that I drove to the office that very morning to ask if someone would like to take me to the airport, to which they directed me to just use long term and they would square it up when I return. That however was under the original pretense that I would be gone 2 weeks, not 70 days. Its gonna be interesting.

Today, Im a lagged frazzle of a human being, adjusting to 3 hrs in the future, to which I have to prepare for tonights gig, a festival in an adjoing county, of which serves as a reunion of my former popular band. We are headlining, last, with absolutely no rehearsal, just an emailed set list. A live practice in front of a crowd. We've done this before and it always clicked, and we got in the groove. Of course, I was not in the cloud that I am now, so Im hoping I will be on my game, wish me luck.

So anyway, less than 20 hours, I am packing once again, only different. Guess what I will be doing Sunday?? .....phew

Ive officially earned my thrill seekers wings.

I braved a very delicious street vendor fajita in Tijuana yesterday, and am hopping a 10 hr flight this morning.

God help us all....

Adios! :D

Wow...I just went and had my last buffet at the hotel social hour, and as it should be, it was taco night! hahaha.

As Im departing sometime tomorrow, I hung around and had a chat with the matre d Alfredo who've Ive become pretty good chums with over the past 2 months.

Whilst Im talkin to him, Angelina from catering comes up and bids ado, and then the staff comes out givin me hugs and handshakes, citing they'll miss my stories and my horseplay (Im always heckling everyone, even strangers).

I had no idea I had become that familiar, now Im huggified and full of draft beer, and I think I might even be bit verklempt! lol *fans face*

It was nice tho, and  have to admit, I am gonna miss this place a bit, good stuff, good times.

Welp.....my primary journey is wrapping up, Ive got just a few more things to get in order before I depart for home.

Those that gave a shit and kinda rode along thru my updates, will know Ive covered a bit of ground in the last 2 months.

Sooo much to see.

I'll be leaving Ventura later this week to finish up in SanDeigo, and am tweaking things to try and make room to see a few folks on my way out, so keep your ears on if I got your digits. :)

Ive trekked 837.8 mls since Monday morning, checking in here and there when I got signal.

My apologies to those that seem to have gotten a bit bent about my delay or lack of response during those times. Obviously Fu sometimes reflects a logged in status for some time after youre gone.

Anyways, Im back in Ventura, and on hotel cable/wifi. So I should be more attentive per se, unless the bartab activity gets to looking like the ole bait & perch scenario that it has become at times.

Hugs & ^5s, whichever applies.