I've been home for a week now. Just over a week? I'm not really sure. My mind is still making it's way back from the west. I suspect my entire brain will never make it back. That's okay.
The final push home was a nightmare. Atlas had been having issues related to overheating since The Rockies. A phone call to my dad helped to isolate the problem. I don't know enough about motor vehicles. I am convinced that they run on a mixture of hope, magic, and will power. Just kidding, everyone knows they really run on two things; CASH and SOUL. Through cellular static my Dad explained to me that one of two things were wrong with Atlas:
1) Thermostat. Very cheap. Very easy to fix.
2) Water Pump. Not so cheap. Requires mechanic.
We replaced the Thermostat and lucked out. Atlas was eating up prairie highway faster than he had in weeks. Our tour schedule on the way home was pretty intense. We were driving 800km with shows at the end almost everyday. This isn't as much of a problem in a vehicle that can go faster than 90km/hr and doesn't require propane as a fuel source. Most places that supply auto propane don't have an employee certified to pump after 6pm. On fumes we arrived in Winnipeg and even made it to Thunder Bay where we were rewarded with an awesome night at Black Pirate's Pub.
Tim Lee (the wonderful man who sold us Atlas and arguably saved our tour) supplied us with a life line. It is a hose that allows us to transfer the propane from a BBQ tank into Atlas' tank. It is not a lot of fuel, but it will get you a little further down the road. The problem is that the road in Nothern Ontario is extremely fucking long. We went through a stretch of over 300km with no auto propane. We collected BBQ tanks and swaped them out whenever the chance arose. On our way to Sault Ste Marie for the evening's show at The Grande Theatre we ran out of fuel in Wawa. Unable to transfer enough fuel into the tank to make the show in time we were forced to cancel. This was unfortunate as Emeri's parents had driven from Kitchener to meet us for the show. However, thanks to them we discovered that the venue was not open on Sundays and regardless of our tardiness - there was no show that night anyways. Hmmm.
We slept in Atlas in a Tim Horton's parking lot. Their coffee tastes like dirt and nicotine but their parking lots are large and their washrooms are somewhat clean. The police banged on our door at 6am demanding to know what we were doing there and why we were doing it. After a brief explanation we hit the road, continuing homeward.
The next day Atlas' water pump broke. If you've been listening you'll know that is the other thing that could have gone wrong. That is a beautiful picture of our luck. After much fuckaroo we ended up separated and stranded. Thankfully the next day Emeri and Paul were able to get Atlas repaired. They picked Rob and I up in Sudbury. I honestly cannot remember how many more times we ran out of fuel on that last day. At least three. We made it home around midnight, disheveled, but intact.
Apologies to those of you in the east that were looking forward to a Vacuity fix. It wasn't in the cards this time around. Hopefully next time.
Now that we're home a little earlier than anticipated we have a few weeks until our rehearsal space comes back into our possession. It's time off. None of us are very good at taking time off for more than a few days. I have already half unloaded Fiver (our original van) into my basement. It is a cramped space that I share with 3 girls, a rabbit and a chinchilla. The company listens quietly and the melodies are coming out - all is well.
I will do my best to keep this blog updated and interesting. We're planning to write for the winter and tour again in the spring. With hopes of releasing our next album in the summer.
Oh plans!
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Tour Debrief
If you're like me and don't understand a goddamn thing about this 'economy crisis' that is unfolding, I highly recommend this video 'Crash Course' by Chris Martenson.
