Day 3: Wichita, Kansas to Lawrence, Kansas
I've never slept at a truck stop before, and was surprised to find that I didn't wake up to any of the commercial trucks leaving early in the morning. It was convenient to have the spacious public restrooms nearby so that all five of us could get ready for the day without having to take turns. We all woke up naturally at slightly different times, regardless, which I feel will be helpful for when we don't have the luxury of the truck stop, campground facilities, or a friend's house nearby. We raised the thermostat from the first night on the road, and we slept more comfortably, even though the generator probably eats up just as much power no matter how much we utilize it. I had a simple breakfast of cereal, so as not to tempt my upset stomach from the day before. Magoon had much higher success making eggs in a frying pan after the cast iron skillet debacle of the previous day as well.
As we prepared to set off around 1100 hours, we had a small maintenance scare caused by a rattling sound when we turned on the engine - the Captain took a look and couldn’t discover anything visually wrong with the engine or oil. We had some guesses that it may have been related to the hydraulic system of jacks for leveling, but it subsided once we got moving, and we resolved to get it looked at in the next town. We topped off the gas tank to assist with my mileage calculations, and rode the short three-hour jaunt to Lawrence, Kansas, affectionately known by locals as “Lawrence Fucking Kansas” (LFK). It is also the home of Kansas University, and our second show venue, the Kaw Valley Public House. Along the route, Molhy and Magoon finished rolling the t-shirts.
We spent the afternoon parked at a Planet Fitness in Lawrence, where two of us had procured Black Card Memberships in preparation for the trip. That meant each member could bring one guest in to shower and exercise, so four out of five of us could be inside at once. We broke off and did our separate errands, taking advantage of the multiple shopping centers surrounding our parking lot: Magoon and the Captain replenished the yarn for t-shirt we made good use of the Planet Fitness memberships and showered, replenished strings for t-shirt tying at Joann Fabrics and purchased the Captain a pair of new gym shoes and a replacement gas cap for the Tour Loaf (we had somehow lost the first). Moll-Hi and McRage explored the area on their own. As a team we gave the Magic Tour Loaf a thorough window-washing. We ate on our own, most of us cooking in the RV at different times, and the Captain trying out a Mongolian Grill called HuHot. He sent the rest of the group a warning text that he may have to be rolled out of the restaurant, as it was all-you-can-eat. I dutifully went to ensure he could make it out, and all was well. All of us showered and a few of us exercised in the gym before we relocated to our show venue at 1900 hours.
The Kaw Valley Public House is a narrow bar with garage-style doors that open the place up to an indoor-outdoor hybrid space. It was filled with smiling patrons on a Monday night. Jenna and Martin, from Kansas City, brought their poodle Ron to watch over the proceedings as they opened for our band. Martin, a talented multi-instrumentalist on electric guitar and pedal steel, is obscured by the local harmonica-wielding guest they invited to the stage for a country tune.
We had a wonderful time performing. In the Tour Loaf as the boys loaded in their equipment, Molhy, Magoon, and I worked out some additional harmonies for our closing number, Indestructible, and they went very well in the set. Molhy's old friends play in a band called Lady (comprised of five gentlemen) which closed the night for us. After packing up, we retired around midnight to the driveway of one of the Lady members, Nef, who graciously offered us his hospitality. It was all the more appreciated since he had just recently moved into the house! The other crew members joined Nef in the house to play music and eat several different varieties of potato chips, but my circadian clock instructed me to skip the late night festivities.
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