Tour and Beard Journal (Day 1)

So THE FLORALS are going on tour and I am joining them to playing bass and drive. Here's a little secret though, I have the worst driving record of any of the four going on this tour. Don't tell them. I'm pretty sure they won't read this. It's just that I had about a year, post-TBI, where speed limits were a really hard concept to grasp. I'm not a bad driver, I don't think. But if you need to know of the where abouts of any speed trap in the Montgomery, Greene, and Clark County areas, I am your snitch.

The first show of the tour was a blast. We played Kent in this small but trashy cool gallery/ skate park. My friends Syd and Kreigh played as Shisho. My longtime friends Kris and Tangela were there as well. Newer good friend Caleb set-up the show. The atmosphere was simple but very cool. It reminded me of seeing Damien Jurado in Boomington, IN in a open room above a Subby's. That is one of my favorite live music memories ever. We also met a few others who I had seen around town on my previous visits but never really talked to. This time I did. And it turns out most of them work at Scribbles Coffee Co. which was started and still owned by friends of mine.

The Florals' set was so fun and rambunctios that Brenna broke her Stratocaster. My first night as a bassist only resulted in 3 bad notes. Someone needs to develope a baseball-like analytic to track how reliable of a bassist I am becoming. Even though I am a drummer, my tempo rating would grade below-replacement-level.

In other news, I have decided to grow a beard on this tour. It's not that I really want a beard. Ingram men have a long tradition of hiding behind facial hair and like any good son, I have rebelled against that tradition. It's more that I don't want to carry a sharp object in the backpack that may need to also serve as a pillow on this tour. So I have made a half-hearted covenant to let my facial hair grow wild . . . at least for ten days. And of course in this day of social media ever-presence, I feel the need to journal about it.

So here's my Day 1 entry: Nothing is happening so far. Do I need to water this? Is there a vitamin to take for beard beauty? In analyzing my goals though, I know what I want. The one extreme of a lumberjack-full beard is just too common for me. I'm not "Basic" as my friend Amanda so greatly reminds me. The other extreme of a George Michael "Faith"-era thin beard may get me thrown in jail for looking like one of "America's Most Wanted", or just for looking like George Michael. So I am aiming for the ever trustworthy and inspirational Peter Sellers late-60's-era beard. You can Google image search for him and find one pic where he actually has a real beard rather than any of his Pink Panther disguises. If I am going to commit to this, I am going to look Peter Sellers-chic. Sixties fashion is so inspiring to me.

Yet as much as I have goals, this whole process induces a lot of insecurity. I am on tour with Alexander and Ian who both probably have had beards since their teens. I can't compete with that. Being clean-shaven for so long has not only been because it compliments my subtle suave good looks but also because I have the physical maturity of a 12-year-old Andy. Ask me what foods I like and you'll get a long list of those I don't. Just like a kid. So I am in for this. It's going to be a long ten days though. I already can't wait until I get to experience that clean-shaven feeling a week from Sunday.