Day 15: Car Recovery Day
By Saturday (November 16th) our car was finally ready to be picked up. We said our goodbyes to San Francisco and caught the bus back to Santa Rosa just in time. The Golden Gate Transit took us across the Golden Gate Bridge one last time and today it was clear enough to see the entire bay area. It's huge!
One bus led to another and eventually we were on the small bus back to the town of Gualala, CA. It seemed that over half of the people on this bus knew each other so we were able to listen to some fascinating conversations between Delora, Jason, and the bus driver. When we pulled into Gualala we saw our Gualala Mother, Wendy, waiting for us at the bus stop with our car! The amount of help Wendy has been is quite unbelievable. Every step of the way she would check in with us to see how we were doing and how the car was holding up. We have yet to check in with her once we arrive in Eau Claire. If there were a way to bake a cake and mail it to her, we would.
That night we ended up near the town Occidental in Sonoma County of California. Our friend Anna brought us to an annual celebration at an organic farm in the area and we were able to see the thriving hippy culture of California that I had only imagined would still exist. I wish that this stop had been towards the beginning of our tour, because we were all too exhausted to make it past 11pm.
That night we ended up near the town Occidental in Sonoma County of California. Our friend Anna brought us to an annual celebration at an organic farm in the area and we were able to see the thriving hippy culture of California that I had only imagined would still exist. I wish that this stop had been towards the beginning of our tour, because we were all too exhausted to make it past 11pm.
Day 16: Los Angeles
We started the day off driving through fog for the first hour or so until we reached Santa Rosa by car. From there we hopped onto the interstate and headed south for LA. Slowly our surroundings changed from green forests with tall redwoods and flowers to dry shrubs and palm trees. Both of which are not in Wisconsin so I welcomed the change.
Once in LA we met up with good friends Peter and Maria at their new apartment, which has some really great views. Out of the back window you can see the Hollywood sign on the hill and out front you see a perfect image of the city skyline. We spent the day together perusing a few neighborhoods, checking out Cee Lo Green at one of the shopping centers, and eating greasy pizza. I would say it was a fine introduction to Los Angeles.
My thoughts on the city? Well it smells like garbage. Everywhere. Indoors you may be fine, but once you step on the sidewalk all sorts of smells rush into your nose. In defense of the city I will say that eventually you do become used to the smell and sometimes the crude scents are replaced by the aroma of fish tacos.
Once in LA we met up with good friends Peter and Maria at their new apartment, which has some really great views. Out of the back window you can see the Hollywood sign on the hill and out front you see a perfect image of the city skyline. We spent the day together perusing a few neighborhoods, checking out Cee Lo Green at one of the shopping centers, and eating greasy pizza. I would say it was a fine introduction to Los Angeles.
My thoughts on the city? Well it smells like garbage. Everywhere. Indoors you may be fine, but once you step on the sidewalk all sorts of smells rush into your nose. In defense of the city I will say that eventually you do become used to the smell and sometimes the crude scents are replaced by the aroma of fish tacos.
Day 17: improv olympic
After sleeping in we went on a walk through Echo Park, a city park that wraps around a baseball stadium. The park seemed pretty run down and the grass looked slightly out of place in a city like this. At a certain point the city should just keep the land as dirt and see what shrubs end up growing.
That night we met up with our new friend Nick Armstrong from iO West to see their monday night show. If you don't know, iO West is one of the premiere improv theaters and training grounds for improvisers in Los Angeles and Chicago founded by the master mind of Del Close. In Los Angeles, the biggest theaters are at iO, Second City, and UCB. Most people don't know about iO or UCB so check out the links below.
iO: http://ioimprov.com/west/
UCB: http://www.ucbtheatre.com
Anyways, we met Nick and walked through the back area of the theater until we found our seats in the audience of the main stage at iO. We saw some really great teams, all long-form improv like we are, and the laughter never stopped. Eventually it came time for an improv jam at the end of the night where any improviser can place their I.D. in a fish bowl for a chance to get on stage with the veteran improvisers. It was hard to believe, but they called up all three of us, welcoming us from Wisconsin! That means that Mack, Alex, and I all had the chance to perform on the iO stage in Los Angeles! It was very exciting and a total rush. The experience was very similar to my first performance in high school on the Little Theater stage in Eau Claire. These improvisers were very skilled and very easy to work with. The jam/performance only lasted about twenty minutes, but it's a night I'm not likely to forget. A huge thanks to Nick and everyone that we met at iO for welcoming us to their theater.
That night we met up with our new friend Nick Armstrong from iO West to see their monday night show. If you don't know, iO West is one of the premiere improv theaters and training grounds for improvisers in Los Angeles and Chicago founded by the master mind of Del Close. In Los Angeles, the biggest theaters are at iO, Second City, and UCB. Most people don't know about iO or UCB so check out the links below.
iO: http://ioimprov.com/west/
UCB: http://www.ucbtheatre.com
Anyways, we met Nick and walked through the back area of the theater until we found our seats in the audience of the main stage at iO. We saw some really great teams, all long-form improv like we are, and the laughter never stopped. Eventually it came time for an improv jam at the end of the night where any improviser can place their I.D. in a fish bowl for a chance to get on stage with the veteran improvisers. It was hard to believe, but they called up all three of us, welcoming us from Wisconsin! That means that Mack, Alex, and I all had the chance to perform on the iO stage in Los Angeles! It was very exciting and a total rush. The experience was very similar to my first performance in high school on the Little Theater stage in Eau Claire. These improvisers were very skilled and very easy to work with. The jam/performance only lasted about twenty minutes, but it's a night I'm not likely to forget. A huge thanks to Nick and everyone that we met at iO for welcoming us to their theater.
Day 18: Trek Back Home
We left LA as the sun was rising to begin the final stretch back to Wisconsin. The next show wasn't for another day so we were able to make one stop along the way in Delta, Colorado. On the way we went through Las Vegas! Nothing exciting there. We went through the states of California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and then Colorado. The drive was a total of twelve hours and at the end of the drive we were welcomed by my family Sam and Lana with three bowls of chili waiting for us. Thank you guys for taking us in for the night!
Day 19: Denver, CO
In the morning I had the rare opportunity to visit my Great-Grandma Ann who has just turned ninety-two years old! I don't see her often since she lives in Colorado so I was fortunate that our route had changed and allowed me to visit. I introduced her to Mack and Alex and we spent awhile talking about our trip and her birthday until it came time for us to go. She is my last great-grandparent living today and I'm proud to see that she is still walking, talking and even following our trip online!
Four hours of driving went by and then we found ourselves at the VooDoo Comedy Playhouse in Denver! We were actually in Denver just a month ago as a part of the Denver Improv Festival! Our show this night was part of the theater's Wednesday night showcase. Thank you to Stephen Wilder of VooDoo Comedy for hosting us and giving us the headlining spot for their 8pm show! Also thank you to our dear friend Becca for snapping a few photos of us on stage. That night was spent with our friend Andy in Denver relaxing and watching "Shut Up and Play the Hits," an incredible documentary about LCD Soundsystem's final performance at Madison Square Garden.
Four hours of driving went by and then we found ourselves at the VooDoo Comedy Playhouse in Denver! We were actually in Denver just a month ago as a part of the Denver Improv Festival! Our show this night was part of the theater's Wednesday night showcase. Thank you to Stephen Wilder of VooDoo Comedy for hosting us and giving us the headlining spot for their 8pm show! Also thank you to our dear friend Becca for snapping a few photos of us on stage. That night was spent with our friend Andy in Denver relaxing and watching "Shut Up and Play the Hits," an incredible documentary about LCD Soundsystem's final performance at Madison Square Garden.
Day 20: Omaha, NE
Today's drive was pretty nerve-wracking. It snowed the entire eight hours from Denver to Omaha and the wind was fierce. Both hands had to have a vice grip on the wheel to be ready for the big gusts that would blast against the side of the car on the interstate. The roads near Omaha were really slick so we were forced to drive at about 30-40mph the rest of the way. Luckily the Backline Theater was able to save performance space for us even with the delays.
All of us exited the car and began to run towards the theater to make it on time and once we walked through the doors we were told that our team was on in just a minute. We went onstage just moments later and put on our last performance of this tour. It was apparent that we had reached the end of our mental stamina on this last leg of the tour and all of us were able to take a deep breath off stage knowing that we had successfully made it through all eight shows. The night ended with an improv jam, which is a great way to cool off after any show. A big thanks to Dylan Rhode and everyone at the Backline Theater for hosting us!
The last time we were in Omaha was with Memorial Improv for the Omaha Improv Festival last June. Since then the theater has switched to a new building allowing it to expand and host larger crowds than before. Dylan has done a terrific job building an improv community in Omaha and I'm excited to see how it grows in these next few years.
All of us exited the car and began to run towards the theater to make it on time and once we walked through the doors we were told that our team was on in just a minute. We went onstage just moments later and put on our last performance of this tour. It was apparent that we had reached the end of our mental stamina on this last leg of the tour and all of us were able to take a deep breath off stage knowing that we had successfully made it through all eight shows. The night ended with an improv jam, which is a great way to cool off after any show. A big thanks to Dylan Rhode and everyone at the Backline Theater for hosting us!
The last time we were in Omaha was with Memorial Improv for the Omaha Improv Festival last June. Since then the theater has switched to a new building allowing it to expand and host larger crowds than before. Dylan has done a terrific job building an improv community in Omaha and I'm excited to see how it grows in these next few years.
Day 21: Home
We had one last drive to complete and it only lasted seven hours! Sound like a lot? Well keep in mind that we spent nearly a hundred hours in the car this trip alone. First was Iowa, then Minnesota, and finally Wisconsin. The signs and sights became increasingly familiar as we neared home. All that I could think about was the feeling of being back in my own bed after a month of couch-surfing and floor-crashing as well as seeing all of our friends and family back at home. The odometer rolled over to 5,999.8 miles right as we parked the car at our house. 6,000 miles! That's quite a bit of driving for less than one month. Anyways, we're home now! For all of us, home is in Eau Claire, WI and we're fortunate to share a home together with our best friend, Lucas.
What are we up to now? Sleeping. Finding work to cover next month's rent. Visiting family. Reconnecting with friends. Cleaning and prepping for the winter hibernation in the midwest. We're taking a few weeks off from performing, which is extremely necessary for any improviser after a long run of shows. It gives us time to cool off and keep ideas fresh for shows in the future.
The next show we can release now is on December 14th here in Eau Claire as a part of the Eau Claire Improv Festival! This is Eau Claire's second annual improv fest and we're very excited to play a big part in the fest this year by performing and giving workshops. We have more shows brewing on the calendar here in Eau Claire, many with bands from around the area. Those dates will be released in the near future.
Glassworks has now travelled through fifteen states and one Canadian providence in the duration of the last two months. With two tours under our belt (Midwest and West Coast), many may wonder where we're headed next. Let me tell you that your guess is on the right track. We won't release any more info, but can assure that there will be more. Hell, there's a whole world to see! Thanks for sticking with us and most of all for reading this entire blog post. It's the longest one to date and must have taken several minutes to finish.
With Love,
Glassworks Improv
Written by Elliot Heinz
The next show we can release now is on December 14th here in Eau Claire as a part of the Eau Claire Improv Festival! This is Eau Claire's second annual improv fest and we're very excited to play a big part in the fest this year by performing and giving workshops. We have more shows brewing on the calendar here in Eau Claire, many with bands from around the area. Those dates will be released in the near future.
Glassworks has now travelled through fifteen states and one Canadian providence in the duration of the last two months. With two tours under our belt (Midwest and West Coast), many may wonder where we're headed next. Let me tell you that your guess is on the right track. We won't release any more info, but can assure that there will be more. Hell, there's a whole world to see! Thanks for sticking with us and most of all for reading this entire blog post. It's the longest one to date and must have taken several minutes to finish.
With Love,
Glassworks Improv
Written by Elliot Heinz