Been around the world and I-I-I...

[thedarksiren2]

When I walked in the Cleveland-Hopkins Airport Wednesday morning, just around 4AM, I found a desolate place where most of the ticket kiosks were empty and would not be opening until around 5PM.

So much for arriving early. LOL

I sat in a small area just across from the US Airways kiosk, a woman sleeping a few seats down from me and another across the way, reading the Bible. I decided to pull out my book and start reading myself when I all but jumped out of my seat because of a man across the way suddenly, without rhyme or reason, yelled, "HEY!"

I looked over to see him sitting slouched in a chair with the perfect gout-face. I looked around and couldn't find a reason for his outburst, so I went on reading.

This yelling continued for the better part of twenty minutes. Just seemingly random..."HEY!"

Then someone sat near him, and he settled down. Funny, I had never heard of selective Tourettes before that day...

I wound up talking to the woman with the Bible, a nice lady by the name of Betty who was going to a family reunion in Alabama for the weekend. We had wonderful conversations about travelling, family, music...we even had a great conversation about fak fingernails and how unsanitary and disgusting we both find them. She was a doll, to say the least, and said God was sending blessings my way.

This of course, made me think back to the exorcism a few days ago, but I let it go, and thanked her for her kind words.~8)

My first day in Phoenix consisted of me catching a cab with a man from Zimbabwe, or so I thought. He was from Africa, spoke a clicky dialect on his cellphone and hates driving cabs. I somehow managed to trick him into thinking I knew Phoenix, which I'm sure kept the cost down, since he couldn't dupe me (or so he thought LOL) Still, the ride was a whopping $24, and when I landed at Nielson Diversified, Gabe's work, I felt quite awkward with all my bags.

Regardless, everyone was very nice. I finally got to meet Joerael in person, as well as another guy named Danny (whose real name is Jesus...is it just me, or is there a running theme here???) and several of Gabe's co-workers, none of whose names I recall.

I spent the next hour or so at a coffee shop reading and having lunch. Gabe came by and we walked back to his apartment where I took a nice cool shower and fell fast asleep.

When Gabe got home that night, we caught up on some things, hugged a lot and he opened is housewarming from wraptboy, and loved it.

The night ended with shnuggling and smiley-sleep.

Thursday was a li'l more interesting. I woke up near noon, ate breakfast and then Gabe's phone rang. I looked and saw Joerael's number come up, so I answered only to hear Gabe's voice. He said that Joerael was coming to pick me up because he was getting out of work early and they thought I might be bored. I assured him I was OK, but they insisted.

I jumped in the shower and when Joerael arrived,my hair was still in a towel, but it was OK. He's super-easy to talk to, very calm and interesting. We wound up running around Phoenix a bit, visited this guy Doug who about killed me with his bad jokes. He swears I have a twin in Phoenix, or that perhaps he met me in a past life. Either way, he was too funny, and offered Joerael a trade for a projector Joerael needs for his show tonight.

We then went to Office Max, and then to his house where I was introduced to Ignazius (I have no idea if I spelled his name right), an adorable chihuaha who kept me very entertained for several hours while Joerael finished some of his paintings for the gallery opening.

I was also introduced to the world of Saul Williams, both in written as well as recorded form. What an amazing writer. I was reading his one book, , said the shotgun to the head, and came upon this little bit on page 99:

i have committed myself
to adultery
i will only sleep
with GOD's wife

our affair
is no secret
he gets his thrills
from watching us

i cannot tear myself
from her eyes
i am, indeed,
her pupil
and no longer fear
the unseen

I'm not sure why I liked that so much, but I do.

After drinking some strong coffee, eating granola and a banana, we headed back to Gabe's. Gabe and I made dinner, talked a lot, and Joerael came back to pick us up around 9PM.

We drove to MonOrchid Gallery in downtown Phoenix where we met up with Danny, Charis (Joerael's sister), her fiance Kevin and their son Afton, and proceeded to unload artwork.

This place, this gallery, is unlike any gallery I have seen.The ceilings are huge and vaulted, the walls and structures inside as much works of art as the works that are hung every month. I just kept thinking how much wraptboy would shit himself if he saw it.

I wish I could explain both Joerael's and Jesus' artwork. It's incredibly vibrant, Joerael's a mixture of intense human form and a history in graffiti that, dare I say, reminds me slightly of Derek Hess, only more eloquent and fluid. I kept finding new things in each piece everytime I looked at them, and was just dumbfounded by his work.

Jesus' work is equally as stunning, but for different reasons. I won't say that Joerael's isn't spiritual at all - it is, but on a different level than I can convey, really. Jesus' though...you can see his religion in his art, a mixture of Catholicism (my interpretation) and ancient Hispanic culture. Stunning, every single piece.

We finished hanging and moving things around at about midnight and crashed to a full moon in the clearest skies I can remember ever seeing.

The show tonight is going to be great. It's Joerael's first, but he has several friends who will be there, and his sister and Kevin will be DJing. Joerael, Gabe and the guy who runs the gallery, Josh (whose real name, Gabe and I decided, should be Ronnie, and he's really an ex-porn star from some unmentionably sleezy town~;P) are all pushing me to sing tonight, but I don't know if I will. First, I have no music, so it'd be a capella. That's not so bad, but I am in such an unfamiliar situation, I just don't know. We'll see how I feel about it in a few hours.

For now, I am going to make a sandwich and post info about the show tonight for Joerael and Jesus.

Comments

[crayondisaster.livejournal.com]

Saul Williams!!!!!!!!! I love him. I saw him live and even got a chance to get some great advice from him after the show. I have one of his books too. Great stuff. Beautiful man.

[thedarksiren.livejournal.com]

I've almost finished the book Joerael gave me, and listened to a CD of him yesterday. Is he insanely intense or what? I can't imagine him as anything but a steam-engine IRL.

[kajmal.livejournal.com]

yay! have fun in phoenix, it's a cool town.

BTW, I discovered that Beale AFB is like less than 40 miles from your hometown of Oroville, CA. I think I might check it out, you know, just to do it. Mostly because Marysville and Yuba City are so damn boring. ;-)

[thedarksiren.livejournal.com]

Whoa...that's pretty wild that you're so close to Oroville. I haven't been back since I was 10, but I hear it's gotten pretty trashy. The Oroville Damn and Table Mountain were always impressive to me as a kid, so if you see either of those, lemme know what you think.

Also, somewhere near the damn there used to be this swimming hole called Sheila's Pond. It's a cool-fun place to swing from vines (or, it was when I was a kid) and fly into the deep water. Of course, if you don't go out far enough, you'll land on some pretty evil rocks.

I have heard that Chico, which is pretty close to Oroville, is a cool party area. Paradise is very beautiful as well.

Good luck finding some fun, and I'll do my best to do the same here!~8)