Black bears, beer and fake bakes

I performed in White Pine, Michigan this past weekend. When the booking email went around saying which gigs were available, I saw "Michigan," and thought, wow, that'd be great to be home for the weekend. So I put it for it. When I got the itinerary, it dawned on me what a large state Michigan truly is. Turns out, White Pine is roughly ten hours from my house. So much for being home for the weekend.

But, alas, I grabbed some of my best music (read: boy band cassette tapes) and self-help/meditation MP3's (personal growth and getting your life together seem like a great way to kill a long drive, right?), and I was off. The drive wasn't too bad, and it flew by fairly quickly. And bonus for the Mackinac Bridge actually being open this time around (unlike last time I was there).

After driving in nothingness for what seemed like hours, I finally arrived at the gig. I was quite shocked to find I was going to be performing in an entertainment complex. This place had a tanning salon, bowling alley, and bar. That's, like, the trifecta of fun right there (AKA heaven to the cast of Jersey Shore)! It also had hotel rooms and a spa attached to it (yay for being able to stumble home after the doing several shots).

Before the show, I perused the hotel's bookshelf and found this:



Unfortunately, it didn't contain any material I could actually use in my set.

A picture of the spa (yes, that sign does contain a warning to watch for black bears):


The show was really fun! And it was packed. The town seemed so small, and I was pleased that they were able to get such a great turn-out. And I sold a ton of bumper stickers ($70 worth to be exact). Congratulations, Yoopers, you just set a new merch record!

White Pine is in a really beautiful area. It borders Lake Superior and the Porcupine Mountains. If you haven't ever made your way up there, I recommend it.

Here are some pictures that I tried to make all artsy-fartsy with my new iPhone app. I took these the morning after the show. It would have been ten times more tranquil had I not been hungover.