My First "Decentralized Dance Party!"

    As you all fondly remember, there was a point in my travels this last summer where I had decided with two beautiful friends (Ellen & Scotty), that we would start our own dance crew called "Galactic Explosion," and tour the United States dancing our asses off. Wait, hold on-- I didn't tell you about all that? Shit…
    Okay, well surely you know that that whole idea stemmed from the amazing summer of relentless dance I had out in Trout Lake, Washington last year, which was prompted by a psychedelic dance transformation at the Rainbow Gathering-- right? What!? I didn't tell you about all that either?!
    What the hell have I been doing!?
    I guess without having kept up-to-date chronicles of my random lives around the country-- publicly at least-- I can't appropriately express how important dance, and inevitably, music, has become to my life in the recent years. Being so far from the studio, and having to sell my time for money in countless jobs so often, has had allot to do with it I'm sure, but lets forget about my problems for a minute, and focus on dance... 
        

    Among the whole mess of SxSW madness that takes place in Austin every March, I was lucky enough to have come upon a performative happening created by two crazy guys called TOM and GARY, who are living one of my dreams by touring the United States with one clear goal: DANCE! Thanks to a local friend of mine, Peter, me and Chassy were informed of this miraculous dance party that started on one side of the S. Lamer bridge, and danced all up and down the streets across downtown for nearly two hours!
    I won't waste time pontificating the artistic implications of this performance happening, or its relevancy to the artistic, cultural, or digital realms. Partially because it is surely a squarish intrusion to a form of expression that requires no literacy or theory, and partially because I obviously have much of my own writing to be catching up on. I guess the fact that the event was led by a man with a golden wig, a giant "disco-stick," and a shake-weight, also bears some relevancy, but who should I be to judge?
    These events are called "DE-CENTRALIZED DANCE PARTY'S," and are taking place all over North America as fast as TOM & GARY can put them together. The whole operation is entirely grassroots oriented. They fund their concept through "kickstarter," and though they've gotten some significant national coverage, they seem to promote mostly through Facebook, twitter, and social media sites. Though they have small kickstarter goals to fund their travels, the everyday dancer like yourself only needs to don some spandex, and dance your ass off.
    I can't tell you how much I enjoyed my experience at the "DDP," and how much I admire these guys for taking such a simple idea, and running with it. I'll post their website so you can find out more about TOM, GARY, and how you can get yourself to a DDP A.S.A.P! Be sure to watch their short little promo video explaining DDP's as well, it's definitely some badass D.I.Y. work! 
 www.decentralizeddanceparty.com/

Who better to lead our dancing then a man upon a bike-chariot with a shake weight, and a disco stick?

 

Meet Peter!

And of course, Liam!

 

STATUS UPDATE: "A Productive Stint in Milwaukee, and Off to Americorps!"

     The time has come once again my wonderful readers, to return to you as I always do, and continue my ongoing report of the American landscape through the lens in which I so obscurely see it. I know I've been off the blog for a little bit now, but if you've been following along here at TLGAJ from the outset, then you probably have figured out that my project-to-project work flow not only allows me to continue traveling on the whim as I have, but also unfortunately requires that I occasionally focus in on those projects a bit more at times, which sadly, leaves you guys with the occasional feelings of abandonment, that I ultimately cannot blame you for. I don't feel good about it either guys, I assure you- but our relationship- like so many others, is what facebook would consider "complicated."
     So falling back into my general pattern here, I will give you guys a bit of an outline with regards to what in gods name kept me in Milwaukee for the most unreasonable months of the year- which is obviously just a ploy for me to plug some of my recent projects; and then, as is also customary, I will go into the difficulties, and circumstances, and all the mellow dramatic griping that I like to drop on you whenever I make another grand departure, because this time in particular, I really was at odds with some major life changes. Finally, in general alignment with my tellings of the majority of this Journey, we will cap our latest post off with yet another senseless argument, and another senseless fallout, between me and the forever bickering "B.O.," a.k.a. Brian Olsen. Are we ready to begin, class? Splendid!

     So lets start out where things left off, shall we? After several months of living in the Le Sabre with my gal Chassy, and traveling partner B.O., we made our way up the scenic West Coast from San Francisco, stopping all over the place for weeks at a time, and really absorbing the unique flavor of the Pacific Northwest. Near the end of the summer, we finally spent the last of what little we had, and found ourselves flat broke in the wonderful city of Portland, which unbeknown to us, would become a sacred social hub for the remainder of our time in the N.W., and would lead us to all sorts of amazing new friendships and experiences.
     It just so happened that in my first day of craigslist job-searching, I got a call back for a fairly prominent micro brewery called "Laurel wood," that apparently needed a cook so badly, that they called me back in that same day for an interview. With some help from my patented "suit-in-a-bag," I showed up looking as spiffy as a man living out of a car can, and landed the job which gave us the opportunity to live it up in the backyards of some particularly wonderful folks for the rest of the summer. Our gypsy lifestyle treated us as well as anyone could ask for, and when September rolled around, we were very sad to depart the once foreign city we had come to know, and the life long friends we had made within it while "yard-surfing."

     After a few patient days of scanning, we found ourselves a craigslist ride-share from a remarkably generous fellow by the name of Tae, who had been traveling the country with the performance circus "Cirque Du Soleil," which is a whole 'nother story that has yet to hit the TLGAJ, and will surely be a staple of the inevitable novel in which this blog functions to support. Anyhow, Tae took us through Colorado where we spent the weekend, and even introduced us to some of his friends in Iowa who also were good enough to let us crash there for a few days. Bless his heart and soul, cause Tae even took us as far as Chicago on his way to D.C., so we only had to spring our last ten bucks on a rail pass to get back to Milwaukee in perfect timing for the performance art show that I had been invited to participate in. It should be duly noted that Tae helped us get a great deal across the country on the very meager amount we were able to offer him as compensation, partly because he was an advocate of what he saw here on TLGAJ. He, and so many other folks' genuine acts of kindness have been the true heart and beauty in this grand adventure.
     The 2010 Milwaukee Performance Art Showcase was a great success for me, in that I got to work with some of my favorite Milwaukee organizers to put out a performance art piece I had been very excited about, and they even gave us a modest stipend. The other performance artists in the show were incredibly talented, and I even got a small amount of interest from local press! Essentially, I couldn't ask for much more without being greedy. As I already promised I'd try and keep the self-promotion to a minimum here in my little re-cap, I'll use links liberally on the off chance that I haven't already forced my work down your throat- here's a link to my art blog if your interested in hearing more about this particular project: "The Weight of the World on my Shoulders," from Milwaukee Performance Art Showcase 2010

     So after the show in Milwaukee, it was already getting too cold for my taste, and my obvious plans of getting the hell outta' town for the winter were foiled by something I'm perhaps being too gloomy about in this mention- opportunity! As much as I truly am devoted to the all encompassing project that TLGAJ has been shaping itself into, I've also got to take the opportunities that come at me whenever I can, by balancing a small need for money to continue what I'm doing, Art opportunities to succeed at doing what makes me happy, and experiences that are valuable to my perspective of America. I've shifted my focus all over the place in the past two years of vagabond living, but when Pegi Christiansen approached me about taking on the task of documenting and creating a group of video's for her temporary public art organization, IN:SITE, I simply could not turn it down for several reasons. One being how much I admire and appreciate IN:SITE's model for innovative "site specific" public art, two being that I can always use some more fodder for the 'ol portfolio- especially in functional video work, and lastly, because it was a paid gig, and even as good as I am at getting by with very little- I needed some money to keep on keeping on. So to make a long story short, or a short mention long, I ended up spending several months in Milwaukee that winter making a series of documentaries for IN:SITE, and pushing my personal work in between. All the video's can be found on IN:SITE's website here: IN:SITE video's

     In between this high pace of video work, I managed to keep up my connections in Milwaukee, and push a decent amount of writing, as well as studio work. Though this was a good thing, I really don't do well being stuck inside hiding from the miserable cold for months on end, and my decision to re-awaken my younger interest in political activism- through the Madison labor protests- got me thinking about how I might be able to bring something extra to TLGAJ, while also making some positive change, and not abandoning my artistic goals. After some research, I began filling out applications for Americorps, which is why I am currently writing to you from the Mt. Adams Center, in Trout Lake WA. I won't link, or expand upon this much at the moment, as the point of bringing you guys up to speed on my less recent endeavors, is so I can start sharing this current experience with you at greater length. So then, moving along.
     I knew I wouldn't be happy just having my cake, so in an effort to "eat it too," I began writing proposals with the intention of putting a show together before I departed to Washington for my 6 month Americorps term. This took some work, but finally, I was asked by a new gallery in Milwaukee, to be a part of their first show which will now be opening on June 9th in my absence. I am very excited for the response to this new work, and once again, I will spare you the details except for the fact that I made a hilarious video for their site, that discusses the work in an effort to engage lovely viewers such as yourself. I don't ever show the final piece in the video- otherwise you might not come to the opening- but if you don't make it out to the show, my art blog will surely cover the details for anyone who missed it. If anyone's interested though, heres the video- it really is pretty entertaining, even if you think my work sucks: "Art at a Glance," (Interview for "C E N T E R," gallery opening)
   

        By now you must be thinking, geeze, is this guy finally done with all his self-promoting art nonsense?, and to answer your question honestly, yes. I am (for now at least). So here's whats on the agenda: Since I didn't really get around to the details of my departure yet, which include me and B.O.'s always entertaining stubbornness, as well as the difficulties of my embarking on this new adventure without Miss Chastaine Tallon- I'm going to swallow my pride and just post this damn thing already. Lets face it, I've been out of practice a bit lately, and if anything, it'll be good to be delivering some content at a faster and perhaps less thorough pace. To cap things off, I think I'll litter the post with some pics of my time in Milwaukee, because asides from being productive in a professional sense, I really did enjoy spending some time with some of my favorite people- so here's to my homies holding it down in Mil- Town!
     Expect more soon folks, and thank you so much for reading. I'm having an amazing time here in Trout Lake living at the base of a volcano, and I promise there is much more to come (as always).

Until We Meet Again...

Regards,
Joseph R. Reeves

    

            

CHARACTER PROFILE for: "Slim Comber," and "Jasmine." ALSO, Final Thoughts on Mendocino Life

Anyone who has been following the loosely dubbed "chronological" portrayals of our accounts, surely recalls "Part 1" of my "Life in Mendocino" post, which is a few pages back by now, and focuses on the first bright and sun-shiny half of our time while living among the valleys of the redwood forests in Mendocino county. "Part 2," as I had so ingeniously plotted, would focus on some of the deeper, more revealing points in this portion of our trip, which has been arguably, one of the most startling perspectives of society we have seen thus forth.
When preparing to write about our accounts in this mysterious valley (for the web, mind you), I had been prepared to tread quite cautiously in choosing what I do and don't say; for reasons of respect, privacy, and even law. We never expected to find such a colorful tragedy out there, and because the nature of this study in sub-culture became so emotionally taxing to me in its totality, I put too much an emphasis on how I would honestly present the "private" so damn publicly.
After writing the over-due "Part 2," twice, I also began to struggle in considering my format of blog writing vs. writing the book (YES, I am still diligently composing a manuscript, though the scope of it as a whole, has continued to evolve simultaneously with my life)... ANYHOW, as it happened, I began writing the post two different times, and after a few pages in, both times- I realized I was writing for the book, not the blog.
So finally, I have come to accept that this portion of the journey, just wasn't meant to be released on the web. This is true with much of my experiences thus forth, only I didn't make the mistake of buttering you up for the delivery. The complexity of my experience was too great to be put in brief, plus, I've still gotta' preserve much of the zest my american journey has entailed, for the book. I don't want people to consider my book to be "based on the blog," but vice versa.
So in an effort to keep on truckin', I've decided to do a character profile on one of the more delightful locals we were fortunate enough to meet; throw down a few final photo's I may have neglected to share with you; and move the hell on. Finally, right?

"Slim Comber," as I will call him, was one of the nicest fellows we had come across since our enduring trip to the west coast, and our subsequent stint of "car living" in San Francisco. Right off the bat I was intrigued by Slim's demeanor. He was a laid back, smooth talkin', California native who I immediately identified as a caricature of the typical rural Californian for me to be studying. In reference to the "pen name" I have given him, Slim reminded me of the blue collar, land working men whom I had always read about with great satisfaction in Steinbeck's portrayals of the magnificent California countryside.
Slim had a good, steady job back in town in which he held modestly, and an absolutely adorable young daughter named "Jasmine,"whom he unabashedly prided as the joy in his life.
Slim had apparently gotten three full days off from work, and had decided to take his daughter down to his favorite local camping spot to get some quality relaxation time, and introduce his daughter to the local beauty which he so fondly prided. Upon arriving at the grounds, he found out there was some sort of mix-up with his site, and after he introduced himself and his daughter to us, and shared a few beers and even some smoke, we couldn't help but invite him to set up camp at our enormous site.
Slim did just that, and for the next two days we had a local among our camp, that undoubtedly led to the okies accepting us as "good folks" so quickly. Although we were hesitant to draw attention to ourselves as obvious outsiders, Slim drew in various people from surrounding camps, and we slowly began to understand the circumstances of our social surroundings, and even got to know some key figures in the camp.
When "Slim Comber" and Jasmine eventually left our camp, we were sad to see them go. In part, because of all we learned from him about what this forrest, and the local town, was really all about; but mostly, because he was such a helluva nice guy. He was a genuine sort, that could get along with almost anybody- which was a rare quality among the isolated locals- and his trust in us, allowed for their trust in us.
When we finally left camp a week later, we stopped into Slim's work to say good-bye to him, and thank him for all the good advice; and I'll be damned if he didn't have another absolutely golden reference for us! He jotted down the complicated directions of another free hidden camp site along the river, a day or so north, in Humbolt county- which turned out to be another wonderful stay.
It always seemed to be the good nature of people that got us along, and throughout all our struggles and achievements, the beauty of the landscape always seemed to reflect the beauty of the people...

COMING SOON: THE ONWARD JOURNEY UP THE PACIFIC NORTH WEST!!!  

Until we meet again...

Regards,
Joseph R. Reeves

I spent some time trying to whittle a backscratcher for Chassy's birthday- too bad the unfinished product split in the hot car later...

        

Chassy was kind enough to carve me a custom "nose picker" in return. Thanks Chass :)

This shot is particularly funny, because as I sit in the cool shaded camp site writing like a nerd, B.O., Chassy, and a few locals play cards on the picnic bench- whats funny, is that they drag the table a few feet every half-hour, in order to follow one of the few massive sun-spots available down in the valley. 

These massive buggers are called "Bananna Slugs," and though I couldn't convince B.O. to try licking one, we heard from the okies that one lick makes your entire mouth go completely numb!

A final farewell "family style" portrait of the gang. It was sad to leave...