Jason Heath has a bunch of really great Crazy Gig Stories, and while this one doesn't compare to any of his, I was reminded of it yesterday on my way to a gig and it made me laugh.
When I lived in Lubbock, I used to play with an orchestra in Big Spring, TX. Big Spring was a small town about two hours south of Lubbock, and the orchestra I truly believe was their pride and joy. (It was in Big Spring where I first heard a very young Peng Peng Gong play in maybe 2006.) Many of the musicians in the orchestra were imported from Lubbock: we'd drive down for a Friday night rehearsal, Saturday morning rehearsal, and Saturday concert. They'd put us up in a hotel overnight.
Since so many came from Lubbock, we'd often carpool. One time, I found myself riding with a husband and wife. Alas, I don't remember their names, so we'll call them Carl and Sally. They arrived to pick me up in what had to be a mid-1980s Dodge Caravan (this was probably in 2008); I think it had 450,000 miles on it. Carl was a regional manager for O'Reilly Auto Parts by day and freelanced as a violist. He never bought new cars, he told me, just took good care of the old ones.
We decided to stop at McDonalds for a quick bite to eat before we got on the highway--it was a two-hour straight shot to Big Spring with practically nothing in between. As we were pulling out of the drive-through, the van stopped running. Carl leaps out, checks under the hood, and calls the closest O'Reilly's. After rattling off some part numbers and hanging up, he told us that help was on the way. An employee of the store arrived in about 15 minutes and helped him install the parts. We were off and running again, and made it to rehearsal on time, despite the minor setback.
Since I carpooled with them, I was reliant on them for transportation once we got to town. We had to check out of the hotel by 2:00 p.m. (they gave us late check-out, which was nice), so we decided to go get something to eat before the concert. I had already changed into my tuxedo at the hotel; Carl and Sally were still in their "civvies." The hall wasn't yet open, and we didn't have access to the hotel, so Carl pulls up to the only O'Reilly Auto Parts shop in Big Spring, introduces himself as the regional manager, etc., looks over the store, offers a few compliments, and says that he and his wife need to use the back room to get changed into their concert attire. The guy behind the counter seemed a bit confused, but let them use the room.
Only in West Texas!
When I lived in Lubbock, I used to play with an orchestra in Big Spring, TX. Big Spring was a small town about two hours south of Lubbock, and the orchestra I truly believe was their pride and joy. (It was in Big Spring where I first heard a very young Peng Peng Gong play in maybe 2006.) Many of the musicians in the orchestra were imported from Lubbock: we'd drive down for a Friday night rehearsal, Saturday morning rehearsal, and Saturday concert. They'd put us up in a hotel overnight.
Since so many came from Lubbock, we'd often carpool. One time, I found myself riding with a husband and wife. Alas, I don't remember their names, so we'll call them Carl and Sally. They arrived to pick me up in what had to be a mid-1980s Dodge Caravan (this was probably in 2008); I think it had 450,000 miles on it. Carl was a regional manager for O'Reilly Auto Parts by day and freelanced as a violist. He never bought new cars, he told me, just took good care of the old ones.
We decided to stop at McDonalds for a quick bite to eat before we got on the highway--it was a two-hour straight shot to Big Spring with practically nothing in between. As we were pulling out of the drive-through, the van stopped running. Carl leaps out, checks under the hood, and calls the closest O'Reilly's. After rattling off some part numbers and hanging up, he told us that help was on the way. An employee of the store arrived in about 15 minutes and helped him install the parts. We were off and running again, and made it to rehearsal on time, despite the minor setback.
Since I carpooled with them, I was reliant on them for transportation once we got to town. We had to check out of the hotel by 2:00 p.m. (they gave us late check-out, which was nice), so we decided to go get something to eat before the concert. I had already changed into my tuxedo at the hotel; Carl and Sally were still in their "civvies." The hall wasn't yet open, and we didn't have access to the hotel, so Carl pulls up to the only O'Reilly Auto Parts shop in Big Spring, introduces himself as the regional manager, etc., looks over the store, offers a few compliments, and says that he and his wife need to use the back room to get changed into their concert attire. The guy behind the counter seemed a bit confused, but let them use the room.
Only in West Texas!