Another Breakdown

Bus break down # 2 Repair #4

    We just left Flagstaff, Arizona and the tour bus broke down. Our journey began after we left Bess's apt. She lives in a huge house and rents a little cottage on the side for herself. We were supposed to do a workshop for her last time we were in Arizona but it didn't work out due to a miscommunication on the orgs part. She stayed in touch with us though and mentioned that we could stay where she was staying if we needed a spot to lay our heads. She also told us of a local venue called Apple Sauce tea house that gets a good crowd.
    The day had been spent at the Grand Canyon and we were all exhausted and hungry. We hadn't eaten anything except for breakfast. Breakfast has been eaten in Utah which is also where we spent the night. WOW this is a lot of back tracking...don't worry I'll get to the break down soon. You know whaaat I'll start in Utah. We spent the night in a KOA (Camp Grounds of America) where we parked and got some rest. Decora and Jenny put up their tent and camped out next to the bus. There was a spout where we could get water to brush our teeth  and a bathroom a few steps away. There were showers near by as well but they were closed until 7:00am. We all got some sleep and in the morning took some showers in the showers that were there. Then we took a hike of the area which was full of soft red dirt and spectacular views that continued onward till the eyes could no longer see. Most of us only had chancletas on our feet that some of slowed us down. I decided to take my chancletas (slippers) off and go it barefoot. It brought back memories of my years in Puerto Rico which put me on a nice spiritual high.
    Afterwards, we headed to a nearby restaurant for some much needed comida (food). There Decora talked to the managers and they were kind enough to discount our food 30% (they also gave us some free Navajo Fried Bread) which helped us out a lot. We've been in Navajo country for the past couple of days since we entered New Mexico and performed at the concert deep in the desert. Jenny will be writing about that experience soon.
    While in Navajo country we learned a few Navajo words like dooda (no) and yeahha (thank you). The people there had a look in their eyes that penetrates ones soul. With every look one could see the pain and centuries of suffering that they have endured. It was a clear reminder of the atrocities and lies this country has and continues to commit against the indigenous peoples of this vast land. The Navajo Nation was once a strong a powerful nation of people. Now for centuries many of them survive by selling necklaces and bracelets on the side of the roads that tourists frequent. This practice has been going on since the roads were made of dirt and the travelers rode by on horses. The Navajo Nation continues to be soverign and strong with a people of a humble and true spirit. However, the process of Americanization has indeed changed much of what once was.
    After eating at the restaurant we stopped along side the rode at some of the many souvenir tables to get things for friends, family and ourselves. Further down we stopped at a spot that claimed to have real dinosaur tracks and even some fossils. We checked it out under the scorching sun and saw some amazing things as our guide Freddie showed us around. There were some velociraptor , delopasaurus, triceratops, T-rex, teradacticle and even some saber tooth tiger tracks. Two of the coolest things were the actual fossils that we saw (can't recall from what dinosaur) and the dino poop. Or as I call it doop. The area was an ancient beach in which there was once a vast fresh water ocean (now just miles and miles of red rock) that served as a refuge for many of the dino's coming to get some water. It was a real cool experience and I even brought some doop with me lol.
    After that we stopped over by the the "Little Colorado River" that had carved out some canyons and we took some pictures. A while later we finally arrived at our destination the Grand Canyon. Let me tell you this thing was Grand alright. It was an absolutely enormous area that went on for what seemed to be an eternity. We walked around for a while and felt the strong winds that have caused much of the carving out of the canyon itself. We didn't spend much time there because we had to get to Flagstaff and check out an open mic where we could make some money to put gas in the bus. When we  got to Flagstaff DJ H20 stayed at the place we he showered up and rested, Jenny and Graham went to do the groceries and the ReadNex (with both interns) headed for the event. The venue had about 20-30 people and we were all hungry and tired. The host of the open mic was pretty cool and he set us up as the closing act. Before we went up J-Man hit the mic with an amazing piece about Chains and Change. Afterwards the host introduced us and we all got up the and performed our little hearts out. The crowd seemed blown away and one by one thanked us for coming after the performance. We made enough money to be back on the road the next day and headed home for some comida that Jenny was cooking.
    Dinner (it was now 11PM and we hadn't had a meal since breakfast) wasn't ready yet so some of us chilled worked or napped. Jenny promised me that I'd be woken up when dinner was ready so I headed for the cama (bead). I fell asleep soon after I hit the bead and woke up hours later. I noticed that DJ H20 (we shared a room) was still asleep and decided to go downstairs to see if the food was ready. When I got there I noticed that everyone had eaten and gone to bed. I began to see red strewn across the  walls as I slowly became angrier than a Bobby when he realized Whitney was holding out. Flames began to fly from my skull and I searched the kitchen for food. I was HUUUNNNNNNGRRRYYYY! After a few tense minutes of searching I found some Salsa and crackers. I ate some of the crackers but each bite became more painful than the last due to my fillingless tooth (it fell out a day after I had been to the dentist) After a few minutes of pain I headed upstairs angry at my tooth and the fact that no one had woken me up. The next morning Corina walked into the room to wake up DJ H20 (the interns fear waking me because I can be a bit cranky in the morning...ok I'm downright cruel but it gets better after I wash my face) and I asked her why no one had woken me up. DJ H2O mentioned that he'd tried but that I was in deep sleep and didn't move. He said he even shook me and nothing happened. Needless to say breakfast conversation was rather entertaining when we all discussed (hysterically laughing at times with tears in our eyes) what happened last night and how the fear in Corina's eyes when she accidently woke me up. I'd just like to state that my morning crankiness is something that I've been working on since our "Brinding the Gap Tour in London...unfortunately not much success has been attained at this moment. At least I gave the interns an apology ahead of time before jumped on the tour...lol.
    After breakfast we all packed and hit the road. This brings us to our latest breakdown. A few miles into the highway (literally about 10-15 mins from the house) Free yells out; There' s white smoke coming out of the bus!...those that weren't driving all looked back and mentioned the same. White smoke coming out the back of the bus is not a good sign for all of you that are wondering. We stopped the bus to check it out but the way it was stopped part of it was in the way of the freeway. I opened the back door to see to make sure we were the ones smoking without realizing that somehow Graham was on the floor under the bus (how he did that with no one noticing is amazing to us all). When he got up to stand he slammed his head so hard on the bus that he rolled about two feet backwards on the floor. Decora hadn't realized what had happened and he yelled out that he was going to back up...while backing up. We all screamed STOP to prevent Graham from being run over by the bus. Graham got out of the way but when Decora tried to reverse the bus again it wouldn't move. Some of us had to get out and push the bus to the side of the road. I'm sure we looked real cute and safe pushing the bus on a busy highway while Graham rubbed his head and some stayed in the bus to direct us  (I'm being sarcastic of course). When we got to the side of the highway we realized that the white smoke was coming from the middle of the bus and not the back. White smoke, from the center, and a disabled vehicle are all signs of transmission trouble. Upon further inspection our resident mechanic (J-Man) discovered that the hose that sends transmission fluid to the transmission had become loose and was leaking fluid. A short discussion took place and Graham and Decora decided to walk back into town to find some transmission fluid. In the meantime J-man would reattach the hose and the rest of us would sit in the bus laughing at our situation. Well...we weren't chosen to do that but we all believe that it was the right thing to do. Decora and Graham had to cross the highway and get to the other side in order to get back into town. In town they found a spot to get transmission fluid and headed back.
    While they were away we continued laughing and increased the laughter when hail the size of pebbles began to fall. The hail was then followed by a sudden torrential downpour We all got into a deep conversation and for some reason I jumped in (totally and completely off subject) and said; It doesn't matter though...as you long as you've got love any relationship can work out. Within approximately 3 mins of stating that an M.C. we met at the N.M. Dooda Desert Rock concert pulled up in front of us and started walking towards us.  He was on his way to L.V. and then to home to Cali aftrWe all smiled and said wassup as he came on the bus to ask how we were all doing. He offered to pick up Decora and Graham up but they had already called Bess and she was driving them back. He stayed and chatted with us about some deep stuff. All of us thoroughly enjoyed his company. He had a genuine spirit and a  real heart that was clear and evident in his speech. When Graham, Decora and Bess got back they all greeted each other. Bess gave him a big hug because they knew each other and hadn't seen each other in a while. While the M.C. stayed and chatted with us 3 beautiful little children would stick their heads out of the window and he would yell at them to get back in while we laughed. Tiwaeis the mother of the children (her name means thoughts is wind and elements signz)was in the passenger seat not feeling well. Cuttz gave the M.C. some natural remedies to give to her while we spoke with him (Cuttz has been natural remedy "GURU" on this journey). Bess left soon after dropping Decora and Graham off because she had to get back to her day. The M.C. went back to his car and brought back a shell, eagle feather and some sage. He had been the one that blessed the space at the Dooda Desert Rock following native indigenous tradition. He asked for a lighter and told us that he would like to bless the bus and that he was going to begin on the outside and then come inside. Before each step he explained the tradition to us, what he was doing and where he had received each item. He then began chanting  and went around the bus. He then made his way inside and blessed the bus as well as each one of us individually. When he was done he asked if we had a container to put the extra sage and ashes in for us to keep. Afterwards we all thanked him and said our goodbyes. He walked to his vehicle looked got in and came back. This time he brought with him a small eagle feather and a red string. He gave it to us and explained that the eagle is sacred in Native American traditions and that it would guide us on our journey. We all gave another set of thank yous and goodbyes.
    As his car pulled away we all reflected on what had happened in the past few hours. We also noticed that although hail and a downpour had fallen neither Decora nor Graham had gotten wet. We all prepped up and got back on the road to California where we had an event scheduled for that night in L.A.. We got to the event late but Poetri (well known Def Poet from that was on Broadway's Def Poetry Jam) let us go on and made us the feature. The place was PPPPAAAACCCCKKKEEEED! We got out the bus, used the bathroom and got on the stage to perform as if we were ancient spirits coming to bring knowledge to the people. The crowd went insane with each piece and we made enough donations and merchandise sales to get some food and head over to Decora's cousin's house. When we got there we all collapsed on the beds, fouton's and floors we found and woke up in the morn barely recharged.
    This was an amazing day for us all that served as a reminder that as long as we are doing what is just and right the power above us will always guide us in the direction we need to be in. By the way...do you recall how I mentioned that out of no where in our moment of need I stated that all we need is love...well...the M.C. that came and graced us with his blessings, energy, motivating words, spirit and love...is named L.U.V...LUV! "Ask and Ye shall receive" my brothers and sisters.. "Ask and Ye shall receive!
-Latin