Emily (above) and Eric (below) of Lexington, KY, were kind enough to keep two weary travelers. Their reward: Internet stardom!

Wilson and J.B. might be a little big to sit in your lap, but no one told them this.
Ps. they could easily push the baby barrier down with their noses, but they've learned this is not wise.

Mary Mack, a touring comedian from Wisconsin, performed in the space across from David and me Wednesday night at the Comedy Caravan in Louisville, KY. We listened to her act on closed circuit television while we set up our gear. Watching her slight frame stand alone on that stage with nothing but a mic stand for company, such an easy target for stinging arrows of judgment from the crowd, we were amazed. How can anyone do this? How do you exude that much confidence on a nightly basis? How do you get skin as thick as a rhino’s?

Luckily we were on the other side of the venue, on our own small stage. And for whatever we reason we feel very comfortable behind our mic stands, behind our guitars. Sometimes we’re even behind our songs. You can share a story, even a personal one, and still feel protected. It’s strange. Just a state of mind, I guess.



Heidi Howe, a Louisville songwriter, set this show up for me. It’s a series called Heidi Howe’s One Night Stand. This chick is full of great marketing ploys like this one. And she writes songs that make folks laugh, like the title track to her newest record, “I Love Britney Spears.” She, David, and I exchanged songs in an in-the-round style show for a small but appreciative crowd.

After the show David hopped up on the comedy stage next door and grabbed the mic. Like a seasoned pro, he quipped, "Dat's what I TOLD 'er!" and broke out into a huge belly laugh. The rest of his act was simply him repeating this phrase, and before long we were both in tears. The phrase has since become a tag line of this leg of the tour.



The next day Heidi showed us around Louisville (pronoucned LOO-uh-VUL). We enjoyed a hot brown (pictured above), a Kentucky favorite, and walked around checking out shops and sites. One of our favorites was this huge bunny carved out of a tree stump in someone’s front yard. The sculpture actually made it onto a t-shirt with this caption: “The greatest thing about Louisville.”

I might have to disagree, but it certainly is a town worth visiting. Thanks to Heidi Howe, Mary Mack, and all the others we met who were so kind to us.

See you in Lexington,

Dylan