Day 31 We Drop Anchor at the Anchor Pub -or- Arkansas & The River Bandits steal our hearts.

Sunrise never came at the Sunrise Motor Inn. The small window was completely covered with a sad and dirty curtain. We showered and got out fast. To save cash, we planned on camping somewhere for the next night, but a quiet rain continued to fall, and a chill wind continued to blow, and campsites continued to be elusive.

Riding into the town of Everett (a suburb of Seattle), we found a cheap strip of run down looking motels. With a few calls, we found one for very little money. When we arrived however, it conjured images of “No Country for Old Men”, so we left. After a few shots in the dark on the phone, we found one for a decent price with a monitored parking lot and many extravagant amenities such as a microwave, and a remote for the TV.

We stopped by a grocery store and got ourselves a lunch that we could cook in the confines of a motel room, holed up with 2 bottles of wine and passed the time until the show.

On entering the Anchor Pub, we were cheerfully greeted by bartender Rachel, and we were quickly set up with drinks. We sat and puzzled over the pictograms under Rainier beer caps until Holly arrived. Holly, the pub owner, booked us, and was kind enough to show us the way to the stage so we could get set up. Jeff, the other owner, showed up while we were setting up and found us some mics and cables. Tom, the sound guy, came up next and got us linked in with some good sound.

This was all going too smoothly. Next came the members of Arkansas & The River Bandits, who all greeted us warmly before presetting a little. We sat and talked with them a bit while they were building drum kits and the like, until Suzy came in with Julie and Julia (neither of whom were cooking or complaining, the two main features of that particular movie)

Soon we were rolling right through our set. We played fast and tightly with. The audience looked mildly shocked, and applauded with enthusiasm. Despite their appreciation, they declined my invitations for them to take the dance floor. Instead they bought us beers and shouted. “Where’re ya from!?” one lady shouted. “The DC area!” Blythe answers. The crowd responded with collective disappointment. “You gotta come back!” This is a truly good reaction.

Next the River Bandits hopped up and delivered 2 hours of solid Rock. They were bluesy and soulful. Michael, lead singer, effectively conducted the band through some newer tunes, and took the stage alone to send us some solo strum and sing goodness.

After the show, everyone was very complimentary and encouraging. Adam, cook and bar back, delivered us a bottle of champagne in celebration of our last show. We sipped and chatted, thoroughly pleased with our time on this night.

We were very happy to kick in the door at our creepy motel, and lay down for some much needed sleep.

Thanks to the Anchor Pub, including Holly, Adam, and Rachel, for a great night. Thanks to Jeff and Tom for helping us get set up. And Thanks to Arkansas & The River Bandits. It was a great show all around. Thanks to Suzy and the Julias for coming out.

Tomorrow… Suzy for breakfast, Dustin and Natasha, Seattle in the rearview and the van goes east for the first time in weeks.