Breakfast the next day was a gorgeous array of vegan wonders, and a warm mix of folks cooking in the kitchen. I learned some cooking tips and relished the kindness at Timmy Straw's abode. Later we trekked over to Reed College for our second show in a very pretty chapel hall. Reed looked like a brochure or a film set for Dead Poet's Society. I learned from documenting the shows so far that one venue isn't looking different from the next if I want the performers larger than the size of a carrot stick. Posterity lacked the rich woods and carved ceiling. (The multimedia means there is a blank white screen behind the readers and poets when art isn't being projected.) In my downtime before the next show I'm going to make some color mattes to project on the screen. That might be an interesting way to break up the background.
After the show we ate some food at the Red and Black Cafe, a worker owned cooperative vegan joint with delicious offerings. Then our dinner conversation brought to light the fact that across the street there was a bar that offered vegan corn dog baskets with tater-tots. I saved up some room in my belly and we went for a second dinner. It was a nostalgic whirlwind. I hadn't had a vegan corn dog in many years, not since Sandeh and Rene made them at The Clinic in SF. The next morning we went to Blossoming Lotus on the way out of town. I mistakenly looked at the brunch menu and had my heart set on savory pancakes -- then when we got there learned brunch was just a weekend thing. Lunch was not disappointing, actually it was the opposite, and I had a hard time parting from the city without longing for more meal time.
We arrived in Olympia and journeyed around the town in the rain. The Last Words bookstore had a display of books that made it hard not to want to stop and read every last item. We went to Le Voyeur Cafe for a rad meal. The Pacific Northwest is really delightful on the food front, and that such wonderful meals are actually affordable on a tour budget. Today hiking, visiting a food co-op and checking out community gardens are the top items on our list (not to mention some rehearsal time). Tomorrow we are at the Olympia Public Library at 8pm.