Congratulations to Dale Jr. who won the The Bud Shootout today in his debut for Hedrick.

From Matt, and everyone here at matthewgood.org, way to go Junior!

Following the XM performance in Washington, DC, this July, both Dale Jr. and I were interviewed by some fans for the I Got Shotgun website. Here’s the YouTube of it…

Matt called me today and let me know he’ll be missing from action until Monday. He’s currently in Alabama with Dale Jr. for a race, and doesn’t expect to have internet access until then.

So please, hold all calls and mail until then, cats.

Since my arrival in North Carolina I must admit that I have met some of the nicest, most genuine people of my life, and I’ve only been here three days. Having spent the last 15 plus years in the center of one of Canada’s largest cities, I have grown accustomed to the ever-increasing attitude that those who live downtown exude. It is simply one that does not exist here, though it should be said that equally, if not worse, attitudes are prevalent in places like New York and Los Angles for obvious reasons (large urban centers tend to bring that out in people – especially the materialistic side of our society).

The sense of camaraderie, of openness, and of ease of friendship is, in a word, overwhelming, and I can honestly admit that I find myself jealous of those that I have met in this tight knit community. The welcome and goodwill that I have received since being here has been unbelievable, and it has most certainly cause me to seriously think about what is important in life and what isn’t. If anything, given my present surroundings, this is a trip that I most definitely needed to make, even though prior to making it I didn’t know it at the time.

Every morning I have woken up, sat on the back porch, and played guitar in the sun. I have even started writing some new material, believe it or not, while going through an ever expanding list of songs that I’ll be performing when I tour the new release (it’s a list that getting a little out of control, actually).

I would also like to thank those in Junior’s community of fans that have emailed me, wishing me well. Your words have meant a lot and have only amplified the class and humility of the driver that you so faithfully follow. He is truly blessed to have such supporters.

Note 14.0: The only downside has been the smoking. Too much smoking. But I’ve pledged to quit by the end of the month, so.

Yesterday I flew from Vancouver to Charlotte, North Carolina. I was supposed to have a one-hour stop over in Chicago that turned into three. In the process, upon landing in Charlotte, I discovered that my bag was still back in Chicago. This, of course, posed a serious problem as all my medication is in my bag. So, after waiting for an hour to talk to a representative, they informed me that my bag would come in on the first flight from Chicago in the morning, at roughly 10am. Being that I needed medication, I then had to go to a hospital at 1am and wait for two hours so that I could get three pills (at the cost of almost $300 hundred dollars) to hold me over until the morning. By 3am I finally reached June’s house.

This morning I got up and drove back to Charlotte only to find that my bag still hadn’t come. I was then told that it would arrive tonight and that United would deliver it to Junior’s house. As of 2 in the morning it still hasn’t shown up.

Thankfully Junior’s sister Kelley was able to set me up with her doctor over the phone so that I could get my prescriptions filled. That said, I’m getting a little tired of wearing the same clothes.

For those of you out there that take delight in such thing befalling me, laugh away.

Spinning Stories And Attempts To Lessen The Burden Of Guilt

*See the entry following this.

He Did, He Didn’t

While it was reported today that The Pentagon has officially ‘debunked’ the link promoted by the Bush administration between the regime of Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda, it seems the Vice President is still having a hard time letting it go.

June lent me The Road To Guantanamo, so I’m going to watch it and then pass out.

I’m off tomorrow to North Carolina to spend the remainder of the month with Dale Jr., attending races until Talladega before returning home. I’ll be keeping those interested up to date, as the whole NASCAR world is rather new to me. Despite my friendship with June, the recent race in Las Vegas was the first one I had ever attended in all the years we’ve been friends - and it utterly intrigued me because I was able to be in the pit box and watch everything from lap times to fuel consumption to listening in on the banter between him and Tony Jr. There was also a little matter of a bet regarding cautions during the race that I won, so he still owes his entire pit crew In And Out Burger because of my win.

Anyway, expect loads of pictures on my flickr page and updates from Texas, Phoenix, and Talladega during the weeks ahead. That is, of course, if I don’t die tomorrow night - it’s go-cart night at his place and I’m being challenged to drive.

Oh God.

PS: I might do a few live Quicktime performances from a few locations if I can get around to it, sort of campfire style, so look for those if they materialize. I will, of course, continue my usual blogging routine as well.

Note 13.0: And ya, I finally got a haircut.