The Empire Builder - Night Three "On A Bed of My Choosing"

I walked into the typical faire that is the little Red House on Poplar Street. A roomful of gamers hacking away at the celestial cesspool from whence their immortal enemies have come. "They all must be slain." I heard a character from the game shout out, while light swords, lasers and energy bombs disseminating destruction. A water pipe with bags and bags, flavor upon flavor, full of someone's preferred choice of medicine. "Hey guys, is Matt around?" "He's went over to Libby's. He should be back soon." "Oh, ok. What are you guys playing?" I didn't register what the name was, I found out being polite to zombies keeps them from eating your brains. So I went back into the front room where my bags were and started to get situated. I already had plenty of ideas for songs while on this trip, so i decided to start writing some of them down. The writing process has always been a transforming thing, mostly akin to a block of sculpting putty. Each song seems to find it self out, explore its own possibility, push its own potential. It builds itself up and at the most opportune time it deflates, self-destructs and starts from scratch. Again and again I have experienced this but these songs seem different, I couldn't put my finger on it but the music was already shaped, as if manufactured. These songs were coursing through my veins, each melody line was conscience of its place and reason. The words would come later with these songs, if the story be told through music then the words would only be embellishment. At some point during this informal writing session, Matthieu and Libby came tumbling through the front door. After the necessary embracing and affections we made haste to a local pub to engage in the delights of our fancy; billiards, cheap swill, and greasy fat laden food. The three of us were accompanied by Taylor, a life-long fascist, who imposed his will on nearly everyone everywhere he went. He was great fun, living completely in the moment as he wished. A zen-lunatic poet of dreams in life's words walking in the shadows of Kerouac, Burrows, and Ginsberg. He howled at a full moon and woke to the early sun. Matt was very similar in this way though more absurd in his thoughts and actions. To even attempt to describe his thought process would do him grave injustice. Despite being the most genuine and polite person I have ever met, he will steal, lie, and cheat but only to those who are not immediately connected to him. He will never steal anything of consequence or personnel attachment, unless he had been wronged and justice demands its will to be done. There is a Robin Hood quality to his mischief. Libby on the complete other-side of the spectrum is stable in mind and emotion. She neither goes too far one way or the other. Though with this in mind if you get her on the right topic she will blossom into a radical rose watered by the flames of discontent. We all played several games of pool while listening to the music our hearts. Our conversation went this way and that seemingly with no intention to create a linear stream of thought. After several pitchers we retreated to the humble abode that is the Little Red House on Poplar Street and settled in for the evening. We watched a movie. After which time Matt and Libby went to turn in. Matt said to me, "Make yourself at home, on a bed of your choosing."

The Empire Builder - Day Three "Zoo-town: A Hop, Skip, and a Jump."

I woke in the morning to the smell of bacon. The Dunnigan's had fixed a spread fit for a king. Bacon, cheesy eggs, biscuits, etc. I felt completely at home. They even let me sleep in a little bit. I sat down and was immediately cared for. You want this or that? I just took it all in as quickly as possible. John asked "So what time does your bus leave?" I took a look quick look around to find a clock, it was 11:50. "5 minutes ago." "What?" he spouted back out. "Well I guess you'll have to get a ride with Andy and Pete. You guys alright with that.?" John turned to his son. Andy just shook his head then Pete said, "We'll have to make some room." "I have some gas money." I said. So after some talk about where I was from and where I was headed. We packed the car and made the 2 and half hour journey to Zoo-town; A mere hop, skip, and a jump. While on the ride the boys and I made several more connections through Portland and Missoula. Talked about our favorites, songs, musicians, food, etc. They seemed genuinely interested in meeting up this week before I left, to reconnect, jam, drink some beer and engage in the typical whatnots. And so I left it at that. It turned out that they lived right down the road from Matt's place. The road named the Rattlesnake by the locals, for reasons unbeknownst to me, was the path by which we were connected. I got Andy's number when they dropped me off at Matt's house and headed up the Rattlesnake to ease their travel weary heads.

et cetera

The moments of my time these days have been reduced to scrounging. This life is nothing but suffering. Excuse the nihilism, please. We only have but blinks and twinkles of the stars; this is all we are. The blatant quickness of breathes these days is seen so clearly even in the darkest glaze of a Belgian lattice scene. Torn asunder, thrown to and fro, by the fancy glances of a biermaid I did go. The darkness takes over in these hard times. Where is there left to grow? The wilderness has been taken. The mountains have been conquered, since the plains have been tilled and pillaged to their final throws, Where else is there to go? What else is there to know? Since the knowing has been known. Into the abysmal abyss we are thrown. But hence we will return with hope in our hearts. As indifference will guide us, til death do it's part.

The Empire Builder - Night Two "Loitering" Part III

I realized after about an hour, once the alcohol had worn off, that there was no way I was
gonna spend the night outside. I gathered up my things and hit the trail looking for a
motel. After some inquiring with the drunken townsfolk wandering the streets I came upon
a place "The Downtowner". I walked up to the office but no one was around, who would be
at 2 o'clock in the morning. So I had one last chance in John. I peeled open my wallet and
dug around inside for the business card he gave me. As I punched in the numbers I had an
empty feeling filling up inside. It rang once, twice, and a third time. I was about to hang
up when a soft breathy voice came through the other line. "Hello?" "John?" "Yes."
"It's Kory." "Kory? What's happened? Are you alright?" "Yeah I'm alright. Just a little
tired and cold at the moment. My friend I was gonna stay with seems to have forgotten about
me." "Where are you?" "The Downtowner" "They ain't open are they?" "It appears so." "Do
you remember how to get back to Cooper's?" "Yup" "I'll meet you there in 10 minutes."
So I packed back up, lit a smoke and headed the two or three blocks back to Cooper's. While
waiting outside Officer Friendly approached me. "You just get off the train?" "This morning
I did." "Well what are you doing?" "On my way home." "And where's that?" "Chicago"
"Well then you're quite a ways out from there. So what are doin' in the mean time?" "Waiting
for a friend." "So you have a place to stay tonight?" He seemed to imply with his tone that he could provide me with some shelter if I didn't have a place. Although I'd probably have to give him a better reason then loitering. At this time John with another fellow, who I later found out was Pete of "The Lil' Smokies", pulled up. "You're friend is John Dunnigan?" "Yup." "You should've said so. I would've let you alone. "Hey John!" And the pair swung into a diatribe of the current state of culture here in Whitefish. From what I gathered Whitefish just recently started a beat cop for late nights on the weekends because of a rise in hooliganism reports, either fictitous or
factual, from residents and proprietors. "Go right ahead and make yourself comfortable."
John offered. "Have a goodnight sir" I spoke to the Officer. "Goodnight son and good luck."
I was introduced to Pete, and we headed the quick drive back to John's house. "You're a
lifesaver John." "This reminds me of the time I got left behind after a gig at some bar
in Bozeman when I was 22 and ended up making one of the best friends of my life." He responded. During this time John got lost on his way back. Eventually we pulled into John's driveway and I barreled out. Once we got inside I was shown my pallet for the night. "Are you thirsty? Hungry?" I thought about it for a minute, which John took as the affirmative. He threw
together some chili mac made with buffalo meat and a tall glass of water. We talked about
travel, venues, and songwriters we both liked. "I have something I want to show you." As he
lead me into his sanctuary full of vintage LP's, amps, guitars, pictures, posters, tickets,
passes, etc. He reached up to a back far corner and pulled off the wall a 1920's Kalamazoo.
It had been in his family since it was bought. He then showed a picture of his Grandfather
playing the guitar in a pair of jeans, an undershirt, and a cowboy hat. He then handed me
the six-string and asked me to play him a song. I picked out some Townes van Zandt tunes.
"I have never heard that guitar sound like that." He said. "Play me one of yours." "Sure."
"I didn't want to take too much of his time. So I played a verse and a chorus of Annabelle
Lee. "That's not it, is it?" So I finished it out while he just sat there in awe. "Hank
Williams would be proud. I really want to stay up all night and pick but we are right
below the bedroom where my wife is sleeping." He took back the Kalamazoo, which has to be the best sounding guitar I have ever had the privilege to play. "Where are you headed after this?" "Missoula." "Interesting. My son lives there. He's staying here the night tonight and will be headed back there tomorrow. I'm pretty sure they'd be able to give you a ride if you wanted one."
"Really?" "Yup." I began to regret buying that bus ticket earlier that day. "Well we can
talk about it in the morning." He bid me goodnight. I thanked him again for his uncanny
hospitality and unending charity to which he responded "Good people and good actions make
the world go 'round."

The Empire Builder - Night Two "Loitering" Part III

I realized after about an hour, once the alcohol had worn off, that there was no way I was
gonna spend the night outside. I gathered up my things and hit the trail looking for a
motel. After some inquiring with the drunken townsfolk wandering the streets I came upon
a place "The Downtowner". I walked up to the office but no one was around, who would be
at 2 o'clock in the morning. So I had one last chance in John. I peeled open my wallet and
dug around inside for the business card he gave me. As I punched in the numbers I had an
empty feeling filling up inside. It rang once, twice, and third time. I was about to hang
up when a soft breathy voice came through the other line. "Hello?" "John?" "Yes."
"It's Kory." "Kory? What's happened? Are you alright?" "Yeah I'm alright. Just a little
tired and cold at the moment. My friend I was gonna stay with seems to have forgotten about
me." "Where are you?" "The Downtowner" "They ain't open are they?" "It appears so." "Do
you remember how to get back to Cooper's?" "Yup" "I'll meet you there in 10 minutes."
So I packed back up, lit a smoke and headed the two or three blocks back to Cooper's. While
waiting outside Officer Friendly approached me. "You just get off the train?" "This morning
I did." "Well what are you doing?" "On my way home." "And where's that?" "Chicago"
"Well then you're quite a ways out from there. So what are doin' in the mean time?" "Waiting
for a friend." "So you have a place to stay tonight?" He seem to imply with his tone that he could provide me with some shelter if I didn't have a place. Although I'd probably have to give him a better reason then loitering. At this time John with another fellow, who I later found out was Pete of "The Lil' Smokies", pulled up. "You're friend is John Dunnigan." "Yup." "You should've said so. I would've let you alone. Hey John." And the pair swung into a diatribe of the current state of culture here in Whitefish. From what I gathered Whitefish just recently started a beat cop for late nights on the weekends because of a rise in hooliganism reports, either fictitous or
factual, from residents and proprietors. "Go right ahead and make yourself comfortable."
John offered. "Have a goodnight sir" I spoke to the Officer. "Goodnight son and good luck."
I was introduced to Pete, and we headed the quick drive back to John's house. "You're a
lifesaver John." "This reminds me of the time I got left behind after a gig at some bar
in Bozeman when I was 22 and ended up making one of the best friends of my life."
At which time John got lost on his way back. Eventually we pulled into John's driveway and
I barreled out. Once we got inside I was shown my pallet for the night. "Are you thirsty?
Hungry?" I thought about it for a minute, which John took as the affirmative. He threw
together some chili mac made with buffalo meat and a tall glass of water. We talked about
travel, venues, and songwriters we both liked. "I have something I want to show you." As he
lead me into his sanctuary full of vintage, LP's, amps, guitars, pictures, posters, tickets,
passes, etc. He reached up to a back far corner and pulled off the wall a 1920's Kalamazoo.
It had been in his family the whole time. He then showed a picture of his Grandfather
playing the guitar in a pair of jeans, an undershirt, and a cowboy hat. He then handed me
the six-string and asked me to play him a song. I picked out some Townes van Zandt tunes.
"I have never heard that guitar sound like that." He said. "Play me one of yours." "Sure."
"I didn't want to take to much of his time. So I played a verse and a chorus of Annabelle
Lee. "That's not it, is it?" So I finished it out while he just sat there in awe. "Hank
Williams would be proud. I really want to stay up all night and pick but we are right
below my wife's room." He took back the Kalamazoo, which has to be the best sounding guitar
I have ever had the privelage to play. "Where are you headed after this?" "Missoula."
"Interesting. My son lives there. He's staying the night tonight and will be headed back
there tomorrow. I'm pretty sure they'd be able to give you a ride if you wanted one."
"Really?" "Yup." I began to regret buying that bus ticket earlier that day. "Well we can
talk about it in the morning. He bid me goodnight. I thanked him again for his uncanny
hospitality and unending charity to which he responded "Good people and good actions make
the world go 'round."

The Empire Builder - Night Two "Loitering" Part II

When I walked in I was the only one in the place but I noticed they had my

favourite German beer on tap, Paulaner. I had drank many of a liter of these during my stay

in Germany at the time of the 2006 World Cup and therefore became very accustomed to the

yeasty Hefe-Veizen. Keith was the bartender at the time and we talked about John who

would soon be arriving to start his set. I had one Paulaner but it was just not enough

so a second and third arrived just in time as the place soon filled up. John walked in

and he seemed to know everyone either by name or face. As he made his way around the room

slowly taking his time toward the little platformed stage, he hugged and had small talk

with nearly everyone. As he tuned up more and more people flocked in. He started into his

set with an Irish sounding song . Before the second verse someone in

the crowd had bought John a shot of tequila. Then the second song started with another

shot from a different audience member. Then more and more as the night wore on. He begged for the audience to throw song after song at him and played nearly every request. Lilly

and her roomates eventually showed up but wanted to go to another show, I obliged but was

quickly left behind with everything in hand. I'm not too sure why they were in such a rush.

When we got to The Craggy Range, a place I have had the fortune to play before. I was

innodated with the loud obnoxious one lick riff raff of sad eyed hispter rock, I just had

to laugh and grab a beer. Lilly and I talked for a bit. It turns out she is an aspiring

snowboarder headed to Utah for a competition soon. She works the whole summer at a resort

and saves her money so she can take every winter off to snowboard. Not a bad gig at all.

The opener finished up as I took that last sip of guinness. It took them nearly half an hour

to tune and get set up. They kept mentioning how this was there first show in a long time

together, and well it showed. It sounded as if the opener had just taken a set break

during which time they drank a whole bottle of whiskey then turned up their amps to

compensate for their inequities. The bass player was phenomenally on point but drowned

out the drum which happened to be a good thing. Except for the bass player the rest of

them should've just stayed in their garage tonight. Song after song was littered with

the same themes same rhythms just re-affirming to me the conformities of the evening.

To their credit they sure knew how to pack a room with enegetic hipster drunks emptying their

wallets two and three fold. Most everyone was talking louder and louder they soon drowned

out the noise stuttering out from the corner boys. I had to get out of there. It was defeaning.

I grabbed my stuff and looked for Lilly. She was up front and center bobbin' her headed

right along with the rest. This was not the place to be, for me. I let one of her roomates know

I was headed back to Cooper's and to hit me up when they were headed out. Earlier in the evening she offered up her couch and since she was the only one I knew in town that was around tonight she was my only option. When I got back to Cooper's, Keith recognized me and bought me a Paulaner to ease my woes. John by now was being accopanied by a friend for the rest of the night. I did not catch his name but he was a good songwriter playing most of his own stuff with John backing up on banjo and electric guitar from time to time. They finished up their set and

John approached me thanking me for coming back. "You must be that guy with the guitar case."

"How'd you know?" "We smell our own." I asked him politely if I could play a song for him.

He obliged and we jammed out on some songs until Keith gave us the look. John and I traded

information. "Whenever you come back up to Whitefish, let me know." "For sure." I responded

and sat waiting for Lilly to get back in touch. After some time I recieved a message from her

saying they were headed home. I had been given no address and assumed I must inquire about

the couch put up for offer. I heard nothing back. I finished my beer and went wandering the

streets of Whitefish to find a place to settle for the evening. I passed by several bars with

mocking patrons. I must have been quite the sight. I kept warm from all the beer and figured

the best spot for me to post up would be the Train Depot since that was where the bus would

be picking me up in the morning. As the snow fell more and more I pondered my fate. Well

what else was there for me to do.

The Empire Builder - Day Two "Loitering" Part I

I spent most of the day at a coffeeshop reading and writing, smoking and drinking. I wanted

to reconnect with Lilly who I had met last time I was in Whitefish, MT. I had sent her a

message a few days earlier and received this response. "Of course I remember you, I was hoping

to get to see you again. So I will see you tomorow then to hear your lovely music ya!".

I received this text message at some point during my time at the coffeeshop. "Hey there kory it's lilly! Hope your train ride was good I'm heading up the mtn to snowboard but I will call you when

I'm down to chill before your show." So with some time to kill I put up a craigslist posting for a rideshare to Missoula. I have a lot of friends down there and a few shows lined up to play. I was unsure of bus schedules and all that jazz. I figured it would work itself out. Worse case scenario I could always just hitch it with

a sore thumb til it fell off. I'd done it before in Montana with varied results but I

always got where I needed to be. I called up my really good friend Matt Pierce to

re-connect since my last trip to Montana. He was, as is always the case, really excited

to see me. His hospitality is second to none. Then I called my mom and when she heard my last

resort idea, put $50 in my account and told me to buy a bus ticket, for her peace of mind.

I went to Library and did as I was told, and printed my boarding pass.

Since I was in town and the bars were beginning to open I went to the Great Northern for

some grub and to check out the venue. As I entered I heard the gutterol laughing of

barrel chested lumbering jacks knockin' back shots and beers slappin on backs takin' the

afternoon off away from their women and children. I was immediately asked for my ID and

what the deal is with my guitar was. "Are you playin' tonight?" "Yes, mam." "Who are you?"

"Kory Quinn." "Well we have Russ Nasset playin' tonight." "Really?" "Yup." "Can you double

check for me?" She smiled looked at the chalkboard and pointed. "Russ Nasset. Ain't that

what it says." beggin' me to speak my own fate. "So what would you like?"

"A whiskey and a beer." Damn. I thought as I took this shot of courage. I thought about

what I was gonna say. I called The Booker straight away. Straight to the answering machine.

I left a short message recounting the recent events. I don't think I'll ever be hearing from

them and vice versa. After some wandering around the bar, eating a meal, playing a few games

of pool, smoking stogs. A man approached me and asked what I was doin' with all that gear.

I told him my name and stated my business which now was relegated to loitering, the time

between gigs. David was well traveled himself he said. An architect by trade he spent time

living and/or working in New York, New Jersey, Boston, Austin, Houston, Nashville, Chicago,

Indianapolis, San Juan, Spokane, Seattle, Portland, Eugene, Berkeley, and LA. He suggested

I check out a place called Cooper's. Tonight there would be a guy by the name of John

Dunnigan playing at 8. David advised I introduce myself to him to see if I could sit in with him and play a few tunes. I thanked David very much for the information. He would be coming along a little later to see John and hoped to see me there. So I finished my beer and my game of pool, packed up my gear and took the short walk to Cooper's.

The Empire Builder - Day Two "The Worst Cup of Coffee....Ever"

I guess we're just really really really spoiled out there in Stumptown. Regardless of such bias there is no excuse, well maybe I'd be distracted from brewing horribly tepid battery acid because of the scenery too, especially if I had to work 14 hours on a train with little rest surrounded by Mother Earth and Father Sky. Here are some photos from this morning. Notice how I am looking down with disdain at the most horrendous of beverages.

And finally a picture of the last thing I saw pulling into Whitefish, which was rather fitting of a 17 hour Train ride.

.

The Empire Builder - Night One "Catchin' The Nor'easter Outta Spokane"

Pulled into Spokane about 12:30am. Through the grapevine we all heard that we had a four
hour layover. So after some research and self-debate I decided to hit the streets. The
main drag with the hoppin' bars was only a few blocks from the train station. I went inside
to check out the station and found a little cafe that an old asian couple was runnin'.
They had some very reasonable prices so I got a super grease trap cheeseburger.
After washing it down with some salty spokane fountain water I made the quick trek to the
drag; found a nice dry and covered spot with good projection. There was a delightful man
working his late night hot dog spot who seemed rather glad to have the entertainment, his
name was Vic. Next to me was what appeared to be a homeless couple whose eyes also opened
with a faint glint of joy when I started to unpack my guitar. After playing a few tunes
Vic spat out some names of songwriters he thought I would know. "Townes van Zandt?"
"He's one of my favourites." I squaked back. "Me too. If you could play one of his I'll buy
you a hot dog." "Sure, why not." Even with the cheeseburger fleshly metabolizing, my
stomach growled. At first I was to turn down the hot dog, but rather insisted he either
feed the hungry or the drunk. After a half an hour, I became worried the train was gonna
leave without me. So I packed up at which time I heard "Where are you from?" "Chicago."
"One Chicago Red Hot comin' up." Too wrapped up in the moment I obliged then took a bite.
In this moment I realized home truly is more than just a place. It's the tastes, the smells,
etc. It was then I noticed the homeless couple again. I offered the rest of it to them but
the old man said with a jeer. "Vic feeds us every night." Before I left I made sure to give
Vic a CD for his hospitality. I've had several bad experiences with food cart vendors in
Portland and their disdain for guerilla marketing. Which to me seems a bit oxymoronic or
at the very least ironic. Back to the train to recount the events and attempt to get some
shut-eye before I arrive tomorrow morning. Next stop Whitefish, Mt.

The Empire Builder - Day One "Got That Ticket to Ride"

I woke up, put in that last load of laundry, finished some last
minute errands, and met with some friends, as is the custom. I went and finished recording
a song I was commissioned by Scott to write for his wife Jen. It was to be a Christmas
present for Jen. Though I am sure she has had this notion for sometime. The final product,
I assume though, is still a mystery. I am excited to play this song live with Scott at the
release show, whenever that may be. I then returned to my current residence to find my
laundry was dry. So I packed my bags, had breakfast, two cups of coffee accompanied by the
subsequent cigarettes. I fitted my suit and guitar case on the bike and headed out on a few
pre-adventures. I got to see Amanda, one of my lovely roommates on the way. By the luck
of lady fortune we crossed paths. She on her way home and me on mine, though it be
circuitous. With several embraces and pecks on the cheeks she bid me a fine farwell, and I
to her, since she was headed back to Pennsylvania for the high holy days. Then it was off
to Bob's to drop off the bicycle he had lent to me for this last week. I have intentions to
purchase said bike but have neither the funds nor the time to finalize the deal. I just
might upon my return. There is a tender yearning in my heart to slowly caste out the
demons of oil and gas. Afterward I headed back to 55th and hoyt to say hello and goodbye
all at once to the boys. As usual Stephen was hammerin' away on some very dominant chords.
Kevin tossin in some very tasteful licks, and Jakob bangin' oh so sweetly on his
snare-tom-bass with the splish splash of his hi-hat-ride. Wang-dang and Kevin rolls into a
really hot riff raffin with Stephen clappin down on the ivories. The lyrics though drowned
out by the ordered chaos were extolled with such gusto to render ones ear to perk and
attempt the impossible. I said my peice grabbed a few last things, books, sleeves, and
blank CD's, which are now my only currency. I was offfered a spoonful of medicine and
washed it down quickly with a spot of wild turkey. It was but a short stroll to the train
line just north of 60th and glisan. There was no rush at all so I stopped at a convenience
store to procure a pack of stoggies and some snacks for the 15 hours of the first leg. I
arrived at Union Station in plenty of time to have another cupful of joe and handful of
smoke. The Photographer was impeccable with their time. We lounged and chatted for quite
sometime catching up since our last adventure which almost brought us into the custody of
the Portland Police. We lined up, got my boarding pass and then lined up again awaiting
depature. The Photographer holding my pillow, and I carrying all I dare to need. They
agreed to be my fluffer, though I doubt the inuendo gathered much steam. Though it did get
a laugh and a squeeze of the pillow. There were a few more photos taken on my way through
gate 6B. The crowd behind me wondering, no doubt, what sort of strange ax-murder they were
about to board with. A quick embrace along with the words, "In bocca al lupo". I settled
into car 13 and took note of the days events, so far.