Z-A: V

This was no vacation; more like a Vision Quest. Xavier's first step was to trade in the newly acquired but somehow inappropriate Jeep for a Volkswagen Camper. The VW felt more viable, more valid.

Then off he ventured, a carefree vagabond, enjoying the view from under the visors of the VW.

Fifty miles on, in the vicinity of nothing, the VW ground to a halt. "Probably the valves", Xavier muttered as kicked the tires of the vexing Volks.
Not ten minutes later, a brightly painted Volvo wagon braked to a halt beside Xavier. The Volvo discharged its passengers, three long-haired, variously dressed guys looking like vagrants, checking Xavier out with limited visibility. One finally spoke:

"Dude. Sweet ride, there. What's happening?"
"Not sure what's happening, but I guess my VW is NOT."

More stony silence, and finally a plan for these rather vapid chaps to push the vee-dub downhill until Xavier could try to pop the clutch and get the thing started, a process in which all VW owners are well-versed. Once it attained speed, the VW lurched to life with renewed vigor. Sweet victory!

However, now the Volvo failed to show any vital signs, not a single vibration; Xaviers three new buds piled into the VW for a ride to town.

Along the way, the apparent leader, Vic, explained they were band mates on the way to a gig in the Valley:

"Yeah, we're the Verdict, kinda a goth-country-folk-hard rock, varied kinda thing. We're not exactly virtuoso performers, but you pump up the volume, man, we sound awesome."

Another voice from the back seat: "Hey, dude, you musical at all? You play anything?"

Xavier recalled his various stabs at guitar, his elementary school failure at violin.

"A little guitar. You know, some Van Halen riffs. I'm no Stevie Ray Vaughn or Steve Vai or anything."

"Hey, Van Halen's good enough. You wanna gig, y'know, sit in with us tonight?" The back seat voice had noticed his old acoustic he'd stashed in the back, and evidently the Verdict was pretty vague vis-a-vis auditioning.

"I suppose I could keep up with rhythm. You have a lead?"

"Yeah, Vince here has your back. Plays an awesome Flying V. Not to worry."
How to verbalize the vivid excitement he felt? A gig! What a vibe!

"Sure. I'm in."

A valuable experience nowhere in the vicinity of his comfort zone! The VW nearly veered off the road as he thought about it.

And while we are on "V", feel free to scroll down to see some pix from our recent VACATION...