Yesterday was a springtime Friday in Willits - tourists and commercial vehicles clogged Main Street (Hwy. 101), heading north - flowers bloomed everywhere - and the Willits Grange was alive with activity. We arrived in the late afternoon to find the hall decked out with tie-dyes and a fancy new sound system. The place was set up for a shindig that aimed to support the Grange School, and we were happy to be a part of the effort. The Thugz dribbled in from their daytime lives and tried to gather for an early sound check. Then the Boris Garcia quartet cruised in with their big van, fresh off the plane from Philly, and the fun began. We had a lot to figure out on this first day of our "tour" together - mainly how we would share equipment and configure the stage set-up. There's always a lot of waiting when you do these events, so we had our own Thugz/Boris Garcia tailgate party in the back parking lot. It was great to play again as a full band - it has been too long. Drew manned the sound board while we played, attempting to get the Thugz mix the way we like it. It was fun and confusing, but I loved every minute. To our surprise, Jim and Martha from the Blue Heron "era" showed up - dancing, smiling and reminiscing about the old days. John Anderson was there too - the tribe is everywhere! Judging from the dancers and cheers, I think we were a hit in Willits. We had the crowd ready to go for Boris Garcia, and they wowed the crowd, as they always do. Then it was time to hit the road and get ready for Day Two in Novato - more music, more east-coast, west-coast stories to share, and more new faces. Hopefully our Day Three at the Redwood Cafe will bring out some of our local fans. It's re-connection time for the Thugz. It was a long winter.Take care. Love, Sylvia