What a first night in Toronto! Day 8 adventuring

Morning post: Well, as i was wondering around toronto yesterday afternoon/night, the first place i went to check out after the hostel and the bike shop was a tattoo parlor right down the street. i put some money aside before the trip with the plan of getting something in toronto and that i was going to figure out on the way there. considering that i've had 10-12 hours a day by myself, i was able to figure it out after ohhhhh maybe 40 hours haha. walked into the tattoo shop (Adrenaline Tattoos) and started talking to one of the guys there who books apointments. blown away by my trip here, he told me to hold on while he went to grab Andrew, an artist there who after talking to him for a few minutes was probably more excited about doing this tattoo than i was. even with my small budget, he told me to come by at 8pm tonight and we're gonna work on it until its done, regardless of how long it takes. basically, im getting a HUGE hook-up on this tattoo, and in return he just wants a couple cds when i get them made. last night i also happened to stumble upon The Rex, this really fantastic blues and jazz club. the Jeff Coffin Mutet was playing. Jeff Coffin plays sax in the Dave Matthews bands, and their bass player was none other that Jaco Pastorius' son Felix. IT WAS SO COOL! he played so much like his father. couldn't believe it. for those of you that don't know, Jaco Pastorius is to bass what Jimi Hendrix was to the guitar. the guy annihillated the bass. he slap a' da bass. people's heads exploded out of sheer disbelief. i'm sure of it. anyways, i started chatting with this guy Cameron who had been at the show with his nephews, and i told him why i was here and about the journey i was partaking in. so jeff coffin walks by between sets and cameron waves him over. "this kid came all the way from boston. on his bike!". jeff looks at me "you rode here...on your bike?!" jeff and i started chatting and he gets my name before he heads off to the bar. second set wraps up and theyre about to play their last song when jeff grabs the mic, "hey everyone, this gentleman up front rode his bike here from boston. it took him 6 days to get here, saw we were playing, and decided to stop by. this last song is dedicated to you Leo. it's called "run like the mad hatter". someone buy this kid a drink!" i can't really elaborate anymore than that. what a night. how cool is that?!

Evening Post: i think this trip has come done to really how much pain i can put myself in before i just burst into thin air. tattoo session was 4 hours. but its literally exactly, EXACTLY how i dreamed it would look. Andrew Ottenhof at Adrenaline Tattoos. if you're ever in Toronto and need some ink, GO TO HIM. im probably just gonna start flying here to get work done. super nice dude. so happy with the piece. it's a nautilus devouring my bike and my broken guitar. i only have one picture (and its bandaged right now) so it's not the best quality pic. eternal symbol of my journey, musically, mentally, physically. that was my treat to myself with my own money i had put aside for the occasion. the nautilus is a crazy looking animal. like a squid inside of a shell if i had to describe it to someone who has never seen one. ive used it as a name for some of my music projects because i admire the symmetry and mathematics behind of the animal is structured. the inside of the shell is the "golden spiral" of mathematics. its such a bizarre creature. i felt it only fitting that it would be the beast that symbolizes my journey. oh! i also went to the hckey hall of fame today! i touched the stanley cup, i saw other really awesome things. but more or less i touched the cup and im pretty happy about that. so yea everyone, check out some of the pictures from the day! i leave tomorrow at noon go get my bike from the shop and head on out to buffalo to meet back up with my friend Ian Yaple for the night. cheers!