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Things were not in order from the get-go as usual. I received
a call from the automotive shop early in the week canceling my urgent appointment.
They told me that they did not have the required parts for my vehicle recall
and that I could not bring it in until they did, which would be after I
was to return from Utah. Fantastic… the recall notice had warned
of possible break failure if not repaired promptly so I was really jazzed
about this latest development. That means I will not get my other
problems fixed either before my 14 hour round-trip drive… just great… |
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It looks like I am headed into the Heart of Darkness, Salt Lake City,
Utah, during a vicious Spring storm with questionable breaks, threadbare
tires sporting thin, bulbous air-tumors on the verge of bursting, an engine
that will shut off at random to leave me without steering and breaks, a
4X4 system on the fritz… and a full cache of illegal booze under the dog
bed in the back of my jeep… I have disturbing visions of being found
lying in a pile of guts and broken glass by the Utah State Patrol after
having lost my breaks on a curve somewhere around Heber City and plowing
through a stand of cows, rolling my jeep and flinging bottles of forbidden
hops everywhere... |
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Yes, I am bootlegging cases of beer into the Evil Empire for a "low-key"
gig being thrown by my friends Sammy Davis Jr. and Golden Boy. If
there is a sordid underbelly to this holier-than-thou cowtown these guys
will certainly find it. And unless I am grossly mistaken, the party
will be comprised mostly of dysfunctional doctors, lawyers and assorted
professionals… those that take the Mormon dollar with one hand and
cautiously shoot them the bird with the other. Wonderful people,
my kind of people. |
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I had no choice but to leave Steamboat lame… there were parties
going on in Utah and I needed to be at them. Sammy Davis Jr, an old
Steamboat roommate, was having a birthday party this weekend and Alta was
closing down for the season on Sunday with its legendary party on top of
High Rustler. I had to be there… |
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I fired up my hurting unit and powered along through
the desert and late Thursday afternoon sun with Loki the WonderDog by my
side, keeping a sharp eye out for the dread law. I passed numerous
State Patrol Cars along the way but kept the speedometer pinned to the
limit and gave a tip of my cowboy hat to each that passed, none were any
the wiser. As a side note: between Dinosaur, Colorado and Vernal,
Utah (in pretty much the middle of nowhere USA), I saw over a handful of
cow carcasses turned inside out and lying splayed by the side of the road…
on my return trip 4 days later they were all gone… draw your own
conclusions… |
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I roll into Salt Lake at dusk and a shiver runs up my spine… an eerie
time of day when the Golden City transforms into the Dark City. The
great temple is just blocking out the remaining sunlight and casting a
heavy shadow over the entire valley, giving a Gotham-like feeling to it
all. I pass through Pawnville below the capitol and make my way toward
Sammy's pad to the north. |
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I catch Sammy and Golden Boy just as they are heading out for some
grub. Pulling my car behind the safety of their fenced yard, we empty
the booze under the cover of night and all is finally good. I didn't
crash and burn or get arrested yet so I can relax for now. We grab
K. and S. and go get some chow, which is where the aforementioned fortune
originated… I didn't pay it any mind at the time but it turned out to be
all too prophetic... |
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We end up at home for a beer before climbing into bed around 2 am.
Tomorrow will be an early start and an even later evening so sleep is welcome. |
