Day 1: Scenic Ohio, USA

So we're here outside of Columbus, in a not entirely unattractive place. Just a one-night stop before we continue on tomorrow to Bowling Green, Kentucky. From there we'll explore Mammoth Cave and Nashville before moving on to Memphis. I wish there was something huh-larious to tell you, but today was mercifully uneventful. When we think back to the day ones of past trips - windshield falling out of the camper - fuel pump breaking and unavailable for a month leading to camper trade-in and new camper purchase - explosive dog diarrhea - catching air with 14-ton RV on train tracks and destroying bike rack - mirror falling off of RV on the way to Detroit, causing me to miss the Muse concert at the Fox Theater - bike rack falling off of RV and all bikes run over (but then Mom saw some poor teenager on a similar bike, thought he'd snagged it, and ran him down on foot) - just having kids arguing in the back seat doesn't seem so bad.

10-year-old Gabe is currently schooling pro gambler Alex in Gabe's first-ever game of Texas Hold 'Em.

Wish I'd looked at a map and seen that we were going through Canton and the Pro Football Hall of Fame while we were planning today.

This is the second time for me in Columbus, as our first time was with the University of Michigan Marching Band. You've probably seen players at the end of football games greeting and talking with their opponents. That's because even though during those 60 minutes of play they are trying to destroy each other, they all belong to the same fraternity. It's like that for collegiate musicians, as well. We belong the FBG, the Fraternity of Band Geeks. Roxanne knows what I'm talking about. After the game, no matter who we play, the Michigan Band always invites the opposing school's band back to HQ for refreshments and camaraderie. Maybe a friendly drum-off. Even the Sparties, even the Irish. But going to Columbus is a different experience. When I came here, we marched into the stadium, formation as tight as is humanly possible, surrounded by one hundred Ohio state troopers. (I swear I'm not making this up.) The reason for this is because as we approach the stadium, drunken scarlet-clad good-ol'-boys started throwing their bodies into the group, who are physically repelled by increasingly angry troopers. Occasionally one actually breaks into the band and starts throwing fists around until the troopers can shove him out. And this is before the game. During the game, their little pep band actually comes over to our side to taunt us. Walking around the track to halftime, an 18-year-old french horn catches a random fist from the front row and has her nose broken. As the game gets close to the end, it was tied (I think), with Michigan pressing. The State Police commander makes the decision to get us out before the crowd can get after us. We have to do an emergency evac - a premature evacuation - miss the end of the game, and then have our bus rocked by the drunken hordes. I don't actually remember who won the game. So I guess what I'm saying is... I can't wait to get out of here. Like Agent Smith in The Matrix, "it's the smell of this place."

But fireflies. Lots of fireflies.