June 4 1999

Richard Man

and his lovely wife Chris

There is a time warp between Desert Hot Springs California and the Ontario Airport. No, seriously I'm not kidding. How can it be that on the way to the airport the drive takes and hour and a half and on the way back to the desert the drive takes just

less than an hour. I've been suspicious of this little warp since making so many trips to San Diego and back. Somehow coming home is always quicker than getting there.

But allow me to interrupt my philosophical foray into the dynamics of time to introduce Richard Man and his wife Chris. They arrived at the Miracle Manor June 4th to experience the heat; they were disappointed. They

had to turn on their heater in their room instead.

Rather than eat at Harv's Deli as per the regular routine, we decide to mange at the Korean BBQ another DHS staple. There I was harassed by the management about my chopstick holding technique.

Saturday was the didj-o-rama. I always feel a little giddy and blessed when I look across the

living room and see didjeridu strewn about. Richard said I wasn't bad for a 2-year player. I think that was a compliment. And Richard wasn't bad either for a Yolngu-style devotee. In fact most the playing had me on the verge of laughter, from the sheer joy of it all. And no one giggles better than Richard.

We split a pot of tea over the spit table. That's the glass table in the living room that I often

rest my didj on while I practice. Curious about the name? Let me tell you how that came to be. You see I'm a multi-tasker. That means I am often online answering didj mail, reading a book, changing over a load of laundry, practicing a new riff and taking a reservation all at the same time. At the end of the day, all of these things seem to get done, but in the midst of it, it does seem a little like chaos. Like I'm forgetting things. It was

during a particular day like this that April, the owner of the Miracle Manor said to me,

"hey I noticed there was something white-ish on the table."

I said, "yeah?"

She said, "I couldn't getit off so I rubbed my finger on it"

I said, "well, that is interesting

because that was my spit, I haven't had a chance to clean the table since I played this morning"

And ever after the table in the front room has affectionately been referred to by all who know me as the spit table.

They could have used another day Richard and Chris, to unwind from the kids, from the completion of their new product,

from the cool Northern California fog. I could tell because of the time warp on the way back to the airport Sunday morning. What was considered an ample amount of time only offered them enough to wave their 10 am flight goodbye from within the terminal. If I hadn't left them at the drop off zone they probably would have come back home with me instead of enjoying airport food before the next flight. In fact they might even still be here with me now.

And wouldn't you know it but what took me an hour and a half to get to only took me 45 minutes leave. Maybe it's just like the sweater principle. Takes a lot longer to knit one than to unwind it.

By the way, you should check out their website, great artwork there!