Tyler Fyre's Road Report

So there we are - it's the end of the night - we've got the big top set up and the grass mowed underneath it, we've made it through our last show of the weekend and William Darke and I are making a sled to drag wood back to the firepit. When out of the dusty distance comes a flashlight bobbing toward us. The tall man wielding it says something along the lines of "So where d'you boys think you're taking my wood?" Well we've got hot dogs and beer and a firepit dug behind the big top. To which he responds, "Well Mesquite would be better if you're cooking hot dogs." Thanks a lot, I'm thinking and pass along this kind sentiment, when sure enough he leads us over to a pile of Mesquite which has been drying out for months now in the Texas sun.
We got the fire burning in no time as the nearly full moon set over the big top leaving the sky full of Texas sized stars dimmed only by our blazing fire.
It was quite a week - Monday I left breakfast with Chuy and went to a parking lot to buy three Mexicans who came running up to the van before I could get it stopped. I picked three and they hopped in the back. Chuy took charge of the laborers - happy to have fellow Spanish speakers around him at last and those boys had the big top down in no time. Tear down went great - by the end of day one - almost everything was in the trucks and the sawdust was all swept up. I pulled the tent stakes out of concrete with my bear hands and a sledgehammer. With only sore muscles to show for it. The injuries came later as I was walking home from the bar and failed to catch the pretty girl who fell into me as we both hit the ground. My head landed on a fence post - and I ripped a few good sized slashes across my palm - but luckily it didn't hurt until the next day.
I cleaned it out with my toothbrush and then glued the holes shut before starting work- but it was no good - half way through the day I realized there was trouble. So I went to Home Depot - bought some razor blades and went to their bathroom for my first taste of running water for the day. Peeled off the glue and proceeded to cut the skin back and remove the rest of the gravel from my hand.
Upon arrival back at the big top - all the stakes were in and the canvas up. I was amazed at how fast the boys got it all together - but I got to accomplish my goal as there was just one more tent stake that had to to in - so I picked up my sledge and drove the spike into the Texas clay.
The top went up quick - but setup - took the rest of the week and tempers grew pretty hot. But I can't see what ther is to be upset about when you're out on the Texas plains - watching the sun set across a cow pasture - and setting up a circus across from a haunted house. I slept out on the lot most of the week. The van is nice and comfortable inside and it's amazing how quickly you adjust to the lack of running water.
But by showtime on Friday - we had a real rockstar moment. The sun is setting and the haunted houses are opening. And I decide that I'm going to go get a hotel room in town so I can take a shower before doing a show. It's showtime - time to open - and you want a shower? Unheard of in the carnival world. Yet here - it's no problem. I showered off a week's worth of Texas dust and sweat and walked back on the lot in my fresh pressed white shirt and tie.
It's great to be back on a dirt lot - and the haunted houses are great.
There's been so much more I'd love to tell you all about it - but I just keep getting sucked into making the magic happen - and sleeping in the back of the van out in the country definitely limits my access to the modern world.

Here's to the next time.
Tyler