Make Joe Drive

The Debrief

There’s something to be said for the privilege to represent Rockford, IL, and, in particular, a business like WallBlank.com that seeks to go the extra mile (let alone another 4,190) for the sake of tangible relationships, involved adventures, and word-of-mouth networking. And just to be clear, I’m not employed by them, I’m just a friend and an artist who believes in what they’re doing.

Thanks for this privilege. This very first Make Joe Drive campaign went very well and I feel that this is the start of something good on many fronts. The word of Rockford and WallBlank.com has been integrated in cafes, restaurants, coffee shops, and along the road where everyday life happens for the majority of people.

These discoveries and relationships wouldn’t have even been possible had it not been for your tweets, texts, calls, and help along the way. Thanks again.

Eight days, four thousand one hundred ninety-one miles, fifty hours of driving, twenty-five coffee concoctions, and two hundred twenty-five gallons of gas are the earmarks of the very first Make Joe Drive mission.

What’s next on the horizon?

It’s never too early to start sending in ideas and new places. Emailing Joe@wallblank.com is a good place to start.

Big Thanks: MJD T-Shirts & Buttons

There were a number of people and small businesses that helped Make Joe Drive happen.

Jarrod from Boreded Up did a great job with providing the t-shirts and buttons for the trip. If you need a great screenprinter or buttonmaker, email borededup@gmail.com for a quote - you’ll be glad you did.

Going West

There comes a critical time in any adventure where the road starts curling its stripes at you like a beckoning finger while the days of non-stop motion, thinking, tweeting, talking, posting, interviewing, photographing, driving, direction-following, gassing, eating, and sleeping, continue to hum and threaten to coerce a traveler to opt and plant roots in just about every new place visited. It’s a strange dichotomy.

I fought and followed both these notions as I pulled out of Charlottesville on Saturday morning. There was still nine hundred miles ahead of me. I made it to the Apple store in Louisville, KY, at 9:05 p.m. and just missed getting a new charger for my laptop. There’s a Starbucks that was open until midnight so I spent a couple hours reading and drinking coffee before hitting the road at closing time.

I made it just north of Indianapolis until the ghosts of sleep made continuing impossible. Even after a few late night hours at a Lebanon rest stop I found pure sleep in this car a hard thing to come by since the idling of sleeping semi-trucks and the quasi stillness in the long bench seat would sometimes ignite in dreams that forced me from sleep to frantically grab the steering wheel in preparation to attempt to steer away from the oncoming rest stop building. But the car was silent and motionless in its parking space. The trucks still idled with dim eyes in their rows. It was only my head that was moving with the momentum of nearly three thousand miles.

A dim and grey day broke after six a.m. and I continued with only a few more hours to go.

Bodo's Bagels & White Spot, Charlottesville

Big thanks to Phillip and Greg and roommates for allowing me their couch to crash in Charlottesville on Friday night.

Bodo’s Bagels is sweet breakfast joint bustling of scholastic denizen in pursuit of a worthy breakfast bagel and the additional choice of bacon, egg, and maybe even the pursuit of happiness and justice for all. Thomas Jefferson had designed Charlottesville as an academic community and the narrow side-streets and cobblestone and brick do well to continue its tradition and to affirm the quality of Charlottesville community as Cum Laude amongst New England college towns.

Another worthy spot to check out is the White Spot on the corner of University Avenue. It’s a small, friendly greasy spoon kind of place that’s as laid back as any place I’ve ever seen. Order a Gus Burger for a couple dollars and get a satisfying burger with a fried egg inside.

Para Coffee, Charlottesville, Virginia

Para Coffee has a unique relationship to WallBlank in Illinois; They’re both created and curated by the Kelley brothers.

Para has also just recently celebrated its first birthday and this friday night they hosted the art show “A to Z, Letters For Literacy” where ‘local artists and designers showcase custom lettering and typography to raise awareness and support for Literacy Volunteers of Charlottesville/Albemarle.’ Thus says the poster.

Live music accompanied the packed house and a WallBlank print was featured in the row of the alphabet art that were displayed (left to right of course) around the lower part of Para. There’s an upstairs here too with more seating and some hanging photography by Eric Kelley, Para proprietor.

In the morning an eclectic arrangement of people sit at the bar and read the paper or gather in groups to talk or who are paired up with their computers and a steaming bowl of coffee. This place is off the beaten path but not forgotten. Come check it out, this is coffee with room.

Blue Ridge Parkway, Virginia

Yesterday’s adventure with the leaves and the intense three-point turn turned out to be the perfect schedule modifier in order that I could meet up with New York City’s Armistead Booker, a graphic designer and museum worker and a friend of both Para Coffee in Charlottesville, VA, and WallBlank.com in Rockford, IL.

It was a pleasure to sit at McCormick’s Overlook in Shenandoah National Park with him, his girlfriend, and his local buddy Jason and chat over a picnic. The sun went down and cold mountain air brought our huddle to a close after an hour but not before I was able to impart WallBlank gifts to these new friends who in turn surprised me with a gift of local NYC coffee.

Awesome, sweet meetings again!

A Road Less Traveled

I’ve been giving “Big Mama” a routine of driving at sixty-five mph for long enough that I can put between ten and fifteen gallons at each gas station so that she has a chance to relax. Sometimes I’ll even take the side roads.

However a scenic route looked to be stretching too far in an undesirable direction and I found myself pulling a three-point on a desolate road. No problem until suddenly…

The leaves on the side of the road concealed a little ditch for a very heavy car.

Before too long a red pickup truck rolled around the corner and retired beef farmer Tommy Thompson cheerfully evaluated the situation with me. Then we got to work. I secured a tow rope around the rear axle and Tommy hooked a crank-puller-thing with a chain around a tree. Another man Brian and his wife and son happened to come around the corner and helped me push as Tommy cranked the car out.

Thanks again. Here are the heroes of the day.

On The Road To?

This trip is still only halfway over. The prints are in Taylor’s hands but I’m still a thousand miles from home. People along the way are still asking about Make Joe Drive. How am I getting back? It’s still for you to decide.

I spent the night in Huntersville, NC, on Thursday to visit my aunt and uncle and left Friday headed for Charlottesville, Virginia, thinking that it would be a solid drive with maybe only a couple of special stops.

Little did I know…

WallBlank.com Winner: Taylor Tucker, Charleston, SC

Last Friday afternoon I had called Taylor Tucker from WallBlank headquarters in Rockford, Illinois, to tell her that she had won the birthday contest and was getting her prints hand delivered via road trip. Six days later I’m pulling into Muddy Waters Coffee in Charleston, SC, to finish one part of the journey to meet this person. Now it’s your turn.

Taylor is a nurse in the Neo Natal ICU in Charleston and moved here over three years ago from Chattanooga to go to Clemson University. Before that she remembers growing up and playing banjo in the mountains. Other hobbies include photography, biking, running, soccer, and finishing all her sentences with a soft southern drawl.

She received her WallBlank prints, a can of ‘Travelin’ Joe’ coffee complements of Jittery Joe’s in Athens, a “Joe Was Here” shirt, and a collection of pins, posters, and a WallBlank.com certificate.

You may have seen the Twitter picture from the day of the meeting but here’s Taylor in front of her chosen meeting spot of Muddy Waters. Sweet to meet her and congratulations again!

Quick Update

The power adapter for my laptop died last night. Check back this afternoon when I’ll catch up on all the details and photos from yesterday’s big delivery. I’m currently on the road to Charlottesville, VA.