Louis Self
To Kiteboarding
Lou's Kiteboarding home page
To Comedy
Lou's Comedy home page
        YouTube

Arizona Lou

Blog Archive 2018 Jun

Previous <-- Archived Blogs --> Next                   Latest Update

Fri Jun 1 = I drove to Kill Devil Hills, updated my website and computer stuff at the Blaum Center, workedout at the Outer banks Sports Club and made it as far as Kittyhawk Kites in Waves. I drove Cameron (Dimetri's son) to get his truck at Planet of the Apes. He certainly has matured repidly. I didn't think to ask him if his swim trunks were wet, so I got a wet feet area. Cameron has been accepted on the US Olympics team for kiteboarding. I think this is the firt year for the sport at the Olympics. I spent the night in Waves - got to bed early, about 10:30.

Sat Jun 2 = What a fantastic day!
    In addition to fixing and eating three meals, I
  1. drove down to Avon
  2. picked up my box of 49 new T-Shirts at the Avon Post Office
  3. got a few photocopies made of this year's Comedy-n-Sunset poster
  4. prewashed then autowashed my van
  5. Went to the Sands of Time campground. It was good to see Gracie again. I prepaid cash for June after she and I worked out a deal that is good for both of us.
  6. did a sun/beach run at The Bath House
  7. put the new magnetic comedy logo signs on my van for the first time
  8. did a downwinder, kiteboarding from Planet of The Apes to Salvo
  9. told some people at Haul Over about my comedy show Tuesday
  10. Got to bed about 10:30 in the quite shade of the Sands of Time campground. Thank you, Gracie!
- Today was the first time that I used the new magnetic Comedy Logo signs on my van. They look pretty cool, if I say so, myself.
- My nights? During the month of June, if I don't say otherwise, I will be spending the nights in my van, parked under the shade trees at the Sands of Time Campground in Avon. Thanks, Gracie!

Sun Jun 3 = Today was the first time that I put the new magnetic poster signs on my van for the Comedy-n-Sunset show on Tuesday.
- This morning I stopped by three retailers to see if they would be willing to stock my Comedy T-Shirts for the month of June. That would be a way for people to buy them since I cannot sell anything at Comedy-n-Sunset - US Parks Department rules, you know.

T-Shirts        Buy T-shirts in 10 colors and two designs

Our T-Shirt Saga started on
OBX
Hatteras Island and the Outer Banks off the coast of North Carolina
, when we created the T-Shirt design and had the first shirts made with the help of Tim, manager of Avon's Deep Blue T-Shirt shop.
T-Shirt Sales & Storage System: The small suitcase (left) holds tools for processing, information about Duet and 14 shirts.
Bags
Ten T-Shirt sizes from YxS to 6XL
Shirts
Retail Display at Ride Hatteras, Avon NC, June, 2016
Bags
Display at Kitty Hawk Kites, Avon Jun '18-'19
Shirts
Retail Display at Kitty Hawk Kites, Avon NC, June, 2021
Shirts
Retail Display at Kitty Hawk Kites, Avon NC, June, 2023
Shirts
T-shirts folded uniformly with size strips at Kitty Hawk Kites
Shirts
T-shirts folded to 11x8" in ShirtCase
Shirts
The Ideal Merch Display, Reinholds, PA; 6/30/24
Shirts Shirts
Zippered Sweat Shirt 7 colors online T-Shirt - I eventually ended up at the Billy Mitchell airport pilot's lounge where I unboxed and processed my order of 48 Comedy T-Shirts. Now I have an accurate inventory, a full shirt-case and spares.
- A couple weeks ago I recovered my March (2018) blog with the help of Godaddy, my website host. I had accidentally replaced it with April. Now it is all straightened out and online . I was particularly interested in getting it back because it included
Stan
Stanley, my older brother who was a retired as a machinist for Eaton Corporation in Hutchinson, KS until he succumbed to a three-week bout with Myasthenia gravis in March, 2018
's last days and his memorial service. It also included my new dash cam. I recommend that EVERYONE get one of these deices, as they can save your bacon.

Mon Jun 4 = I worked in my van this morning under the shade trees until about 1pm. I phoned the Aviation Division of the NCDOT, among other things, about the non-working A/C in the Billy Mitchel pilot's lounge. They are glad to have me keeping an eye on the place, even if it is only for the month of June.
- I got my Epson Workforce 100 working. It was easier than I expected - only took the installation of a new tri-color cartridge, which I had on hand. I printed out about eight letter-sized colored posters for my Comedy-n-Sunset shows starting tomorrow.
micro poster
- I stopped by some shops for possible T-Shirts outlets. Brian owner of Ocean Air said he heard me on the radio. Thanks, Jody of Moose & Jody In The Morning on Beach 104 FM!

Tue Jun 5 = They say you worry about the right amount, but about the wrong things. I worried that my voice would not last for tonight's show, but should have worried about remembering my sequence, this being my first full show this year. It turns out that I had to go get my cliboard with my show icons. I got the order mixed up some which is no big deal, but I DID have to refer to my clipboard several times. My first time using notes in about two years. After the show I did not feel too good about it (there wasn't a lot of loud laughing because the audience was spread out) until, after the show, one of the 5-year old boys told me that his favorite part was the ceiling fan. His twin brother said his favorite part was the stinky baby. An 11-year old boy sat right up front and laughed through the entire show.
- After the show I drove up to spend the night in Rodanthe at
KHK
Kitty Hawk Kites kiteboarding center in Rodanthe, NC.
.
- I could not get my website updated with any of the available Wi-Fi's or my tethered Android.

Wed Jun 6 = I got up at 6am, cut my hairs (2 months since last time) and took a shower. Why so early? That way I can use the
KHK
Kitty Hawk Kites kiteboarding center in Rodanthe, NC.
restroom and get my hair all swept up off the floor before anyone needs to use the restroom. The plan worked beautifully. It takes some time, but I feel so good after I get it done - about every three months or so.
- The rest of the day was mostly driving with a library break to update my website. I could have called first, but assumed the St Paul's library would be open. On the door of the little store-front place they proudly announced the good news that they were remodeling... since February! I drove on to the Robeson County Public Library in Lumberton where I updated my Comedy Home Page.
- Checking my emails, Citibank informed me that they forgave my late payment fee as a one-time courtesy. I guess that statement slipped through the cracks last month - I checked and it was the only one. I paid it all off immediately, called Christina in the Philippines customer service who also reversed the interest charge. Thank you Citibank!
- I spent the night on the way to Savannah, GA at the Walterboro, SC Super Walmart.

Thu Jun 7 = Today I arrived in the area of The Bay Street Theater in Savannah, got yelled out for where I parked, hung out in a Carnagee library and met Tom Paris at the Blends Coffee House. There, they take pride in having coffee from about six different countries, keeping the coffies pure and roasting their own. They have a state-of-the-art roaster with digital controls. Along with Tom, I met an enthusiastic group from NuBarter which matches people and companies with services and products with those needing those services and products.
- I spent the night at Walmart Supercenter in the Bacon Park Area/Sandfly area of Savannah at 1955 E Montgomery Cross Rd. It has the best quality shade I have found so far at any Walmart.

Fri Jun 8 = This morning I phoned Riley the purchaser at Askins Creek BP, and John Harris the owner of Kitty Hawk Kites, about carrying my Comedy T-Shirts so that people can buy from them since I cannot sell anything at the Parks Department's Canadian Hole (Haul Over Day Use Area). My first choice would be BP because it is the closest retailor to the venue. Riley will get back to me. John said that they can do it and I would need to stop by the warehouse in Kill Devil Hills to get a SKU code for the shirts. Then I could deliver the shirts to their store in north Avon. Icing on the cake - they would sell the shirts for $10, making no profit, so that (Logo) (Duet) will get all the profit from the shirts! Thank you, John!
- I have been working hard, practicing and perfecting my routine for tomorrow at the Savannah Comedy Revue.
- I spent the night, again at Walmart Supercenter in the Bacon Park Area/Sandfly area of Savannah at 1955 E Montgomery Cross Rd.

Sat Jun 9 = I met Tom Paris at his house about 3pm. He took me up to his above-garage apartment where I took a bath and chilled out until we left in his car for the Bay Street Theater. There, he and I hung outside nearby and passed out fliers and told people about tonight's show.
- The result was disappointing. In spite of all our work and his previous publicity we had an audience of only eight. I had the opening spot. My set started out well, but took a dive when I mentioned a boner. My History and Viagra had killed with other audiences, but not this audience. As a result I learned, If a type of joke bombs, SWITCH to something else. Be flexible and not committed to your planned set.
- After the show Tom and I toured some other possible comedy rooms with a few other comedian/producers. I spent the night on a dead end street by Tom's house with shade trees in the morning.

Sun Jun 10 = This morning I spent considerable time on the phone with Tom Paris. I did not feel real good after the phone call, but did learn that I have a long way to go as a comedian. He told me about his comedy contest in November and invited me to participate... in Savannah, GA!
- I spent the night on the way back to
OBX
Hatteras Island and the Outer Banks off the coast of North Carolina
 at the Tarboro, NC Walmart.

Mon Jun 11 = Driving to the
KHK
Kitty Hawk Kites
warehouse, including a fuel stop was the first order of the day. There I met John Harris who arranged with Caroline Lazar to develop a SQU for my T-Shirts.
- Then on the the Baum Older Adult Center where I updated my website and straightened out the tolls I accumulated on some Texas toll roads.
- I then drove down to the Kitty Hawk Kites store in north Avon and delivered some of my T-Shirts. Vicki Day there set up this table and Diar (pronounced D R), from Kosovo created this awesome display with sizes xS to 4xL. Pay no attention to the kites in the background..
T-Shirt Display
- I spent the night back home under my tree at the Sands of Time Campground in Avon.

Tue Jun 12 = At solar noon I did a beach sun (hazy) & run at the Bath House.
- I am using an old Bluetooth that has been laying around for years, after losing (misplacing?) two of them on this trip so far. It is an old Motorola that operates on a single AAA and sort of dangles by the ear.
- Today is about the last day that I can order things and have them arrive here on
OBX
Hatteras Island and the Outer Banks off the coast of North Carolina
 before I leave at the end of the month, so I ordered a bluetooth headset, Boundaries by Henry Cloud and a microSD/USB adapter.
- It was mostly cloudy today and there was no audience for tonight's Comedy-n-Sunset show - mostly clouds. Oh, ye of little faith - the clouds cleared just enough for a beautiful, if not spectacular, sunset.

Wed Jun 13 = Got a lot done today. I dropped off Comedy-n-Sunset posters at two realty companies, prepared Stan's Canon PowerShot A480 to send to one of my little grandaughters, hung out at the air strip, contacted some people about disposing of
Stan
Stanley, my older brother who was a retired as a machinist for Eaton Corporation in Hutchinson, KS until he succumbed to a three-week bout with Myasthenia gravis in March, 2018
's properties, checked my due bills and paid the two and printed out some more colored Comedy-n-Sunset posters with my little Epson WF-100.

Thu Jun 14 = Most of today was taking care of
Stan
Stanley, my older brother who was a retired as a machinist for Eaton Corporation in Hutchinson, KS until he succumbed to a three-week bout with Myasthenia gravis in March, 2018
's business: namely his two properties in Hutchinson. They are worth almost nothing. We just want to get rid of them, but can't until 6 months of jumpping through hoops.
- This evening I fired up my little 10-watt glue gun in my van and re-attached the low/off/high switch on my ceiling fan. The switch came loose last night.

Fri Jun 15 = This morning I spent a lot of time on the phone seeking ideas of how to handle
Stan
Stanley, my older brother who was a retired as a machinist for Eaton Corporation in Hutchinson, KS until he succumbed to a three-week bout with Myasthenia gravis in March, 2018
's properties. It would be nice if I could wave a magic wand and it would all go away.

Sat Jun 16 = This afternoon, in the Billy Mitchell terminal, I did my full-show routine, full volume, acting out and all. I believe this is the first time I have done it that way. Previously I have gone through various elements and worked on the sequencing.
- Around sunset I did a beach run on the shore of Pamlico Sound by the
Haulover
The Haulover Day Use Area south of Avon, NC - sometimes called, Canadian Hole.
. Only a hand full of people were out to see the almost non-existent sun set.

Sun Jun 17 = I am losing stuff (what else is new?). So far I have lost or misplaced two Bluetooth headsets. Food Lion gives a 6¢ credit for every reusable bag you use on checkout. This evening a lady stole my cart... with my reusable nylon Hatteras Storytelling back pack bag in it. As I saw her disappear around a corner I spotted another cart in the entry area. By the time I got to it another lady took it, and it was the last one.
- Back at the camp ground, I did my full show (53 minutes) while siting in the driver's seat of my van.

Mon Jun 18 = I worked on land today - some on selling
Stan
Stanley, my older brother who was a retired as a machinist for Eaton Corporation in Hutchinson, KS until he succumbed to a three-week bout with Myasthenia gravis in March, 2018
's houses in Hutchinson and some dealing an offer to buy one of my Wittmann empty desert parcels.
- In the afternoon I hung around
KHK
Kitty Hawk Kites store in north Avon, NC.
for a while, telling customers about my T-Shirts and my Comedy-n-Sunset show tomorrow. I met a lot of nice people but sold no T-Shirts. The staff there is great!
- A little before sunset I did a beach run at The Bath House - 5 minutes this time, with two short walks.
- This evening, I tried something different, by parking my van facing downwind, figuring that less heat from the engine would warm the van a little less during the night. I noticed no difference. The inside of the van got up to 85° F, which was OK with my ceiling fan on low. I keep the windows all closed to keep bugs and misquotes out.

Tue Jun 19 = I got up at 5:55am for my weekly call in to Jody at Beach 104 Radio. I gave an awesome sunset forecast. Jody asked me for a joke sample. You sound like my X-wife did not make the cut. This morning I did my weekly beard trimming a day ahead of schedule, followed by a shower because, I had time this morning, and need to move it to Tuesday because I plan to be off the island next Tuesday after the comedy show.
- The owner of The Fort Gym, informed me that there was no hope for me to join, due to my entry last year through an unlocked door after hours. I had found no hours listed. She explained that they have had a similar problem with others and there was no second chance. At least, now, they have their hours prominently posted on the front door.
- I guy sent me an email offer for some vacant land I own near Surprise, AZ for about 11% of what similar land is going for. Naturally I declined after consulting with a realtor who works that area.
- I had an audience of 13 for my Comedy-n-Sunset show. They were all impromptu guests as none of them had come expressly for the show.

Wed Jun 20 = Today I washed my van and drove way down to the southwest to Hatteras Village where I visited the Hatteras Library. Helen, there is retiring soon. She said she plans to come to my comedy show Tuesday evening.
- CAPTIVE PORTAL: A screen that pops up when you open your browser on Wi-Fi, asking you to agree with its terms before connecting you to the Internet. This, I learned from a Leo Laportte podcast.
- I also learned that Cozzy's in Newport News has a Thursday open mic, so decided to drive up for it.

Thu Jun 21 = After revising my Announcement slips in by van under my shade tree this morning, my main projet was driving to Newport News, VA. - Small world. At Cozzy's Comedy club this evening I saw Liz who introduced me to her friend, Amy. Liz thought I was very funny when she saw me a couple years ago at a Comedy-n-Sunset show that was interrupted by a thunder storm. Tonight, my HowOld? and Holding set killed. I did a four-camera shoot. We'll see if I have time to put it up on my YouTube channel.
- After the show I had planned to head for home, going south across the James River to spend the night at a Norfolk Walmart. Instead I decided to spend an extra day in Norfolk and take in the Friday comedy show with Jim Seward at Cozzy's Comedy Club.
- Implementing that plan, I found a 24-hour Walmart with good shade trees in Hampton, VA. The security guard there said I was not allowed to spend the night in the parking lot, so I drove accross the street to the Coliseum auxiliary parking area - huge empty parking area with excellent shade trees along the east side.

Fri Jun 22 = This morning the battery charge indicator for my Remington F5-5800 shaver was in the red so I recharged it. The previous charged lasted 73 days (10 weeks and 3 days).
- Tonight I went to Cozzy's Comedy Club to see headliner, Jim Seward
- After the show I drove across and under the James River to the Suffolk Walmart for the night.

Sat Jun 23 = On the way back to Avon I stopped by the Logo OBX Sports Club gym in Nags Head for a poo and shower. The gal there said I was not in the system, so had me fill out all the stuff... again, for their Silver Sneakers program.
- Since the wind was blowing I also stopped by the Logo  Kitty Hawk Kite center in Waves Waves. My 8m Best Nemesis was a good call for riding my Naish Custom Fish 5'2" x 17.5" surfboard with no footstraps. I did pretty well considering I had not ridden that board in two years. I only blew one jibe, doing about 8 regular jibes and two each carving toeside to healside and carving healside to toeside. None were very graceful, but I did 'em and never even got my hat wet. I came in after only 35 minutes because a guy came out and yelled something, which I did not understand. Probably about some lightning or storms. It turns out that I could have stayed out, but it's a good thing I did not. After landing my kite, a strut fill-tube ruptured and completely deflated the kite's leading edge.
- It was good to be back home in Avon for the night under my shade tree in the Sands Of Time Campground.

Sun Jun 24 = Today was a good day for comedy, if not kiteboarding. I left a trail of microposters and told people about Tuesday's Comedy-n-Sunset, my last show this season. I got bread and new, unscratched, sunglasses at Dollar Tree, did about $15 worth of shopping at Food Lion, found that ACE Hardware had no surgical tubing with which to replace the ruptured tube on my 8m Best kite, stopped by Canadian Hole (Haulover) and then went down to the Billy Mitchel Airport to do some comedy scheduling before going kiteboarding.
- At the airport I firmed up or scheduled performances that will include New York and all of New England. The last scheduled was in Providence, RI.
- I brought my 8m kite into the pilot's lounge to install a new strut tube from my kite repair supplies. Nobody was around, it was cool inside and hot outside. Since my tube was slightly oversized, I did an inflation test for about 20 minutes while I gathered my things together, put on my swim trunks and lathered up with sunscreen. It was about 5:30 when I checked the RADAR and decided to ride the ocean (first time in 2 years for the ocean) for a short ride from the Isabelle Washout to the Bath House. By the time I got as far as the Bath House the few people remaining were rushing to their cars, it was starting to rain a little and getting very gusty with clouds of blowing sand. I considered a beach run, but that was nixed when the rain increased.

Mon Jun 25 = Early this morning I took nine thermographs of me (seen below), using my FLIR i7, while laying under my little ceiling fan. All of them were of my abdomen except two of my chest for comparison. My goal was to measure my skin temperatures to determine the fan's effectiveness when off, on low, on high, during the night and in the morning when my van was warming up. Six of the images were inaccurate because the bed beneath me was showing and was cooler than my body. If you look closely at the second picture you will notice my hand print a little warmer than my abdomen because my hand was warm and I had just checked to see if my abdomen felt cool. It did feel cool. I'll probably try a new set tomorrow, getting just me and no bed.
IR Image IR Image IR Image IR Image IR Image IR Image IR Image IR Image IR Image

Wed Jun 27 = This morning I said, "Goodbye" to everyone at KHK and then drove up to the OBX Sports Club for a light full-body workout. Then on to the Baum Older Adult Center 'til they closed at 5 and then across to the Dare County Library until they closed at 7. I filled n a few holes in my comedy schedule by adding stops in Philadelphia, KCMO and Albuquerque.
- I couldn't get
ftp
File Transfer Protocol for uploading web pages to the Internet (as opposed to http: Hyper Text Transfer Protocol for looking at web pages)
to work on anybody's Wi-Fi until I found The Slice Pizza Company in Kill Devil Hills. I updated my website and then ordered one of their salads.
- I spent the night in Kitty Hawk, NC on the east side of the Harris Teeter parking lot by the tall, dense trees there, on my way to Philadelphia for tomorrow night's performance, not knowing that in the morning I would be in the sun between two trees.

Thu Jun 28 = Crossing the Chesapeake with the bridge and tunnel was sort of a thrill for me. Actually there were two tunnels.
- After finding on-street parking about a half block away, I took the Broad Street subway from the Oregon station to the Walnut station, a couple of blocks away from the venue. I was very proud of myself. With the subway shut down at 1am, I tood the bus back to my van.
- What a crowd - mostly standing room only upstairs at McGillin's Old Ale House in Philadelphia! It was a young crowd of 82 who enjoyed my yong crowd routine, including an abbreviated version of Viagra. Gabby, the manager, let me sell t shirts and I sold two. Ashton was the host and a good musician. Since it was a music open mic, I may have been their first comedian. I was concerned that they would not accept a comedian, but they were great.
- Ashton told me about a comedy open mic at The Raven, so I walked several blocks there and signed up for the show. while I was waiting for my turn at McGillin's. I got on stage at The Raven about 1am It probably would have been better if I had done the same routine as at McGillin's instead of trying to be different.

Fri Jun 29 = Day off from comedy. This morning I phoned Cindy Jackson of Kensington Travel Service in New York City (actually Long Island City in Queens) near my venue for tomorrow. She was very helpful and informative. I recommend her. If you ever have a reason to contact her, tell her that Arizona Lou recommended Kensington. I drove to Secaucus, New Jersey.
- Secaucus, New Jersey is a neat litle town. Within walking distance there is a library, LA Fitness and a Walmart. This evening I did a light full-body workout at LA Fitness and, courtesy of one of their padlock brackets scraped some skin off near my left elbow. I immediately folded the skin tab over, hoping it would get enough blood circulation to not dry out and die. Back in my van I applied a 3-year old oclusive covering. It turns out it only lasted about 24 hours, so I just kept the wound uncovered, letting my body's imune system take care of it..
- I spent the night in the 3-level paring structure next door to the LA Fitness. I was on the second level, but would have been a little cooler on the first level.

Sat Jun 30 = This morning I did a combo workout at LA Fitness. I did one light, fast set each muscle, followed by a heavy set each muscle. I am afraid I may have done a bad trade. I congratulated myself for taking a brown washcloth that had been there since yesterday, from the handicapped shower floor. It appeared to be clean, but I'll wash it before using it, of course.
- I ended up without the Sony ICD-UX560 voice recorder I use to record the audience from my comedy performances, containing lots of files and my notes on comedy. Last I remember seeing it was when I took it out of my shorts pocket to put into my pants pocket. I may have laid it down and gotten distracted. I think it is gone for good :(
- Comedy tonight was, as they say on their website:
Power Hour! Open Mic is brought to you by Amy Shanker, Brett Hiker, and Cameron Ford. Originating in Chicago, this mic mixes your hot new bits with some beer and piano. While you're working on getting famous, a designated weekly drinker is on stage beside you working on a pitcher or 2 of beer. He or she will occasionally chime in to riff with your set. This is a fun, no-fail mic; if you drop the ball, the drinker will pick it up. And don't worry! At the end of the mic, we'll watch as the drinker attempts to do their set.
It was a good show and a fun 2.5 minutes. Before the show, I heard from across the room, "Arizona Lou!" I couldn't believe that it was Tristan Bowling, young comedian from Phoenix, who was in the area for a week.

Previous <-- Archived Blogs --> Next                   Latest Update

(back to TOP of page)