Just heard from Germany!

(Julie and me at Zappanale 14 - photo courtesy of Janine Pollock. I'm the one with the beer har har)

Okay, hooray for Joanne Milandro who has an international cell phone. Gary just called me. It's well after 3:00 a.m. in Germany now and he said it was insane -- the crowd would not let the kids off the stage and he's so excited he can't sleep (they just got back to the hostel!) He said the audience kept screaming for the kids to play more; over 5,000 people were in fucking awe and the Paul Green School of Rock Music stole the entire Zappanale 16. He said he's never experienced anything like it EVER (and Gary saw not only the Beatles play at JFK Stadium but Jimi Hendrix as well); that the kids -- every one of them -- played the best music of their lives; that they are all superstars and are being treated as such by every adult fellow musician in attendance from all over the world, many of whom played with Frank Zappa at some point in their careers; and that the only low of the trip is that it's 44 degrees and hailing! Gary said it's so cold smoke is coming out of their mouths when they talk, but that the folks running the festival handed out free sweatshirts (very cool Zappanale 16 ones) to all of them. Wow. When I was there with the kids two years ago at Zappanale 14 it was so hot we wore tank tops or t-shirts and shorts. But oh my god, they played for three and a half hours tonight. That's like...unreal.

Anyway, most importantly, I instructed Gary to bring home many DVDs so that all the parents can have one and Linda, Joey is doing fine; the kids are all eating more than enough...in fact, they are getting their faces stuffed by everyone everywhere -- Gary said the food at the festival is incredible and the kids don't have to pay for anything. Gary is sharing a room with 10 kids - Jeremy, Dom, Haffy, Matt, Bosco, Cameron, Joey, Mike, Dan, and Chris. He said he's taking care of all of them and they told him he's the coolest dad ever (hahaha - unlike me on tour, who probably scared the hell out of all of them because I'm so fucking neurotic).

Carolyn, Gary also told me he took Eric shopping for something special for you, so, err..act surprised.

Anyway, he sounded so wired on the phone now he has me all wired and I can't sleep either...and we have to all wake up at 5:00 a.m. tomorrow because yep, that's when the finale begins in Germany, only it will be 11:00 a.m. there.

Night night.