Like Watching a Re-run.

I was talking with one of the truck drivers this morning, who was on this tour the last time we played this awful arena. And we both agree, it's like being stuck in a time warp. Our own personal Groundhog Day. So far, every venue we've played on this leg of the tour, we've played before, within the last year and half. The biggest difference this leg... Not a single sell out. We get close in the big cities, but there's always lots of empty chairs in the upper parts of the arenas.

The Maybee Center, here on the campus of Oral Roberts University, is a very memorable building. But not in a good way. This place is not designed for us to fit into. I won't go into details or bore you with pictures, but anywhere you have to pull seats out and build the stage into the stands, or are forced to lift 600 pound lighting racks between chairs, is a place we shouldn't be in.

But we stuffed it all in here before, and here we are stuffing it in here again. People are grumpy, and it's a totally boned situation. And to make matters worse, some people are trying not to swear, seeing as it is Oral Roberts University.

I think the most memorable thing I can share with you all is the story of Luciano Pavarotti playing the Maybee Center. The last time we were here, the building manager was telling us about how much worse it was to put Pavarotti in. It was, of course a sold out show, which often means the artist has a certain amount of leverage when it comes to bizarre, often unrealistic requests. For Pavarotti, the list started with having his dressing room built on stage, with hot and cold running water and well as an oversized commode.

I was just searching online for this oversized commode, but to no avail. The building manager assures me it exists. With hot and cold running water, and this oversized commode on stage, they had to have custom built a "black water" or waste water tank built to fit under the stage. They had to build 4 walls, sound proofed so he could warm up on stage without being heard, and they had to pull out more chairs then they did for our show.

Guess our show is easy, but still, 1o pounds of s**t, 3 pound bag. See, even I'm censoring myself for Oral Roberts University.

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