Hello friends,

Sorry for my delay, I hope all are doing well this Sunday morning. I myself am doing good having arrived last Thursday from Anchorage. I’m now fully focused on my last stop after spending the last few days running around getting the gigs mobile back on the road. Unfortunately I had to spend my Hawaiian budget on the repairs and now the tour has been extended once again from my original target date of January, Lol!

The truck needed right side bearings which in hindsight probably was brought on by me at some point when I decided to use the safety warning grooves on the highways in Idaho and Eastern Washington last month when the drive was covered with snow and ice. Not having four-wheel drive left me with very little traction and I thought I was being clever by using the grooves to help me stay on the road for those hundreds of miles, but in the end it just ruined the bearings with all the vibration and jarring conditions I put the truck through. If I knew then what I know now I probably would have done the same, having no choice but to keep moving forward from those awful freezing conditions. I’ve had to deal with obstacles in almost every state as I encountered them and not worrying about the next stop until I reached it. that was the only way I could keep my sanity during all this time. Fortunately for me I was able to find a great person and mechanic named Ken in Fremont who helped me fix my truck and even gave me a few days to come up with the money. Thanks Ken!

Changing topics, I left Alaska as you can imagine feeling down and frustrated with the outcome even though I knew from the time I booked the flight last month that my chances of success were dim to none taking in consideration my limitations, time frame but mostly time of year. What I kept hearing from the locals was that I was there at the wrong time of year and that the spring and summer were better times to land a job easily if I wanted. “You could work all day long, seven days a week if you want,” was the theme of the visit. “Come back later this year and see the beauty of the state,” was another. Obviously it was not a vacation trip as has been the case from the start but a working tour. It will go down as a visited state with no job to log. I certainatley have more to say about my time there and will tell of it once I begin putting together the book. Still what I saw from the plane and just walking around and riding the buses (in 17degree weather) only gave me a glimpse of the natural beauty, people and culture of the state and wet my appetite to hopefully return some summer day in my twilight years.

And now only Hawaii remains as my last stop of 51, I hope to depart next Monday the 27^th and stay in Honolulu for a week to ten days. I won’t have my tools and truck once again but I know a few people down there having lived in the area back in 2013-14. Believe me when I tell you friends: waiting for the bus on the Hawaiian Islands in March is far different than a bus stop in Anchorage! That being said I hope to fill my site with pics and videos especially for those folks who have never been there. Then back for my final nine hundred miles to Tucson with quick pit stops in L.A. and Phoenix to visit family.

I will be checking back in a couple of days and hope you are with me all the way to Tucson next month! I certainatley appreciate your support and encouragement all these months. I would not have reached fifty states without the moral support and well wishes from all of you great folks!  Have a great day and check my Gigs album #3 for updated pictures!   #Yo-Ga-Fla

Juanjohn

Hello friends,

Greeting from my motel room #224 at the Lakeshore Inn in Alaska! I write you today on my second full day from Anchorage after flying in Friday morning at 5 am.  I hope you are well and resting this Sunday afternoon.

I still can’t believe I finally made it here in one piece. Believe me when I tell you that there had been moments when I thought this trip would never materialize for me. The lower forty-eight have finally been traveled, some more than once and now that I’m here only the beautiful island of Hawaii remains to be knocked off the list! Although getting here was half the struggle, I still have the daunting task of scoring a job in the short window of time that I have available. I began my search as soon as I checked into this motel and have not seen any activity on the CL or any other sites I’ve searched.

My challenges here are many and my time is limited and I knew that from the start but even with those parameters in place I still took a hit my last day in the Bay area when my truck broke down on the way back from a job. I was heading back to my son’s to pack and catch my flight here when my wheel bearings popped and left me stranded  during the busy rush hour traffic. I barely made my flight thanks to my sister Ester but $395 dollars lighter due to the towing fee! I could’ve surely used that money here which I had planned on using to rent a car to get around but now I have to rely on the public transportation to get around; not a pleasant task when the temps haven’t gotten above 30 degrees since I got here.

So besides the timeline, the lack of tools and the nonexistent job prospects I still have to take the bus wherever I go, so let’s see how it pans out these next couple of days for me. Then I have the issue of dealing with the repairs on the gigs mobile when I get back to my home base in Union City and I don’t have any idea how much that is going to cost me when all is said and done. The double edge sword of course is that I need my truck to earn money to fix it, buy my Honolulu ticket and some survival cash for my last stop. I will deal with one problem at a time I suppose and somehow I will get through it as I have managed these past forty- nine stops thus far, it will just take me a little longer to get home.

On the brighter side this place is cold but beautiful from what I saw from the plane and from walking around. The folks seem very friendly and I’m sure when all the snow and ice melts in a couple of months the true awesomeness of this area will come to the fore. I will be far away by then in my desert home with my puppy Kalani by my side hopefully putting the finishing touches on my book of my glorious past ten month on the road! Until then friends I will continue to share my story with you and hope you find it as thrilling as I have.

Have a great rest of the day and thank you so much for your support and following! #Yo-Ga-Fla

Juanjohn

Good morning friends,

I hope all are well this Saturday morning. I will keep this brief since I'm writing you from my handheld device. Currently in Las Vegas completing my Nevada gig before I depart to Anchorage Alaska next Thursday. I have been working long days in order to earn as much money as possible for my stay! 

I will write you a update as soon as I have a few hours to sit and rest. Have a great weekend and thanks for checking in.

Juanjohn