Chapter 5
2006
February 6th Victory Lane opened for Mest and Scary Kids Scarring Kids at The Rock Club.
March 6th Victory Lane played a playr production show at Mr Smalls Theatre. Halifax was the headliner. My American Heart, Isadora, and A Fall From Grace were also on the bill.
Mid March Victory Lane went to Black Lodge Studios in Eudora, Kansas. We recorded 5 tracks which were later known as the Kansas Sessions. This was my favorite recording experience to date. We had got a new speaker for the van and on the way to Kansas we broke down at Dallas Pike in Ohio. We spent what seemed like forever there until Jay and his neighbor came to help us. We took the Computer House Call Van instead. There wasn’t room for Josh so he had to go back with Jay. I drove the whole to Kansas, drinking energy drinks. I was exhausted, it was the next morning so someone else finished the remaining hour or so. When we got there we started recording immediately. David Chutka, was a new engineer who was going to be doing our project. He was awesome. and very easy to work with.
April 15th Victory Lane played a Playr production show at the Level Green Community Center. Socratic was the main attraction, but A Fall From Grace, The Spacepimps, Park, David Melillio, and Operation Super Catch were also on the bill.
April 22nd Victory Lane played a Playr production show at California University. Gym Class Heroes were the headliner. Loko Phylum, Distorted Penguins, The Spacepimps, burning West, and Amy illy were also on the bill. We smoked weed with the guitar player of gym class heroes in our van after the show. I also was harassed for money at my friend Nichelle’s party.
May I graduated from Waynesburg College with a Bachelors Degree in Communication with a emphasis on Electronic Media and Advertising
July 1st Victory Lane played at Pittsburgh Regatta Festival. We opened for The Violent Femmes. I got to meet Mr. McFeely from Mr Roger’s Neighborhood. I got his autograph. As we started the set I was told to say ” You got to Regatta” but in an all together kind of way. Instead of saying it correctly I stuttered the phrase and there was a very brief oh shit feeling as I could hear a friend laugh from behind me.
I bought a new acoustic guitar
August I moved out of my parents house and into “the band house” in sewickley heights, Pa; much closer to downtown pittsburgh. Although the goal of this was for the band to play more; the exact opposite happened.
October I became a busser at the cheesecake factory
November I quit Vocelli’s pizza
2007
February 23rd Victory Lane played Winterfest at Orchard Hill Church in Wexford, PA with Strangeway, Annasay, Mark This Day, and Escaping Grace.
Early March Victory Lane went to Big Sky Audio in Philadelphia, PA. Nick and Tyler from Play Work Productions were our engineers / producers. They had promised our band many things if we were to record our next EP there. A representative for Rock Star Energy Drinks came to see us in the studio and then gave Victory Lane a sponsorship.
June 7th Victory Lane played at Playr production show at Mr Smalls Theatre. The Morning Light headlined and it was their cd release show. All Time Low (acoustic) was the 2nd headliner. Mark this Day and Annasay were also on the bill. This was the first show for our Northeast tour.
June 10thish Victory Lane went on it’s last tour. We played at Club Drifters again and Jenny came to see me. We stayed at her house after the show. The next morning Jimi said he couldn’t breathe. Jenny’s parents tried helping him, but then we left early so he could go to the doctor. He ended up going to the hospital where he stayed for a few days. Me, Josh, and Pat didn’t know what to do so I rented a hotel room and some cheap beer. We played monkey in the middle and Pat wrestled Josh several times. We went to the hotel pool and played Marco Polo very obnoxiously. By the time Jimi was better we only had one show left and no one, but me wanted to play it so we just went back home.
In August I moved to Waldorf Apartments in Ross Township, Pa. This was my first place on my own. They agreed that I could play music, but put me in between the laundry room, the maintenance room, and an abandoned room with what appeared to have a bullet hole in it.
November 7th Victory Lane played a playr production show at Diesel. RC Static was the headliner and Cali AC and An evening Affair were also on the bill.
2008
January I started the year out with a new job at Clear Channel Radio. I was to focus with the station 105.9 the X. I was to sell advertisements and help with promotions. I got a business card and a cubicle spot with a few other employees.
January Abby Baker died
Sometime around here I agreed to take in Tony the cat as a temporary adoption, since his previous owner, Laura Rose’s grandfather had died.
April 8th I went to see Billy Joel at Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh
June 10th I went to see Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers at Star Lake Amphitheater in Burgettstown
June 14th Leah Zwerver died
June 20th Victory Lane played at The Hangout in Edinboro, PA. We played with Punchline, I Am the Avalanche, Margin Art, and In the Day
Quit Clear Channel in July.
I was watching TV with Laura and and there was some special on tv about mildly autistic adults. I was a little shocked because some of it sounded like shooming.
In September I started back at the Cheesecake Factory, this time as a server. Abby Ray and Carrie Jenson were in my training class. They had me try foods I never wanted to. I hardest part was that there were so many foods on the menu I never had tried or heard of.
November The Thanksgiving Disaster
The beginning of December I moved to 618 Perrymont Road in Mccandless, Pa. I found the rental through craigslist where I was mostly looking for a place where I could play music. This house was currently rented by a girl named, Francesca who was looking for a roomate. She said I could have the entire basement plus a bedroom so this was my winner.
2009
February 8th My pap passed away in my grandparents home. He died right as I walked in the door and the sounds of my horrified family still haunt me.
June 15th I took a bus downtown and back to see the Pens Parade for winning the Stanley Cup. I met Jordan and my mom.
June 26th I went with Chris White to go kayaking near Millvale. While we were out it started raining and I fell in love with kayaking and being that close to the water.
August 28th – 29th I went to Ohiopyle with Laura Rose. We went white water rafting with some strangers, stayed the night with some friends, and then went white water rafting again with them.
September 3rd Victory Lane had one of our last practices. We had a little after party where I stayed on Perrymont.
September 8th I went to see the Pittsburgh Pirates play the Chicago Cubs.
October 1st I went to the Rock N Roll hame of fame in Cleveland with Laura Rose
Towards the end of November I went over to Randy George’s apartment in Observatory Hill and we jammed for the first time.
2010
February 28th I bought my home at 815 Geyer Road Pittsburgh, PA 15212
The first night in my home I forgot to bring blankets so I slept in a pile of bath towels.
Started jamming with Brad.
May 22nd I played acoustically with Randy at the death of playr production show at the Lawrenceville Moose Lodge. There were a lot of acts on the bill.
At the beginning August I took my parents on a road trip to Maine to look for a moose.
August 28th Jimi and Rachael got married. I was the best man.
2011
February 13th The Mondaze had our first show at Chatham University. I remember feeling a bit awkward, but it felt great. We did songs like Music and Hockey, Bring me Back to You, pleasure and pain, It wouldn’t be so bad, and check your clock.
June 6th I got The Flower Market as my first client for my processing portfolio.
October 28th The Mondaze had a halloween party at the Around the Corner Bar.
2012
Got 3rd job at PNC Park as a suite attendant.
May 2nd The Mondaze opened for Moon Hooch at Club Cafe
July 18th I got Mane Attractions as a client (24th client)
Family road trip to Upper Peninsula of Michigan in August.
September 29th The Mondaze played at Club Cafe with Moon Hooch
August 31st The Mondaze had our CD Release show at Hard Rock Cafe. 720 was the opener.
October 4th I was setting up an ethernet cable at Cole’s Cafe in Shaler. I had to run the line through the ceiling and when I was almost done up front, I was standing on the stainless steel counter not knowing it wasn’t screwed into base. The one end went up and I had to jump off and landed on the ladder / step stool and hit my junk. I was in so much pain and there was a lot of people around.
November 15th I cut my back yard grass to say hi facing up towards the sky. I was hoping that someone in a helicopter or airplane would see it.
November 23rd The Mondaze played with the Composure, Handguns, and Sparks the Rescue at The Smiling Moose
2013
April The Mondaze did a photo shoot with Abby
May 1st I saw a fireball flying through the sky through my living room window. It was confirmed that a metoerite landed in Kittanning, Pa that evening. It looked liked something that took out the dinosaurs.
Went to the Grand Canyon in October when the government shutdown occurred.
