Happy Earth Day with UNT and TWU!

I spent more time outside on this gorgeous Earth Day than ANY other day so far this year. It was one of the most "Earthy" Earth Days I have ever had!!! No free ice cream... still... but a WONDERFUL Earth Day none-the-less. (I used to always tell myself I would go to Ben &Jerry's in Boston on Earth Day because they give out free ice cream that day.... but I never did make it!)

We began this beautiful day at 6am when we left Commerce to get to Denton. We began loading in at the University of Texas at 9am. This was our second time at UNT. They were having a huge Earth Day celebration -lots of booths and things out on the quad. And y'all - it is HOT in Texas!!! I was wearing a coat last week in Maine... no coats needed here! The stage was in a beautiful spot, but there wasn't a cover for it.... so this little fiddle playin' white girl got BURNT UP! I actually burned myself once on my instrument, too. I had put the fiddle down to sing a song, picked it up for the next, and the chin rest was so hot it burned my face!!! CRAZY!


This is Brandon - he gave the BEST intro for us last year... but he was in class when the event started so he didn't get to today. I missed him :)


This lady was so sweet. She was visiting the school to pick up materials for her daughter who wants to go to UNT after High school :) We had a good chat.


And seriously?! This was the SMALLEST SNAIL I HAVE EVER SEEN! It was on my fiddle case - definitely had a hard shell. We put Miguel's guitar pick next to it so you could see how tiny it was! And you can see it's awesome trail... that trail took him at least 20 minutes :)


SO after the show at UNT we had to quickly pack up and head to the next gig!! We played UNT from 11-1. And then our load-in was at 3:30 at TWU. So we had just enough time to run by Jason's Deli (love that place) for lunch.
Texas Women's University was another outdoor Earth Day/Spring Fling/ Home Week event. They had EVERYTHING!!! Inflatable obstacle courses, inflatable gladiator games, one of those harnesses so you can flip around on a trampoline, and a PARADE!!! It was so cute. All the different clubs and organizations had decorated golf-carts. And they gave out prizes galore to the winners in the parade. SO MUCH FUN!
We played at the end of the event, and it was a great show. But by this point.... I had turned into a lobster. I was REALLY red. Even Miguel burned a little bit today.... and he's CHILEAN! So you know it's bad! Even thought we played from 6-7 - the sun was still really bright. SO I decided to wear my hoodie onstage to cover my arms. I know I'll be thankful later (you know, for not layering myself ONE more time with that lovely bright red sunburn), but it sure was UNBELIEVABLY hot!!! :) Oh well...

At least my arms match my shirt :)
These girls were AWESOME! They knew all the words to "fancy" including the back ground parts. It was impressive!


These kids were CRAZY during the show. I loved them. They were all singing and dancing and we hung out and talked a while after the show.


We all had problems with our instruments. Instruments + direct sunlight for extended periods of time does NOT = a good thing. As I was trying to start "Even Alaska" the D string popped on me.... so I just detuned the white one and retuned it back up for the next song. But then my bow... my poor bow...
Good thing this was an extra and not my nice one!


And let me just say - Stacie and Randy are the most incredible people in the world. We are staying with them tonight in Dallas and they always take such amazing care of us. Stacie even bought wash cloths because I was asking about them the last time I was here. We all played a little shuffle board earlier.... that game is AWESOME. I had never played before but I loved it. James and I got beat by Randy and Miguel... 2 out of 3... but it was CLOSE! ;) Randy's almost a freakin professional!

It is so wonderful to stay with friends and family on the road. We don't have the luxury of being able to do it often. But that's probably good because we sure do appreciate it when we get to!

Peace, Love, Fiddle, and Shuffle Board.