Following Our Yellow Brick Road

This morning James and I got the most disturbing wake-up call of all... THE FIRE ALARM.

Ugh. Throw on warm clothes (it was in the 30's this morning in NY!!!!), grab the fiddles and computers, and run outside.

Good thing to know we would have no band right now if the fire had been any worse... Matt was in the shower. Panther thought he heard it, but David assured him it was just his alarm... Still not sure exactly how that one worked. (???) Turns out someone threw their ash tray in the trash can and the trash caught on fire. OOPS.

After a little Starbucks to jolt the ringing out of my ears... I was ready to go for our show at Jefferson Community College in Watertown, NY. It's Chilly up here!!! And Miguel isn't even with us ;)

It was another great Spring Fling with crazy inflatable jousting, laser tag, caricatures, free food and balloons! They had an awesome tent set up for us. But once we got the stage set up... well... this was one time where it was advantageous for me to be short!!! The front of the tent almost hung down in my face! Almost... :) But then we taped it up and you could even see David's face!

Big thanks to Adam Pate for my new favorite artwork hanging up in the trailer! Seriously took him less than 5 minutes!


And thanks to Mary and all the students that brought us here!!!




Our awesome sound guys - Mike and Tom!






After the show... we found... TERIYAKI!!!!!!!!! It wasn't Seattle. we have still yet to find ANYTHING that lives up to the teriyaki phenomenon that exists in Seattle... The search will never end.


Umm. First door we saw when we walked into the hotel for tonight. I really wish we were staying in that room.


Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Anybody Want a Thin Mint?

Today was our second show in Washington State. :) And we got paid in girl scout cookies. Anybody want a thin mint? Cause we walked away with a whole case!!!

We were at Naval Station Everett, and the event was called their "Fall Kick-off", and the day couldn't have been more perfect for such an event! It felt like fall. A crisp, cool breeze, a bit overcast, burgers on the grill, an outdoor show. It was perfect. And it didn't rain!! WOO HOOO! That's a win right there. :)

We started off the morning by taking a ferry from Bremerton to Seattle. I had Ivars clam chowder for breakfast :) Normally my stomach wouldn't go for that, but I have been looking forward to Ivars for over a year now!!! MMM... It was just as good as I remember. And the fact that we were riding on a ferry, eating food, hanging out and talking while looking at beautiful scenery... well, that was WAY better than driving!!!

James is very special. So much so that he had his very own tent today. They had huge tents covering the staging area, but the very back end wasn't covered. It would have just left his drum set and him without a cover, so they put an entire tent just over him. Pretty awesome.


This was our whole crew that took care of us!

Julie was our girl!



These dudes were JAMMIN. The younger brother on the right was air drummin like his life depended on it! And they picked the perfect spot for a picture. I think the steps were a GREAT idea guys!



And this whole family sat in the front the WHOLE concert!!! They were the first ones to rush the stage for Devil!

And here's a little something for farm boy:
Allene the beautiful girl at the end was born in a gas station. They joked that they couldn't call her "Ethenol" ;) So her name is "Allene" LOVE IT! (Unless they were pulling my leg. Which is totally possible. But I'm pretty sure they were serious)

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~Natalie

Dalton Rockin'

I now have a new association with Dalton, GA other than carpets!!! :)

We played at Dalton State University and were supposed to be their first concert in front of their new bell tower, which is beautiful. But the dark clouds were hovering above, and with our luck lately, we all decided not to take any chances. We set up at the indoor location, which was pretty awesome, too!

I even had my own personal cheerleader in the front row! Diego!


CAB who booked us to play!

As always, there's tons more pictures up on facebook!

And I have already been sent an article from the school's newspaper about today's show!!! So COOL! (And timely :) )

DSC students enjoy Stovall's music during "Week of Welcome"

Rachel Brown

Natalie Stovall hadn’t been to Dalton before Thursday, but she drew a packed student center when she performed during lunch at Dalton State College.

The violinist-singer-songwriter from Nashville was invited as part of the “Week of Welcome” events the school’s Campus Activities Board organized for the first week of fall classes.

Stovall performed on the Grand Ole Opry as a member of the Opryland Kids Club when she was 12, graduated from the Berklee College of Music in Boston and has performed on the Oprah Winfrey Show and at the White House for George W. Bush.

Stovall said she began playing violin at age 4, auditioned for and was accepted to the Opryland Kids Club when she was 10, and has been performing in various venues ever since. She said she used to “obsess over Michael Jackson” growing up and has always been drawn to the energy of live performances.

“I guess my goal now is to be on the Grand Ole Opry again but with one of my original songs,” she said.

The 27-year-old’s band members are drummer James Bavendam of Seattle, guitarist Miguel Cancino of Santiago, Chile, and bass guitar and vocalist Tim Denbo of Indianapolis. Stovall and her band perform at colleges, clubs, performing arts centers and military bases among other venues.

Charles McKay, a student event volunteer, said he was pleased with the turnout. Organizers first learned of Stovall at a recent convention of the Association for the Promotion of Campus Activities in Atlanta, he said.

Amber Hollifield, a second-year history major from Dalton, compared Stovall to pop country star Miranda Lambert and said she believes Stovall has what it takes to make a big name for herself.

“I like this kind of music,” Hollifield said. “She’s really good.”

Sophomore drafting and design major Alex Mendez said he hadn’t made plans to attend the concert, but Stovall’s energetic music and good looks made him decide to stick around for an autograph after the show.

“I got a hug from her, she signed my CD, and I was real happy,” he said.

Peace. Love. Fiddle.

~natalie

Thanks Washburn!!

Washburn University posted an article and a video today. Washburn is in Topeka, Kansas. :) We did the radio show on 94.5 that morning, and a tv show in the afternoon and then this show at night. It was great, we played "Standing My Ground" at 8:00am, 4:30pm, and 9:30 pm :) That makes for a good day!

Here's the little clip they posted!



Yeah - I talk with my hands. I was even aware of it consciously DURING that interview. My Granny says that my Grandpa Tom talked with his hands, too. :) At least I know where it comes from.

I also found myself on another website today :) This one is a little bit different from any website I've ever been featured on :)
It is all about an RF5B motorglider.
Yup!!! My father-in-law has a glider. I have gotten to go up in it twice to see Seattle from the air. It is the most peaceful place in the world to be soaring with the clouds in a glider. It is amazing when he turns the motor off. So BEAUTIFUL up there. He has built an entire site dedicated to RF5B's. It is really fascinating. And if you click on "Photo's 1" you'll get a glimpse of one of my rides!

rf5b.com

We drove most of the day again today. We started out at iHop... and Hootie was apparently feelin like it was a "wheat toast" kind of day :)


We went to Lowes and sealed up the trailer... well... James sealed it - he's the only one that could reach it!


We have landed in Syracuse, NY for the evening and are planning on staying for 2 nights. It will be SOOO nice to not have to get up and leave at check-out. Staying in the same room for more than one night is such a luxury! We stopped to see Watchmen tonight - Hootie's been waiting on it to come out. He read the comic book, so he was excited about the movie. It was good - fascinating visually. I enjoyed it, but I was prepared... Hootie had prepared us all for what to expect :) Who knows what I would have thought if I had just seen it on a whim - I was always intrigued by the previews.

Peace, Love, Fiddle, and Goodnight!
~natalie