Farm Boy, Nino's, and Snow.

First of all...

Farm Boy. I love you and your way with words. I don't say it enough. I know I don't always respond, but I ALWAYS read your comments. It is still the first thing I do before I sit down to write my blog for the night... I look to see what my favorite Farm Boy Fan has said. (For those of you who get to the blog through facebook or other means... you don't see his comments. You have to actually got to the http://www.peacelovefiddle.com to see the comments. But believe me, they are worth it!)

On to TONIGHT. NINO'S!!! Our favorite bar in Findlay, Ohio! (And one of our favorites in the country). Nino, Rob, and the guys at Nino's are just so great to us!! they ordered in some of the best pizza for us :) And the crowd was awesome. DEFINITELY not a Thursday night crowd... more like a Saturday night crowd ON a Thursday. : )~

Umm... IT SNOWED on us. We drove 8 hours today... well... we left at 8am... lost an hour and arrived right at 7pm in Findlay. It rained on us the WHOLE trip... that is, until we crossed the border into Ohio. Then it started snowing and even accumulated on the car. The roads are like an ice skating rink.... We all were sliding around the parking lot. And Panther even bit it pretty bad outside the hotel. Poor thing :( But he's ok. He's the Panther. He can handle it :)

Mark and Janice came!!! They took off work tomorrow and drove 2 and 1/2 hours. I just love them. Seriously. Sweetest people in Ohio.


My Ohio Cowboy, Kyle, who I met when we played at the University of Findlay this time last year... then again the last time at Nino's and then tonight he brought tons of friends!


Having some fun with my new friends :)




Lindsey - what a sweetheart. Love her.


A late night jam session even broke out after the bar closed - Rob fell in love with my Night Hawk that David plays in the shows. :) He sat in with a guys on some Rolling Stones, Nivana, Van Halen, and Stevie Ray Vaughn... Oh Yeah.


Peace. Love. and More Snowy Fiddles!
~natalie

I ♥ Fort Benning

Our last show was on Saturday for the Trainees at Ft. Benning. If you saw the Tour Diaries uploaded from this week, then you saw a bit of footage.... but I have yet to try to put it into words. :)

We've played at Ft. Benning before. The first show we played there still ranks as one of my all time most memorable and favorite shows. The guys were chanting my name at intermission, and they were one of the best crowds I have ever played in front of. And there's youtube footage to prove it. ;)

This time they were putting on a similar event. But they had to move the event indoors from the field where we were supposed to play. The snow that pounded southern Georgia last week caused a lot of shifting of well.... just about everything. They had to split the big giant event into two smaller events. We were playing for the "I. A.M. Strong" Tour which is an uplifting entertainment tour emphasizing the "I. A.M. Strong" message of sexual harassment and sexual assault prevention.

The I. A.M. acronym stands for Intervene. Act. and Motivate.

The tour is headlined by Leigh Jones and she was such an inspiration to watch and talk to. I was honored to be invited to be a part of this event!

I can't tell you how powerful it is to be in a packed room with this nation's finest. To have the opportunity to provide entertainment for them is a gift, an honor, and a pleasure. And those boys sure know how make a girl feel welcome :) It's an incredible feeling to stand on stage in front of the men (and women... but it was all men at Ft. Benning) that protect, sacrifice, and serve this unbelievable country. And I don't think I have never been called "Ma'am" that many times in one day!!!

One of my favorite memories of the whole show was right afterwards. I had to quickly help clear the stage, but then of course, I ran out to talk to the guys and sign autographs. They were all in full Army fatigues, but the guys working the event also had on orange vests. They had all put on their "I. A.M. STRONG" t-shirts that were given out at the event. And one by one. Each of those fine boys lined up, opened his orange vest, nodded and said "Ma'am" as I signed their shirts. Ahhhhh. I could get used to that!!! :)

And standing there with them after my show... I listened to the message of I. A.M. STRONG from Danny B - a soldier who is an incredibly talented rapper. He knows how to get those guys to pay attention and he got them ALL RILED UP!!!! It's such an eye opener to be in the room with those men. They have so much love for this country and their brothers. To get a glimpse into that is something I could never put into words.

Plus I feel an even stronger connection and pull to Fort Benning because that is where my own Daddy trained. Even though I wasn't even a thought yet, I feel so much pride when I am there.

As if getting to play for them isn't enough... they gave each of us the Fort Benning coin!



And here's a little more about the purpose of the I. A.M. STRONG tour.

The entertainment tour was designed to help military communities realize:

* When I recognize a threat to my fellow Soldiers, I will have the personal courage to intervene and prevent sexual assault. I will condemn acts of sexual harassment. I will not abide obscene gestures, language or behavior. I am a warrior and a member of a team. I will intervene.

* You are my brother, my sister, my fellow Soldier. It is my duty to stand up for you, no matter the time or place. I will take action. I will do what's right. I will prevent sexual harassment and assault. I will not tolerate sexually offensive behavior. I will act.

* We are American Soldiers, motivated to keep our fellow Soldiers safe. It is our mission to prevent sexual harassment and assault. We will denounce sexual misconduct. As Soldiers, we are all motivated to take action. We are strongest together.

'nuff said.

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Opening For Gretchen Wilson!!

We dropped James off this morning at the Atlanta airport at around 4:30am, and then pressed onward towards home. It started snowing right as we hit Monteagle Mountain, and didn't stop until I got home. I know this all of this unexpected snow has caused many problems and frustrations for lots of people. I know it makes it difficult for this part of the country where we aren't prepared for it. But at the same time, there is something so magical about all of this beautiful snow gracing us over and over and over again in places where we don't normally get to enjoy it!

Even on that awful drive from Augusta to Ft. Benning where the roads were almost as bad as the ones in Texas (where we had to cancel a couple of weeks ago)... it was so beautiful and majestic and storybook-like that it feels like the Universe is telling us all to pay attention. These things are what we make of it. And yes, it can be a harsh reality. But it can also be a wonderful reminder of God's beauty. So I say a prayer tonight for all that have endured hardships and loss due to this crazy weather. And I also give thanks for being surrounded by so much beauty!!!

The Gretchen Wilson show was SOOOOOOOO much fun. It was a bit disappointing that we had to do it without monitors. I kept switching my earplug from my ear to my back jeans pocket... depending on which thing I needed to hear more - my voice (earplug IN) or my fiddle (earplug out). But ideal situations rarely happen. And I was so excited that very little could have disappointed me about the show. The room was packed and the snow did NOT keep people away.

I met Gretchen in the bathroom before the show and we talked for a while about the snow and the possibility of cancellations, and then she told me about their make-shift sleds they made last week in Tennessee. I could feel my heart beating harder than normal, and I told her how cool it was to be opening for her. After we finished talking, she walked out and told someone outside "I just met Natalie in the bathroom". It was so funny! Before I could even tell the guys I talked to her, she told someone ELSE that she met ME!!!! :) That was awesome.


The show itself was awesome. The crowd was electric, and they were so gracious! I know most of them were there to see her, but they sure did make me feel the love! And we put on a great show for them. I couldn't hear my fiddle at all and at one point I looked down and saw that my E string was a D#. Not cool... but I tuned quickly and that was really the hardest part of the show. I did start getting out of breath during a few songs because my adrenaline was pumping so hard and I was putting so much into it, that my body couldn't keep up. :) That's the way it should be! It's such a high!!!
Lots of pictures have shown up on facebook... I just grabbed these two quickly... Thank you Melanie Carver for posting!



My best friend, Sarah, drove all the way down + a surprise guest to come to the show. They got stuck in traffic in Chattanooga and Atlanta, AND it snowed so hard they had to go 45 most of the way. They got there about 30 minutes after my set ended. :( After all that. But we got to hang out the rest of the night... I hated they couldn't see the show, but it was amazing to have them there. The surprise guest was my former bass player and wonderful friend Amy Sporleder!!!! Amy is now playing in Sarah's band. I still can't believe they made the long trip down there!


There are pics of Gretchen and me somewhere, but I didn't get any on my camera. I will acquire them soon, I am sure. But this is us at the merch table. Gretchen and her merch guy were both VERY gracious and let me continue selling my cd's and t-shirts throughout the night. Even when she was in the booth signing.
Here we both are signing stuff - I think this was one of the times where the audience member wanted me and her to both sign a Gretchen t-shirt:


At one point, she poured a BIG shot of Jack Daniels for herself, her merch guy, and then handed me one. When Gretchen Wilson hands you a shot, you take it. And I did. :)

A few people had her sign my shirts and cd's which was so funny to me :) Awesome, and funny. And then Sarah had me sign her Peace Love Fiddle Tee and then got in line and had Gretchen sign the other side. I liked that. :)


So the night was amazing. I have some incredible fans in Augusta and surrounding areas that showed up. We've played there at the Country Club twice before, we used to play at a bar called Coyote's, and we played at Fort Gordon last year in May. There were people from ALL of the aforementioned places. Michelle, who made a blanket during my Fort Gordon show and had me sign it last year, brought me roses AND made me a scarf which was so beautiful!!! It was just so great to have some real fan support at the show. And I can't wait to play in Augusta again! I love it there!

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Surprised Kitty

Even though I am SURE he's already seen it...

I dedicate this video to my 2009 Peace Love Fiddle Commenter of the year: Natalie's Favorite Farm Boy Fan



It never gets old :)

Speaking of things never getting old.... My sweet puppy hates being cold and/or wet. She's a little Miss Priss. So she will leave one foot off the ground and hop on the other three if the grass is wet or snowy... as if that actually does anything or keep her from getting any less wet. Even so... it makes me smile every time :)

She spent the day playing with her awesome Christmas hedge hog that makes grunting noises. Love it.
Santa has to hunt these days to find an animal she doesn't already have. Poor little deprived puppy dog.

THERE'S STILL SNOW ON THE GROUND!!!!! Which equals complete happiness from this chick. :)

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Snowed In

We are SNOWED IN in Iowa right now!!!

We woke up to a winter wonderland. The snow hasn't stopped coming down, and the wind is FIERCE! It blows the snow all over the place, and there was a huge drift right outside of Grandma's door that made it hard to stomp our way inside!!!

It is currently 3 degrees... don't even want to know what that is with the wind chill!!! The roads are frozen solid. Our plan was to leave tomorrow, but we're not sure how good of an idea that will be. We'll have to see what everything looks like when we get up in the morning. :)

Hope everyone is warm and safe and cozy tonight. I never get tired of the snow. I like that you really can't go anywhere. I always wanted to know that feeling in Tennessee, but I never got it until I moved to Boston... and then acquired a family from Iowa! :)

Peace. Love. and Snowy Fiddles.
~natalie

It's All About The Small Things

Grandpa Dick Gholson was buried today in a plaid shirt with suspenders. It was perfect.

And it sure feels like he's already pulling strings from above. As we left Grandma's house to go to the hotel, right at about midnight, the roads were COVERED. The snow has been coming down on and off since last night. And by tonight, it is just nasty road-wise. We were just pulling out of the neighborhood, and a semi was sitting on the hill... the man driving was waving his arms out the window. We barely saw him, and stopped after we had passed... well... and slid a little as we stopped.
James got out of the car to see what he needed.

He was lost and had no idea how to find where he was going. We didn't know either, but James took the time to look up the address on his phone, and after a while, they both got it figured out. They even figured out the best way for him to turn around and get back going the right direction.

It would have been easy to say, "Sorry man. We're not from here. We have no idea where that is." The snow was pouring, it was pitch black, and we were ready to get back to the hotel.

But Grandpa would have NEVER left him sitting there. Grandpa was always the first to help. Talk about a man with a strong sense of community. It's something that we could all use more of in our lives. If there was a chance to help out a friend, a neighbor, or a stranger, he was the first in line. He probably would have even cleared a path for the trucker... knowing him.

Even though that is a very small thing... it wasn't a big deal at all... it was very powerful to already have an opportunity to carry on his legacy the same day he was buried, immediately as we left Grandma's. And the fact that it was a small thing - well he's a man that understood that life is ALL ABOUT the small things.

There have been so many moments that have happened since he passed that have felt like he had a hand in. And even the way he has been acting the last few months as we all look back on our last conversations with him. It's like he knew. And whether he was just preparing because of the surgery or he actually had a sense of his time on earth being finished... who knows. But he certainly spent a lot of time and energy the last few months making sure he had all his loose were ends tied up.

We all love him so much. And the stories and poems and letters that his children, grandchildren, and friends shared today were just perfect. He was so loved and he loved so much. What a beautiful family he has raised and grandfathered and great grandfathered.

Today he was buried with the SOIL... NOT DIRT... THE SOIL from his own farm.

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Superstitious Much?

We made it back to Iowa safely tonight. I was so pumped for the first 6 hours of the drive - it was FLYING by. Not having the trailer allows me to use this revolutionary thing called... CRUISE CONTROL. It's amazing what a difference that makes - my back doesn't hurt, and we can actually drive the speed limit the whole time. What a concept! Well... until it started snowing. As SOON as we crossed into Missouri, the snow started to fall. BIG SURPRISE. Missouri is NOT our lucky state. I'm not one to be superstitious... but it's pretty unbelievably consistent.

We were back on that same stretch of highway again tonight where our wreck with the semi happened. UGhh... I was having to go between 35-45 on the interstate because I couldn't see the lines. The snow was covering everything, and it was coming down pretty hard for the last 4 hours. It doesn't scare me normally... but being in that same spot... well... every time a semi passed me, my whole body would tense up.

But we're here now. Safely. Thank goodness. We'll be spending the day with family and friends during visitation tomorrow. It's gonna be a full day of celebrating Grandpa and everything he means to all of us. There's never a shortage of Dick stories. Believe me :)

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Santa Needs a Swimsuit

It's been a LOOOONG day of driving. And I think I drove a stretch of interstate I've never driven before! We drove through Chattanooga and up to Knoxville. When you're coming from Nashville to get somewhere - you either go through one or the other... you never go through BOTH. It was weird.

But we got to stop at our favorite exit of the last 6 months - Hattiesburg Mississippi - for lunch! We have eaten in Hattiesburg way more times than we've eaten lunch at home since the summer!!! And we've never even played a show there! It's so funny how sometimes we get routed in ways where we keep stopping at the same place around the same time of day. McCallister's is usually our restaurant of choice. :) Some of the locations still have chocolate spoon cake!!!! MMMMmmmmm.

You something that's funny?? We were sitting in Red Robin (mmm Red Robin) tonight and Christmas songs were playing. I had this realization that I bet Christmas songs in America sound really funny to Miguel. It's summertime in Chile right now! He said that he always feels sorry for Santa Clause - when he has to make appearances outside... that red suit get HOT.

Snow, sitting by the fire, hot chocolate, bundling up - American Christmas songs all have SO much of that in them! And for Miguel, well... it's going swimming and suntan lotion and short sleeves.

It's all about perspective. :)

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Stowe, Vermont

What a weekend!!!

I can't say enough about how beautiful Stowe is. We could see a bit more of the landscape this time instead of just piles of snow :) But I like the piles of snow too... SOOO different from Tennessee.

The show on Friday night was really fun. It was a good crowd and a really good show on our part. There were a few key dancers on the dance floor that NEVER stopped. They kept the party going the whole evening.

The first person that came up to me was a very sweet girl who said "Are you Natalie?" I said, "Yeah." She said, "I heard you have a Chilean in your band!" And I eagerly pointed at Miguel. She was off!!! Miguel is quite popular in Stowe :) There are a lot of Chileans and Peruvians that work at the ski resort - and their housing is across the street from the Matterhorn! There was a whole group that came to support him.


John had the coldest job in the bar. He was our doorman both nights, and brrr. But at least it was 30 this time rather than the -15 we experienced last time - THAT was REALLY cold for him.


Saturday was quite a day. We had 2 shows. One was up on the mountain and then the night show was at the Matterhorn again. We were a bit concerned with the first show. Naturally, I was a worried about singing for 8 hours in one day.... they were both long shows. But even more so - we had to tear all our gear down at the club, load it into the trailer, drive 1/2 a mile up the road.... (and then the logistics of getting into the ski resort.... WHEW! Absolute chaos.), set up everything, do the show, tear down, reload the trailer, and then go unload and set up and do a whole other show.

We had NO idea what the show was going to be like at the ski lodge. We have a few days in April where we will have 2 shows in one day, but none of those will be 4 hour long shows.... So this was the day we were all the most apprehensive about. You know what, though? Everyone there - Everyone - helped out so much. Paul was a freakin workhorse. And everyone at the lodge was pitching in. We had a long way to load in all the gear - up an elevator through some curvy hallways and then through the dining area to the stage. But it didn't FEEL that way. It is amazing how when a lot of people pitch in to help - the work gets done SO quickly. Everyone's hospitality made the whole situation SOOO much better.

So the ski lodge? Gorgeous. It was GINORMOUS. (yes, that is an actual word people. Well, not really, but it should be) It was this really open room with food, a bar and glass widows all the way around so you could see the mountains outside. I have never played a gig before where I watched people skiing during the show!!! That was pretty cool, I must admit.

The show was from 2-6 (although set up took longer than usual, and we got a late start. But everyone was cool. Normally that would STRESS me out - but it was obvious we were working as fast as possible). And there were so many kids there. We had one group that pulled their chairs right up to the front of the stage. And did they sit in them? NOPE. They STOOD in them and screamed "You're AWESOME" and "You Rock" the whooooooole show. It was pretty amazing. Needless to say, our show was a bit different from a bar set or a typical "Natalie" show. I tried to incorporate the kids as much as possible. Especially since they were such a great audience!!!

These were the main front row girls who attracted MANY MANY more throughout the set. And I signed the one little girl's pink cast which she is showing off here. :)



This little boy was adorable!!! He was so shy when it came time to ask me... But he wanted me to sign his ski helmet. THAT was a first!!!


Signing ski boots was another first!




Ava wanted me to sign her hands. "Natalie" on one palm and "Stovall" on the other palm.


Then ALL of them wanted it:


Miguel gave a guitar lesson:


And James let a British chick play his drums:


There was a birthday party with about 200 people there too. It was Jim's 50th birthday! But Jim had a guest who was not prepared for the music. She came up to the stage and yelled at us - said she had to listen to us for TOO LONG (She was ANGRY) and wanted us to turn "all the way down"! I tried to be polite, and said "Ma'am, we only have 2 songs left, and then we're done." That did not matter. She kept yelling. But the song had already started. And no matter how much I tried to reason with her... she wouldn't listen. Even though it was 5:50!!! I wish stuff like that didn't get to me... but I found myself trying to sing "quieter". Ugh. Can't win em all. But the rest of the ginormous room seemed happy. :)

We finished the show, I signed some more interesting things - the inside hoods of jackets, tags or shirts.... you name it. Then we packed up and headed back down the mountain to the Matterhorn. When we got there, Gerry had his horse "Annie Oakley" tied up at the post. As soon as I got out of the car, he announced to everyone in the parking lot (he had been at the show the night before) "There's the singer!!! Natalie, come on. I brought Annie Oakley down for you to ride" I was SO excited he was gonna let me ride her!!! I shared one pic a couple of days ago. This was me right AFTER the ride.



Hootie got a turn, too. Right before he got off of her, she did a full body shake, and nearly shook him OFF! It was hilarious.


The show was AMAZING. It was PACKED just like last time. And I was really excited because there were a lot of people who had seen us there in January that came back this time!!! That always makes it fun.


This guy had me sign his shirt last time :) So he wanted to keep the Tradition alive I guess!!!


I had never met a world famous dog trainer before! But this is Alex and he's the trainer of Ashley Whippet. It is quite an amazing story - he and his increible dog Ashley have been on the David Letterman Show, The Today Show, you name it! Ashley has caught a frisbee on it!


It was the first time a fan has ever made and brought chex mix to a show for me!!! And mmm. mmmm. mmmmmm. He makes it with Worcestershire Sauce - just like my Mamma does!


These guys were all from the Harvard Business School. Pretty cool, huh?


Look at how much fun they are!!!


The Matterhorn did not disappoint. It was so incredible last time, that I didn't want it to be a disappointment this time. They had told us the season was winding down and it might not be as crowded, but it was AWESOME!!! It's just such a great bar. They have amazing food, enthusiastic clientele, and they even have Woodchuck on tap! HECK YEAH!!!! It's just good people, you know?

So after an amazing show, we are getting ready to head back to the hotel at 3am. James gets in Paul's car, and then Hootie, Miguel, and I are taking the Suburban. But as we are getting in the car, there is OBVIOUSLY a party going on inside the building we are next to. Miguel said, "OH!!! That must be the party they (the Chileans) were telling me about!" We walked in to see what was going on and we saw all these people who had been at the show. Everyone was dancing and getting down to Reggaeton (which was new to me!) and people were just having a good ole time. It was really fun. We couldn't stay because it was so late, but I wanted to!!! They were having so much fun. Ahh. Vermont is just filled with good people.

Driving back to Tennessee was looooooooooong. But good. And I love it here. Home is a good place to be. If only for 2 nights. :)

Peace. Love. Fiddle.

How Do You See The Days of the Week?

We woke up to a bright, beautiful day in Arkansas. The snow had mostly melted away and we were off on a safe journey here to Topeka, Kansas. :)

We stopped at iHop for lunch - it was PACKED. That was really strange for us to see :) We are usually in iHop in the weee hours of the morning.... when no one is there... but lunchtime on Sunday is hoppin!! (hehee, I just made a funny) They got backed up in the kitchen (or maybe our order got overlooked) and we sat and sat. We weren't a bit annoyed - we were just talking, but I had noticed that people who were seated after us had already finished, and we hadn't even gotten our food yet. They finally brought our food out, apologized for the wait, and told us they were going to take 40% off. Well, heck yeah! I hear that!

Heeey.... I like ihop. Jim Gaffigan? Anyone?

So while we were waiting... and waiting :) We got into an interesting conversation.

How do you visualize the days of the week? When you are picturing them in your head, do you see them in a straight line? A vertical line? Are there colors assigned to each day... or shades?

I'm not sure when I became conscious of it, but I visualize the days of the week in an oval-like shape. Kind-of like an egg with Wed at the top and Sat and Sun at the bottom at the base.
They don't really have colors, per-say, but just shades. Mon and Fri are the brightest... like a burst of light is hitting them, Wed is a warm color.... like a darker blue.... Sat and and Sun are darker.... brownish to green.

I know I can't be the only one who thinks about this. But I do think maybe it is strange that I visualize them in a circle.... cause my whole life I have seen them written out in a line. I wonder why? I picture the alphabet in a line... And numbers are in a line.... kind of a diagonal line... going upwards... slightly.... but each group of 10's has a different shade.

But I'm curious how everyone else thinks about this. The guys all say they visualize them in a straight line. But Miguel agreed with me on the shades.

K. I'll stop.

Peace, Love, Fiddle,
~natalie

Snowballing

Miguel and both shoveled snow for the first time ever today. I know I risk many people hating me for saying this..... and I am FULLY aware that I would NOT feel this way if I HAD to shovel all the time - but as a first timer - it was fun! :)
I kept looking for more places to melt a little more - we got down to just ice and they couldn't chip it fast enough for me. Miguel had never shoveled either. Paul loved us :)



It's so good to have a day when we didn't HAVE to be somewhere. I was more exhausted when I woke up this morning than I have been in a while... it hasn't helped me to go to bed any earlier than normal... considering it is 3:00am right now. But it's nice to not have to curl my tremendous amounts of hair or put on full make-up :) We've gone pretty non-stop since we left Nashville, though. I mean, there hasn't been ANY downtime until today. It was all driving as much as possible, sleep as much as we can before we get up and drive as much as possible again to get to the next destination. We definitely don't get paid for the shows!!!! We get paid for driving to and from and loading and unloading!!! THAT's the "work" part. The performing is the relief.

I can't wait to have a ginormous stage, eh emm.... like the GRAMMYS. :) I just get so inspired when I watch shows like that. It feels so close. And in all reality - that's just "a song" away. It's amazing how that 1 magical song can launch an entire career and make millions of people pay attention to what you have been doing all along. I mean look at Taylor Swift and all that she has accomplished in the last couple of years!!! And it started with an incredible song. But the girl has the songs to back it up and the personality to carry her through a career for the rest of her life!

I have so much going on in my head right now. It kinda feels like I have a ton of creativity balling up inside me like a big giant star that's about to just come BLAZING out. And I have to attribute much of that to YOU. Yes, YOU who is reading this right now. :) There has been this unbelievable energy around my shows lately and the blogs and the myspace, facebook, and twitter sites. Everything feels like it is snowballing. There was a while that I felt like I was at a bit of a standstill. I guess it was adjusting to the inns and outs of touring and building the business side. There's been a lot to learn and I am aware that I will never stop learning. But now it has all come full circle. The creativity is BACK. And it's just a stewing and seasoning right now. :) I'm guess I'm having to let it simmer in my brain a bit before I am ready to share it with everyone else.

With that said... I am ready to let it simmer while I slumber.

night night!

~nat

Bates College

We played at Bates College tonight in Lewiston, Maine!

Ummm... the snow here is RIDICULOUS. I saw a car that was almost completely buried. It is piled up taller than me on every street. I just can't imagine living like this! I mean, I LOVE LOVE LOVE snow. But, that isn't really fair. I have never had to shovel a sidewalk. So I have a very pure picture of snow... For me - a flake of snow meant NO SCHOOL!!! growing up. Actually the THREAT of a flake of snow meant NO SCHOOL! so you know.... snow = pure happiness

The show was great tonight. A lot of students came out in the 3 degree weather (I'm sure the free chai tea and yummy cookies didn't hurt anything!) There were a couple of girls that started 2-stepping during "And Then Some" which REALLY impressed me. There wasn't a dance floor... but they just adjusted and kicked off their shoes. It was great. : )
The student paper did a great write-up for us too!

Bates News Article

And I have to say a big thanks to Meg Crocker for posting videos and pics from the evening!!! I lost my uploader thingy... so I can't get pics off my camera until we hit up a Best Buy!!! But Meg posted lots of pics on facebook -



She had them all up by the time the guys and I got done watching Lost in the hotel! Speaking of... Good Lord! That show is just bananas. I really need to go back and watch all the previous episodes because it's getting to the point where I can't remember half the stuff that's happened. Lost is so addictive. Actually, the last time we were in a Hilton Garden watching Lost - it was our first time in Hilton Head, SC. I remember that so well. We barely made it to the hotel in time to watch it on tv. We've given up on that notion... television, that is.... it's streaming online for us kiddos these days.

We head to Bristol, Rhode Island tomorrow. But it's only 3.5 hours away!!!! We get to sleep in!!!! I am waaaaaayy excited about that. Well... except that it is already 3:30...

yeah... I'm going to bed. Here's hoping for a Best Buy run tomorrow. And maybe a Red Robin? Mmmmm... food... NO! SLEEP!

k.

peace, love, fiddle faddle

If You're Ever in Jonestown, PA...

The guys and I drove for 16 hours today.... we stopped about 95 miles short of Scranton. Scranton was our goal - it was where we wanted to sleep tonight. (Plus, it makes me feel cool to stay where The Office is supposed to be set :) )

But this RIDICULOUS snow storm started. It is gorgeous - huge puffy, beautiful flakes - the kind that you yearn for as a kid and the kind that DEFINITELY gets schools closed in Tn. But also the kind that is NOT good for driving. As we were trying to make it to a gas station, a few trucks passed me in the left lane and when they'd go by, I couldn't see the road. It was ALL white. So, yeah, we decided to stop for the night.

We're in Jonestown PA and the first hotel we came to was a Best Western. Now, normally I really like Best Western's and this one looked brand new. But this one is not on my "favorites" list. (And for some strange reason I feel like I know a thing or two about reasonably priced hotels... hmm wonder why??)

First of all they keep the door locked this late at night. No big deal, but there was no where to ring a bell or pick a phone to let someone know you are standing outside in the freezing cold. I walked around 3 times trying to find a way to notify the night attendant, and then the automatic doors closed ON me. Umm.... how does THAT happen??? Then, when I finally was let inside the second set of automatic doors, the man inside abruptly said "We don't allow oversized vehicles". I know I looked at him strangely. I mean, REALLY!?!?! It's a Suburban pulling a 5x8 trailer.... And I guess, yeah, that would be considered "oversized" but it only takes up one extra parking space. Plus out of ALL the hundreds of hotels we have stayed at over the last few years traveling, no one has ever refused us a room because of our vehicle. It's not like it is a semi. But whatever. It probably wouldn't have irritated me as badly if I hadn't just been slammed in by their door and battling the crazy blizzard outside. I get it's not his fault or policy. And I wasn't rude or anything. I was just very frustrated.

So then we went down the street to the Days Inn. SCORE!!!!!! This place is AWESOME!!!! And the guy at the front desk, John, wiped away all my frustration. He was overly accommodating and just so friendly. After I checked us in, we started unloading the car. Right before we got in the elevator, he let us know that he had just gone up to our room and turned on the lights and the heat. WHO DOES THAT!!?!? That was THE NICEST thing in the world he could have done for us. What an thoughtful man. And the room... It's a business suite, so it has a full kitchen, two beds, a pull out couch (so Hootie and Miguel don't have to snuggle tonight) and a whole little office area.

See? Everything happens for a reason! I am SO glad we aren't at that grumpy Best Western.

Plus, this place inspired some good music! I know it may seem strange, but I come up with a lot of good song writing ideas in the shower. I came up with a really cute one tonight. It's one of those that I can hear almost the whole song - I just need to work out the details of the lyrics. But I know what I want it to say :) So after I showered, I got all bundled and went out to the Suburban to have some quiet to record my ideas. (I say that, but really what I mean is that I get embarrassed about recording song ideas in front of the guys so I have to go somewhere else) But yay!!! So that's ummm over 10 songs that I need to finish now??? Good Lord! That's a whole album! How awesome would it be if they were ALL album worthy!?!

So now I must sleep. We have to leave early early. It's 2:30am and we have to be at soundcheck tomorrow in Maine at 7pm. With all this crazy snow... who knows how long it's gonna take us.

Whew. Life on the road is crazy.

The moral of this story? If you ever get stuck in Jonestown PA - stay at the Days Inn.