Maryville. All Rained Out :(

What a bummer!!!!! I was really excited to play in Tennessee today - it's so seldom we get to play this close to home. We arrived safely in Maryville around 6:30 this morning after a long overnight drive from South Bend. Grabbed a few hours sleep - just enough to rejuvenate and get all refreshed for a show!

We got to the school and this awesome singer songwriter - James Trimble - was playing an acoustic set. We unloaded all of our gear from the trailer (with LOTS of help from the students! THANK YOU!) got it to the stage... and then the dark clouds came a-rollin in.

After waiting a few minutes to see what would happen... we rolled all the heavy gear and amps back into the trailer and put the instruments close by under a roof. We headed in doors to wait out the rain. It got to the point where the radar looked like we were in the clear and the rain had stopped so we headed back outdoors. We unloaded the trailer again. Got everything onstage, started unpacking... and Guess what?! Even BIGGER drops started coming down.

We started packing up our gear and rolling is back to the trailer like a pit crew!

At this point the stage was all wet and there was just no way to set up electrical gear :( The inflatables all came down because the generators have to be shut off with the rain. Ughh. It was so sad. The students were SO sweet and helpful. Maryville College is on a gorgeous campus in Tennessee near Knoxville. BUT... no show. Oh well. Hopefully we'll get to go back sometime and ACTUALLY play.

They said they haven't had this event outside in 5 years. And this morning was gorgeous with a tiny chance of rain. BUMMER.

But the students ordered us food from this local restaurant called The Tomato Head. It was UNBELIEVABLE! I hope we get to go back sometime soon. One of the best sandwiches I've ever eaten! It was called the "Oh Boy!" And there were TONS of options for David, too. Normally he has to find whatever dish has the least meat and ask them to leave it out. But today he had as many or more options as the rest of us!

Now we are on I-40W headin home!!! We'll be there less than 24 hours, but hey! I'll take what I can get! We have just enough time to get some laundry done... drop off Miguel to welcome his newest child into the world, and pick up our sub guitar player for the next couple of weeks!

Yee HAW!

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

The Monkey And the Restless

WHAT?!?! It's time to go back on the road??? REALLY?

That's a great thing. But I really feel like I just blinked and the holidays and this big ole chunk of "time off" was over.

We have gotten SOOOO much done. But there are still many loose ends that haven't gotten tied up just quite yet... i.e. our new trailer... we ordered it a while ago, but with the holidays... they have just now put it into production... so it won't be ready for this first trip. Not a big deal. But that also means there are other things that we can't take out on the road with us because our original trailer is too small for anything extra.

But no matter!

James and I went to Costco today and bought SOOO much stuff for the band retreat this week.

We are excited. The band is heading down to Port Stovall on the Tennessee River. We are locking ourselves in to rehearse the new material for this year.

Since Miguel joined the band 3 years ago... we have not had a full on rehearsal with sound equipment. How crazy is that??? So this is a big deal!!! I remember the days where ALLLLL we did was rehearse... and never gigged. Now we are the opposite. We gig so much, we never have time to rehearse. We learn new songs by running through them acoustically in a hotel room somewhere, run it at soundcheck and hope for the best!! This is going to be such a treat. (And great bonding time with the newbies!)

Cinnamon just found her Christmas hedge hog and is going crazy right now playing with him. He makes an awesome grunting noise, which drives her nuts. The Vet prescribed her an antihistamine today because she has been wheezing and sneezing non stop the last few days. Who knew a dog could take an antihistamine?! So cute!

I don't want to leave her. :( She's the one thing that makes me sad to leave. But that's why we're working so hard. So I can take her on the road WITH us!!!

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Happy Birthday Jenn!

Pikeville College Has Won My Heart

WOW.

We saw a part of America on our drive today that I have NEVER seen before. Many times, even when we are in different parts of the country... it all looks pretty familiar with the same gas stations and restaurants over and over again. The landscape changes, but we don't always get to see much from the interstate.

Today we were driving on state highways through beautiful parts of rural Kentucky. We saw GIANT coal mines and almost every car that passed us on the highway had some sort of coal mining sticker on it. I've had Loretta in my head all day :)

And OH MY GOODNESS. I think the most beautiful rainbow I've ever seen was present today for almost 45 minutes! It was a DOUBLE rainbow, and when we came around the curves just right to line up with the mountains... we could see the WHOLE thing. We could have chased down that pot of gold on both ends if we had only had the time to stop!
I was driving but James was able to take a picture at one point...


And THEN the gig!!! There were pianos in all the dressing rooms... the auditorium we played in was beautiful... the lighting guys they hired were fantastic... and the students were SO GREAT!!! They had a student singer/songwriter open for us. Nick was GREAT. And then we played our show and had a blast! We even got em up out of their seats for that last few songs!

And let me just say.... our catering tonight? RiDONKculous. Steaks, shrimp, taters, green beans (the way Mamma makes 'em), awesome sweet tea. We PIGGED OUT. Actually, there's a trash can full of plastic fork casualties somewhere at Pikeville College tonight. Tim Denbo broke more than one at his attempt to attack his steak! :)

My awesome "Merch guy" who was mistaken as a band member :)


Cute girls!


This crew saw us at Put-In-Bay and came to see us tonight!!! They were a riot and sat right in the front row tonight!!! It was so cool to see them again :)


The students at the last few schools have been SOOO incredibly helpful with unloading and loading the trailer. And tonight was no exception. You have NO IDEA how much easier our lives instantly become when the students help out. Famous people have roadies. We have ourselves. But lately it has felt like we've had roadies because the students have been so willing and eager. Those things don't go unnoticed and it is something we ALL talk about in the Burb later. As silly as it may sound? It makes the shows more memorable for us when they start out with that kind of help.

So yeah. Great night. Again.

And we have 1 more show on the road for the year. WHAT!?!? Whoa. I can't believe it.

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Pulled Over In Louisiana

Had a LOOOONG day of driving today. Maybe it's because I know it is the last real trip of the year... but the 14 hours in the car today seemed more difficult than normal.

However, we started over with the first season of the West Wing... which ALWAYS helps long drives!

I got pulled over tonight. I was very confused when it happened. But we had been going back and forth from 65 to 45mph zones and even though I was being extremely cautious of the speed limit I was worried I had gone over a little bit.

I pulled over, got out my license and rolled the window down. A SECOND police car pulled up behind the first at this point with lights on. As the officer approached the trailer, he very loudly said, "Driver, please step out of the vehicle."

Whoa.

Actually, I think it was a unanimous "Whoa" from everyone in the car when we heard that.

I stepped out, and he said "Ma'am, step back here please."

The first thing he said was my license was expired on the trailer. THANK GOODNESS MY DADDY EXPLAINED THIS TO ME! Thanks Daddy! I explained to the officer that it is not required by the state of Tennessee to even have a license on the trailer, and that we were told that most states did not require one. We had gotten the license out of courtesy, but were told there was not really a need to update it.

Of course, in the state of Louisiana, you DO have to have your license up to date.

Turns out he pulled me over because our chains were dragging. So I found a bungee cord and pulled them up so they wouldn't drag. He scanned my license and let me go.

But WHEW. I was fine during the whole thing. I knew I had done nothing wrong, but I was definitely shaking once I got back in the car and took a deep breath. Goodness!

I think I was actually older than the police officer, which was kind of strange.

I guess I should also say THANKS MAMMA for instilling in me: "DON'T SPEED!!" I hear those words resonating in her voice in my head every time the speed limit changes. Even if I wanted to, I feel like she would be cringing somewhere and not knowing why. So I just don't chance it.

But we're here now! And I am ready to sleep. Night night!

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Thank You Darsey's!!

We are back home in Tennessee. It is hard to believe that we were in my father-in-law's this morning in Seattle!!! James and I flew back to Atlanta, called our favorite Nigerian limo driver (who had JUST bought a brand new Suburban - new from the one he picked us up in last week) and headed out to Norcross to pick up our own Suburban and trailer.

We had parked it at the Darsey's who graciously let us park it in their drive-way while we were on the west coast all week. We were able to leave it there for safe-keeping - even though they had never met us before we showed up on their doorstep at 3am the night before we left!!! They are friends of my mother-in-law, and now friends of ours :) And don't the kids look AWESOME in their Peace, Love, Fiddle Tees?? They were wearing them when we showed up!


(I'm not sure who to credit for the awesome photography skills, but she was one of the neighborhood kids, and she was only about as tall as my waist. I see real photography potential in her future!)

We left not one but TWO permanent marks on the Darsey's pavement right in front of their driveway. We felt horrible, even though they reassured us it was no big deal. The angle of the driveway did NOT like the bottom of the trailer... there was just no avoiding the 3 foot scraping.

James and I were beat on our drive back to Tennessee. We weren't sure how we were gonna make it. But Austin Powers, Arrested Development, and Starbucks helped us get back home. And now we can spend time with our sweet puppy who has been very sick while we were gone. She's back to her "boiled chicken and rice and cottage cheese" diet per the Vets orders. So she's a happy monkey!!! She loves her chicken and rice. :) And I love being home to take care of her. Even if it is only for 1 day. Soon monkey. Soon you'll get to come with us.

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

500 Days of Summer

Tonight we went to see a movie that was adorable and funny, endearing and heartfelt, and just a great story. I think the way they opened the movie was one of the funniest ways I've ever seen someone open a movie. (I will admit that I laughed harder and longer than anyone else in the theater when I saw the said opening...) But it was a clever little jab to what I will assume was the writer's ex. :)

I hadn't heard anything about this movie at all, but James had read a little about it and showed me the preview. We liked all the people in it - Joseph Gordon-Levitt (3rd Rock from the Sun & 10 THings I Hate About You), Zooey Deschanel (Elf, Yes Man) and "the schnozberries taste like schnozberries" guy from Super Troopers.

I'm not sure what to call it, but I was so impressed and intrigued with all the different story-telling devices they used in the film. A lot of times films will pick one or two and stick with them... but this one sometimes used a narrator; there was one really over the top dance sequence complete with a Cinderella-type cartoon bird that winks at the camera; lots of flash forwards and flash backs; there a split screen sequence with an "expectation" side and a "reality" side; one time the frame stops and the scene becomes a drawn sketch; and there's even a French movie spoof which is used as a metaphor for the main character's self-indulgent misery. You'd think it would get sticky or confusing with so many different things going on, but it never does. Everything comes in at the appropriate time and only enhances the charm of the film. I feel like a film critic right now, which I'm definitely NOT. So I'll stop jabbering about it and just show you the trailer!



And the music is great! So all in all? Awesome date night!

Peace. Love. Fiddle and Good Movies.
~natalie

Cinnamon's in My Nook

After being on the road for the better part of the last 5 months...
Here's just some of the things I LOVE about being home:

NOT having to be packed up and checked out by 11am.

Cinnamon (my sweet puppy) in my nook when we sleep

Catching up on "The Office"

JJ's fruit tea!!!!

Holding hands with my husband

Laughing and reminiscing with Granny

Driving my Jeep Cherokee (even though she's barely hanging on - we've passed the 220,000 mile mark together)

Driving WITHOUT the trailer!!!!

Hanging out with my parents

Cinnamon relentlessly licking my face until I have to make her stop (cause I have to be able to breathe!)

NO housekeeping knocking and ignoring the "do not disturb sign"

Taking baths again!!!

NOT having to put a toilet seat cover on to pee (gas station bathrooms... while I feel they have improved... still wouldn't trust em!)

Getting to do laundry (never thought I would LOVE that one so much)

Coming home to honeysuckle and the greenest GREEN I have ever seen!!!

Sleeping on my awesome pillows I got for Christmas

Purity 2% Chocolate milk

Shopping at the grocery store


And that's just after one day :) Who knows what all I'll be thankful for tomorrow!!!
Now... I'm off to dream with Cinnamon in my nook... Let's hope I don't have any crazy "Jurassic Park - style - T-Rex is after me" dreams like I did last night. That REALLY wasn't cool.

Peace. Love. Fiddle. And Hopefully Sweet Dreams.
~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

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.

New Trailer!!!!

We got a new trailer today!!!! So.... as an homage to our first trailer...
I give you the "officially retired" Homesteader Runner Challenger:



Look at that boy... You can tell he's been through a wild ride! Yeah... we only had him for 21 months, but he withstood over 100,000 miles, 3 suburbans, 32 states (I actually just wrote them all out and counted!), 2 countries (that one time we "accidentally drove through Canada.... but that's a WHOLE other blog), ending up in a ditch after being bashed in by a semi, and most recently a blow out on the highway... Pretty amazing to think of all the things we went through with this trailer.

And now we have a beautiful new (well... used, but new to us!!!!) trailer that has..... drumroll please... TRAILER BREAKS!!!!! We REALLY needed to get them before we head up to Vermont next week in the crazy winter weather!

I don't think there are words to describe the feeling of being able to open and close the new trailer door. Seriously. You think I'm kidding. But for almost a year, the door has been so jacked up that we had to use a huge belt strap that went all the way around the trailer to reinforce the door.It took all 4 of us to secure the thing for James to actually tighten it around the trailer. We were so accustomed to just "assume the position" when the door needed closing. And the most frustrating part for me was that my hands were too small to deal with the belt strap on my own. So I ALWAYS needed help (if I didn't want it to take 20 minutes JUST to open the door) with getting the trailer open. I don't like that. I want to be able to get things done myself. And I don't like feeling like a "girl" when it comes to things that have to do with this business... I can load in just as much gear as the next guy. It may take me a few extra trips.... but it'll get done! That is, unless the door to get to the gear is closed with a heavy duty belt strap... not cool...

And since I already took the time to write them out.... and I am pretty amazed when I look at the list.... I am going to copy and paste now the states that have seen us on the highway henceforth:
Fl, Wi
Ga, Mi
Al, Pa
Ms, Md
La, De
Tx, NJ
Ok, Ct
Ar, Ri
Tn, Ny
Sc, Ma
Nc, Va
Ky, Mo
Ks, Co
Ne, Ia
Il, Wv
Oh, In
Ontario, Canada :)

That blows my mind! We've done lots o' travelin the last year and a half! Wow. We leave for Texas in the morning.... and when we get back from our Texas trip, we'll actually be adding a few new states to the list once we hit New England. This trailer is getting broken in pretty quickly! Texas to Vermont... think of ALL those states :)

And to completely derail from this topic:
I went to see Ruth Collins tonight at 3rd and Lindsley. She put on SUCH a good show. If you don't know her as a solo artist, you may know her from "Can You Duet" on CMT. She was part of Wild Honey. :) Ruth and I go way back... to college :) And then she and James were roommates until this last May. Cause, you know... he got married and stuff in June :) And she sang a song we wrote together called "Lottery" tonight. It was so fun to hear a song I wrote from the audience. Actually, I think that may be a first for me! Whoa! That is crazy!
She is one of those people that just has an innate ability with melody and lyrics. She is such a talented writer and artist and I am SURE you will hear big things from her.
Check her out!
www.myspace.com/ruthcollins


peace, love, fiddle y'all!