Touring Changes!

In case you haven’t heard…you haven’t heard from me. In awhile. Like 8 months.
I was an idiot and I’ll tell you why. I went El Cheapo and built my site in Iweb in the spring of 2010. Ah…those were the good months.

Around January 2011, all heck broke loose. My website-my carefully planned website-became unusable, unretrievable and unpostable. I am not sure if all of those are legitimate adjectives, but I plead the stressed-out case before you.

I continued on with life, saving up my money to hire a professional to build the template. And while I waited, life did not stop. Tours were to be tended to, family was to be visited-the life as I knew it, kept moving forward.

There are road side attractions that must be discussed. Like this giant blue whale on Route 66.

There were near-misses here in Tulsa as tornadoes touched down in Joplin, nearly destroying the city.

There were camels to be seen, new foods to eat, cities to explore…

…and of course my weird husband doing weird things in his hotel room. Like standing in front of a cow picture, bedecked in a zebra print bathrobe, holding a bottle of wine, posing and taking a picture of himself with his phone. Yep. Weird.

I’ll share with you my new adventures, like: places to eat, weird things that have been witnessed, beauty captured by my camera and stories that need to be told.
The world is a large place and I plan to tour it all. Welcome back.

Johnny (Cash) Knows What I Mean

This year has been a whirlwind of tours. We’ve crossed deserts, seen snowy mountains and experienced gorgeous sunrises. We’ve also seen some freaks, but met some nice peeps and overall-had a lovely 2010. Here are snippets of my top ten places we’ve visited from this last year.
I’ve been everywhere, man.

Number 1:
I love to play practical jokes on unsuspecting musicians. It helps them not take themselves too seriously. Plus, it makes me laugh.
Sort of a win-win.

Number 2:
Marfa, Tx is smack dab in the middle of nowhere. It’s filled with a unique art community that made us all feel right at home.

(photo courtesy of Malcolm Schuyl at http://www.wildvisions.co.uk)
Number 3:
I had a bit of a run-in with a snow goose while driving David Copperfield through the frozen tundra of Canada.

Number 4:
Visiting Sturgis, SD was quite the eye opener-complete with halter tops, leather chaps and helmets adorned with horns. Weird.

Number 5:
There are many things to love about Austin, Tx-and the  St. Cecilia Hotel tops the list.

Number 6:
Slapped in the face with a little dose of Mexican reality snapped me out of a pity party.

Number 7:
Biceps is a passionate man-especially when it comes to stage performance. So passionate, in fact, that he got scolded during a show for doing very naughty things.

Number 8:
My mother-in-law has a knack for searching out some of the coolest stores. She introduced us to a store called ‘Victory’, and it changed our lives.

Number 9:
I like to focus on the beauty found in each town we visit. But, there is a seedy underbelly that from time to time humors me.

Number 10:
There is much more Woodstock, NY than hippies. Much more.
I have enjoyed sharing our year of touring with all of you, my dear readers. I hope that you have seen some places you are inspired to visit, and perhaps some that you will avoid…
Happy 2011 to all of you!

A Lovely Bed and Breakfast in New Mexico

Typically, Biceps and I aren’t the Bed and Breakfast types. Here are some reasons why:
-We enjoy being freakish recluses while on tour.
-We love a 24 hour fitness room.
-And crazy enough, we like a private bathroom.

But every once in awhile, we feel the need to interact with normal human beings.
The kind of humans that wake up before noon and enjoy practicing proper hygiene.

This Bed and Breakfast, Lundeen Inn of the Arts, is situated in the historic district of Las Cruces, New Mexico and it is gorgeous. It was the answer to our mid-tour slump and the solution to our desire for a reciprocated conversation that had nothing to do with music.

After being showed to our room (complete with a private bath, mind you), the ‘hostess’ encouraged us to explore the surrounding property at will.
The meandering paths led us to cute outbuildings-surrounded by stucco walls and framed by desert landscapes.

We sat under the ancient trees in the courtyard which shadowed us from the midday desert sun and talked of the things we missed back home.
After being philosophical for way too long, we decided to retreat back to our room and enjoy the view of the Inn from our balcony.

But not before taking this shot of Biceps. This man is dangerously handsome.
Any who…the Lundeen Inn was a wonderful respite from the touring life. It almost made us feel like we were normal human beings once again.
Almost, but not quite. That just doesn’t happen overnight.

My Robe, My Chicago

A hotel room that offers a robe invites my weary soul in, covering me in a luxurious white fabric that is too impractical for me to actually own. It’s that little bit of home that is missing when I’m on tour. And since Biceps cannot sleep in a room that isn’t the temperature of the North Pole, a robe is a much welcomed amenity.

The Hotel Sax is situated right on a little river that runs through downtown Chicago. It is near everything your little heart desires. (The hotel did not pay me to say any of this. In fact, they would probably prefer not to be associated with such “kind” as myself….)

Slithering into the hotel lobby in our grungy tour clothing, doubled with my ripped suitcase eaten by the bus bay door; we felt out of place.
A bit under dressed. And a little dorky.

We hopped into the first available elevator, averting our eyes from the other normal humans-the ones without backpacks stuffed full of bagged salads and boxed wines.

Just on the other side of our door was the oasis we needed. I drank in the small, but tastefully decorated hipster room. I did not drink the ten dollar bottle of water ‘offered’ to us from the mini bar.

The mirrored nightstand added that whimsical charm you don’t often find at a hotel. Plus a little bit of humor when one is shooting such things in a frenzy.

I love a hotel bathroom with a little va-va-voom. Typically, we encounter a tan explosion with a little more tan for contrast. This bathroom not only had the ‘voom’-it came complete with the ‘va-va’-wonderful soaps, lotions and thick towels.

And after a long hot shower, I opened the closet door hoping against hope for what I really longed for.
And Hotel Sax did not disappoint.