Musician's Widow

It snowed today.

Again.

When they kept predicting it leading up to today, a little part of me was skeptical. We hadn’t exactly gotten “warm” this week (since last week’s week-long snow shut down), but I had dared to wear short sleeves under my jacket this week instead of the heavy sweaters I’ve been living in for the last, well, month.

Besides, we get snow here in Nashville, but really? We’ve already broken our yearly average. So maybe the forecasters were being a little over-zealous in their predictions of 1″ – 2″ of snow.

Instead, as if right on time, around 3 pm it started to fall. Then it seemed to dump snow!  My husband and I, of course, had to go outside to experience it.

Again.

This time, though, it was coming down hard enough that I could hear it falling! I was a bit amazed by that fact. It sounded a little like a soft rainfall, only lighter. Less staccato on the roof, and more like a drummer using a brush on his snare drum.

Two teen girls walking up the street after school were singing “Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!” at the top of their lungs, much to our delight. I snapped a few photos of the snow, and even as part of me is slowly getting a little tired of the traveling concerns that accompany snow… I still remain amazed by how beautiful it is, how quickly everything quickly sparkles under its blanket of white.

Oh the snow stopped almost as fast as it began. Temperatures will keep it around for maybe a day, then it’ll melt… getting ready for our next chance for snow a few days down the road. We are currently the snowiest winter since 2003. At this point, I wonder if we won’t even break that record this year. It’s only mid-January, after all. At least 8 more weeks of winter to go…

Growing up in Texas, I really didn’t see snow. Not enough to talk about at least. We got ice with a little bit of snow, usually only enough to make a four inch tall snowman. So, upon moving to Tennessee, snow was a mystery to me. Magical, even.

It snowed yesterday, and I couldn’t help but once again marvel at the curious nature of snow.

• As it falls, snow glistens and sparkles in the street lights. It comes down around you without a sound. It somehow turns even the ugliest locations beautiful.
• Snow turned everyone into kids again. Grown adults reach for the closest thing they can find to turn into a sled. Snowball fights break out. Snowmen get made. Someone is bound to flop over backwards and create a Snow Angel.
• People forget how to drive in the snow. My husband used to joke that in Tennessee, people see a snowflake and run into the nearest tree. Sadly, he’s often not far off. You CAN drive in snow (if you HAVE to), but the rules are different and it is going to take you longer to get where you are going. So many people forget this, and news reports end up littered with accident reports.
• Because of the last point, people feel the need to empty the shelves of bread and milk. Always its bread and milk. At least get eggs to make French Toast! How about a little fruit? Or some meat?
• Coffee and hot chocolate just taste better when there is snow on the ground.

I wouldn’t want it to snow all the time; a few more days of it I’ll be tired of it. Ready to move on again. But, as the snow continues into today, I’ll continue to marvel over its curious, magical nature. I’ll continue to enjoy its beauty outside of my window.

We’ve officially entered fall, my favorite time of year. I love this season more than the rest for so many reasons.

Fall is…

• cool temperatures.
• warm colors.
• pumpkin patches.
• corn mazes.
• Oktoberfest… both the festival and the beer!
• birthdays galore (including my own!).
• Pumpkin Spiced Latte and Carmel Apple Cider at Starbucks.
• Football!
• festivals and county fairs.
• open windows during the day.
• hot chocolate at night.
• Halloween and Thanksgiving.
• Columbus Day and Veterans Day.
• trick-or-treat!
• turkey and dressing.
• chili, stew and cornbread.
• sweaters and scarves.
• hayrides.
• tailgating.
• laughter and new memories.
• the best time of the year!!!!

"Drive Dunk, Get Nailed" cars are popping up around Nashville...

This week has been one for the record books for me. Simply due to how “different” it really was from beginning to end.

Many probably don’t know that I work at a hot dog stand in a bar in downtown Nashville for extra money. It’s a fun job and I get to listen to amazing live music, have a drink if I want one, and meet all kinds of interesting people. Not a bad day at work!

However, the week was kicked off with a strange Sunday in which the downtown in general was just dead. Not even Broadway could boast much of a “crowd.” And adding to the strange quiet of downtown, our full band didn’t start until midnight! Ultimately, I think those of us working agreed that we should have just closed early and cut our losses. Surely Monday would be better.

Monday, however, simply upped the strange factor.

A torrential downpour left my husband and I doing 20 mph on the Interstate as debris from trees swirled through the air, and our ability to see ahead of us was diminished down to a few feet. Once the storm cleared and we were able to go again at a normal pace, a woman in an SUV pulled out in front of us. She merged onto the Interstate, crossed two lanes into our lane, doing maybe 40 while we were going 70. It was physically impossible for us to slow fast enough to not rear end her, and I’m still thankful the next lane over was empty and we could swerve around her. Its not the first time that’s happened on a Nashville interstate to us (apparently checking to see if a lane is clear is not necessary, and turn signals don’t come standard on vehicles here) but it never ceases to leave my heart pounding wildly.

That evening’s highlight was getting to have dinner with my husband at his lodge meeting before going to work. THAT was a treat. Work, however, was simply bizarre again. Downtown was once again pretty much dead, but the city’s homeless were moving around a lot.

The night ended with a homeless woman rushing into the bar demanding that I call 9-1-1, because “he’s laying on the steps bleeding! He’s all beat up!” The woman said she and this man had only been in Nashville three days. However, she could not tell us who or where “he” was. My husband went with her to look, but came up with no one.

About half an hour later, the lady came back hysterical again to call 9-1-1. This time, my husband and the lead singer of our night’s entertainment went with her together to hunt for her friend. They did find the man this time, looking like he’d been beaten up and passed out in an alley.  My husband called for help, and soon three police cars, firetrucks and an ambulance appeared to help the man. I do hope the man and woman are all right, but I also hope to not go through that scavenger hunt again any time soon.

Things looked up come Tuesday. My husband sold a piece of gear and a roadcase he’d been trying to sell for awhile. I got the oil changed in my truck for a better price than I had anticipated it costing. And we arrived downtown for my husband to play the late shift to discover a music video being filmed outside the bar. The bonus was that I got asked to be an extra in the video! Definitely not your typical night out! Everyone has their list of things they want to do someday. A deep secret dream of mine has been to be in a music video. Now I can say I have!

Wednesday was gloriously normal. Thursday, I flew to Texas for a visit with my family. My husband jumped in a tour bus and headed north to Iowa and Wisconsin. Definitely a case of our going opposite directions! Not the first time. Nor will it be the last. (I can’t leave out that Thursday was also the day that Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson both passed away, leaving the news world spinning as well.)

Now, I’ve lived in Nashville just shy of three years, and in that time my ability to handle cold weather has gotten better, and my ability to handle hot weather has diminished. So not only was my Friday swim date with my nephew and niece a priceless period of time with my two favorite kids in this world, but it was a nice reprieve from the 100+ temps!

To round out the week came Saturday. I had tickets, thanks to a friend, to see a Texas artist do a show in Waco. However, I was not aware it was an outdoor show until the night before. My parents and I went, but ended up not staying. The heat was just too much for all of us. (I suppose on my part, it also doesn’t help that I’ve admittedly gotten a bit spoiled to having a cool tour bus to hide out in at outdoor shows when I go see my husband play a show!) The inside of the club was reserved for VIP ticket holders, and with General Admission tickets we couldn’t go inside. So without reprieve from the heat, we left not long after the music had started.

Strange for me to not stay for a concert! But this year’s summer in Texas is setting record highs… and I suppose that in and of itself tops out a very different week for me. One for the books.

Or atleast for this blog.

I took my first flight in 2004, and since that time I have racked up over 114 hours of flight time on 53 flights. Not many for some people (ie, my husband), but a lot more than others. I like to consider myself pretty much a pro at it at this point.

Security is a necessary evil, and I don’t mind the hassle so much. The liquid rules have proven to be a frustration sometimes, and I always wear either flip flops or boots to fly due to the fact that you have to take your shoes off going through security. Books, gum and the ipod are blessings on a long flight. My poor laptop battery just won’t hold enough of a charge to be much company, though.

However, I sincerely enjoy flying, and even though I do get this “what if” fear in the pit of my stomach just before I board, I know its a safer mode of transportation than driving. Besides, whether you fly at night or during the day — the views are breathtaking!

I’ve discovered something on my last few trips that were strictly for “vacation.” I’ve discovered that I understand my parents a lot more than I once did.

I remember as a child, any time we’d go on vacation, as soon as we got to our hotel room, I couldn’t wait to go DO something. The worst torture was when we’d go to Dallas to go to Six Flags!!! Those roller coasters! They called out to me! And yet Mom and Dad wanted to stay at the room for awhile. I couldn’t understand. I couldn’t comprehend. Nap when so much fun awaited???

Now? I understand. I find myself thoroughly enjoying time spent in a hotel room with my husband. No cats begging for food. No laundry to do. No dishes to watch. I may bring some work along with me to do on the computer, but I can do it on my own time at my own pace. It’s definitely a “getaway.” Why rush off to do something that will be there later, when a nap beckons to me? It’s the beauty of vacation. No rushing.

Right now, I write from beautiful Portland, Oregon. Snow and rain seem to be our weather companion this trip, causing some concern as to when we head over the mountain to the coast. However, it’s also an absolutely gorgeous sight to this Texas-born Nashvillian. I’m excited to see friends and family, but I’m also enjoying the leisurely pace we have set for ourselves by planning a longer-than-usual stay. No cramming things into a few days. We have time for ourselves… time we can spend out sightseeing or snuggled down in our hotel room.

Yes, traveling can be very stressful and tiring. However, the end result — the destination — most often makes it all so worthwhile.

Snow has hit the Nashville area just in time for Christmas. I know it’ll never hang around long, but it was one of the most beautiful sights I’ve ever witnessed in all of my 28 years of life.

Blog
I’ve neglected this blog for a long time, simply because I feel I’ve narrowed my field of vision too much. I find myself feeling the need to be cryptic and vague since it is a public account of things in my life and in my husband’s career. Basically, it was a good idea in theory but not in practice. That happens and it was fun to try.

I will be turning this blog in my new column venue. When I worked at the newspaper, I did a weekly column that I enjoyed. It challenged me to come up with a new topic every week. It challenged me to be open and more opinionated, while at all times keeping in mind my readers. I miss it, to be honest, and it is time I went back to it.

My goal will be to write atleast once a week (when life allows!), and to hit on a spectrum of topics as they cross the path of my life. I’m, frankly, excited!! Hopefully, along the way I’ll pick up some readers. And even if I don’t, it’ll be great practice for me in my writing, which is ALWAYS a positive thing.