The Simple Things

JUNO!!!

Hey Friends,

I am super thankful for you folks coming to read these pages and download the Mp3’s. We hope you have been enjoying the membership and we are very appreciative of your support!

The month of May has been a full month! Many things have happened this month in the world, in our country, in our state. We got handed all these rules to be paranoid about, and many of them simply go against the nature of being human.  We gather, we hug, we celebrate and now…we are torn between “right and wrong”, “opinions of what healthy really is”, “red and blue”, “economist vs. humanitarians”, “risk, denial, and chance seekers vs. playing it safe or being respectful”.  This has been a very challenging time for everyone and for me, someone who’s purpose is mixed with building community and spreading the light, there is a lot of dark right now.

If you turn on the news it can seem like there is no light to be found. When do we go back to “normal”? Will the world EVER be NORMAL again? And for us personally, how do we keep our ship sailing financially? There are so many levels of unknowns here and I know, I am not the only one to ask these questions. Many of you are suffering from your own inner struggles with the way the world is right now. There is NO WAY for me to come to these pages and write an out of touch blurb that is puffed and “jolly jolly”! But…I can come to this piece of writing and share my compassion, for you and the world.

I can sit in this chair as I type and tell you that I can actually HEAR our chimes outside blowing in the wind (which is a rare slight miracle for me). I can tell you that if you still your mind you may notice the Simple Things around you. The sunshine dancing in the tree leaves as the wind gently plays it’s wind song. The smell of bacon still left over from breakfast. Or that hug from the dog, wow…if you pay attention, they REALLY know how to HUG!

As I was heading through the house, I leaned over Juno yesterday. She met me with as much if not more love than I had. My face berried in her fur, paused to take in this sweet beast. I could feel her little heart beat and hear her dogie breath in and out. For a moment, I felt Joy. For a moment…

Finding the “Joy in the Ride” these days is a true challenge folks, I’m not going to lie. For someone who wrote that song and a bunch of others, Life is Beautiful, Above the Rain, Keep Facing the Sun…I search too. Searching for the light and the brighter side is the byproduct of those songs. I had to work and SEARCH for that, it’s not as though I was “walking in that”. Writing a song is much like trying to catch a butterfly. You get glimpses of the feeling, laced into words or perhaps music, and if you are lucky and don’t try to “chase” the feeling down…it will land on you. And it’s fleeting yes, but it gives you a moment, a moment to take it all in. A moment to experience harmony and joy and dogie breath to make you feel at peace.

We have to keep reaching for those moments. We have to be open for the butterfly to land and give us a moment of serenity. Like one musical note suspended at just the right time…it can unlock a heart! I’ve seen it, I’ve felt it. And when I feel dead inside, I reach for music. It brings out the life in me.

And yet here I sit too, with expectations upon myself, as we all do. When given enough time, we expect we should do great things within this new “surge of extra time”. Where are the new songs? Why is that front shed not cleaned out? When are you going to get some well needed exercise? Ha! We dance in our own obligations every day and we can become our own driving force to be reckoned with and if you are like me, you are driven. I was an athlete, I was a teacher, I am a different type of musician because of those things. A part of me thrives on structure and a part of me resists structure. It’s a constant flux. A stretching of giving myself permission, expanding to be playful, to be creative, then back to the contracting of taking care of business, checking things off the list. Expand, contract, expand again.

I don’t feel like I am the only one going through this as our world is spinning to a different frequency than it was just a few months ago. People are diggin’ deep and confronted with sobering realities. It has not been an easy road as of late. But I have faith it will “Turn Around”, and perhaps in ways we would not have expected. We have to REACH for the JOY, we have to pay closer attention to the GIFT of life and all it’s beauties, especially when there is so much ugly out there right now. (Riots/Violence…etc.)

Take in those Simple Things. That humming bird that just whizzed past. The ants that gathered under Mo’s car last week, looked like an oil stain but it was moving. A sea of thousands of little tiny ants all moving in it’s own microcosm. A fascinating underground world revealed as they made their way into the cracks of the pavement.

Our picture has been dominated by the horror that has gone on in the world, but if you change your focus, you may see those small, little things, those gifts, the beauties, and the “Simple Things”.

One of our members asked us to record the “Simple Things” for your download. The original version is nearly 20 years old before I met Mo. Well, we are posting this song for you WITH the “Mighty” Mo. Take time for the little things, the simple things. Practice shifting your focus and recognizing your “driver”, perhaps that “athlete” in you that keeps pushing you to your “goal”. Being driven is great…but not if you drive yourself nuts! I have had to take some hard looks on how I treat myself. I think that is what this time is about. How do you treat yourself? What can shift, re-balance or adjust so there is a greater sense of peace and acceptance? Just ask yourself these questions in the silence of your mind from time to time. The “driver” will not be able to answer these things for you. You can not “drive” to the answer. It’s going to have to be between the spaces of your to do list. In the places and times that you give yourself to drift and day dream out in the yard, gardening or hugging the dog.

And those that are drivers and can’t FIND their drive, perhaps it’s time to let faith take the wheel. Or if you’ve never been and athlete or particularly driven, watch your mind and see if your mind is driving and your body just refuses to buy into it…then come teach me how you do that! ha ha ha!

I wish for you and myself some amazing “Ah-ha” moments in all of this. I wish for you that expectation management is met with ease and grace. And I hope you enjoy this months download. An old song, but a NEW recording.

Be well sweet ones! Stay healthy and thank you for all you do and all you are!!!

Much love,

Niccole , Mo & Juno

Gonna let my Garden grow!

Love the interaction between friends! Love the hearts too!!!

Hello beloved friends,

I hope this finds you well and healthy. Spring has indeed sprung here in Boise and there are many projects coming to completion around our home during this quarantine. It’s interesting what you get use to, isn’t it? Here in the middle of a pandemic we find ourselves live streaming in our shop/studio and preparing for it all week. This is so different than how our “normal” gig life has been.

“Normally” we have 3-5 shows a week, we lay a “blanket set list”at our feet with over 100 songs to choose from and half the time I never look at it. I look in the eyes of our audience and my “Angels” give me a nudge of what songs to play. The perfect song between our confidence and feel good and the audiences wishes and wants. Those “little voices” beckon to play this song because Dave is in the audience or that song because Jane is in the audience. It’s been such a trip playing in front of a phone camera!

The phone camera does not give you expressions of feedback, it does not applaud, smile, gesture, cheer and nor does it frown, glare, talk loudly, yawn or chew it’s food!!! *Big Smile* We can interact during a live stream with the use of a notebook on the music stand. I absolutely adore the exploding hearts that rise up the screen of all the love sent from folks listening from their homes. So there is interaction, but there are no distractions. Nothing to take you off your mark except your thoughts. And now that I am use to this, I can literally “feel” the expansion of energy. It’s truly a trip! Like when we sang Life is Beautiful last week I could feel our audience and in my minds eye, SEE everyone. Like and elevated perspective. People don’t have to physically be here to FEEL them, which was SO COOL!!!

This time has also allowed us so much! For me it has allowed a much needed space. Space to get clarity. I am one step away from the audiences needs and wants (or what I tell myself they want) and one step closer to deciphering what I want. What kind of show would I like to play? I always have my audience in mind as a priority. Even still when we make the set list days in advance of a Saturday stream show, I am adding songs from the vortex and requests from the prior week. I think about the platform that we are on now (in our shop on a camera) and I have all these other tools at my disposal like different guitars and sometimes sheet music if we really love the song but don’t have it committed to memory. This has been a wonderful exploration to just allow myself to enjoy music! I can put my full attention to this once a week show! It’s been a bit of heaven! We walk to the gig…our back yard *snicker*. The equipment is already set up. When the show is over we walk back into the house! Ha! No driving, no fending off drunken hang ons -*loud laugh*. This is very different than how we’ve done music for all these years!

I have slept harder during this pandemic than I ever have in the last 20 years of playing music. (Well, after the first couple weeks of the pandemic.) I have had to ask myself, “What is this about?” Sparing you the psychological detail, it really comes down to taking care of myself. Allowing my wishes and wants and needs to be heard and acted upon, a bit more (a LOT more). Recognizing the stress of performing, what it does to the body, how it revs the mind. How much energy it takes to be social.

I’ve known these things, but not like I know now. You know things when you get away from patterns that once held you. We can be in automatic, running from one show to another, or one social engagement or appointment and all the while, self-care takes a back seat. And if you looked at our home, there are many things that haven’t made their way into our priority. Simply because we haven’t had the time.

One thing we just completed today is a drive way! It was a great project! Fun, hard, physical and we had no one show us the ropes on how to do it, go about it or even the best tools. I had wanted to do this last Spring yet we were off and running to Oregon I think and then it got too bloody hot! We completed the task in phases and Mo was a super star! We rented a “ditch witch” and I drove that around with reckless abandon! Ha! Well, not really reckless, I was very careful actually. I was surprised how innately natural I was driving and operating one of those “tonka toys”! It has always been on my bucket list to play with bull-dozers and tractors and fun things like that.

When I was young I would mow our folks 5 acre yard with a big international tractor. I LOVED that thing! My parents never had to ask me to cut the grass…I was on it!

So I got to play, and get an adult job done. Yay! Now as our nation and state starts to “open up”, we do have a bit of concern about how it all will go. Mo and I have tried to nail down what we can and won’t do as we all honestly still need to be careful. The virus does not discern and it’s not like a parent telling us, “Ok, you’re not grounded anymore!”. I would feel terrible if our show created a population to be infected. So each venue, party, person we will need to address what the protocol will be. We will probably cancel all of our out of state bookings through the summer. Which is sad because we had some GREAT venues and parties lined up.

But there is a larger part of the picture that I get to see from all this. I get to fall in love with music again, detached from what I want to DO with music or where I want music to TAKE us. I get to noodle and doodle and get my hands in the dirt tending to my own garden. In every way, we are “tending to our own garden” right now. Whatever your “garden” is…do it with passion and a grateful heart because this time won’t last forever. And when the merry-go-round starts spinning fast again, we don’t have to step back on it.

Which leads me to your new download this month, “The Garden Song”! (Mickey your are going to love this! LOL!) Patricia Daily, a great friend of ours, who is also a fabulous musician asked if we would do harmonies on this song she was recording. So, when you hear it, you will hear the lovely Pat Daily and then we come in for the harmony towards the end. It’s such a happy little tune I thought you would enjoy! It’s really perfect for this time period too…what “seeds” will you plant? How do you want to live after this great reflection of time? How will you “fertilize” your garden? Who fosters your garden? Who brings the weeds? Who steals the harvest? Who helps weed? Who makes a feast for you from the harvest?

Instead of “All the places you will go”…it’s more like, “all the things you will grow!” Ha ha! A twist on the ol’ Dr. Sues! ;-)

We love you all. Stay safe out there! For anyone that doesn’t know how to get on our live streams you can watch live every Sat. @7pm MST from Blaze and Kelly Facebook (you don’t need to be our friend…but you are!) OR if you are NOT on Facebook, you can view the show from YouTube search Blaze and Kelly “Love” Stream and you will find the series to watch. We hope to “see” you soon, and to someday actually SEE you!

Much love,

Niccole, Mo & Juno

The treasures you find when you clean out old stuff! This was my first ever Winnie! I adore Winnie! There was a time I had a 3 foot huge Winnie I would insist to take every where. He would sit with me at Church and take up space on the pew. I would bungee him to my big wheel. This little guy is my only survivor of those old days, and I don’t think I will ever part with him. He’s a late 60’s model ha ha! And so am I!

Nic Digs!

The Crew!!!! (and supervisor Juno!)

Edging, there is no quick tool to help this…total shovel grunt work. :-)

Leveling the “playing field”.

All the stones laid out and leveled with a weed guard tucked underneath.

A finished gravel drive way! This use to be a terrible weed field. Funny how a “weed” can motivate you to make something nicer! Every time I back the trailer over this, I will smile with the satisfaction of a job well done!

Everything you have...was given!

A moment in time…a true gift!

Everything You Have Was Given

Everything you have…was given, from your life down to your shoes. Yes you went to the store.  YOU bought them with YOUR paycheck…but you were GIVEN a paycheck and the clerk that helped give you the shoes also gave you a bag to carry them in. 

Every job you’ve had, you were given. Every meal you’ve eaten was given, whether you made the meal itself or someone cooked it for you.  You were given the groceries that you shopped for, you were given gas to drive home. You were given a smile from your partner as you whipped up the most amazing spread to give to those you love. 

You’ve been given a break, you’ve been given time, you’ve been given life.  And…if you are part of the human landscape, you’ve given too.  You’ve given love, you’ve given laughs, and you’ve given friendship. This is not a closed circle.  You’ve given and you’ve gotten.  This is a circular motion; it is not something that see-saws like in a child’s play ground.  Some folks you give to and some folks you get from and it makes the world go round.  The trouble occurs when we think we have not gotten. But as long as you are breathing, look around…you’ve gotten everything.  From the car you’ve been driving to the home you lay your head, to the crowd you hang around with.  Someone made this vehicle, made this place to dwell and rest, some acquaintance GAVE you time to get to know one another. 

Life is like that.  It twists our perception and makes us feel that perhaps we’ve over given, perhaps we don’t HAVE enough, and perhaps we are lost in a delusion that there is NO ONE that gives to US. 

But the mailman still comes…to give you mail.  The trash man still comes to give you space by recycling your containers of the left cartons you’ve gone through.  The bar still gives you drinks and the musicians still play your favorite songs.  The pastor still gives you a sermon.  The dog still gives you a wag and nature still gives us a rainbow after all the water the Earth can drink.

It is easy to get on the opposite side of this.  It is human to sometimes feel sorry for itself.  But your lungs are still collecting the air you breathe and your heart is still providing blood through your veins. Remember these small miracles as you go through time.  It is often something we take for granted. Everything you have and own has been given by something be it a collective grand thought, effort, time, attention or a singular creation.  We are all a part of this circulation and it’s a beautiful knowingness when you can see the back story of every item woven into the fabric of your life. 

May it bring you peace. May it bring you joy.

May it bring you to your knees with tears of humble gratitude.

May it be an awareness that you now walk with divine knowing.

For as long as you live on Earth, take heart in being gifted and understand, what is yours to pass on.  That’s all life’s about. 

-Niccole Blaze

Hi Friends,

This is has been quite a ride huh? We were high on a cloud after our show March 12th and then like a snap…the whole world changed. It was coming, we just didn’t realize how much it would level us. It took about a week for Mo and I to come out of a dazed state of partial denial, ignorance and down right rebuking of the truth. People are dying and the only way we can insure safety is to stay away from each other. How horrible!

I know you look to these blogs and tunes for something uplifting, and I hope that the message above was something you could really let sink in, because it’s true. But this virus has been and WILL BE life changing, for a lot of us. I know Mo worked diligently to secure gigs all through the summer. We were “locked in” from here to Washington, to Oregon and North Idaho and now we are cancelled. And it sounds as though I may be describing the last sunset…BUT…hang in here with me…the Moon is rising!

And with that Moon I see the blue hue of hope! I’ve seen more people be kind to each other, on social media and when we dare take that trip to the grocery store. I’ve also seen an amazing turn towards live streaming! Since we’ve been on “stay home” assignments, we have all been more worldly. Tuning in to other countries besides ourselves. Listening and educating ourselves from people all over the world. On a macro level, this is amazing and unprecedented! Capitalistic agendas have paused…I mean, let’s face it…the Kentucky Derby was post-poned!!! *Hands on hips, mouth agape!*

Never before have we seen major sports events, music events, conferences and churches SHUT DOWN!!!! Look at that! Look at what a society can do when we all work together! And it’s going to take us all working together to spare the lives that are going to suffer from all of this.

Honestly folks…I’ve cried many many tears. I’ve drank way too much more than I should. I have prayed. I have thought of all of you. I have thought of all my friends and family. I have thought about my life. I have thought about my habits, beliefs, standards, and purpose. This is causing us to go deep. And…frankly, we need to. Collectively, on a whole…I know it’s my opinion, but I feel strongly that we need to go deep right now.

On a macro level, we need to take care of the environment. We need to be stewards of the land. On a micro level, we need to look out for one another and on the deep deep micro level…we need to learn self love. Nothing will point it’s finger at self love so perfectly as when you have NO distractions! When you have too much time on your hands and the typical go go go will not hold you up anymore.

We are staring at ourselves in the mirror and it’s going to take courage boys and girls…in the next few weeks as we begin to really slow and tap into what our subconscious has been whispering to us for so long.

We GET to slow down. We GET to have extra time. We GET to love each other more because of this. We GET to get organized. We GET to look at our habits, our beliefs, our junk in the closet we need to clean out! We GET to do so many things with this time. We GET to CHOOSE WHO TO BE!!!

We had a great “hug” at the Sapphire show 3/12! It was a perfect show to finish before this unplanned “sabbatical”. My father showed up! The girls played so well! The crowd was amazing! And we all knew on some level, the shit was about to hit the fan, and we slipped this show right under the radar!!! That was my hallelujah!

Double hugs! Nic, Evelyn (Keyboardist), Mo & Heather (Violinist)

Meghan Sandwich (our beloved percussionist)

Amongst all my “madness” of producing last years Sapphire thumb drives and organizing the last bit of details…like planning 3 weddings…my “little voice” whispered to me…”You need time Nic. You need to give yourself a break!” Well here we have it! At least 3 months of break!

Our house is a small house and we are on the go A LOT! There are things that have been piling up that we have not been able to get to. Now…we can! We GET to paint our bedroom (last room in the house to go!) We GET to have a garden this year! I GET to write a song! I GET to produce this years show!

And a Silver lining…our “Love” stream! I am so amazed by the reactions and responds we have received from our B&K Facebook live streaming!!! It is absolutely incredible! Just this week, we had 49 new “likes” to our B&K page!!! Our live streams have curated over 5000 engagements!!! This is unheard of! I have been so “lazy” putting ourselves out there on mass media! I immediately got over my fears of getting our “show” out to “unknown crowd” because I knew that our people need us (our music) and in that…people from Ohio, PA, CA, WA, OR and even Japan have tuned in!!! Unbelievable!!!

My mind grew! Why have I been holding back? Why haven’t we produced live streams before? What have I been afraid of…better yet…How can I make them great!? Better!? What can we do!? And folks…there has been some new people that have stepped onto the VIP membership! And there have been many donations that could make me cry because I’m so moved by peoples generosities! And folks…you have a new song waiting for you called, “Silver Linings”! It’s not finished…but the recording is pretty good as my skills of recording are getting better and better!!!

All these things are moving in a syncopated way. I do trust the Universe has a unique masterful design. All is unfolding as it should on a Macro level and Micro level. Even though it seems really really hard right now. There is a grand plan to all of this. People are reaching deeper, into what it means to be HERE…NOW!

“Isn’t this beautiful….here in this process…a grand development, we don’t understand…” Life is indeed STILL beautiful. This virus hit NOW 2020…not 15 years ago before all this technology. We have enough to do the right things. We have the brain power, the technical power, the inner wisdom power. The power to go within and take this break. To look…deeply at ourselves and find what there is to love in all of that!

This is a horrible time…and an incredible time! Make it sing! Make it ring! See where you go! Where the energy flows! See what you do, see what comes true! Pray a lot! Sing a lot! Wash your hands a lot! Think of everything you’ve got!!!

We are here! With you…in this process…of the unknown! Remember all that has been given to you…and all you GET to do and be! Enjoy your unfinished tune and know how grateful we are for you, your patronage, your love, your requests, your undying support!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! Hang in there!!!!

Niccole & Mo

Mo, standing in the “middle” of herself…how beautiful!

Meghan, letting it rip!

Evelyn’s nimble fingers on the board!

Heather haunting our souls with her violin!

My adorable Papa!

Mo love! With Jeremy Davis and Melissa.

“Good night friends, God Bless you, stay safe and remember we love you!”

Standing Up and Selling Out!!!

“Oh Juno, do you know…she’s a banana dog, banana dog, a waggy waggy waggy!!!”

Hey Friends,

We are heading smack into our production month. A very awesome and somewhat prestigious show at Boise’s premiere Sapphire Room concert showcase at the Riverside Hotel! The beauty is…it’s SOLD OUT and this is about the 5th time we’ve done just that! The great part is…the tickets went very quickly this time and it’s a true blue sell out! We were half full one week after they went on sale back the end of January. What that tells me is, people enjoy what we are doing. It also tells me they are learning to buy earlier as their chances for a seat will get away from them if not (and that is always sad for us too!)

So what a production entails for us is, kinda like getting ready for a wedding. There are all these arrangements to make, practice, promotion, hype, organizing players, picking songs, creating a set list, scheduling rehearsals and nailing everything down so you are prepared for the big show. The set list and the song order is about the hardest thing to determine. You want it to be a fun “roller coaster ride”…take your people on a journey with you; bring them up, then allow for some soul reflection time, pierce the heart a little bit, then back to some great laughs! I expect a lot from our shows. I want it to be an experience that opens folks or at least entertains!

With a world that is so grabby for time these days, I want these productions to be a place of “home” in a way, perhaps refuge from all the crap that goes on in the world, a moment to forget and enjoy. They can have a few laughs and a bit of, dare I say, “Spiritual food” for the soul.

This year we have an all lady band. This is a first. There is usually a gentlemen or two that join us and that is totally cool. But it is great to have the opportunity work with only women, and this is a first for us aside from our trio ensemble with Rochelle Smith on mando/vocals or Meghan Watters on percussion. We have played out in the world with our “lady band” but not at a ticketed event-production.

Here’s what I noticed while working with all women (please forgive me if this sounds total sexist, NOT my intention). No one is trying to take over. That is the biggest difference. There is no ego that is so huge in the room that wishes to dominate! So…it’s been REALLY fun to rehearse! It’s been just lovely seeing these ladies amazing energies (aka the Waggie Tails), and we want to bring that love to the stage! We will truly miss them when this whole thing is all over. We are going to have to do something else…and that is the kind of “glue” I’m talking about! There is this energy, this new “family” if you will, and you miss it when it’s over.

So we have a sell out, and I’m well aware that CD sales are dropping. Why would anyone want to buy a CD if they can’t play it? Right? All the new fancy cars and even computers that don’t have CD players. Well, I thought about thumb drives for the past few years now but people have always talked me out of it. Why?

Why have I allowed others to poo poo on this idea? Perhaps it’s because THEY are resistant to change? Ya know folks, my last name use to be Bayley. I made two records with that name, you can find them on itunes still under that name. Mo and I use to run around as Niccole Bayley and Mo Kelly.

I decided back in 2008 that I wanted to ditch the name. It was a married name (long story there) in which I was grown out. I had a huge calling one day on the road, I remember exactly where we were and it was like a lightning bolt and it said, “Change that last name!”. Actually, it felt like my Mother said this to me, with a few swear words in there and her little Jersey accent. That’s how I heard it.

I thought about it, a bit shocked and a bit grieving. That name carried me around over 15 years (like I said it was a LONG story). It was like a favorite coat you wore around. But, it wasn’t where I wanted to go anymore. I wanted something different.

Blaze is now my LEGAL name. And, akin to my family name Blaese. Everyone in the world would mess up my birth name, which is pronounced Blay-zee. Growing up and having an unusual spelling for a first name, (Niccole with 2 c’s) and then the desecration of my last name was just a tedious and constant correction for others. I have a little song I created when I was 12 that spells my name. When people asked how to spell my name I would sing it to them. Ha! Every kid in camp new how to spell my name! I imagine if I ever became a doctor I would have a song for all the bones and long medical words! Songs truly are a great way to remember things!

Anyway, back in 2008, you would not believe the blow back for me to NOT change my name. I had so many people giving me advice NOT to do it. They told me how much I would mess up my career. I already had a two CD’s out and a website and all my promo had my old name on it. And I sat back and looked at what a pain in the ass it was going to be…but guess what, “I had new fans that didn’t even know me yet” I thought, and “Blaze and Kelly has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it!?” So, even though it was hard, I did it. Even though maybe there are some folks wondering where that Niccole Bayley went…she’s right here, kickin’ ass! Ha ha!!!

So in the same Spirit of change and moving with the trends, I selected to proceed on the thumb drive endeavor. And let me just say, it’s been an endeavor! Not so much the physical aspects of getting sharp looking thumb drives, but the internal workings and technology has been a bit of a bugger!

Did you know, that EVERY song you pull into iTunes gets a thumbprint? Yes, every song comes with meta-data, which is information about that song. This allows for the artwork to be attached to the song in the car when you play it and tells you what genre it is and what order it is on the play list and who is the artist.

CD’s when they are manufactured correctly have this encoding built in. Thumb drives do not! Ugh. I’ve learned WAY too much about this technology. Thumb drives don’t have the capacity to have a menu play list. And they like to shuffle and screw up what picture goes with what song. So, there was that. I called a genius to help get me through it and he basically told me this.

Gracenote is an operating system that is the media sync for all the cars out there. Gracenote, iTunes, Spotify, Pandora…they all work together. “These people don’t want you to create and sell your own medium for music!” And it’s true, unfortunately. Infact, if I drag my mp3’s that I produced into my iTunes player, my iTunes puts a finger print on the meta-data and you go to play it in the car and it will say “Unknown”. or “Corrupt Media”! So, I have had to bypass my iTunes player to put the files directly to the thumb drives.

I’ve gone round and round with techy folks and friends. It’s been quite an education. All that is to say, I’ve created some sharp thumb drives that work! Folks can put them in their computer, the artwork shows up, drop them into your phone, blue tooth them into the car and have the music where ever they go.

If you put the USB right into the car, it will play it…after there is a rejection warning from the car but that is only because Gracenote operates all car sync and doesn’t recognize the media, however after those warnings if you still go to brows and play (or propagate the songs), it will eventually play the thumb drive. And when it plays them it will shuffle them, so it won’t be in order.

I was so holding on to the order of these songs, and my buddy told me to let that go. For some reason I wanted people to go to a folder in there car, hit the folder button and open the CD to their choosing. The more fancier cars can do this (my car is a 2010 and can not) but here’s the thing. I ran around in my car for a few days with the drive in…test driving, pun intended, and it played the drive in “shuffle”; a song I wrote when I was 29, then one I wrote when I was 36 then one I wrote when I was 42. That was wild! To bounce back and forth in my “diary of songs” which is quite a collection these days! I’m pretty darn proud of our catalog!

Deciding a price. Ugh! Well, I have 2 drives I am going to release at the Sapphire show. One will be a walnut 4 GB with 50 songs on it. These songs are my pick for “Best of” and I will provide a list of the tunes that are on there, and since that data only takes .5 GB they have and extra 3.5 GB to utilize for whatever they wish. I decided to sell that at the price point that would basically beat iTunes and be affordable. Since I have all these song…$50.00 bucks for 50 songs + a sweet thumb drive! Killer deal I think.

Next, the Sapphire show from 2019! Last years show was so fun! So epic of a night! We had Mo and I, Bonnie Johnson on electric lead, our buddy Roxx Smith on vocals, mando and Cajon, and Earl Huges on pedal steel. It was a high energy phenomenal night! We recorded it and I have been finishing up the last of the mixing and making it sound good. Wow! THAT has been a learning curve too, but I’ve had a lot of fun with it! I’ve learn SO much this last month! I am super proud of the 2019 production and I found these sharp thumb drives that are a sweet Sapphire color with our logo engraved and I will put the whole show on a 2 GB and sell that for $25.00. It’s 20 songs of unreleased material! I am excited! I know I will run into the occasional, “I don’t know how to work this thing in my car?” question. But I will encourage most folks to download it to their computer, then put it on their phones and blue tooth it. But for those that like a challenge, pushing buttons in their car, it WILL play. The folders ARE on the thumb drive!

I also know that I will get those folks that will say, “When are you going to make another CD?” And for those folks, I will say…”Here’s the drive, download it on your computer and rip it to a CD”…there ya go! Right!?

Sometimes ya just have to stand up to the change that is inevitably coming. I feel like I have my independence back with these things. They are sharp utilitarian devices and I am proud of their quality. So we will run with these and probably learn a lot. It will be the first Gen. of TD’s we do.

50 song Collection!

Live at the Sapphire! 20 newly released tunes!!!

This months Mp3!

Oh JUNOOOOOO Waggy waggy waggy do Yooou know! Waggy waggy waggy!!

Here’s the back story. We were at a rehearsal here at the house with our drummer Meghan and keyboardist Evelyn. We were hammering out the set for a few hours and we all got hungry so I ordered pizzas and Mo went to pick them up.

During the time Mo was gone, I was tinkering on my guitar and told them I “wrote a song for Juno” that morning that went something like this…. Now, I never wrote a word down, and still haven’t. I just picked up the guitar that morning and Juno came in and put her head on my feet. So I sang her a little tune off the cuff. Well, I remembered the cord progression from that morning, played it for the girls and the pair of them immediately got on their instruments and embellished what I was doing. We had a GREAT time! It was super fun!

Some of the verses were awesome, others not…but to have these ladies just chime in will give you an idea of the playfulness and vibe we are sharing. Super stoked! So note that this recording is COMPLETELY IMPROV! I had no words written down, or changes. We just had a super fun time! Hope you like it and it gives you a “waggy tail” ! What’s cool is I had no idea the girls recorded it! I was just goofing off! They GOT me!!! So here you have it! Maybe I will develop the tune to be a real song someday. Juno is worth having her own song!!! That doggie makes me smile every day!

Thanks so much for taking the time to check in with us and thanks for being part of our faithful team! We appreciate you!!!

The LOVE month!!!

Hey Friends!

Spider Mo!!!

How has the New Year been treating you? I hope you all are doing well. Crazy that the first month is already out the gate! What have we been doing all month? Well…we’ve been pretty busy the month of January! So much so that it feels like summer in a way. On one hand, it’s great for business, but on the other, it’s not great for down-time, stretch time, relax time and creative time. With about a dozen shows this month and regional travel to the mountains of McCall and Sun Valley to do some gigs, the month zoomed along!

Beautiful Sun Valley! This mountain kicked my butt!

Now, we are focused on the Sapphire production coming up! This is a ticketed event we host each Spring (well, seems to be an annual thing now) and we strive to make it a fun, energetic, unique show! We have been rehearsing with our friends, Meghan Kelly Watters on percussion, Evelyn Hadden on keys, and Heather Muleman on violin. We’ve had several rehearsals and the song selection is indeed a challenging one this go round. Last year was a piece of cake! So much so, that we really never held a full rehearsal with the whole group.

Rochelle (mandolin player) never needs a rehearsal as she is just a genius that plays with us frequently enough to know what we are going to do. We did rehearse a few times with Earl, the pedal steel player and we did a cram session with Bonnie, the electric lead player, the day before and hours before the concert. We also would shoot Bonnie a “Marco Polo” of the songs, which is a video of basically me playing guitar and teaching her over the internet, the songs we would do.

Bands take a lot of time indeed, but they are so worth it! This year, we are changing it up with the players and our music. I don’t want to blow the surprises for those attending…but, it’s going to be a moving awesome show! I just love the group we have this year, as I did in the past, yet…all these ladies are just so full of light and love! It really shows up when we rehearse and I know it will during the show!

So in the spirit of thinking about productions, I gave you a classic song right from our 2019 Sapphire production. Enjoy “Folsom Prison Blues”, with a tip of the hat to Earl Hughes! Every time I listen to his pedal steel making it’s way down that crazy scale of his, I giggle. Something about it! Just so fun!

The other thing that we’ve been paying close attention to has been our daily habits. I’ve been getting to the gym quite religiously these days. It just simply makes me a better person! I have so much space for other things when I get my exercise. AND…Mo and I took a month off to say no to booze.

People are funny when it comes to alcohol and in many ways, it is woven into the very fabric of American life, like hot dogs and apple pie. I don’t really understand it because it does so much damage to so many. It’s the only drug you have to justify for NOT indulging! Completely mind blowing concept huh?

Well..I’m sharing this with you. It is a difficult journey to not indulge when you are out playing for folks who ARE indulging and WANT you to PARTY with them! In fact, folks can get down right indignant about you NOT partying with them, as if it’s an insult. Regardless of your beliefs about alcohol and where you sit with it, I suppose it has it’s place. But, we get the right to decide how much it implodes our lives. We get to call the shots with it, instead of it calling OUR shots!

A month off (or even a greater break) is good and smart, keeping our bodies healthier and our minds clearer. We have both gotten much more accomplished, feel good, saved money and have experienced a greater sense peace without it. Our involvement with that addictive substance will be in much more moderation.

Like I said, people don’t want to hear or see that. Not all. There are some that completely get it, but many will say, “How come your aren’t drinking tonight?” And I tell them, there will ALWAYS be an excuse to drink. Forever, we will ALWAYS have some thing to celebrate, commiserate, etc. My question back to those could be…”Well, why are you poisoning yourself tonight?” Ha ha! That won’t go over too well! LOL!

To each their own on the matter. I don’t judge those who do, and can be in there right along with them, and I don’t judge those who don’t as it’s really a healthier choice. I think our culture is in big trouble with alcohol personally. And in a weird way, we are almost the “promoters” of such which, if I think about it too long, I find myself in a bit of conflict.

Venues hire us to play music…but, what they REALLY want us to do, is sell beer/wine/liquor. Ugh! And as long as WE drink (and slowly kill ourselves), we can make THEM money. I know, a bit harsh, but this is the “good, bad & ugly” right here, written on the pages of the VIP back door information. And I don’t wish to ruffle anyone’s feathers, but it is good to LOOK at our habits and ask ourselves, “why are we doing that?” Right? I mean, just check in from time to time. Just make sure WE are in the drivers seat instead of some substance, food, drug, booze, detrimental relationship…right?

Interestingly enough, you would not BELIEVE how many folks bought us a round this month! It was OFF the charts! As if the Universe was testing us to say…are you SURE you are in control of this. Well, we passed the test and offered our free liquids to our dear friends ha ha! We stayed committed to our goals. We are going to moderate on the libations from here on out and really choose, on a scale of 0-10, “How badly do you want it…or…are you just going along?” That is the question before partaking. Yes, who doesn’t like a yummy glass of wine, or gin and tonic or whatever! Especially in our case, when it can be FREE (alcohol is VERY expensive as you know). So if you get something for free, don’t be an ingrate right? See how that works and can get you into a habit before you know it? Then you step on the scale and say, “holy moly!” ha ha!!!

We are all human and like to be our social selves celebrating with others. We did very well this month and yet I know there will be times to honor the moment of celebration. I have been saying we need to see clearly in 2020…let’s see 20/20 in 2020 right?! So, the 30 day alcohol experiment was great. In fact, if you are interested in trying something like this, get the book by Annie Grace, “The 30 day alcohol experiment”. It was VERY informative!

The other thing guys…I’m at a technical pinnacle…UGH!!! My computers are getting so old that they are not letting me access files without new browser updates….grrrr!!! This means trying to download a movie to clip on here has taken FOR-EVER!!! So…what I am going to do this month is give you all a direct link to a drop box file if you wish to view the movie.

The film is of our friends Sundea + Mr. Goessl holding a concert in our shop and we join them at the end. You can watch the whole thing or scroll to the end and watch them kick butt accompanying us on “Only the Lucky” and “Deep”. I mean really! These two are just SO AMAZING!!! They listened to us play ONCE and then joined in! We were all a ONE TAKE WONDER !!! I couldn’t believe it!!! I love these two! Also, be sure to check last months download if you haven’t already. It features them covering a song I wrote, “I Love My Baby Better!”

Here is the link to the concert

https://www.dropbox.com/s/2g8w3q45cq3efcu/COTR%20Ep6%20Blazin%20in%20Boise.mp4?dl=0

If you want to scroll forward to our part with them, you can find that at about 16:16, but I think you will just LOVE their whole show! They really are super special!

So, 2020 might mean we need new computers (ugh, the mere thought exasperates me, yet…dealing with what is now will only get more frustrating as we move forward too! Pick your “hard” I suppose huh?)

I hope you have some fun in the snow this winter, if you get snow. We love to ski so there will be that! Thank you so much for being on this journey with us and thanks for taking a moment to check into your membership page to catch up! Hope you enjoy the download!!!

Much love,

Nothing like driving on bare roads only to come across the drifts at 50-60 mph! Yipes!!!

Niccole, Mo and Juno

Banana Dog….she goes bananas for bananas!!! :-)

A New Decade!

Welcome to 2020!

“May 2020 be filled with many summit highs and dreams come true!!!” - Nicc, Mo & Juno

Some of you have been with us for quite a bit of time and I am ALWAYS amazed at your unyielding support! Our livelihood literally depends on the generosities of others. There was a time I would have thought this to be perhaps a shameful, meager, or nearly “beggars” life…yet now??? I think it’s beautiful! What an exchange!!!!

We give love, music, kindness and do the best we can to SEE people, to meet them where they are; to offer up our words, melodies, fun and human moments of a live show, a memento of a song well recorded. We reinvest in ourselves with every new song, every new piece of equipment every new territory we try to break into…

And in exchange, we are met with love, music, kindness, people seeing us as we are (faults and all)! People offer us a place to stay, a meal, a buck, a pat on the back to keep going, keep pressing, keep our “fires” burning as it’s a representation of YOUR dream…not only ours.

We can only walk one path, but we hope we give you insight to a life lived differently within these pages! We hope we give you new ways to think about life, love, friendship, within the words of our songs. We hope we give you energy to overcome the worst of times with our harmonies and the clout to overcome while clearing a path to truly settle, in the BEST of times!

We can expect a lot of ourselves…always striving to better the plight, sharpen our skills, dig deeper, uncover truths, grab hold of healthier choices. I am determined this year. I feel it in my bones. A deep determination to simply be…be open, be alive, be conscious, be aware, be present. Open myself to the mystery; the mystery of so many things!

It’s a new year! What great song could come through in 2020? What awesome people are there to meet and to see again? What fabulous place could we travel? What brain space will open to allow me to drink up a “healing potion” of all that is good, all that is now, all that is peaceful? What musing? What depth? What joy? What awesome audience will reflect back to me a piece of this mysterious puzzle that is I? That is you?

Oh yes boys and girls…I know I keep reaching, in that deep mystical place. But you do too, or you would not resonate with our tunes. Ha! With you, I am comforted that the words I write do not fall on a numb ear. And write I shall!!! I am excited about it! I am excited about “how great I can become this year?!!!” as a friend, a poet, a partner, a doggie mama, a musician, a song-writer, a speaker, a story teller? I am excited about being in the best shape of my life, being open to the mystery, allowing! I am excited about the song “fairy’s” that will come through, co-writes, adventures, new sound landscapes, new recordings, the learning, the love!!!

I am excited about YOU TOO! Where will you go this year? What will you do? What adventures lie before you? What will you overcome this year? What will strike an ah-ha moment with you this year? What habits will you take up or let go? What passion will you allow to penetrate and already known heart? What will spring you to action? What will put you on the mountain top of your “minds high”?

Yes, I ask you these things, as we are all on this journey of life together. 2020! Do you believe it? We are here for a blink, a moment, a gust in the wind, a song. Some of us get 3:30, some of us get a longer song, and for some it’s just a 30 second jingle. What will be your melody? Your lyric? Your beat? Your accompaniment?

It’s pretty awesome - this life of ours, this time period, this place we are all in.

We thank you so much for joining us by our “cyber fire”! We wish all the best to you in this new decade! Mo is writing a re-cap of 2019 on our recent News Blog and I am delighted to share a great new song as this months download!

This song, “I love my baby better” was actually written on my way to Home Depo one random day over 10 years ago!!! Ha! It’s been sitting in my phone files and my conscious since then. I recorded it in my phone as I made my way to HD and then sent it to Mo. She opened the text without realizing it was a sound mp3 (think 2007, who knew?) She was in a cubicle job at the state. A very SERIOUS upstanding , adult job! She opened it and my big mouth spouted these words and cut the “library vibe” into a snickering adolescent laughter break!

We kept hold of the song and it’s endearments, me never thinking for one minute this song would be put to our collection publicly. Well then along came the beautiful, the awesome, Sundea + Mr. Goessl. They simply reminded me of this song I created long ago. Sitting on my “shelf” collecting dust. So I offered it up to them! And they honestly hit it out of the ball park!!! Truly! They made the song fantastic!

I do so hope you enjoy! This is performed by the fabulous duo from Seattle. It was a sentiment of my love for my Mozie-Mo in our private world. Some what of a jokey song really. And yet, a change of the pronouns, key signature and wicked guitar and melodica solos and you have yourself a masterpiece.

It was a great lesson, the whole sharing! In so many ways! How many other masterpieces might I be disregarding as merely a “funzie,” captured in my cell phone? You bet, I will probably be spending some time reviewing these “snap shots” of musical musings! I hope you enjoy!

I also hope you are enjoying these pages and the tunes that perhaps reflect a different angle as times go by! Be well my good friends! Have yourself the most beautiful year yet! In 2020, may we have the courage, the will, the stamina to see 20/20. Taking off the lenses of what we THINK we know, and dare to dip into the mystery of what life has in store for us!!!

All of my love!!!

Niccole, Mo and Juno

Gratitude and Winter Attitude!

Hi Folks!

Mo basting the Turkey!!! Num-num!

We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite times to gather and celebrate. I love everything about it! From the amazing food, to the gathering of people and to the sentiments of gratitude from which we give thanks!

Gratitude truly is a medicine of the mind. It remedies our “stinkin’ thinkin’” and sets us right again. It puts us back in touch with the larger picture. I am always grateful I can hit the reset button when I am feeling not so fortunate or when sour circumstances arrive. I can take stock in the things I AM grateful for and it refreshes my perspective. While attending Center for Spritual Living (CSL) a few weeks ago our beloved Rev. Jackie said something that really struck home. She said, “if you are not finding your gratitude, see where your sense of entitlement is coming in”…basically (and I’m way paraphrasing here) entitlement strips us of gratitude. This was a powerful “food for thought”. I walked away thinking, “that is so right”. When we feel entitled or “owed”, we are not living in gratitude. I rolled around with this thought in my mind for a long time. How can you be in gratitude when you are expectant. Expectant of a certain standard or outcome? How do you appreciate? That message has turned me around in some positive ways.

It’s been a busy month this past month. We zoom around quite a bit and the month of November was all about staying home, saying no and getting organized. I feel like I need another 3 months of this actually. Of course I said “yes” to things, but I also kept plugging away at the kitchen cupboards which bled over to another room and yet another room. Throwing things away, giving things away, wondering WHY was I hanging on to this or that? In some senses, I’ve been purging and going through a “Spring” cleaning in the Winter.

Why not? This is the time for us to do these things? Our Spring/Summer is a run, so when we have the time and inclination, then we organize, right? I have LOT I am wanting to get done this next year. I have a desire to know where everything IS in this house and I believe this will bleed over into songwriting.

See, when we are cluttered and feeling disheveled, writing is sometimes the last thing we do…or could be the first thing we do. I reach for pen and paper always, yet…can I FIND the creations I just wrote on that napkin somewhere in that box or file? Ha! If I can find my special pen and it’s not drowned down deep in a drawer, chances are…I can move on the muse. When the muse happens I can be ready for it. And with less clutter I won’t have the distraction and can get right to it! Make sense?

I’m also back on an exercise program. That’s been pretty intense and my body has been somewhat sore, but…I’m feeling stronger. The other thing I did last week was give a talk at CSL. This took a lot of time and preparation in my mind.

I wanted it to be relative to all who were listening. The hardest part was trying to nail down the subject of the matter. I wanted to include my songs on gratitude, which I did with “All about Me” and “Thankful”. I also wanted to impart some insights on stepping up and also overcoming aspects that might be considered “set backs”.

I am including the talk for you on the Mp3 download section so feel free to give a listen. Now, know this…I am NOT a public speaker…but I wouldn’t mind getting better at this. I do love to share stories and talk to crowds, but it also scares the begeebees out of me too. But it’s fun! I feel alive, connected and all the things I speak about in the talk. So check it out if you would like. Here’s a little clip of the talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRdTrJIDpYg

Mostly…I just wish to say how grateful I am for all of you! I appreciate your constant support. Mo and I are organizing and planning our Spring/Summer schedule during these winter months. We are also playing, not as much but still keeping our “chops up”, and we are not traveling anywhere for a while. This feels good. I wish to work up a good bit of cabin fever so I am ready to take to the road! Ha!

We are going over new material too and checking into songs that may need refreshing. Those poor “babies” that have fallen off of our set list for months on end.

Also, this month we will meet with our friends Sundea + Mr Goesll as they come through and play at a venue we’ve connected them with. They will be having a new CD released in March and they are covering a song I wrote called, “I Love My Baby Better”. So stay tune!!!!

As the holiday rolls out, my the warmth of gratitude be ever present, illuminating like the light that you are!!!

Thank you friends!

Niccole, Mo and Juno

Stanley/Florida/Ireland!

Hello Lovely Friends,

I made many attempts to write as we went along; the end of Aug. came upon us with Ireland breathing down our “necks” but not before our trip to Florida. It is always hard to go back and write about passed moments, thus the carousel ride we are on, we do the best we can right? No complaints here, our lives are stuffed with everything that is good…and now, finally, a smidge of a breather…maybe! ;-)

This months mp3 addition is “sponsored by the letter P” as in PINK…as in Floyd. First of all, how many remember the kid show called the “Electric Company”? If you don’t, you won’t get the “sponsored by…” joke and Pink as in “Flyod” was out long before our girl Pink!

“Comfortably Numb” is a cover Mp3 for you to give a listen (or download) and since I was so far behind we posted Mo’s awesome rendition of the fabulous Lady GaGa song “Shallow”. Both songs were recorded live at our last Sapphire Show. Rochelle Smith is on harmony vocals, Earl Huges is on Pedal Steel. I have been working on the mixes all Summer. There is ALWAYS more tweaking to do, but I hope you like.

Mo is going to fill you in about Ireland, with all the details and LINKS to the places we went if you would like to dig more. I will just add this…Ireland was an epic trip that changed my life on a deep level. Yes, there is a LOT more I can expound on. I know I’ve left you in the “dark”. Perhaps I am “Comfortably Numb” in my own inner reflections of this trip. Yet, I DO FEEL that those inner workings will breach the waves at some point within a song or musing that you may catch a glimpse.

We of course came home into a slew of shows, a lot of catching up and a visit with Mo’s dear Mom who struggled with some traumatic health issues which extended her visit with us for another 2 weeks. She is managing now back in SF and we miss her.

In the picture section you will see new shots from some of our travels. I had to “re-learn” how to add pictures and now that I know, I hope to swap them out more often. It’s always something keeping up with all this technology.

As far as Florida goes…that was a quick fry in a very hot pan! We ducked the hurricane (“Chantel”, which happens to be the name of one of Mo’s former girl friends. I thought that was very funny!) We met the sweetest folks and I felt like I was 8 again, swimming in a pool almost all day! I LOVED it! The gals we stayed with were wonderful and really rolled out the red carpet! They thought of everything! Even an air-conditioning unit that blew on us when we played! That was a first! The humidity was so high we had to rub the necks of our guitars down after each song to cut through the water as we played. It was the wildest thing! It made my playing slower…as if playing under water, so strange and a first for us. Meanwhile, one sip of air could allow me to hold a note for what felt like 3 minutes! Just so different than playing in this dry desert climate.

Onward with Mo’s details of Ireland. We are hopeful to get to LEAD a trip to Ireland some day with the same outfit that took us !!! More to come about that later! For now…read on, click away and enjoy!

************************************************Mo’s Journal**********************************************

John Smith Ireland Tour Sept 13 - 22, 2019 Cork-Kerry-Clare:

 Friday Sept 13

After breakfast at the B&Bs, we headed to the airport to pick up Johnny Luv and Dana Paige (who missed their flight the night before), and to pick up Mo and Niccole’s suitcase (unsuccessful on that account). Our first stop was Grange Stone Circle. https://loughgur.com/destination/the-stone-circle/ We wandered a bit and then gathered for a brief “go around” so everyone had a chance to introduce themselves to the group of 28 friendly faces.  We then drove south to Charleville https://www.ireland.com/destinations/republic-of-ireland/cork/charleville/

for lunch and a little shopping. From there, we drove to our first hotel, Celtic Ross Hotel in Rosscarbery, County Cork http://www.celticrosshotel.com/  where we stayed for three lovely nights. Due to the late start, we barely had time to get into our rooms, freshen up, and head to the round tower for dinner.  We enjoyed a group dinner with an amazing view of the inlet.  Following dinner we had a fantastic private concert by John Spillane. http://www.johnspillane.com/artist/bio. He was hilarious!

Saturday Sept 14

We started this beautiful, sunny day off with a visit to Abbeystrowry https://historicgraves.com/graveyard/abbeystrowry/co-absy where there is a mass grave of Ireland famine victims.  9,000+ victims of the famine were buried in what would be about 50 feet in length, and maybe 40 feet in width, with one single cross/gravestone marking the head of it.  After many sobering moments of walking through the graveyard, John Smith, our tour leader/songwriter sang “Kilkelly,Ireland” for all of us in the abbey. Here’s a video of the song performed by Peter Jones, who wrote the song.  https://sherlockshome.ie/kilkelly-ireland-sung-by-its-composer-peter-jones/ From there, we went to the Skibbereen Heritage Center http://www.skibbheritage.com/famine.htm where Terri Kearney gave us a sobering talk about the famine. Her depth of knowledge and passion about the Famine was obvious and touched all of us. Then we drove west along scenic roads to Glandore for lunch. It was a gorgeous day to sit and gaze at Glandore Bay while eating lunch.  We actually got sunburst that day! Most of us walked up the hill to the Drombeg Stone circle http://www.megalithicireland.com/Drombeg.htm.  But the boisterous traffic along what appeared to be a one land road baffled us!  We tried to not get hit!  We all entered the stone circle, and experienced its reverence, and John sang ‘Rooks in the Castle’ and Lance sang one of his songs. We peered across the ocean wide, complete awe struck by the incredible beauty all around us!

All of us wandered around the beautiful spot enjoying the stone circle as well as the remains of two stone huts and the cooking pits. For the faint of heart, including   Nicc and I, we took the bus back to the Celtic Ross (in the safety of a large vehicle) while others, who wanted to get another 6 miles in,  joined Paddy and walked back into town.  In the early evening, some folks stayed at the hotel to eat and watch the Gaelic football match while others walked up into town to eat.  We were tired and took a nap, but then we gathered at Nolan’s pub later that night for a sing-song with Tommy Madden (http://debarra.ie/listings/1147/traditional-irish-session/ ) and Mattie.  Most of us got a chance to sing that night! What a blast!

Sunday Sept 15 After a free morning, we went on a scenic drive to Mizen Head, Ireland's most southwesterly point!   We spent a couple of hours there, and the fog ebbed and flowed. Due to popular demand, we stopped at Barley Cove Beach http://www.myguideireland.com/barley-cove-beach and enjoyed a walk along the water. Then we headed to the fishing village of Crookhaven http://www.crookhaven.ie/ for lunch. We sang a few songs there at Tom O’Sullivan’s Pub.  Then we drove to Levi’s Pub (owned by Joe) in BallydeHob for a sing-song that evening.  There were many wonderful songs sang that night, by all, and to tell in truth, we all got a bit rowdy, which was super fun!

It was absolutely fantastic hanging out with strangers, who suddenly felt like your friends….okay, maybe that was the alcohol talking…but seriously, everyone was so awesome, and truly enjoyed hearing everyone else’s Art, and form of expression.  And there was absolutely no judgment, just total acceptance. It was a gift!  Heart nourishment; kind of like how you all feed our Souls with your enthusiasm and incredible support!  We take you in our travels wherever we go!

We ended that night with “Safe Home,” by John Smith, and we still cry every time we hear this song because it holds authentically true and loving, so many memories that will make us smile for years to come every time we remember them. You can listen to it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRlK9vWZyKU

Monday Sept 16 Today we drove to County Kerry to spend three days on the Dingle peninsula.  OMG!  What an incredible peninsula!  We drove into the mountains, went through a few brief tunnels, and stopped off at Molly Gallivan’s cottage and farm museum http://www.mollygallivans.com/ for a short tour and pioneer demonstration with Steven, our tour guide.  Afterwards, we had an opportunity to do some shopping of lovely wool crafted merchandise.  Let’s just say we spent a good bit of Euros there!

We drove through Killarney National Park, the town of Killarney, and stopped for lunch in the town of Kenmare.  We continued onto the Dingle Peninsula, stopping off at Inch Beach http://www.myguideireland.com/inch-beach for a short walk on the beach. We arrived at the Skellig Hotel http://www.dingleskellig.com/ in Dingle. After a little time to rest up and grab dinner at the hotel restaurant or in town, we were entertained by Donogh Hennessey https://irishtunecomposers.weebly.com/donogh-hennessy.html and Seamus Begley https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/seamus-begley-the-bold-kerryman-album-review-1.2338859.  Farrell and Julie Droke, on our tour from Oklahoma, both sang songs plus lots of us got up to dance throughout the night.  Seamus was impressed!  Some of the group, but not us (we opted for a hot tub instead) stopped at Nelligans and saw Niamh on fiddle and Matt on the guitar.  

Tuesday Sept 17 Today Kevin O’Shea, our driver, and also a native of Ireland who has a lovely voice, and would occasionally sing a traditional Irish songs, drove us to a few ancient sites.  We first went to Reask https://www.dingle-peninsula.ie/home/archaeological-sites/item/reask-monastic-site-an-riasc.html  and continued on to Kilmakedar  http://www.megalithicireland.com/Kilmalkedar.htm

We then proceeded to Gallarus Oratory http://www.sacred-destinations.com/ireland/gallarus-oratory and were able to all gather inside.  The group sang ‘Amazing Grace’ in this ancient place of prayer – and what a sound! It was definitely a religious experience!!  Afterwards, we drove along the gorgeous Slea Head Drive along the Blasket Islands and stopped at the Blasket Island Heritage Center http://blasket.ie/  We then drove to Ballyferriter where most of us went to Kane’s pub for a sing-song while others walked out to Smerwick Harbor https://www.thewildatlanticway.com/smerwick-harbour.html

 We headed back to the hotel and gathered for a group dinner overlooking Dingle Harbor. Following dinner, most people walked into Dingle town for music. Some stopped in at the Courthouse Pub and listened to a harp player and uileann pipe player.  Then most ended up at the Small Bridge where Jeremy Spencer played the fiddle with Gerry O’Brien on the bouzouki. 

Wednesday Sept 18

Today was a 'free day. Which meant Nicci and I could play a little on our own.  We tooled around the quaint little ocean side town shopping, then signed up for a 2pm kayaking tour with “Irish Adventures” where we got to float the Atlantic Ocean, and got to go into two caves. It was incredible!  Highly recommend it if you’re ever on the Dingle Peninsula.  An amazing seafood dinner, then we all met in Nellie Fred’s pub that night and had a concert with Teresa Horgan and Donogh.  https://tradconnect.com/profiles/blogs/album-launch-teresa-horgan-matt-griffin-brightest-sky-blue

Thursday Sept 19 Today we packed up and headed to Doolin in County Clare for our last three days of the tour.  After a brief stop in Listowel, we crossed the River Shannon on the Tarbert Car Ferry https://www.shannonferries.com/page/our-location/18

We stopped for lunch in Lehinch where there were some surfers out in the water. It was a perfect day for walking on the beach. We drove on to Doolin, splitting up between Dunroman House and O’Connor’s Guesthouse where we all stayed the last 3 nights. We met up at above Fitz’s Bar and did some sets of traditional Irish dancing.  Afterwards, we walked down to road, in the complete pitch dark,  to McGann’s for supper and music. Kevin Griffin on banjo, Geraldine McGowan on the boudhran, and Eddie on the guitar.  Nicc and I sang a couple of songs on their mics during break.  “Turn Around” and “Open Heart.”  We sang our harmonies from the heart, just like we do to all of you!  Again, you were with us every step of the way!

Peeking down the Cliff’s of Moher with our new buddies!

Friday Sept 20 We headed to the Cliffs of Moher https://www.cliffsofmoher.ie/ looking over the Atlantic Ocean. After spending some time inside the Visitor Center, most of us went hiking. Some of us hiked with Jo along the cliffs toward Hags Head and then down the road to the pitch, about a 2 hour hike right along the cliff’s edge.  Others hiked along the cliffs with Paddy towards the town, Doolin.  We had a beautiful sunny day and the winds were exhilarating! We then headed to McDermott’s Pub in Doolin for lunch and a few songs. We then drove north along the coast road into the Burren  http://www.burrengeopark.ie/learn-engage/geology-of-the-burren/ We stopped at Caherconnell for a sheepdog demonstration. https://caherconnell.com/sheepdog/

Incredible views! Looking back at the Castle from where we started the hike!

We ended the evening at Cassidy’s pub in Carron where Eugene Lambe explained the uileann pipes to us and played some songs for us.  His passion for the pipes was evident.  https://www.enjoy-irish-culture.com/Uilleann-Pipes.html

To top off the night, we stopped off at the booming town of Lisdoonvarna to get a peek at the Matchmaker’s Festival. https://www.matchmakerireland.com/programme/ Paddy and JoAn did some dancing at the Rathhaus.  After a long day, we were “home” in Doolin at 9:30pm.

Saturday Sept 22 On this gray day with some sprinkles, we took a ferry ride over to Inisheer (Inis Oírr), the smallest and closest of the Aran Islands (http://www.inisoirr-island.com/), a 20-minute ferry ride from the Doolin pier.  People scattered off and wandered around the island. Some walked, we took a horse cart, and explored some of the castles on the hill, a mere 8 minute walk away, but we all enjoyed wandering the stone-lined narrow roads on the island. Eventually most of us (except Joan) gathered for lunch and songs at Tigh Ned pub https://tighned.com/index.html All too soon, it was time to get back onto the ferry back to Doolin. John had mistakenly given people the summer schedule for departure when we got off the ferry.  So Joan did not know the earlier return time and was still exploring the island when the rest of us left. The ferry took us over to view the Cliffs of Moher from the sea before returning to Doolin pier. It was fun to look up at where we had walked the day before. We spent a little time in Doolin on Fisher Street.  Many of us stopped in the Chocolate Shop owned by Noreen.  John always stops in during every tour and Noreen always gets him to sing a song for her. Quite a few of us sang songs for Noreen and the crowd that was squeezed into the shop, like sardines. Then that evening, we had our last group dinner. It was a relief to see Joan had made it back on the next ferry!  After dinner, we had the final “go around” with the group. How could so many of us have been strangers to each other just 10 days ago?  We ended the night (and tour) with the group singing “Safe Home” one more time with lots of gratitude and a few tears.  Many hugs and laughter were spread around! It was truly a trip of a lifetime, never to be repeated. 

We hope that you enjoyed hearing about our travels, and we are so grateful you were along with us in heart and spirit! Thanks for your continued support and inspiration.  Namaste to every one of you, and as we enter into the winter season, may you know you’ve had another incredible and fantastic year to leave your amazing footprint in the sand, leaves, snow, grass or otherwise. 

Blessings and Slainte’ (which means “Cheers and good health to you and yours”)

Love Mo and Niccole