Going home....

My daughter, Hannah Joy, and I are going back home to Texas at the end of March. It's when the hill country is the most beautiful, the bluebonnets are up, everyone has a sense of starting over. My family home has been put up for sale, it's been 14 years since my Mama died and the time has just come to let it go. The developers and "progess" have been cheweing up the incredible land where I spent so many years of my life...16 acres of land and Mama's dream home may be gone down the dirty road of growth...

I know it has to happen...people have to have a place to live... hey, West Texas is a wonderful place to raise a family....

God bless Texas.....

Smile.....

Here are a few more pictures....to help us all remember the music....

A dream dashed........

Aw heck....after some emails, and fervent prayers, my hopes for a bit of an interview with Steve were ended today....I received a kind note from his publicity manager, there is going to be no time during his March 9th visit to the tundra for me to speak with him.....

I tried not to get up my hopes....but, I did.....as a sometimes journalist, freelance writer and, now, incredible blogger, I thought how cool it would be to have words from The Man on my little site...

Maybe another time.....

Meanwhile, I am still counting down the days til March 9 and the show of the decade...the Pantages Theater, Minneapolis, Minnesota, I will be there, hopefully I can at least get an autograph....

And, I still love him and his music....heck, we are both young pups...maybe there will be another show and another day for an interview...

Keep rockin' it Steve....

My favorite song by Steve....

Check out this link from my YouTube page...it's my favorite song of Steve's...and that's not an easy choice to make with so much incredible music.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vq4MgDwmIs

And, 11 more days until he is in Minneapolis!!!!!

Remembering Waylon....

Six years ago this Feb. 13, Waylon Jennings died. He was born in Littlefield, Texas, another great singer with a beautiful voice and wonderful stories to share.

I first saw Waylon at the Fredericksburg (TX) Folk Life Festival way back in the 1970s....we were both a lot younger then....and he was incredible.

Today, we are remembering Waylon and his wonderful contributions to alternative country music.

Rest in Peace, Cowboy.

Warming up on the tundra.....

It's getting warmer here in Minnesota...well, warmer is a relative term in the Midwest in February. So, when Steve and Allison arrive here on March 9, maybe they won't have to bring their heavy duty coats and boots......

Winter always seems to be never ending here. For one used to mostly sweltering days in Texas, the winters have always been a challenge for me. The last few years, the cold months have really not been so cold, one year there wasn't even snow until after the first of the year. This year, we have had way below zero.....way below....the cold I can almost live with, the gray skies are another matter....day after day after day....

Still, there is much to be grateful for, health and a place to live, family to love, a new joy to find everyday and.....

Steve Earle is coming to town!!!

14 below zero......really.....

I never thought, in my entire life, I would ever live in a part of the country where the "high", on any day of the winter, would be below zero....today, started off at -14...now, at about 8 p.m.....it's "warmed" up to -7, but is dropping rapidly...

I was born and raised in Texas, grew up in Central Texas....granted the heat of the summer is almost unbearable.....but, here, a lot of days in the winter, you can't open your front door to get your mail without incurring severe frost bite...

The days look deceptively lovely from the other side of the window...I stand in my living room and look out at the sparkling snow and I almost want to go outside. Almost. Mostly, in the winters, I just stay inside. I take our children to school, then come home and stay in the house. I've been blessed not to have to have a "big girl job," all of these years and, on days like this, I am especially glad to be home.

Okay.....enough now....I just want to go to bed.....

Hannah and her Daddy at her basketball game...

She don't get her athletic prowess from her mama........

my favorite critters...

What would my blog be without pictures of my favorite critters??????

Sweethearts.......

Steve and Allison...here we are in Minnesota waiting for you two to bring the sunshine....

March 9, 2008, Pantages Theater in Minneapolis....

Take care of each other and we'll leave the light on for you....

Bluebonnets and Texas sunset....

When I get homesick....I think of Texas in the spring and the bluebonnets and incredible sunsets....

My family home sets about an acre off the road, that bit of land is covered in bluebonnets, and, when I was growing up, folks would stop and ask if they could take pictures of their children and dogs in the flowers...

Black labs in red bandanas, little tufts of children carefully sitting in the blue soft cover....

The memories sustain me when it's cold and gray in Minnesota....

These photos are courtesy of Jeff R. Clow, copyright by Jeff R. Clow...Check out his other work on the internet, he takes unbelieveable photographs...and he lives in Texas!!

another great look....

Steve rocks all the time, but back in the day.....

You guessed it.....more Steve Earle....

37 more days and Steve Earle will be hitting the North Star State and the Pantages Theater!!!! Counting down the minutes now!!

Here is another, new addition, from YouTube and the incredible Steve Earle....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tJabvwizkI
With thanks to Kendall on Steve's official website....