Are you feeling lucky?

I don't really believe in luck. Not luck that can become bad because of the number on a calendar or when you say it's nice it's not raining and someone tells you not to say that because then it will start raining. I don't believe I'm that powerful. I do, however believe in the power of positive thinking and visualizing what you want or need and believing it can be achieved. I believe someone recently tried to capitalize on this idea by releasing dvd's and books called "The Secret". Now, even though I think I already knew how to do it, I call it "secreting", it's really just hoping and wishing and knowing that it could come true. That's how I feel about our move and the new house. Now I'm secreting a solution to our issue of having to rent out the basement suite and making that all work out. And the money, I'm hoping that works too but I believe it can and I am opening up my mind and wallet to any money that's coming my way. Now would be a good time... Any time now would be good...just come on down. I really do think it will all work out.

Yesterday I was in a meeting with Lorna looking at a leather purse line for next season. I was sitting on an office type chair with wheels and reached down to grab my purse that was a few feet away from where I was sitting. Do you know what happened next?? Yup, the chair rolled out from under me and I was deposited firmly on my ass. Our host was mortified, she felt terrible, the young apprentice student who was sitting in on the meeting also looked horrified, Lorna didn't even laugh. They were all worried about weather or not I was hurt and if I was okay. So I said, " You can laugh!" but they didn't. I wasn't hurt so I got back in my chair and the meeting continued. After the meeting Lorna and I went to use the bathroom and that's when we started to laugh and laugh. I have a bad habit of doing strange things in business meetings (mostly in bank meetings, like stealing office supplies when no one's looking or the one time I involuntarily made a fart noise with my mouth and then said to the banker that it was "just my mouth", who does shit like that?) so she was wondering what I would do at our next scheduled meeting at a business enterprise association. I managed to behave myself.

I have a gig tonight with Boomchix, it's right across the street from our place. I will miss the convenience of this apartment but I am ready to go. It'll feel great to Rock Out tonight.

Wish me luck! Or whatever...

What are you doing New Years...?

I am going to try and dedicate my Friday posts to music from now on. I have some ideas about dissecting the Boomchix album and offering a free download every Friday. I also want to get my partner and the writer of most of the songs, Janice, to share a bit on what inspired her to write the songs and we can talk a little bit about the process we went through to get them to the point of performing and recording. I promise it won't be technical or boring, hopefully interesting.

I also want to discuss our name, how we came up with it and how we had never even heard of The Dixie Chicks when we named our selves Boomchix. Since then we are constantly being compared to them, mostly by reviewers, and it's a bit annoying actually.

I must also point out that there really isn't one photo of me singing that is nice. I always look like I'm about ready to call the hogs when I sing and there is nothing pretty about that. I am glad that I've had my dental work updated and switched over to white fillings for the most part because I tend to open my mouth so wide you can really get a nice view in there. Ah well, it aint always pretty but it usually sounds alright.

Boomchix is playing a big New Years Eve show at The Princeton Pub again this year with Wichita Trip, (that's Superman's band) and The Burrs, (that's Janice's new band). We sold the event out last year and had a great time playing the show so I am looking forward to it. I'd rather be on stage at the stroke of midnight than almost anywhere else.

Today is a beautiful day, the sun is shining and it's really cold so the snow is staying. That never happens here, usually it snows and then it turns to rain and we're up to our asses in slush. I like this weather but it's drying my skin out.

Happy Friday Ya'll and don't forget to moisturize!!

Is it bedtime?

I had a great weekend but now all I want to do is sleep. We had a very close friend come into town looking for a "lost weekend" and boy, did we find one for him. Friday night was spent jamming and catching up.He's a stellar bass player and SM and I played in a band with him for almost 7 years and various projects after that. We also shared a house with him for at least as long before him and his lady moved away to Cobble Hill to immerse themselves in the Bluegrass. So we pulled an all nighter on Friday, came home, got some sleep and a late afternoon nap and then off to The Wise Hall for their 50th birthday party. The place was loaded with old friends seldom seen and it was great to be in our old stomping grounds and catch up with folks. After the dance we headed back to J and D's place and started to listen to old recordings that we had made back in the day. We had done a fair bit of recording in different studios and it was a gas to listen to where we were musically when we were so much younger. Eye opening actually.
All in all it made me realize what a long strange musical journey it's been and how important the people I have shared it with are to me. It never ends either. I am still meeting people who inspire me musically and it amazes me how deep my friendships run when they have the musical connection. I don't think this will ever change for me and I look forward to seeing where it all goes.
I am thinking of changing my blog name and format. I find the having to ask a question thing annoying and the title was funny but now it just kind of bugs me. I might be due for an overhaul.
Stay tuned.

Weekend Update and I wonder, should I get a pet?

Had a nice weekend again. We've been doing the same thing every weekend for a while but what can I say, it's fun. Saturday afternoon jam at The Railway Club, back to our neighbourhood and then away down the street for some dinner and a friends gig at The Main. Sunday was nice, I had a pretty quiet afternoon while Superman went to a movie with a friend. We were invited to a dinner at our good friend Robin's home on Sunday evening. It was great to hang out with her 12 year old daughter, such a great kid and all the yummy food. Robin pulled off Roast beef, yorkshire pudding, mashed potatoes, gravy, cheesy carrots and broccoli and roasted garlic. Everything was perfectly delicious and it was such a treat to have a Sunday evening family dinner.

Our favourite thing to do on Sunday night is to watch Mad Men. We are loving this series and it's just getting more and more compelling.

This morning I had boot camp and it was raining hard. We just tucked into the small covered area near the field we work out in and managed to stay relatively dry. Working out is becoming something I really look forward to. I really love the women I am in the group with and the trainer is great too! We are trying to plan a little trip away together, maybe Whistler or Harrison. It's hard to plan things with Mommies but hopefully something will come through.

I need to get my butt into the shower and do some work today. I will write more later.

I have some new thoughts about pets. I think I want one.

Hey Sister, wanna sing?

Here's my weekend update:

I said I would have pictures of my weekend and then I forgot to bring my camera. Imagine that's me and Janice in the photo singing sweetly.

Actually this is a photo of Carolyn and Mary Jane DeZurik, a.k.a., The Cackle Sisters. Click on the link and you can hear these Yodeling Queens.

Friday night I had a gig at the bar across the street, it was a 3 band show so I had lots of time for relaxing too. After the show had a select group over to the house for one last drink, and a bit of acoustic jamming. Saturday slept late, headed downtown for our weekly Rockabilly/Honky-Tonk open mike/jam thing got up and sang a couple of times with the house band, loads of fun and adult beverages with friends. Home early and a lazy evening. Sunday got up and cleaned house for about 4 hours, made chicken and dumplings, had Janice over for dinner then we rehearsed and wandered about a block down the street where we were the feature act at a little French Bistro/ spoken word venue (we sang our words).

Great crowd and sold some cd’s too. Home by 10:30 and to bed.

Great weekend all in all!

Any weekend filled with music is as good as it gets!

Do you wanna rock?

It's Fall , for real. I love this time of year!

I haven't been blogging much lately because I am sad to say, I hurt my back. I have a pre-existing condition that reared it's ugly head during a workout last Wednesday. The good news is I am stronger from my workouts and I seem to be healing pretty quickly. The bad news is I had to miss a couple of sessions. I hope to be back at it by Monday, even if I can only do some of the stuff I will try to do the rest and just stay focused. It's hard for me to sit in a chair for a long period of time so that's why no blogs for awhile.

I'm off to the jam at The Railway Club this afternoon. It's something we like to do every Saturday if we can. It's a place where some of Vancouver's best musicians gather to play music together with and for each other, and whoever wants to listen. We've been going for many years and it's a lot like family down there. It's also a great opportunity to play with people you might not normally play with. There have been countless bands formed from this Saturday afternoon jam over the years. I have been lucky enough to sing with some amazing people and Janice and I get asked to sing back-up with folks all the time too, fun!

I'll take some pictures this afternoon so you can see what it's like. If you are ever in the neighbourhood you really should check it out.

How did it all start?

This is our friend Max. He is two and his Daddy is a drummer. We went over for a visit yesterday and to help clean out the garage/practice space and Max showed us a few of his moves. In this clip he is playing drums and singing This Old Man.
Sorry the clip is so dark. We love this little boy!

Who knew?

It's been a pretty good weekend all in all. Especially since it started with sickness and cancelled plans. Superman's bug seemed to get a bit better on Saturday but I had a bit of the yucky feeling on Friday too so I think we made the right choice by staying home and taking it easy.

I was feeling better Friday night so I went and picked up Janice and we went down to The Railway Club to see a friends band. It didn't turn out to be such a great idea as the band went on super late. They were supposed to go on around 11 but didn't actually start until 12:30 or so. We only saw a bit of the show then had to leave.

Saturday ended up being a great day! I was feeling a bit down over our cancelled trip out of town so we decided to go shopping. Superman isn't really a shopper guy but he'll do it if the mood strikes him. I bought him a very nice pair of jeans and as we were wandering around the mall he mentioned that we might like to look at some rings. We got engaged at Christmas but we still hadn't found the right engagement ring for me. I am not one of those people who has spent a lot of time considering what, specifically I want when it comes to all this getting married stuff but I had an idea about the ring after looking a couple of times. I knew I didn't want a traditional ring with a diamond sticking up looking all dainty. I wear big, funky rings and I needed something that suited my hand. We popped into a couple of stores and in the third one we hit it on the head. We found the right ring at the right price and then...we bought it!!!!

It needs to be re-sized for me so I won't have it on my finger until Thursday,the wait may well kill me. Oh well, I have waited this long, a couple more days will be okay. We also picked out our wedding bands for a later purchase. We are both pretty excited, it was a great experience and a lot of fun thanks to the woman who walked us through it.

Thanks Esther! I will show you all a picture when I get it.

After shopping we had a few adult beverages, called a couple of friends and wandered across the street to see a kick ass blues band and eat some yummy food. We were in the bag by 10:30 or so, it was good fun.

Sunday I had my all girls BBQ to go to and it was yummy food, great company and lots of laughs.

Today being holiday Monday we decided to head downtown and wander around a bit, maybe see a movie. We stopped in at The Templeton, a really cool diner with really good food. Superman ordered a Strawberry milkshake that was delicious and I had a vanilla/cola fountain drink, so good. I loved this place and will be back for sure.

After lunch we walked up to the theatre to see The Dark Knight, compliments of Telus. For some reason they sent me a free movie pass with a popcorn and two drinks coupon. I'm not the biggest fan of Telus so I enjoyed having an afternoon out on their dime. We arrived at the theatre a little early so we played some racing games in the arcade, went to collect our HUGE drinks and popcorn and found ourselves the best seats in the house. Big screen, comfy seats and the movie was so good. I loved this movie, it's really dark and rather long but I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Loved it! Heath Ledger is awesome as The Joker in this movie, it just makes his death more tragic, such a great performance.

We made our way home and I had a soak in the bath while I caught up with my Mom on the phone. Then I called my Big Brother for a chat, made some gorilla cheese samiches and sat down to chat with you.

All in all it was a pretty great weekend even though our original plans didn't work out. I really hope we get another chance to do the camping thing in the states with our friend. It might just have to be next summer. I hope they'll have us then.

For Me???

I got my new toy!!!

Lorna and I both ordered these little beauties with our Avion points. It's an Apple iPod 80 GB with Special Edition iSkin Claro. I know, right? 80 freakin' GB! It still has that new electronics smell and I can hardly wait to fill it with heaps of music and pictures and, and I dunno, games? This feels a bit like one of those life altering pieces of technology. I've never had a personal music thingy before, it's just too exciting. So far I've put my entire catalogue of Gram Parsons on it, I loaded Adele and Duffy on it too because it came recommended and I rarely listen to "New" music. Sounds pretty darn good.

Between this little puppy and my cell phone and my digital camera that I never leave home without, I will have one heavy, technology laden handbag. I might need to start using my new Heyes suitcase as a purse. Just enough points left over to get this little gem of a suitcase I have always wanted.

I am a certified spoiled brat. I hope that if you knew me you might think I deserved it but I wouldn't blame you if you thought I was spoiled rotten.

I can live with that.

Mayne Again?

It was back to Mayne Island again on Friday night to play a wedding party for Ross and Sandra on their property. This time we had our solid rhythm section along for the ride. Here's a picture of the boys on the ferry. Kinda look like monkeys in a zoo, don't you think?

We were treated to a beautiful sunset on the ferry.

We arrived at Dave's house and had a little pre-party with the rest of the band and actually made it to bed at a reasonable hour. The next morning it was off to the local pub for a yummy breakfast. It was obvious that the wedding was going to be well attended and the folks at the pub all seemed to know we were going to be the entertainment and assured us that they had a great time at our gig the week before and there was going to be a lot of people ready to party at the wedding.

This is the view from the pub patio.

After breakfast I took a drive around the island and found Dinner Bay Park. I took a little walk through the trees and down to a pretty little beach. It would have been nice to have a swim but that water was cold.

The Japanese Garden was initiated to commemorate the island’s early Japanese Canadian settlers, was created almost entirely with equipment and time donated by the community. The gig we played the week before helped raise some money for this beautiful garden.

I thought I should check it out. I ended up having the whole garden to myself.

Back to the house for a little bit and then it was time to load up the vehicles and head over to the venue.

We arrived at the property and there was no one there, they were all at the wedding so we had a chance to set up all the gear, have a sound check and even run over some tunes.

Just as we were finishing up it started to rain. A lot.

Here is a picture of the main cabin, the entire front porch will be our stage!

The property was scattered with some really cute buildings and cabins.

Here's my favourite. Another travel trailer with a cute add on.

This is an adorable little outhouse with a sign on the side that says Nature House. I did stumble down to use it after dark. It was warm, dry, non-smelly and had a bucket of lye with a sign that said "one scoop per poop".

This little red rowboat was tucked into the corner of the yard and the swing was a lot of fun too. They also had horseshoe pits and three propane bonfires scattered around the area. A really nice set up. But.... it was really starting to rain hard when we left to go back to Dave's. We had a few hours to kill so we ate, drank, napped and showered and generally got prettied up.

Once again I seem to have packed my suitcase with my eyes closed, I sure didn't pack for a rainy, chilly show so I really ended up not having a clue what I was going to wear. I had to do some quick improvisation with a dress and a pair of scissors, I do that a lot. I managed to put together what turned out to be a cute outfit and it was time to go.

Here's a shot from the bottom of the property looking up towards the cabin/stage.

We arrived at the party in the rain and the first song was played for the bride and groom. I must say, it was my first time meeting Ross and Sandra and they were lovely people, really nice. I also couldn't help noticing that they were both extremely good looking!

And that's when the party really started!!!

The full band was Me and Rupert, Janice, Jessie, Dave, Dan and Kelly.

Here's a shot of me and Superman doing our favourite duet Jackson a-la Johnny and June.

We all put on a great show, mostly because the crowd was so incredibly into it. The rain stopped and the people danced and cheered and drank and just gave us so much fun energy that it brought our show to a new level. A real win win situation. The people of Mayne Island are pretty special. They are so friendly and welcoming and man can they party!

I just had a blast!

All good things must come to an end, we packed up sometime around 2am and loaded up the gear, back to the house and fell into bed around 3:30. Up by 10 loaded up the car with the rest of the gear and hit the ferry lineup.

Here is a picture from the car. Three ferries in this shot. They don't call it Active Pass for nothing.

Mayne Island

Wow, that was a pretty fun weekend. Mayne Island was amazing, chock full of super nice people and so pretty. The gig went off really well and we had a great time staying at Dave's beautiful house. All in all it was a great and exhausting weekend. Can't wait to go back next weekend when we will be performing at a wedding of some local folks. Those Mayners sure know how to party and have fun!

Here are some photos...

Me and Superman in the ferry line up.

We left real early because we figured there would be tons of traffic being the Friday evening of a long weekend. Turns out there was no traffic at all and we got there super early and had a pretty long wait and the ferry was late so we got to Mayne Island it was already dark.

We pulled up to Dave's house and there was a party/practice going on.We had some catching up to do. All the gear was set up in his living room so we had a full band sound, lots of songs to go over because there were several players who hadn't played together and we needed to bone up on each others stuff.

The next morning I had a chance to see the island and the property in the light of day. So beautiful and a fantastic, homey, comfy house. Imagine my surprise when I saw this...

So sweet!

We went to the pub for a yummy lunch and ran into some friends from Vancouver, small world. Here is the view from the pub patio.

After lunch we went back to Dave's and I found this on his property. I just wanted to clean it up and move in. Why am I so obsessed with travel trailers. This one could be so sweet though.

Here is a shot from the back of Dave's house looking at the sheep barn up the hill.

By now it was time to pack up all the gear and take it to the Community Centre for set up and sound check. What a beautiful venue. It's brand new and just set in a gorgeous clearing surrounded by trees. We set the band up in the adjoining tent. The walls opened up to the elements, nice for setting up in the heat.

After sound check it was back to Dave's to purdy up and de-stinkify and then it was back to the venue for the dance. When we got back to the house Superman surprised this guy just outside the back door. We later discovered he had been in the kitchen and ate through our cloth shopping bag to get to the peanut butter cookies I had brought. He also ate a bowl of Jr. Mints.

Little bugger.

People don't lock their doors on Mayne Island, they also leave their keys in the ignition of their vehicles. I talked to a guy who said when he bought his house it didn't come with keys. I think closing the doors would have been a good idea though. I think the raccoon might have been trying on some of my clothes and messing around with my makeup. Little bugger.

The place was filling up fast when we got there and the crowd was eager to hit the dance floor. Everybody was so nice and friendly and they were really digging the music so it was a lot of fun for the musicians. There was a great mix of musicians from the Mayne and some from Vancouver. I got to sing back up with everybody and did a little Boomchix mini set with Janice and some honky-tonk duets with Superman. Super fun! Here are some more pics...

I didn't get any shots of Superman or me because I was busy singing. duh. This is Janice and Dave and Jessie. That's Ned on the drums. Ned is super cute!

Check out this cool shot I got of Ned through the back of the tent.

Here are some cute young gals who were having a great time dancing the night away.

After the show we packed it all up and went back to Dave's for nightcaps and munchies. I fell into bed around 4:30 am plum tuckered out.

We were up and out by 11:30 am and back in the ferry line up desperate for a coffee. The ferry snack bar had the nerve to charge us $2 a cup for a tiny tepid, weak cup of shitty coffee. They asked if we wanted cream and sugar, we said yes and were handed 3/4 of a tiny cup of coffee. Lame.

Here are some pics from the ferry home. It was so beautiful we sat out on the deck all the way back to Tsawwassen, tired, hung over and happy.

Happy BC Day!!