After a few hours sleep again and believe me, this old lady was definitely feeling her age after 2 in a row, we got ready to head out for the last stop in Nashville... After breakfast in the hotel , Sue &; I headed on to Nash...I rode in with her to give us time to visit..had been awhile... I love her so much and appreciate her gift of being so close in B'ham... Steph/Phil/Christin/Lesa & Abby would leave later and we'd hook up with them in town...
Sue and I got into some rain; but had a great visit... Also called and talked to Rene', Tim's fanclub prez, on the way... Was hoping to squeeze her at the show, but she wasn't able to make it... While we were driving, I got a text from one of Tim's old bandmembers' wife... Tim had invited all of the previous bandmembers to the Nashville show... I, of course, started crying... I loved those guys so much... They had been a part of my life for 20 yrs and I had missed them over the past few yrs... I've kept in touch with most of them and I appreciate them putting up with me bothering them... I was looking forward to hugging John Boy and Vicki at the show... He was also one of my mom's favs...so, she was definitely with me over this trip, as she always is...
Sue took me downtown to Terri's and went home to get caught up at home.. Would see her later on... I hadn't planned on doing the Nash show; but decided to get the cheapy tickets..up in the rafters and just enjoy and be able to see everything... Enjoyed visiting w/Terri and her roommate..got purty again for my guys ... We were planning on meeting up with loves at The Wildhorse and have their fried pickles, but they were closed for a private thing; so we went across the street to The Stillery and got pickles, etc there... Deb &; her daughter, Holly and some other friends were the loves I hadn't seen yet... so got to visit and hug on them... Steph/Phil/Christin and some friends of theirs also were there... Lesa & Abby met us at the venue.. After walking up the inclines of downtown Nash, my calves were definitely moo'ing... And I was DEFINITELY feeling tiret... But, I knew I could make one more ''one of those nights''..
Again, I didn't go in until Tim came on... we found a couch to chillax on until then... Got to squeeze more loves and meet some new fans...was nice to visit and just hang out... I was SO thrilled to see John-Boy and with him were Darran &; Meaty and their families... These guys have been SO special to me and it meant alot to me to get to hug 'em... Of course, I cried... We had a stresser with Sue and her ticket, but thanks to Lori and them, we got her inside and here we go...
We had gotten the cheapest tickets; so were about 6 rows from top of arena; which was ok.. On the way to our seats, I saw Tim's bassist, Paul... I' have been shy about going up to the new guys, but I decided to... Deano had told me that if I didn't, they would never get to know me..I had met Paul in Little Rock in June and he was such a sweetie.. He's Irish! And a ball of energy..I said, Hi, Paul. I met you in Little Rock... He said: CARMEN! Yes, we shared love and hugs in Little Rock!" So, that made me feel good that he remembered me.. I told him that tonite was my 3rd in a row and I was certainly feeling it.. He said.."AW..you can do 3 more! Come on to the hotel with us and hop on the bus for FL!" I said , ":OKAY!" lol... We let him go, since it was near showtime... And got to our seats, Terri, Sue & I.. The others were in other sections and we had plans to meet up after the show..
This night was one of the most special nights I've ever been a part of. Tim came out to a ROARING response in his ''backyard''.. After a few songs, he brought out Chris Janson to sing HIS song, "Buy me a Boat.."... I know this was SO special to this young man...He had been co-writer of Tim's Truck Yeah... and was just starting out as a singer... They rocked it! Brought the House Recipient and their family and also, gave away a truck & a boat to a family... Was great to see!! Then a few songs later, he brought out Catherine Dunn, his cousin, to sing "Diamond Rings & Old Barstools''.. Made me cry... I've literally known her since she was 6 wks old and have been so proud of her... She looked beautiful and sounded great!
A few songs later, HIS angel-girl, Gracie, came out to sing a duet they have recorded on his new cd to be out later in the year... TEARS! They sounded so great together and I know he was a proud Daddy!!! THEN!!!! "It's Your Love'' began and here came Mrs. McGraw! The arena was deafening! We always LOVE to see and hear her... MORE TEARS! I miss her music SO much and look forward to her touring and/or recording again! Chase also came out and sang part of "purple kinda pink lips''... Felt Good on my Lips with Tim and Currington came and sang some of "I Like it; I Love it'' and he & Tim threw out some footballs signed by the Titans' rookie qb...
This show lasted a little over 2 hrs..and I was NOT ready for it to end... And not ready to hug ''see ya later'' to those I'd been with the past couple of days... I was SO exhausted; but had SUCH a great time doing back to back to back... I'm done now with my tour this yr unless something else pops up...which I'm HOPING for...
Lesa, Abby & I headed to Franklin, to spend the night w/loves... after LOTS of ''punch drunk'' laughs, we FINALLY got up the stairs and chillaxed... I knew I probably wouldn't sleep much..mulling over all the memories I'd made...All the hugs I'd gotten and given... The SPECIAL ones from those who ALWAYS treat me so sweetly..and accept me for WHO I am...and not WHAT I can do FOR them... These 3 nights had definitely been spent with ''friends a friend LOVES to have'' and I will always remember going down ''2 Lanes of Freedom'' with those I got to spend time with!
I still had 2 more days of the trip... so, will go drink a Diet Coke and reminisce about those days ... stay tuned!
Wednesday, August 26, 2015
CARM'S 3 IN A ROW IN 3 STATES - LAST HURRAH
After a little bit of rest in Saturday night, we got to visit with loves that we stayed with Sunday morning> Love those guys and miss them...Hoping to get back up to Nash this fall for more time..
We had Mex lunch with more loves and enjoyed visiting and hugging them too... Can't wait to see them later on and squeeze 'em again...
There had been alot of industry things in Nashville Sat evening... First thing that was asked by Adam when he saw Tim's family , was ''where's Carmen?"..LOL - He DOES love me!
Lesa's brother and his family live there; so we found them at a Sonic and had sweets and visited.. Like I've said before, this family has adopted me..I enjoy seeing them when I can..
Lesa & Abby & I trekked on back to Jax... I had tho't about going home Sunday evening, but after no rest hardly through the trip, I decided to take off Monday and just take my time getting home..
Lesa got us Sghetti that night and we just chillaxed and rested up.. Lesa & Abby had to go to school/work on Monday, so I said my goodbyes Sunday evening... Had enjoyed being with them so much and was sad because our journey was over..
Headed home Monday morning...got home mid-afternoon... SO tiret; but SO blessed.. The whole trip was emotional for me.. One thing was that one of the oldies country stations played some Johnny Cash...Mama's man.. So, I KNEW for sure after seeing Ty and John-Boy and hearing Cash, that she had been with me throughout.. As alot of you know, she used to be my tour partner..she & Daddy.. After she passed away, it was hard for me to go see Tim without her. But, over the last 11 years, I have found the most special people to travel with or to.. for his shows.. They have made it so special for me...and I'm grateful.
Unfortunately, my 3 in a row; etc , was over. Had to return to work on Tuesday. SO exhausted; but heart filled. I had missed my Fox's loves SO much, but took a couple of evenings to rest up. Now, it's on to something else.. HOPING that something else Tim will pop up later in the year...I've told the guys and him that I already miss them...
SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO..thanks for ''listening'' to my gab... Hope it made you feel ''on top of the world'', like this trip made me feel!
We had Mex lunch with more loves and enjoyed visiting and hugging them too... Can't wait to see them later on and squeeze 'em again...
There had been alot of industry things in Nashville Sat evening... First thing that was asked by Adam when he saw Tim's family , was ''where's Carmen?"..LOL - He DOES love me!
Lesa's brother and his family live there; so we found them at a Sonic and had sweets and visited.. Like I've said before, this family has adopted me..I enjoy seeing them when I can..
Lesa & Abby & I trekked on back to Jax... I had tho't about going home Sunday evening, but after no rest hardly through the trip, I decided to take off Monday and just take my time getting home..
Lesa got us Sghetti that night and we just chillaxed and rested up.. Lesa & Abby had to go to school/work on Monday, so I said my goodbyes Sunday evening... Had enjoyed being with them so much and was sad because our journey was over..
Headed home Monday morning...got home mid-afternoon... SO tiret; but SO blessed.. The whole trip was emotional for me.. One thing was that one of the oldies country stations played some Johnny Cash...Mama's man.. So, I KNEW for sure after seeing Ty and John-Boy and hearing Cash, that she had been with me throughout.. As alot of you know, she used to be my tour partner..she & Daddy.. After she passed away, it was hard for me to go see Tim without her. But, over the last 11 years, I have found the most special people to travel with or to.. for his shows.. They have made it so special for me...and I'm grateful.
Unfortunately, my 3 in a row; etc , was over. Had to return to work on Tuesday. SO exhausted; but heart filled. I had missed my Fox's loves SO much, but took a couple of evenings to rest up. Now, it's on to something else.. HOPING that something else Tim will pop up later in the year...I've told the guys and him that I already miss them...
SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO..thanks for ''listening'' to my gab... Hope it made you feel ''on top of the world'', like this trip made me feel!
CARM'S 3 IN A ROW IN 3 STATES - STOP 2
Well, after a few hours rest and Abby's school for couple hours, Lesa, Abby & I set out for Birmingham, AL on Friday morning... Lesa had gone to Chick-Fil-A for a morning snack and we were on our way>
We were meeting up with Sue, Phil, Stephanie & Christin at the motel... so, we got there; got checked in and started getting purty... Deano, Tim's Fiddle player and a longtime love, does Periscope sometimes before and after shows...to get the fans excited and included with what's going on.. Of course, my old fogey phone doesn't do this, but Lesa had hers going while we were primping..
We sent love to Deano, My Geetar-Man, Adam and My New Billy ( Tim's keyboardist/accordianist ) - As some know, there used to be a Billy and he's an idiot, so I've named New Billy...New Billy...
Got love and blown kisses from them...and told them maybe we'd see them for a squeeze... I always would love to see them and hug 'em; but I also know that it's not always possible..and that's ok..
Sue got there and we headed out for the venue... Steph/Phil/Christin would just meet us at venue.. Traffic was horrible.....Thanks to me not telling Lesa it was Pelham not Birmingham, we were later arriving at venue...then had to find parking; yada; yada; yada.. Stress! But, we got there and in our places to chillax and visit b4 Tim... Sue and I stayed out and chatted til Tim came on...The others went on to see Chase... During Currington, Steph & Christin came back out to chat...
I was just about to go purty up for Tim and the guys and I started getting texts.. Where are you? Come here NOW! Etc... I went to try and find them; but couldn't... Text; Text; Text and Abby FINALLY found me... We were getting the chance to see Tim and some other loves before he went onstage..I NEVER expect to...I NEVER ask to....I NEVER feel bad if I DON'T... But, when it DOES happen, I'm thrilled to squeeze my Mapdot pal... Some other loves were back there too and I got to squeeze them... This tour, Tim has been focusing on meeting and visiting with the family of the Wounded Vet that he helps give a mortgage free home to... So, this was a special treat to get to spend a minute... I also sqoze up some of his security and assistants... Like I've said, his peops ALWAYS treat me with love and I try to return that love.. After the 2 security guys fought over who was gonna squeeze me first ( swoon ).... I hugged some others and then we were ushered up to Tim... Sqoze me tight as always.. He had on another PIKE shirt..this time NLU's colors.... He asked me how the PIKE guys had treated me in Southaven...I said they were very respectful...I told Thien, the photographer to crop up... Tim said... Crop up, H____...You don't need that!" Which made me feel good... After I love you's , it was time for him to go onstage and for me to find a potty and my seat; lol..
I was JUST about to walk away and my Geetar-Man, Adam, came up to me! Apparently, he & Lesa had been corresponding all evening, to try and surprise me... Well, the same is for the guys as is for Tim...I can ALWAYS squeeze them; but I also know that it isn't always possible... It meant alot to me for him to make the effort... I will explain about him again; for those who didn't see my Little Rock review..
In 2005, Big & Rich toured w/Tim... Adam was their guitarist...Well, I am not a B & R fan and they also had almost nekked women painting while they were onstage... SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO; I had to find something/someone to look at while they were onstage... That someone was Adam.. He also was a co-writer of Faith's "Mississippi Girl''..so I knew a little about him back then...
Fastforward to 2012, and he was one of the guys that Tim hired... I thought..>Hm...How interesting! It took me 2.5 yrs to FINALLY meet him... after some fun last yr and others sending him my '' love and hugs '' and him being told about me... In Maryville, TN, last October, I finally got to hug him in person... and met his love, Katie.. They were the sweetest to me... and continue to be..
I got to see him in Little Rock in June and meet all but one of the new guys... This night.. Was a treat and after squeezes and swoons, it was time for them to go onstage... I told him that I was FINALLY on his side...
Sue & I were 5 rows back on Adam's side..so we had awesome seats... Of course, no sitting was done... I don't sit when Tim's on... I rest up til then and make it thru... More loves were in the row in front of us, so that was nice to spend some show time and smiles with them... Ty Herndon, who my Mama and I met when he came here for the fair in early 90's was there, also... Mama loved him...he was so precious to us when we met him and Mama also had JC take her to Jackson, MS, to see him at the rodeo... It was nice to see him again and to tell him about Mama... He was sweet enough to take a pic with me..... Tim spotted me again for the Mapdot point in "Green Grass''..which is always special...
The guys and Tim were awesome... The show was great...I have loved the setlist this tour.. Some special songs to me were included... After it was over, I looked over at Adam and he had spotted me... Waved and blew kisses and we were gone... While we were waiting to get out of parking lot, Deano was periscoping again... Lesa told him that I was crying cause I didnt' get to hug he & New Billy... and he told New Billy that HE had made me cry; lol... Like I said... I love these guys and appreciate them accepting me and my silliness..
Christin wanted to meet Chase Bryant, so we stood in line again for him... He remembered us from the night b4... after more squeezes for him...we were on our way to IHOP... Met up with some friends of the Childrees and enjoyed ''breakfast'' at midnite...Then it was on to the motel to TRY to get some rest before heading out for our last stop in Nashville...
We were meeting up with Sue, Phil, Stephanie & Christin at the motel... so, we got there; got checked in and started getting purty... Deano, Tim's Fiddle player and a longtime love, does Periscope sometimes before and after shows...to get the fans excited and included with what's going on.. Of course, my old fogey phone doesn't do this, but Lesa had hers going while we were primping..
We sent love to Deano, My Geetar-Man, Adam and My New Billy ( Tim's keyboardist/accordianist ) - As some know, there used to be a Billy and he's an idiot, so I've named New Billy...New Billy...
Got love and blown kisses from them...and told them maybe we'd see them for a squeeze... I always would love to see them and hug 'em; but I also know that it's not always possible..and that's ok..
Sue got there and we headed out for the venue... Steph/Phil/Christin would just meet us at venue.. Traffic was horrible.....Thanks to me not telling Lesa it was Pelham not Birmingham, we were later arriving at venue...then had to find parking; yada; yada; yada.. Stress! But, we got there and in our places to chillax and visit b4 Tim... Sue and I stayed out and chatted til Tim came on...The others went on to see Chase... During Currington, Steph & Christin came back out to chat...
I was just about to go purty up for Tim and the guys and I started getting texts.. Where are you? Come here NOW! Etc... I went to try and find them; but couldn't... Text; Text; Text and Abby FINALLY found me... We were getting the chance to see Tim and some other loves before he went onstage..I NEVER expect to...I NEVER ask to....I NEVER feel bad if I DON'T... But, when it DOES happen, I'm thrilled to squeeze my Mapdot pal... Some other loves were back there too and I got to squeeze them... This tour, Tim has been focusing on meeting and visiting with the family of the Wounded Vet that he helps give a mortgage free home to... So, this was a special treat to get to spend a minute... I also sqoze up some of his security and assistants... Like I've said, his peops ALWAYS treat me with love and I try to return that love.. After the 2 security guys fought over who was gonna squeeze me first ( swoon ).... I hugged some others and then we were ushered up to Tim... Sqoze me tight as always.. He had on another PIKE shirt..this time NLU's colors.... He asked me how the PIKE guys had treated me in Southaven...I said they were very respectful...I told Thien, the photographer to crop up... Tim said... Crop up, H____...You don't need that!" Which made me feel good... After I love you's , it was time for him to go onstage and for me to find a potty and my seat; lol..
I was JUST about to walk away and my Geetar-Man, Adam, came up to me! Apparently, he & Lesa had been corresponding all evening, to try and surprise me... Well, the same is for the guys as is for Tim...I can ALWAYS squeeze them; but I also know that it isn't always possible... It meant alot to me for him to make the effort... I will explain about him again; for those who didn't see my Little Rock review..
In 2005, Big & Rich toured w/Tim... Adam was their guitarist...Well, I am not a B & R fan and they also had almost nekked women painting while they were onstage... SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO; I had to find something/someone to look at while they were onstage... That someone was Adam.. He also was a co-writer of Faith's "Mississippi Girl''..so I knew a little about him back then...
Fastforward to 2012, and he was one of the guys that Tim hired... I thought..>Hm...How interesting! It took me 2.5 yrs to FINALLY meet him... after some fun last yr and others sending him my '' love and hugs '' and him being told about me... In Maryville, TN, last October, I finally got to hug him in person... and met his love, Katie.. They were the sweetest to me... and continue to be..
I got to see him in Little Rock in June and meet all but one of the new guys... This night.. Was a treat and after squeezes and swoons, it was time for them to go onstage... I told him that I was FINALLY on his side...
Sue & I were 5 rows back on Adam's side..so we had awesome seats... Of course, no sitting was done... I don't sit when Tim's on... I rest up til then and make it thru... More loves were in the row in front of us, so that was nice to spend some show time and smiles with them... Ty Herndon, who my Mama and I met when he came here for the fair in early 90's was there, also... Mama loved him...he was so precious to us when we met him and Mama also had JC take her to Jackson, MS, to see him at the rodeo... It was nice to see him again and to tell him about Mama... He was sweet enough to take a pic with me..... Tim spotted me again for the Mapdot point in "Green Grass''..which is always special...
The guys and Tim were awesome... The show was great...I have loved the setlist this tour.. Some special songs to me were included... After it was over, I looked over at Adam and he had spotted me... Waved and blew kisses and we were gone... While we were waiting to get out of parking lot, Deano was periscoping again... Lesa told him that I was crying cause I didnt' get to hug he & New Billy... and he told New Billy that HE had made me cry; lol... Like I said... I love these guys and appreciate them accepting me and my silliness..
Christin wanted to meet Chase Bryant, so we stood in line again for him... He remembered us from the night b4... after more squeezes for him...we were on our way to IHOP... Met up with some friends of the Childrees and enjoyed ''breakfast'' at midnite...Then it was on to the motel to TRY to get some rest before heading out for our last stop in Nashville...
Carm's 3 Shows in 3 States Trip - Stop 1
Well; here goes: First Show of Three in 3 States:
When Tim's dates came out, I decided I'd do Birmingham, AL... To go with some friends who couldn't make it to Little Rock in June...Sue and The Childrees.. I knew about Nashville, but hadn't planned on going... Then Southaven, MS, was added and decided to do that one with Melanie; Allie & Sammie , Tammy - Lesa's cousin and Abby's friend, Madison who was added later...So, went ahead and planned on Nashville to spend time with Terri &; Sue again: And Deb & Holly and some other ''sane'' people that I was looking forward to seeing: Phil, Stephanie & Christin decided to do Nash too... Lesa & Abby would be my ''shotgun riders'' for all 3... Well ACTUALLY, I was the rider... So, this would be my first back to back to back in 3 different states!
I decided to take off on Wednesday... went by to hug on my Fox's dayshifterz and get a bite to eat, then headed to Jackson, TN, to spend night w/Lesa &; Abby... Met up with Carly & Jake for Mex; so was glad to squeeze them:
Lesa & Abby had work &; school on Thursday, so I left to go on to Southaven, MS, to hook up with Sammie, her mom & sister.. We did a little shopping...I actually found a top to wear that night... Then had lunch at Huey's.. famous for their burgers; but I got a Club samich... We also tried the fried pickles; which were yummo... Melanie came by to hug before she went to the venue to get in line.. She had pit... and Abby was going to be with her there... that's how her palette, Madison, got to come..was to use the other ticket..
We went back to Sammie's hotel to get purty; then headed to the venue... Outside...but actually, it wasn't too bad.. except for the dust... Had a nice breeze and it wasn't as humid as I thought it'd be..We chillaxed and watched people a little while, before heading into our seats.. Allie &; I had 6th row behind the pit; so I texted Tim to tell him where I'd be... Chase Bryant , who I TRULY enjoyed in Little Rock, ROCKED it out....I really enjoyed his set again... Before Billy Currington came out, our section started to fill up with PIKE guys... Tim's fraternity when he went to NLU... I asked one if he knew they were there and he said yes... So, I texted him again and said.. Well, I'm a PIKE gal tonite... I'm right in the middle of them:
I'm not a Billy Currington fan, so went to ''freshen up'' before Tim, etc... Allie stayed to watch... I had seat 1 and she had seat 6; so I told her if the people on our row came while I was gone to ask if she could sit by me and them move down a seat... When I got back, she was in her #6... So, I told the people that I'd move down to seat 5 to be with her... The Pikes had been nice enough to tell her that she could sit on the end of their row ahead of us, so she did while Currington was on.. Well, after he was done, I moved back to my #1 seat so I could be on the end... The hoochie girlfriend of the Pike who was in our row gave me a ''you know what'' look..I said,, 'Well, honey .. it IS my seat".. and Tim is the reason I'm here, so.... Tho't I was gonna have to beat her up; but she went on ..
The music began and the lights went out... My band guys walked out; then here came Tim... in a shirt that had the PIKE symbol on it... and there was a PIKE sign behind him... The place went cray-cray...It still gives me chills to hear how he is received..Makes me SO proud! He began with "Truck Yeah'' and went on and on and on.. For almost 2 hrs... During "Southern Girl'', he spotted me; gave me a point... I also got the Mapdot point in "Where the Green Grass Grows''... After he sang "Just to See You Smile'', he asked me how old I was when THAT one came out.. Somehow, he always seems to be able to spot me..whether he knows the area or not... The PIKES were surprisingly pretty calm and they got their PIKE Love too... ... I SO enjoyed being with Allie....She's one of my special loves...Thien, Tim's photographer/videographer on tour/ etc.. came down to take pics behind the pit.. I stopped him on his way back up to squeeze him.. he and all of Tim's crew are always so sweet to me... The show was AWESOME.. The guys were rockin/countryin' and Tim sounded great!! It was over much too early; but I was looking forward to 2 more:
After Tim's set, Chase Bryant, did a meet/greet , so Abby wanted to meet him.. He's a doll-baby from TX...just starting out... His hit is "Take it on Back".. Well, us old ladies decided we'd meet him too.. Some of us had been starving, so we got us a foot-long corndog after the show... Lesa was still snacking on hers...I went up to him and said.."Are you up for an old lady hug?" He grinned and said.."I love old lady hugs". and sqoze me up tight... I had been wanting to meet him to thank him for supporting Tim and the Sandy Hook Benefit in CT in July... There was alot of flack about it and Currington wimped out..(not surprisingly); but Chase did the show... I would find out later that his ''people'' had encouraged him to back out too; but he said that he had always looked up to Tim and that he trusted his decisions.. So, he was going to support the cause and Tim by doing the show... I told him that I had known Tim for over 30 years and I SO appreciated his support... I said, "Those that will remain nameless, who wimped out, went to the bottom of my list pretty quickly"..He sqoze me again and said.. "I wouldn't have not done the show..it was a good cause and I DO support Tim''.. We took a pic and the other ''ladies'' got their turn.. Sammie was still holding Lesa's corndog; so when she went up to him, he took and held the dog in the pic... We laughed SO hard about that then and throughout the weekend..He was a great sport with us ''old ladies'' and Abby-Doo.. She even got to kiss him on the cheek! We told him that we'd see him again the next 2 nights:
We all went our separate ways... With dust on our cars and sleep in our eyes, the others went on and Lesa/Abby &; I headed back to Jackson to spend night and get ready for B'ham on Friday morn!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
