My New Violin... a dead mouse, and everything in between.

This is a blog about so many things, but I chose to title it 'my new violin' because that is the most exciting part for me.  I went to the Flea Market here this weekend, looking for guitar strings.  By the way, Flea Markets in KY are awesome.  I wish I'd taken photos so I could post it and show you more of the culture here.  Next time.  Anyway... No guitar strings, but there was a violin that caught my eye at one of the booths, the vendor told me that he just got it in on trade.  Call the next part fate, chance, coincidence.. whatever it was, it was pretty cool how things worked out.  None other than the talented Clyde Porter (the Violin Instructor at the Mountains Arts Center) happened to walk up next to me, he examined the violin for me and said it was a great beginner violin and the case and bow alone were worth the asking price.  Dude was asking $75 for it, waked away with it for $50 and also booked lessons with the Clyde every Monday at 8pm.  Today I got a little eager and tried to tune it myself, and already broke a string.  Gr... but last night I was fiddling around with it (haha.. pun intended) and realized that I already have a problem.  My eyes cross when I play the violin lol.. something about looking down the neck gives me double vision.  Must be from the eye surgery I had years ago.  Anyway- I jammed with my family a little last night, we had a mandolin (yeah Greg!), a guitar (Andrea), a singer (my sweet Momma Cindy), drummer (Austin) and little Logan was on the spoons.  My Aunt jokingly named our band, 'The One Eyed Holler Monkeys', in honor of my closing one eye to play my violin haha... Here is mom 'teaching me' to play the violin, which she insists that I call Fiddle <3

Renovations on my new country home are coming along slowly but surely.  I really hoped the floors would be sanded this weekend and the walls painted.  The hardware store was closed this weekend to repair the parking lot, so no sander.  I did accomplish getting one room completely cleaned out, laminate ripped up, and the old border taken off of the walls.  Couldn't have done it without help from my wonderful friends and family.  (Thank you Deana, Preslee, Kaylee, and Rodney Lee Lafferty.. Cindy Green, and Michael Duty.)  Here are some photos of my team hard at work, and the progress we've made.

 Rodney Lee and Preslee working hard :-)

 The littlest helper, sweet Kaylee

 Momma's a bad ass in her sweat band.  Work horse this woman, I tell you.  She had one request, she wanted to hear her favorite song- Rack City.  haha..

 Before...

AND AFTER.. progress is being made.  

This week I made a few music ripples, I played a show at LA with JR, Chris, and Keith Caudill.  I had so much fun.... We sang my standard few tunes that I am confident singing when sitting in with artists, and also some new ones like Stand By Me, Imagine, etc.  I look forward to playing with those guys again.  Then at Lizzie B's on Friday night I finally got to play with James Whited, amazing guitarist.  We rocked some Steam Roller Blues, Etta James, and Pat Benatar.


Several people have and continue to ask me... why the hell did you move back to Eastern KY??  Many different reasons.  That being said- moving here I did declare a few concrete goals... Work and save money, bring my skill set and knowledge of Holistic Wellness to this community and contribute in a positive way, focus on music/become a more efficient guitarist/write songs, and spend time with my family and get to know my dad better.  My dad is a bachelor for the first time in years, and my parents being divorced we unfortunately fell into the all too common 4 day a month relationship.. that was closely guarded and monitored by this ex-wife (not my mother haha)...  So needless to say, I didn't get a lot of quality alone time with my dad during those years.  Every major life transition I've ever made has been quickly, and it's been for the best.  When I worked for Disney Cruise Line, moved to Nashville, moved to Phoenix- it was all SUPER random and worked out magically.  When I get a 'knowing' about something, I trust myself.  In Phoenix my lease was up on my house, so I said to myself.. what the hell.  Who at 28 years old has the opportunity to sort of turn back time and move in with dad?  I have a career that I can throw in my car and take anywhere.. Why not live on a 'farm', save money, and have nothing but TIME to focus?  I realized a couple of days ago that although I might be a little overwhelmed with getting settled in, the renovations, and adjusting to a new work schedule- I am accomplishing all of my goals and doing exactly what I came here to do.  It feels good... Trusting in the process, if you will...  And my dad is the best roommate I've ever had.  Who knew?  :-)

My cousin Deana I have been spending lots of time together.  She's my 'executive assistant' haha... she basically saves my ass everyday and takes me to and from work, to the grocery store, and everything in-between.    She's an absolute life saver right now since I don't have a car.  I'm so happy to have her here, and I'll be sad when and if she decides to go back to Nashville.  We've had many adventures together over the last couple of weeks.  We did have another 'Sleazins' night last week, with Ernie.  The coolest guy ever, and Deana's childhood BFF.  After Seasons we had a delicious (unhealthy, greasy) southern breakfast afterward.  Can you believe this?? All this food for $5.99.

It's so easy to eat awfully  here.. but I'm eating pretty healthy after my grocery store trip.  A little southern comfort food from time to time, in moderation- I can do.  I take back what I said in a previous blog about not chubbing out yet.  I gained SIX POUNDS in the first couple of weeks.  Thankfully after a little activity and stocking the fridge with health foods, Ive lost half of that.  Damage almost reversed.  But I get it- it's easy to chunk out here.  Especially when there are really NOT convenient and quick healthy options.  Which gives me so many ideas!!! But that's another blog.

Today mom and I traded massages.  THANK YOU!  My back was so happy.  When she dropped me off at home I saw Rhett Butler chewing on what appeared to be a moth... I took this picture and almost puked in my mouth when I realized she had decapitated a mouse.  All of the cats are staying- ALL OF THEM!  I changed my mind, they belong here.  With me.  To protect Luna and I from the winter shelter seekers lol...  Getting them spayed and wormed and building a cat mansion where they can take the mice that they find as they continue to keep them OUT of the house.

Thank you Rhett Butler.  Your disgusting, and amazing.  And I appreciate your natural skills.

Love this.

I know your probably tired of hearing about my barn boots... But I'm almost ready for another pair.  As much as I wear these, I'm finding they really are not that comfortable.  I think I need some extra snazzy camo cozy boots that are a little warmer for winter.  I did wear these to the Flea Market yesterday.  I love that I live in the country and dressing like this is completely acceptable and normal.  Okay the socks and the rainbow bright shorts are probably a little abnormal in these parts.  But it's my drum, I'll march as I always do.

I made some girlfriends this week, I have a feeling 'Wine Down Wednesday' will become a regular part of my weekly routine.

It's late... I really have to get focus on getting to sleep before 2am here.  Goodnight :-)

Video Blog :-)

Well, I've seen it all.  Just saw my sweet little adventure dog climb a tree.  A tall tree!  I climbed the ladder today to check out the tree house/platform and of course I decided AGAINST carrying my very fat puppy up the rickety old ladder.  She whined and cried waiting for me to come down, and next thing I know she is literally UP THE TREE!  haha.. can't wait to write songs here.  

Speaking of songs, today I jammed with a guitarist named Julius.  He seems really genuine about doing music with me, really excited.  I've been out and about this week and had the opportunity to sing with a few different bands and musicians,   Here we are running through Angel From Montgomery.  Don't judge, my voice wasn't warmed up at all and this was the second time we ever tried this.

I've been spending lots of time with my family.  Last night my sister and I bought matching barn boots and had a late night visit with the horses.  She's my mini me in some ways, in other ways we are alien sisters from different planets.  She's so into wrestling and sports and I just have no clue.  No clue what so ever.  Aside from Muay Thai.  I think she was annoyed with my shoe obsession haha.. it took me about 20 minutes to find the perfect little garden boots, took her about 5.  it's cool to look at her with her little freckles and long blonde hair and see my kid self in there, too.

My partner in crime, my beloved cousin Deana is back in town.  She came over today to help me clean this house up a little more.  We decided to explore all of the old stuff, nooks and crannies… We found the door to the old cellar and took a flashlight down there.  We rock paper scissored for who had to go down (haha I know we were kind of 12 years old today) and... she lost.  Thankfully there were no rats, but I did scare her to death haha…  She'll kill me for this, but it's too funny not to post.  Click play.. and don't watch if your a little human or offended by colorful language :-)  And listen- rats are a REAL THING when you live near the river.  The neighbors poor dog was  chewed half to death by a pack of rats, because he plays near the river at night.  The river rats are more like RIVER CATS, huge, fat, ugly, rats.  Thank god we don't seem to have a problem in this house, but when winter comes you bet your buttons I'll set traps all over this house.

I have some really cool ideas for my bedroom.  I really have two rooms up here, one will eventually be my chill/music room.  There is this really gross old laminate flooring up here that is half glued to the floor, I was surprised and excited to find that underneath are the original wooden planks.  Sometime this week I'm going to sand the floors and do this finish that I found below.  White walls, simple country meets zen.

The fridge is clean, which means I will FINALLY get to the grocery store tomorrow.  I feel so gross eating so much of this heavy food, can't WAIT to get my little pyrex storage bowls tomorrow and start making my delicious salads again.  Thankfully I haven't chubbed up here yet, but I can definitely tell a difference in my body and overall energy levels from the crap I've been eating.  Can't wait to start training at the gym on Tuesday and toning and getting back to feeling strong and solid.  And after a hard work out, I can always soak in this redneck hot tub I found in the field behind the house.

Luna is slowly getting braver with the chickens and kittens.  This is where she started, afraid to go out the front door...

And here she is now, staring down the cat.  

And she chases these Roosters.

I've been spending lots of time with the horses.  There is an open stall in the barn and I can't help but to Imagine my future horse there.   Last night I stayed up way too late dreaming and looking at horses for sale online.  Do you think there would be a place at Pro Fitness for me to tie up my horse?? haha.. who needs a car? (I do.  BADLY)

I'm super happy, super sleepy.  A little overwhelmed.  But mostly just excited.  I want to dive right into EVERYTHING because there are so many opportunities for literally ALL of my passions.. But I have to take one thing at a time.  Even with music.. I think I'll lay low for a couple of weeks and get my massage stuff rolling and then ease into everything else.    

Everything is going well at Pro Fitness, aside from a few scheduling mistakes because my iPhone changed time zones.  

Oh and my quotes section this week.. haha.. so these are all overheard quotes.  I went to the Red White and Blue festival in Martin and these are honestly things I heard people say, that I found funny or interesting.  

'Well sheeot... you tell em' not to be smokin' none that gaw damn week neither!' Random man getting onto a motorcycle

'Well there is that red head again.'  I assume it was me?  i was the only red head there haha...

'How you doing? I'm fine as frog hair!' <3 this one the most.  Definitely going to steal it.

Oh.. and my accent is slowly creeping back.  If you can't tell from the video haha...

Till next time,

<3 Tiff

Country Life

I find myself at Lizzyb's more days than not, Stephanie and I went there last night to listen to live music.  I was so impressed with the two female artists performing, the vocalist used to live in AZ (small world) and the guitarist was a 16 year old girl who had MAD SKILLS.  I was very impressed.  I made several music friends and connections last night, and also was introduced to the Music in the Mountains stage.  The irony is the stage is built on my uncles land, and you can almost see my house from the stage.  It's right across the railroad tracks.  It's a huge open field with a nice stage and room for camping.  There is a concert next Saturday and I'll be singing some songs with the band. I'll post more info soon if you wanna come out, I'm looking forward to it.  I want to promote and support this as much as I possibly can, it's a really cool thing these guys are doing.

It ended up being a Seasons night last night.  Karaoke was completely dead, I sang all night haha.. it was a karaoke wet dream.  People kept putting in requests for me, and one of the guys even brought in a guitar and we had a full on jam session.  I sang everything from old school country to the star spangled banner.  Here is a photo of the duet I sang with Levi, Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow.

Still getting settled in, looking for a car.  I find myself happy when I wake up in the morning, I'm starting to develop little routines and am enjoying living the country life.  First thing in the morning I usually let Luna out and we walk out to the barn and say hello to the horses.  Today I took a little stroll in the garden, the tomatoes are ready to go.  I've even been cleaning my own damn house.  Can you believe it Darbie and Ron??  I found a housekeeper but she hasn't started yet.  And to be honest it's kind of nice cleaning this place up.  It was my grandmothers house, it makes me feel good to clean it...and I keep finding little things that remind me of her and bring back all of these childhood memories.

Living with my dad is fun, he's definitely a home body so trying to get him to come out with me is like pulling teeth.  One of these days though.  I love living with him, we are two peas in a pod.  My little sister Preslee and I have been spending time together, she's a cool kid.  Crazy about wrestling.  She helped me clean today, and showed me the tree house behind the barn.  I'm looking forward to taking my guitar up there and writing.

So many people are asking me about Yoga.  I plan on starting classes at Pro Fitness within the month.  Everyone is so supportive and helpful, ready to help promote.  I do love this place :-)  It's good to be home.

I finally figured out this internet thing!  Yeah.  I have wireless internet in my bedroom now.

I really need clothes.. I brought two dresses.

Must sleep.. tomorrow I'm starting to redesign the massage room at Pro Fitness.  :-)

Rhett Butler, Roosters, and Horses

This is the old horse barn behind the house.  I'd love to take some photos here. (hint hint Andrea)

I definitely have to get a car here.  This is not a place to live and not have reliable transportation.  Yesterday morning my mom dropped me off at the gym at 8:30am and I was there till after 8pm.  I had one client, I just had no ride so I had to stick around all day.  I did work out, and get some business related stuff done so it's not all bad.  Luna was with me for most of the day.  Here we are boxing together, she was working on her wrestling skills.  Just pin me!! ;-)

Last night was my first night at my dad's house.  I didn't sleep well, I slept with the light on lol.. come on, I'm in a creepy old attic. The same attic that my cousins and I used to play in as kids and we were certain it was haunted.  Not so worried about ghosts anymore, just mice and river rats.  We live directly on the Big Sandy River.  I'm sure Luna will find mice, if there are any.

Speaking of Luna.. My grandmother has nicknamed her Luna-tick.  Discovered that she is terrified of cats, and roosters.  My dad puts food out for the local stray and her three adorable kittens.  When he gets home the momma runs to his car to greet him, it's endearing.  I've explained to him that regardless if he accepts it or not, he has a cat.  If you feed a cat it's yours haha.. actually I'll be finding homes for all of them tomorrow with the help of facebook (hopefully), but this little one has taken an interest in both Luna and me. Luna jumps in my lap every time we go outside and shakes like a leaf.  Hopefully she gets over her fear of cats because I'd love to keep this little mangey kitten, I've named him Rhett Butler.  Hopefully he's a boy, if not she's a butch kitty and she's still Rhett.

I met the neighbor down the street, Amanda.  It's her horses that are in my dad's barn.  She said I can ride them anytime, just need to learn to how to saddle up and learn basics.  I've been on a horse maybe 3 times in my life.. but I am happy to have something to do!  There is also one open stall, so if I'm around long enough who knows.  Luna is fascinated by the horses.  Here are a few photos of our quaint little country home.  It's really the perfect little sanctuary, just needs cleaned and fixed up a little.    I keep calling it my dad's house, but the truth is this house has been in my family for years.  It belonged to my grandmother, and now it's where everyone seems to live when they visit or are in transition.  Like us :-)

Sweet country home

Amanda and Dreamer (and Luna haha)

The Garden behind the house.  Zucchini, tomatoes, cucumbers, and more.

Luna prancing for Dreamer

My mom left to go home to Indiana today, so I dedicate my quotes section to her.  These are the appropriate ones haha...

It's comforting in my heart to know that your only 6 hours away. - Mom <3

I'm proud of you.  You'll be fine!  Pray to baby Jesus and Mother Earth or whatever you want... and find a church.

"One thing I REFUSE to do is start feeling bad about myself here.  I am comfortable being comfortable.  I am NOT in the habit of waking up everyday and perfecting my hair and putting on makeup.  I am not going to get sucked BACK into that southern beauty queen thing where I feel the need to do my hair and wear makeup to go somewhere." -Me.
"But wait.. your still going to get dressed up when you go out right??" mom.
"Dammit mom stop being a beauty pageant mother!!"  still a pageant mother.  First impressions!  Presentation!  JAZZZZ HANDS!! haha...

"Mom, I can't thank you enough for everything you've done for me since you've been here."
"Well.. you go on and try honey :-)"

Someone in KY Loves You :-)

Here in KY Luna is a 'he', sometimes an 'it'.  "Does he bite?  It's cute!"  haha... She's loving all of these new smells and the green grass.  She goes almost everywhere with me, and has been a complete angel.  Well... When she is WITH me haha... I left her once with my grandpa when mom and I went to dinner and she got tangled in the phone chord and ripped it out of the wall.  :-/  I bought some frontline for her today at Walmart- the go to place for EVERYTHING.  She already has fleas and its been 3 days!  These photos are from the Jenny Wiley State Park.  

Still feeling exhausted and unsettled, can't wait to get settled in and start working tomorrow.  My mom helped me clean the attic today at my dads, it was nice to sit and visit with those two together.

The nightlife here is slim pickins... Went to a little bar called Seasons which the locals have nicknamed Sleazins haha... Interesting place...  Guess I'll be doing less drinkin more thinkin.  Which was supposed to be the plan anyway.  There is a cool little place here with awesome food called Lizzeyb's, they even have grass fed hormone free meats!!! Which a new thing, and AWESOME for this community.  Oh and live music!  I spoke with the owner about playing there once I get settled in.  

Speaking of food I've eaten more fast food in the last week than I have all year.  Looking forward to hitting the grocery store tomorrow.  And the gym.  I'll be working at Pro Fitness, makes it too convenient to find excuses to avoid working out :-). There is a punching bag, and I already made a new friend who does MMA.  I'm hoping to have at least a small social life here, I know myself and I will pull my hair out if I don't find a little excitement.  I doubt I'll have outings like the infamous limo nights in Tempe, but I know plenty of people with 4wheelers haha...  And I have plans to go paddle boarding and biking next week.  Everyone here is so friendly, and most people seem genuine.

I miss my patio, my bathtub, my Fefe, Ez, and all my friends.  I'm not miserable or too homesick yet, there is still so much to keep me distracted with getting things rolling with my new job and making my little attic a home.  I did a shit job packing, I think I brought two pairs of socks haha... Oh well.  The only thing I'm really frustrated about is having no guitar here yet, there is one at my dads but I need to buy strings.

Check out this photo of my grandparents living room.  First off, it's super cute that they have his and hers recliners.  But the deer... The dead stuffed deer on the wall creep me out while I'm sleeping lol I swear they stare at me.  
You know me and quotes.. my favorite notable quote so far....

"What's your house number," me to Penny.

"I don't have a house number baby.  This is KY.  It's right after the railroad tracks."  Haha :-)

Someone in KY loves you :-)

<3 Tiff