Author Archives: Diana

About Diana

Canadian-Vermonter, Texas transplant. Cowboy boot wearing, maple syrup connoisseur, music lovin', wine and micro-brew drinkin', two-steppin' traveler who loves finding all the hidden gems the world has to offer. Come join me on the ride!

The Devil Went Where?!

…He went to Georgia?!

The Devil Went Down to Georgia has to be one of the most well recognized songs. I would look at you like you were nuts if you’ve never heard it. Charlie Daniels, one of the most recognizable musicians who has been around for over 50 years and he plays music like he’s just getting started.

We had the opportunity to see Mr. Daniels and his band play at the Levitt Pavilion in Arlington, Texas as part of a fundraiser for the organization. Twice a year, the Levitt hosts a month long concert series Thursday – Sunday evenings, under the stars of Texas. Bring a chair, blanket, drink and snacks and just enjoy listening to fantastic musicians outside.. This concert series was a fundraising event to assist in keeping this phenomenal program alive.

We were pretty excited to see Charlie Daniels. “Pretty excited” is probably an understatement. “Trudy” is our absolute favorite, as well as a few others. He is a legend and to witness it in person, is history in my opinion. There is nothing like seeing a musician live.

He played a few of his greatest hits.
He played a few acoustic only pieces with his magnificent band. The drummer really didn’t hold back.
He was insane, playing a drum solo for a good five minutes!
He played a gospel tune, the Pledge of Allegiance and
provided great support for the troops.
He was beyond phenomenal. I would highly recommend seeing him.
He doesn’t miss a beat and his dedication to this country and music is enormous!
He ended the night with a classic…. The Devil Went Down to Georgia!

Lone Star Classic Chevy Convention, Irving, TX 2011-05-28

When my parents told me they were coming to visit me in Texas, my dad made sure to tell me that I also had a mission – find an old car show. He is a huge antique enthusiast, so it’s really no wonder. Thank goodness I found one, I haven’t had a lot of luck in the past finding these around here.

The Lone Star Classic Chevy Convention presided over Memorial Day in Irving, Texas at the Sheraton Hotel. This convention features cars from 1955-1957 from across the country. The mid-50’s provided cheap, available and great looking cars. Nowadays, Chevy’s are built and restored to compete at these conventions which can bring more restoration value to their vehicles.

The Lone Star Chevy Convention originally began to provide local Texas enthusiasts with an annual event  that would be held by a “local chapter” in the early ’80’s. Obviously, it’s become successful. Check out some of these rides.

The Conventions included a drag race, peel out contest, Show and Shine judging, Candi Clark from ‘American Graffiti’ and live entertainment from a local radio station (providing prizes). We happened to be walking by their table when they asked a multiple choice question, one of the answers being ‘Vermont’. If any of us knew the answer, it would be dad. He quickly yelled out ‘Vermont’ (really who else was going to yell it out) and sure enough he was right! Must have been meant to be!

 
Drag Show Ready
 
 Someday I will own a truck like this.
It’s about the details.
Line ‘Em Up!
Even Elmo Had a Good Time!

My First Garden

Last fall, I was at a community garage sale and came across this patio planter. I’ve never planted a garden of my own, every flower plant I’ve purchased has died. I bought it anyway – let’s try this out… what’s the worst that could happen. As my Memere would say, gardening / farming is in my blood, it’s bound to work – just pay attention.

I’m use to the Vermont growing seasons, which is much, very much different than Texas. I’m going into this completely blind. With the help of a friend, I became a little more knowledgable and exchanged a few baby plants. Texas has two growing seasons, one in the spring and one in the fall. The summer the only thing you can do is cook and egg outside, it’s just too hot. My start had to being in February / March. I probably should’ve even started before this.

I began my plants, mostly from seeds, except for the tomato plants from Two Mom’s and a Kid and strawberry plants which I just had to replant. Green peppers, parsley, cilantro, lettuce all started from seeds. Yummy!

So with the help of my mom from this past weekend, we spruced up my patio garden a bit. Hopefully these little guys will really start to produce. We even added some cilantro to the mix! Now I’ll just dream about the deliciousness of these herbs and veggies!

Strawberries! My favorite!
 
 Green Peppers and the Gnome. The keeper of the garden!
 Red Onions and my little windmill to keep the birds out.
 Leafy Lettuce!
 Lettuce, Cilantro, Parsley, Yum!
 Some more green peppers!

Grow my little babies, grow!