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!

My Almost Run-In With A Childhood Idol

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Back in 2007, I was living in downtown Burlington, VT. My first year out of college, I was within walking distance to the waterfront, work and the bars. It was perfect. During most of my childhood, I was in love with the musician, Mary Chapin Carpenter. If you don’t know who she is, she is a country singer. Among her many hits are “Passionate Kisses”, “Come on Twist and Shout” and “He’ll Think He’ll Keep Her”.

Mary Chapin Carpenter happened to be playing at the Flynn Theatre one night. I knew this ahead of time but for some reason failed to buy a ticket. On the same night, I happened to be going out downtown with two of my good friends. They showed up at my apartment a little early and were well on their way to a great night by the time we decided to head to the bars. We have to walk by the side entrance to the Flynn on the way downtown… where the buses park… where her bus happened to be parked… where she happened to be sitting in the front seat eating a sandwich. SHE WAS IN THE FRONT SEAT EATING A SANDWICH! Here I was, back to being eight years old seeing Mary Chapin Carpenter eating a sandwich in the front of her tour bus and all that stood between us was a road and her tour bus door… and my two drunk friends. They were more than encouraging but I mean what do you say to someone you idolized as a child without sounding like a dork? And to be standing there with your two drunk friends. I drew a blank. I didn’t know what to do. Believe me, my friends were more than encouraging for me to go across the street and say hello but I chickened out. Whomp, Whomp.

Whenever I hear her name, I think back to that evening and say – I blew it. I think part of it was fear of my two drunk friends (even though I’m sure she would’ve just laughed at them) and that I envision her as this super nice person (which I’m sure she is) but I don’t ever want to be rejected that she was too busy with her sandwich to say hello. (I really don’t think she would do that, I’m just making excuses.) If I had a second chance, I wouldn’t let it get away again. It’s just something that you kind of have to laugh about it now.

So Mary Chapin Carpenter, if I ever happen to run into again, expect a complete stranger to come up to you and say that they loved you when they were eight. Thank you for making great music. Things that should’ve been said a few years ago.

I-25 Road to Cheyenne

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In October 2007, I found myself in Fort Collins, CO visiting a friend from college. Said friend didn’t take work off, so here I was flying solo trying to absorb everything the West had to offer. I had three days to explore, but having been so new to the area (and actually thinking of moving out there) I had no idea where to begin, so I surrendered to going wherever the roads took me. Wyoming. There it was directly north of me. The least populated state in the US seemed like my kinda place. So I hopped on I-25 to head north to Cheyenne. Little did I know that I would find myself in a state that I couldn’t wait to get back to.

The drive up was great. Hitting the highway with these gigantic Rocky Mountains to my west and nothing but prairie to my right. Driving along in my crappy Hyundai rent-a-car, driving with one hand, video taping with the other. Not exactly the ideal thing to be doing when you are driving but as always, I wanted to capture every little moment.

To the east of I-25 I passed a windmill farm. At the time, I had never seen anything like it. These huge windmills stood on the sides of these hills / small mountains all lined up in a row. I can only imagine how big they were up close. They belonged on the land of a, well we’ll call it a “Petting Zoo Ranch” where you could go and take a hay ride and check out the animals. (So the sign said.) I didn’t stop, so you’ll have to take my word for it. I wasn’t interested in touristy ranches, I wanted the real thing.

Soon enough, I entered Wyoming. You know you are in Wyoming, everywhere you look there is the bucking horse and cowboy. It is a perfect fit! My first stop was going to be the land of the cowboys – Cheyenne Frontier Days!

Patty Griffin, Buddy Miller, 04-16-10 HOB, Dallas, TX

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About a year ago I saw one of the best shows I could have experienced. I’ve been a pretty big Patty Griffin fan for a while and it seemed like whenever I was in Vermont, she wasn’t playing there and when I was in Texas she was in Vermont. Then one day I saw that she was playing at the House of Blues in Dallas and I was ecstatic! Finally we were going to be in the same place at the same time!

A magnificent singer, songwriter and performer, you would be crazy not to want to perform or record with her. If you think that you haven’t heard her before, I beg to differ. You probably did and didn’t even know it. She’s had her music on various tv shows and movies, see here including Grey’s Anatomy and One Tree Hill and Elizabethtown. She has also played with countless artists on their albums. You can probably pull a few out randomly and see for yourself. Patty Griffin is someone who everyone wants to perform with, at least once and will be one of the highlights of their career. She is soulful. When she sings you cannot believe such a strong, powerful voice comes out of such a little lady. Patty Griffin plays through her emotions, you know exactly how she is feeling and she makes you feel the exact same way. No matter what you are experiencing, what you are going through, she will lift you up and show you that she is right there with you.

Who is Buddy Miller? I am kind of ashamed to say I wasn’t really sure of who he was when I first heard of the show. What a mistake. He is absolutely amazing. I would say that Buddy Miller is someone who you would find hanging out playing guitar on stage. He won’t jump out for the spotlight but as soon as you hear him play his guitar, your eyes will be glued. He is one of the best guitarists I have ever seen. Singer, songwriter, instrumentalist, her has performed with Julie Miller (his wife), Steve Earle, LeeAnn Womack, Lucinda Williams and most recently Alison Krauss and Robert Plant. He will absolutely blow you away. Buddy Miller is phenomenal on the guitar. During the show I remember thinking how I wish some of my friends were there to experience it with me. They would have just died. His performance will mezmorize you.

Classic, phenomenal Americana music. They will make you reminise, sing along and get up and dance. It’s something that all music lovers should experience. Most recently Patty Griffin and Buddy Miller have been touring with Robert Plant’s, Band of Joy. If you ever have the opportunity to see them perform, grab it. You will love every second!