Fires...

I'm in San Diego...and I am alive. The air is ashy and it's definitely been a mellow but productive week of staying indoors. I left Carlsbad because the smoke has been too thick to even breathe. I was starting to feel a little clausterphobic like i was going to get trapped. The traffic was bumper to bumper o mph. The plan WAS to go to Orange County and hang out with the girls but sitting in traffic for 5 hours or more didn't sound appealing. I'm staying in Point Loma, in an area that won't be touched by the fires, but i know a lot of people who have had to evacuate their homes and are just waiting to find out the next move...how horrible for the people who don't have homes to return to.

I'm sure this will give everybody a new outlook on life. Makes you appreciate the important things. We go through life collecting stuff...stuff that we can't take with us when we leave this place. Sometimes I wish I could get rid of everything I own and start over, reminding myself not to collect unnecessary things along the way....I'm glad that most people had enough time to grab the sentimental things that do matter like pictures and such....I know one little boy here who doesn't know if 1 of his houses was burned yet or not. Yesterday he told me that he hopes it did burn because he wants to live all of the time at his other house because he likes it better. I thought that was pretty funny and shareable.

Keep on singin...

This was the last show I played. I've been taking a short break. And although it was super simple, me on the guitar, and Damon on the snare drum and lead guitar, my whole family was there, all ten of em taking up the whole front row. Emma and Ella sat in the front row singing along to the lyrics. I love the support and love of a family, and the way it builds confidence and makes you feel like you are a big time rockstar. Even if I was a rockstar for ten. ( :

I am the youngest of three, still the single one, still the wanderer, still learning how to get motivated after getting distracted, and off course...and my family has loved me and encouraged me every step of the way...sometimes I think, 'this could be my last show', or 'maybe it's time to do something adult like'...but then i have shows like this one where everyone in the audience enjoyed it and responded (there were more then just my family watching) ( : and it makes me want to keep on singin, and playing and writing and enjoying what i love to do most. Why do we second guess things all the time? I think i spend way more time over analyzing my future rather then doing things, and taking steps toward my goals... which i'm thinking needs to change reeeeal soon here.

On another note...
It was my moms 50th bday weekend, so... much to her surprise i called her up on stage to sing 'Leaving on a jet plane' with me. It's a song she sang to us kids while growing up. It's a moment i'll never forget as cheesy as that may sound. The picture is us looking at each other in a moment of both forgetting the lyrics! haha!

I am a blogger as of today... ( :

So I woke up today, and checked my sisters blog. And suddenly I decided it would be a good idea to start one of my own. I'm at such a strange place in my life right now...it might be fun to let the whole world read about it and tell me their thoughts. Maybe give some helpful advice. ( : Just kidding. I look forward to connecting with people I haven't for a long time...and posting pictures of my sister when she first wakes up in the morning. It's payback time. haha!

I love this season. I wish it felt more like fall, but since I live in Sunny San Diego, I will have to settle for the 80 degree days and the leaves that turn only a shade lighter then green. I still try to wear warm fuzzy sweaters but I only end up sweating by noon. But it's funny to me how people change with the seasons too. I talked to my sister this morning and we have both been feeling like we want to change everything. (and i'm talking about the silly stuff) I get this overwhelming desire to empty my closet in its entirety and start fresh. Which would leave me naked because I have no money. BUT we made a plan on Monday to get a new hair do, and have Gabe watch the girls while we spend HOURS trying on a new Fall attire at cheap stores like Forever 21. That's right Gabe, hours. ( ; How fun that will be!! We haven't been shopping together without two little ones for quite some time. So a date it is...even if I just end up with a new scarf.

I miss the Fall times in Nashville...the aroma of pumpkin and caramelized praline scented candles filling our apartment, going to coffee shops with Ami and Sarah to read and talk and sip on Pumpkin Spice lattes or Carmel apple cider, new jackets and scarves, bundling up and going for late night walks, Thanksgivings at the Dodson household...and the scenery...the trees and the colors are indescribable.....I need a camera!!