Birmingham with Mike & Pippa Rimmer

Most of today was spent asleep on the National Express Coach...5 hours of travel. sheesh! Canterbury to London, London to Birmingham.

I was greeted at the coach station by the wonderful Mike Rimmer.  He is a radio broadcaster and journalist that I met in Nashville 2 years ago.  You can check his blog out here http://www.mikerimmer.co.uk/ He and his wife, Pippa, had a small group from their church at their house tonight and asked me to play a few tunes. It was a good time.  After that we went out for Indian food, met up with a friend, Joel, and headed back to the house.

In the morning we are doing a radio interview and then taking a look around Birmingham and then it is off to Cambridge in the evening.

There are two special towers in Birmingham that inspired J.R.R. Tolkien to write "Two Towers". Here is a photo of one of them.


Love,

Tammy*

An Irish man and a Scottish lady

Why are Irish and Scottish accents so beautiful and yet so hard to mimic?

Today I played a few songs at Whistable Baptist Church in Kent...I even played " This Little Light of Mine".  Lovely people.  I would like to tell you some beautiful stories but jet-lag is winning this evening. Have a great start to your week.

Heading to Birmingham tomorrow to hang with Mike and Pippa Rimmer.

Love,

Tammy*

Official Tour Poster

To start the tour off right, Heidi Frank, a very talented singer/songwriter and graphics designer created a fabulous tour poster for this summer's tour. Please take a look and let me know what you think.

This morning started off with breakfast and lunch all at once with my friends, Terry and Vicki,  in Sevenoaks. Then I caught the National Express (England's version of the Greyhound..but much nicer) from Dartford over to Whistable which is right outside of Canterbury on the coast (where I wrote the song from my new album 'Coast of Kent').  There was tons of traffic on the way and we were a little nervous about missing the bus.  Well, the bus ended up being late due to the traffic, too.  So I made it!... Just in time with my two suitcases and guitar (I am hiring a massage therapist after lugging around these bags...not really...but wouldn't that be nice? :o).  The bus was nice but smelled like bathroom air freshener.  It was quiet on the bus for the most part.  There was a man in the back near the bathroom that I am sure has played a pirate in a movie at some point in life...just had the pirate look....hard to explain.

My sweet friend Dixie was there to meet me in Whistable. It was raining today, a bit dreary, but Dixie had good news.  Nigel Hobbins, one of my favorite English folk singers, was playing a gig in Herne Bay and wanted me to play a few songs this evening. So, after 'tea', Dixie and I drove 4 miles to an old nice and pretty conservative church.  I will post a video soon so you can hear Nigel Hobbins and the Backroom Boys. I hope that you love it.  It's the  kind of jolly music with a deep message that makes you smile the whole time, but you don't know why. My favorite part of the whole show was in the middle, right before I played, one of the singers from the other band went into the backroom of the church where I was tuning up the guitar.  She said 'It's a little nerve-racking out there' I turned around and she whipped out a flask and took a few good swigs of whiskey.  I had to crack up. She was lovely.

Today I was thinking about how thankful I am ..for friends...and for friends that have amazing hospitality who really make you feel loved when you are hanging out with them.  Thanks to Terry & Vicki and Howard & Dixie for the warm meals, hugs, rides and great conversations.  Friendship makes the tour so much richer!

In the a.m. I will be playing some tunes at Whistable Baptist Church on Middlewall in Whitstable...some for the kiddos and some for everyone.  Any suggestions on the children's songs? Maybe 'This Little Light of Mine'.

Goodnight all.

Love,

Tammy*

It's the little things...

Well, I promised hedge photos.  No hedge photos, yet.  My apologies :o)

Today I spent time outdoors in SevenOaks working on booking buses, trying to book a flight and answering emails.  There was a funny convo with two workman that were fixing a few things around the house today.  One of the guys was telling me how to do a British accent by substituting the "th" sounds with and "f" sound. Like fings or somefing.  It was good fun.  Practice and let me know how that goes for ya.  In the end he asked for a song and he ended up buying a Cd and recommending that I should get up with BBC Radio 1. Will do.

Do you want to see some photos? Here is what I have so far--The plane ride (beautiful sky) and the first dinner that I had in England this time around (ham, carrots, peas, and mashed potatoes.

Today I was thinking about how expensive things in England can be...but, I was also thinking about how I love the English toffee here and I can't wait to buy some.  Have you tried it before? Trader Joe's has a chocolate covered version of English toffee which is quite good...but the toffee here is incredible. It's the little things that make me smile.

Any good suggestions of things that I MUST try while I am over here?

Well, goodnight.

Love,

Tammy*

Nashville to Atlanta to London

Hey! I hope that you've had a good day.

Well, to get started...I arrived safely in London. The flight was ok...The dinner was pretty delicious, I have to say. It was chicken breast, with garlic butter/cream sauce, orzo, and mixed veggies with red wine. Yum. I did struggle through static-filled headphones to hear the film, Jane Eyre and sleep was a bit impossible.

I had the privilege of sitting next to Crystal, a Wisconsin born daughter-of-Dairy-Farmers who brought me up-to-speed on how cows are milked (with machines), how often they should be milked (often...well, daily?), what happens to them when they aren't milked (their udders get infected and they die), the average life-span of a cow.  She is doing a 6-credit grad course abroad in England for her studies in Library Science.

I was "fetched" at the airport by my friend Terry (who, by the way, has one of the largest vinyl collections I've seen). My first day in Sevenoaks (outside of London) included making breakfast, drinking espresso with Vicki and Terry, showering, sleeping 5 hours, having a wonderful dinner that Vicki made of ham, carrots, peas, cauliflower, mashed potatoes, finished with a "pudding" (aka- dessert) of cake, custard, strawberry preserves and fresh strawberries!!!  We went for a walk in a beautiful park and around the neighborhood until I got freaked out by the bats circling overhead. Talking with my man via Skype made the evening end so sweetly.

Jet-lag isn't going to win tonight.  I am falling asleep now.  Tomorrow, I will post some photos...I want to you see the hedges in the neighborhood. (shrubbery..now thinking of Monty Python).

Thanks for reading.  Goodnight all.

Love,

Tammy*

Liberty Spoke to Me-Summer Tour 2011-Europe

The "Liberty Spoke to Me" Summer Tour 2011 begins now.  First stop-London to begin the 2 month tour.  I will post everyday from the road.  Just check my blog, facebook, or my website to see what's going on.

I am little tired from packing, washing clothes, paying bills, and finishing up some details for the tour.  Where am I heading on this 2 month adventure, you ask? England.Germany. Switzerland.France (and perhaps Poland).  

Finally I get to tour and to share these songs with you live! Want to hear or buy the new tunes?

Just click here

Click here to see the tour dates :o)

Thanks for reading!  Now, a special little video (below) that proves that I need to sleep more.

Love,

Tammy*

Nicaraguan Dinner last night

So, this February, I went to Nicaragua (Central America) for the first time. It is such a cool place..beautiful, tropical places, volcanos, nice folks, beautiful sunsets and amazing food! Last night I cooked and created a close-to-authentic Nicaraguan food experience for me and my BF Katy. I cooked rice and black beans (with garlic, onions, cilantro, saffron flowers, and dill), sweet ripe plantains cooked in butter to golden goodness, garlic chicken broiled with chilli peppers, pan fried queso seco (white hard cheese) and queso fresco (white soft cheese) with tomatoes on the side, and crepes with cinnamon and queso fresco with a touch of brown sugar.

I love love love to cook. Thank you Nicaragua for adding some delicious new food to my menu :o)

Blessings!

Tammy*

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