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Tuesday – Knoxville, Tennessee....

First we hit the Blue Plate Special in Knoxville TN.  It’s a live radio show broadcast from the Visitors Center downtown.  Matt, the host, even wore a tie with his overalls. He looked dapper.  Matt said that normally, bands roll up to the show looking pretty rough from lack of sleep and smelling from smoke or no showers.  He said that when we rolled up, he saw a butterfly float out as we opened the doors and this sweet aroma filled the air.  J 

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Next it was the Crown and Goose in the Old City for an evening show.  We had so many fun people show up, and the wait staff was SO nice, they even helped us carry gear to and from our van.  I had the risotto and it was by far, so far, the best meal I have had on this trip.  It’s going to be hard for that meal to be beat, but I’m open to the challenge if any of the other venues we play at want to feed me. 

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Wednesday – Bristol, Virginia....

We were on the news!  We got to be in a real TV station and everything!  It was so fun, we sang two songs and talked a little about the show we were going to play that night.  We also had our picture taken with the news anchors as if we were reading the news, so fun!  I could not help but think of Will Farrell the entire time I was there.  I love the movie Anchorman.

.. ..

The venue we played at had a band house, so we parked and unloaded, then realized that one of our tires on the van was looking like it had a puncture in it.  So we found a WalMart and asked them to check it out for us.  One hour turned into three and finally, we were off with a new tire.  They.  Move.  Slow.  There.

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We were late for our show at the Acoustic Coffee House in Johnson City because we got lost, and because our tire change took so long.  This must be where the phrase ‘rolling in like a rock star’ comes from.  We had to jet as soon as we finished that show because we had yet another gig to attend that day.  Yes, three gigs in one day.  We are women. 

.. ..

So we played at OMainnan’s and had people that showed up specifically to see us play because of the news segment we were on that morning!  It was pretty cool – and we played until 2 am.  Wow, if you’re at a bar on a Wednesday night at 1 am, odds are – you’ve drank too much for a weekday.  But, hey --- to each his own.  If you don’t have anything to wake up for on Thursday morning – why not live a little?

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Thursday – Asheville, North Carolina

We got to sleep in!  Ah, the little things in life!  We got on the road and were enjoying the drive so much that we forgot to look at the gas gage.  Yes.  We ran out of gas.  Luckily, we made it off the interstate and coasted down the off ramp.  We got partially to the side of the road, and thank God - there was a gas station a half block away from us.  My poor van takes so much abuse, and then just keeps chugging along.  So I was filling up the tank with the little gas can in order to get us 20 more yards to the actual gas pump, and a police car drove by and stopped to check on us.  We had already secured the scene and the van was moving to the pump when they got to us.  But, we started telling the policemen what happened… and I remembered Rachel has a song called ‘Hello Officer’.  So I said ‘You have to hear this song!’  I guess there were no pressing crimes to solve at the moment, so they said yes.  You have to see the video for this on YouTube.  It was awesome.   It still makes me smile.  We arrived at Tod’s Tasties and had a wonderful evening in the crisp fresh mountain air.  

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Friday – Chattanooga, Tennessee....

I have not had the opportunity to check my email this entire trip.  Note to self: Buy an I-phone ASAP.   We arrived in Chattanooga at 2:30 am and promptly slept.  Then it was off to the radio station - WCLE in Cleaveland TN for a quick interview at 7 am that morning.  I don’t even remember what I said because I was so tired.   Hope it was coherent!  We played an afternoon show at the MudPie, which was unexpectedly Morgan’s last show of the tour.  Morgan had a death in the family and was needed in Michigan.  It’s never a good time for that sort of thing, we missed her and have been praying for her and her family.  So, a three-woman Mascara Tour continued on and played the North Chatt Cat that evening.  We had a wonderful time out on the patio, the weather was perfect and the people were kind.  We even had several kind gentlemen help us load in our gear.  Only in the south, and I love it.

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Saturday – Nashville, Tennessee....

Tonight we have our last show at Douglas Corner Café in Nashville TN.  We are all happy with the tour, we had a great turnout at every show, a great time together, and we sprinkled our music out over the airwaves.  I’m sure there’s much more to come, so stay tuned!  I do miss my two dogs though.  My mom always said that if I didn’t have a dog to miss at home, I’d never come home.  She knows me well. 

.. ..

Ciao for now!

=) Treva  

Well... it's almost time for the Mascara Tour to start!  I've already left Conway AR and I'm sitting at the Frothy Monkey in Nashville TN as I type.  We load up and leave town on Monday. The van even got a new headlight for this trip, so we are all set!

Hi Friends! 

Hello from San Antonio!  I'm currently in San Antonio with the A.R.T & Soul Tour - made up of myself, Rory Partin and Alexa James.  Today we played at SIP, a great little coffee shop on the corner of Houston and St Marys Street.  Jenn, the barrista, kick started my day with an amazing vanilla latte.  Then Rory, Alexa and I played for two hours as folks stopped in for lunch or their afternoon caffeine.  It was a fun show and a great start to the tour.

The Conway Post Office Experience

Hello!

I've had some pretty big changes in the past few months, so I thought maybe a quick note might be appropriate.

For the past four years I've held a full-time job in addition to my music career. In February, I quit my full time job, and I am now doing music full time. It's pretty exciting. Thank you to all of you who have been supportive of my music career!

Second, I moved from Nashville TN (one of the best cities ever) to Conway Arkansas. My husband was offered a job here in Conway, so we welcomed the new adventure. Conway is growing on me, (it's green!) and it's been really great for me to slow down and take it all in. I'm feeling creative, inspired and encouraged. Lastly - I wanted to assure you that my move away from Nashville is not the end of Treva & the Suits - it's only the beginning.

On another note - last weekend I saw Flight of the Conchords play in Nashville at the Ryman Auditorium. They are absolutely hilarious! If you're not familiar with Flight of the Conchords - check them out on YouTube sometime -- I laughed so hard and smiled so much that my cheeks hurt the next day. I recommend 'Part Time Model, Hurt Feelings, and I'm not crying' as starters...

I guess that's enough for now - wishing you happiness and a nice sunny weekend.

=) t

This is from two of my dear friends Jamie Prosser and Brad Reynolds...

On Tuesday June 17th, 2008 around 11 AM, a man entered the Tip Top Hair Salon on Lebanon Rd in Hermitage, TN and fired 5 shots from a .22 caliber pistol into the body of a 24 year old stylist and mother of two as she pleaded for her life. Then, after ignoring her cries for mercy and believing his mission to kill her had been accomplished, the gunman turned the pistol on himself and ended his own life.
  
Alicia Garcia had been working at Tip Top for about 6 months as a stylist. My stylist, Nancy, works in the chair right next to her. Fortunately Nancy was off that day. Since Nancy and Alicia were friends and worked so closely together, I got to know Alicia a little bit. Every few weeks when I would get my hair cut, we would all catch up on life through the typical casual salon chit-chat.
 
The last time I went in was about 1 week before the incident. I noticed Alicia was not working that day and when I asked, Nancy let me know that she was off because she was getting an 'order of protection' against her husband. One week later we found out how badly she needed it.
 
Alicia miraculously survived the gunshot wounds...despite getting hit in the chest and neck. She was in critical condition for a few days but has since been released and is making an amazing recovery. However being a self employed stylist, she has no insurance for herself or her two young sons.
 
Here is how we can help...
A few years ago I wrote a song with my friend Jamie Prosser and my brother Matt Reynolds called 'The Diary'. This song is based on a woman who is trapped in an abusive relationship and it is written as though the woman's diary is telling the story. Alicia's incident brings this very real issue close to home and gives this song renewed meaning as an important reminder regarding the dangers of domestic violence in our society. 
 
In an effort to help raise some funds for Alicia Garcia and her kids, we have produced a recording of 'The Diary' and are now making it available for purchase. Shortly after I heard about the incident with Alicia, I spoke with some very talented friends in the music industry to see if we could put this song together. The responses I received were overwhelming. They didn't ask for any money or any recognition, but I want to offer a special thanks to Felicity Combs from the group The Sum for singing the song and playing the piano, to Chris Combs for his engineering, to Joe West and Cord Phillips at Gasoline Productions in Nashville for engineering, mixing, and mastering, and to Keith Mohr from Indieheaven for helping get the word out and setting up the page to facilitate the download. The song is now posted on my Indieheaven page. Downloads are $3 and are available here http://www.indieheaven.com/artists/bradreynolds .
 
Every dime earned from the digital downloads of 'The Diary' will be donated to The Alicia Garcia & Children's Trust Fund sponsored by Pinnacle Bank in TN. If you would like to donate directly to Pinnacle Bank for The Alicia Garcia & Children's Trust Fund, donations can be made in person at any Middle TN Pinnacle Bank location or sent via US postal service, there is currently no online access to do this. To find a location visit http://www.pnfp.com/about_pinnacle/locations/default.aspx .
 
If you wish to mail a check directly to Pinnacle Bank please send it to the following address:
 
Pinnacle Bank
211 Commerce St
Suite 300
Nashville, TN 37201
 
Make checks payable to 'The Alicia Garcia and Children's Trust Fund'
 
Please help me get the word out and let's raise enough money for Alicia and her 2 sons to 'start a new page' in their lives. Once enough money has been raised to help the family get back on their feet, any additional funds will be given to a reputable organization (to be named later) that supports victims of domestic violence.
 
I would ask that you also pray for the family of Chris Garcia, the husband. Even though his actions were dreadful, there are still family members, including his two sons, that lost someone they loved very much.
 
Here are a couple of the news links related to the story...
http://www.newschannel5.com/global/story.asp?s=8512971
http://www.wsmv.com/news/16631536/detail.html?rss=nash&psp=news
http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?ID=/20080728/NEWS01/807280345/1001/RSS01

 

Thursday August 7^th

Knoxville Tennessee at the WDVX Blue Plate Special & Preservation Pub

We left Nashville at 6 am and headed to Knoxville for the Blue Plate Special radio show.  The Blue Plate Special is a really unique show.  The radio station, WDVX, shares an office with the Knoxville Visitor's center and a cute little coffee shop.  WDVX made a stage in one corner of the room and they offer free live music everyday at Noon.  Since the station is in the middle of downtown, folks drop in on their lunch hour to listen to the music, grab a cup of coffee or a sandwich from the coffee shop, and just chill for awhile.  I love the concept, and loved being a part of the show.  Megan McCormick and I played over the airwaves to a full house of folks chillin' on their lunch break.  Then the host of the show, Matt Morelock, took us out to eat at the Tomato Head.  Mmm… a delicious morning.

 

We played at the Preservation Pub that night, which is right off of this main square area with cute little shops and restaurants.   Before our show there was a local Shakespeare production going on in the middle of the square,  I'm not sure what it was about because I couldn't hear the actors all that well.  It's hard to follow Shakespearean-speak when you can't really hear the dialogue. Oh well, made for a creative and artsy atmosphere.

 

Hudson K, a local Knoxville band kicked off the show at Preservation Pub that night.  Me and the Suits went next and Megan McCormick wrapped up the evening.  It was a really great night for those who enjoy female fronted indie-rock-folk bands.  Luckily, that's precisely the folks who came! J

Preface to this next part is:  The Suits and I LOVE the TV show Lost.  We discuss what's going on in the show, and we zip our lips if somebody isn't 'up to speed' with the latest episode, so they can truly enjoy it.  SO – lo and behold – Michael Emerson was at our show!  Michael plays Benjamin Linus on Lost, the leader of The Others and the ultimate bad guy - who you think is doing something good - only to find out it was really just another self-serving form of trickery that puts him ahead of the 'good guys' again.    

 

So of course, we HAD to go say hello, right?  Michael was there with his gorgeous wife, Carrie Preston.  Carrie was in Knoxville shooting an Independent Film called I Hate to See That Evening Sun Go Down on a farm outside of Knoxville.  (Long movie title, huh?) Since they had the day off on Friday, they decided to go and catch some live music Thursday night.  They picked up a local paper and started going to different websites of the bands who were playing that night.  They went to our website, liked the music, and decided to come to the Preservation Pub TO SEE US!  We were so utterly flattered.  J  They also brought their friend Walton Goggins – who has quite an extensive TV and Film resume as well (The Shield, Bourne Ultimatum and many others).  It was awesome, and the best possible way to start off the tour. J  I even have a picture to prove it.

 

Friday, August 8^th

Chattanooga Tennessee at Rhythm & Brews

We left Knoxville on Friday morning after staying with my sweet friend Rachel.  We had time to kill, so we puttered around Knoxville a little while.  We even arrived in Chattanooga with time to wander.  It was nice that we didn't have to hurry.  We were able to take it slow, breathe easy and just enjoy the day.  We ate dinner at Cheeburger Cheeburger, which is a 50s style cheeseburger joint.  I learned that it's not a good idea to eat greasy foods before singing.  I should have known that already, but I guess I just wasn't thinking.  Oh well.  On the Cheeburger Cheeburger menu there was a cheeseburger that touted its magnificence because it was over 1 pound of meat.  Um… why?  Why, why, why does anyone EVER need to eat that much meat in one sitting? 

We played at Rhythm & Brews Friday night.  It was a really cool place.  They have this great space, a huge stage, lots of lights, and a great sound system.  The people were nice, and we had a good crowd to play to.  The seemed to enjoy our music, and Ben even had a couple honeys that came up and stood in front of him while he played his rippin' solos.  J

 

We opened for Abbey Road Live – a Beatles cover band.  They were fantastic and had lots of t-shirts for sale.  As I examined my little merch table next to theirs, it was at this point that I realized that it must be a tad difficult for a cover band because they can't really sell CDs at their shows.  I suppose they could sell CDs if they wanted to license the music, but when all the songs in your set are exactly like the Beatles CD your customer already knows, loves, owns and sings to in the shower at home… well… it was just something I had never thought about before. J  Regardless, Abbey Road Live was fantastic – and I really enjoyed it.

 

Saturday, August 9^th

Atlanta Georgia at Eddie's Attic

 

We spent Friday night with our friend Mike, who has the cutest little 10 week old beagle puppy named Millie. SO cute, so clumsy, and so loveable.   We watched what we could catch of the Olympics in the morning.  It is amazing what a disciplined human body in tip top physical shape can do. 

It was so nice to be back at Eddie's Attic, it felt like putting on a pair of jeans that fit perfectly.  Shalom does the best job with the sound system in there, it always sounds heavenly, and I think Eddie should be nominated as Venue Owner of the century.  He's so kind and has created this amazing haven for songwriters and people who love to hear them.  We opened for Ashley Arrison and Joey Degraw.  It was a sold out crowd, and we had a great time chatting with folks, catching up with old friends and making new friends, too. 

 

All in all, it was a really successful tour, and I think it did my soul good to get out on the road and connect with people through music.  I can't wait for the next little tour… hope to see you there. 

This is from an email list I belong to called DailyOM -- I thought it was a good one...

July 21, 2008
Remembering the Moment
Enjoying Life

Life, in all of its fullness, is happening right now. While our thoughts are sometimes elsewhere, beautiful opportunities and moments are being passed over and lost to the flow of time. And though we cannot possibly fully experience each leaf that falls to the ground, sometimes we get so attached to reaching our goals that we don't pay attention to the wonder all around us. When we do that, we live in a world that exists only in our heads, while we miss life itself. There is so much to be enjoyed and appreciated that we need to remember to pay attention to the present moment, because it is the only space in which we can experience being alive.

We learn from our past, but dwelling on it keeps us from being fully present to life in the moment. We create our lives with our thoughts, but focusing so firmly on our imagined future keeps us from co-creating with the universe, so we might never allow ourselves to live our dreams as they manifest. It's possible to be so happy and comfortable in our inner worlds that we lose touch with the business of life. We may enjoy spending large portions of time in meditation, or focused on our thoughts.

Life must be attended to, and if we are wise, we can enjoy it at the same time. We can awaken ourselves to the moment we are living right now by taking a deep breath and simply looking around. In doing so, we refocus our attention to our location in the real world. Then we can learn to appreciate the process of working toward our goals as much as their attainment. Balancing ourselves between the present moment and eternity, we can experience and enjoy the full range of reality available to us as spiritual beings living on earth.