I think my teapot is going to break from over use....

So I never blogged about Austin really. I meant to but it wasn't as easy to find wifi as I thought and blogging from my Blackberry just wasn't doing it for me. So instead I posted most of the trip on facebook. Sorry to those of you who were waiting for a blog....I will tell you the story of the not so pleasant end to our awesome trip...

We got in the car around 9:00 am Monday. Ready to hit the road...got a quick bit to eat at McDonald's (classic road trip style...you know you all do it) and we were off. I had gotten up much earlier that morning, around 4 am or so, to drop Sarah off at the airport...so I was still extremely tired when we hit the road. 

Jeremy started out the first leg of the trip driving. Lou and I were crammed like sardines in the back of the Trailblazer, trying to figure out the right position to sleep comfortably....not willing to admit to ourselves that such as thing did not exist. I think my final sleeping position of choice ended up being the "lean forward with your head on the seat in front of you"...for whatever reason it seemed the most natural.

I fell asleep pretty shortly into our trip. A few hours went by and I woke up to find us stopped at a truck stop...still in Texas of course...BTW: Driving through Texas feels like driving on a treadmill in the middle of a cow pasture next to a "HELL IS REAL" sign. Anyways, when I woke up I had a scratchy throat. The kind that I get when my allergies are bad. I figured the climate change had finally caught up with my allergies and that was the issue...WRONG. When I woke up at the next truck stop I thought I was gonna die before we made it out of Texas.

I spent the rest of the trip fueling up on cold medicine and Airborn, but niether worked. I slept for the most part, but I was getting worse and worse.

We finally got out of Texas and ended up stopping in Memphis, TN. We drove to Beale St to try and get some dinner. We found an alright parking spot and pushed our money into the cash box. Exited the car, tried to lock it but.....the lock on the back hatch wasn't working. Not good. We got back in the car, drove around looking at Beale St. then found a Perkins to eat at where we could watch the car from the window.

We ate some food, I drank some tea, and once again we were off. This time Lou drove and I was supposed to be the co-pilot. Thank God Tommy stays awake late at night because I was asleep before we got back on the highway I think. I was a shitty co-pilot.

When I woke again it was somewhere around 2am maybe?...and we were pulling into the Grand Old Opry. My throat felt like it was on fire...but I really wanted to see the Opry. We all woke up and dragged ourselves outta the car. No one was around anywhere but the Music was still playing outside at the Opry...its was kinda odd.  We took a few pictures...

hahah we were sooo cold and groggy. 

We got home around 4 pm on Tuesday. I had to cance my regular Beale St. gig for the first time in 2 years. I wasn't very happy about it.

After we got home I lost my voice completely.  First I went hoarse, but then it just went totally silent.

That was last Tuesday....it has been a week, and I still don't have a voice today. Little pieces are slowly coming back...but it is very frustrating. I had to cancel my Beale St. gig again tonight, and the band gig at Dewey's this past Saturday. 

I went to the doctor and they gave me pills for a sinus infection. My sinus are clear now but I can feel it in my throat. I am going to see a Ear Nose and Throat specialist on Friday...hopefully it will continue to get better.

My Mom bought me Aloe Vera juice because it is supposed to prevent any scar tissue on your vocal chords. I take two tablespoons in the morning and two at night. It tastes really bitter and strong...not sure if its helping...but they do say it is a colon cleanser...and it is probably safe to say that it true.

I haven't had any other liquids besides Tea w/lemon and honey. My teapot is probably going to break soon. It is way overused.

Our next gig is April 9. I should be fine by then. I haven't talked to hardly anyone in like 5 days....it's kinda sad. I heard that even whispering is bad for me...so I have to communicate with notes and texts...if only everyone knew sign language:)

I am going to go nap. Hopefully I can talk to all of you soon with a full healthy voice!

Until next time...

-Teags

And We're Off...

It's 4:00 in the morning. Just packed up the last of the car. Ready to walk out the door. Going to pick-up Jeremy and Michelle...then over to Lou's to hook up the trailer that is all packed up. Gonna be interesting.I need to get coffee at somepoint, although I am scared that might make the car ride longer if we have to stop. Pearl is not a happy camper, She knows I am leaving and has tried to pack herself in the car several times now. It makes me feel bad:(
Anyways, we will be trying to update every time we hit a place with some sorta wireless internet. I know we are most likely stopping to eat somewhere around Nashville, so maybe then.
Hopefully everything goes smoothly...Can't wait to be down there!

'til next time,
-Teagan 

Nothing a Day of Skiing couldn't solve...

Finally...everything is in order for Austin. T-shirts are coming on Friday along with the finished and duplicated demo. WHAT A PAIN IN THE ASS. I am giving you my sympathy ahead of time for anyone who ever has to buy a license for an old blues song that they have NO IDEA who wrote.
We wanted to put the song "Little by Little" on our demo for Austin. It is the one and only cover we did for it. Needless to say, we ended up with an issue with licensing the song properly....the issue first was,I didn't think we needed to buy the license since there is not a bar code on the disc...but of course, we couldn't get it duplicated with out one. When I found this out I was home on my lunch break and in a hurry. I did a little search on Google and found who I thought was the original writer of the song...ROBERT PLANT, Did you know Robert Plant wrote "Little by Little"? The same song Susan Tedeschi covers on "Just Won't Burn"....WRONG!

...I bought the wrong license. That was just a minor $106 mistake. What a headache. I was so glad when Monday was over. I made sure I spent Tuesday doing something non-stressful. Tommy and Taylor and I went skiing one last time before we leave in 6 days. I took this picture of them on the lift...hahaha it looks like Tommy has his head resting on Taylor's shoulder...

It was such a beautiful day. I think all three of us had bright red noses from all the sun. There was hardly anyone else on the mountain and it was spectacular.

Tommorow Katy, Tommy, and I will be going on the Brother Wease show for a radio interview about SXSW and our gig @ Dinosaur BBQ tomorrow night. It will be interesting...tune in if you can to 95.1 The Fox around 10:30am.

I have got to head to bed.

'til next time

-Teags 

Pearl and Teagan go shopping...

 

Me and sleepy Pearl

It was so sunny out today, so Pearl and I went shopping...thats why she is so sleepy now.

First I took her to the pet store and let her pick out a bone...which is a huge ordeal with Pearl. She is very indecisive and usually gets distracted by wedging herself under the bone display to get a tennis ball that someone has dropped. Then she starts to get frustrated and makes strange noises like she is trying to talk...because now she is stuck. The pet store was busy because it is Saturday and there is not a whole lot more embarrassing that can happen in a pet store than when you have to almost lay on the floor to remove your tennis ball crazy Jack Russell from underneath one of the displays. But I got her out and we were able to pick out and purchase a bone...eventually.

So we moved on to a few stores. Pearl sits and sunbathes on my front seat with her bone while I go into the store and try to pick out outfits and predict what the weather might be in Austin. I was halfway successful. I think I need a human shopping buddy next time to join Pearl and I.

Oh we are sooo close to leaving....Everything is finally coming together and working out. After weeks of anticipation and stress we will eventually have to take with us: a new demo with 5 tracks, new Teagan and the Tweeds t-shirts, Stickers, a website (Check it out!), postcards, event flyers, and handbills. Good thing we have a giant SUV and a trailer to take with us!

What started as me taking a shot in the dark 8 months ago is quickly becoming a very exciting reality. I just got an e-mail the other day about the showcase we are playing on Saturday night, saying that MTV will be there looking for new music to place in their shows and commercials...so NO PRESSURE...haha I can't wait. We have come so far in the last year, even the last 6 months, it's time to go show Austin how to rock the tweed!

If any of you haven't noticed, we also just hit 1,000 fans on our FACEBOOK. We are very proud of this, it is such a great way to keep in touch with our fans. We have recently uploaded a few new pictures and some GREAT videos from the Haiti Relief Benefit at the German House by Mike Hanlon, so please stop by our page if you haven't already and become a fan:)


We have 2 more shows to play here and Rochester before we leave. All the wonderful people of S.I.S. (Sustain. Inspire. Survive.) , HTI (Human Touch Initiative) , and of course our favorite venue Lovin' Cup,  have decided to throw us a little benefit in Thanks for all the fundraising events we have helped them out with in the past. They approached me and said that they would like to help us absorb some of the costs to go down to Austin. The event will be tomorrow (Sunday March 7) from 4-6pm. It is a much earlier time than we are used to playing, so perhaps some of our fans that don't like to stay up late can check it out. We will have a few friends stopping down to join us on stage. It should be a good time.

The last show we will play as a band before we go on the road will be Dinosaur BBQ on Thursday March 11 @ 10:00pm. This is our second time playing at this venue. We had such a great time the first time, I personally can't wait to do it again!

Any who....I think I am going to grab a beer!

'til next time,
-Teags