Ummm

A tv in the mirror in the bathroom? Now, I could poop with that...

Who thinks of these things?

I love the flamingo so far, even with donny and Marie Osmonds faces all over the side id the hotel!

On the road....

Driving to Las Vegas, the memory of a hot Australian summer replaced with a cold rainy day out here on highway 15. The comfort I find in the tour van....the smell, dashville, my girl, the crew of friends we are driving to meet for an adventure this weekend.

All of it keeps me warm inside and puts a smile on my face.

Xx m

The view from here....

Yes, believe it or not, this is someone's view...from their apartment. I just sat and stared at it, trying to absorb it all and take in the beauty of it. It felt very special to sit there and just look. Watching the cars go back and forth across the bridge, watching the city as it turned to night and all the beautiful lights came on. The friend who lives in the apartment told me that the first night she stayed here she walked in and saw the view and burst into tears...it's that awesome.

Of course, this is Sydney Harbour. Somewhere I would never live but was grateful to have a few moments to soak in the beauty of her. Of course...I might consider living here if this was my view every night!!

We fly home today after 2 1/2 months of being here. My sweetheart got to see my country from the ground up. Living with friends and family, sharing with them, loving them more and becoming part of their world.

And now we say bye for another year (or until they all get their asses over to the US!!). 

Tis always the hard part.....

xxM

FAIR DAY......

We arrived back in Sydney last night and found out that it was fair day here in Sydney on Sunday. Fair Day is the equivalent of Pride Day in the US.

A huge park, lots of naked men wearing chaps, free condoms and lube, lots of entertainment..you know, everyone being just who they are...in all their glory.

We walked around it holding hands, smiles on our faces, sweat on our brow...it's was so fucking hot we could barely last a few hours but came away with lots of fun photos and swag. None of which we have room for in our bags (which by the way we are putting off repacking because we are scared of how much shit we have to pack...).

D is making her way through a pack of tim tams and we are all indulging in yummy frangelico while we sweat up a storm here in Sydney (secretly I am jealous she can eat tt's and put on NO weight at all...lol).

Homeward bound....

xxM

Dreaming of Kidogo...

Our last show in Perth was at a place called the Kidogo Arthouse. It's a 100 year old limestone art gallery that sits on the edge of the Indian Ocean in Fremantle. There is no seating...just wooden floors that people bring blankets and cushions to sit on. People bring picnics and wine and groups of friends and sit and share dinner together before the show starts. You can sit and listen to the sound of the waves crashing outside and smell the salt in the air.  It's a magical building and I have always said its my dream to find venues like this in every city I play in.

It is actually one of my dream shows to do. Relaxed, intimate, friends sharing with friends, amazing history and acoustics, it feels really earthy with an open appreciative audience that is happy to do and go anywhere. We finished this night with a song by U2 called 'Still Haven't Found'...and it was stunning to sit back and listen to 100 people sing it back to me.

Perfect show. 

xxM

The Duty of The Aunt

 

This is me, my niece Skyla and nephew Ethan. We had a 'Bindi' birthday party on the weekend to celebrate their 6th and 3rd birthdays respectively. Skyla does an amazing Bindi Irwin impersonation. 

This morning, I am off to do Aunty duty and take Skyla to school and go watch Ethan do gymnastics....yay for Aunty duty....at 7am. The musician in me is screaming 'who gets up at this time?'...just seems so wrong. lol. 

We have one more week here in Australia. My heart feels sad to leave my country, my family and summer but then, it's also excited. Excited to be heading back for our wedding, to move into our house (at last) and to start creating our home and for some of the great playing opportunities that are starting to come in for the year. 

It's always the dilemma my heart faces....the juggling of missing and excitement.

Off to school then!!

xxM

Adieu....

We just spent two days down south again....saying 'see you later' to the ocean...the one that looks like this:




















This is bunker bay and by far my most favourite beach in the whole world. Any wonder why. The water was a little chilly this day but it called to me the second we hit the sand and I just dove in and didnt want to come out.

But then, it was our mates Jemma & Jane calling us out to whisk us off for lunch and a few beers later and a wonderful sunset and this is what we were reduced to:














Good mates that we say bye to for another year (or until they get their asses over to us). Makes both of our hearts hurt to say bye to them. Where's my giant suitcase when I need it?

Shows finished, oceans swum, bbq's had, aussie cup full...now its back to Adelaide for the final week of family time and 6 year olds birthdays and then we start the journey home. A little browner, a little wider (well, me at least!!) and our hearts filled with love for our mates. Dionne loves it here and often times has looked at me and we have pondered moving back here together. For now though, our home in Indianapolis is calling us...and our wedding day and a year filling up with fun shows, festivals and creativity.

xxM

Just because.....

So damn cute....and the joey aint bad either.

I was under pressure to provide an opportunity for my visiting loved ones to witness a Kangaroo. It was starting to weigh on me. One day, we stopped in a little beach town called Busselton and were finishing eating when we looked up and low and behold..there, on the grass, were three baby joeys. A man, who I will call 'Rick', was looking after them. Pulled them out of their dead mummas pouches on the side of the highway and was nursing them to a place where they could just go out and be back in the wild...of some sort. Or at least, just not dying of thirst and starvation on the side of the road.

They were absolutely beautiful and I felt like a good Aussie.......

xxM

Me and a Kite

This is an Australian Black Kite...it's only a baby, about 18 months old. It sat on my arm and I looked deep into it's eyes as it looked deep into my brain...a kite can see so well that you could hold a newspaper a mile away and it could still read the headlines. I felt like it was checking out the lines in my brain as it looked at me and seeing my own reflection in it's eyes was kinda humbling.

We have a week and one more show left in WA. It's been awesome to be here. To hang out with mates, to do some great shows, to swim in some awesome water and to just be. My heart pines for the house that we have bought and the home we will create but I am trying to keep myself present here right now, enjoying every moment. Being grateful and open to the possibilities. A million people have asked us if or when we are moving back and my mate Jemma keeps threatening to hide my passport. Who knows really, but not right now is the answer.

Keeping in the moment...

xxM

It's how we roll....

Sunday nights house concert with our mates Jemma & Jane. It was a magical night in White Gum Valley...the weather was close to perfect, the moon close to full, the crowd magnificent. It was one of those shows where everyone felt excited to be there, they were ready to hear music...to listen, to laugh, to be involved.

We have another 10 days left here in Perth and three shows...a lot of swimming to do and mates to hang out with. It's been a great time and I wish I could bundle them all up and take them with us. Just makes us committed to coming back more often.

Oh...and I bought a didgeridoo today. It's been years. I started to learn how to play about 15 years ago up in Darwin and stopped because I was told it was disrespectful to the aboriginal people. I have been talking to a number of folks about that and was recently told that there are some tribes where only the women play and that generally, if a women's ceremony is taking place then a woman plays the didgeridoo. So, I bought one and got it shipped home. Hoping oneday I can play it respectfully and spiritually...that day may be a long way away though coz damn it makes me dizzy to play. Gotta get that circular breathing going!

Anyway, this is our life...today.

xxM