Back in Black

Hey y'all! I'm currently in Lexington, KY (again). In the past three weeks I have been to nine different states: Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Maryland! Crazy stuff. Just about seven weeks left of tour!

So, you might think that my blog post is going to be about AC/DC or something...but you're wrong. It has to do with my wardrobe! Back in college, when I gained a substantial amount of weight, I didn't want to wear anything but black, because it was "slimming" and it would hide all that extra weight I was carrying around. So, that's basically what I wore, mostly black with some items having a splash of color or a little polkadot action. After I started to lose weight, I rediscovered the rainbow of colors I was missing out on, I wasn't afraid to draw attention to myself anymore. Now, since I've been on tour...you can't exactly fit a wide variety of clothing unless you want three suitcases (like some people I know, eh-hem, lol). But for me, it's more, less is more while I'm traveling, so I packed a lot of basics but still tried to keep a variety of colors & styles for the days that I wasn't in "uniform".

The last three months of this tour have been brutal on me, I got used to the waking up in a different city every day & the sporadic schedule changes, but man...I wasn't prepared for 70 hour work weeks & a schedule so unpredictable I don't know where I'm going in THREE DAYS! I knew before I started this tour that I liked structured flexibility, and to many of you that might be an oxymoron but it makes perfect sense to me. Structured flexibility is constant change with a plan...I like to plan, I like lists & a constant but I also like things to change to keep things interesting. So, when I was no longer in control of anything in my life (other than maintaining a relationship with God), I have kind of "let myself go". Which brings me to the fact that I'm "back in black" when it comes to my wardrobe!

I feel a little disheveled & haggard lately, my hair hates me for switching up hotels every few days, the climate changes (going from Maryland to Alabama) are awful on my skin & the constant on the go, or don't know where I'm going causes stress that is also not helping my skin or those giant circles under my eyes! Haha. Let's not mention the fact that there seem to be no L.A. Fitness locations in the cities we go to & the fact that I'm just too tired or lazy to work out lately & my eating habits are extremely difficult to manage out on the road.

I think I'm writing this blog post because I have gained some weight since being on tour & I've seen myself go back to some of my old ways of wearing black more often, being totally uncomfortable just sitting in front of people & being disgusted with myself when I look in the mirror and I'm TERRIFIED I'm going to let myself slip back into that downward spiral that I was in three years ago! All those factors about my current lifestyle have made it more difficult for me to maintain or lose weight, but they are also excuses & I need to make sure I'm not slipping back into my old ways on account of me feeling sorry for myself. And that brings me to the declaration that things need to change in my life, I have seven weeks left of tour & I want to enjoy it! I want to spend the next seven weeks happy to take pictures with Kevin & Michelle & feel good about myself! So, there it is...now you know, I'm struggling but I will come out of this tour feeling good about myself!

From Here to There and Everywhere!

Hello from the car (that’s a first)! On our way from Annapolis, MD to Prattville, AL with a stop in Knoxville, TN tonight. Now, your first thought if you know me is…Knoxville, TN!? Like University of Tennessee country…Neyland Stadium!!! YUP! When I visited Tennessee back when I was a teenager, I totally fell in love with everything, the people, the schools, the football and the state as a whole & I’m still in love. UT is my second favorite college…right after my Alma Mater of course, Western Michigan University! So needless to say, I am STOKED about passing through Knoxville!

Now, let’s talk about Annapolis, MD. If I had to describe this city in one word it would be…rude. I swear to you, everyone I met that was from Annapolis acted as though they had GIANT stick up their butt! Ugh, what a way to live! But seriously, I did not meet one nice person there unless they weren’t FROM Annapolis! But, it officially wins the award for the rudest, most unfriendly people in all of the cities I’ve traveled to so far. A close second would be all of New Jersey, but to be fair…I’ve only been in the Carlstadt/East Rutherford areas mostly…but besides their people, their road systems SUCK…no left turns!? What is a JUG HANDLE!? I’m excited to be heading South for some southern hospitality, that’s for sure!

We’re going to be in the South for a couple weeks, we’re heading to work the LPGA Golf Tournament in Prattville, AL, and after that we’re doing a couple University of Kentucky football games. I’ll be experiencing fall in the South for the first time, which is almost a bummer because fall in the Midwest is my favorite part! I know that working at college football games is going to bring back a rush of nostalgic memories of being at WMU with my best friends in the whole wide world! Ahh, just thinking about it makes me miss those days!

Speaking of sports, we’re coming to my favorite part of the year! This is when baseball season is serious business, football season is underway & hockey is about to start! It’s even better when the Tigers look like they’re headed to the post season (magic number is 7!!), the Lions had a great pre-season & won their first game (even though they turned into the typical Lions & made the end of the game pretty nerve-wracking!?) AND the Red Wings may have had some crucial changes due to retirements, but we still have a solid program that is going to bring it home this year! Man, I love being a Detroit sports fan! I’m a fan win or lose, but when they’re winning it’s a whole lot more fun! I’m really pumped about the Tigers, seems they really have their pitching down which is what we’ve been missing for a while & I couldn’t be happier (okay, maybe if we had the Phillies’ record, but still).

Well, that’s kind of an update on my life lately…I would update you with the rest of the month, but out schedule isn’t posted yet! I never realized how much of a planner I was until I live my life week by week & sometimes don’t even know four days in advance what state I’ll be in!! Talk about anxiety…ha, I guess it’s helped me manage the fact that I’m no longer in control of ANY part of my life! And guess what…tour is almost over! Saturday will officially be our 8-month mark, meaning only two months left! Crazy.

I miss all my friends & family back home & am so blessed I’m able to have them as long-distance support when I need it! Until next time…MUAH!

::Update:: Made it to Alabama & am staying in an INTERESTING hotel...