Tender, tearful, Tennessee State Line sighting.

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Yesterday and today I got a bit emotional. “What’s new?” I hear my family and best friends asking. In just over three weeks, we have traveled over three thousand miles and have lived out of suitcases, computer roller bags and a mobile fridge.

Our hotel rooms have looked like this.

Hotel room = Organized chaos?

We have had a fantastic time but it has been busy and even stressful with deadlines and 13 performances so far.

Niagara Falls was a wonderful break. We packed an awful lot into a few hours and had a nine hour plus journey afterwards to get us to our next “gig”.

TT’s plan worked. After this wonderful treat I would never dream of leaving his employ or even our marriage for another “Roadie” position. It certainly made up for the hectic, slightly crazy times when I just wanted to pack up and go back to sleepy Somerset and retire.

Like the time I mislaid the Brylcream just before the show or made his tea with Redbush/Rooibosh tea , just before he went on stage with it in the teapot. I  should have used Yorkshire tea bags.

Poor “C.S. Lewis” had to pretend to enjoy this African grown tea instead of that distributed by the U.K. Yorkshire tea company!

Back to Niagara . I haven’t even told you about the boat trip, right up to, and into the spray of the falls.

It was AMAZING!!!

Those of you who have done this “Maid of The Mist” trip, know that each passenger is issued with a big blue waterproof plastic Macintosh with hood to keep you dry. Well of course it doesn’t completely,  which adds to the fun, especially if like us, you were on the top deck right at the front.

Excuse me I should say the ” Bow” or “Poop” for my nautical readers. (If there are any) Actually I think I have one. My sailing son Daniel, who knows his “poop” from his “stern”!

Anyway it was fantastic ! Have I used that adjective before? I yelled and screamed my lungs out as we got closer into the falls and got soaked with the spray.

Everyone should do this before they die. Unfortunately I dropped my new camera while I was taking pictures of the Falls and broke it. Another emotional high and low all mixed up together.

Happily TT has ordered me another one from Amazon. He is working hard to keep me on an even keel, emotionally speaking . See I am keeping with the nautical theme!

Yesterday I was feeling a bit travel weary on the 8 hr drive from Virginia to Georgia. Then I had an attack of “the warm fuzzies”. Why? We were crossing the state line into Georgia, when I realized that our beloved Tennessee is the next state to here. I even saw a sign for the I40 and Knoxville!

I nearly made TT swerve off the road as I suddenly burst into a rousing chorus of “Good Ole Rocky Top. Rocky Top Tennessee. Click here and sing with me. Yeee Hii!!! Here are the lyrics.

“Good ‘ole  Rocky Top, Rocky Top Tennessee!! You’ll always be, Home sweet Home to me!!”

So… I’m feeling very comforted to know that we are so near our Nashville home and will soon be seeing our dear dear friends from there and even our house in Mt Juliet!  Deep joy!!

We arrived in our Augusta hotel a few hours ago. We are unpacked and my lovely jubbly husband is out visiting Panera to collect our supper. Veggie soup and “Orchard Harvest Chicken salad” for me. He will have their wonderful French Onion soup and a Panini.

Bon appetit and good night all,  from The Paynes in hot hot Georgia.

P.S. May have another outside swim before I go to bed. It’s still in the 90deg F/?30+C here.

Love hugs and prayers.

From Marilyn aka Roadie Grandma and David aka TT “The Talent”! xxx

Tour is hotting up as we head south. Plus Niagara pics!

In Canada on Tuesday morning it was very cold at dawn. I had 4 layers of clothing on including my PJ bottoms under my jeans and big winter jacket with hood! The temperature rose as we drove south and we are nearly melting in the unusually hot 90F deg heat and have had to dig out our summer clothes again.

Eastern Mennonite University campus has been our home for 2 nights. This 100 acre Uni is in The Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. With The Blue Ridge Mountains as it’s backdrop.

Yesterday TT took the Chapel service, a theatre class and did “An Evening with C.S. Lewis”. They will pod cast the chapel service in a couple of days. I thought he was really good. There were about 400 students in the chapel and they sang acapello in four part harmony. Lovely. I didn’t want them to stop. Here is the link to their Student life events page that should have the pod cast on soon.

On Tuesday, we had a 9 hour journey to get to the Uni. from Niagara Falls, in Ontario Canada. But it was worth the long drive.

On Tuesday morning we went on The Maid of the Mist right up to the Falls. It was FANTASTIC.

To go back one more day and start our Falls adventure at the beginning. It was on Monday that we drove 1.5 hrs from Rochester New York to The Crown Plaza hotel right by The Falls. On arrival I sat in Big Blue the van while  TT disappeared inside the hotel. He was gone for ages. He then appeared and escorted me up to the 11th floor. The room overlooked the falls and had a balcony. This was the view!

TT updates our travelog on film!

I kept jumping up and down, screaming and shrieking, “I don’t believe this. This is amazing, incredible. etc etc”.

The weather was perfect and we had some left over salad in our mobile cold box.  We had a great picnic outside with this amazing view.

A room with a view and left over salad from Pennsylvanian church

After lunch we had a walk along the river to Table Rock.

Roadie Gran in great excitement mode.

Niagara Niagara whoo hoooooooo!

Had the best 24 hrs of amazement and fun on the Canadian side of the Falls Monday and yesterday.

Will tell and show more later.

Drove from Niagara Falls Canada through the following states yesterday. New York, Pennsylavania, Maryland, W. Virginia and finally Virginia.

Now in the guest appartment of Eastern Mennonite Uni in Harrisonburg VA.

TT just off to do Chapel service at 10:00am, Workshop at 3:00p “Evening” public performance 7:30p.

Keep praying.

Love ya.

xxxx

Lots of driving in BB. Japanese tourists and Mennonite / Amish ladies.

What a hero my husband is. He drove 6 hrs plus  roundtrip to Williamsport Pennsylvania and did a lovely performance in between.

We went up and down the lovely mountains in BB. Round and round the lakes and rivers. Most of the time it rained.

We stopped at the welcome centre just over the Pennsylvania state line. A gorgeous place that we shared with a bus load of Japanese tourists and a group of Mennonite ladies complete with bonnets and home made matching dresses and sensible lace up shoes.Made me think of Beverly Lewis books.

It seemed odd to see two of them at the wheel driving off. They, and we, were running back to our vehicles to escape the pouring rain and gusty wind.

The Japanese tourists, although looking very cold were taking multiple photos of each other, rain soaked leaves, sprinting Mennonite ladies and the lovely rain drenched scenery.

Just arrived home at midnight. Night night all.