Duke My New Uke

I did it!!! After months and months of talking about it, reading reviews and watching youtube videos, I finally bought a ukulele.  A Lanikai LU-21 Concert Ukulele. It's a step up from the cheapest ukes and it's the second smallest in size (a soprano ukulele is smaller).  I have held it as much as possible the past few days, even when I wasn't playing it...:o)

It came last Wednesday, and I couldn't have been more excited about opening a box.  I needed to be on my way to get tile grout from Lowe's, but on a whim I stopped at a music shop right down the road from Fieldstone. Obviously in the "if you give a mouse a cookie" syndrome, once I had the uke, I needed accessories right? I walked directly over to the ukulele stand and when asked if I needed help, I explained I had just gotten my first ukulele in the mail that day and was looking for some sort of way to attach a strap.  Ed and Laura, the lovely workers, explained I would most likely need a strap attachment. At my confused look, Ed walked me over to the guitars and pointed out the bolts on a guitar that allow a strap to hook on.  He said it was something I could do myself and to make sure I predrilled the holes before putting the screws in so I wouldn't split the wood.  I spent the whole time nodding in agreement, but in my thoughts were, "who do I know who could make this happen for me?"

Not wanting to pass up an opportunity to get to know more people in this little town, I promptly introduced myself and mentioned I was leading worship for the summer at Fieldstone UMC with their summer camp.  Ed perked up and said, "Oh at Project Spy?" Turns out, several years ago, Ed regularly attended Fieldstone and knows a bunch of the guys that are involved in the worship ministry there. We talked a few moments about Fieldstone, and then Ed said, "Tell you what, you bring your uke back by here and I'll put the attachments on it for free."

A Lanikai LU-21C like my own Duke!

So after a rushed trip to Lowe's, back to church to pick up Duke, and I was in the back room over at the music shop talking all things music, baking, and life with the wonderful Ed.  And Duke is in beautiful shape, I'm slowly learning a couple of songs, it's similar to the guitar in that you play chords, but different in that the placement of every chord is different....:o) And much to the amusement of some campers and utter horror of others, Gary and I did a ukulele rendition of Rebecca Black's "It's Friday", for wake up Friday morning. Yep, Duke is going to come in handy this summer!!!

I won't lie, now that I have a ukulele and after spending time in Floyd, I totally want a mandolin now! Will it ever stop? :o)

An Evening in Floyd

Last night, my soul needed some bluegrass music. I think it was a combo of being back in southwest Virginia, missing my grandpa something fierce, and a desire to have a bit of an adventure....regardless, the cool and humidity-less summer evening found me down in Floyd, about forty minutes from Christiansburg, enjoying the festive, Friday night.

The Floyd Country Store has live music on Friday nights, and they are not lying when they say seats are limited and fill fast.  But for those too scattered to sit still long, musicians are up and down the main drag in town, finding pockets of other musicians to play with.  There were times I would stop to look around and I could hear songs being played by some three different groups. Various pieces of plywood were laid down for the flat-footers and the crowds around the music spilled often into the street.

There is something inspiring about the organic-ness of bluegrass.  These people know the songs, the words, the harmonies, and how to provide for the different parts.  They are brilliant in their knowledge of the instruments and can easily switch between. There was an ache in my heart as the night went on, I want to learn, to have that part of Grandpa in me, even if he's no longer here.  At least I didn't cry at the sight of an upright bass this time around.

I met a host of interesting characters, watched the sunset in the blue ridge and enjoyed a waffle cone of ice cream while joining the crowds on the streets.  I also found a cemetery of deeply weathered and worn down headstones all dating back to the 1800's, the small plot of land was tucked in between shops, a hotel, and trailers....:o) As unique as Floyd.

Week 1 Down!

Whew! We sent our first campers off this morning after some avid packing and cleaning. It was a crazy week of figuring out how everything would work.  We found some things to be awesome, like brown box skits, and others to need some adjustment.  I was humbled in leading worship, it was difficult and challenging for me this past week, to teach, to connect, to lead.

There are many different dynamics this summer, the constant flux of people, living in a warehouse, in a room without a ceiling, leading both at night for camp and Sunday morning while the regular worship leader is gone for five or six weeks, all taking adjustment.  I am thankful for our brief sabbath to recharge and spend some time in quiet.  The next wave of campers comes tomorrow, and where we had less than forty campers this past week, this next week will hold 74!

There hasn't been much time for blogging lately, but I did acquire a ukulele this past week and the story behind that will be forthcoming.... I love being back in Virginia, but I did leave part of my heart back in Colorado....miss you all!

Project Spy: My New Home for the Next Two Months

After a couple of weeks of constant motion, I can feel my heart slowly settle in to a new place with new and familiar faces.  I am excited to be here in the blue ridge, at a church that is mission minded and Christ driven.  We have an awesome staff that is ready to jump in and get to work, and I am looking forward with anticipation to what God is going to do around us, through us, in us as well as the kids that come here this summer. We had some staff bonding time floating down the New River tubing yesterday, and I realized just how deeply I had come to miss the combination of water and mountains that Southwest Virginia holds.  A flyover of jets did momentarily cause a pang of remembering only a week and a half ago I was at New Life eating hamburgers and watching the Air Force Academy's graduation flyover...

Crazy how fast life changes.  Now there are five of us living in the back of Fieldstone, getting the area prepped and the summer planned and programmed.  We were welcomed yesterday with rooms ready, baskets of goodies to enjoy, and cards made by the kids.

The surprise of the day was a note from long time friends the Barnes family. The first grandchild had been baptized at Fieldstone this past Sunday and while I did get to see Troy, Natalie, and little Avery, I do have the promise to see the rest when they come through later in the summer!

 We are spending our mornings in planning, afternoons in prep, and then are being hosted in the evenings for dinner by the families in the church... promises to be good times and food!

Home!!!

We made it!!!! Three days of driving and sightseeing, some sketch mcgetch motels and some nice ones, many fast food restaurants later, and we pulled up to home at around 8 pm last night. Since then I've been cleaning, unpacking and repacking, playing cars and guitar with Nate, celebrating my mom's birthday, and worship practice at the Vine to help lead Sunday....whew!

I am so thankful for the past nine months, there will be posts over the next few days to show and tell about graduation, the trip home, and celebrate my time in the west. The blog will also be undergoing an overhaul since I will in fact no longer be west....I have some ideas brewing, so stayed tuned.

Tomorrow it is a trip to Colonial Beach to clean out the guest shed and get it prepped for Mitch's eventual move before my arrival, Friday is hopefully work, Saturday is the Old Town Farmer's Market and seeing Liz and Caleb (so excited!!!!!), Sunday is worship at The Vine, last minute packing, and then leaving MONDAY for Christiansburg. It's a whirlwind time and I'm just trying to keep my head screwed on straight.

I love my kitty!