A Christmas Story...I didn't get anything for Christmas one year when I was a kid. I might have been 8 or 9...I don't remember my exact age, but I what I do remember made a big impact. I learned Santa can be very mean!

Here's what happened...

I got all kinds of stuff I didn't ask for nor did I like or want. Being the outspoken child that I was, I made no secret of my unhappiness and complained and complained and complained about how unhappy I was with my gifts. So, Santa the meanie, got tired of hearing me complain and took my Christmas presents back. He took everything except 1 thing...a bowling ball, because it already had the holes drilled in it and couldn't be returned. So, kiddies...be grateful for ALL your gifts...even that fruitcake!

My Letter To Santa

Dear Santa,

     I know it’s not much money in this day and age, but if you bring me one million dollars I promise to invest it and let it reap financial rewards so that I may have financial security when I get old. I could just ask you for impractical ‘things’ like everyone else my age does, such as a new iPod that can store 10 million songs and completely eliminate the need to ever buy a CD again from a starving independent musician such as myself, or maybe a 236 ft long high-definition plasma TV or even a new car (although my car cost me more this year than that new Porsche I wanted last year (and didn’t get, by the way)…Or, I can ask for the 'practical' things little girls my age seem to want such as new boobs, a butt lift, a face lift, or so many Botox shots that all I’ll be able to do is blink and stare…But, the million dollars would just make it easier, don’t you think?? Everyone says money can't buy happiness, but I’d like to try it once and see for myself. If it doesn’t make me happy, which I highly doubt, I promise to donate it to my favorite charity.

      See you on Christmas Eve with the dough…and thank you,Santa!!

      Debe

We had a great time playing in Long Grove the day after Thanksgiving! Most people might think we were crazy, because it was only 30 degrees, but we had a tent to block the wind and people still came by to listen and have some fun.

I gotta tell you, though...It isn't easy to play with frozen fingers. I could only play a few songs and then I had to warm up my hands. My fingers felt numb and I just can't play with gloves on. Not even the fingerless gloves. Andreanna could only play a couple of songs on the violin and then return to piano, because her fingers felt just as numb. She tried plyaing with gloves, but proved by playing a song very badly that she couldn't, either!   Bobby, however, could bang, bang, bang on the drums all day. He even said he was sweating at one point!   I think it's a guy thing!

My friend, Christy was in from Arizona and came to see us with our big fan, Bruce. Boy, she HAD to be cold. Glenda also stopped by with her sister and a friend. We're so glad you guys came by. Thanks to all of our new fans, too. And, thanks for the tips! We appreciate the support.

I think we've played in every imaginable type of weather at Long Grove now. We've played in cold rain with sleet at Chocolate Fest, beautiful sunshine at Strawberry Fest, boarderline tornado and rain storm at Apple Fest, and below freezing weather with snow the day after Thanksgiving. Yes, my friends, one must REALLY love playing to endure in the music business. It's gotta be love...that or insanity...we're still trying to figure out which one it is. 

We had a fun night at American Dreams. Thanks to everyone who came out to show their support for a night of original music. I know it was a late night, but that's what naps are for...We got to share the stage with two other cool bands, Faraday Cage and Digable Cats. Check them out sometime.

Some sad news...Barnie, my Dad and step-Mom's dog had to be put down. He was only 5 yrs. old and also a cockapo like my dogs, Teddy and Bailey. My Dad said Barnie was loaded with cancer and it had eaten away part of the vertabrae in his back and spine. Barnie was a wonderful dog. We will all miss him a ton. Send a card to my Dad & Mom through me at debe@debewelch.com and I'll forward it on.

Well, it's windy today. It looks like a typical fall day. I'm going to go out and enjoy it before it really gets cold and I go into hibernation. Happy Sunday!

I've decided never to write after I just get home, because I would complain about the drivers I encounter on my way non-stop. Mostly, I'm thanking God I get home safe, but what I really want to see are Cops stopping people and giving out tickets for the following...   1. Drivers going 45 mph in the left lane  2. People who don't use their signals  3. Anyone who makes me want to "flip them off"  

 It's a madhouse out there!  

Maybe this is why I don't write often...                                                                                                                                                           

 We played in Long Grove yesterday outside at the Apple Fest. It was a blast and just 15 minutes after we finished our second set it started to rain. The sky got black and the rain started falling slowly at first and then all hell broke loose. I kept telling Andreanna and Bob to hurry up and start getting stuff into the truck. Andreanna, of course, always the optimist was saying, "It's ok. It's under the tent." Since the tent is open on all sides I kept yelling back to her saying, "The rain is gonna start blowing. The tent won't help." All of a sudden, it started raining SO hard I seriously thought a tornado was coming. I was literally hanging onto the tent that we were under with all my 125 lbs of weight so it wouldn't crash into Andreanna's new car and Bobby's SUV. The wind was so strong that I was hanging from the tent and my feet weren't touching the ground a few times. At first I thought I'd better just let go or I'll get hit by lightning, but the wind was so strong I was afraid to do anything. Branches were flying off the trees. Then the whole tent just came crashing down. At our break we also put up the band E-Z tent so the crowd could get out of the sun and our tent just snapped in half from the wind. It was horrible and I was scared to death. We got the speakers and the PA board into the truck and some of the equipment, but a lot of stuff got soaked. Andreanna's $400 wireless microphone was floating in 4 inches of water along with all our speaker cords and microphone cords and all the guitar cords and power strips. Andreanna runs to her car and starts taking pictures (can't wait to see those) and I was laughing like crazy because we all looked hilarious all soaked. Bob had a poncho on that he just bought at Target in the $1 bins and the arm ripped off and the back split open and then...after an hour of all that the sun came out.

Bob was going through all our stuff today to see what needs to be replaced. Hopefully, not too much. We need the equipment for Murphy's on Thursday and for Pub 222 on Saturday. Bob's pee wee drums got soaked and they were also laying in a heap with all his cymbals in a 4 inch puddle of water. I salvaged the conga drums and the bongos....whew! What a day! But on the up side...no one got hurt, Apple Pies were 2 for 1 and Andreanna and I weren't wearing white t-shirts! THANK GOD!   

AN UPDATE  --------------------------------------------------

Bobby had his own part of the story after Andreanna and I went to get some hot
apple cider...Bobby said he was all alone in his SUV in a secluded place when
he was taking off his wet clothes to put dry ones on. He said as soon as he
took off his soaked underwear and was sitting naked in his SUV, all of a sudden there were 50 people around his truck because another truck with a trailer bottomed out
right in front of his SUV and made such a big bang that people came running out
to see what happened. Bob said he was horrified. I think that's hilarious and
told him I was sorry I left to go get something warm to drink.

Happy Autumn!

It sure didn't feel like fall today. It was really warm out. We had a gig early this morning from 10:30am to 11:30am at the Marklund Day School for severely handicapped children. It's kind of an early gig...maybe the earliest we've ever had, but it was fun and the kids seemed to enjoy the music. The staff is also a wonderful group of people. I'm glad we can donate our time and talents for a good cause. FYI-We donate 100% of all CD sales to Marklund Children's home and our company, Affinity Music matches it with a donation.

It's cooler in the morning now. I'm getting up at 6:30 am to take Bailey and Teddy for a run in the meadow, but I couldn't today, because it was raining. It's sunny now and it's still hot and humid. We've hardly had any rain at all.

We're going into the recording studio today to lay down some tracks for the new cd. Andreanna is going to lay down new violin parts for "Happy Song" and that version will be a bonus track on the new cd. Bobby's laying down drum tracks for at least 2 new songs today. I hope all goes well. I pulled something in my back this morning while cleaning out my closet. I hope that nagging pain is gone by 3pm.

Today is also my niece, Jennifer's birthday! Happy Birthday, Jennifer! Send Jennifer a birthday wish to my email address at debe@debewelch.com and I'll forward it to her.