West Reading, PA

This has been a very sleepy day for me! I arrived last night at my friend Steve's house just before 3 a.m. I guess I was a little tired since I thought this would be an interesting picture...



It was a very easy drive, I didn't hit much traffic (amazing that I hit ANY...) and the Garmin led me right to Steve's front door. A few hitches in our plan...Steve told me just to come in and the guest room would be all set up for me - it was, I just had no idea where the guest room was. Also, I expected Steve to be in the house alone, but there was a big guy on the living room couch. So, I made some calls and woke him up (sorry, Steve!) because I got really nervous that I had walked into the wrong house. Wouldn't THAT have made for a great story!!

So this morning, I had to get up much earlier than I wanted to (sleeping in is possibly one of my favorites hobbies), but I got to play at a cool place called Hard Bean Coffee.



I knew that I was going to be playing during the hours of the town Farmers Market, but I wasn't sure exactly what the set up was going to be. I was very very pleased by what I found! The Farmers Market was really cute and on a very nice street, with a lot of shoppers. (I'm planning on checking out some of the shops later...Vanessa, there are more thrift stores!!)



The only problem with playing outside was...it was about a billion degrees out here today. (I broke my own personal rule of wearing shorts in public...that's how hot it is! And yes, Bryan, they're my purple shorts and they are awesome!) So, I played inside to all of the other people who were trying to cool off with iced coffees or tea. It was great! I got a lot of people to sign up on my mailing list (that is always really encouraging, because it makes me think that I'm actually growing a bit of a fan base) and I sold a bunch of CDs. That's always really encouraging because it means I can pay for gas and keep driving to the next gig. :)

Anyway, the owner, Terry, is a really nice guy who worked really hard to help me promote this morning's show, and it really paid off. Again...I was on the sidewalk! And we all know that it makes me feel very cool when that happens!!



Ok, off to explore the town a bit, then out to dinner with Steve. I may have more photos to share with you tonight, but if not...I'll certainly have something new for you tomorrow!

The Greenwich Hotel and Las Vetas!!!

It's been another couple of fun days, so I'm going to tell you the stories in photos!!!

Last night (after a great day of thrift store shopping on Thayer St. in Providence) I played with my friends Daniel Chase and Jose Docen (check them out), and we had a great night at The Greenwich Hotel. Again, my name appeared in chalk...I gotta tell you...again it made me feel cool!



We played to a fun house since each of us brought a few people. There's a regular crowd at this place as well so we got to play to a nice full room. Here I am with Vanessa (my roadie for two shows!) and Aunt Judy (she stayed out late drinking Stellas with me...).



Now, lately I've been ending all of my sets with "Peace". I think it's cool to get everyone singing along to a nice peaceful song to end the night. Especially when I'm singing in a bar, it's always one of my personal challenges to see if I can get everyone to participate. Last night was no exception, and I must say, the clientele rose to the occasion. I was actually joined by two men (who had had a few adult beverages) who each decided to grab a microphone!! It was a little crazy, but with a bit of coaching, they both joined in at the right times and somewhat in tune...

Here's adult beverage man #1:



And here's adult beverage man #2:



Crazy times! After hanging out for a while after the show, Vanessa and I took off since we needed to get back to Fairfield, CT this afternoon and we didn't want to be sleepy drivers. I arrived home knowing that today is the last day that I'll see Bryan for a while so I decided to let him open for me tonight at Las Vetas...



Just kidding! But I did enjoy sharing the stage with Beethoven this evening...



It was SO HOT tonight in Las Vetas, so after my piano set I needed to take a small break to cool down, and while I was outside cooling off I was evangelized to by two very friendly young missionaries. Both girls are members of the Church of the Latter Day Saints so we exchanged cards. I think the design work on mine is more professional looking...



Here are the last photos, I promise. As I was finishing up my second set, I noticed a little girl looking at me, then drawing in her notebook, then looking at me, then drawing in her notebook...you get the idea. Anyway, when I was finished she gave me her drawing (which was addressed to "an awesome guitarist and singer"), and it turns out that Christine was inspired by my songs and wanted to draw something for me! Here's Christine posing with me after I was done playing:



And here's a close-up of the picture!



Thanks for reading...so far things are going really well and I'm having a lot of fun! Now I'm off for a late night drive to arrive in Reading, PA. Give me a call if you're up for a late night chat!!

Tour has started...yippee!!!

It's always so exciting to start on a project when you've been planning it for months. I started contacting venues and friends back in February to make this tour happen, and now FINALLY the day has arrived!

So...last weekend I performed at Googie's Lounge in NYC. I'm always really nervous to perform in New York because I feel like there's a lot of competition there and people are judging you. No one's mean or anything (though, if I sucked, I'm pretty sure that people would let me know) but it just feels very stressful for a person who doesn't perform there often. With that said, I'm psyched because I think I've found a nice little home at Googie's Lounge. It's a very low key place, they have a cool, old, white baby grand, and it's in the village, which just makes me feel like I'm a big deal. Anyway, the show went really well, I tried out a new cover that I'm going to be using on tour (you'll have to make it to a show to find out what it is!), and I worked out a good song order that I was happy with.

Plus here's a cool pic...I was on the chalkboard...I know, I know it's not permanent, but it also made me feel like a big deal.



Last night I played at The Tavern Downtown in Hartford. It was a cool place with a lot of great musicians playing. (I was a part of the open mic night.) It's through the New England Megastar Competition that I made this connection with the venue, and I'm so glad that it worked out! I got to see some of my friends from the competition and my friend Mike, and his brother and brother's girlfriend, Tim and Michele (who are now my friends too!) came out to show some love. It was great...and I didn't really want to leave, but last night Vanessa and I decided it would be a good decision to drive to Providence and spend the night here, and it was.

This morning we woke up late and hung out a bit at my aunt-in-law's house (Judy rules!) and now we're driving around and exploring Providence. We've eaten lunch (HUGE falafels) and we're going to hit up a few of the thrift stores here on Thayer St. I highly recommend a visit to this town if you've never been here!

Tonight I'm playing in East Greenwich, which is just a few minutes away, and I'll be playing with a few other people. It's going to be a great time, and I'll have more photos and an update for you later!!

For now, here are a few photos for you to enjoy:

Here's Vanessa and I in front of the 'tour bus' a.k.a. my awesome corolla.


Here are our 'world tour' matching water bottles.


My friend Mike came out to see me in Hartford! What a good guy!!


Vanessa color coordinates her tops with her camera, phone and drinks. (And apparently, that's a photo of my evil twin...)


Here we are in Providence!


And last...here's my amazing falafel...sorry about the Coke product in the photo, dad!

Good things happen when you show up...

I've had a really busy schedule over the past few weeks between playing shows (I had three in one day on June 13!), hitting open mic nights, planning my summer tour, and soliciting local radio stations for airplay (four stations are playing "Montreal" and "Time" by the way!). During my sleep deprived but free moments today, I've had a chance to reflect on all of the good things that have been going on lately.

Let me to fill you in on some highlights from the past weeks:

**Sunday, June 7 - My parents went to see Lucinda Williams perform in Green Bay (how great are they!) and passed along one of my CDs to her merch manager to see if she would pass my music on to Lucinda....how sweet are my mom and dad?!

**Saturday, June 13 - I played three shows, sold all of the CDs I had in the car, and played for hundreds of people at the Monroe Strawberry Festival!

**Sunday, June 14 - I played at a Connecticut Songwriters Association Showcase, which was a great networking opportunity.

**Tuesday, June 16 - Four local radio stations (WWUH, WESU, WPKN, and WVOF) now possess my CD and have all played "Montreal" or "Time" once in the past week...I'll pass along their request line info next week so that you can tell them to play my songs!

**ALSO on Tuesday, June 16 - I was named ev3studios artist of the year for 2009!!

**Thursday, Jun 25 - Two different local papers (The Day in New London and The Observer in Southington) have agreed to help me out by writing something about my CD and upcoming shows in the area.

**Saturday, June 20 - Played at a house concert in Clinton, CT with my new friends Glenn Roth and Patti DeRosa.

**Tuesday, June 23 - Debuted my new song, "Heartbreaker" at The Acoustic Cafe Open Mic, and didn't screw it up! (Woohoo - looks like the writer's block has ended...)

**Wednesday, June 24 - Competed in the NEMegastar Preliminary Competition. Didn't move on, BUT did get invited onto a local television show (I'll let you know when that's happening) AND the competition's organizer was annoyed that I didn't move on to the next round so suggested I submit a video of myself singing (did I mention that he's the one who judges the videos???) which would send me straight through to the final round AND give me a showcase performance opportunity.

So, to find a moral in my own story, I'm going to keep showing up and keep playing anywhere I can. Good things keep happening when I do!

Online Promo...what could be more fun?!

Hey everyone! I have a short little update today because I just wanted to let you know that I've been working to create more of an internet presence for myself and my music. Of course, I could always use help! If you're willing, I just posted two banners on my myspace page that you can grab and post on your own pages.

I also have created a song widget for "Montreal," that not only helps me spread my music, but will help me gain some recognition in the 'Rock the Space!' contest!! As always, I can use as much help as possible, so click 'grab this' and post it on your facebook, myspace, blog, etc. Thanks so much for the help, and stay tuned as I continue posting details about my summer tour!!





Help me spread my music by putting this widget up on your page! It's a MySpace contest...the more people spread my song the better...thanks for the help!

Back to Piano.

So...for the last month I've been really focusing on booking myself some shows, and so far I've been pretty lucky in filling up my performance schedule! You can see my upcoming shows on my myspace page: www.myspace.com/kristengravesmusic. As much as I hate booking myself, I know it's a necessary part of the job. (But seriously, it's so awkward! You have to talk about how good you are, how many people will come to see you, ask for money, etc.) Happy thing for me, as I've been booking more and more, it's getting a little easier. (Slightly, but hey, every little bit helps.)

Anyway...when you stop in to visit my schedule on my myspace page, and mark all nearby performances on your calendar (hint, hint!), please make sure to listen to the song that I recently posted called, "Back to Piano." It's off of my new CD, so many of you have heard it, but for those of you who haven't — listen to it and then rush to iTunes and buy it!!

About "Back to Piano," here's the story...

A few years ago I took some time off. I wasn't playing shows, writing songs, or even practicing music much. Why? Because I thought that my time was better spent working in Mexico helping out with my husband's non-profit, Simply Smiles. (www.simplysmiles.org) Don’t get me wrong, it was a really wonderful and amazing time. The immediate gratification I received, knowing that I was making a difference — even in the smallest of ways, was so motivating that I decided it was a better use of my efforts. It was an incredible year, I enjoyed helping out with the projects we were working on, but there was clearly something missing — and it made me quite cranky and miserable. (Sorry, Bryan!)

A friend of mine named Madai, who grew up at the children's home that I continue to visit in Oaxaca, Mexico, still works there as an employee. One day, she pulled me aside and asked me why I wasn't playing shows anymore. I was surprised that she cared about my music career or even thought it was important, but she did. She actually went from questioning me, to scolding me, and then told me that I was wasting my talent. Huge wake-up call.

The week after my scolding, a group of volunteers came down from Connecticut to help build a few homes in the local garbage dump for needy families. All these people are from the town where Bryan and I live, so we had a great week working, eating tacos, playing with kids, and hanging out. One of the guys in the group, John (a fellow musician), borrowed my guitar a few times to play around and sing a few songs. We got to talking about music, I played him a few of my songs, showed him my website, etc., and that was that — instant friendship!

A few months later, Bryan and I finished working with all of the volunteer groups, said our good-byes, made return travel plans, and got on a plane to come back home. After sleeping for a few days, (you get really tired down there!) we both got back to work. He was working on fundraising for Simply Smiles, and I made a decision to get back to focusing on music; writing new songs, playing shows, you get the idea. After a few days back to work, I got a phone call from my new friend, John.

John designs and builds big beautiful homes in Southern Connecticut, sometimes tearing down an old one to make room on the property for the new one. To get to the good part of the story...when people move out of their homes, they'll sometimes leave behind an old refrigerator, stove, or even a piano...and that's exactly what happened! I got a call from John, he offered me a piano, I said, "YES!” and he was at my house within the hour accompanied by a moving truck and some strong guys. And just like that, I had my piano. It was awesome.

I wrote, "Back to Piano," a few days later and if you listen to the lyrics — they're all true..."I head down the hallway, walk through the door, see my old friend, sit and stare at the keys, they're out of tune, but it doesn't matter, I'm back to piano...” I'm so lucky! This was an amazing gift, and I'm so so sooooo grateful. (Thanks, John!) I wrote the majority of the songs for my album, "Stay", on this piano, I practice on this piano everyday, and I'm going to keep it forever, even when I'm rich and famous!!!

(Unless of course, someone steals it - I do have a bit of a history...)

Good story, right? Hope it brightens your day!



Here I am at my piano.
Rock on, my friends.
Rock on.

I love the road!

There's nothing like pulling away from your house, speeding onto the highway with a full tank of gas, and heading off to play and sing in another town. I just love it. It feels like a little adventure. A freedom-filled adventure.

I was packing up yesterday; loading my keyboard, CD's, guitar, etc. and had a huge smile on my face the entire time! I need to remind myself of this when I'm working on booking from my office and don't have a huge smile on my face...

Last night was my show at Perks Coffee House in Norwood, MA. It went really well, I had a lot of fun, and got to show off my new guitar to everyone!! I spent the night at my aunt and cousin's house just down the road from Perks and my cousin Kristina and I just finished a delicious diner lunch.

Today I have a short drive as I head down to East Greenwich to play at the Greenwich Hotel. I'm playing with my friends Jake and Josh (a.k.a. Gamblin' Hands) and our new friend Daniel Chase for a singer/songwriter night. It should be a lot of fun. Come out if you're in the area!!

Momentum: Why Such a Frisky and Fickle Creature?

Last time I wrote, I was writing on my laptop while under a beautiful shade tree at a children's home in Oaxaca, Mexico. Today, I am typing as I sit at my desk, staring at my to-do pile, in Southport, CT. Quite the difference!

Maybe it's because I'm just a regular person, or maybe it's because I have undiagnosed ADD, but I have a hard time switching from trips to Mexico (where I reside with 80 screaming kids, and lead groups of teenagers) back to living in a tiny house with one other person and spending the majority of my day working in my office and/or singing to myself. It's a strange little life I lead. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't change a thing (as I've mentioned a time or two before...) I just need to snap out of it or something.

I don't do well taking off for Mexico for a week or two or six, where I only play guitar for a few minutes a day at most (no piano there...), and am only able to maintain the very bare minimum of booking and promoting upcoming shows. Contrast that with returning from Mexico exhausted and sometimes cranky, and very behind in my promo/booking of upcoming shows and therefore needing to spend a lot of time thinking all about me all of the time. No distractions, no emergencies, no homes to build, just me telling other people about why they should listen to me. Really weird.

Anyway...

Tonight I'm playing at the Steam Vent Coffee House hosted by the Winsted Congregational Church. Tonight is a coffee house evening that they host once a month as a part of their fund-raising efforts to bring a group of volunteers down to Oaxaca, Mexico. A nice "full-circle" project, because I'll see all of these people tomorrow (when we're all shiny and clean) and then I'll see them again in Mexico this August! (When we're significantly less shiny and definitely not clean.)

So, I guess this blog is a bit of a rant - except for that last paragraph. Not towards anyone, just to myself. I don't know why it's so hard to get back into the swing of things after each trip, but I'm doing my best! One of these days, I'll definitely figure it out.

Have a great weekend!

New Life - Part 3: Combining Arts and Philanthropy

It's pretty obvious that I love music. I can't poetically describe the way that music makes me feel, but I can tell you that there is nothing else like it. A melody can carry you as far as your imagination allows, lyrics can open hearts or change a mind, and let's face it - the rhythm is eventually going to get you. (I can't claim credit for that joke - it's from an old 'Friends' episode!)

Anyway, my life would be severely less meaningful if music weren't a part of it. It's what I do; who I am, and I consider myself extremely lucky to be able to live with and create music everyday.

I started playing piano as a little kid; entering piano competitions, performing at recitals, you know the drill. I really liked it until about 8th grade, when I used to dread practicing and couldn't stand my lessons. It got to the point where my mom begged my piano teacher to let me play some songs other than Classical or Baroque music, and it was in high school that I was introduced to Scott Joplin. I can honestly say that Ragtime saved my music career! Maybe something else would have come along, who knows what would have happened, but I do know that I started practicing - and loved the piano again.

I went off to college with dreams of studying music, and it's exactly what I did. I can't say I loved every moment (I was not destined to become a concert pianist or music historian...) but I learned from some amazing musicians and started writing a lot of songs.

After my first semester of college I made a fateful trip to Oaxaca, Mexico, and it changed my life forever. After spending one week at the Casa Hogar children's home, everything was different. I made trips back to Oaxaca whenever I could. I got a job in college just so I could pay for my airfare. I went down to Oaxaca for summer vacation, our January interim, my spring break...I even met my husband on one of those trips...I really loved spending time with the kids, and one of our favorite pastimes together?? Singing and playing guitar! (I used to bring my guitar on every trip...you remember, the guitar that someone stole from me...at a church...you know the story. If not, you can read my New Life - Part 1 blog entry.)

It's really an incredible gift to be able to combine two passions and to have discovered them so early on in life. It can, however, be a bit of a balancing act. Working with impoverished children who have lived lives that we cannot truly understand, can at times seem much more noble and worthwhile than writing a song. There are days when I feel that taking time to work on a new song would be selfish. It can be tough to strike a balance between music and working in Mexico because art is less tangible than physically laying bricks to build a home for someone living in a garbage dump (the current project we're working on...)

On the other hand, I spent an hour last night talking with a nineteen-year-old girl (we just finished building the walls of her family's house this week) who has grown up in the dump, has only finished middle school, and dreams of one day being a singer. She was asking me a lot of questions about what I do in the U.S. and so I was telling her that mainly my life revolves around music. She thought it was really amazing that I went to music school, that I have written and recorded my own songs, and she asked if I thought she could one day study music as well. I told her all about Gaby (the 20-year-old girl who grew up at Casa Hogar and now lives with us in CT and is studying English before heading off to a four-year university) and the fact that Simply Smiles (the non-profit that Bryan - my husband - runs) wants to offer college educations to all of the children at Casa Hogar and the children who have grown up and are living in the Oaxacan dump.

To be honest, for this girl, I don't know what she'll think of as more important moving forward, the fact that someone came and built her family a new home, or the fact that someone believes in the value of her dream and is actually living proof that it's possible.

It would be an insult to this girl, and countless others like her, if I were to simply give up or quit pursuing music. I'm not saying that my songs are more of a gift to the world than anyone else's, but I am saying that I'm pretty sure I could easily find a few people willing to switch lives with me.

I don't know if you can make any sense of my wandering train of thought, since I can barely follow it, but for me, last night affirmed what I already knew. I've got two passions, and that's a good thing! One's not better than the other, and I don't think my life would be complete without both of them. Thank goodness for late-night conversations on the bus ride home to the dump, huh??

New Life: Part 2 - Tying the Knot

Well, I've made it down to Casa Hogar in Oaxaca, Mexico, safe and sound for trip number 1,456,783. Just kidding! But sitting on that long flight in the center seat stuck next to an armrest-hogger after my recent bout with the flu, and a mere 2.5 hours of sleep the night before doesn't really make for pleasant memories. But...I made it, and am back in one of my favorite places to be.

I'm a very lucky girl because I get to pursue two of my passions in this life at the same time. It does make for an inner-conflict from time to time, but most of the time I can combine them and it's pretty amazing. Obviously, music is one of them (by the way, I have a new song that I'll be playing at my upcoming shows...stay tuned!) and the other is volunteering my time in Oaxaca, Mexico.

I will share a little bit about this more next week when I'm not exhausted and sleep-deprived, but I said that I was going to share my piece of news #2, which is: I got hitched! For those of you who didn't already know, Bryan (that's my husband) and I got married a few months ago, and so far, so good. :) For those of you who enjoy details: after a month-long engagement, we said our "I do's" in an 11 minute ceremony, in a tiny chapel, with our immediate families and a few friends by our sides. Since you are also my friends, I wanted to share the news and thank you for all of the love and support you have always shown us.

Luckily, nothing much changes for us (but I do have some really nice jewelry), which was non-stressful and perfect. People do treat us a little differently now that we're married, which is weird, but whatever, people are weird. I've always been a pretty private person about my personal life, so I can't say that I enjoy all of the attention suddenly focused on us, but I know that people are being weird because they're happy for us and want to show us some lovin', and for that, I'm very grateful. So, moving right along...I wanted to show you a photo of us on the big day as proof and move on past this little announcement!

Have a great day, and as always I am so grateful for all of your love and support.

New Life: Part 1 - My New Guitar

I haven't been the greatest at keeping people posted lately — on shows, on new songs, on my life, etc., because I'm not always a great communicator. I love hearing from everyone, I just always forget that I need to reply in order for it to be actual communication. So...I've decided to keep people updated more often, and hopefully I'll actually stick to it this time! We'll see, but I'm thinking that this will be the first of many blog entries...feel free to read them, or ignore them!

Quite a few changes have occurred in my life in the past few months. Some of the changes have been chosen and welcomed, while others have been sprung on me and I've adapted. All in all, my life really rules. I pay my bills with music, I have amazing relationships, and I live in a cottage on the beach. Who could complain? Not me — not even a bit.

I recently purchased a beautiful vintage series Martin guitar. It is amazing. It has a beautiful rich sound, and I LOVE to sing with it. It's the most wonderful guitar — ever.

There's a bit of a story that goes with this new beauty...

I had been saving up money this year, to reprint "Paradise Exists" (for those of you who don't know, that was my first album, released in 2002) because I only have about 20 copies left, so my savings account was pretty full and I was ready to order when...SOMEONE STOLE MY GUITAR!!!! Not cool. Let me fill you in...

I have an office in a church. In addition to being a lovable singer & songwriter, (feel free to gag or giggle here) I am a private music teacher and the youth choir director at a church. So, the church gives me an office that I am in all of the time, where I teach my choirs, give lessons, write songs, do e-mails...you know, fun stuff and office stuff. Anyway, once a year the church has an annual fund-raiser that involves me moving out of my office so that vendors can sell things in a marketplace as a part of the money-raising. It's kind of a pain — not gonna lie — but they give me an office rent-free, and it's a forced vacation from boring office tasks, so who's going to complain? Not I.

During this time, I always continue with a regular lesson schedule, I just give them in the sanctuary of the church rather than in my office. It always works out fine. Well, this year, as I was packing up my car at the end of the evening I left my guitar, in its gig bag, either in the sanctuary or the back hallway as I was moving my box of books into my trunk. I obviously got distracted by something (what? me? distracted? never...) started talking to someone, and by the time I got into my car, I thought that I had already loaded my guitar in the trunk. During this fund-raising week, the church is full. Tons of people come to the event, tons of people are involved with putting on the event, and tons of people might love to play a stolen guitar...

From time to time, I leave my guitar in the trunk (not anymore - I assure you) so I didn't think anything of the fact that I hadn't seen my guitar for a few days. It's always either in my office, in my house, or in my trunk, so when I didn't find it at the church, I looked in my trunk. And when it wasn't in my trunk, I looked in my house. And when it wasn't in my house, I looked in my attic, the basement, the refrigerator. You name it, I checked. (I even checked the glove compartment...) The guitar was gone.

I cried. A lot.

I couldn't talk about it for almost a week without sobbing like a lunatic. This was my guitar. It was a Christmas present from my parents in college, it was a beautiful Martin DX1 that had been played and loved for years. I wrote three albums worth of songs on it, I recorded with it, I played hundreds (maybe not that many) of shows with it, and it was gone. Also with the guitar and inside the gig bag was my song book. All of the songs that I've ever written were in that book, so that was just a bunch of salt in my very open wound.

I was not a happy girl for a few weeks.

So, back to this church thing, (seriously bad karma for whoever took this guitar — stealing a guitar from a church? Really?) I feel very lucky to work where I do, and the people in this church are an amazing bunch. When the pastor announced my missing guitar, trying to find out if anyone had any info, (I couldn't make the announcement because I was still getting too choked up at the word "guitar") the congregation decided to take up a collection to help me buy a new one. Did I mention that I have the best life?

I took my savings, (sorry, "Paradise Exists") used the money from the church, and used money that my parents gave me for Christmas to buy the most wonderful guitar that you ever did see. You can do the research if you want...compare the price of a Martin DX1 (my former, but faithful guitar) and a Martin HD28V (my new guitar) and you'll see why I can tell this story now with a smile on my face!! This is my lifetime guitar. When I'm rich and famous (or old and equally as poor) I'll still be playing this guitar. That rules. There are no more upgrades for this chica.

So that's the first change in my life that I've needed to update you on. The next time we see each other, I'll be standing behind a different, new, more shiny guitar. Hopefully, you'll love it as much as I do!

Review from The National Underground show

Hey! The evening (9/6) I played in New York (you all remember - there was a hurricane that night!) at The National Underground was reviewed by the host, Ekayani Chamberlin. She wrote a great article about all the music that night and the entire weekend - leaving a sentence for me! This wouldn't be exciting to everyone, but for me, being called "direct and affecting" was a great thing to read. Read below for the rest of the article.

HOWL FEST at NATIONAL UNDERGROUND

www.212city.net
Written by Ekayani Chamberlin

“I’ve heard of that. What is the Howl festival?"

I was sporting one of my Howl! tee shirts. I’ve been involved as a community coordinator since 2004. Before I give a clin d’oeil, it is probably wise to say what Howl! Festival is not. It is not particularly organized. Seen from the outside, it is hard to discern just what it is. If you happened to be walking past Tompkins Square park in the east village on September 5th you saw what appeared to be an endless canvas wrapped around the periphery put up by Art Around the Park. Is it a painting fest? Or maybe you strolled by the Bowery Poetry Club and thought it was a poetry fest. The Theatre at 45 Bleecker street screened films by The Cockettes, the gender bending performance hippies from San Francisco. Is it a film fest? There was dance at Saint Marks Church on the Bowery. Is it a music, performance art, community garden or burlesque fest? The answer is yes to all of those.

Eclectic, down home, underground and a bit grungy at times, the week long event, named after neighborhood poet Allen Ginsberg’s iconic work, was originally started as a preservation movement. Founded by Phil Hartman in 2003, the point was to make a turf claim in the loudest most expressive way possible: the East Village belonged to the artists and residents that lived there and they were not going to roll over and die to higher rents, the malling of New York, or bullying tactics of unscrupulous developers (sic CHARAS) in an area considered hallowed ground by many. At least not without a fight. This locale gave birth to punk, riot grrls, beat poetry. Charlie Parker and his wife Chan lived on east 9th street. The hood has seen more artists than you can shake a stick at many of them now household names. Let’s mention a few: Charles Mingus, Blondie, Patti Smith, Andy Warhol, Television, Bad Brains, The Ramones, Iggy Pop, David Amram, Kerouac, John Cage, The LunaChicks, Phil Ochs, Karen Finley, Moby and the institutions of LaMama, and the Anthology Film archives. Until recently the fest had accounted for only 1500 artists living and working in the area!

This years fifth edition ran from September 5 – 11th. The National Underground, Joey and Gavin DeGraws place hosted “Survival in the 21st Century” created by one of the many presenters New Century booking. As CBGB’s and other venues have fallen under the axe of relentless development it was a fitting theme. Curated by Mike McHugh, longtime advocate of downtown talent, these artists howled hurricane Gustav be damned. Present were provocative rock poetess Lauren O'Brien, McHugh with Roger Blanc presented a jam style series of ecologically conscious songs, Kristen Graves direct and affecting accompanied herself on piano and guitar, rocker Lisa Bianco previewed songs from her upcoming release, Faux Star and the Japanese fronted electric gypsy band Kagero closed the night reading Allen’s poetry and inciting the crowd to dance and sing. There were so many events I could have attended and in the past have nearly dropped from exhaustion trying to do so but this small event exemplified the spirit of the fest: We shall not be moved. At least not without a fight.

http://www.myspace.com/laurenobrien123
http://www.myspace.com/mcqandthedude
http://www.myspace.com/kristengravesmusic
http://www.myspace.com/lisabianco
http://www.myspace.com/fauxstar11215
http://www.myspace.com/kagero

This weekend in NYC and Litchfield.

Besides the typhoon, things were great this weekend. Playing at The National Underground was exciting. Even though I'm not famous, there's something about being able to get a gig in New York City that makes you feel pretty good about yourself - you know? Anyway, thanks to those of you who braved the storm! And for those of you who stayed home - I hope you were cozy and enjoyed listening to the rain that night. Next time, I'll try and order better weather!

Playing at Bohemian Pizza in Litchfield was crazy. I have never been anywhere like this place before, and I've never played anywhere like this before - I really enjoyed myself. I was set up in the restaurant area, so people came out from the bar to listen and buy CD's. I sold a bunch of CD's - thanks to those of you who bought them that night! Much appreciated. Anyway, it's a crazy fun place to be, so the next time I play there, if you live in the area, you should definitely come check it out. You won't be sorry! I included a photo, so that you can have a small visual, it's a bit blurry, so let me explain to you what you're looking at.

1. Please note that Gaby is sitting in a booth covered in cow print.
2. I am playing in front of a huge fish tank, which had huge fish in it.
3. I am also playing in front of a large TV so that people could watch the game AND listen to me play. Genius.

Back into the swing of things!

Well, life has been back to normal (somewhat) this last week since I returned from my tour. Gaby and I drove straight through from Green Bay, WI to Westport, CT last Monday night, arriving at 3:30 a.m. - 18 hours door to door! Needless to say, we slept in the next morning. But other than that day off I've been putting in some hours getting ready for the new school year (lessons and my choirs start this week) and booking/promoting my upcoming shows.

Today I played at a farmers market here in Westport, and had such a great time. I sold some CD's met some nice people, and received many gifts from the farmers (lettuce, carrots, apples, peaches, peppers, the list goes on and on!). We enjoyed a fabulous salad tonight for dinner (thanks to chef, Bryan!) If you live around here - the market is held in the Westport Playhouse parking lot on Thursday's from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. You should come, they have great stuff, plus I'll hopefully be singing there in the weeks to come.

So...coming up this weekend!

Saturday night I'm playing in New York at The National Underground (9 p.m.!). This is my first BIG show in the city, so come if you can - I could use some friendly faces!

Then Sunday night I'm playing in Litchfield, CT at Bohemian Pizza and Dittos at 9 p.m - this is going to be a nice low-key night with delicious pizza and drinks. You won't want to miss it.

One last favor, I'm trying to get "Time" played on a local radio station here in Connecticut called WZBG. If you have a few spare moments, would you send an e-mail with this request to: requests@wzbg.com or call them directly at 1-800-374-5888? Thanks so much! I appreciate it. Even if you don't live in the area - they'll never know! I just need a little help getting myself some "air" time.

I'll keep you posted with my upcoming shows and crazy life changes as they come.

Enjoy the weekend!

A cool place

Last night I got to play in one of the coolest spaces I've ever seen. It is an art supply store (I bought myself a book on how to draw dogs) in Eau Claire, WI that's set up almost as a warehouse with cement floors and has a cool storefront window. I played in the front, a bunch of the displays were pushed back, and that's how we set up the stage. It was very cool.

Unfortunately the crowd was a little low in numbers, but we had a good time anyway. I played a bunch of songs, and got to spend some time talking and sharing the stories behind the songs, so I really enjoyed myself and hopefully everyone else did too!

Today I get the day off. Yay! And tomorrow's the big day in Green Bay. I'm really looking forward to the grand finale of my tour being in my hometown. It's pretty great to be back.

For those of you waiting for CD's - I've been promised that they're coming. It turns out that the slowness I was bummed about has spread a bit, needless to say I won't work with this company again, but please don't worry, I will get your CD's to you as soon as possible, I promise! I'll enlist my entire family to help with addressing envelopes if I have to!

As this tour is drawing to a close, I need to thank so many people - I'll never be able to list all of the names, but man, oh man am I grateful to have had this opportunity. Thanks so much for making this possible by giving me places to stay, buying dinners, tanks of gas from time to time, and for coming to these shows and buying my new CD. I am so thankful, and I'll definitely be doing this again!! I've had way too much fun!

I've got some photos below. Enjoy!



Here I am playing at Dunn Brothers in St. Paul, MN. Look at all of my old friends! It was a lot of fun to see everyone again.



Here I am playing at Benny Ha Ha's Art Supply in Eau Claire, WI. Cool room. Next time I'll promote a little harder. :)

Last night in St. Paul

Well, again, I can't believe how much fun I'm having playing at different places and seeing so many different people. Last night in St. Paul I played at Dunn Brothers on Grand Avenue, and the turnout was great. (Thanks to all who came out!!)

I had a chance to catch up with friends from college and high school, and it was cool to hear all of the different things people are up to. This has been such a positive tour, not only because I've been selling so many CD's (which has been a pleasant number each night) but because I've gotten to meet so many people and to reconnect with so many old friends.

Today Gaby and I head to Eau Claire, WI for a special show at Benny Ha Ha's Art Supply, I think it's going to be pretty great, and I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of a venue it's going to turn out to be.

Thanks again to all of you who are staying in touch, writing me such kind e-mails, and calling to see how the trip has been going! I'm so grateful to you for thinking of me.

Take care, and I'll update you on tonight's show later!
Kristen

The Brink Lounge in Madison

Last night was a great turn out, yet again. My brother outdid himself with this show, and brought a bunch of people to see me at the Brink Lounge.

It was a pretty cool lounge area, with great drinks, and delicious pizza, so I was a happy girl. I got to reconnect and see people that I haven't seen in years. Everything went very well until our drive home...

My parents got a flat tire on the way from Madison to Green Bay at midnight! It was crazy, they ended up getting home at 2 a.m. those party animals, I think they just wanted to wait up and greet their anniversary like rock stars (happy 39th m & d!).

I'm tired tonight and have to get up to sing for 8:15 tomorrow morning, so I'll leave you with a few photos.

Here I am at The Brink Lounge - check out those fancy stage lights!



Here's Gaby with my friends Sarah, Jay and their kiddos Henry and Brin.



Thanks so much for following along. Tomorrow morning I'm singing as a musical guest at Calvary Lutheran Church, and the next show is in St. Paul, MN on Tuesday. We'll be at Dunn Brothers on Grand Ave - stop in if you're in the neighborhood!

Open mic night in Chicago...

I have been having the best days!

This morning Luke and Julia took off for their jobs (Julia just graduated from medical school and is now a resident at the Children's Hospital - congrats, Julia!!) WAY early this morning, and Gaby and I took our sweet time getting up and at 'em.

Anyway, we spent the day walking around Chicago, we went to the beach, we had some lunch, we walked more, and we saw a cool nature preserve pond. It was a great day, very relaxing. Then we all went out to dinner together at a cool little place just down the road, and then Luke and I went to Murphy's Bleachers right across the street from the entrance to Wrigley Field where I played at open mic. (Julia had more work to do, and Gaby isn't 21 yet).

It was a great open mic, I got to meet a few people, I got to hear some great people (thank God, because some open mic nights can be brutal - we've all been there...) and I got to play some more of my songs in yet another city.

Anyway, thanks to those of you who have been following along this tour, and thanks for reading these blogs. I've included a few more photos!! Here's the photo of me in front of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Seriously, how cool is that building?



And here's a picture of the Chicago skyline at the beach. What a great view. And we have been staying just a half mile from here - how lucky are we?! Honestly it could be a postcard.



Thanks so much for following along! Tomorrow, we head for Madison, WI at the Brink Lounge. It's going to be great!

Rock n' Roll, baby!

After a fun show last night, Gaby and I crashed pretty hard. We of course shut down the bar, because we ended up staying in the apartment right above it. The owner of the Town Fryer puts up her out of town musical acts (thanks Susie!) and lives in one of the coolest apartments ever. It's making me think about moving to Cleveland and opening a bar. Moving along...

We got up this morning by 9 because I wanted to finish a little work before we went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It was awesome! I saw so many things (actually at one point, we needed to sit down and take a lunch break, because I just couldn't focus on all of the things I was seeing anymore) lots of original lyrics, old guitars, the piano used to record at Sun Studios, crazy outfits people used to wear (there's a Madonna display - you can imagine the cones!) It was really great. And how cool is this, if you're a touring musician and bring in your CD, they'll let you in for free. Just more potential displays I guess - who knows, someday my bootleg copy of "Stay" could be in one of those glass cases. Ah, to have a dream.

Gaby and I walked around a little bit - saw Lake Erie and the Browns Stadium (I don't know why I reacted so strongly - must have something to do with the Green Bay still in my blood), and then we took off and had a nice easy drive to Chicago.

We're staying tonight and tomorrow with my friends Luke and Julia (thanks guys!) here in Chicago. It's very fun seeing them, because the last time we were together I was singing at their wedding - crazy, huh? Be careful if you ever ask me to sing at your wedding, I may just ask you to lend me your couch - something to think about. Anyway...they have a really cool place, in a great part of the city so I can't wait to walk around a little and explore before I play tomorrow night.

Check out the photos - I'm sure I'll have more to update you on tomorrow!


Here I am in front of a HUGE boat! I was talking to my brother while Gaby took the photo - hey, bro!


Here's Gaby in front of Lake Erie - we had the most gorgeous day for a little walk.


Seriously, what's my deal? I don't even know what happened, I just felt very green and yellow for a moment or something - must be because I've been hearing so much about Brett lately.


Gaby and I were trying to think of a way that we could keep track of all of the states she's been to. We decided that posing her with a map of Indiana in front of a busy highway would be the best way to prove she's been through the state.


Gaby took a great photo of the sunset that welcomed us to Chicago. Hey dad, I've been keeping my windshield pretty clean!

The Town Fryer

This morning, Gaby and I got up and took a scenic route out of Pittsburgh (we were mislead by a detour and the Garmin) and ended up at a beautiful overlook. We took a few pictures, take a look!





We took a nice and easy drive to Cleveland (I was super sleepy again today) with a few breaks. We stopped for lunch at the McDonald's in the visit center, which was absolutely disgusting and delicious at the same time! But it provided us with some nice information on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame - we'll be visiting tomorrow before we leave for Chicago!

We arrived nice and early at the Town Fryer, met Susie, the owner, and got set up, ready and rested for tonight's show. I played with some fantastic musicians, and we did a cool thing. All five of us sat on stage at the same time, played one song after another, and told the stories behind our songs and why we were playing them. It was like VH1 behind the music - at least I'd like to think so - and it ended up being a really cool evening. I played with Ryann Anderson, Shawn Brewster, Randy Martin and Jim Snively, who are all local musicians. It was great to hear their songs and get to talk with them throughout the night. Plus we all swapped CD's so Gaby and I will have some nice tunes on the way to the central time zone tomorrow.

I'll be performing in Chicago on Thursday night at 9 p.m. at Murphy's Bleachers. If any of you live in the area, or have friends and family there - tell them to come out!

Lastly, I've included some photos, you can see Gaby and I in Boston with Sam Adams, Gaby and how the songwriter night looked tonight at the Town Fryer (left to right: Randy Martin, Jim Snively, Ryann Anderson, Shawn Brewster and me.) Enjoy!

Ladies night in Pittsburgh!

Another great day today.

Gaby and I left Harrisburg this afternoon and arrived in Pittsburgh in time to go out for Chinese food with my new friend Joy.

We played a "ladies night" at Connections Cafe in Oakland, and had a great time. The line up was Heather Kropf, me, and Joy Ike, it was a night of ladies and a night of piano!

Tomorrow we're off to Cleveland for another songwriter showcase, this one will be all men (and me!) and a lot of guitar! Stay tuned...

ps...I posted some of my photos from the Litchfield Concert on the Green - look at all those people!

Sleepy Sunday!

Wow, am I tired today.

Friday night I played at a house concert with my friends Josh and Jake in Providence, RI. (Their band is called Gamblin Hands and you can listen to their music on myspace.) We had a lot of fun. We were outdoors performing on a deck with Christmas lights and candles - to keep away the bugs - and had a great turn out and a really fun evening.

The next day, we got up (Bryan, Gaby and I) and drove off leaving Bryan in Connecticut as Gaby and I continued on to Harrisburg. We battled thunderstorms and NYC traffic, but made it to Harrisburg, PA in one piece and with enough time to eat dinner before I had to play. Last night I played at a really cute place called the Crimson Frog - they have a cool piano there and the place has a really cozy vibe, so I enjoyed myself a lot. I was especially flattered when I received a request for a song (and it wasn't even from a friend or family member!). I had a great time meeting everyone, and seeing people that I hadn't been in touch with for a few years.

This morning I was up bright and early (my alarm was set for BEFORE 7 a.m.! For those of you who know me - really? How shocked are you? Anyway, I played at two church services this morning, at the church that my aunt, uncle, and cousins attend. It's a really cool congregation (they didn't even mind when I rocked out "Trouble" during the offering) they were so happy to have me there, and I even received an invitation to accompany them on a working trip down to Mexico in the fall. I think I might try going to Mexico sometime - I've been told that I would enjoy it. :)

And so now, I'm sitting on a very comfy couch writing this update, and frankly, I'm about ready to cuddle up next to my aunt and uncle's dog (her name is Charlie - and she is awesome!) and take a little nap.

Thanks so much again for all of your support, and stay posted as I head off for Pittsburgh tomorrow to play with my new friends Joy Ike and Heather Kropf!

Nights out in Litchfield and Boston!

Well, last night I got to play at a Concert on the Green in Litchfield, CT. It was a great night. I played for about 250 people and sold a bunch of new CD's. Best thing was - it didn't rain! We got to stay outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. It was a really fun evening. Thanks to those of you who came! I'll post some photos soon.

Tonight I played at a little coffee house in Norwood, MA called Perks. It was great. I started off the night for Matt Nozzolio (who's a talented guy, you should definitely check out his music when you have a chance) and got to hang out with a bunch of friends and family - yet another fantastic evening.

Tomorrow we head off to Providence, and then out to Pennsylvania - stay tuned!

My first show in New York

Last night was very exciting! I played my first show at a coffee shop in New York City. I got to play a bunch of my new songs that are going to be on my new album, saw some friends who came out to support me, and met some new people as well. I had a really fun time, and am so excited for all of my other upcoming shows.

Recording is going really well - I'm four songs into my new album. Also, I have a bunch of dates planned for my CD release tour. I'll keep you posted as things progress, and I'll post some of the new songs as soon as they're mixed and ready!

So far, so good.

Things have been going really well for me this fall. I must say that I'm feeling pretty lucky. I've been playing some really fun shows, meeting some great people, I am enjoying my new cottage, the children's choirs I direct are always entertaining, my private teaching is still fun, and I'm going to Mexico for Thanksgiving. What more could a girl want? As always, I'm very grateful and excited for all of the opportunities that have been presented to me.

I have had a creative two weeks, and I have six songs ready for the studio. I'm really looking forward to getting started with this next project, and can't wait for you to hear what I've been working on. So far, the majority of my songs have been written for piano. My last two albums mainly consist of guitar songs, so this will be a welcome change! I'm hoping to get started with recording in the next few weeks, and I'll possibly be ready to share one or two of the tracks before the end of the year. We shall see.

I hope you are all looking forward to the holidays, and I hope that you get to spend some great time with your families and friends. Thanks for all of your support.

Take care,
Kristen

Sloan Wainwright is fantastic.

I had a great evening. I've been trying to get into the Good Folk Coffee House for some time and finally made it down there tonight to play as a sort of audition during the open mic. Open mic nights are held before the featured act comes on and I got the coveted spot of playing directly before the feature. (This means that you will be heard by the biggest crowd, because most people try to avoid open mic nights - myself included.)

Anyway, I played my two songs and it went really well. The audience was into it, the woman who does the booking was very complimentary, and the featured act of the evening (Sloan Wainwright) was wonderfully supportive. I met some great people, passed out some cards (it's all about the networking you know) and enjoyed the night.

Sloan was great! If you can ever catch a show of hers I highly recommend. Well, just wanted to post a few pictures and share the love with this talented lady. Really, she's like the flower child of our era - an incredibly postive person. Enjoy, and I'll talk to you soon!

Don't forget about coming to The Space on Tuesday!

Much love,
Kristen

New Show. New Song. New Dogs.

That's right, I have a show this Tuesday, October 30, at The Space in
Hamden, CT. I know it's a school night but I'll be finished with my set no
later than 10:00 so come and tough it out. This is a great venue, and I'm
the featured act of the evening. Music starts at 7:00 and I go on at 9:00,
so get there a little early!

Today has been a great day so far because I just finished a new song that
will hopefully be ready for Tuesday night. I've been working on a few
things, but this one just finished up faster than the others. I don't have
a title for you yet, but hopefully by the end of the night on Tuesday I'll
have a live recording that I can post online. All I can really tell you is
that it's a piano song, so for those of you who have been asking me to
write more songs on the piano - this one's for you!

As for other news, I don't really have new dogs, but our landlords' dogs
have been sleeping over and hanging out lately. I posted a picture of the
boys for you to see. The guys are pretty old so they really just lay around, but sometimes I can get
them to fetch a ball once or twice. Anyway, Buddy is on the left and Casey
is on the right. They're just too cute!

Hope everyone is well, and I hope to see you at a show soon!
Kristen

Tuesday, October 30
9 p.m.
$5
The Space
295 Treadwell St.
Hamden, CT
203.288.7876

Friday, November 2
9 p.m.
$5 suggested donation
Jitters Coffee House
1273 Queen St.
Southington, CT
860.747.1100

Saturday, November 3
11 a.m.
$ 10
Rooms With a View Fundraiser
Southport Congregational Church
524 Pequot Ave.
Southport, CT
203.255.159

My show last Friday.

Thank you to those of you who came out on Friday night, I had a great time! I got to meet some new people, play some new songs, and eat some great food (Rachel's food is the best!). I will definitely be back there sometime soon. I posted a photo for you to take a look at. There were torrential downpours that evening so that's why I look like I just stepped out of the shower.

As for shows coming up, I'll be playing on Tuesday, October 30 at The Space in Hamden, CT. Hopefully I'll see you there!

Take care and have a great day!

Reasons why I love having music as my job:

1. I love Mondays. Most people dread them. Monday is my day off, so I look forward to it every week. Yesterday I slept in, went out for lunch, did a little more unpacking, did a few loads of laundry, went for a run, and watched some episodes of West Wing.

2. I get to wake up and go for a jog whenever I want because I can stay and work as late as I want. Today that included finishing my jog on the beach (see previous picture).

3. Singing literally pays my rent. Fortunately, I don’t mind living in a small space, which allows me to actually sing for my supper. Saturday night was one of those nights. I played at the Bethlehem Coffee House, had a great set, had a lot of fun, met some new people, saw some old friends, and sold a bunch of albums.

I feel very lucky, blessed, fortunate, whatever you would like to call it to live the life that I have, and I am so grateful that this is what I get to do. Thanks to people like you who continue to support me by coming to shows and buying albums I get to do what I love. For that I cannot thank you enough. Have a great day.

Settling in.

Well, yesterday's blog was way too long, so I'll keep today short and sweet. Now that I'm living in this cottage my office is less than a mile away. It's a gorgeous walk, especially in this fall weather. Yesterday, I paused when I got to the public beach and took this picture. This is such an incredible place to live, and we are very lucky to be here. Tonight I'm playing a set at a Coffee House held monthly at the Bethlehem Congregational Church. It's a great evening with food, wine, and tea. Not much more to ask for. I'll post some pictures tomorrow when I have them, but for today I'll just leave you with the beach. Have a great day.

Great story.

Ok, so I told you that I have moved to a cottage near the beach. Well, I love the water, so this place is perfect for me. (That, and the fact that I now only have a 1-mile commute to my office – sorry, Bryan.) The other night I was bugging Bryan to come and play catch with me on the beach – I still have an old softball that was signed by my entire 6th grade team as well as the glove that I used in middle school, and Bryan has a glove that my dad gave him – so we were all set. Anyway, after a little convincing, Bryan agreed to come and play for no longer than 10 minutes.

We crossed the street and started walking along the sidewalk that would lead us to the beach with about 15 minutes of good daylight left on a gorgeous night. As we were hopping off of the sidewalk to get to the beach this attractive, very Southport-looking, blond woman came frantically running up to us with her little pug dog named Chester. (I won’t tell you her name simply due to privacy, but she was very friendly.)

Anyway, she came up to us asking, (yelling, really) “I lost my keys, could you please watch my dog? I was out on the jetty and I fell, and I lost my keys, could you just watch him for a minute I just need to go and look where I fell…” I’m sure she said more things but Bryan and I tried to settle her down, he watched the dog, and I helped her look out on the jetty. Basically, we were just looking down big cracks between huge boulders, and it was getting darker fast. We looked all around the jetty (as she repeatedly yelled at herself and kept reminding Chester that his mother was “an IDIOT,” the tide was really low, so we even walked down to the dirt ground and searched around. Bryan got the dog out on the jetty (which made him a little nervous, Chester, not Bryan) and started helping us look. The dog was barking, two little kids and their babysitter showed up and started helping, - it was an all-out search.

Long story short, we looked for at least 45 minutes and couldn’t see anything. It was pitch black and we finally had to admit defeat. As we had been searching we received more information from the woman. She had just moved to Southport from Manhattan, hadn’t owned a car in years, so she had gone that day to buy a car. She had picked it up a few hours earlier, and thought it would be nice to bring the dog to the beach, so she put all of the dealer keys and keyless entries in her pocket and took Chester for a walk. As they were walking he needed to relieve himself, so she was carrying his waste (which she kept referring to as doo-doo – it was KILLING me!), the keys, his leash, and her glasses. As they walked back on to the jetty, she slipped on one of the boulders. She fell in a crack on the right side, and he fell in a different crack on the left side. (This was the area we were looking in almost exclusively.)

At this point in the evening, we invited this woman to walk back with us to our house so she could use our phone, or so that we could give her a ride to her home. She was nervous about leaving her brand new car alone at the beach because it had her phone and her purse in it (with her ID, credit cards, etc.) so she walked back one more time to make sure it was really locked and there was no way in. We started to follow her and decided that rather than walking across the parking lot we would just cut across the beach. About halfway to her car Bryan looked down, and there were the keys! It was unbelievable. There was hugging, yelling, good karma wished upon us (100,000 pounds to be exact), and introductions made. We hadn’t even introduced ourselves until we had spent an hour with this woman and Chester. But we’ll never forget her, and I don’t think she’ll forget us either.

So, I didn’t get to play catch on the beach, but we had fun anyway, and made a new friend. Plus, with how well things have been going for Bryan and I (the new cottage, I have a bunch of shows, he’s been speaking a lot for Simply Smiles) if anyone needs any good karma I think we’ve had more than our fair share, and would be glad to pass some along. Have a great day.

Moving Sucks! (But it's totally worth it)

Well, Bryan and I just finished moving the last box into our new cottage that we're renting near the beach in Connecticut. We are living in a gorgeous town, about an hour north of New York City. Things are going great! I have to tell you though, I don't want to move for about 10 years now. It was too much. I can't believe how much stuff we have! And that's even after we were selective.

I've set up a music corner in the living room, and I have an office less than a mile away where I can book shows, teach lessons and choirs, and update my website. Things are going pretty great. We need a little bit longer to get settled in, and then you're invited for a visit!

Game for a Cause

Today I took a break from music, and went to the UCONN football game. I had a great time! I got to tailgate, hang out with friends, and cheer on a successful team. What more could anyone ask?

A little over one year ago, we lost a passionate and loving friend, Eric Nagrabski. Today was the second annual memorial football game, to celebrate his life with good company, good food, and great team spirit. Today's update is dedicated to Eric, you will not be forgotten.

For more information about Eric, or to contribute to his scholarship fund, please visit: ericscholarship.com.

So...what did you do this summer?

I spent the first half of my summer in Oaxaca, Mexico, as I have been known to do. This summer was particularly exciting because of the projects that we had lined up. In June and July we built six homes for families that live and work in a garbage dump (and I don't mean a nice sanitary dump like the ones we have here in the U.S.) and we started constructing a second children's home in a small village named Cuicatlan. The reason that I thought of this today is that I was going through some photos from the summer and this one stood out. On one of our visits, apparently I decided it would be great to give one of the boys, Jorge, a death hug, and Bryan thought it would be just as entertaining to do the same to me. Good times. It is easy to see from the photo why I continue to spend a lot of my time in Mexico - we have so many laughs and such a good time with these kids. For more information you can visit: www.simplysmiles.org .

Law & Order for brunch

Those of you who know me at all, know that I love courtroom drama. Law & Order is my addiction of choice. I also love sports dramas (the whole underdog thing) but today is all about the law. Yesterday, I was eating brunch in the middle of nowhere Connecticut at a nice place on a lake, and who walks in? Christopher Meloni, a.k.a. Detective Eliot Stabler. I spoke with him for a few seconds (and didn't even stutter!) he was very friendly, and I'm pretty sure that he now considers me one of his closest friends. Have a good day everyone, and if you run into my buddy Chris, tell him I said hello.

Back in the game...

I'm finally getting myself in gear and ready to play some music. I am still living in Connecticut and am just getting started with making connections and playing some shows. The last few years I've been focusing on other things, and I am definitely glad to be back here. My next show is on Saturday, October 13 at 9 p.m. at a Coffee House in a church. It's a great evening, there will be three featured performers and the food is great! When I know more details I'll post them so you have the most up to date information. As for today, it's brainstorming time - I've been writing and I'm ready to head back to the studio.
Have a great day,
Kristen

Playing at Powerfest

Playing at Powerfest
Originally uploaded by kristengraves.

My last show before moving was on August 13 at Powerfest in Porterfield, WI (pictured). As festivals often work, everything was way behind schedule and I didn't begin playing until 12:30 am. Needless to say, the crowd was a little sparse and the CD sales were a bit lower than expected, but the people that did stick around were extremely friendly and supportive, so really, who could ask for anything more?

I have since picked up and moved to Connecticut where I am trying to get my feet back under me. There are a lot of things to learn (like where the heck I am and how to get to the nearest open mic night or Target).

I am currently setting up gigs out here, giving private music lessons, and working as a substitute teacher. Life is good!