2009 Photo Recap: January - June

Some of my favorite moments in photo form from this year...January through June. I got to open for Susan at Casbeer's a the Church twice this year, and this first gig was a "surprise" Valentine's Day show (in that it got booked but Susan wasn't informed of it until the day before)...so we hauled about 20 of our closest friends to San Antonio and had a great time, and I got to play on this much revered stage. (Tiny note: this was before I was doing the booking so um, the surprise wasn't my fault). I started playing music with these two lovely ladies, Melissa and Emily. They are fantastic singers and musicians and people. I snag Emily for her bass skills as often as I can. We have plans for a project down the line, when all our lives settle down. Ha. But we'll do it! Katie is also involved in the aforementioned project, and also volunteers to sing my songs for me at my gigs that involve wood carvings of Native Americans. Here she is doing a bang up job on "Ritalin." It was my first real experience hearing a song I wrote being sung by someone else, and now when I sing it myself, I hear Katie's version in my head. That's cool. I had the chance to play with Kate Hearne a few times this year, and you mark my words she'll be backing up Dylan or someone sooner than later. She's an amazing guitarist. We kidnapped her and took her to Albuquerque in November. I've added about 50 new tags to my job description over at Susan Gibson Inc., but one of my favorites is still Merch Girl. Yes, it's nice to add to the gig income overall, but I truly do believe everyone should own these albums. And therefore I have no problems telling people about them. This is Dub, the new dog. We picked him up in April in Winnsboro, and I claim aunthood because I'm not that disciplined at...disciplining. But I am learning by watching Suz the Dog Whisperer at work, and I have picked up a lot. Dub is a sweetheart and likes to lean on people. He also likes to dig through trash cans. Hm. I was selected as a featured regional performer at the Ballad Tree by the Kerrville Folk Festival in May, which has been the highlight of my songwriting career up to now. The next step up is New Folk...one day! We got to hang out at a cabin on the shore of Flathead Lake in Montana in June. I wore a hoodie a bunch of the time, and it was divine knowing that it was 106 back in Texas. It was my first time in Montana and it's just as scenic as all the calendars and coffee table books say it is.