Past Newsletters

This is where you can find past Newsletters from Carey.  Click on the date to go to that Newsletter.


Sept 06

May 06

Feb 06

Jan 06

Nov/Dec 05

Oct 05

Sept 05

Aug 05

May 05

April 05

Mar 05

Feb 05

Jan 05

Sept 04

Aug 04

July 04

Apr 04

Jan 04

Dec 03

Oct 03

Sept 03

Aug 03

Apr 03

Nov 02

Aug 02

May 02

Mar 02

Feb 02

Jan 02

Dec 01

Nov 01

Sept 01

Aug 01

June 01

May 01

Apr 01

Feb 01

Nov 00

Oct 00

Aug 00

June 00

May 00


September 2006

I can't believe it's been since May that I've updated the News...!  I've been up to my ears with family life, and that's taken priority since school got out in mid-May.  School started again for the kids on August 2nd, so we've been doing Back To School night and all that jazz. 

I've been taking a lot of pictures of my flowers, kids, animals, etc. :).  I love taking pictures, and having a digital camera now makes it so easy to indulge my passion for picture-taking.  Here's a few I've taken over the past couple of months:

Hibiscus from my front yard garden

The newest family member, 9 weeks old

I love these!

Morning Glory I grew from seed - I grow a new batch every year.

I found these tubular yellow flowers by chance and love them.

Jasper P. Woofykins

I've also been doing a lot of website work, and that's always fun for me because it's like painting in a new medium.  Give me color and graphics and a chance to create something, and I'm a happy girl!

Musically, we've not been up to much over the summer.  We do have some shows coming up that we're looking forward to doing, and more in the works.  I'm doing my first voiceover commercial tomorrow, so that should be fun! 

I'm hoping to be DC-bound in October, more on that as things develop.

That's it for now - more soon, I promise!
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May 2006

Wow, time has flown!  I realized that I completely missed the April Newsletter altogether.  Oops! 

Carey plays Relay For LifeApril was kind of a whirlwind of a month, what with taping a television show, playing at Relay For Life (photo at left), two shows at an arts festival, and a performance at a rally sponsored by the Lakeview Rape Crisis Center at the University of West Florida called Take Back The Night, for which I wrote a new song.  Appropriately, that new song is called Take Back The Night, and we hope to be recording it soon.

Nick and ElizabethThis month, I made a trip up to DC to do more mixing in the studio and attend my niece, Elizabeth's, wedding to her long-time love, Nick (photo at right).  My two sisters and I reunited for the first time since the Willie Nelson concert a couple of years ago, and had a great time together.  I also got to see my parents, which I've not been able to do the past few times I was up that way since they were iced in on their mountain.

Granger and the kids and I are headed to Austin, TX next week to do a radio show with our friend, Joe Angel, on KEOS-FM and to generally hang out and have a little fun.  In June, I'm headed back to DC for more mixing at the studio.

We've got two shows coming up in June, one at the Belmont Arts Center and one at Navarre Fun Fest.  We're looking forward to it, as both are really fun gigs to do.

In the meantime, we're readying for hurricane season by stocking up on lots of necessities such as water and batteries.  Here's hoping this year won't be like last year.  But, on my refrigerator, I have this posted, under the words "Why Carey and Granger Need To Move":

2004 Hurricane Map
2005 Hurricane Map

 
Can you say, "Ground Zero"?!  I still haven't unpacked my evacuation stuff from Hurricane Ivan two years ago. 

Speaking of which, I'd like to just say a word about people fussing that the damage in New Orleans isn't cleaned up yet.  Yesterday, they finally got to tearing down the row of buildings near my house that were devastated by Ivan in 2004.  There are many other buildings that are still standing, albiet shakily.  You just can't recover from something like this overnight - it's impossible with all the damage done.  Patience, folks - it's going to take a very long time, at least five years or more until things are back to normal.  And that doesn't count any new damage from hurricanes that come through during that time.

And, I know New Orleans was devastated - but Biloxi was totally crumpled by Katrina.  Please don't forget about the people there, okay?

Okay, I feel better now.  

Don't forget to get your copy of the Back Home CD, available at ww.homecd.net.  It's a good one.

That's all for now - more next month!
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End of February 2006

Hello again!  We're just back from The Wammies in Washington, DC and are tired but happy with the trip.  The show was one of the smoothest we've ever done, and it was (as always) great seeing everyone.  Thanks to Mike Schreibman of WAMA for the good food and warm pillows, and many kudos to Kirby Yarbrough and Rachel Cross for doing such a bang-up job of everything in making the show run as smoothly as it did.  Kudos also go to Summer Barrow, Tommy Brooks, Carol Bullock, Mike Campbell, Andrew McDaniel, and Vicki Zak for being such a great crew.  All the volunteers just kicked butt this year!  Here's Carol, me, and Rachel in our Charlie's Angels victory pose after the show:

Carol Bullock, Carey, Rachel Cross

We managed to get to DC just as the temperature dropped, but got out before the inch and a half of snow fell.  Man, was I cold!  I brought my Cuddleduds and Uggs boots, so I managed to stay somewhat warm, but my Cuddleduds (what are Cuddleduds, you ask?  Really soft, warm, feminine long johns) kept peeking out over top of my jeans, all night and I kept stuffing them back in.  We fought all night long over who would win that battle; me, or the Cuddleduds.  (The Cuddleduds won.)

Things are getting on track a little better musically speaking here in Northwest Florida, with some negotiating going on for upcoming shows.  Although we like traveling, we would like to do some gigs closer to home!  We have a tentative show coming up in May at the Belmont Arts Center in Pensacola, and some shows out of town on the agenda, including a tentative house concert in Louisiana.  We'll definitely keep you informed!

Great news!  The Back Home CD is now available, and is being sold for an amazing price.  You get 34 songs on two CDs for only $16.00 (somehow I feel like Ryan Stiles and Colin Mochrie on Whose Line Is It Anyway doing a parody of an infomercial right now. . . ).  You can order it from the Home website, which is www.homecd.net.  Yours Truly not only designed the CD artwork, but also designed the website. . . but wait, there's more!  Yep, I also have a song on the CD as well!  (Okay, I'll shut up now with the late night tv schpiel!).  Really, the CD is great - there's a LOT of good songs on there, and I'm very honored to have been able to do so much for Children International and Raymond Steiner, the producer of the project.  The best part of it all for me is that I was able to record Coming Back Home, a song I wrote for my daughter.  You can hear a soundbyte of it on the Music page.
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January 2006

Happy New Year!  I hope the coming year is filled with wonderful things for everyone.

All of the Christmas decorations are put up (both at home and on the website), and although it's the middle of winter, all my windows are flung open for the 70+ weather gracing Northwest Florida at the moment.  I can't complain!

The week before Christmas I made a very quick trip up to the DC area to drop my daughters off with their father for the holiday.  After getting a wild hair and driving 17 1/2 hours straight, we reached Tommy's (my eldest child) house at 2:30 a.m.  I went in search of a pillow, blanket, and soft place to sleep, and dropped off listening to the sounds of all four of my children talking and horsing around.  It was the best lullaby in the world. 

I must say that all of us, having lived in Florida for three years now, were not thrilled with the 17-degree weather and the snow and ice.  But, no matter how cold it was, we stopped at the first 7-11 we saw and all got slurpees!  You see, there are no 7-11's down here, or for miles around, and we all love slurpees.  So, we were very happy to indulge ourselves, no matter how cold it was :).

While there, I went back to Recording Arts and mixed most of one song and a bit of another from the new CD.  Yes, I know it's been an incredibly long process, much much  longer than we expected and one that has frustrated me to tears at times to get it done, but we're getting there.  It was great to hang out with Marco again and to be back in the studio. 

Unfortunately, my youngest son got sick while we were there, and we weren't able to see anyone else during our visit.  We were only there for a couple of days before we turned around and headed home to get there in time for Christmas with Granger.  (He must have been so relaxed with no one but the dog at home while we wre gone!)  We took it easy going home, taking two days and an overnight stop in Chattanooga, TN to get there.

You may have noticed that the Shows page is a tad empty at the moment, but new gigs are coming up and, as they're confirmed, will be added to the site.  I'm looking forward to performing more this year and writing some new tunes.  I'm working on a couple of them right now, as a matter of fact.

That's all for now - more next month!
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Courtesy of Animation FactoryNovember/December  05

It's November 29th as I write this, and I've gotten past the trip to Austin, two birthdays, and one holiday that this month held.  Saturday the 19th was my xteenth birthday, which I celebrated with my family.  I was given a nice seafood lunch and my favorite present was a new digital camera.  I've been wanting one for ages, so don't be surprised if you see a ton of new pictures on the site!  The 21st was my son's birthday, and I sent him a package full of goodies.

As you can see, I've put up the Christmas decorations!  Don't be surprised to see a candy cane here, a reindeer there, or maybe even a snowflake or two.  We sure won't get any of that white stuff here - we just seem to get hurricanes.  Can you believe that Tropical Storm Epsilon is out there?!  Good Lord!

As I type this, I'm listening to the audio from our show on RadioLive in September.  We did a helluva finale with all the artists from that night joining in on Down By The Riverside.  Maybe as a Christmas present to you, I'll put it up on the site :).  Do you want to hear it?  Let me know.  What an incredible night that was - so much fun, and so much good music.  Waiting for me in my P.O. Box the other day was a disc of snapshots that Ron Besser took that night.  Yep, he even caught Granger's "bass face" mode!  Take a peek.

My trip to Austin started with a long , long drive there, but it was worth it.  I had a great time once I got there!  I hit traffic delays in Baton Rouge, LA; Lake Charles, LA; and got to Houston, TX right as the sun was setting.  No, it's not easy to drive through Houston (which is a nightmare anyway) with the sun in your eyes - ouch!  I pulled off into a Whattaburger and indulged in a milkshake while I waited for that sucker to set.  After that, getting through town still took a while.  All told, driving in it took me 13 1/2 hours.  Ack.  Spit.  Luckily, I had a great deal of tunes to keep me company!  The drive home wasn't nearly as long, only 10 hours and 15 minutes :).  (Just call me Leadfoot.)

The Indiegrrl show was fun, and I must say a huge thank you to Sandy, Kelly, and Tyler for coming all the way from San Antonio to see me - thanks, you guys!  Yes, there are pictures of the show!  I also owe a ton of thanks to my friend Bev who saved the day for me.  Seems I tore my fingernail (naturally, the one I use to pick the guitar with) below the quick right before the show (no, don't ask how . . . you don't want to know!), and I, a virgin fake-fingernail kinda gal, was ushered quickly to the nearest store where I bought my first set of fake nails and Bev fixed me right up.  Luckily, the nail didn't come off and get flung into anyone's eye during the show :).  Good job, Bev!  You should have seen me getting an acrylic nail when I got back home - the salon lady, who spoke fluent Chinese but not fluent English, could not for the life of her understand that I only wanted one nail done!  She kept trying to convince me to get all 10 done up with these long, talon-like artificial nails (those things are scary looking!), and I kept telling her that I play guitar and can't have nails.  We finally reached an understanding, and $3.00 later, I had (and still have) my very first fake coated acrylic nail :). 

While in Austin, I saw some friends, listened to some good music, and discovered shopping on South Congress Avenue.  Joy!  Bliss!  Cool Courtesy of Animation Factorystuff!  I also loved the greenery and hills of Austin.  This was my first time there, and many people are trying to get us to move there.  You know what?  You never know what's going to happen next :).

Granger and I are on sabbatical from performing at the moment, although we did a great show at The Belmont Arts Center in Pensacola, FL on the 17th.  What fun we had!  It was cold that night, and a lot of people were under blankets as someone had broken a window in the venue and the cold air was pouring in.  It definitely made for interesting discussion as to what was actually going on under those blankets during the show . . . !

I've almost finished up with the artwork for Back Home, and am looking forward to it getting all gussied up into a genuine CD.  There are SO many good tunes on this puppy; 34 of them, to be exact.  I'll let you know when it's available.

Don't forget to visit the Store page for gift-giving ideas for the holidays!  And be sure to visit Hungry For Music for Christmas and Hannukah CDs - lots of Washington, DC area folk and other talented musicians have recorded them, and sales help to raise money to buy instruments for children.  You can get and give all at the same time, which is perfect for this time of year!  I'm on two of the CDs, but it's the same song, O Come All Ye Faithful, with Pete & Maura Kennedy backing me up. 

Enjoy the holiday season, be safe out there, and keep warm!
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Halloween - October 05

I've been trying to get over here to the computer to write an update, but between hurricanes and computer crashes caused by them, I've been very busy working on the CD package and website for the Back Home CD.  Designing the CD package has been so much fun and quite a learning experience, and now I know how to do somethng new!  I love the challenge of figuring out new things and working with graphics and color, so it's been a blast. 

We got the final mix on my song that will be on the CD, Coming Back Home.  You can hear a soundbyte of it now, so check it out!  The lyrics are also now up on the Lyrics page.  I'll definitely let you know when the CD is available. 

The view from the stage at Destin Festival of the Arts.  Photo by Carey Colvin.  www.careycolvin.com.We had so much fun at the Destin Festival of the Arts show yesterday, and the water was just breathtaking.  It was one of those absolutely stellar days where the breeze was just right, the temperature was perfect, and the skies were crystal clear.  As you can see from the photo at left, the view from the stage was incredible!  This is definitely now one of our favorite shows to do.

I'm on my way to Austin, TX this week for an Indiegrrl show, and we have another show at the Belmont Arts Center coming up as well in November.  I'll also be attending the Frank Brown International Songwriters Festival in Pensacola - I've been asked (since we connected too late for me to get into a venue) to perform at one of the open mics, which should be fun.

One of the discussions my fellow musicans and I have been having is how important it is for all of us, whether we perform or not, to attend shows and buy CDs and/or downloads as much as possible.  It's tough times for musicians, and in order for us to create, the support from our fan base is so important.  Tell all your friends, shop for Christmas with us, and come see us - we need you!

I'd better go get ready for the ghosts and hobgoblins, and snitch some of the candy before they all get here :).  The ghost lights are up, the pumpkin is in the window, and we're all set - have a safe and happy Halloween!  I'll write more when I get back from Austin.
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September 05

Hurricane Katrina has come and gone, and we all know the devastation that followed.  We here in Northwest Florida feel very blessed to have escaped this one, especially as she was headed straight towards us as she was reaching cat 5.  We're storm-weary here, tired of being pummeled by hurricane after hurricane.  But, we never wished ill on anyone else, and the damage done by Katrina is unprecendented.  Our hopes, thoughts, and prayers are with all vicitms of this storm.  We have many of the evacuees here, and our hearts go out to everyone affected by this storm.

As you may have seen on the first page of the website, all proceeds from sales of The Distance Wall and We Are Each Other's Angels (Hungry For Music) are being donated to the Katrina relief fund - please be generous and buy your copies today.  Proceeds will be given to the American Red Cross.

Our damage from Katrina was mild - we got 80 mph winds and yet more beach erosion, and gas is very hard to find - if we see a station with gas, we jump on it while we can.  No more trees came down in our yard as Ivan and Dennis had taken all of the weak ones already.  November 30th, the end of hurricane season, never looked as good as it does this year.

In frothier news, Granger and I had a great time at Radio Live on September 1st.  It was a lot of fun, and was also videotaped for the local Cox Cable shows.  I should be getting a copy, and will load it on the website if I can.  We also had a lot of fun at Art On The Lawn at Destin Commons the following Sunday.  (Okay, so I got massively sunburned - the September sun in Florida is hot!)

We've been in the studio recording the song I wrote for my daughter, Summer.  It's called Coming Back Home, and will be on the Back Home compilation CD, which benefits Children International.  Its great to be back in the studio again, and we've had a lot of fun with it.

On Sunday, September 18th, we're going back over to WUWF 88.1 FM for a live broadcast with one of our favorite guys, John Macdonell, for his show Acoustic Interlude.  The show runs from 12:00 to 3:00 Central Standard Time, so don't forget to tune in!  We'll be on somewhere in there, as will be Tammerlin, a husband and wife duo from Jacksonville, FL. 

That's all until next month - keep safe out there.
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August 2005

Wow, it's been three months since I last wrote - time just flies when you're evacuating from hurricanes and dealing with tropical storms!  Let's see, when last I wrote I was on my way to Baton Rouge, LA and Kerrville, TX with my bud, David Alberding.  The Baton Rouge show was interesting, to say the least - our venue was changed at the very last minute, and we had no way to notify anyone of the change.  Needless to say, after heavy advertising for the theater, the crowd that showed up at the new venue was miniscule.  However, David, Granger and I had a great time playing together again.  Many thanks to John and his family for their hard work on salvaging the show and for the overnight accomodations. 

The next morning, a Thursday, I said goodbye to Granger and the kids and David and I hit the road for the long drive to Kerrville.  After a stop at the Wal-Mart in San Antonio for supplies, we got to the campground around 10:30 pm.  Setting up our tents in the dark was, shall we say, somewhat exhilirating!  What a good time I had, even though it rained and hailed and I almost got devoured by all the mud and muck.   My trusty little Coleman tent only had two very small puddles after the deluges, instead of turning into little rubber boats like some of my neighbors' tents.  Considering the fact that I hadn't gone camping in over 20 years, I think I fared very well.  Between the shows, the song circles where I heard so many talented people, the trip to the creek on Saturday afternoon with David and Bev Angel, catching up with old friends and meeting new ones, the kiddie pond games at Kamp Kantigree, the most delicious oatmeal cookie and apple pie I've ever eaten, the shopping at the festival (such goodies!), and the wonderful atmosphere of creativity and camraderie, I'm very glad that I let David talk me into going. 

This was my first trip to the festival, so I wasn't sure what to expect.  Instead of running around through the mud like a mad woman with my guitar in hand trying to play at every possible opportunity (which seems to be the Modus Operandi there), I kind of laid back and watched how things worked and just played from time to time at our campsite (Kamp Kantigree).  I was tempted to do the mud-slogging-play-at-every-possible-song-circle thing on our last night, but decided getting home safely was more important and crashed somewhat early (2:00 a.m.) as we were leaving at 8:00 the next morning.  I did the community shower with all the women thing, Connie braided my hair for the trip home, and we hit the road early on Memorial Day.  The drive was long and kind of rainy, but David's good company made the hours fly by.  We made it to Mobile, AL in time for Granger and the kids to pick me up and for David to get to his in-laws for the night.  I'll definitely be going back to Kerrville - I came home feeling very rejuvenated and creative again.  Yes, there are pictures!

I mentioned last time that Granger and I started a concert series, Saturday in the Square, in Fort Walton Beach, FL.  After the first show had to be cancelled because of a tropical storm (Arlene) and the rescheduled one where we thought we were literally going to collapse from the heat, we decided to shelve it for a while.  A good thing, since one of the scheduled shows was when Hurricane Dennis hit.  It's a little difficult to play outdoors when there are either hurricanes or heat waves hitting us.  So, we're waiting to rev it back up in the fall. 

Speaking of Hurricane Dennis, yes, we got slammed!  You may have seen our little town of Navarre on Good Morning America, the Weather Channel, the Today Show or CNN.  Yep, that was us.  We had evacuated to Altanta, but our little house got hit by the eyewall, and our roof is toast (not to mention our bent garage door and frame, trees, gutters, etc.).  As I write this, most of the shingles on the roof are gone, the tarp is off, and the roofers are coming in the morning.  In the meantime, it's been raining like crazy and I'm hoping not to hear a little "drip. drip. drip." from anywhere in the house.  (I must admit to watching the tropics with bated breath, and visiting  noaa.org daily.)

Can I just say that any local sightings of Jim Cantore from The Weather Channel strikes fear into our hearts?!

In music news, I have the pleasure and privilege of performing on Radio Live on September 1st in Pensacola, FL.  I'm also going back in the studio in a couple of weeks to record a new song, Coming Back Home.  My daughter was gone for a year and returned to us in June, and I wrote the song for her.  As I mentioned last time, I've been asked to be on the Back Home compilation CD, and will be contributing this song instead of a previously recorded one, since (obviously) the theme of this one definitely matches the project!  Many thanks go out to Raymond Steiner for this opportunity.  As you can imagine, this song has a great deal of meaning to me, and I'm very happy that it's going to be a part of this CD.  I'll be recording it at Lucky K Recording Studios in Pensacola, FL.  Lucky's a great guy, and I'm looking forward to working with him.

Well, the kids are back in school (I know, it's SO early!) and my mornings are now devoted to creating music and various other things.  I'll keep up with the news a little bit more, and will let you know as shows and other projects get scheduled.

Now go out there and enjoy the summer!
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May 2005

Hello again - 

It's been a busy month for me, as I've been hitting the pavement for both my website business and for gigs.  We had a great time playing the Festival of Glass last weekend (the 15th and 16th) in Fort Walton Beach.  We've been tossing around the idea of starting a concert series in Fountain Square, where the Festival was held, and  after talking with the Powers That Be, we all decided it's a go!  The concert series will be an all-ages, acoustic-based format, and Granger and I will play it until we get it up and running with both local and national acoustic acts.  We've decided to call it Saturdays in the Square, and it will probably run every other Saturday afternoon from about 3:00 to about 5:00.  Wheee!

I'm very proud to announce that I'll be on the Back Home compilation CD, the sales of which benefit Children International.  (The producer of CD chose Fragile Hearts for the compliation, but now I've gone and written another song, so we're not sure which one will be on there yet.)  This is a follow up to the fabulous Home CD.  For more information on this project, please click here.

I'm gearing up to head out to Baton Rouge next week for the show with my bud, David Alberding, and then we hit the road for Kerrville and the music festival.  I've got my tent packed, my suntan lotion handy, and now I'm deciding what clothes to bring that will be appropriate for the heat of Texas days in June.  Probably not much, maybe a bathing suit, a pair of shorts and tank top, and a couple of VERY thin dresses!

That's it for now - I'll keep a diary of my trip and post it when I get back.  Now get off the computer, get yourself outdoors, and enjoy some of this early summer weather!
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April 2005

Hello again!

It's April 14th, the dreaded Tax Eve, and so many things have been happening in my life lately.  

Tomorrow I'll be the Featured Artist on Whole Wheat Radio in Talkeetna, AK.  Jim and Esther run a very hip station, and I always have so much fun when I visit online.  (One of these days I hope to visit in person - in the summertime, please!)  I'll be online tomorrow, saying hi and hanging out, so if you get a chance, pop in and hang with us - you might even earn some wheat berries!  (Sadly, I always need help gathering them.  Yes, it's true.  I'm wheat-berry impaired.)  Many thanks to Jim and Esther for featuring me.  These two have an intense love of music and wonderful senses of humor, and have been a great source of support and inspiration to me.  It's very heartening to know that there are people out there like Jim and Esther who continue to support and encourage independent musicians the way that they do.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I quit my day job in February and have been really pursuing my web site business.  It's going very well, and I'm not only happy because I get to create wonderful graphics and play with lots of colors, but I get to make people smile while I'm doing it.  I just finished up with Yvonne Perea's site - she's a very talented musician in Southern California and I've had a great deal of fun working with her.  If you need a web site, or want a new design, please think of me.  You can visit sites I've designed by going to Raspberry Sun Music and looking at the Website Design page.  I'm getting new web site software (I'm anxiously watching the mail box!) that I'm really looking forward to, because it has new play toys and bells and whistles that my old program doesn't have. 

I've also been very busy pursuing music, and have a couple of irons in the fire that I'll talk about next month.  I've been gathering camping equipment in preparation for attending the Kerrville Folk Festival with one of my best buds, David Alberding, in May.  Yep, folks, he talked me into it, and I can't think of a better person to do a road trip with.  David and I have done some road trips before, and he's a wonderful friend to travel with.  We're doing a split bill show in Louisiana on the way to Texas, and details for that are on the Shows page.

My CDs are now available at a very cool record store in Fort Walton Beach called The SoundJoe and Laurel Crocker are the owners, and it's chock-full of eclectic and interesting things.  They have a very comfy couch and it's a great place to hang out.  If you have a chance, stop by and say hi, and tell 'em I sent you!  We hope to have an in-store performance (well, actually out-store, on the lawn outside) scheduled there soon.

In an interesting twist (okay, at least to me!), The Sound is located next door to where the old (and now very vacant) Beer Gardens used to be, in Fountain Square off of Route 98.  Of course, everything here is located off Route 98, or you'd be in the ocean!  The Beer Gardens, if you've read my last few posts, was where I first started performing solo - all by myself, up there alone on the stage, nothing but me and my guitar and a ton of bikers and tourists crowded 'round - yes, it was wonderful!  I tell you, after starting my musical career in a biker bar, I can play just about anywhere - yep, I can dodge a flying beer pitcher and flying bodies, all with guitar in hand, with the best of 'em.  And yes, I still know how to play "Midnight Rider" by the Allman Brothers :).

We've gotten so much rain that my house has literally been surrounded by water for over two weeks.  I've decided that I'm now officially the Lady of the Island.  The water is slowly starting to recede, but a bevy of water birds (seagulls, cranes, etc.) now think my back, side, and front yards are there strictly for their pleasure.  It's very strange to look out my window, as I'm typing this, and see those little birds that skitter up and down the beach - you know the ones, they skitter in tandem and look really silly - running along the shoreline in my back yard.  At least I get a show out of all this water, and a new pair of rubber boots so that I get to my mail box.  Let's just not talk about how filthy my poor car is, and the fact that what I really need is a canoe....I took pictures with my cell phone camera:

Photo by Carey Colvin.
Front Yard

Photo by Carey Colvin.
One side of house

Photo by Carey Colvin.
Other side of house

Photo by Carey Colvin.
Out my office window
in the back yard
(the water is about 4 feet deep)

Please pray for no more rain in the South!  Any more, and I'm just going to give up the ghost and wear water wings on a permanent basis :).

I'll close for this month - more as it happens!
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March 2005

Hello - 

The weather is (finally) getting warmer, and tomorrow we're going to have one of those stellar days - 70 degrees, and sunny.  I can't wait, because it's been very cold here the last week or so. 

I was just interviewed for and have been added to the Voices and Visions site, please take a moment to check it out.  Many thanks to Sandy for including me in this very cool site and with so many incredible artists.

I went to Rusty McHugh's wake at the FloraBama on February 27th, and it was a very bittersweet time.  Hearing everyone's Rusty stories and reminiscing, seeing people I haven't seen in 30 years, was very uplifting.  I only wish we'd all gotten together with him instead of his death bringing us  together again.  His music is unforgettable - where else can you hear songs such as "Who's Your Poondaddy?", "My Baby Is A Seafood Platter", and "Tequila Makes My Clothes Fall Off" (boy, can I relate to THAT one!).  His CDs are available at his website, so check it out - I guarantee you'll laugh harder than you have in a long while once you listen to his tunes.  I sure miss him.


I've been picking up the guitar a lot these days, and it doesn't feel like an alien object to me any more.  I never thought I'd see the time when it did, but boy, after not playing for so long, it felt strange in my hands.  Believe me, I'm not going to let THAT happen again!

I'm in the throes of researching venues and looking at a tour in May with my dear pal David A. Alberding.  I'm also in the process of developing my website business to a higher level, so if you're interested in having me design your site or know of someone who needs my services, please visit www.raspberrysunmusic.com

That's it for now, I'll post what's up as things come together.  Now, go out and support independent music! 
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February 2005

Hello again - 

It's February 22nd and I finally have a chance to catch up on this month's newsletter, as promised.

We had a wonderful time at The Wammies, and we'd like to thank Mike Schreibman and WAMA for having us both back again this year.  We had the show at an entirely new (and most gorgeous) hall this time around, the Music Hall at Strathmore.  As my friend Diana Quinn said, "It's like being inside a beautiful guitar".  It was a challenge, and one I believe we met.  Granger was hopping, getting eight bands off and on during a three-hour show, and I was busy lining up presenters and awards and making last-minute seat-of-the-pants script changes.  It was wonderful seeing everyone again, friends as well as family.  My son, Tom Brooks, has done security for the show for WAMA for several years now along with our friend Mike CampbellRachel Cross and Vicki Zak were my right hand gals, and they, along with all the WAMA volunteers both behind the stage and in front, really made things go smoothly.  Thanks, guys!

Rachel BissexToday has been a very hard day for me and for many others in the music business.  I've received news regarding the deaths of three of my fellow performers.  Dear Rachel Bissex, who was a wonderful artist from Vermont, passed away on Sunday from breast cancer.  She led a valiant struggle, and shared that struggle with her friends.  She brought us all a lot of light and courage, and she will be sorely missed. 
Pam BrickerPam Bricker, a jazz vocalist from the DC area and originally from the New England area, also died on Sunday.  She was wonderfully talented, and she, too, will leave a huge hole in our lives. 

My dear old friend Rusty McHugh, a regular at The FloraBama in Perdido Key, Florida, passed away yesterday.  Rusty and his musical bud Mike Fincher were there with me, egging me on, at the beginning of my music career.  We lost Mike a few years ago.  Rusty's sense of humor and his way with words made so many people smile.  It's the end of an era for me with both Mike and Rusty gone now.  I can't tell you how sad I am at this moment.

Mike Fincher, Rusty McHugh, Carey Colvin, Ray Tweed.  Photo by James White, 1977.  www.careycolvin.com.
Mike Fincher, Rusty McHugh,
Carey, Ray Tweed
The Beer Gardens, 1977

Granger Helvey, Rusty McHugh, Carey Colvin.  June 2003.  www.careycolvin.com.
Granger, Rusty, Carey
The Florabama
June 2003

I certainly don't mean to be depressing by sharing this news with you, but I do want to say this - enjoy life, grab it with both hands.  It goes too quickly and sometimes most unexpectedly. 

Well, last week ended my year and four-month run at a full-time day job.  While I will miss everyone there, my main focus these days will be on my children, and yes, once again on music.  I picked up my guitar this morning and played for about an hour, and I can't tell you how good it felt.  I'm laying groundwork and making plans, and hope to have some gigs to tell you about in the future.  I'm glad I'm on the road back :).

Rachel used to sign her e-mails with little quotes, and in her honor, I'd like to close this month's newsletter with one from a button sent to me by my friend Sara Hickman:

"Believe in hope - live your dream."
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January 2005

Hello, everyone - 

First of all, Happy New Year to you all - I wish you joy, prosperity, love, family, and (of course), good music in 2005 :). 

As you can see, the website has been redesigned (again).  This is a 'test run', if you will, and I'll decide soon if I want to keep it or revamp it all together.  What do you think?  Let me know.

I hope your holidays were good ones.  We had a nice, quiet Christmas at home, with the extra-special added pleasure of a visit the day after Christmas from our dear friends, David & Beth Alberding.  We broke out the guitars and spent a pleasant afternoon visiting, playing music, and enjoying their company.  We hadn't seen them since June, so it was a happy reunion.  Here's a few pictures:

Right before Christmas, we had a rather unpleasant flea infestation attack our dog, Jasper, and our cat, Tigger.  After a trip to the vet (which enabled her to buy her family lots of presents), they are feeling much better.  Jasper was rewarded for his good behavior with a red bandana that had gingerbread men and candy canes on it.  They sprayed his poor, infested hind end with flea spray, which dried to a frosty white, looking very like snow.  We decided that, because of the bandana and frosting, Jasper definitely looked like a Christmas dog!  Here's their happy, flea-free little faces:

The weather is now warm here, and I've got the windows flung open.  However, we really did get cold here for about a week, down in the 20's at night.  Still, I can't complain, especially after enduring years of cold weather in the DC area :).

Until next time!
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September 2004 - Surviving Hurricane Ivan
Hello -

I’m glad to say that we’re alive and in one piece, and that our house is still standing.  We have some damage (everyone here does), but we truly feel blessed that we still have a home.  The worst part of the evacuation for us was wondering what we’d find when we came back. 

It’s like a war zone here, with debris and trees and bits of houses everywhere you go.  I took pictures; it's amazing how fragile things can be.  The island (Navarre Beach) is still closed, due to damage to the bridge, and most of the island is still unlivable at this point.  We heard that during the storm surge, the Gulf of Mexico came to within a block and a half of our home.  (I know I love the Gulf enough to write about it, but I don’t love it enough to invite it into my living room unless it's the sand in my shoes.)  We're still under a curfew as well.

To give you some perspective, we live a little over a block off of Route 98 – which I’m sure you’ve seen on television at this point – about 15 miles east of Pensacola Beach, in Santa Rosa County.  Across 98 from our house are (were) a few houses lining the Sound, which is about a mile across.  After the Sound is the barrier island of Navarre Beach, then is the Gulf of Mexico.  We estimate that winds of over 140 mph hit our house, with sustained winds of around 100, and you can see it in the trees.  We have several that have a permanent drunken list to them, and they’ll have to come down before they fall down.  We lost our gutters, some shingles, and had some roof damage - you can see sky from a certain section of the attic.  (I must say a thank you here to Steelworkers Local 15253 from Pennsylvania, Joe's Crew, who came and, through FEMA's Operation Blue Roof, put up a tarp to protect us from weather.)  However, when you look across Route 98 from our home you can look straight through the houses – what’s left of them.  We were told that the storm surge sent waves of over 40 feet towards us (Update:  the bouys in the ocean actually recorded waves of 52 feet).  The debris along the highway is both devastating and humbling, and shows nature’s true force.  You see a child’s toy, a chair, a basket that once held someone’s belongings, bits of clothing, dishes - someone’s life on the side of the road. 

We have electricity (which is of course why I’m able to write this to you) and water, and things are slowly going back to normal.  FEMA and other rescue workers have been phenomenal, providing the area with ice, MRE’s (meals ready to eat), water, and consolation.  It’s a testament to humanity the way these people have come through for everyone in need here.  When we were evacuated, we went to Lake City, which is about an hour east of Jacksonville, and holed up in a hotel room for three days – me, Granger, the kids, the cat, and the dog.  When we were able to come back home, we hit I-10 and started our journey, anxious at what we’d find, and knowing that there was a finite end to I-10 – it was in the bay.  What we saw on the way home was caravans of electrical workers from Michigan, Oklahoma, and other states, and caravans of tree trucks.  It was so uplifting, I can’t tell you – these people were coming west on I-10, so that meant that they’d been down south dealing with the damage from Hurricanes Frances and Charley.  I’m sure that once they’re done here, they’ll be going back down to deal with the damage from Hurricane Jeanne.  Next time you see an electrician or tree person, give them a smile - they deserve it!

During the evacuation process, when I had to decide what to take and what not to take (NOTE:  if you ever have to evacuate, take ALL your pictures – everything you own is in them somewhere!) and was going through my entire house in the space of a few hours, I spoke to some of you on the phone.  Thank you for calling me and letting me know you were thinking of me.  I wish I could have talked longer, but we had to get out – at that point, Ivan was coming directly down our throats!  I can’t stress enough how lucky we are – if he’d stayed on that course and not veered west, we’d have nothing left.

Unfortunately, during the storm I ended up developing a nasty case of pneumonia.  Let me tell you that having pneumonia is the pits, but with no electricity it’s truly awful.  My doctor’s office kind of got mushed, so when it became apparent that I wasn’t getting any better, Granger took me to the ER in Gulf Breeze and got me taken care of.  I’m now getting back on my feet again, and am glad I don’t have to do so in a shelter with no home to go back to. 

So, we’re okay.  Our community is bruised and battered, but it’s still here (for the most part) and still kickin’.  Schools are still closed, a lot of businesses have closed permanently because they don’t exist any more, but we’re okay and we’re damned lucky.

By the way, somewhere during the evacuation my Daytimer was either lost or stolen.  If anyone should happen to contact you that you don’t know, or someone pretends to represent me, that may be the reason why.  Please let me know if you do hear from anyone; it may help me to track it down.

As an end note,