New England

I can’t believe summer is drawing to a close! Well, not really…It’ll still be really hot down here in middle Tennessee for at least another month or so. But to me, especially being from the north, Labor Day weekend always feels like the end of summer – kids go back to school, it begins to get colder, the holidays start creeping up, and so on. And it has been a great summer, at least for me. I worked hard, played some cool shows, hosted a couple of Berklee alumni events, took my first yoga class, released a CD of originals with my band “Skinny Buddha” and had an action-packed 10 day trip to New England, during which I gave a clinic and performance at the Berklee College of Music. And most importantly, I celebrated another anniversary with my wife and best friend of 18 years (I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship…).EKandRussRGs

So what’s in store for the fall, you might ask? I’ve got lots going on – I just had the transmission rebuilt in my van, began a new round of P90X, started an herb garden on my back deck, plan to have a yard sale this coming weekend…seriously, I do have a lot of big things in the works.

Skinny Buddha will be the guest artist on “The Mando Blues Radio Show”, with the taping coming up on Monday, November 16, and aired on Wednesday, September 18 on 107.1 FM Radio Free Nashville. Thanks to Whit Hubner from Nashville’s very own “Hippie Radio” we will be rocking the “Mando Blues Tent” with a six song performance. If you haven’t yet discovered it, Hippie Radio is the coolest radio station in Nashville, and you can get a free phone app from their website and listen to them anywhere. Pretty groovy stuff!

Coming up in October, I’ll be playing guitar with “The Peach Pickers” featuring Rhett Akins and Dallas Davidson on the sold out “Luke Bryan Farm Tour”. We did this last year and it was a hoot! This year’s band will consist of Nick Forchione on drums, “G-men” Mike Chapman on bass and Chris Luzinger on guitar, and yours truly on guitar and harmony vocals (for those of you who don’t know, the G-men are an infamous group of Nashville session players who played on all of the Garth Brooks records). Look for us when we come to a farm near you!

On Monday, October 28 I’ll be hosting the last Nashville Berklee Jam of 2013 at The Rutledge with special guest speaker, performance coach, Diane Kimbrough. Diane has coached a wide array of artists ranging from beginners to artists like Shania Twain and Toby Keith. After her talk, she will be critiquing and coaching some of the regular performers from our bimonthly jam. This event is open to the public and should be a great night!

Starting in November, I will be playing some shows with a northern Alabama-based band “The Flashbacks”. Along with Mike Chapman and some other veteran players, I will be digging into a night of 60s and 70s R&B and Motown.

SB Fillin StationOn Wednesday, November 27 Skinny Buddha will be performing a set of Jimi Hendrix music at Nashville’s “Soulshine Pizza” for their special “Jimi Hendrix Tribute Night ” being held on the great guitarist’s birthday. This night will begin with our performance at 9 PM and will conclude with a second show of Hendrix music performed by the legendary, Phil Brown (formerly of Little Feat). This is a great excuse to learn some new Hendrix tunes (well, new to me) and I’m planning on digging into some deep cuts like “Who Knows”, “Hear My Train a Comin’”, “Drivin’ South” and “Stone Free”, in addition to my regular repertoire of Jimi favorites. For any of you that know me, this is an extra special night; one I am honored to be a part of. I first heard Jimi Hendrix at the age of 11, when the sounds of his Woodstock performance of the Star-Spangled Banner sent me on a musical adventure that I am happy to be still exploring.

And lastly, I am planning to record some more Skinny Buddha music.

That’s about it for now. I hope you all had a great summer and that the fall will bring you much peace and happiness. I guess I’d better go clean out my garage to get ready for the big yard sale!

EricBerklee

 

It was a warm summer afternoon in a small town in southern New Hampshire, back in the summer of ’79, and it had finally arrived. Summer vacation had just begun, and for this group of friends gathered around the family pool, the air was ripe with the kind of optimism and mystery that only a teenager can have – you know, that “anything can happen” feeling that occupies the youthful soul. Staring at the pool in cheerful content, they basked in the warmth of the sun while listening to the “Woodstock” soundtrack booming out a bedroom window. The youngest in this pack, a couple of eleven year old boys who were a few months away from starting junior high, seemed more than intrigued by some of these “new” electric sounds permeating this virgin summer air.

“What’s the name of this band?” asked one of the youths.

“That’s ‘Sly and the Family Stone”, answered Dave, the boyfriend of one of the younger lads’ older sisters.

“Wow, this is really cool!” the excited boy answered.

Up until this moment, these youngsters, like most pre-teens from this era, had been mostly hearing the corporate radio music of the day – a post-disco fallout period with bands and artists like E.L.O., Michael Jackson, and The Eagles providing a daily dose of saccharine for the masses – “Don’t bring me down…..Brrrruuucccce!”

“If you like Sly, you’re really going to love the last side of this record!” he confidently announced, and a short while later, everything changed.

It was as if a bomb had gone off – suddenly, the music coming out of the speakers sounded more like a science fiction movie soundtrack than it did the groovy “freedom rock” that had played just minutes before. Sounds that seemed to begin as single guitar notes ended as explosions – harmonic cascades and otherworldly sounds swirling into the stratosphere – “sheets of sound”. This music spoke of the epic joys and tragedies of the human struggle – war, hunger, love, peace, poverty, anarchy, inequality – it was all there, yet not a single lyric had been sung.

Near speechless, one of the 11 year olds turned to his friend and managed to say “this is amazing!”

“I thought you might like this” was the response, and they continued to marvel in the sonic wonderment, this new discovery rendering a near out of body experience.

With each passing moment came a new level of heightened awareness for the one boy in particular. It wasn’t as if he had never heard great music; many years before, his dad had turned him on to Santana, John Lee Hooker, and many other greats from the golden era of blues and rock. But this was different. This music transcended all of the traditional music forms that he had heard before. Melodically, it was free from the constraints of the pop song, or even blues format, yet it was bluesy. Rhythmically, it seemed connected to the earth in an intangible way, kind of tribal, with roots going deep into the African jungle. It was as if these sounds came right out of the sky, from the heavens, not a speaker in a window.

This music “spoke” to the young boy with a clarity he had not yet experienced in life, rendering this otherwise insignificant summer day the birth of the universe for him. It felt like a calling, like this was the day his life really began, the birth of an endless pursuit to the new sense of self and spirituality that permeated his being on that warm day in the sun long ago –  like ocean waves meeting a sandcastle at high tide.

That was the day I first heard the music of Jimi Hendrix.

When we first began planning our New England visit, sometime late last year, I had the idea to put together a special reunion show, one at which we could reconnect with our dearest friends and musician buddies from days gone past. My initial thought was to throw together a band of players from my New England nightclub days, have a few guests sit in, and that a few of our old friends might turn up too. To my delight, all that happened, and then some.

Wally's Pub, Hampton, NH - photo by Athena Erickson

Sometime around February I began putting this all together. The first thing I had to do was pick a place. Hmmm, early August in New England? What better place to do this sort of thing than Hampton Beach! And why not pick a venue in which I used to perform regularly back in my New England heyday, Wally’s Pub, which turned out turned to be the perfect spot. I would need a core band of players, so I contacted drummer, John Medeiros; and bassist, Keith Foley; both whom I once played with in my old band, Electric Blue. I wanted to have another guitar player involved as well, so I called up my friend, and former guitar student, Charles Cormier, who was a junior in high school when I left New England. Charles now plays with the seacoast jam band “Superfrog” from which I also recruited percussionist, Adams Viciguerra.

Once I had the place and the players, it was time to invite some special guests, and I began putting out some feelers months in advance. Putting together a reunion show from afar takes a lot of work, and I spent a lot of time e-mailing, talking on the phone, and sending mp3’s across cyberspace. It was all well worth the effort. On a warm Sunday afternoon a few days before the show, we had one rehearsal with the core band and, thanks to everyone doing their homework, things came together pretty quickly.

So Wednesday finally arrived, and the band guys arrived around 5:00 PM to set up and sound check. Our five piece ensemble was joined by, Jeff Bissonnette, a sound engineer that I knew from the “Jet City era”. We got everything dialed in and then our friends and guests began to trickle in. I hired a local videographer, Mike Maleszyk, to document the evening and he showed up about an hour before the show with one of his cohorts and three video cameras. A lot of friends that Kelly and I hadn’t seen in ages started arriving and I did my best to make some rounds before showtime. Some of these friends I hadn’t even seen since high school, some 25 years ago. There were so many people I wanted to talk to but so little time.

Charles Cormier, John Medeiros, Eric Normand, Adam Viciguerra, Keith Foley - photo credit Mike Maleszyk

Eight o’clock came around and it was time to get down and boogie. “The Eric Normand and Friends Band” felt good right off the bat and I was excited about the vibe we were putting forth. Despite the fact that I hadn’t played with any of these guys in a decade, and most of the players had never played together before, the group had a real synergy and maturity, almost as if we had been playing together for years. We played an hour-long set of my favorite tunes, blues-rock music born of another era. Songs by Freddy King, Delbert McClinton, Jimi Hendrix, and the Allman Brothers, got a good dance floor going by mid-set. A couple of high points came during our rendition of the classic “Sweet Melissa” and an extended version of “Little Wing”, the former turning out to be a particularly proud moment for me when Charles took a beautiful and emotive solo. This all crescendoed with the set’s climax of “Black Magic Woman”, complete with full blown Santana-style percussion and an extended outro jam that nobody wanted to end.

We took a break and I made a few rounds, trying to catch up with as many of my friends and musician buddies as I could. I didn’t get to talk to everybody (not for lack of trying) and I wish I could have had more time. It was time to kick off the second half of the night, and this began with a couple of songs with the core band plus friend and former Electric Blue member, Tom Martin sitting in on bass. Next would come a “Jupiter’s Ghost” reunion, and this was comprised of Doug Hinton on drums, Mark Gagnon on bass, Keith Bowen on vocals, and me on guitar. We played two songs in what felt like a literal time machine, a packed dance floor from the get-go. Keith stepped down and Brandon LePere joined us on vocals for the next onslaught. Once again it was “Sherman set the way-back machine”, and when I looked across the stage it felt like 1995 again. Once upon a time a lifetime ago, four guys had a little rock band called “Shockwave”, and we played, and played, and played. We went through a lot together, and many great memories and feelings came rushing back during this part of the night.

The dance floor was packed! photo by Catherine Fraser-Dery

Next it was time for one last reunion grouping and the crowd heard the announcement “Will Stan Jackson and George Bisson please come to the stage”. Yes, that’s right a partial “Jet City” reunion was about to unfold. A little “Alice in Chains” followed by some “Bad Company” kept the dance floor hopping. Sadly, the night was drawing to a close, and I had the core band return for one final number, “Whipping Post”.

Have you ever experienced a moment in time that was so full of positive energy and wonderment that you hoped it would never end? An experience so pure and magical that you wish you could just live inside of that moment for eternity? For me, and maybe a few others on this particular night, this was one such moment. Life is whizzing by, and the perception of time seems to be changing, literally speeding up exponentially. This fact has recently clarified some things for me. Friends and family are of the best things in life, and to me, friends are family. The times we spend together make us who we are, and on this trip, reconnecting with the friends of our past was a powerful experience. So many people made this special night happen. People drove from as far away as Brattleboro, Vermont and Portland, Maine; Stan Jackson drove all the way up from Cape Cod to participate in this night. Thanks everybody for making it all come together!

The night did have to end, but the memories we made will last a lifetime. And besides, I don’t see any reason we can’t make this an annual event. Meanwhile, Kelly and I have adopted a new theme song, one from which I would like to appropriately quote for the end of this writing –

“Meanwhile I, ain’t wastin’ time no more,
Cause time goes by like hurricanes, and much faster things,
Don’t forget the pouring rain.”


I would like to send out a special thanks to Mike Maleszyk, Catherine Fraser-Dery, Athena Erickson, and Curt Comeau for the use of these photos.

It’s now Saturday morning and we’re in Waukegan, Illinois, just north of Chicago, and back on the Rhett Akins tour.  It’s early, I’m the only one up, and the view out the bus window is not unlike many I’ve seen before – a hotel, a highway, and some retail. Several Canadian geese are foraging for their breakfast on a big plane of grass in front of the hotel. I can’t believe that this trip is almost over; it went by at warp speed!

We had been planning our trip to New England since last fall, with my 25th high school reunion tugging at me to return to my homeland for a brief visit. And even though it ended up turning into a working vacation, with several workshops and book signings taking up much of our time, it ended up being one of the most soul-enriching vacations Kelly and I have ever had. It had been seven years since our last trip home, way too long, and although we had often talked about how much we missed everybody, we didn’t realize just how much until we got there.

We set out Monday morning and did the 1240 mile drive over two days, sleeping overnight in a hotel in Pennsylvania. Although the trip was long, our excitement grew as we neared the northeastern states. We spent the first few days of our New England visit in southern Maine, first at Kelly’s sister’s house in Kennebunk, and then at one of our friends homes in Portland. Crammed into the middle of a couple of hectic days centered around music store clinics and a local TV interview, were family reunions, a breakfast with friends, and a wonderful walk on Kennebunk beach on a warm summer day. Some friends hosted a special jam night for me in Dover, NH and it was great to reconnect with old friends there as well.

By the time the weekend rolled around it was time for my high school reunion. It was great to see so many of my old classmates – I can’t believe it’s been 25 years; ‘Father Time’ is so mean! After the reunion we stopped In to Wally’s on Hampton Beach, a club I had played frequently in the late 90s and the place we would be having our reunion show a couple of days later. Living in Tennessee we are a bit landlocked, and we basked in the salty night air of the ocean-side resort town, something we likely took for granted just a few years ago.

Sunday afternoon would bring another reunion of sorts, this one in the form of a rehearsal in my hometown of Kingston, NH with some old band mates. Members of my old band, Electric Blue, plus one of my former guitar students and one of his friends would comprise the core band for the Wally’s reunion show. We rehearsed in a garage belonging to one of my oldest friends, a place in which I used to rehearse with many of my first bands many years ago. The rehearsal went great and was followed by another family reunion, this one at my parent’s house, the place where I grew up right down the street.

On this night I slept in my old bedroom, it kind of made me feel like a kid again. I woke up real early Monday morning and just lied in bed for a while, reflecting on the amazing journey I have had in the years since I left this place. It was 6 AM, just before sunrise, and the house was quiet, my folks still asleep, and I’m not sure why, but I suddenly had the urge to set out on foot and visit the places of my youth.

I walked out the front door, around the side of our barn, and cut through the neighbor’s yard. I walked past the old cemetery and out onto Main Street, following the beautiful plains past the bandstand, the town hall, the general store, and the library. I came to my old high school “Sanborn Regional”, and just stood there for a moment, transfixed by the memories that came flooding back. I walked through the school grounds, and experienced several moments of déjà vu, remembering different pinpoints in time from decades ago. Coming out of the backside of the high school, I walked down to Greenwood Lake, a place where I used to go fishing as a boy, and parking as a teenager. I walked another mile or so down to Kingston State Park and sat on the shore for a few before visiting the place where Kelly and I got married – a beautiful little spot on the shore of Kingston Lake on the backside of the park. I walked up the trail that comes up behind Clark’s Oil and received a few mosquito bites along the way. Back out onto Main Street, I walked past the old Sadowski residence, the place where the sounds of Jimi Hendrix blaring out a bedroom window on a warm summer day long ago inspired me to take up the electric guitar.

After spending a great day with my family I was off to Hampton for another clinic, after which I went to bed early, exhausted as the pace of this trip was starting to catch up with me. We took it easy on Tuesday, trying to have a few still moments to catch our breath at a friend’s house in Hampton. The trip had been great so far, seeing so many friends and family members in such a short period of time, but our heads were literally spinning as a result of the hectic schedule we were keeping. Wednesday morning we managed to squeak in one more walk on a beautiful private beach just north of Hampton Beach, reminiscing about the trip.

We had one last thing to do before this exciting trip would come to an end, and that was the reunion show at Wally’s. This night turned out to be such an exciting, action-packed adventure in and of itself that it deserves its own story, one that I’ll post a little later. But as far as this brief nine-day stay, it was truly awesome! Kelly and I have relished every moment of our Nashville journey, we wouldn’t be who we are today if we had not embarked on it. We have met and become friends with many wonderful people in middle Tennessee, and other parts of the country as well. But reconnecting with our friends and family in New England was an emotional and powerful experience; you all have a special place in our hearts and we miss you already. See y’all next year!

I can’t tell you how excited we are to be finally about to embark on our first trip to our native homeland of New England in seven years. I’m sorry we haven’t gotten back sooner, it’s not because we haven’t wanted to, it just seems that whenever we’ve had the time we didn’t have the money (we call this Nashville winter), and when we’ve had the money, we didn’t have the time (Nashville summer). So this year, with my 25th high school reunion taking place at the end of July, we decided this was the perfect excuse we needed to block out a week in the middle of the summer and pay our old friends a visit.

Somewhere in the middle of planning this trip I got the idea to do a clinic at “The Music Workshop,” a music store in Salem, NH that I used to frequent in my younger days. My idea was that this would be a great way to share some of my Nashville experiences with my peers in New England, while, of course, promoting my new book “The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide.” I’m not sure how this happened, but before I knew it, I was booked at four different workshops throughout New England (some of you may have noticed my recent series of Facebook event invitations). With all this activity evolving I thought it would be cool to throw in a special show with some of my musical comrades from back in the day, and this has led to the Eric Normand and Friends Reunion Concert at Wally’s Pub on Hampton Beach, on Wednesday, August 3rd at 8:00 PM.

There is a complete listing of all these workshops and events with addresses and weblinks on the new events page of my survival guide website. Here is the longhand version plus some info that’s not on the website:


Wednesday, July 27, 6:00 – 8:00 PM
The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide Workshop
Ralph’s House of Tone, Dover, NH

During this workshop I will talk about what it has been like to work as a “hired gun” in the Nashville music scene, what it’s like to work on a national level tour, and some of the key differences and similarities between being a working musician in New England versus Nashville. There will also be a “Nashville guitar rig and style demonstration” and question and answer period followed by a book signing immediately afterwards.

Jam at the Station House in Dover

After the workshop, (which is free to the public) I will be attending a jam at The Station House Restaurant and Pub right down the street. The Station House usually has a jam on Thursdays, but when I contacted my old friend, Rick Landry, inquiring about any area jams on Wednesdays, he decided to put together this special jam just for this occasion, and I must say that I am quite honored. This jam will serve to be a kind of after party for the workshop and should be a great chance to catch up with some old friends and share a little music. Thanks Rick!


Thursday, July 28, 6:00 – 8:00 PM
The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide Workshop
Buckdancer’s Choice, Portland, ME

This workshop will be like the one in Dover, only in Portland (also a free event). Before our move to Nashville in 2002, Kelly and I lived in Kennebunk, Maine, and at that time I played many shows throughout southern Maine with my band, Electric Blue. One highpoint during that period was our regular Sunday night jams at Chancery Lane in Sanford, ME, a truly magical musical moment that occurred weekly, and one that gave birth to many friendships and even a couple of bands. We hope to see some familiar faces in Portland on this night.


Monday, August 1, 6:00 – 8:00 PM
Music Skills for Life and Rhythm Section Workshop
Music Maker’s, Hampton, NH

This multifaceted workshop will be a little different than the previous two, and while I will share some of my Nashville experiences here as well, I will also spend some time talking about some practical aspects about being a lifelong musician. The second half of this clinic will be an “interactive rhythm section workshop,” during which students will have the option to explore some fundamental basics of rhythm section performance with me and Music Makers instructors, Mark Davenport and Tom Martin. Music Maker’s is a seacoast area music school that offers private lessons on a wide range of instruments and the place in which I first began teaching guitar in the mid-90s. I’m excited to be returning to share some of what I have learned since that time with their next generation of students. This event is open to the public: cost: $20 per person – $15 for current Music Maker’s students.

Jam night at Whippersnappers in Londonderry, NH

After the workshop, we are planning on attending the Monday night jam at Whippersnappers in Londonderry, NH, hosted by Gardner Berry of Mama Kicks. I used to jam with Gardner and other members of Mama Kicks back in the late 80’s/early 90’s when he hosted a Sunday night jam at Classics in Manchester, one of my first jam night experiences. Should be a lot of fun so come on out!


Tuesday, August 2, 7:00 – 9:00 PM
The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide Workshop
The Music Workshop, Salem, NH

This will be the final workshop of this trip and similar to my clinics in Dover and Portland the week before. Salem used to be a big part of my stomping grounds back in the day and I used to frequent the Music Workshop regularly, constantly “experimenting” with new music gear, occasionally buying some. I also used to perform regularly at the old LJ’s in the Rockingham Mall, remember that place?

Blues Jam at the Roma in Haverhill, MA

After this workshop we are planning on attending a blues jam at The Roma in Haverhill, MA. My good friend and drummer extraordinaire, John Medeiros is part of the host band at this jam (John is also a former member of Electric Blue and will be part of my core band at Wally’s on the third.)


Wednesday, August 3, 8:00 PM – 11:00 PM
Eric Normand and Friends Reunion Concert
Wally’s Pub, Hampton, NH

This will be the last stop of our New England book tour/vacation and a very special night of music and reconnecting with old friends. It’s been seven years since we last set foot on Hampton Beach, and more than ten since I last performed their regularly. When we first started planning this trip I had the idea about doing a reunion concert of sorts and I called up and presented the idea to my old friend, Kenny Gaudet from The Bars, who fast became instrumental in making this happen. The first set will consist of me on vocals and guitar, John Medeiros on drums, Keith Foley on bass, and some friends from seacoast area jam band, Superfrog – Charles Cormier on guitar and Adam Vinciguerra on percussion. A little later into the night there will be a brief reunion of my old band “Shockwave” with Doug Hinton on drums, Mark Gagnon on bass, and Keith Bowen on vocals (also possibly Brandon Lepere). Other guests will include Kenny Gaudet, Devin Cordero from Last Laugh, and possibly a partial “Jet City” reunion.

This night will mark the end of our week in New England and we are really looking forward to reconnecting with so many of our old friends and musician buddies. We are hoping to make this reunion concert an annual event, so if you like this idea at all, please come out and show some support. And for anyone who is interested in purchasing my new book, this will be your last chance before we head out of town, so if you have it in your heart to help us out with a little gas money for the ride home, pick one up, they’re only $20.

While we will be leaving Thursday morning to rejoin the Rhett Akins tour for shows in Ohio and Chicago, we will be back, and next time we won’t wait seven years! In the meantime, go ahead and make some plans to come out to the Wally’s show and a workshop or two, we would love to see you all again! See y’all  real soon!


After spending my first 35 years living in New England, getting used to the humid subtropical climate of Nashville took some effort. Compared to middle Tennessee, spring through fall in the Northeast is quite mild, while the dreaded winter months have often been compared to those of Canada or Siberia. Those brutally cold and frigid winters can sometimes begin as early as mid-October and last all the way through April on some years. Snowstorms, ice storms, daily high temperatures in the 20s, teens, or less, and brutal nor’easter’s are often daily occurrences for months on end. And then finally, the snow starts to melt, the birds return, the trees begin to grow leaves again, and spring is upon us. Of course Spring can also be a cold wash out with temperatures only reaching the 50s accompanied by the kind of rainfall that could rival Seattle. On years where this happens, it seems like it goes straight from winter to summer. I used to think, before I lived in the South, that New England summers could get too hot, but in hindsight I was just being a baby. How I long for those pussified summers now. Fall in New England is arguably the best weather of the year. Cool, dry, great weather to be outdoors.

That’s all behind me now. For the climate of Nashville, my new home, is radically different, and one that requires a whole new mindset. The winters in Nashville, if you want to call them that, are almost more like spring in New England. While it can get cold, occasionally getting down into the teens or low 20s, it is not uncommon to have several warm sunny days in each of the winter months, temperatures sometimes even climbing into the 70s. It might snow once or twice, maybe an ice storm or two, some rain, but in general I find these winters very livable compared to those of my New England years. Spring can be real nice temperature wise, but this is also our primary tornado season and, after this year, flood season. This brings us to summer, or as I call it, hell on earth. Beginning in June, or sometimes as early as mid-May, it’s 90° plus and humid every day for what seems like an eternity, typically all the way through September. Some get used to this heat and humidity but I can’t stand it, to me this is a New England winter in reverse.

During the cold wet winter months of New England, outdoor activities all but grind to a halt (except of course for those who love to ski or snowmobile). In general, except for commuting to work, most New Englanders stay indoors during this time of year, waiting for it to warm up a bit to resume outdoor activities. Now that I live in Nashville this is how I approach summer. In general, it’s just too hot and humid for me to enjoy the outdoors during this time of year, and I find myself waiting for it to end so I can again enjoy the outdoors on a regular basis. I literally get cabin fever during the summer. But then it finally ends with the onset of fall, my favorite time of year here, by early to mid October. Of course we have to be on our toes in November for our secondary tornado season.

So I don’t know if it’s just me or if other transplants feel this way, but as far as the climate of middle Tennessee goes – Fall is great, Winter is palatable, Spring can be hairy, but Summer just plain sucks. I’m glad it’s finally over.