COLD SEASON = CREATIVE SEASON

Good morning! It’s official, the sap is running in Vermont. Our maple trees are coursing with sweet liquid sugar. People are out in their boots and flannel jackets checking their taps and putting in new ones. It’s very Vermonty around here.

I haven’t written in a bit as I came down with a monster cold when I got home from tour (which I then gave to ManFriend…) and have been too foggy to make any kind of sense on paper. We are seconds from leaving on ANOTHER tour so I’m relieved that we’re on the mend. I did at least manage to see a couple friends once I was out of the woods and I even got to ski on the lake with my neighbor and eat french toast. I’m a winter lover, the more snow the better. People think I’m nuts but it just agrees with me. (Minus the cracked lips part) I love glittery snow, low grey clouds and wearing lots of clothes. I love soup and building fires. I love the cats and Coco piled on top of me in a heap to snuggle in for warmth. I just think better in winter.

You may have also noticed I haven’t done any paid posts in a little bit. It’s because on this last tour I found the connection with people across the country, in a time where our government is feeding us the illusion that we are divided, so important and I wanted those posts to be wide open. We are not divided. We are the majority under attack by divisive politicians and their followers that we outnumber ten to one. Keep fighting and loving, gorgeous people! I’ll be doing paid posts again soon. That said, I want to give a huge THANK YOU to my paid subscribers. You make it possible to pay my bills and stay afloat.

Tour has taken up my 2026 so far, and much of the end of 2025 so I was itching to do a creative project, something else besides music, something in a different creative vein. I wanted to make something with my hands. Of course, since I am a Virgo, everything has to have a purpose, so I decided once and for all to figure out my daily tour bag needs. My dear friend John Campbell was my studio mate for the better part of a year until recently, and just so happens to build climbing packs for his company Alpine Luddites. I asked him if I could come take his bag making class and customize something for myself. We had successfully collaborated before on making my giant tree suit for the cover of “Neon Grey Midnight Green,”so I knew we worked well together. Luckily, he wasn’t too busy and said “Come on over! I’m tired of talking to squirrels.” John moved out of my building recently because he just finished his own gorgeous studio at his home. This was a good opportunity to finally see his new space and get to hang out and catch up with my friend. He is one of those crazy-talented people who builds everything himself. Climbing bags, houses, furniture… you name it. It filled me up to see and be inspired by all the work he has done.

Here’s the problem that sparked this meet-up; on tour I carry several bags around at a time. They are bulky and some are quite heavy, like the one with my planners and laptop in it. My neck and shoulders are pissed and oftentimes I’m too laden to fit through the bus door! I get caught on handles and hinges which becomes a grinding frustration. Needless to say, I was very excited to figure out a new system. My old one was too awkward to even walk farther than a block with. I brought all the bags with all the stuff I carry in them to John’s studio and I laid it all out on one of the huge cutting tables; shower kit, running shoes, show clothes, extra clothes, exercise clothes, makeup, yoga mat, chargers, etc. It was a heap. I was using a large, all purpose over-the-shoulder bag for the bulk of it and a messenger bag for the rest. Physically speaking, it’s a terrible system, but it’s all stuff I actually need throughout the day. There is not usually one set space you hang out in all day for everything at a venue. If you want to exercise, post up to work, or to have a good shower you often have to go off site. Also, my bags take up too much space on an already crowded bus. When we have an empty bunk we put stuff in there, but the shoulder bag spills things I need later. The bunk is over my head and I’m often too groggy to tell if anything is missing when I grab it. There are bags within the bags and I am too ADHD to be able to keep track of too many things at once. The long and short is, it sucks.

So what to do? I was imagining making something I could carry like a backpack in the shape of a long bucket. John decided we should modify the shape of an existing pack he makes to be more spacious and a bit tall. We were off to the races. Then came the fun part; choosing colors and fabrics and webbing. I had brought a few of my own fabrics for decoration. I chose a 70’s curtain panel with dogs all over it. When it came to the lightweight, heavy duty main fabric, I chose neon orange/pink. I find that if I have a loud, colorful bag I leave it behind less. There is nothing worse than losing something you really need on the road. Nothing is easy to replace in an afternoon, and some things are far too precious to even think about losing, like the clothes I wear for the show. I was excited to get started but nervous too. John is a really good teacher so I felt more at ease as I began to cut out the modified patterns. He made me do most of the hand-work myself and do little practice runs on the big, industrial Juki sewing machines before I was to sew my own bag parts, just to get the feel for them. Those machines are powerful! You could really do some finger damage on them so I had to be really careful. On two separate days we worked hard and the bag was finished in about eight hours total. It looks CRAZY! And I love it. It’s basically a tribute to loving dogs with a skunk on the bottom. The juxtaposition of the creatures seems really funny somehow. Skunks are dogs’ Achilles heel, and always will be. (Coco even got skunked at the grocery store once!) I ceremoniously put all my tour stuff in and put the bag on my back. What a difference! It was comfortable and streamlined to fit through tight doorways! It is a day-bag, light and foldable enough and to go in my big suitcase when I fly. I can’t wait to take it on the road and test it out! I’m not using the bag to climb mountains like Alpine Luddites’ clientele, but I need the same things so I worked out great! Thank you, John! And John’s sweet family! And his giant, fuzzy dogs!

Check out John’s Substack here. There is a lot in there about building your own house and making things. He’s one of the good ones. Thanks, Everyone! I missed you :)

Progress. Photo of me by John Campbell