Made a quick trip to Nashville last week to meet our good friends – and get in good trouble.

The first thing I put in my suitcase was my cowboy boots. I loooooove cowboy boots. But after a few hours on my feet, I quickly remembered why I don’t wear my cowboy boots for any extended amount of time. Hello, blisters. Two of them, one on each of my pinky toes. And once I get a blister, show’s over for the boots. Hence, the sneakers in the pic below.

Broadway Street

Walked around (in my sneakers) the famous Broadway Street. Reminded me a lot of Bourbon Street in New Orleans, but with less vomit. Stand anywhere on Broadway Street, and you are listening to approximately 23 bands playing at the same time. It’s absolute auditory chaos, and I was over it – quickly. I would probably enjoy it more if I was even a little bit into country music. It’s not that I dislike country music, I actually like it. But the last time I was really into country music was back in the heydays of Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton, and Kenny Rogers.

We climbed to the rooftop of one of the bars to try and get somewhere a little quieter. Not possible. Every floor of every bar has live music of some kind. Some better than others, but all trying to be discovered and make it big. We ended up with a private concert from these guys, who were extremely talented. And they were very gracious when I could only name the oldies for requests.

Boots

I have been wanting a really good pair of cowboy boots for a really long time. So, I had a when in Nashville moment and finally pulled that trigger. I bought an incredible pair of handmade Old Gringo cowboy boots for myself. Just the right amount of pizazz. My current boots are Ariats. And while they are comfortable enough, I can’t walk in them all day. My OGs are already way more comfortable than my Ariats.

The Nose Knows

My girlfriend, Kelly, and I ended up wandering into a perfume store (Tijon Nashville), and they were about to have a make your own perfume class – sign us up! I’m an absolute perfume junkie, and this is something I’ve always wanted to do. Our timing was perfect. And it was so, so fun. 

We learned all about top, middle, and base notes for perfumes. Tijon has what they call their “scent organ” which is made up of hundreds of different scented oils. You choose your favorites and start doing science (mixing them together). I created my perfume using the winging it method, but I’m happy with what I ended up with.

You get to name your perfume (thanks, ChatGPT) and they give it to you in this pretty bottle, complete with a label. And then you get to celebrate your creation with Champagne.

Cowboy Hats

Then, our second when in Nashville moment: we made custom cowboy hats at Rustler Hat Co. Kelly had the foresight to make  reservations for this activity, and thank goodness, because it’s a VERY BUSY place – reservations are essential.

My mom LOVED hats, and I’m convinced she had a hat for every occasion. Church? Of course. Weddings? Absolutely. Gardening? Yep. Grocery store on a Tuesday? There’s a hat for that, too. And British fascinators? Please. Mom had a whole separate collection of those. My mom looked good in any hat, but she didn’t have a cowboy hat. So, I’m getting one today – thinking about how much she would have loved this experience.

I had no idea how custom cowboy hats are made, and the process was fascinating: a lot of steaming, molding, shrinking, and shaping. I quickly learned that flat brimmed hats are not for me. But dang, Kelly can pull it off. I’m more of a modified cowboy brim kind of gal. I now own a very nice beaver and rabbit felt cowboy hat, which I will be wearing every chance I get to justify the cost. 

Highly recommend both experiences if you’re ever in Nashville.

Mixed my themes, and wore my new cowboy boots and hat – with my Bavarian janker jacket – to a cocktail party and got a ton of compliments, which are always good for a middle-aged ego.

Cheers, ya’ll.