First Leg Of Concert Tour a Success!!!

Ms. Bucky has returned from her first set of Clay Aiken concerts, hitting venues in Syracuse, Canandaigua and Chautaugua, New York and Columbus, Ohio!

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

The first day on the road was a loooooooong drive from Minneapolis to about an hour beyond Cleveland, Ohio. It was 9:00 PM by the time we checked into our hotel and inquired about a place to get a meal. The folks at the front desk referred us to the only restaurant open at that time of night:

And after eating we returned to our hotel for some sleep!

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Ms. Bucky arrived at the Parkview Hotel in Syracuse in the afternoon. This was a beautiful old hotel with really great service! They ran shuttles back and forth to the venue before and after the concert! But prior to the concert, we ate at the small cafe at the hotel, which is where Ms.Bucky met her first fans! These ladies are from Canada!

After a wonderful conversation with the ladies, we took the shuttle to the venue, where Ms. Bucky posed for a photo while the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra started to gather before the concert.

There are no cameras allowed in the venue during the concert, but Ms. Bucky loves to live "on the edge."

During the second half of the concert, ah yes. . . . .security spotted Ms. Bucky and her camera. She didn't loose the camera or her memory cards, but she had her own personal security guard standing next to her for the whole second half of the concert. I guess Ms. Bucky is extra special! LOL

Speaking of security, let's talk about Jerome, Clay's bodyguard.

This is the man intrusted with the protection of Clay when he is on tour. It's hard to miss him. He is one, big tall guy. For instance, when I stand next to him, and I'm, 5 feet 6 inches tall, the top of my head comes to the bottom of his arm pit. When he stands next to Clay, he towers over Clay who happens to be 6 foot 1. I've seen Jerome in action back during the Solo Tour escorting people out of the concerts who he caught with video cameras. Not a pretty sight! Fans have seen him tackle concert goers who have gotten too close to Clay when he comes out into the audience. And there has been many a time when a female fan, in her enthusiasm, won't let go of Clay's hand - or the crowd surges forward towards Clay, and Jerome is always there protecting him.

Here's a photo Ms.Bucky shot of Jerome doing his job on the concert trail.

So how does one go from being a "big, bad, security guard to this???

Because, underneath it all, Jerome really has a heart of gold! Look at that smile!

And while Ms. Bucky was in line waiting for Clay to come out and shake hands, she met this wonderful couple from Canada!

More to come on the next couple of days on the Clay Concert Road Trip!!!!

Clay Concert Week!

It's finally here! Ms. Bucky will get to go on a road trip and see her first Clay Aiken concert.

She's got her concert tickets, hotel reservations, suitcase packed, camera ready, and her special pins.

She'll see you in New York and Ohio this week!

Fourth of July Re-cap!

As you can see, Ms. Bucky enjoyed meeting the family on the 4th of July. Family members posed for photos and even took on the task of making sure Ms. Bucky enjoyed all the wonderful food!

Happy Fourth of July!

Ms. Bucky has often spent the Fourth of July with her family in Indiana. But this year is different. This year she will get to spend the 4th, Minnesota style, with barbecue and long lost cousins. It promises to be a great day!

Two weeks from tonight, Ms. Bucky will be at her first Clay Aiken concert. That promises to be a great day as well!

God Bless The USA!

OMG! Clay is coming to Minnesota!

The summer is gearing up. Only 9 days left until Clay Aiken's summer tour hits the road. Ms. Bucky has been preparing, carefully going over the maps, shopping for concert attire, and making sure she has enough memory cards and batteries for her camera. She's been told that there is this thing called "Clack", and she wants to make sure she is prepared for it.

But, amid all the preparations for the summer tour, the most wonderful thing happened! Orchestra Hall in downtown Minneapolis, announced late Friday, that Clay is scheduled to appear on December 19th and 20th, on his annual Christmas tour. What??? Minneapolis gets TWO nights of Clay Aiken?

Life really doesn't get much better than this, does it?

Well. . . maybe it does! Ms. Bucky is now a subscriber to the Minnesota Orchestra and has front row seats for both concerts!

Ahhhhhhhh, now life is good!

Who Wants The Free Pin?

Hi Clay Pin Collectors! If you are going to be at the three New York concerts or Columbus, Ohio, leave me a message here in the comment section with your board name, and which concerts you are going to, so I can be sure to look for you! Ms. Bucky

Countdown to the Summer Tour

Ms. Bucky decided it was time to get excited about this summer's big event - her first time at a Clay Aiken concert. 28 days and counting!


Create yours at BlingyBlob.com!


It's time to pick out attire for the concerts and get packing!

Coming Soon to a Concert Near You!

In the Clay Aiken fandom, there is a small group of fans who spend their time designing and trading Clay Aiken lapel pins. They are creative and artistic and will use that creativity and bargaining skills to try to add Clay pins to their collections. Ms. Bucky loves her pin collection! No one knows for sure, but there are probably over 1500 pins out there that have been designed in the last two years in tribute to Clay Aiken. Here's some examples of great pins!

Well, Ms. Bucky loves her Clay pins! She decided to design a pin to give out while on the concert tour trail this summer. The pins are free, with one catch! You have to get your photo taken with Ms. Bucky. But, for the lucky people who spot Ms. Bucky this summer, you can add this pin to your Clay Aiken lapel pin collection!

If You Build It, They Will Come!

Ms. Bucky seems to be building a fan following.

It's interesting to note, that Ms. Bucky's blog spot is getting hits not only from around the country, but from around the world. Ah yes. I forget. She is a world traveler.

But before I ramble on, Ms. Bucky would like to reveal her favorite photo that she discovered this week.



Let's take a moment. . . sigh. . .

Ok. Now on to today's blog.

As I was saying, Ms. Bucky has had hits on this blog from around the United States, but more noteably, also from: Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Italy, Singapore, Hungary, Austrailia, Canada, Spain and China! I think she gets around more than any of us ever realized!

So, if you stop by and vist, don't be shy. Leave a comment! We would enjoy hearing from you!

I Love New York!

Ms. Bucky has anxiously been waiting for the full announcement of Clay Aiken's Summer Tour. But what is going on? Where are the dates in the mid-west? Where is the Minnesota concert? What? He's not coming to his favorite city of St. Paul! This definately presents a problem. So what is Ms. Bucky supposed to do?

I know. Ms. Bucky will go on the road and find Clay - wherever he is!

Ms. Bucky announces HER summer tour: New York!

So, in the middle of July, Ms. Bucky will set out on a one week road trip following Clay Aiken around to several concerts: Syracuse, Canandaigua and Chatuagua, New York. Seats have been reserved (don't you think such a little rabbit should be able to get in for half price?) hotels have been reserved. Ms. Bucky is happy.

Then her travel agent called today and suggested. . . on the way home, why don't you swing down to Columbus, Ohio for another concert. What's a wabbit to do? Say "yes," of course!

Ms. Bucky Attends Her First Claymate Gathering!

Saturday, April 14, 2007; Ms. Bucky (proudly announces) attend her first Claymate get together with some MNClayfans! Prior to this ocassion, she worshipped her idol from afar - her previous guardians never took her to a concert, or party event - and rarely allowed her to listen to any of Clay's CD's. But now that is a thing of the past! For those who were also in attendance, we watched proudly as Ms. Bucky lost her "clack virginity" as we introduced her to Clay's performance of Back For More at the Vermont JBT. (Yeah - you know the one-that's the one where he throws the mic stand down and tugs on his tie ferociously!)

However, Ms. Bucky was introduced to some other "habits" as well. Pictured below, PinkLady serves Ms. Bucky a glass of wine. Did anyone check on Ms. Bucky's age?

Ms. Bucky got into the spirit of things and tried to find a MNClayfans T-shirt in her size, but ended up settling for a MNClayfan pin instead.

Those cracks in her head really come in handy!

By the end of the evening, Ms. Bucky has made many new friends and was clearly head over heals in love with Clay Aiken. Or is that heels over head??

Clay in Afghanistan!

Ms. Bucky and I agree. Afghanistan is one place that she has yet to travel to. But, the object of her affection, Clay Aiken, was there in the past week as the UNICEF ambassador for education.

Hmmmmmm, the really interesting thing about these photos, is that Clay looks an awful lot like someone else we all know and love!!!

Happy Easter!

Today is Ms. Bucky's first Rabbit Holiday with us. And she got "into" the spirit of things right away this morning, looking for her Easter Basket.

Of course, Ms. Bucky showed a great deal of interest in Mark's Easter Basket!

But was really disappointed in Annie Carol's Basket! So was Annie Carol! :(

Then she participated in looking for all of Marky's eggs while he was still sleeping. And she found most of them! (That's what you get for leaving Annie Carol's Easter Basket empty. . . again!)

Ms. Bucky is really looking forward to Easter dinner with the family later today. She wishes all of you a

We're Not Getting Any Younger!

Since once again having "acquired" the long, lost Ms. Bucky, this thought has been running through my mind, over and over. It took over 7 years for my family to get Ms. Bucky back to me! And we're not getting any younger! What if one of us dies with Ms. Bucky in our possession? What then?

So, I think it's time to establish some ground rules before we continue this game.

Ms. Bucky Game Play Rules

1. Ms. Bucky must be passed back to the another player within a 5 year period of time.


2. When one or all of the players reach 60 years of age, Ms. Bucky must be passed back within a 2 year window of opportunity.

3. When one or all of the players reach 70 years of age, Ms. Bucky must be passed back within a 1 year window of opportunity. Family members would appreciate extra Depends and hearing aid batteries thrown into Ms. Bucky's carrying case.


4. If you pass away to that big carrot field in the sky, your spouse is responsible to keep Ms. Bucky in play. It is not an option to have her buried with you, as fun as that sounds!


5. Ms. Bucky shall be passed down to children of current game players.


6. If current game players have no children, representatives will be designated so Bucky Game Play can continue for generations to come! (Yes Donald and Diana, I'm "willing" my game piece to one of your children!)

7. Whoever has possession of Ms. Bucky becomes the keeper of this blog! No whinging. No excuses. Remember, you get to pass this on to your unsuspecting child!

Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord, that Ms. Bucky will keep
If I should die before I wake
My family I hope, Ms. Bucky they'll take!

Rabbit Claymate Exposed!

I’m not particularly found of rabbits. Sure, they are cute when you spot them running around in your yard – until they eat everything in your garden! A friend of mine used to keep rabbits in his home as pets. The cages smelled, and it was a chore to clean them and take care of the rabbits. So, in October of 1995, when my sister-in-law handed me an ugly, ceramic bunny that she was trying to get rid of, I wasn’t all that appreciative. Apparently it was a gift when one of my nieces was born, and it just didn’t fit the décor of the nursery. (Real reason: it was just plain ugly!)

I took the rabbit home with me, tucked it away in a closet, pretty sure that perhaps, someday in the future, I may know what needed to be done with my “friend.”

Christmas of 1996, I wrapped the ugly bunny in a package that looked like a tootsie roll, and presented it as a gift, back to one of my nieces. The rabbit has now been given the name of Mr. Bucky and though we didn’t know it then, we have now established one of those weird family jokes – I mean traditions.

(Ms. Bucky returns to SIL for the first time!)

January of 1997 had Mr. Bucky going through a sex change operation and then returned to me for my 40^th birthday. Mr. Bucky's name had changed to Ms. Bucky.

April 1997, Ms. Bucky goes back to my SIL for Easter. Then silence. Ms. Bucky remained unheard from for over a year.

June 1998 – during my wedding reception, SIL and 15 other family members did a big surprise presentation to present Ms. Bucky back to me. Ms. Bucky was dressed in appropriate wedding attire. And the following instructions were given. She could not be returned unless I had more people involved in the presentation of giving her back!

So, while formulating my plan for her return, my husband and I decided to take Ms. Bucky on our honeymoon, and every other vacation that we went on, until we could plan for her return to darling SIL.

(Ms. Bucky at Niagra Falls! )

We started the Ms .Bucky photo album. During Ms. Bucky’s stay with us, she traveled from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Tennesse, Kentucky, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, and Canada, and she has the photos to prove it! She has also managed to acquire souvenirs, luggage and her own carrying case. Bucky’s Babies are her two con-joined twins that she gave birth to during our guardianship. You do the best you can, but you can’t supervise your house guests every single minute!

November 1999, an opportunity presented itself, to return Ms. Bucky to my SIL. We were invited for a Thanksgiving celebration, in which over 20 guests were invited. It was my golden opportunity – only I didn’t know everyone! Through the power of email, I contacted guests to get their cooperation in an unrehearsed presentation. I met everyone at the door and gave them blue ribbons to wear that said “BBB” (Bring Bucky Back) And at the most opportune time, the entire group got up and sang to the tune of My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean – “My Bucky lies over the ocean, my Bucky lies over the sea, my Bucky lies in Minnesota, oh bring back my Bucky to me!” SIL and brother were totally caught off guard and surprised that I had pulled off the criteria for presenting Ms. Bucky back to them!

Next, I established what had to be done before Ms. Bucky could be “given” back to me. “You must take Bucky to more countries and more states, before she can be returned.” That should keep them busy for awhile! I had her in 16 states and 2 countries. Let’s see what they can do!

Fast forward to 2007. In the past 6+ years, I have rarely caught a glimpse of Ms. Bucky. I did however receive post cards from her from various countries in Europe. I’ve heard rumors that she has done quite a bit of traveling and that she even got separated from the twins for a short period of time while the twins went to Morocco! I even heard a rumor that Ms. Bucky had fallen and broken into many pieces. (Oh no! Just when I was starting to get attached to her!)

And just when I let my guard down and totally forgot about the existence of Ms. Bucky, it happened. A very large box arrived at my house a few weeks after my 50^th birthday, covered in the letters BBB. It said BBB everywhere on that box! I wonder what’s in the box, I asked myself? Yeah. Like I didn’t know!

As hard as it may be to believe this, Ms. Bucky was returned to me, with a brand, new, larger photo album and a box filled with 30 stuffed bunnies of varying sizes, shapes and colors.

The photo album documents where Ms. Bucky has been over the past 6 years, and includes photo showing her in the Florida Keys, Texas, Mexico, North Carolina, Chicago, Rome, Paris, London, The Virgin Islands, St. John, St. Lucia, Aruba, Venezuela and Puerto Rico! Bucky's Babies had indeed gone on their own adventure in Morocco, and Ms. Bucky had taken a spill, but unlike Humpty Dumpty, Ms. Bucky was glued back together again.

The contents of the package reveal also, that while Ms. Bucky was away, and without any prompting from myself, she became a Clay Aiken fan. And not just a fan, but a full fledged Claymate, being featured in the January 2007 edition of Clayboy Magazine - with the highly regarded honor of being called Claymate of the Year!

So now the plans are starting to formulate, for how and when Ms. Bucky will go back to my SIL. In the meantime, since Ms.Bucky is a Clay fan, and since Clay is going to announce his summer tour sometime soon, I think you’ll find the two of us, out on the road, going to concerts together. If you see us, come stop and say hi and get your photo taken with Ms. Bucky. Perhaps, I just may get a photo of her with Clay. Perhaps not. But it sure is going to be fun trying!

Tag. I'm it!

Annie Carol