Battle Studies

Um... I may have mentioned in passing that I like John Mayer? Right. It's possible that it's deeper than that.

Anyway, my co-worker Julie and I went to see him in concert Tuesday night in Minneapolis, MN. I saw him in 2007 in Madison, blog account of it here, and it was about 100 times better this time around. I mean, the music was just as excellent, but this time he interacted more, used the whole stage, and there was a jumbo screen so even those of us at the very back could see him.

Here are my fave and best pics I got.

Steve Jordan! I was super excited that he was the drummer at this concert. He's part of the John Mayer Trio. He's phenomenal.

Really fun concert, despite seat confusion. We were in the right row and seat, wrong section. Hot boy in argyle sweater was very polite and sweet about it, though. Then when we got to the right section, some snotty girls were in our seats and were all, "Kkeh. (sound of disgust) Can't you just sit over there?"

Fave songs played: "Gravity," "Vultures," "Belief," "Why Georgia." He has a really cool way of blending or doing a mash-up of different songs. (Think "Glee." Back on in April!)

For now, there are no other concerts on the horizon. Boo! But don't cry for me, Argentina. The truth is there will be music, and I will find it.

Best. Weekend. Ever!

I've had to take a full week to recuperate from the awesomeness that is Wilco.

On Feb. 19, 2010, Kristen and I attended the Wilco concert at the DECC in Duluth. It was our third time seeing them, and front-row seats assured us maximum exposure. Not that we flashed the band (although I'm sure we thought of it), but we could see every member of the band, and they saw us, too.

Look at us. A pair of Wilco-lovin' fools.

Here's my future husband, the already-married, Wilco front man Jeff Tweedy. He kept looking at me while singing and smiled at me many times. It was swoon-tastic. At first I thought I was imagining things until Kristen leaned over and said "Jeff Tweedy keeps looking at you!" And a little later, the woman on the other side of me leaned over and said the same thing.

The show was amazing. They always put on a spectactular performance, but with our seats, it really felt like a private concert just for us. I blocked out everyone else.

Until some drunk d-bag moved from the back/side of the seats and stood in front of me. And by in front of me, I mean practically on me. He refused to move even after I, Kristen and a girl in the row behind me told him to leave. So I looked at Jeff Tweedy and shrugged hopelessly. Without breaking from singing, he pointed at the d-bag, then pointed to leave. Mother. Effing. Awesome!

Wilco played an excellent show. They opened with "Wilco (The Song)" off last year's Wilco (The Album). I ♥ funny musicians. Other songs I'd been craving and were played include: "Via Chicago" (which Kristen & I requested on their official Web site), "Heavy Metal Drummer," "A Shot in the Arm," "Impossible Germany" and "Jesus, Etc."

At one point the crowd was supposed to clap along to the beat of the drums, but we were all way off. The pianist tried getting us back on track, but it was difficult. Kristen and I made asses of ourselves trying to get the real beat, and these two guys (directly in front of us!) laughed at us.

This is pretty much my favorite picture I took at the concert. It's already framed and sitting on my bedroom end table next to a framed art print of a blue mix tape labeled "Baby, please don't go."

Speaking of pictures... AAAAHHHH! Jeff Tweedy jumped down in front of my camera and held this pose for me until I gave him the thumbs up that I got it. Unfortunately, bad zoom + floor buckling due to jumping fans = blurry photo. But I still have the experience. The delicious, sexy Tweedy experience.

After the concert, Kristen and I saw the drummer from Bon Iver. K-Lo spotted him and shook his hand. I couldn't hear what was happening, so I just thought he was some hot guy she knew. After we walked away and she told me who he was, I toppled over into the seats in amazement and shock and slight exasperation that she hadn't told me in time so that *I* could intro myself.

By the way, the opening band was Califone, and we approve'd! Kristen bought their CD at Electric Fetus from a hot, sweater-wearing boy, and I'm listening to an older CD of theirs from the library. Good stuff!

We also purchased gig posters made specifically for the Duluth concert, and I'll post a pic once I get the mat and frame altogether.

Memorable K-Lo quotes from the concert: "What if I pee my pants? Ah, I'll just keep rockin'!"

"I dance like Elaine Benes."

"I think Wilco was equally entertained by us tonight."

"I want to have sex with this concert."

Me, too, K-Lo. Me, too.

2009, an update

I'm sick of winter. Bring on spring already! There are rumors that next week will bring temp highs in the 40s. And in Wisconsin, that means shorts and tank tops. I mean, not me; I'd sweat to death before putting on shorts.

I joined a Facebook group that's reviving Book It! Remember when you were a kid and schools had Book It! challenges where you would read a certain number of books and earn a free personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut? Well, I think I enjoyed it a bit too much since my two favorite things are reading and eating, especially at the same time. *sigh* But I digress. I joined this group on Facebook, and we're gonna get together at a Pizza Hut next month. Fun!!

Kristen and I are going to see M. Ward in the Twin Cities in April, and then Neko Case the next day. I'm sure we'll hit the Mall of America, too. Will be a freaking awesome time! Maybe she'll knock some hotel sliding doors off their track again. One can only hope.

And in June I am packing my bags for a trip to Salt Lake City. It's part of our blogger exchange program. Last May, Towr came out here to visit, so now it's my turn. I'm hoping that Kristen will be able to come, too. And, fingers crossed, I'm hoping to finally meet RC and Azucar, as well. (Surprise, Zuc! Plenty of time to come up with an excuse not to meet me, though! haha)

2009 is looking pretty good so far.

I just wanna use your love tonight...

BTW, Kristen and I saw Bon Iver on Dec. 22 in Eau Claire. My second time seeing him this year, her third. We weren't allowed to take pictures, unfortunately. In fact, we saw someone get their camera taken away at one point. Lame!

Anyway, here's a video someone posted from a previous concert. MF HAWT cover of The Outfield's "Your Love." Gets cut off at the end, but it'll just force you to seek out the rest of his songs on YouTube, so I'm okay with it.

Click, Click, Click

This is going to be a lovely post about my adventure to the Twin Cities. I'll take you on a pictorial tour of St. Paul. Here we have the beautiful state library.

Wait. What's this? My sister and I at a concert? Hmm. What concert could it be?



Oh, that's right. NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK!



Face time with Donnie Wahlberg.

Showing us they still have the right stuff.

For you closet Joey Mac fans.

Look! It's my boyfriend Jon Knight with his brother Jordan!

Jon and Joe. So close, yet so far away.

They surprised the crowd by popping up in the middle of the audience with a piano on a turning stage. It was hawt. I also have video, but I haven't listened to it to see if you could actually hear them and not just screaming fans (i.e. me).

Official concert verdict? Awesome.

So, I guess there was no tour of the Cities. Sorry. We did eat at a pricey restaurant with substandard fare, though. And it was totes awesome to see two college friends again, Jessica and Carolyn. I'd post their pic, but I didn't ask for their permission. I'm sensitive like that.

Opening act was some chick I'd never heard before. Teri Chynn or something. Up next was Natasha Bedingfield, who was pretty good. And NKOTB rocked the house, yo. It was the longest concert I've ever been to, and they were high-energy the entire time. And really funny, actually! The only bad thing was that the couple to my left were the biggest sticks in the mud ever. They never cheered, never sang along, never threw their hands in the air and waved them like they just didn't care. They sat through the first half, the girl lounging on her boyfriend's shoulder. Second half, they stood hugging and staring blankly. WTF? Don't go to a concert if you're going to act like that, lamies!

Carolyn and Jess had cheap seats, so they were on the other side of the Xcel Center. Amanda and I had awesome seats! Despite what it may look like by my crappy camera, we were actually quite close. Close enough to see facial expressions without looking at the giant screens.

If you have the opportunity to see NKOTB, but you're holding off because you're afraid they'll only play their new songs or that it just won't live up to your previous, 11-year-old expectations, fear not! They were so good! My sister and I knew almost every song, and Carolyn and Jess, who didn't know any of their new songs, had a great time. Carolyn, who is the last person you'd think of going to one of their concerts, kept repeating how awesome it was and that she was surprised at what a good time she had. So get off your butts and grab some tickets!

Show me the meaning of being awesome...

The weather at the Minnesota State Fair was spectacular: sunny with a cool breeze. We decided to first check out the rides. Here is Amanda and my mom (Darla) before Mom and I jumped on the Fighter ride, which promptly made me want to vomit.

Then Amanda and I went on a ride called the Crazy Mouse, where I got a bruise on my right arm and she walked off with her pants unzipped. So, it was definitely an appropriately named ride. (That's me with wild hair sticking out of the top of the booth.)

Krista and I awaiting for the start of the concert.

Unfortunately, the first act was Girlicious, which they made sure we knew by repeating their names 42 times. Here are Amanda and Krista's reactions to the scantily clad, fake-haired, gyrating whores (pronounced Hoo-ers).

Cute pic of my sis as BSB time got nearer.



Sidenote: I made three random strangers laugh while at the fair. A fair (no pun intended) day's work, I must say.

The concert was pretty fun and wild. There was a great mix of guys and girls, and everyone screamed their hearts out and heads off. Aside from some jerky creeps in the section next to us who kept making comments to every girl who walked by, spilled their beer all over, and were obviously drunk and/or high, the crowd was awesome. The guys eventually were hauled out of the grandstand, to the delight of all around them.

I was too far away from the stage to take decent pictures, but here's one clip if you're interested.

BSB put on a very high-energy, exciting, and visually stunning performance, complete with several wardrobe changes and a solo by each group member. After the encore, fireworks burst in air to conclude the show.

Aaaaaand we're spent.

Also, today is Grandma's birthday. Happy 78th, Grandma!

"Now all your love is wasted? Then who the hell was I?"

So Friday night Kristen and I went to the Twin Cities to see Bon Iver, with opening act AA Bondy. I wasn't sure I'd like AA. His CD didn't do much for me. But he's better in person and was actually quite funny. For example:

AA Bondy: "I don't believe athletes at the Olympics should be tested for drugs." *crowd cheers* "Personally, I want to see how fast they can go." *strums guitar* "This is a children's song."

Maybe you had to be there. It was pretty hilarious, though.

And Bon Iver? So MF awesome. Kristen and I managed to stand right up at the gate in front of the stage. She'd been to that venue before, so she was clever and knew exactly where to stand. At first we were behind another row of people, but before the concert even started, this guy and his girlfriend in front of me decided to leave their spot. He bent down and said loudly "Go for it!" And go for it I did, swooping in on that coveted gate spot like a vulture on roadkill. Now, it's possible that he was actually talking to someone else, but I didn't care. I heard "Go for it!" and nothing was stopping me.

The girl to Kristen's left kept elbowing her, dancing like a hoochie, and bumping her. The girl to my right annoyed me greatly by talking in a little girl voice, telling her guy friend "Feel my rock hard abs!" But she kept laughing at things Kristen and I said or did, so I forgave her for being everything I'm not. Plus, she knew one of the guys in the band, so I was kinda hoping we'd get to follow her backstage. (Didn't happen. She disappeared before the end of the encore. Her spot was swiftly snatched by a dorky guy who'd been yelling things all night like "That was very nice!" "Fantastic!" and "WONderful!")

I can't really tell you how spectacular Bon Iver was. There I was, just six feet from him, beating out 1,500 other people to be that close to him. He was funny, too. After we'd cheer for him, he'd bashfully shake his head and say "Thanks, yo." One time he tried to shush us, which just made the crowd cheer even louder. I yelled "Opposite!" Eh, maybe you had to be there. Here are some pics I took with my cell phone.

Also, in the dream I had later that night when telling other girls about how hot Bon Iver's music was, I may or may not have used the phrase "You'll cream in your jeans!" Also, I suffered from man voice all day Saturday due to screaming so much at the concert. But it was totally worth it.

Other highlights of the weekend:

~Bought Guitar Hero Aerosmith. I played it for two hours last night. Pro: they have a ton of guitar choices for characters and not every song is actually by Aerosmith. Con: When you play as Aerosmith, the design on the neck on screen where the fret buttons come down makes it super difficult to see the actual colors of the fret, so prepare to screw up a lot.

~K-Lo and I went to Michael's in Duluth so she could order matting for her Bon Iver poster, and we made the boy working there laugh several times. I got him started using the phrase, "In my professional opinion." Then after we found out that K-Lo's contact number at the store was still her parents' home number, we all made up an imaginary conversation about her mom calling to tell her Michael's had called. This is all of us speaking as Kristen's mom.

Boy: Um, somebody named Michael called. He wants to do arts and crafts with you?

Kristen: He wants you to come over right away.

Me: *excited voice* Are you dating someone? When do we get to meet him?

Boy: He sounds really nice!

~We saw "Tropic Thunder" in Duluth. It was pretty funny for the most part. The best thing of all was that Kristen ordered pretzel bites with nacho cheese at the concession stand before the movie started, and at first all she saw was the guy filling the container with enough cheese to drown a moose. "Why the crap is he giving me so much cheese?" she asked. I shrugged. Then he filled the rest of the container with the pretzel bites--there were about 30 of them the size of a fat man's big toe. We stared in horror. And then couldn't stop laughing. We ate like seven, total.

~I had breakfast at Hell's Kitchen in Duluth. Never been there before. It was excellent. And in Minneapolis, we had dinner before the concert at an Irish pub, where Kristen's sandwhich was called the James Joyce. My sandwich didn't have an awesome Irish name, so I renamed it the Flannery O'Connor.

~Bought a shload of Christmas pressies for my sister, which I'm using as an excuse to give her an early present. I can't tell you what it is yet because she might read the blog. But I'll tell you soon, dearies.

~Went to a craft fair at Glensheen Mansion in Duluth. It was a little "meh." Though I did buy a cute little vase. I'll take a pic soon. Anyway, we had to ride a schoolbus to and from the parking lot. On our return trip, this woman behind us had her nephew with, a toddler, and she kept asking him questions nonstop throughout the ride. Each new question was said in a progressively higher-pitched tone. "Are we on a bus? Is it yellow? Are you sure? Do you see the water? Where's the water? Do you see daddy? Is he behind us? Do you see your uncle? Is that his truck? Are you tired? Are you sleepy? Do you need a nap? Are you sure? Do you have the hiccups? Should I scare you? Boo. Did I scare you? Did I scare you? Boo. Did I scare you?"

UGH. So annoying. But then for the rest of the day, Kristen and I kept saying to each other "Do you have the hiccups? Should I scare you? Boo. Did I scare you?" And while we were playing the new Aerosmith Guitar Hero I bought, she did it again. Two minutes later, she got the hiccups. We couldn't stop laughing. Then she'd hiccup again in the middle of talking or laughing, and it made us screw up our game cuz we were laughing so hard.

~When I got home Monday morning, waiting there for me was the newest issue of Paste magazine, with the delish Bon Iver on the cover. WONderful.

~Friday night, Krista arrives. Saturday night, Backstreet Boys concert at the Minnesota State Fair. Will be boy band-alicious.

Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back!

In case you haven't been paying attention to my Twitter sidebar, here's what you missed: my mom and sister and I are going to see the Backstreet Boys in concert at the Minnesota State Fair in August! And you know what? I could care less if you think that's lame. We're going to have an awesome time, while you'll sit home alone eating Hot Pockets.

So in preparation for the concert, I'm putting together a boy band mix CD, comprised of songs from NKOTB, BSB (obviously), N*Sync, 98*, and Five. Any other suggestions? I'd also offer to send you a copy, dear reader, but I doubt I'll get any requests for one anyway. Hmph.

Other funny and/or annoying things:

My co-worker at the newspaper was just walking into my work area (the break room) when a customer came into the front part of the office.
Co-Worker: Hey, Butch!
Me: I really hope you were talking to the guy who just walked in.

12-year-old at library, getting turned down from a high-five by Jersey.
Boy: I remember when she was little and she used to be my friend. But then--
Me: She matured and you stayed at the same level?
Boy: No!
Other Boy: Yeah, pretty much!

On the phone with Pennsylvania friend:
PF: I'm tellin' ya, you gotta come visit me one of these days. You have to check out the people.
Me: Why?
PF: Well, what do you imagine Connecticut or Boston people to be like? Kinda sophisticated?
Me: I guess so.
PF: Well, the people here are like a cross between Connecticut sophisticated and rednecks. It's so bizarre.
Me: Weird.
PF: I know. I'm really disappointed because one of my boobs is bigger than the other.
Me: Wha? How did we get to that subject?
PF: Cuz I'm checking out my boobs. And one is definitely bigger than the other. I think the kids must've sucked on the other one too hard when they were breastfeeding.
Me: Okay, gross. I'm done with this topic.

Jersey and Aaliyah coloring with BlendiPen markers:
Aaliyah: Cotter! Cotter!
Me: Yes, you can color, too.
Aaliyah: Cotter! Cotter! Cotter!
Me: I know! You're coloring. Quit saying "cotter!"
Aaliyah: *leans in closer* Cotter!
Me: Argh.
Aaliyah: Cotter! Cotter!
Me: Welcome back!
Aaliyah: Cotter!
Me: Jersey, what are you coloring?
Jersey: A color fusion rollercoaster.
Me: Wha??
Aaliyah: COTTER!

So, this guy at the CA library has been in every day that I work there, and he seems to have a bit of a crush on me. And he's ... slow. If you know what I mean. I have to help him on the computer every two seconds, where he tries to win me prizes from the Burger King web site's contest. And he keeps asking if I'm single. And he always likes my rings and wants to buy some for himself. And yesterday he pulled up the sleeve of his T-shirt, revealing on his pale upper arm a fake tattoo of a 1950s pin-up girl, half worn off. "Her name is April!" he says. "'Hi, April,'" he makes his tattoo say. I have no response.

Such is my life.