Weekend concert adventure

Reposted from my myspace with added photos:

I meant to blog sooner about my concert whirlwind weekend with Daphne Loves Derby on Friday plus Dear & the Headlights, Paramore & Jimmy Eat World's concert on Saturday.

I managed to get off work around 7:30 and head out to Weber State to see Daphne Loves Derby at the Shephard Student Union Building. I got to Weber State before 8 p.m. At 8:45 I finally found the building. LOL Good thing I left way before 10:30. I paid for my wristband to the show, and headed upstairs. I found DLD's merch table and looked around. I ran into Sam who was promoting the Paramore show in Orem. (Wishing I could go to that one, too. LOL) Then I asked a few people about DLD. Finally I ran into someone who figured I just wanted merch and went to get someone. Then I bought a tee and gave the merch guy (I think Scott, but I have a bad memory for names lately) something for David and told him I would be back shortly as I was going to get my camera. I worried about finding my car, though. As it turned out, I had taken the scenic route to find the building and my car was pretty much a straight route and not at all difficult to find. I made it back to the building and ran into Stu or was that before I left to get my camera? Anyway, suffice it to say I did finally meet up with everyone, and then they went to set up. I took my place in front of the stage to the left. The audience was smallish, but enthusiastic. :) I nabbed the set list which says, "Bedroom, Hammers, Middle, Cue the Sun, Rebels War, Waking Up, Write the Ending, Simple, Closing Down." A number of the songs were new. The sound was really good, and I could hear the vocal harmonies, which I love. Afterwards, we chatted, hugged, took pics, and laughed. Everyone was waiting for David outside and Kenny decided he wanted to throw a football. I threw it once... kinda. I'm not a good football thrower. It's kinda hard to do that with a Canon 20D around your neck. LOL







Anyway, DLD piled in the van to head for WA and I headed for my car and prepared to make the 2 hour drive to Pocatello. I think I drove off around midnight. Yahoo maps said that the drive was about 2 hours, and it pretty much was about a 2 hour drive. I didn't see much scenery, and I was pretty excited to finally reach the motel, The Rodeway Inn. I really thought of staying at the Hampton, but I was liking the price at The Rodeway, and the directions showed it was pretty close to the venue, so I went with it. The guy at the desk was really nice and gave me discounts because it was so late. I like discounts. LOL

There was a computer in the office, and I asked if it was too late to use it and he said, "no", so I checked in and Bri had left me her number so I jotted it down and a few other things and headed for my room for about another 4 hrs. of sleep. I planned to get up at 8:15 and try to shower and be to the venue around 9 ish. I asked for a wake up call, and set my cell phone alarm and settled in to sleep. At 8 a.m. Bri called. She thought people might be starting to arrive and the buses were there (turned out to be a crew bus, and I think Jimmy Eat World's bus, although they were likely at the hotel.) So, I hopped in the shower, dressed, grabbed four mini muffins from the hotel, and headed for the venue, realized I still needed directions, went back and got directions and left for another big adventure. LOL I arrived about 8:45 ish, so I made pretty good time. I found Bri and her mom and we connected, figured out where to go and got in "line". Within 15 minutes, there were 4 or 5 others in line with us. After that people started lining up slowly. It was freezing cold in front of the entrances, but nice and sunny and warm behind the building. The people behind us were all bundled in blankets in chairs and not anxious to move, so they watched our belongings a lot while we headed to the back to catch some sun and so Bri could "bus watch". The view behind the arena was beautiful, and actually the name of the building was on that side, so I took pics of both. We chatted with the two guys watching the buses a few times. We directed Jim of Jimmy Eat World to the door (real exciting... we think it's over there.) LOL
view looking out at the back of the venue

Waiting in line on the cold side.
Probably Paramore's bus since they kicked us out when it pulled up.

At one point someone came up to us and asked who were big Jimmy Eat World fans and could answer trivia. I said, I like their music, but I didn't know them well enough yet. He gave away two meet/greets. I had intended to listen to their new cd on the way up, but didn't end up having time to look for it. I'd been listening on my Zune, so I never paid attention to the tracks, and the cd always comes up showing Futures in big letters instead of the cd title. (BTW, love that song.) LOL If I had remembered the title or known how many tracks on the cd, I'd have been there. If I had listened to the cd on the way up, I would have known how many tracks. But it was cool that the one guy got to go because he was obviously a fan.

Anyway, after a very long wait, visits from Bri's mom with Subway reinforcements, etc., getting kicked out of the sunny spot around 3:30-4 p.m. because Paramore's bus was arriving, seeing Haley zip by into the catering area with her cute hat, listening to sound check, and after several trips to and from the car to rid myself of belongings not allowed in the arena (like purses and camera cases), we finally were let in the door about 6:15 or so. At 6 a few people seemed ready to storm the door, but fortunately that didn't happen. I was handed my purple paper bracelet and told to put it on by the time I got to the stairs. I couldn't, but kept moving, so I pretended to wrap it around and headed for the front of the barricade, nearly center. It worked. It was a pretty good spot for the most part. There was a lot of security, which was good and bad (only bad because sometimes they were hard to see around, especially during Paramore's set.) They were all pretty nice for the most part. Bri's mom tried the floor and made it for the first few songs of Dear & the Headlights set and decided it was enough. She was a real trooper! :)

I enjoyed Dear & the Headlights, and hoped took a lot of photos. I had to adjust the camera settings a lot because of all the hotspots, so some of the pics are a tad overexposed on faces. :( But I still got some decent photos. I looked for a set list, but it didn't look like they played with one. I hoped they would hang around the whole show so I could catch them later at their merch table.






Then it was time for Paramore, and the crowd got very tight, so I anchored myself in for the long haul. I took pics of the stage tech and waited. Finally Paramore took the stage. I tried to snap some pics, but the security guard was between Haley & I. We played peek a boo all night like that. LOL He was really a good guy, though. He was going to try and get me a set list, but unfortunately some of the crowd surfers were still coming late and he had to work. By the time I got his attention, one set list had been wadded up, and the others were gone. Paramore's set was amazing. Haley was all over the place and very energetic. The softer set came at a perfect time and calmed things down a bit just at the right time. They did most of the songs I really love except "We Are Broken" which I don't think I've seen them do live yet, so I wasn't surprised. The applause after their set was deafening, and chants ensued. They came back for an encore, of course. :) When Paramore left the stage, I was still singing. :)

After a bit of a wait for set up. Bri decided to see Jimmy Eat World from another vantage point. She was mainly there for Paramore. I like both bands. Jimmy Eat World played a good set. Just as it is on the cd, the music is really tight, the vocals and vocal harmonies were really good. They played Big Casino, Sweetness, Crush, Work, Always Be, Dizzy, Blister, Here it Goes, Let It Happen, Praise Chorus, Polaris, Get It Faster, New Aesthetic, Just Tonight, Bleed American, Pain, and then exited the stage to raucous applause. I was still waiting to hear Futures. I like that song quite a lot. Anyway, they did come back on stage and the set list says they played, "Hear You From Me, Futures and Middle." I laughed because there is a Middle on DLD's set list and on this one. I loved Futures! I was able to nab the set list this time. The security guard that missed the list for me for Paramore was nice enough to try to get this one for me. He had to direct another security guy to get it, and he almost kept it. So I was trying to get tell him where another one was and he finally gave it to me. I thought he was teasing at first, but then I really thought he was going to keep it. I don't think he was teasing. LOL

I headed over to Dear & the Headlights merch table, chatted with them, bought their cd, had it autographed, had a pic taken with D&TH and the drummer's banana, and headed for my car. It took a while to rearrange my belongings, but I finally headed for some place to eat, to get some gas at home. I know the freeway entrance wasn't far, but it was poorly labeled so I drove in circles a bit (like 1/2 hour) before finally heading down the road. The drive home seemed the longest, but I made it home a little before 2:30 a.m. The last 20 minutes or so I wasn't sure I'd make it, but I did. Yea!!!

Anyway, I uploaded a few pics, let the dogs in, put them in their crate pretty quickly because Daisy couldn't settle down, and headed for sleep.

It was a good time, but I was really tired, I had a headache, and I was pretty sunburned. I never thought about sunscreen or the sun we were using to keep warm. LOL

Another great concert adventure bites the dust.

Kudos to you if you read this whole thing! LOL

Peace out,
Melanie

Help Wanted

I have a big favor to ask. I want to enter the Warped Tour photo contest, so I was wanting some feedback before I enter the pics. I posted 9 or 10 pics from Warped Tour 2007 in my Flickr account. On Flickr, I am wmn4lif

I would really appreciate feedback, especially rating the pics 1, 2 & 3 for your favorite, 2nd favorite, etc.

Thanks!

--Melanie

NOTE: These are the photos I ended up entering:

finding the center

This is a work in progress. It's started.. not sure how I will finish it. Maybe I won't. I'm better at starting things than ending them sometimes. LOL

I mentioned to my pastor that I always remembered his birthday because it was so close to mine. It just goes to show you how self-centered I can be. Sigh.... it's funny how small our universe seems sometimes no matter how huge, and how huge it can seem when it is so small. I'm not sure that will make sense to anyone but me. LOL
The same with the concept I'm working on, but here goes:

Swirling stars find freedom with perfect design
no need to find the center
every particle in place in sublime beauty
An ant in the cosmos trying to be a giant
shrinking from the bigger picture, too self focused
Who is at the center when God should be
Oh to lose oneself in the stars, and in their creator
to be free from oneself and find in the true center
the liberty that perfect order brings

Mae wished me a Happy Birthday

I haven't had a chance to blog much the last couple of days. I ended up sick, for one thing, and working on photo editing, for another. Then there's always dishes, mopping floors and laundry. I wish I could make a dent in it all, but before I finish, it needs to be done again. C'est la vie.

Anyway, Tuesday I had a plethora of birthday greetings from several radio stations, my sister -- and as you probably guessed, Mae. Mute Math sent me birthday wishes as well. There are two of my favorite bands, wishing me a happy birthday!

I know... they were just automated messages, but they made me smile just the same. Sometimes, I'm easily entertained. LOL

So, if you read this and pray, pray that I will be well on Friday. It might help if I got some sleep. ;)

Peace, love & a comfy bed (sheesh, been reading Schneck's blogs for too long),
Melanie

The beauty of concerts is there are people involved...

I thought I would use a little wordplay off the last blog to recount Mae Day here in Salt Lake City. Sometimes the best thing about a concert is not only the music (which quite obviously matters) but also the interactions that take place along the way. It was those human interactions that made Mae day extremely special to me.

There were also obstacles to overcome. The show was on a Friday, and my place of employment doesn't like to grant Fridays off. They denied my leave. When I turned in my quarterly leave calendar, I told my supervisor that it was the most important date on my calendar to me and the circumstances. She remembered and said she'd work with me. Since I had put in to work 4 hours day shift and wasn't requesting a full day off, she said I would be counted for staffing purposes. I had one hour of credit leave and worked 2 hours on Wednesday over as a "credit" and another hour on Thursday, which means I got off work at 2 a.m. The plan was to get up, get ready quickly and head out the door to work by 10 a.m. I managed to get there at 10:20 and worked until 2:20 p.m. By the time I left it was already 2:30. The traffic was not good, so I was concerned. As it turned out, there was a bit of a fender bender and traffic picked up rather quickly. I made it to the venue a little before 3:30. Shortly after I arrived, I saw Lauralee and her sister, so we chatted until other people arrived. The first person was a gal from Idaho and those who came with her went back to get the tickets they left where they were staying.

I decided that while I was waiting it would be a good idea to set up the phone to call Stephanie (not my sister, a friend) so that I wouldn't have to try and find her number in the dark. I was going to call her for the acoustic set. She called me a while back and let me listen to Dave's solo set so I thought it only fair to return the favor (I'd have done it anyway.) :) I had put her number on a sticky note on my checkbook, but it was no where to be found. So I called my darling husband and asked him to find it for me. He was trying to look it up in an online directory, which was kinda funny. I told him just to look in my e-mail. While we were talking I saw Jacob and he smiled and said, "hello" and we struck up a conversation. Ed said to call him when we were finished talking. LOL It was cool to see Jacob and talk to him. I find Jacob a very easy person to talk to and he always seems genuinely happy to see me, which is kinda nice. :) Jacob went back inside, and I called Ed back and got Stephanie's number. I thanked him profusely. I walked back up to the front of the venue and sent Stephanie a message. That put her number in my phone.

People slowly began to arrive. One of the Switchfoot message boardies showed up and introduced herself to me. She came with 3 other people. She said she came to the show because of my post on the Switchfoot boards and it made my day!! :)

For those who read this blog and/or speak to me on any regular basis at all, know that I've really been promoting this show. I put posters up all over, posted on a few loved message boards and my myspace and handed out stickers at shows with the date written on the back. I had hoped to find out if any of that hard work paid off, but wasn't sure how I'd know. So I know I was responsible for at least 4 people showing up. LOL It really did make my day!

After lots of fun conversations and a lot of waiting, it was finally time for the concert. I tried to hurry to the front of the stage, and almost forgot my photo pass. LOL I found what would have been a good spot, but there was a case left by the first band right in front of me, so I asked Lauralee if I could stand next to her. It was almost too close to center, since I was directly under the lead singer's mikestand. I didn't get a lot of good lead singer pics. The lighting was difficult as it often is, so I'm not so sure I have anything great. I did get a few good pics of one of the guys in Far Less, and a few good ones of Dave Elkins. For The Honorary Title the lighting was pretty much red most of the time so I'm not sure what really turned out until I go to edit them. I'm not overly optimistic on that one.

The concert itself was really good, and it made all the work and waiting so worthwhile. Far Less played first, and I really enjoyed their set quite a bit. I made a note to check out their merch table and pick up a cd. Between the Trees played second, and I absoultely loved them! I have one of their cd's, but I don't think it does them justice. They played a song from a video they have up on myspace and I had heard it before online. Between the Trees should be at Warped Tour here, so I hope I can make it to see them at Warped. The Honorary Title was the main opening band and they received a very warm welcome from the crowd. I had heard their Park City performance on tv acoustic and wasn't super impressed, but thought it would sound better as a more rock performance. It turns out I was right. I thought they sounded really good and enjoyed listening. :) The crowd was pretty pumped up and ready for Mae. People behind me were already trying to use any space to push up next to me. I wasn't budging. There are no barricades at The Avalon, the stage is just really high up. There is a bit opening near the center (I guess I could have sat under the stage, so my ribs are pretty sore where I was being pushed into the edge of the stage. I thought, and mentioned it to the gals behind me, that I'd have to push back a little because being folded in half wasn't working so well. LOL I watched Mae set up and was a little glad that they moved a few things back on the stage and some of the monitors around. I said "hi" to Benji when I saw him on stage and tried to get a pic. I think one turned out o.k. He asked me if I got my photo pass o.k., and I let him know that I did. Just as he walked off, this guy wanted to see the set list, so he pulled it off the stage to read it, but then he decided not to put it back. (I love set lists, but I thought that was tacky -- sorry.) He was upset because The Ocean wasn't on it, so I tried to tell him that they always perform The Ocean on their acoustic sets. I actually love The Ocean acoustically, so I was o.k. with it. It didn't look like Zach had any major problems as a result, though.

I had hoped to get some pics of Jacob, but Dave was kinda standing in front of him most of the time. LOL I did get some good views of him, but the camera didn't really have time to focus well in the lighting. I loved watching Jacob play just the same. He makes it look pretty easy and that always impresses me. Everytime I see someone I love playing, I notice little things about the performance and I was enjoying that. I love watching faces, too, which is one reason I like being in the front. I really wanted to see the backdrop that Benji created a little better, so hoped to go to the back towards the end so I could see the whole picture, but it was just too packed to try. I do remember seeing trees during "Just Let Go" and thinking it was a cool thing to go with the song. Sometimes I could make things out. One doesn't really get the full effect from the front, though. All I can say about the show is that this was probably the best Mae concert I have seen and heard, and I've been to a few. Dave's vocals were probably the best they've ever been. Part of me wishes he'd talk a little more from the stage because it just seems to go by too quickly. :) I want it to last. Thoughts went through my head that this would be over way too soon. Dave made his announcement about the acoustic set and Habitat for Humanity, they played their last song (I don't recall the exact order), and Mae left the stage. The entire place erupted with applause, hoops and hollers and chants of "one more song". Mae retook the stage and played several more songs and it was time to leave. Lauralee's sister took the remaining set list. (I have a photo of it.)

I tried to make my way to the merch tables and ended up talking to a guy working with Invisible Children. They made an announcement from the stage about the fund raiser on Friday with Brighten (and I so wish I could go!) I tried to make my way to get some merch from Between the Trees and Far Less, but wasn't getting anywhere. I decided I'd better get my hand stamped for Mae's acoustic benefit set if I wanted
to stay and was planning to come back, but it didn't work out. While I was talking to Robert and getting a tee and my hand stamped the set was already starting. I called Stephanie, but it kept cutting off. Of course the second song played was The Ocean, and everyone sang along. I always love that. I think it's one thing that makes it such a great song to hear performed acoustically - to hear everyone singing along. It makes it fun, too. The Ocean is such a beautiful song. Dave took requests. My phone died. I had charged it all night, but it died anyway. I felt really bad. Mae played "Waiting" (another one I love acoustically) and afterwards I asked someone next to me if she had unlimited minutes and she said "yes" so I asked her if I could call Stephanie. She said "yes". Later she told me it was because I was wearing a Copeland hoodie and they were her favorite band. Dave told me about Copeland in 2005, so it comes full circle. LOL The acoustic set was over too soon (but hey, we all need sleep, right) and Zach, Dave & Jacob greeted everyone, signed lots of autographs, posed for lots of photos and gave out hugs while Robert & Josiah loaded merch. I really wanted to talk to Zach, but had no idea what to say. I finally decided that I didn't want to say anything. I just wanted to give him a big hug. So I did. :) I talked to Zach a little, then Dave and stood next to Jacob and talked to him a while. I had my photo taken somewhere in there. I really didn't want them to leave, but I knew they had a long drive ahead, and security really wanted to go home. LOL I said good-byes and went to find Benji. I found him and thanked him for everything and he gave me a hug. :) I love hugs. As I was walking out, I saw Robert and talked really briefly and the guy from the venue, who I'm sure really wanted to go home, took our pic. I said to Robert that he probably had no idea who I was, and he said he'd seen me on the forums. :) I'm not sure the pic turned out, as Robert's face is really in a shadow, but I'll see what I can do. Then, I thanked the guy from the venue for being so patient with me left.

It always seems so quiet when I leave after a concert. I guess I love being around people a lot, especially nice people. LOL I got into the car and realized how hungry and thirsty I was. I plugged in my cd player (A Fine Frenzy) and headed down the road, making a pit stop at Arby's. I love the chicken salad sandwich, and it hit the spot. So did the large Sierra Mist. I had to pull forward so I couldn't just park and have my dinner, so I had to drive almost back to the venue, make a u-turn, pull back into the Arby's parking lot and eat my sandwich. LOL Then I made the journey home.

Today, I slept most of my day away. I hope the guys in Mae were able to catch at least a little rest before the show tonight. It will probably be starting soon.

As for me, I had a wonderful day yesterday. I hope you did, too, whereever you are.

--Melanie

P.S. As soon as I can clear enough space on my hard drive, I will add photos.

The problem with relationships is that they involve people?

While I ponder how best to recap this evening's concert with Mae, I thought I'd post something I wrote for my myspace blog:

Every now and again I get the urge to "discuss" relationships on my blog. Lucky for you, today is one of those days. ;)

My spouse and I have been married almost 32 years, and when I mention this fact to others it nearly always seems to elicit expressions of amazement. Sometimes it does seem like we’ve survived each other this long against all odds. I like being around people, and if I’m not then I’m on the computer communicating in some way, shape or form and/or listening to music or reading. I’m a very people-oriented person. My husband hates crowds and avoids them whenever possible. He would rather sit in front of the tv with his remote. If he wants, he can fall asleep to the noise and no one cares. He would be happy living in a remote corner of the world with no one to bother him. I like touching, hugs and physical expression. He is more aloof. He is very mechanically-oriented. I clearly don’t share that gift. I am bad about forgetting and misplacing things. He rarely does (although that’s changing in recent years - breaks my heart. LOL) In many ways, we are total opposites, yet we manage to work things out. For one thing, I don’t think anyone else would put up with him (and vice versa, if the truth be told.) There is every reason that our relationship should not have worked. Studies show that couples that live together fare more poorly than those that don’t and we lived together 11 months before getting married. Stats also show that couples that know each other 3-5 years have the most successful marriages - more than 5 years and the stats look a little bleaker as more than 5 years is generally an indication of committment issues. Obviously there are exceptions and we are proof of that. My husband and I knew each other barely over a year before we tied the knot. So, why are we still here?

It seems to me that those who have difficulty with relationships often fall into one of several camps. Some people want a relationship so bad that they will fall hard for anyone that seems to fit the bill, and when it isn’t healthy they will try to make it work just the same. They will even try to remake the person if that’s what it takes. So, they go from one bad relationship to another. They fall for what seems romantic or good to them at the time and never stop to think about what they really have to give to a relationship nor do they pay attention to warning flags.

The other extreme is a fear to commit at all. Sometimes people just have unrealistic expectations. They are waiting for their "perfect" partner. What if I "settle" for this person and "that" person is out there? The problem is that there is no such thing as perfect when people are involved. You cannot base a relationship totally on anyone else’s model completely as no two people (and consequently no two couples) are exactly alike.

Most of us have seen people with a seemingly perfect relationship and it’s hard not to want what they have. But if you know someone with a good relationship, and you really stop to take a look, you will see that they have that good relationship because they actually work at it. Yes, relationships are work!! They cannot be neglected and survive well. I would also maintain that no matter how close you think you are to another couple, I can guarantee that you don’t know everything about them or their relationshp. It might actually be kinda creepy if you did. ;)

What it boils down to is that some people just have unrealistic expectations. If you spend your time looking for the relationship someone else has, you will never find it. If you look for someone who is exactly "perfect" you will be looking a long time. Any two people can make a relationship or marriage work IF they both want to. What it really takes is committment. My pastor once said that a person was ready for that committment when they could think about someone besides themselves. And I believe he was exactly right.

Is it love without risk? Absolutely not! But few things worth having come too easy. There is an old saw that goes, "It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all." Whoever first coined that phrase was wise indeed. The person who avoids love to avoid pain never gets to experience the best part of living.

So, I’m looking at 32 years of marriage, with all of it’s ups and downs, and I can honestly say I’m glad I haven’t spent it alone. My husband and I are both so far from perfect it’s laughable. But we are committed (perhaps in more ways than one?) and love follows. It’s hard to truly imagine being with anyone else who knows me like he does and I hope he feels the same. If not, well, I love him anyway. ;) LOL

I’d say here’s to 32 more years, but still trying to decide if I want to be THAT old. LOL

Love, peace and God’s blessings,

Melanie

A Fine Frenzy

I had put in to take leave for April 1 to see A Fine Frenzy. I still didn't have my ticket yet even the day before as my leave calendar hadn't been returned to me. As it turned out, the day was approved. I had intended to work 1/2 day during the day shift and only ask for 4 hours off, but my supervisor said it wasn't a denied day and I could take the whole 8 hours off if I wanted to. Since I had a migraine and thought sleep might do me some good, I figured I'd go for broke and take off the entire day. I had spoken with the promoter on Saturday and she didn't think I'd have a problem getting tickets and going by past experience at The Avalon, I left about an hour later than normal, which worked out well. I was still the first one there and just watched people come and go for quite a while even making a trek across the street for some hot chammomile tea.

There was someone outside putting a small window in an office part of the venue that was obviously being remodeled. Then someone came out and painted a part of the outside of the building. I listened to my Zune a little bit until I noticed the battery was low. I wanted to save it in case anyone wanted to hear Mae, or Eisley as I was telling people about those two shows.

After the usual long wait, it was finally time to enter the venue. I was able to get a pretty decent spot just in front of the piano and I figured I'd be able to see Alison (of A Fine Frenzy) reasonably well.

Before Alison came out to sing there were two opening acts. The first was John (and I can't seem to recall the last name at this point) and I think he had a rather nice voice. The gal next to me didn't like that he only "sang two words at a time" but I didn't notice. I was able to get a few good snaps of him.



Then Buddy came out to sing next (no last name given, must "Buddy") and he sang and at the end played a small bit of harmonica.



Then there was a long break where no one was on stage, or setting up - at least that could be seen. Finally the stage was set and Alison and company made their appearance. By that time the venue was beginning to look a bit full. Alison was very cute, smiled a lot, chatted a little between songs and sang sweet melodies. At one point she did a cover of "I Will Follow You Into the Dark" and it was absolutely breathtaking. It gave me chills. After her set ended Alison left the stage, but she didn't make us work too hard for an encore and she was back on the stage with a big smile. She then proceded to do a fairly long encore, including a cover of the Beatles song, "Across the Universe" and everyone was encouraged to sing along.
It was rather nice to be in a concert that was a bit mellower since the usual can-of-sardines, everyone push to the front mentality just wasn't happening there.





After the end of the show, Alison said she would meet everyone at the back. And she was true to her word. She didn't rush anyone, signed autographs and took pictures. She also autographed the cd I purchased and asked if she should address it to Melanie, but I told her signing it would be just fine.
The road manager took a pic of us and as I was walking over to where Alison was, I missed a step and almost fell. Alison kept asking if I was alright and seemed very concerned. I assured her I was fine, just clumsy and she said, "Me, too." We are probably not in the same league on that one, but she was so sweet. :)
Then I headed out the door and prepared myself for the ride home.

Except for the migraine, it was a good day - overall quite relaxing with beautiful music. What more can one ask for?




On the way back I stopped and Sarah Kelly's new cd was in my box. Another great music day. :)

Good Times and Minor Annoyances

My best intention was to get up at 9:15 a.m., hustle like crazy and be out the door by 9:30 a.m. (I was optimistic), get gas, head for Salt Lake City and be at In the Venue somewhere in the vicinity of 10 a.m. It was a Saturday concert, after all, and I figured that the Starting Line would have people waiting early. As it turned out, something went amiss, the alarm didn't go off, and I woke up at 11:50 a.m. instead. I tried to stay calm, got my things together, said a little prayer and reminded myself that God ALWAYS works out timing for the best, even if it's not always the way I want it. It worked. I calmly got ready to go, talked to my husband a few minutes, got dressed and headed out the door. All I know for sure was that it was probably around 12:30 and I had to make a pit stop to get gas.

I didn't look at exact time when I arrived at the venue, but to my surprise there was no line, no one was there except me. I got out of the car once or twice, went across the street once, waited in my car some more, watched some tour band/personnel types swing on a pole at the top of the stairs one by one, made a couple of phone calls, and finally got in line. It was probably somewhere between 3 and 3:30 before 3 people arrived. (Only just now I noticed all of the 3's in that last sentence. LOL)I chatted about music and concerts with the guy and the two young ladies headed to the Gateway for some food and shortly after that another couple arrived.
I handed out my remaining "Mae" stickers and told people about the upcoming show on April 4. (Yes, I'm VERY excited about that concert!) I talked a little to an older guy who had come from Four Corners to Salt Lake City and had been there since 8 last night. He was trying to reach his son with no luck. The couple gave him their French Fries, and he was grateful. It made me a little sad. Then it was just a long wait until 6:30. The weather would have been absolutely gorgeous, but there was a biting, cold, breeze that reminding me there were still vestiges of winter left.

Finally, 6:30 came and went. So, we weren't let in right on the dot, but it wasn't too much past 6:30 and we finally were let into the venue. I decided to take a chance and go for center this time. I prayed that I wouldn't get creamed. LOL It was a good spot, though, overall.

The opening band, Steel Train was really pretty good. The vocals were definitely on and I could hear them really well. They were quite energetic and fun, too. In a few places the singer/guitarist would go into these great guitar riffs, but they almost wouldn't fit with the song. I guess they were good enough that they had to be played somewhere, so he tossed them in. ;) That being said, I still liked their set a great deal, and loved the guy's voice.


After Steel Train, Four Year Strong played an even more energetic set. They were a bit harder than Steel Train, and the only downside to their music was that from where I was the vocals were not easy to hear. The keyboardist went into the crowd more than once. The crowd at In the Venue loved their set and they really did get people going. Towards the end, the Keyboardist decided to surf the crowd, only he used my right shoulder as his step off point. Let's just Ouch, and that I will definitely be feeling that in the morning! Actually, I think there is a little bit of a bruise now. The funniest thing that happened is one of the guys in the band surfed out into the crowd, and security didn't see him go into the crowd and only saw him on the "return trip." Then security did their job and weren't letting him back up on the stage. I think it caused one of the songs to possibly end just a little early. We were all laughing about it. After their set I asked for the set list and got it.


The person standing behind me was probably one of the biggest Bayside fans out there. She was really enthusiastic, bouncy, etc. when they finally came on stage.
I thought it was cute. She also knew all the words which may or may not have been a good thing. :) Anyway, Bayside put on a good show. At one point Kenny came out and sang with them. Gratefully crowd surfing wasn't bad until the last song, and security handled them all fairly well. At one point I did get my face a little too close to the barricade ducking for security to pull someone out and so I'm hoping I won't look too beat up tomorrow. So far, so good. LOL You know, I really do hate pain. LOL Bayside said that they would be at their merch table for a little while at the end of their set. The way they worded it left me the distinct impression they wouldn't be there by the end of The Starting Line's set, so I mentioned this to the Bayside fan. I would have really hated for her to miss them, so she decided to leave and go back to meet them. I hope it worked out for her. My prediction ended up being valid as I didn't see them at the merch table after the show. Again, I asked for a set list and was able to get it. I was on a roll. LOL



After a bit of time for set up, it was time for The Starting Line. The crowd went crazy, and pretty much stayed that way. When Kenny first started on the stage, his eyes looked quite tired in the pics. By the end of the night, I think he had the crowd pretty stoked, and vice versa. :) The Starting Line's set was reasonably long. I count 19 songs. It was a great set. There was a good mixture of the energetic with the more acoustic songs that worked really well. At the very beginning of the set the vocals were a bit difficult to hear, but that changed after a song or two, which was good. I could hear the vocals really well during the acoustic songs and Kenny's voice sounded very good. After Island The Starting Line left the stage to raucous applause. Some people in the crowd started a chanting for one more song and quickly started chanting for a particular song. Of course, TSL came back onstage for an encore. When they came back onstage, they brought Alex of The Almost with them to play bass, and Kenny was free to just sing and entertain the crowd, and he did just that. The show ended, and I tried to get a set list. One of the security guys was going to get it for me, but one of the stage guys went by real fast and grabbed them all and held them for ransom. He wanted the name of three Ramone's songs. Hey, I thought I was doing good to know who they were, but I had no clue. I thought I wasn't going to get the set list after all. No one else knew, either. He said he was ashamed of us. Then he wanted the name of a punk band and any three songs. He gave one to someone who came up with a band name. I went blank.
Anyone I thought of I knew wasn't "punk" enough. In the end I managed to snag the last one in his possession. I love it when a plan comes together. ;)
Anyway, I spent a little time at the merch table, bought a few items, tipped all the merch guys (went to tip Steel Train's merch and then realized they didn't have a tip jar because they were the merch guys, so I gave them a tip anyway. LOL) and headed for the door. On the way out one of the venue guys I often talk to asked me if I got any good pics. I told him maybe a few, but it was my crappy point and shoot. He said he heard I got some really good pics of Colbie Callait (which I did) and I said I was able to get a few really nice ones of her. He said her management was mad and I asked why. He said because they said someone was using a pro camera and selling them (see the implication? It seemed that way to me) I assured him that I took my photos with that camera and I never sell them. In fact, I messaged on my space saying they could use any if they wanted for free. So, now that has me bugged a bit. sigh.... I'm a tad annoyed - not at the venue - so I'm trying to figure out if it is my pics so I can straighten this out. Sheesh!!! LOL One of the guys was laughing when I said emphatically that I give my pics away, I don't sell them. Anyway, after that I left.





The drive home went by quickly, I stopped by my P.O. Box along the way, stopped by the grocery store for a few things, and was home before 1 a.m.

I hope you enjoyed my latest novella. Kudos if you made it this far.

Have a great week!!

--Melanie

P.S. I will add pics once I get them off the camera. :)

5 million things...

I have about 5 million things I want to blog about. The problem is that I really should be sleeping. It's 2:48 a.m. I plan to get up bright and early and be to the venue by 10 a.m. (hahaha.. we'll see) to see The Starting Line, et al. The only bad thing about Saturday is some people do show up early.. unless I do, and then no one shows until 5 p.m. Funny how that works sometime.

I did want to thank anyone who kept me in thoughts and prayers over my quality at work. The very next day I got another "bad" one, and I was ready to quit. But just like before I stuck it out. I felt like crying, though, which always makes me feel stupid.

So this week, I have received at three others back -- all hundred percents. I'm sure I can muck that up next time, though. I'm entering a different document, and I was trying hard not to fall asleep the last half of the night.

Now, that I've bored you to tears with this blog tale of document data transcription (that's the government's fancy title for data entry), I think I'll head off to dreamland.

I wonder if I will dream of concerts. As I mentioned, tomorrow I see The Starting Line. April 4, I will have the unspeakable pleasure of seeing Mae, et al. and I am also enthusiastically looking forward to seeing Eisley with The Myriad and Vedera on May 8. I fully expect that I will be wowed! :) Oh.. and Paramore with Jimmy Eat World on the April 12, and the Newsboys, Rush of Fools on April 26, Superchick on May 5. I don't think I go to enough shows, do you?

Peace out and sweet dreams...

Melanie

It was a beautiful day

It was a gorgeous day outside today. I wish I could have spent more time outside enjoying it, but the drive to work was the nicest I can remember in a while. Too bad things aren't all sunny here in other ways, but at least it's hard to feel too down when the sun has finally made an extended appearance in Northern UT. I was beginning to wonder if the temps in the 60's were a thing of the past. LOL
It's supposed to be like this for a couple more days and then drop to the mid forties or so. I'm very happy not to have to scrape the ice off my car so I can leave from work anymore!! (singing sunny with a high of 75.... well, make that 65. LOL)

Today, I was able to listen to my Zune on breaks. I purchased 2 new cd's over the last weekend (In Rainbows by Radiohead and The Photo Album by Death Cab for Cutie) and they both look like winners. The Photo Album may end up being my favorite DCFC cd although I really do like Plans. I think I'm in the minority as most people seem to love Transatlanticism better. I need to find where mine is so I can add it to my Zune. LOL The first thing I noticed with The Photo Album is how much the style and even vocals (to a small extent) reminded me of Matthew Thiessen and the Earthquakes. I think there was just a tiny bit of influence there. Anyway, I'm loving it so far. Speaking of Deathcab, they have a new single out. According to All Access, it's already #28 an the Alternative rock chart. That was quick! LOL It was also # 1 for new adds.

Well, I should feed the dogs and get ready to sleep. To sleep, perchance to dream....

:)

God's blessings,
Melanie

Grab the Popcorn

Video time! :)

Sing along with Melee!! :)



Getting Ready to Tour - The Myriad:



Switchfoot Podcast:

Tired of feeling...

I'm really kinda tired of feeling like I don't do anything well. There has to be something I can do that I'm really good at, except feeling like I don't fit anywhere. I'm fairly talented in that regard. I had a quality review come back from Friday. 3 errors... What that means is that they check 7 or 8 random documents (from one batch) and every document that has an error is counted against you. You could have 7 errors on one document, and it's one error. You can have 7 errors on 7 documents and it's 7 errors. You are theoretically supposed to get reviewed on 30 documents per pay period (7,8,7,8.) The last couple of weeks, I can't seem to get any sort of a good rate. I've only had one 100%. To be fully successful, we are supposed to be higher than 90%. I'm really struggling on this, and I have no idea why or what to do about it. I just feel like I can't do anything well, I can't quit (and I hate the thought of being a quitter) and I have no idea what else I can do.

I'm a bit nervous about my annual evaluation this year. Every year I've been fully successful, although last year, it wasn't by a lot in the quality department. I'm afraid my last couple of weeks will mean I'm not. It's unlikely I'll be fired, that practically takes an act of God where I work... that or criminal activity. But it does mean I will be even more trapped. It does affect my recall/release number, not that I am overly concerned about that most of the time (my job is seasonal.)

I was at work on Friday, I think, and I ran into someone I hadn't talked to in a while. So funny that we both feel exactly the same about work. Neither one of us is happy where we are. Neither one of us saw any thing else we wanted to do there.
But to go elsewhere would probably mean a significantly lower wage, benefits and less schedule flexibility. So we both at the same time said we felt trapped.

I think there was a certain release at that moment we both said that. I'd been thinking it a while. Now I still have no idea what to do about it. But there you have it. I admire people who can do what they love and survive doing it.

Even more I admire people that can put God first. I don't always do that so well, either. It's a good thing that the grace of God exists. There's no way I'd make it otherwise.

Anyway, prayers always welcome.

Cd Saturday

Friday was mostly awful for me. Fortunately, Friday ended and things looked much brighter on Saturday morn.... I mean afternoon. I stayed up really late and slept until 3:30 p.m. I wanted to go to a scrapbook thing today, but it started at 10 a.m. I tried, but it just didn't happen. One of the things that lifted me from the Friday funk was The Fold's cd, Secrets Keep You Sick, but the icing on the cake was playing Singularity by Mae on my Zune, and trying not to laugh when Brink of Disaster started playing. The lyrics so fit my day that I almost laughed out loud. LOL

So, it is somewhat fitting that I set aside a part of Saturday to put up a few more Mae posters at this end of town. First stop was the Guitar Center in Riverdale. I went in and asked if they had earplugs - the good sort that cuts off after a certain decibel level and allows you to still hear the music -- hopefully without it seeming so muffled. They had some, and I will try them out at the next show. This is probably long overdue. Then I asked if they had a place to put up concert posters, which they did. I'm not sure how much traffic it gets except employees, but they have ads up for people looking for drummers, etc., so hopefully it gets a bit. Anyway, it was fun as the clerk loves Mae and The Honorary Title. I gave him a Mae sticker and Honorary Title poster and he was really excited about it. Unfortunately, I drove off without my camera, so no photo proof, although I may get to that later if I can wake up early enough before work sometime. Anyway, I headed over to Graywhale to put up a poster in Ogden. So there will be posters @ Graywhale's in Ogden, Bountiful, Salt Lake City, and Taylorsville. I think Taylorsville is closest to the venue. Mae did an acoustic set there at least once. Anyway, while I was at the Ogden Graywhale, I decided to look through their cd's and found a Tori Amos cd, "The Beekeeper" and Death Cab for Cutie's "You Can Play These Songs With Chords." It isn't the Death Cab cd I was looking for, but I didn't have it so I bought it.

I stopped at another music place on Riverdale Road and was going to ask if they put up posters, and on the door I saw posters all over for a "Battle of the Bands" at Weber State, and Daphne Loves Derby is playing on April 11. Figures it is a Friday! LOL But since Weber is pretty close to work, I might be able to work something out to maybe work the whole 8 hours at different times of the day than usual. I hope so... that's if you don't have to be a student or anything. Anyway, I left two posters with an employee, since they were closed, and he said he'd see about getting them approved. I'll check back sometime in the next week.

Then I made a short pit stop and home, picked up my camera, went to Wally World (aka Wal Mart for those not in on the lingo) and decided to pick up Mercy Me's new cd. I really wanted Santus Real's cd, but it looks like I'll have to order it online if I want it. :( I had ordered some pics from the Mute Math/Matchbox 20 concert from Wal Mart online, and my main goal was to pick them up. I went through the pics and noticed that it only printed half my order. Instead of the whole album, it just picked up the last 29 pics that I added to the album. So, I ended up using the kiosk. Unfortunately, I left the SD card in the kiosk, typical Melanie style. Sigh... Fortunately, I discovered it fairly soon, and someone had turned it in, although I can't pick it up until tomorrow.

Next stop was Music to the Maxx in Layton. I asked about putting up the poster, and it was taped on the window near the door. Then I looked around and found Melee's first cd, "Everyday Behavior." Once upon a time, I tried to order it from Amazon, and somehow ordered their ep instead. SO, I still didn't have it until this evening. I got so excited when I saw that Music to the Maxx had Melee's cd. LOL So, after I paid for my find I chatted with the clerks, gave them a Mae sticker, and asked about music they were playing that I liked. So, then I had them listening to Melee, Eisley, The Myriad, etc. I thanked them for indulging me and went to take a photo, which is when I realized that I had no sd card in my camera. I did have another one in the camera case, so at least I still got a pic.


Then I headed for home and the post office. I stopped at Grounds for Coffee and left a poster that they will hopefully put up if the manager approves it. I ordered a Peach Italian Soda, which I love, and if I must say so, it was pretty good! I rather miss their Italian sodas, so now that it's not bitter cold, I should do that more often again. :)

With Italian soda in hand I headed for the post office to check my P.O. Box, and the Angels and Airwaves cd was waiting for me there from www.yourmusic.com.

So, today I have 5 new cd's (well, at least new to me) to add to my Zune. It should keep me busy and in trouble.

Hope everyone had a great Saturday!!

Peace out,
Melanie

P.S. photos to follow soon.

You would think it was raining?

I posted this on my myspace already. Just a thought I jotted down semi related to the other post on my ramblings:

Is this a poem? or just a thought. Does it tie in to what I wrote already, or is it something entirely new?

The questions are somewhat rhetorical. I'm asking myself.

I am a raindrop, I land in the river
I am absorbed
I flow to the ocean
I am a raindrop swallowed up by the sea
I am no more

Maybe I will make it into a regular poem sometime. It should be called "Significance." LOL

Not just your "typical" day. Mute Math, Alanis Morisette, Matchbox 20

Wow, I just about had my whole adventure typed up and all of a sudden, it just vanished except one letter. I didn't do anything. :(

So, the shortened version is:

I worked until 3 a.m. (March 5th turning over into March 6), slept until about 10 a.m., was at work by 11 a.m., worked until 3 p.m., headed for the venue, but decided to stop at home. I got gas and headed out to the venue about 4:30 p.m. It took about an hour or so to get to the venue, and the trip went well. I spent time trying to find a way to get things to Mute Math, and was finally successful, although the doors had already been open a bit before it was mission accomplished.

I purchased a usb wrist band to get a copy of Matchbox 20's part of the concert. I got a ticket and was to pick it up after the show. It's a cool little invention, let me tell you.

I took my seat, chatted with the person in front of me and told them all about Mute Math. (He later got pretty excited when he recognized things I had described about their show had he loved them!) Then Mute Math took the stage and did the incredible as they always do, except the sound was phenomenal, and Paul sounded great! I took some pics -- not great pics, but I'm happy to have them!







Then I took a potty break and waited for Alanis. She was outstanding. I was really impressed with her voice, and her band was amazing. It was kinda fun to hear the whole arena singing Ironic, but I was a tad disappointed that she didn't sing more of it herself as well. The audience pretty much sang the first verse.




After Alanis set, I went up to see Mute Math and got to talk to them, get a couple of pics and a few hugs. I wanted hugs, but wasn't sure if they were into that sort of thing, but it just happened naturally. Paul seemed very happy to see me there, which made my day. I was able to hang about the table and chat and security didn't bother me about it, which was unusual. It was pretty cool.

I went down to watch Matchbox 20 in progress. I think they were about 3/4 through the first song when I reached my seat. They were actually quite good. There were a few slow spots, but overall not a bad concert. I had been told the first 20 minutes were the best part of the show, and I tend to agree, except there I did enjoy the encore and a few other highlights (like their cover of She Came in Through the Bathroom Window.) After the show, I got my wristband and dallied a bit talking to people including the gal who helped me find a way to get some things to the Mute Math guys. I thanked her lots. She talked about people who were lingerers. I told her I was probably one. She said she was thinking she should hand them trash bags, and I told her if she handed me one, I'd probably help. She said, "I know you would." LOL I liked her lots. LOL So, I went outside and chatted with another venue employee while I waited for traffic to die down. Then I headed for home.. a very happy camper.. er.. I mean concert goer. LOL







I can't wait for Mute Math to come back. I think they are going to be hanging about closer to home after the tour and be working on music, so that's pretty awesome as well.

Anyway, another great adventure comes to a close.

--Melanie