Music, Mae, Charity and a little Photography

Looking forward to this:

Mae is promoting their Project "Touch" which encourages fans to get involved in some sort of joint community service action related to their tour. I plan to definitely be involved. :)

If you are a Mae fan, you should check out the Maeteam and join.
Go to http:/wwww.whatismae.com and click on "maeteam" and register!
Then add me as a friend. :)

Oh, and while you are at it, I am participating in Worldwide Moment, and encourage you to join in the fun as well. Basically it consists of people from all over the world taking photos at the same moment and submitting them. That moment is September 9, 2009, 9:09 a.m. Japan time. For me, that translates to September 8, 2009, 6:09 p.m. (Mountain time) To find out more check this out:
http://www.worldwidemoment.org

Going to the Dogs

So, I did make an effort this afternoon to take some dog photos. I did get a few, but I think I really need to go out a little earlier when the lighting is a tad more even. It was really bright in the sun, and much, much darker even with a little shade, and it was pretty much one or the other. I'm hoping I can get out when the lighting is a tad more even, if I can stand it. Unfortunately, the weather has been in the teens today, and according to Yahoo right now it is 8 deg. F outside. It's too cold for man nor beast. LOL

Anyway, here are the pics I was able to take of Mollie.








And this is one I took of Rocky.



And one of Daisy Mae:


I took a few other miscellaneous outdoor shots - a few that are o.k., probably nothing to write home about. LOL Like this one, for instance:



Hope you like them.

Oh, btw, the mystery of the unknown artist has been solved. The song "20 Cities" is by The Daylights. I knew it was very familiar. LOL BTW, if you haven't heard The Daylights, DO check them ought. They are very good!!!!

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Friday it snowed. It snowed, and it was very cold. At one point in the late afternoon, early evening, my husband reported that it was 24 deg. outside, but it felt like 11. (It was the internet;s conclusion, but this time I think he agreed with their assessment.) I know there are colder places, but suffice it to say that it was icy out. Saturday, I had plans. I hoped for clear roads and clear weather.

Saturday, the plan was to head for Provo to see John Allred's Christmas shows. The first started at 7:30 p.m., and the second was supposed to start 1t 9:30 p.m. The first was an acoustic set, while the second was with a full band. The name of the venue is The Velour. John has asked me to take photos. I was nervous because there is a difference between taking photos and hoping for good ones, and taking some for someone who would probably like a few good shots to come from the set.

Provo is about an hour and 18 mins. from me, if you believe Google Maps. But it was Saturday at around 4:37 p.m. when I left, and it was snowing lightly, and it was cold and icy. The roads were mostly clear, but not completely. People were driving like it was a sunny day, possibly in an attempt to finish up their Christmas preparations. For the most part the trip was rather uneventful, other than two traffic slowdowns, one of them most likely due to a few cars being cleared from the side of the road. But I made it to Provo and to the venue safely, in a little over an hour and a half.

It was cold outside the Velour when I arrived, and one of the guys was unloading their vehicle from the curbside, and I parked behind him trying to make sure there was plenty of room between us. There were a few kids already waiting outside, and I started a conversation with them. I finally caught someone's attention and left my camera inside. Down the street, I could see one of the lighted signs announcing the time and the fact that it was 26 degrees outside, then 25 degrees, then 3 degrees C. I know it gets colder sometimes, but I was plenty cold enough. I took out my cell phone and snapped a pic of the temperature, then went two doors down for some hot apple cider and to use the ladies room. I got a kick out of the bathroom I used because it was a cafe/music place called The Muse, and the bathroom was decorated with old 33-1/3 rpm records. I chuckled when I saw Peter & Gordon. I used to like them. I'm still a fan of vocal harmonies. Not long after I arrived back at the door of the Velour, John let me in to wait.

The Velour is an interesting place. When you enter the room you notice just how eclectic everything is. Someone was moving a small "buddah" to a new location and rearranging things to ready for the show. In some ways the decor reminded me of things you'd find at a 70's garage sale. At the far end was a stage decoraged with white Christmas lights. There was a curtain at the back of the stage. To the side, was one strange piece of artwork, which if I recall correctly, was on a yellow background. There were some strange charicatures on there that I would have difficulty describing without looking at it directly. However, the first character in the picure was shaped like the bottom of a hand, or probably more intended was another part of the anatomy that was less seemly. The place did have a certain charm, however, weird paintings and all.

Just around the corner from the front door, there was a very small "stage-like" area with a chair and mike. A green velour sofa was at the front and a burnt orange chair sat next to it. On the left wall were some "benches" of a sort, that look rather like steps. Behind the sofa were rows of metal folding chairs. On the wall behind the mike was a oval mirror, and on the right side in front, there was a plastic lighted santa. He definitely could have been 70's. There was a light on the left side of the stage, that was just a cirle light with colored lights. That was the stage lighting. I knew I was in trouble. LOL

Once it was about time for things to begin. I sat down in the orange chair on the right side. There was a group of teens already sitting on the couch, and people were filing in. As people entered, there was a sheet of paper where people could write their song requests and tally songs they wanted to here. It was to be an impromptu set list of sorts. The place filled up rather quickly. Once everyone was in, the show started. John was very engaging onstage and the vocals were good as always. Parades was very memorable with everyone singing along. Several times he made comments about people choosing the depressing songs. LOL It was a long set, although I didn't count how many songs, and when John asked what time it was, it was 9:40 p.m. People were lined up in the cold waiting for the 9:30 show. So he played one more song and the transition from show one to show 2 began. Chairs were quickly moved, people filed out, and the doors were opened once again.

I just happened to be standing pretty much dead center and started a conversation with a couple. People filled in around me, and I figured I'd let people know I needed to move about. I didn't think I'd get the best pictures where I was. IT worked. I moved several times, but never could make it to the right side of the stage. I don't like to disturb people too much. I planned to move between songs, but sometimes there wasn't much of a break between them. LOL For the second set there was a backup band and there was a good mix of band, acoustic, and piano driven songs, and John played Parades (a favorite of mine) with a cellist backing him up. At one point he mentioned that a lot of people thought the concert was going to be all Christmas songs at first, and that he was only going to play one and proceeded to sing a very nice rendition of Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas. He also did a round of "cheesy 80's songs" using a looping machine, ala Jon Foreman style (well, Allred has his own stlye with it, but Jon Foreman is the first person I saw sing into a guitar.) John does it really well, and it's always amazing to listen to.




One thing funny I've noticed here is that occasionally a crowd will want an encore, but I think it just kind of gets lost at the end. I saw that happen at the fair with Natalie Grant. At Natalie's show, it seemed like most people didn't really expect an encore, and so they were tepid in asking for one. In John's case, I think the crowd knows him and rather expects an encore to just happen. There was a call for one more song, with someone in the back shouting 50 more songs, and then it just stopped. It's kind of awkward, but John did come back out and do an encore and everyone pretty much was waiting and expecting it. LOL

After the show, John had promised a song to 3 ladies, and it didn't make it to the set list, so he stayed after, sat on the side of the stage and played it for them. I thought that was pretty cool, and I know they really appreciated it. I talked to John and Shane (bass player, video, sometimes merch guy) for a while before saying my goodbyes and heading for home. I wasn't relishing the drive home. I managed to find the street that leads to the street the freeway was on (I thought the hard part) rather easily, but missed my turn, and had to come back around. I was starving, so I decided to stop at Arby's and get something to eat. I ended up parking in the Carl's Jr. lot to eat my Arby's meal. The funny thing is I would have stopped at Carl's, but it looked closed. It wasn't. So, I finally got back on the road, eventually found the street I'd missed and headed for home. I had to stop once to clean my glasses so I could see, but made it home safely with no major problems. I was tired, and glad to be home, but it was a great night. :)


I worked on pics a bit, and then finally went to bed around 6 a.m. I'm a glutton for punishment. I was up at 9:30 a.m., and I asked Ed to drive me to church as I really hadn't enough sleep for driving. He was gracious enough to give me a ride.
The service was about love, and I'm really glad I didn't sleep in. :)

At any rate, if you haven't checked Allred's music out, you should do so. I have a video clip on one of my blogs around here somewhere. LOL

Merry Christmas and a have a blessed and happy New Year!!

--Melanie

Amazing Day, Amazing Night

I have been looking forward to seeing Jonathan Jones for a while now, and the fact that they furloughed me on Tuesday made it all that much easier to plan to see him on December 4. The last three times Jonathan was here, he managed to come when I was going to be out of town. Jonathan came when I was going to Creation Northwest in Washington, when I had hotel reservations and ticket for Warped Tour in ID (and he was 10 minutes from my place) and when I was going to be in Phoenix in September.
It was as if he was checking my calendar and scheduling all of the dates I would be gone. So, it was with much anticipatiion that I headed out yesterday to see Jonathan Jones, John Allred and Spiral Diary.

I arrived early, as usual. I knew I could easily arrive later at that particular venue, but if I leave later in the day, I run into traffic, and I really didn't want to end up trying to find the place after dark at all! so, I managed to get to the venue a little after 3 p.m. The show was at 7. So, I hung around in my car to keep warm, took a few photos of the marquee, walked to a gas station a LONG way down the road and got something to drink and did the ladies room thing (man was that a yucky bathroom) and walked back. Then I had a good laugh at myself as I'd forgotten that there was a Maverick on the corner the opposite direction and pretty much in plain view. Yes, I am a dork!

Then I just went back to my car, ocasionally getting out to see if there was anything going on. A little after 4 o'clock, John Allred and company showed up at the venue and I said my hellos. I went back to my car for 10 or 15 minutes (it was deceptively cold outside) and checked again just as Shane came out and invited me inside the venue. I think he thought I'd been standing there all along. SO I just watched people around me, for a bit, and tried to stay out of the way. John and I had a long conversation (well long for the circumstances - before a show) and I enjoyed talking to him quite a bit.

Finally the others started arriving. Sam, the promoter, arrived, and Corey came in with Jonathan Jones. At some point, Sam asked me if I would take pics and I of course I said, "sure" and he asked me if I needed an area set aside or anything. I said my hellos to Jonathan and gave him a gift (not sure how thrilled he was with the gift, but I know he appreciated the thought), and I gave Corey some poinsettias. She really loved them. :) Then Corey and I set out on a short trek to find something to eat. I purchased a mexican pastry from a deli next door although it wasn't much of a deli, and Corey bought a donut. They had mexican pastries and donuts, a very small cart with some mexican food items, but not much else. We had hoped for salads and/or sandwiches. We ended up at a Mexican restaurant next door. The menu was primarily in Spanish. I don't know much Spanish, but fortunately I know a lot of food items. We didn't see it at first, but there was English underneath some of the menu items. LOL Anyway, they made the burritos to our specifications (we both had beans, rice, guacamole-not pasty stuff, but big avacado chunks-and they left the cheese off mine) and they were huge! Then we went back to the venue to eat. I can't believe I ate the whole thing! I must have been hungry. I should have taken a photo, though. Anyway, while we were just about finished eating they started moving chairs around to where we were sitting, so we finally had to move out of the way.

After dinner, I waited in the front of the line until I could hand my ticket to someone, and people came in slowly. It was all very casual, and in fact was probably one of the most mellow, laid-back concerts I can recall in a long time.
You could really tell the crowd was into the music, but it was really timid. I see that once in a while and in some ways it's really nice, but it is also a bit awkward at times for the artist, I think.

At any rate, Spiral Diary played first and I really loved his set. I have seen Dave once before opening for John Allred, and liked him then as well. I meant to get his cd after the show (it didn't end up happening as he left before I made it over there.)

Then there was a really long break, and Jonathan Jones came out on stage. I think some, if not most people, were expecting him to be the headliner, so I was kind of puzzled. That being said, Jonathan came out and did a great set, although it seemed far too short!! My friend, Lauralee, got me the setlist which was really amazingly awesome of her and REALLY thoughtful. (I owe you Lauralee.) I had almost forgotten as I had been so into getting photos and the music that I wasn't my usual self about getting a set list as I collect them. The only thing wrong with Jonathan's set was that it was just way too short and it left me wanting more. :)


After Jonathan finished his set the stage was set up for John Allred. (John has been touring with Jonathan.) John is a popular local artist here, and he deserves to be. He has great vocals, great music, and a delightful stage presence. Most of the crowd was definitely familiar with him last night, and it was quite obvious. I really enjoyed John's set quite a lot last night.

At the end of the night, it was rather awkward as people applauded. IT was as if they wanted and expected John to do an encore, but people didn't get into calling for one. A few of us were and finally after an awkward silence, people started to cheer, so he came back out with just an acoustic guitar. He sat down on the edge of the stage and had everyone sit down. Then he took requests for a couple of songs and had people sing along. It really was a very intimate set-up and an joy to be a part of. And this time I remembered the set list. :)

After the show ended, I chatted with Corey and Lauralee for a long time. I almost missed the chance to get Jonathan's cd as he was packing up. But I did get two copies, one for me and one for a friend in Ohio, and I gave him a hug from her, too. :) Then I just hung around John's table and bought his Christmas cd, and Corey took a pic of me with John, and I took a photo of the two of them. It turned out cute.

Finally Corey and I walked out together, and we talked in the lot a little longer in the lot. It was really too cold, though, and she excused herself and we went our separate ways.


I had a really great time with some great people. Thanks all! :)

Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas Now...

--Melanie

A Wild, Crazy, Wonderful Week

This has been one of the busiest, craziest weeks ever - and it was a mostly self-induced sort of insanity. LOL

Wednesday, I had a ticket to see This Providence in Sandy. It had been more than a hear since I had seen them, and last time I promised Sean that I would cook dinner for the band the next time they came. I couldn't recall if anyone else was involved in the conversation or not, so I sent a message to ask if it was still on (since Sean left the band) and they said to bring food. LOL So, Lauralee and I set about to do just that. We fixed pot roast, salad, drop biscuits, brownies and fast fudge and made enough for a small army. Oh, and I brought grapes from my yard, too. We got there and set up inside at a round table, and the food was big hit (Phew!) We really didn't know how the timing would come together, but it all came together quite well. We did have to move the food outside for a short bit just before the show, but it went very well. Dan was in a fun mood, and the show was absolutely the best! :) I usually try to photograph without flash, but it was so dark I used flash, and felt kinda bad because I probably blinded everyone. I need an attachable flash that doesn't send out that horrible strobe and so it can be bounced anyway. This Providence went off tour and headlined at Solid Ground, and the openers were all pretty good. The main opener, Everybody Else, was pretty amazing as well. After the show, I took Lauralee home, and headed out myself. I got home quite late, and still had to unload the car and put things away. But it was all worth it!





The next day, I had a ticket to see This Providence on the Why So Serious tour in Pocatello, ID. I got to the venue about an hour before the ticket time, and there were guys putting up signs for a venue change. So I found the new venue, the Booth Barn, parked and looked for the entrance. Someone said they thought it was around the side, but the bands were unloading. I was bold and went back there, visited with This Providence, and a few others, and took some pics while I waited. Then the show started, and I didn't realize it, so I headed around as quickly as I could and got as close as I could to the stage. A few people did let me in front to take pics, which I thought was really nice. The first band to play was Mury. I had seen them twice before and they were pretty good. Hey Monday was next, and I really liked them quite a lot. Most of the people I talked with after the show loved them as well. Then A Rocket to the Moon played. I really loved their set. I felt kind of badly as I heard about their trailer being ripped off of about $5,000 (cash/posessions) including some camera equipment and lenses. So, you should check them out and support them if you can.
Then This Providence played and were, once again, awesome. :) The power cut out during a number of the sets, and it also happened during This Providence's set. Shane (who does merch) came up on stage and pretended to be a rock star. It was great! LOL Finally things got to working again, and they finished their set. Then set up started for The Cab. I was pretty sure I'd like them, and they were quite good. Trying to photograph the lead singer was a lot like trying to take a photo of a bullet. LOL They have a good stage presence.




I was able to get a copy of the set list for three of the bands, including This Providence, and I decided to get TP to autograph their set list. Then I visited for quite a long while before heading home. I think I arrived home around 2:25 a.m.

For concert no. 3, I had a ticket to see The Rocket Summer and Phantom Planet the next day. Normally I go around 1-2 on weekday concerts at In the Venue, and am often the first one there, but usually for TRS, there is a big group that shows up around 10. So, my original plan was to go at 10 a.m. I was just to exhausted, so I waited. I acutually got to the venue around 1 p.m. and was the first one there. It's funny, I had prayed about timing and resigned myself to possible staying in the back (don't think I'd survive the middle) and I should always remember that God works out the timing regardless of what I want. Things will be as they should be. It was a pretty amazing show, and I ended up on the barricade, dead center. I knew I was going to get killed. LOL Once again, the opening bands were good. Phantom Planet was absolutely incredible. I didn't see how Bryce could top that, but he set about to do his best. In fact, it was probably the best I'd seen Bryce. He was engaged with the audience, he sounded great, played a very good set (new and old.) At one point he left the stage, went into the middle of the crowd and sang two acoustic songs. At another point in the show, Bryce used the looping machine, or whatever the tech term is for that thing, and played drums, then keyboards, then guitar in a loop and sang. It really sounded good. Another highlight was my friend Lauralee telling Bryce that it was her birthday, and him telling her happy birthday from the stage. We set about to get her a set list, and someone was nice enough to give it to her.

Afterwards we bought merch, had photos taken with Bobby of The Morning Light (first opening band) and then went outside. I was walking back towards the bus as Bryce usually comes out after the show, and sometimes Phantom Planet plays an acoustic set afterwards. On the way out, I heard Bobby talking about God, and said something back and we ended up in this huge discussion for about 1/2 hour. Then I went back to where the buses were, and waited. Bryce finally came out and I waited until almost last, had photos taken with Bryce (our tradition) and talked for quite a long while. Then I said my goodbyes and headed for home.





The next morning I was leaving for Phoenix (Saturday) via Kanab, UT, and didn't even wake up until 11 a.m. We left around 4 p.m. Today we left Kanab and took our time getting to our final destination. I am now at my daughter's on my hubby's laptop.

Like I said, a long crazy, wonderful week. I wouldn't change much about it. I am grateful.

God is good. :)

Peace out,
Melanie

Natalie Grant

Tonight I saw Natalie Grant at the Utah State Fairgrounds grandstand. The concert was free with a fair ticket, although you do have to get a reserved seat ticket at the box office. I was supposed to work the merch table, but the merch never arrived. Then I was all set to be an usher, and just about 1/2 before door time we found out there was a miscommunication, and they had to use the union staff ushers. I didn't have a ticket because I wasn't supposed to need one, so I was given a ticket in Section C, Row 2. I was basically dead center. God is too good to me sometimes. I also had free fair entry because I was a volunteer.

To back track just a little, I arrived at the fair a little after three, spent some time looking for the volunteer trailer, and was told I could wander about the fair until 6 p.m. I spent most of the time trying to help someone find her daughter, and taking pics of some white Tigers. They were gorgeous.

Natalie Grant was simply amazing. She truly has a beautiful voice. She was very personable and expressive on stage. She talked a bit about the songs, and about how we could come to Christ just as we are. We don't have to "clean ourselves" up first and about being free to be who we really are - imperfect.

At any rate, no one seemed to know that you should scream "one more song" and some were even starting to leave, so I said something to the gal next to me and we both started screaming encore. People joined us, of course. As a result, we did get a very beautiful encore by Natalie, who was already sans shoes.

Afterwards, I wandered about the fair, stopped and had a gyro with rice, and took photos at the Floriculture building before heading home.

World Wide Moment is imminent!!!

People from all over the world are set to take a pic at the exact same moment in less than 24 hours from now. Check it out!!

http://worldwidemoment.org

Just take a photo where you are Aug. 8:08:08 Beijing, China time. In mountain time that is Aug. 7, 6:08 p.m. (later today) Pacific time is an hour earlier. Central time an hour later. Eastern time is two hours later.

There is a counter on the World Wide Moment web site, and a link here:
http://timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html?year=2008&month=8&day=8&hour=8&min=8&sec=0&p1=33&p2=179
for time conversions if needed.

Backyard photography

Pics from my backyard Sunday afternoon: