L.A.

I went to L.A. this week to visit my friend Spencer who moved there last summer. We've been fortunate to be able to see each other several times since the move, but this past stretch is the longest we've gone in a while. I arrived Monday evening and we drove around several different areas in L.A. Then we headed for a yummy dinner at a place called Bright Spot Cafe. Everyone who worked there was a real character. Very entertaining. It was pretty late so we headed to Spencer's and called it a night.

The next day is when the real fun began . . . :)

First up, a trip to the flower/fashion district in L.A. There are a handful of people out there who know about my deep and abiding love for orchids. Every time I go to a store that sells orchids I have to go look at them and then talk myself out of bringing one or two home with me. I'd compare it to an animal lover who wants to rescue every cute little puppy they see. So imagine what it was like for me when we went to an ALL orchid flower shop! I was in Heaven as well as Hell. It's quite the tragedy in my life that I'm an orchid killer. I need to work on that . . . Anyway, after the orchids we walked around a bunch of fabric stores and made some purchases at an incredible bead store-the biggest one I've ever been to. Talk about over-stim!

Next we went to a beach in Malibu!

We played Scrabble and walked around on the beach.

There were all these cool little caves on the beach to hang out near, or in this case, in.

Me relaxing on the beach!

Spencer and me! It was such a beautiful day to be at the beach!

One of the cooler rock formations on the beach . . .

The view from towards the top of the cliff, overlooking the beach.

When we made it back to the car, Spencer had received a phone call from one of his friends saying that he had tickets to a fashion show that night for us. How could we say no to that?! Luckily we made it back in time to get ready and make it to the show on time. It was very cool/very interesting. After that we ate some delicious Thai food and listened to an Asian do covers of the greatest hits from the 80's and 90's. You should be sad you weren't there to hear him. Too bad I didn't take any pics at the fashion show or the restaurant.

Wednesday was spent in beautiful San Diego! Luckily we made it there in the 2 hours google maps projected and didn't get stuck in traffic at all. We were heading down for a concert (pretend you're surprised) and decided to make a day of it. We ended up hanging out at Balboa Park beading, reading ridiculous magazine articles, and doing crosswords.

Here's Spencer modeling some earrings he made and snacking on turkey jerky. Attractive, I know.

Of course the only picture I have of me at the park is my sandal. I have several pictures of my shoes at the various placed I've visited. Is that weird? Probably.

After the park we did a little shopping. I may or may not have bought a few new pairs of shoes (a future post will come with pictures because, well, I love them that much).

We headed to Lestat's (the coffee shop the show was at) a little early to grab a bite to eat and when we walked in Ian Axel, Greg Holden, and Katie Costello were sitting there chilling. They each jumped up and gave me a hug. We chatted for a bit and Greg mentioned that the show didn't start until 9 . . . TWO hours later than we expected. The food at Lestat's looked pretty darn good, but we decided to go a few doors down to a pizza place we walked past. Thank goodness we did! We ate some of the most delicious pizza I have ever tasted! Different than what you'd expect too . . .

Mmm! Chicken with caramelized pears and then eggplant, tomatoes, craisens, and a greek yogurt sauce. My mouth is watering just thinking about it . . . We also played another game of Scrabble while we ate/waited.

We went back to Lestat's and busted out our computers since they were still sound checking. You know, every time I think I've found the coolest little coffee shop, I find another one! They're all different from each other but awesome nonetheless. Too bad none of them are in DC . . . While we were waiting we met a cute/crazy lady who just move to CA from NYC. She was meeting a date and dreading it. We devised a plan for her to meet up with us at the show so she could cut the date short. I didn't think she'd actually do it, but she totally came in towards the end of Ian's set. Sometimes I just really love people.

Spencer and me waiting in line.

Ian Axel. I wonder how many posts this year have included Ian . . . If you haven't checked him out yet, I don't know what you're waiting for! ;)

Greg Holden. I really need to thank whoever set him up with Ingrid Michaelson's tour last fall . . .

I didn't get a good photo of The Paper Raincoat, but I did however get a snippet of one of their song on camera. Featuring Ian.


The next morning, Spencer had a read-through/costume check for a webseries he's doing. It's a LOST/Jersey Shore parody. How can that not be hilarious?! Anyway, we hit up Amoeba Records, Urban Outfitters, and Borders before he had to go, then I started wandering around Hollywood. I was considering just heading back to Borders to take advantage of their free wi-fi and give my blistered feet a break when a thought struck me. I wonder how far I am from Hotel Cafe? For those of you who don't know what Hotel Cafe is, it's a venue that where a community of singer-songwriters perform and/or got their start (FYI-my being brief with that description is difficult). Check out the FAQ section on their website, it's very entertaining. I knew I needed to find someone to look up the address and not think I was crazy. So I called my friend Trent who I met at The Hotel Cafe Tour in 2008. Turns out I was .1 miles away. How do I know God loves me? The thought struck me to look for the venue as I was crossing the street it was on.

Here's me talking to Trent in front of the mother ship. One day we will go inside!

Me still talking to Trent as I wandered up and down Hollywood Blvd. Interesting place.

Later that night after taking naps, Spencer and I headed to Santa Monica . . . because the opportunity to see Ian Axel 5 times in the space of 2 months could not be passed up!

This time we got to hear Katie Costello play a short, 3 song set. I just love her. She's so sweet and very talented!

Then more Ian. I swear I'm not a stalker. Or a groupie. It just so happens that it's possible in my life to see him perform . . . frequently.

More Greg Holden love.

Spencer and I at the Apple Store for the show.

The Santa Monica pier. Next time I go to L.A. I am definitely going back here. When we got there people were still wandering around, but everything was shut down. A few people out there may recognize this spot. Think Sydney Bristow, Michael Vaughn, and a pager.

Spencer and me at the pier. Sometimes I forget how much I miss/love him. Another reason I know God loves me: incredible friends.

The next morning I was off to the airport and headed back to good old Virginia. It really was the perfect little trip. I will be back.

Open Arms

Guess who I get to squeeze on Friday???

Everybody

Okay friends, I need a little help.

Ingrid Michaelson is having a contest where people cover her song "Everybody" and post it on youtube. The 10 people with the most view counts by the 29th will go on to a voting round. The top 5 of those videos will be viewed by Ingrid and she will pick a winner to perform the song with her on stage at one of her shows. My good friend Melissa made an awesome video and has submitted it. We need to get as many people as possible to watch this video and if you can, watch it a lot (sound is optional, seeing as we realize how listening to the same song over and over again can eventually get old).

We're not sure if the play gets counted if the video is embedded, so here's the link! Watch and enjoy. Then tell all your friends. And watch it again. :)

I look handsome I look smart . . .

We have a lot of funny/interesting conversations while driving home from school. Here's one with I had with Matty a few weeks ago.

It was a typical drive home, we were talking about the day and how things went at school, when Matt mentioned that some of the older kids at school think he is stupid. I told him that those boys don't even know him, so it shouldn't matter what they think. We talked about how all the kids in his class who know him and spend time with him think he's great. We saw that by what they wrote and drew on his birthday card the day before. A few minutes later is when it got funny.

Matt: You know, a lot of people in my class think I'm a movie star.
Me: Oh really? Why do they think that?
Matt: Because I'm just so handsome.
Me: And they are right!

A few minutes later to himself . . .

Matt: You know, I really am handsome.

Here's the proof!

Don't You Worry

There are no words for how much I love this:



Especially from 1:50 on . . . and Mike's whistling. :)

Crazy

This past weekends adventure started when my friend Sara and I were looking at tour dates for our most recent favorite artist: Ian Axel. We knew of an upcoming show in the area on March 12th with Greg Holden but we also noticed a show coming up with his good friends Chad Vaccarino and Mike Cambell (they're in the video for This Is The New Year and Chad sings on the track). It was in Albany, not terribly close to DC, but it was on a Saturday, a day neither of us had to work . . . We google mapped it. Six hours and 24 minutes from my door to the door of Bread and Jam Cafe. Then Sara mentioned we could stay with her sister in Connecticut . . . 2 hours from Bread and Jam. Without further discussion the decision had been made and we never looked back . . . until we were sitting in the car at the gas station. Sara looked at me and said something to the effect of "you know we're crazy right? We don't have to do this." I agreed, but at the risk of our mental health we started our journey.

It was a beautiful drive, despite the fact that we're still in the middle winter. I guess there are reasons to be thankful for the snow . . . There's a handy little feature on GPS that will calculate a route avoiding tolls. Because we chose that option we got to drive through some cute little towns as well as some big cities. If you're going to be in the car that long, it's nice to be surrounded by so much beauty, be in great company, and have an awesome concert to look forward to.

Turns out the show was just outside Albany in a place called Cahoes. We planned on walking around a bit then grabbing some food at the venue before the show. Turns out there's not much to the town, so after a short walk up and down the street we went to the venue and made ourselves at home. We had nice chat with the owner of the Bread and Jam Cafe. He's a former musician who was able to have a band, tour, etc and then decided to settle down with his family and live part 2 of his dream: to have a music venue. If I ever am fortunate to own my own venue, I want it to have the same kind of feel as Bread and Jam. It was so cozy and they had yummy food. The stage was surrounded by comfy couches and chairs, behind those were diner-esk tables and chairs. The walls were lined with bookshelves and covered in original artwork. If it didn't take so long to get there, I would visit this place all the time!

When the Ian, Chad and Mike arrived someone must have told them we'd made a trek to get there because when they came over to where we were sitting (on a comfy red couch right in front of the stage) they asked us about it. We admitted to our craziness and explained that we just couldn't pass up the opportunity to hear them all play together. They seemed a little surprised, but in a good way.

Ian was up first and played a fantastic set, including a song he wrote for his sister that we'd never heard before. Then when Chad and Mike were up, he plopped down on the couch next to me to enjoy their set. I had listened to the songs on Chad's myspace and a few on youtube, enough to know that I'd like it, but I wasn't prepared to love what I heard as much as I did. These guys are just starting out-they have a mailing list and are putting their stuff up on youtube. Recordings can't come soon enough! Unfortunately it'll probably be a while. At least we have the internet!

After the show we stuck around and were able to chat with them until it was time to pack up. I love when the opportunity presents itself to tell an artist what their music does for me. Most of the time there's a few minutes to say hi, great show, and can I get a picture? Nothing terribly personal. I don't feel the need to to tell most artist how I feel, but there are a select few that I'd really like to share that with. These guys are on the list, and I feel like in part, that was able to happen Saturday night. I guess I can equate it to needing to say thank you to someone who has done something to make your life better.

Okay, on to the pictures! (It's about time, I know. Congratulations if you've made it this far).

Ian Axel. Jump on the bandwagon now, this guy is going to go far!

Ian and Chad rocking This Is The New Year.

Chad and Mike doing their thing. Anyone want to come to NYC on April 8th with me? Seriously. If you do, let me know! :)

This just makes me happy. These guys honestly could not have been nicer. I can't wait to see them again!

The whole trip would have been worth it just to hear This Is The New Year and Shorty Don't Wait. Being completely blown away by the rest of their stuff was just icing on the cake! Here's the video I took of Shorty Don't Wait. I realize it's blurry and that Chad's head is cut off (not on purpose). Sorry. But the sound quality is great, so listen up! :)


To hear more of Ian's music, click here.
To hear more from Chad and Mike click here and here.

Snowfall

In case you were wondering, I've had enough winter for a while. Don't get me wrong, there was fun to be had during the "snowpocalypse" of 2010, but I'd be okay if I didn't feel like I was in Rexburg anymore. The weather has been in the high 30's to mid 40's, so I'm thinking the end is in sight. We may even be able to see brown grass before April! Here are some pictures of our 7 day snowed-in adventure:

I tried to get pictures similar to the ones I took of the last snow storm as to compare the difference, but I waited a little too long. These are pictures after a little melting . . .




Ingy and a friend sliding down 4.5 foot snow mounds.

Matty and a friend working on one of 3 snow forts.

Me and Ingy embracing the all the snow we got. Ingrid more so than me. ;)

We spent most of our time indoors playing wii, watching movies, doing puzzles, dressing up like princesses, making art projects and building intense lego structures that took 2 days. At one point I showed the kids the "Photo Booth" on my computer. Whenever I had my computer out they'd ask to take pictures:



Sometimes it's hard to get us all in . . .

The Ingrid mask.

Matt's pose of choice.

This is me as an albino Avatar.

This once cracks me up! The kids always ask for this setting, I think it's their favorite.

Ingrid all decked out and dancing at the ball.

It wasn't enough for Ingrid to dress up, she wanted me to put on my princess dress and go to the ball with her. We had a good time. She even helped me do my make-up.



Enough of the winter fun, let's get on to playing at the park and swimming!