The show must go on!

Wow. Monday blew past me and somehow it's Tuesday already! It's gonna be that kind of week, I have a feeling...

We had very little planned this weekend, and it was exactly what we needed. We were busy, but it was mostly playing catch-up with things that have needed to be done for a while. I grocery-shopped at Wegmans, went to the gym (twice!), returned library books, and even got several loads of laundry done. Nothing too exciting, but it was so nice to have a list of errands to run and not be trying to beat the clock the whole time. Anyone know what I mean?

Anyway. A few months ago, when I heard that Jennifer Nettles was playing in Richmond this summer, I immediately convinced C that we needed to attend the concert. After I bought tickets, I found out that my friend, Aileen, and her husband also had tickets! So we knew we needed to make a plan to get together before the show.

The show was Friday, and Aileen and C planned a great tailgate spread while I travelled the Midwest. Just as we were getting everything packed up on Friday, it occurred to me to check that tailgating was allowed since none of us had ever been to this venue… and wouldn’t you know, it’s not! (Whomp, whomp.)

We were determined not to let that little cloud rain on our parade, though – the show must go on! Luckily, we found a great park less than 10 minutes from RIR, and we set up our own pre-show party! We enjoyed a lovely dinner, grilling next to a pond, in a practically deserted park. It was probably the nicest, most low-key “tailgate” ever – and I loved it! It was just what I needed after getting home at 2 AM that day. We hung out and talked and relaxed before heading to the show. It was perfect!

Once we got to the concert, we had no trouble finding seats together – the venue was probably only 2/3 full! I thought for sure that Jennifer Nettles would be a sell-out show, but apparently she does not have as many fans in the area as I expected. (Although Aileen pointed out that maybe she just doesn’t have the name recognition as a solo act that she does with Sugarland – which is probably true.)

J.N. is down in that white blur somewhere... sorry!

The concert was fantastic, and C and I both had a great time. The set list was a mix of new, solo songs, Sugarland songs, and a few 70’s covers. Plus, Jennifer was just as entertaining and animated while performing as I remembered from the last time we saw her. I couldn’t have been happier!

J.N. and Brandy Clark (her opener), doing their duet - loved it!

Really, it was great timing for a concert - a fun event to close out a super busy (traveling) work week, and a fun event to kick off a low-key weekend. Friday-night concerts are not usually my thing, but this one was just perfect. Thanks for a great show, Jennifer Nettles!

So tell me...

• Do you tailgate for concerts? What would you have done if you already had your picnic packed and then found out you couldn't tailgate?
• What's the last concert you went to?
• What's fun for you this week?

Music & football - no surprises here

Looks like I've created a monster... because the Boys Behind the Blog post is officially the only post C is interested in each month. He actually asked me about the questions for this month a few weeks ago! (Sidenote: I gave him these questions FOUR DAYS in advance this time, rather than the morning of... that's really saying a lot for me. Good job, me.) This round of questions is right up my music-loving husband's alley. I'm surprised he didn't write more!

In case you're interested, the BBB link-up is hosted each month by Steph and Mal, and is a great way for bloggers to feature the man / men in their life. In my case, it's always C answering the questions, but I've seen brothers, friends, boyfriends, and even dads get in on the fun! It's one of my favorite posts of the month.

1. Who is your favorite band/musician?

I already hate this questions because people get so touchy about their musical tastes and preferences. Seriously, if you're having a conversation and mention that you don't like a particular movie, the other party will casually point out the strengths and weaknesses of said film or tell you that you're stupid and move on. Music isn't like that. People go INSANE if you casually mention you don't like the baseline from some throwaway 90's Stone Temple Pilots song. Music, in general, is anything you want it to be: soothing, therapeutic, loving, RAGEY, personal. It encompasses the span of the emotional spectrum. It's great. But if you throw people's stupid opinions in the midst, music sucks.

That being said, my favorite musician is Josh Ritter. See this or this. I've seen him three times, and each time, he always seems so happy to be on stage jumping around. I like that.

I can vouch for this one. I've been to Josh Ritter two of the times C has seen him, and he really is great in concert. Also, C totally failed to mention that we chose a Josh Ritter song for our first dance at our wedding... no big deal or anything. 

Also, I conveniently have the picture below on my phone... C in one of his Josh Ritter concert t-shirts, which he loves. (And I love,because they are made of super comfy cotton, not the itchy stuff. Perfect for sleeping in!)

2. What was your first CD/tape?

Storm Front and River of Dreams, Billy Joel. Special thanks to Wikipedia, because I had no freaking clue what the album (cassette?) was called. "We Didn't Start the Fire." That's all I knew. My sister and I would jaaaaaam to that song on the way to school. To this day, I'll learn some history tidbit and have a vague memory of Nana's car and singing, then remember that the history factoid is in the song, and whooooooooa. Also, space monkey.

3. Who was your first concert?

Not including Grandparent's Day in kindergarten? I honestly don't remember. HOWEVA, I did get the privilege of seeing the Duchess of Canada at the Patriot Center freshmen year of high school. I'm too embarrassed to type out her name, but if you reeeeeeeally need to know, click the link.

There is a special place in C's heart for Mrs. Chad Kroeger, and he will deny it all day long, but I've seen the contents of his iPod, so I know the truth.

4. What is your favorite Thanksgiving food?

Gravy. I can have turkey or stuffing or mashed potatoes any time of the year, and meh. But throw a gallon of gravy on it and BOOM: Thanksgiving.

What else floats in water? ...gravy! (10 points if you get that reference)

5. Finish the sentence: I am thankful for...

the third football game on Thanksgiving. NO EMOTIONS HERE BLOG-FRIENDS.

What did you really expect from him? Ha! 

Five for Friday

I was going to post the last installment of my "Dressing Like an Adult" series today, but... that's going to have to wait.

It's Friday, y'all. I need some happies. Here is what I've got for today...

Five for Friday

1. I'm nervous about all the new Fall TV shows. It seems like they've cancelled just about everything I used to watch, and I've got a whole list of new shows that I want to try out. That could go very well, or very badly. We shall see. Round 1 was a success, though - we watch Revolution on Monday and I thought it was really good! Definitely a good pilot; it was interesting and there were good characters, and it left us hanging enough that we are willing to tune into Episode 2. Did you watch anything new this week?

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2. Like, um, everyone else, I enjoy a good Pumpkin Spice Latte. I've been known to have one or ten or twenty in falls past. However, this year, I discovered that a regular (2% milk), grande PSL from Starbucks is 10 Weight Watchers Plus Points. TEN, people. Consider the fact that, when counting points, I only get 26 PP/day. Yeesh. Sooo... the PSLs are out the window for me. HOWEVER. I recently created something almost as good! I've been ordering a grande blonde roast with one pump of Pumpkin Spice syrup. Then I add my own splash of skim milk and a Splenda. It's amazing! I get the delicious, cozy pumpkin spice flavor I like, without the crazy amounts of points. My version is more like 2 points - totally reasonable.

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3. I've discovered two fantastic new Pandora stations lately. The first is the Girl Talk station - inspired by Anna - that is fantastic to run to. I've been missing out!! Tune into that and the energy just skyrockets - perfect for getting through some miles. The second station is the Callin' Baton Rouge station. Why do I always forget about that song?! I found it by accident the other day, plugged it into Pandora, and got treated to some of the most awesome old country songs that I love. The day flew by while I jammed out to old school country. Loved it!!

4. For some reason, Food Lion is having a gigantic wine sale this week. Or at least, at the two that I've been to in my area, they are. At the one closest to me, there were ten or so grocery carts packed with random bottles of wine, all significantly marked down - we're talking like $3.50 a bottle for some of them! Naturally, I took advantage and stocked up. I bought five different bottles for a grand total of $21 - the highest I paid was $6.99 and the lowest was $3.14. A freakin' steal!! So C & I have been indulging a bit, experimenting with drinking some new wines that I'm sure we wouldn't otherwise try. So much fun! We've found a few keepers and a few "ehs." Well worth the money!

That's funny... I swear this was full a few days ago!

5. I've been seeing on blogs & facebook & pintrest about the "amazing combination" that is salted peanuts and candy corns. I threw some in a bowl this afternoon and gave it a try. Ummm... guys? That's exactly what a PayDay candy bar is!! I didn't realize it prior, but as soon as I tasted it, I knew. No wonder it's so popular. Not exactly a genius combination, though... ha.

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And then I was rear-ended on the way home from work. PERFECT. Happy Friday to me. Luckily, it was very minor, the guy was super cool about it, and all appears to be well. Just another thing..... Definitely time for this:

Nashville: The Sights

First things first - my heart, thoughts, and prayers are with the people of Aurora, Colorado, today, as they are reeling in those first few uncertain hours after a horrible, unthinkable thing has happened. I can empathize. Maybe say a prayer today, if that's your thing. Hug your loved ones today, for sure.
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I promise that eating wasn't the only thing we did in Nashville... we played major tourists and saw some of the big attractions that the city has to offer. It's rare that we go on a vacation without an agenda, and can just do whatever we felt like. It was fun to throw around the options and settle on the things that made each of us happy.

As I mentioned before, pretty much the only weather we saw in Nashville was rain. While that wasn't ideal for our trip, we made the best of it, and found our way to some great indoor things. There is so much to offer that we were never in the rain unless we wanted to be! Ha. Here's what we did... **warning: iPhone-picture heavy post ahead!**

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

The CMHoF is the kind of place where a person could go and spend eight hours, or go and spend one hour, depending on how into you are. I think we were there for about four before we were just too hungry and needed to find lunch. I definitely could have stayed longer, but I still feel like I got my money's worth out of the ticket price. I loved seeing all the memorabilia and learning about the long history of country music!

The inside of the building is beautiful!

Construction where the museum is being expanded

The Grand Ole Opry

C & I took a backstage tour of the Grand Ole Opry, and I loved every minute of it! I am such a sucker for things where you get to "be where the stars are," and I had a blast looking at the dressing rooms, bathrooms, lounge area, and hallways that the Opry members (mainly my #1 girl, Carrie) get to use. I may or may not have turned to C and whispered, "CARRIE HAS BEEN IN THIS HALLWAY!" at one point. Do not judge.

There is such an amazing, deep-rooted history to the Opry, and any country music fan knows it. It was a sweet experience, and I am so glad that we chose to do this while we were there!

So excited!

Tourists.

On the stage!

The circle is unbroken!
This is the 6-foot wooden circle taken from the original Opry floor,
rescued & reinstalled after the floods, that all the performers stand on. Amazing!


General Jackson Showboat

One night that we were there, we got SUPER touristy and booked tickets on the General Jackson Showboat! This is a showboat with dinner and a music show that takes passengers on a 4 hour tour of the Cumberland River. While rather cheesy, it was a lot of fun! We had a good dinner, got some great views of the city that we wouldn't have otherwise, and enjoyed a musical show to boot. Not something I'd want to do over and over, but definitely a fun experience for one night.

We also saw the Bridgestone Arena, where the Nashville Predators play (can't go anywhere without a little hockey in our lives).

And pretty architecture in Downtown Nashville:

I could have spent so much more time there! There is so much to see and do - never a boring moment. C & I collect Christmas ornaments whenever we travel places, and we added some really cool ones to our collection at the Opry and the Hall of Fame. We will definitely have lasting memories of this fun trip!

Howdy' y'all!

We're baaaack! We had a BLAST in Nashville - this was one of the best vacations I've ever taken!

I really think this is the best picture to sum up Nashville. Right?

I can't wait to recap everything, but I haven't had a chance to get all my pictures in one place yet, so I'm not going to do it just yet. Let me just say this: we did not let some rain torrential downpours stop us from having ANY fun. We busted out the umbrellas and ate, drank, and sang our way all around town. C & I just keep looking at each other and saying, "That was FUN." ...because it was! That doesn't seem like a descriptive-enough word, but that's really what it was. The whole trip was fun!

It's back to work for C and I today, and I, for one, am definitely feeling some post-vacation blues. I hate that our time away seemed like it went by so fast. I'm pretty sure we could have spent two full weeks in Nashville and not felt like we'd seen and done everything there was to do. We were happy to get home to our own bed and our own shower last night, and Mac the Cat was very happy to see us - I think he thought we'd abandoned him! Never fear, kitty - the humans always come home. I am plugged into a country music station on Pandora, though, and I'm trying to extend my carefree, relaxed attitude for as long as I can. I feel refreshed and recharged after some time away - that is definitely one benefit of being completely unplugged from work for a few days. It's been a while since I took paid time off and actually didn't do ANY work while I was away - I must admit, it was nice. It's good to be reminded sometimes that even the "urgent" things really can wait.

Anyway! Can't wait to "show" you around Nashville over the next few days - there is lots of food, drinking, music, and country music coming your way, as well as some fitness. In case you were wondering, I did rather well with staying on track exercise-wise while we were gone. I'm proud of myself! Proof that you don't have to abandon your normal habits when on vacation - just be flexible! It's back to the regular grind today though - I'm getting my diet and my fitness routine back on track. The next few days will definitely be consisting of laundry, salads, and regular gym time - it's back to normal life around here. Sigh. Take me back to Nash-Vegas!

It's a crazy town, full of neon dreams*

I'm so excited!

This time tomorrow, we will be well on down the road, headed for our summer vacation destination....

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Nashville!

We (my parents, C, & I) are headed to country music heaven, and I almost cannot stand how excited I am about it. I've never been, and I can't wait to just immerse myself in all-things country music. Cowboy hats, cowboy boots, big belt buckles, and honky tonks are calling my name.

As if that wasn't great enough, C and I will be making a pit stop for one night on the way back home, to make a short visit to our old stomping grounds...



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Blacksburg!

(aka home to Virginia Tech)

It's been more than a year since we were "home," and we just can't pass up the opportunity to spend a little time in our favorite place. It's going to be glorious.

This is the "big" trip we're taking this summer, and we've really been looking forward to it. We're hitting the road before the sun comes up tomorrow (11 hour drive ahead of us!) and I'm actually even looking forward to the car trip - I kind of love road trips! There's just something about getting in the car and heading off down the road that is appealing to me - I think it brings back childhood memories. Growing up, we were forever hopping in the car and heading off to wherever was our next destination. We were a traveling family, and always had fun! C & I have been compiling our favorite country music to listen to on the way down, it's our first road trip in the new car we bought in March, and it's been awhile since we've been somewhere new, so this should be fun. Not to mention, we're crossing something off the 25 for 25 list: visiting somewhere neither of us have ever been. Perfect!

One thing that always worries me before a trip, though, is how I'm going to get my workouts in. This time is no exception! I've checked to see that there is a gym in our hotel (there is, and looks like a good one!), armed myself with a few good "no equipment needed" workouts (just in case), and I'm looking forward to hopefully getting in a run or two. I'm cautious about running in unfamiliar places, as everyone should be, but I'm hoping to find somewhere good in Nashville to get out at least once. Hopefully, a run in Blacksburg will be do-able, too - I really never took advantage of what was around me in college, and I'd love to get in a few miles on those familiar streets. I'm packing my running shoes, and will go where the road takes me.

Don't you worry, though - I'm not leaving you empty-handed! I have a couple of things planned for Typically Late while I'm out of town. Be sure to check in and see what's going on while I'm bee-boppin' around Nash-Vegas!

*Title from Jason Aldean's song "Crazy Town" -- highly recommend!

Have you ever been to Nashville? Any recommendations for things we simply MUST do while we're there?? Do you love your college town as much as C & I do? Because I would give a limb or two to be back in college in that sweet, small town for a bit...

A Guest Post! Hooray!

Today's post is something special.... C decided to put his English degree (professional writing AND creative writing, so it's really like TWO English degrees...) to use and write a guest post! Oooooh. Intriguing, right? Right.

When C said he wanted to put together something for the blog, I had no idea what to expect. The content could have been anything. What I did get surprised me, and made me laugh - so I consider that a win. Enjoy!

This picture is really just to give you a graphic example of a typical moment in our relationship.

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So I found myself listening to Carly Rae Jepsen, this spunky little Canadian that’s infiltrating our blue-collar American Billboard Charts, and I found myself wondering two things:

1. When did I start to hate myself?
2. When did it become such a damn chore to listen to music?

The answer to my first question is pretty apparent. It was when I hit play on this URL*. Unfortunately, my second question is more difficult to answer. 

-->Editor's note: "Call Me Maybe" just came on via Shuffle on the playlist I'm currently listening to. Hilarious.

Discovering new, under-the-radar music used to be a fairly big part of my life. I loved getting my friends tuned into randoms that I found on TV shows, stumble, Genious suggestions, other friends’ collections, etc. I liked knowing that I was just wading into an ocean of untapped notes and lyrics. I’d find new bands seemingly every week and spend hours trying to find their music. I can’t pinpoint the moment this stopped, I just know that it did. 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not upset by it; music is divisive. I spent an equal amount of time defending my music as I did gathering it. Because music is genre-oriented—how many cowboys do you see at rap shows, for example—people tend to associate themselves with the type best suited for their demographic. This leads to all-out music wars.

Basically, if music resembles the United States, most people settle in Kansas. They sample from all states. That being said, people in Oregon refuse to listen to music from Florida. They spend an insufferable amount of time defending their own music and crucifying others. During my musical heyday, I tried to hold conversations with people from every state. It was exhausting.

It’s never easy to sit back and tell someone, “I like what I like. You don’t have to like it too.” I like to think that humans, in general, are too gregarious for the opposite to be the norm. 

So back to Ms. Jepsen. While I find her music elementary, I can’t help but notice a surface-level charm. She’s not on the lyrical level of Bono or Dylan, but she’s miles ahead of Nicki Minaj and Rebecca Black. Carly’s song isn’t trying to overstep its bounds. It’s a summery, made-for-radio song that we’ll probably forget about by July. But honestly, it’s pretty catchy. And that brings me back to question one…

*Quick side note. My first impression upon seeing Ms. Jepsen, “Oh, she’s actually pretty cute.”

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Thanks, Google Images.

That led to the now-necessary Wiki search to verify that the law and my conscience allow me to have those thoughts. And remember that there’s a difference between those two**.  Good news, I’m safe and she’s older than me.

** Two quick formulas:

•  Law = 18+
•  Conscience = [(my age) / 2] + 7

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I'm sure everyone has already seen this, but it is pretty funny....

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