Thursday, July 23

So I Really Need To Stop Procrastinating...

Last weekend was Ignite in Chicago. I've been stalling blogging about it because there's so much to say...I guess I'll just start at the beginning and when I get to the end, I'll stop.

So I love Chicago. Just for the record. I intend to live there someday. Not sure if I will, but I really hope to. Anyway, the trip there was fun. After checking into the hotel around 11 in the morning, we got pizza at Giordano's. Oh I forgot to say the car got a flat tire. It got fixed though during lunch. Anyway, we left straight from the pizza restaurant to the concert. We missed the first few bands, but we didn't know of them, so it worked out that we got to the baseball stadium just as Fireflight started their set.
After Fireflight came Disciple; I'm not very into music that loud, so I went to wait in a 30-minute line to meet Fireflight.

After that came Matthew West. Not my style either.

Then came Mark Schultz. I regret to say that I like him a whole lot less after seeing him live. He had no...no passion for what he was playing and looked extremely bored the whole time. And you had to pay if you wanted to meet him. Needless to say, I wasn't paying a penny to meet him, even though I used to love his music.

After him came Jeremy Camp. Still not quite my style, but he was very good and afterwards, when I met him, he was extremely nice.

Then came TobyMac. His show was quite flashy, but very entertaining. We had to leave early though, since his show ran later than scheduled.

The second day was the one I was more interested in. We got the stadium as Tenth Avenue North was just doing their sound check. I got to meet some of the bands that had played earlier that day, simply because they looked so sad sitting at their table, Sharpies in hand, with nobody wanting to meet them. They were very nice though.

After Tenth Avenue North, I went up to the front to go see KJ-52. He was definitely fun to hear. Afterwards, my amazing brother had waited in line the entire show for me to meet KJ since the lines were nearly 100 people long before the end of the rapper's set. So I got to meet KJ, but only for about 30 seconds and when my brother tried to get a picture of me with him, the two annoying girls ahead of us jumped in right in front of me. I did happen to get a really cool picture of him though.
After KJ came BarlowGirl. I'm really sorry to anyone out there who loves them, but BarlowGirl is one of those bands I just can't stand. My brother got to meet them, but I didn't even pay attention to their set.

After BarlowGirl came Family Force 5. Now, my relationship with their music is a bit love/hate. Sometimes I love it, but most of the time, it gets on my nerves. They're still 6th on my list of favorite bands though, and luckily, that day I was in the "love" mode. They're very into the show of it all, but they're also very good at what they do, so it was a great set, and I really liked it! My brother was once again amazing (and he hates them anyway haha) so he waited at the beginning of their line for me. I think it might have been the most exciting [non-Relient K] moment of the entire trip when I finally got to the table to meet them. For this one, I do have a picture. Well, sorta.
They didn't allow pictures with the band, so I had to take a picture of the band. [fangirl moment] See?? That's Chappy right across that table!!! :DDD[/moment] I got Dance or Die signed. The strange security guard person wearing a suit and tie tried to make them sign the back. I flipped it over when he wasn't looking so they signed the front.

During all this waiting in line and getting CD's signed by FF5, I missed the first two songs of Skillet. Fortunately, that's all I missed. Their show was quite amazing and I loved it! They sang pretty much all the best songs from Comatose (besides "Falling Inside The Black"...) and both their new songs. I wanted to pre-order their CD, but by the time I reached their booth they'd sold out of pre-order cards. I guess that's what the internet's for.

After Skillet, came the undisputed best part of the entire weekend - Relient K! Forgive the unusually frequent use of exclamation points throughout this paragraph. They started off the show with one of my favorite songs, "Chapstick, Chapped Lips, and Things Like Chemistry" They played some of what I consider their best songs, like "There Was No Thief" and "I Need You" Unfortunately, they only played one of their new songs, "Forget And Not Slow Down", which I gladly know all the words to, thanks to Matt Thiessen posting the official ones! I was right up near the front of the stage for their show and it was amazing! I got 29 pictures of the band, and if anybody leaves a comment asking for it, I'd be glad to send the link to the album.
They didn't meet the fans, so I didn't get my drawing signed, or my FiveScore cover signed, or my Mmhmm cover signed, or my hat signed, or anything signed for that matter. I was also going to do the big reveal of the first picture of me ever on this blog thing, but I didn't even get a picture with them, so that didn't pan out. Guess you'll just have to wait to know what I look like until I finally do get a picture with John Warne...

After Relient K came Third Day. They're not my favorite band (that would be Relient K) but they are pretty good. We had to leave halfway through their show though since we only were staying the one night in the hotel, and had to drive home straight from the concert. The whole trip home, I spent texting my best friend which was fun. I think I'm finally getting faster with the whole "qwerty keypad" thing. Not as fast as I can type on Lappy, but maybe someday. haha

So that's the update. It was an amazing weekend, and I highly recommend you see the following bands live: Relient K, Skillet, Family Force 5, TobyMac, and KJ-52.

Here's to Peace, Love & Chicago-Style Pizza.
~Lola

Friday, July 17

Finally Getting Back

It's been over a week since I got back from Wyoming, and I haven't really been the same since the trip. But today, I think I'm finally getting back to my old routines. FiveScore and Seven Years Ago is back on shuffle, I actually woke up instead of sleeping until 9:00, I feel like maybe I'm alive again instead of just making it from morning to night. Funny, I finally get back into routine the day before I leave again. But this trip won't change me. Much. If it does, I'll just come back even more of a fangirl, which isn't all too bad. For me.

I looked back this morning and wondered what exactly brought about the sudden change back. I didn't look for long until I found the reason. For about a week before my trip (until apparently a week after) I've been spending the last five minutes of each day praying. My prayers usually included a request for forgiveness, thanking God for my family and my friends, and then I'd drift off to dreams. Last night I stopped and realized just how far away from God that really had made me. So last night I did something different. I spent over thirty minutes in prayer as opposed to five. And today, I finally feel alive again.

If you've been following my logic, you may come to the conclusion that prayer is what makes me a fangirl. That's not exactly the direction I was trying to go with this. I think what I'm trying to say by all this is that when I'm closer to God, I'm closer to being myself. I'm closer to being a happy, somewhat cynical, but mostly happy individual.

So anyone out there who's just not quite feeling like yourself, maybe all you need is some extra time alone with God. Who knows, the next day you could wake up more alive too!

Here's to Peace, Love & Getting Back,
~Lola

Monday, July 13

Gardening

"If friends were flowers, I'd pick you."

An anonymous person said that. It's a cute phrase. But the problem with friends is that sometimes you don't quite know what you're picking.

Some people are like wildflowers - you pick them and the next day they're dead. Now you're friends won't be dead the day after you meet them (I seriously hope) but soon they'll simply lose interest in you and move on to the next new person.

Some people are like dandelions - they're nice for a while, but when the wind blows, they'll be gone leaving you to go through the hard times on your own.

Some people are like thistles - they'll be your friend, but rest assured you'll never be able to be very close with them. They intend to keep everyone at a distance, whether or not they're aware of it.

Some people are like roses - they may seem wonderful, but they'll hurt you without a backward glance. Because they were such good friends before, many times you may try again, but every time without fail, you'll be caught on a thorn.

The flower garden may sound like a scary place to have to pick from, but there's one breed of flower to look for - the daisies. They're not all that rare, but quite often unnoticed. They may not look like much at first glance, but they're the best friends you can find. They'll stick with you when the going gets rough and they'll last alot longer than other types of friends.

So be careful not to overlook the daisies - they tend to make the most beautiful bouquets!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm guessing you're probably wondering what this blog post has to actually do with my blog. Fact is, it really has nothing to do with it. I found this whole thing typed up in Microsoft Word from a few months ago and felt like posting it up here. I guess there's really nothing better I could've posted today since there's really nothing interesting going on in my life. Just working on my sewing project. Off and on I've been practicing my piano, but the only thing coming to mind to play is "Fuzzy Blue Lights" and it's already stuck deep enough in my head so it's the last thing I want to play. I'd find something fun about Relient K to ramble about on here, but lately I've just not been that into them for some reason, so that's not an option. So that's why I chose gardening. Maybe it helped someone; maybe it didn't; maybe I'm just a bit out of it today.

Here's to Peace, Love & Flowers
~Lola

Thursday, July 9

Oh, Home On The Range!

So my trip is over and done. So very happy, so very sad, and at the same time, very lost in the middle of a rushing world.

I'm happy to be back in touch with my Twitter (and blog and FaceBook and best friend and Relient K forums), happy to be reunited with Zunii, and so happy to see a flushing toilet that I could literally cry.

I'm sad to have left so soon, because I know that I will most likely not see many of my family members who I hadn't seen for years now, for even more years to come. This morning was full of teary goodbyes and hugs that refused to let go. Even from the teenage boys of the family. We all promised to play Farm Town on FaceBook, though, so I think we'll survive the years. If my farm animals survive my virtual gaming skills.

I'm also lost - so lost. I thought I had alot of my life figured out. I thought I knew exactly where I wanted to live, what I wanted to do, and who my role models were; being out in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do but think changed a few things. I think. The first thing that struck me that I didn't expect was the change in my cousins. I remember days when we would throw silly pool parties in their backyard and listen to country music at unsafe levels when our parents were out to dinner. Since then their family has crumbled and now I can't even see anything I once knew in any of them. At first I thought it was sad but now I'm not so sure it isn't a good thing... The next few uncertainties are still just that - uncertain. I'll probably get back around to those at a time when I'm running on more than 3 hours of sleep.

I will now proceed to create a mini blog post for the trip. I'll go day - by - day and try to explain things.

Day 1 - The Kelley House

Day one was mostly driving. Fun in one of those "I'm probably going to die if I have to hear this Beyonce song again" ways. I have never been more thankful for my headphones and more sorry to not have brought along Zunii.
The trip took most of the day and once we arrived at the house of my mom's sister, all I wanted was to sleep. Unfortunately, she is a dedicated video game fanatic, so instead I played Super Smash Brothers Melee with her for a few hours. I'll admit it was fun, but I was more than ready when she told me to get some sleep.

Day 2 - Strawberry Hill

Day two was Independence Day. We began the day riding on a float for a local karate school. I should probably back up and say that my 8 cousins from Texas showed up with their parents at 4 that morning. I was too unconscious to wake up, but then again, they were asleep within 5 minutes since their drive was 20 hours. Anyway, we all rode the float, even though none of us 1] live there or 2] do karate. It was fun I suppose. Afterwards we made the 2 hour trek to Strawberry Hill, the ranch owned by my grandparents.

And so the fun began.

All the females in the family were required to unload the two trailer-campers and motor home full of food. All the males were sent to retrieve the two port-a-potties (I feel like I'm 2 when I say that) that we would use for the days to come.

There were charcoal pits dug, tents set up (ours was an authentic Civil War tent. with no floor.), and cell phone batteries dying looking for service. It was a fun day filled with catching up with now-grown-up cousins and planning the following week. There was a strange lack of pyrotechnics, but I didn't really care all too much.

Day 3 and 4 - Rain

Who knew it rained so much in Wyoming? You would've thought we were in Washington state or something. It poured the entire third afternoon dashing our team's hopes in the cast-iron-cookoff. I suppose I should mention that part of things. The two of my mom's siblings living in Texas teamed up against my mom and her sister (who is from Wyoming) to make two cast-iron meals - breakfast and dinner. South made breakfast that day, but North's dinner was canceled due to rain. Not too fun, but it was alright I guess.

Day four was frightening. My mom and her sister went into town to feed her goats and chickens, and ended up taking the entire day due to tornado watches. Do you know how frightening it is to be told there's a tornado watch coming your way and all you have to hide in are port-a-potties and RV campers? It rained the entire day, and that night no word came from my mom or her sister. Being a firmly God-grounded family, all of us still at the ranch joined hands and sang hymns (and Christmas carols..haha) under the food tent. I cried. My cousin Savannah cried. Pretty much all the women there cried. But we continued to sing for three hours until the storm subsided and the two sisters returned from their day-trip. Looking back at the entire week, that night was the best night I think I had.

Day 5 and 6 - We Like The Flavor of Hay

The last two official days of the trip were spent doing the task we even went to Wyoming for - haying. My grandparents have three horses so they made 1200 bales of hay for them. How's that for logic? Anyway, you might think "oh, haying. yeah, you pick up the little bales and put them on the trailer". At least that's what I thought. I guess I was standing too far away from the 'little bales' - each one weighs from 75 - 125 pounds. Needless to say my arms hurt. And my legs. And my hands. And pretty much everything else. I also got a second-degree sunburn on my nose. Not cool. Not cool at all.

Day five, North made breakfast and it went over almost as well as the South's. Seeing as how 70% of the voters were on the South team, it seems a bit biased, but nobody cared about the prizes - just the fun of the competition. South made supper and it was probably the most delicious Mexican food I've ever had. My mom's brother-in-law is half-Mexican so he knew all these awesome recipes so they picked enchilada lasagna. I still need to ask him for that recipe...

Day six North made supper. It took too long, so we ate it at 11 PM. It was baked radiatore and focaccia bread. We even played Dean Martin through the car stereo to add the ambiance. And still, we lost by 3 points...(365 to 368 isn't bad though, I'd say). In a complete state of awesomeness, the South defaulted and gave us the prize, which was $100 per cook. I knew I should've helped instead of going for a walk...

Day six's night was spent wonderfully. My brother, Savannah, her sister Charity, and I played Mexican Train dominoes for hours after everybody else went to bed. After that Charity retired to the awful little tent and the three of us spent even more hours talking. We stayed awake until dawn and then spray-painted eachothers' hair pink and lime green. And then everybody else woke up and we had the aforementioned teary goodbye.

And on Day seven, we came home.

If you read that, you have way to much time on your hands, but thank you for caring enough to read it. I should probably sleep. Since I only got any sleep in the car today. I'll blog again soon.

Here's to Peace, Love & Multi-Colored Hairspray
~ Lola