2012 A Year in Review

Well I definitely don't write here as often as I did in the past. I truly don't know why because I love to write and I'm sure I could find the time a few days a week. I guess I'll make that a New Year's Resolution then. It's not too early to start talking about the new year since we are exactly 18 days away from 2013.

It really feels like this year just flew by. There are so many things that happen in 12 months but it all just feels like yesterday so it's hard to grasp the fact that so much time has gone by.So I put together a list of all my favorite things that happened in 2012. I think I am gonna try to do this every year going forward.

2012: My Favorite Events

-The triplets turned one

-Made 7 years with Victor

-Saw The Black Keys in concert for the first time

-Visited my godsister in VA

-Started planning my wedding 

-Took Alyssa to get her first haircut

-Went apple picking

-Got a Keurig

-My little brother graduated from high school

-Helped my brother move into his dorm

-Victor got his Associates Degree

-Had the opportunity to spend some time in Argentina and Uruguay

- Got to vacation in Dominican Republic with all my best friends and family

-Got MARRIED in Dominican Republic

-Lost 20lbs and have kept them off 

-Went to a family reunion for a second year in a row

-Voted for the 3rd time in my life!

-Planned a baby shower :)

-Got to see the triplets begin to grow up

I'm sure there is much more but I cant remember it all. This gives me hope for 2013 because so many wonderful things happened in 2012 without me even making an effort. Come next year, I will make an effort and I think it will be a good year :)

I Like to Dance All Night...

Last Tuesday, Nov 16th, 2010, I went to see Kings of Leon at Madison Square Garden! It was awesome! I had a blast! I swear me going to a concert, is like telling a kid they are going to Disney. We act the same way.

I had a lot of fun. They played mostly songs from "Only by the Night" instead of their new album, which was perfectly fine with me because they played all my favorites from the new album. It's like their set list was catered to my tastes. I literally jumped up and down with joy when they played "Manhattan," this has to be one of my favorite songs EVER. Take a listen below and tell me that song isnt incredible. I dare you!!!

They even played much older material, like "The Bucket," which is another one of my favorite KOL songs and I had never heard it played live before. I was estatic! Just a great experience overall. The arena was packed and there was so much energy that it was tangible. When they played "Use Somebody" the arena was in such a state of synergy that the arena could have exploded and we wouldnt have noticed. I live for that feeling....the feeling of unity and oneness amongst a crowd of thousands upon thousands of strangers. I've been lucky enough to feel this several times at several different concerts. It is one of those things that you gotta feel at least once in your life. Definitely...

The Rising Tide Will Not Let You Forget Me

This post is strictly dedicated to me fangirling over Andrew McMahon. You have been warned....

Friday night, I went to the Something Corporate reunion concert. The band broke up several years ago and got back together for a few concert dates that ended up turning into a small tour. I have to say that this concert was one of the most mature and most incredible concerts I have ever been to. There were no tweens or immature teenagers wreaking havoc so I didnt have to endure their stupidity the whole night. Everyone there was just having a great time and we were all so excited for the show.

I had seen Something Corporate (SoCo) live earlier this year but it was a different atmosphere since it was at Bamboozle and not everyone was there for SoCo. Friday's concert just had such a great vibe. The band was excellent live and you could just tell that after so many years they were so thankful that they still have such a large fan base. And their lead singer, Andrew McMahon, was so sweet the whole time and he looked so happy :) He did not disappoint last night, but then again, when does he?

Andrew is incredibly talented and gifted. He writes beautiful lyrics and creates beautiful melodies with his piano. And to top it off, he's oh so sexy! (Fangirling at all time high here!) He also has another band, Jack's Mannequin, that he started on the side and performed with full time after SoCo broke up. They have the song "Bruised" that I absolutely love and where I got my tattoo lyrics from ("Sometimes perfection can be perfect hell.")

Not only is Andrew talented but he is also a cancer survivor. He was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia when he was just 22 and he was able to treat it because it was caught early. He started the Dear Jack Foundation that raises money for cancer research. Is your heart melting yet? Mine is....And I'm not the only Andrew McMahon fangirl out there. A lot of people look up to him because of what he's been through and what he had done personally and musically.

So, in brief, I had a wonderful night Friday. I can only hope that I can experience another concert like that in my lifetime. So thank you Andrew McMahon for being so damn charming, talented, sexy and cool. I've got a school girl crush on you ;)

Title post is from SoCo song "Ruthless"

Day 28- This Year (so far) in Great Detail

Wow, my mind is blank. I cannot remember anything I've done this year. Guess this will be another list as my memory sucks major ass. Some things will be repetitive:

2010 So Far

-became a fangirl and went to see Vinny from I Am The Avalanche at Angels and Kings in January

-started going to the gym like a maniac in March but then stopped for a reason I cant even remember

-Saw I Am the Avalanche the band together in April

-Saw Envy on the Coast again in April where I proceeded to get drunk on just two drink (Thanks Irving Plaza!)

-saw Three Days Grace and Breaking Benjamin with Victor in Feb :)

-started a new dept at work which is harder than my last dept and my lead's nickname is Hitler's Wife

-Bamboozle 2010! I was one step closer to meeting Andrew McMahon because he was performing with Something Corporate, which I will be seeing again on August 13th!! In the future, I will dedicate an entire post to this wonderful man that changed my life with a single lyric :)

-decided to learn to play the piano, although I only somewhat know "What Sarah Said" by Death Cab and "Dark Blue" by Jack's Mannequin

-was deeply betrayed by a family member, but eventually got over it

-realized my little brother isnt little anymore

-learned that I have great friends that I truly appreciate

-fell in love again

-started playing softball

-have significantly cut down on the number of times I have been to the movies. I dont know if its because there hasnt been a good movie out for a while or because I feel raped by the ticket fees

-have not seen Avatar YET

-realized that my future does not lie in Accounting, I was meant to do something different

-almost lost my apartment that I have grown to love

-had dinner at my landlord's house and had them over for dinner

-learned how to make homemade brownies

-learned that adding a pack of chocolate pudding to Super Moist Betty Crocker Devil's food cake makes it so moist that it falls apart

-discovered Chocolate Cheerios (they are the shit)

-cried when Vampire Diaries season ended two weeks ago

-finally went to the doctor

-got minor surgery at the dentist, which improved my teeth by 100%

-realized that The Beatles were the motherf*cking shit!

-watched the entire season of American Idol (ends tomorrow)

-felt old for the first time ever when I was in line to see Envy on the Coast and there were a bunch of 17 year olds behind me. I am almost 7 years older than them....7!

-read a few good books

-got a set of shaped rubber bands that all the kids are using. Im currently wearing a dog and a cow

-fell in love with several bands/singers which I have mentioned several times before and I will keep mentioning until everyone that stumbles on this blog listens to them at least once: The Black Keys, Band of Horses, Bayside, The Beatles, Justin Nozuka, James Morrison, Something Corporate, and the list goes on and on

-has the best dulce de leche cake ever for my mom's b-day in March

I guess this is enough for now, I cant think of anything else. What a loser I am ;)

Did That Get Your Attention, Sweetie?

Last Saturday, I had the BEST concert experience ever. I went to see Vinnie Caruana playing with his band I Am The Avalanche. This was my 4th time seeing Vinnie perform...yes, fourth. I first saw him when I went to see Envy on the Coast in Dec 09 with Delilah. He was so shy and nervous and then he opened his mouth to sing and I was taken aback by how his voice contrasts with his demeanor. I fell in love ever since....(not literally)

So I went to see him again at School of Rock in January, and this was the first time I got to meet him. He is such a sweetheart. He seemed genuinely grateful that we had come all the way to Jersey to see him and he even asked our names. That night, we giggled like school girls on the way home. We promised him we would go to all his shows in the Tri-state area.

His next show was in February, at a bar called Angels and Kings in the city and of course we went to see him. It was open mic night. He was sitting a few seats away from us at the bar and we had already had a few drinks so we got the courage to talk to him again. This time we had a good conversation with him and we asked him a few questions. I even made fun of him (because he takes forever to tune his guitar) and he just laughed. He said he remembered us too (dont know if its true though, but I'd like to think so.) Anyway, we requested him to play our favorite song, "Green Eyes," and he did. I swear that during the song, he looked right at me and smiled. That made my night...

So last week he played with his band at The Studio in Webster Hall. This show was sooo much fun! There was a good sized crowd and they formed a semi mosh pit. People would climb up on stage and sing along with him or they would jump right back into the crowd. At one point, Vinnie jumped into the crowd while still singing but the fans set him right back on stage. There were some people hanging off the ceiling pipes. It was insane!! But I had the BEST time. It was a great show.

We didnt get to talk to him that night, but we had such a great time that we didnt care. After the band left the stage, they played the Brand New album that I LOVE, so we just sat there and sang along to the album til they stopped playing it. Then we got some street meat and headed home.

All in all, last Saturday was a ray of sunshine in my cloudy sky :)

Title of post is from "My Second Restraining Order" by I Am The Avalanche

Envy on the Coast

I went to see Envy on the Coast on Sunday night (Dec 27th). It was in a small theater in Long Island, it kind of looked like a high school auditorium and we were sitting in the fifth row on the side. The stage spun slowly so every side got a front view at some point. And we were so freaking close. It was so cool!

I gotta say that Envy is pretty impressive live. Their performance is better than the album and that says a whole lot. It Their lead singer, Ryan, has so much energy and he has some lung power. Their other singer, Sal, also has a good voice and is really surprising. He was dressed in such a preppy outfit and then he opens his mouth and you are blown away. Also, Brian, who plays guitar and does some vocals doesn't even look like he is in a rock band and hes so mellow and laid back when performing. Its an awesome contrast.

Here are two pics. We were not allowed to take pics in the stadium so I snuck a few and some video too. My friend took a few more :)

Envy on the Coast

Ryan and Brian

Anyway, they played a few songs, including two new ones that sound great. They also did a Paper Rivals cover song as their encore. The opening acts, Vinny from I Am the Avalance was so fucking adorable. He was this shy, timid, soft spoken guy that claimed that he was so nervous he was shaking but when he started to sing, I was blown away with his lung power. I definitely became a fan. As Tall As Lions also opened up and I gotta say that I LOVE this bands style. They came out dressed in button downs and vests and slacks. It looked so nice. They also have a guy who plays the trumpet who I temporarily became infatuated with. I mean how cool is that?

My friend took pics of the opening acts....only because I didnt get the courage to break the law until Envy came out lol ** ;) Thanks Dee**

Vinny :)

As Tall As Lions

I was a little disappointed that Envy didnt play my favorite songs, which are "Starving Your Friends" and "Lapse" but they were so awesome that I couldnt hold it against them. They did do "Artist and Repetoire," "The Gift of Paralysis," and "Tell Them That She's Not Scared" among others, which are incredible songs (actually the whole Lucy Gray album is excellent) but I would have loved to hear my faves.

"Starving Your Friends" and "Lapse" are the songs that made me a fan (so did "Mirrors") because I am a sucker for a good ballad. Also these songs have such exceptional lyrics that you cant help but love them. Its songs like these that make me live for music. Here are my favorite lyrics from these songs:

"Starving Your Friends"
........

Cuz I fall three times as hard
If its for nothing at all
You all seem twice as tall
As I will ever be
And I feel terribly small
When my head works too hard
When you think with your chest

Theres not a thing that you dont see

Im hardly capable of half the damage

That I would like to do

........

So look at me, I pray to God

But curse too much to be considered true

Im just like me, Im just like me

So who the hell are you?

.......

And I borrow phrases from

Dusty faded record sleeves

The story is the same

Ive just personalized the name

.......

"Lapse"

.......

It's not as deep as it seems

And as unfair as it may be

I'm just here to remind you

Remind you not to forget to remember me

.......

I'm predisposed to trust a photograph

To portray the way you used to laugh

........

Now I've dodged your questions so much,

I don't possess the strength

To answer straight

And no, I'm not afraid,

At least not to die

I'm afraid to live, and not remember why

Sweet chemical indifference,

I can't stop, can't change the evident

........