Blind Melon Mount Airy Casino Mount Pocono, PA

The evening before a couple of amazing melonheads showed up at my home to spend the night since my original plan of travelling fell thru- the melon gods were looking out for me making things fall perfectly into place.  In the morning we got up and headed out for a bite to eat.  As we were sitting down I heard of the snafu of reservation issues with our room. Luckily that all got sorted out (miscommunication and changing of management makes problems arise when there doesn't need to be). On the road we were headed. There were flurries falling sporadically as we cranked music from shows past. Updates from the guys online kept coming in as we got closer to our destination. The welcome sign to PA made the jitters in my stomach intensify and the back to back texts from melonhead friends made it even more so. "The Melon has landed in the Poconos." Never made me smile so much. As we turned onto the exit that could bring us either to the hotel or the casino, we decided to just go straight to the Mt. Airy as the other melon who were sharing our room with was running behind thanks to the room problems.

One of my melon friends & his wife got to go into the sound check & he told the guys I'd be out when they came out, which was really sweet of him. When we walked into the casino, we headed right over to where the venue was located.  Outside the doors was a couple of vigil friends who noticed me before I did them & I almost walked right past them.  We were the first ones there & decided to stake our place in the line in front of the doors right then as it was set up.  A couple more melon friends who were staying at the resort came down from their room to join us. Nice thing about making the line with a bunch of friends is we could come & go as we pleased & have breaks without worrying about losing our spot.  We got get a drink, have a bathroom break & get a bite to eat & head back & forth.  Our small group were the only ones when Rogers emerged from the doors. I yelled hey to him & he high fives me. He scurried off like he was on a mission.  Then Glen & a couple other people came out after & they rushed off too.  Then out came Brad, Travis & Tara. I turned to Brad "hey I know you" and he smiled & said hey & threw his arms into a big hug for me.  The I went to Travis & gave him a hello hug as well. He asked how the drive was there. I told him it took us less than 5 hours. He seemed to be amazed by this. We took our time, stopped & ate & didn't rush to get there, so it was a nice relaxing ride.  Travis & Brad hung out for a while chit chatting until we got yelled at for wanting to take pictures with them.  The security guy told us if we wanted to do so we had to go by the fountain which was on the other side of the casino. So a few of us went that way & Brad led us there.

Travis & Tara disappeared ahead of us while Brad stayed & took pictures & talked for a little bit longer before he said he had to meet with the rest of the guys & their manager, he said he was late & then he scurried off as well.  We were heading back to our spot in line when I ran into my melon friend & his wife after they came out from the venue.  We headed out of the casino for some mischief at their hotel.  It was a fun excursion yet I don't know how intelligent it was chugging the beer like I did but it's all in good fun.  On our way back from our shenanigans, we were trying to find a place to park & we started to follow these little old ladies heading back to their car.  They were moving slower than molasses! If we wanted to get back to the venue in time before the show, we'd have to go around them & attempt to find another spot.  There was nothing anywhere nearby & after a while of going in circles & striking out we saw the valet parking.  We all decided that this was probably the smartest thing to do with the state we were all in.  None of us cared how much it was we just wanted to get out of the car & get back in line. After we arrived, people started flooding in & the line wrapped around the edge of the building almost down to where the fountain was.  Time seemed to stand still.  We got more excited when the lights outside Gypsies changed & the attendants came out to check our tickets.  My stomach started flipping & we hadn't even gotten in yet.  We got ushered in- which had chairs set up which we thought was strange but we went with it. We took up the front row.  I headed to my usual spot so I could be right between CT & Brad, left side of the stage. I nestled myself between miss jersey (I think someone called her that once upon a time) & my vigil buddies. It was nice being able to sit waiting for the guys to come out before the show started.  And there was a barista lady coming around to get us drinks, that was pretty rad. I could get used to that if they were at every show I went to. I had a good buzz going from the drinks & the anticipation of the guys coming out on stage. As we sat seeing the setlist, we joked about vandalizing it with the songs that we wanted to hear, I piped in that I had sharpies in my abyss of a bag. We all decided that we'd leave it alone. Melonheads with sharpies can be a dangerous thing. 

The lights went down & the instrumental brass section from Soup came on & one by one the guys came out onto the stage and got into their spots.  Brad shook my hand & leaned down to say hey to me.  Travis made a comment about the chairs "this isn't an old folks home..."  They started in on the opening notes to "Galaxie" & we all went a bit wild. We all started dancing & singing & having a grand old time loving every minute of it.

The guys were tight & looked like they were really enjoying each others company up on stage. Brad had us give it up for Travis. And we all cheered. The 5 of them were really in a groove together. It was like they hadn't skipped a beat from the last time they played together back in Spain.  Travis' voice sounded solid & the best I've heard in quite a while despite the fact that he had strep the week before, he said that the penicillian was doing it's job.  There was an energy that was coming off the stage & all of us could feel it.  Travis being barefoot on stage & he was all over the place up & down, it was fun to watch.  When a few more songs went by Travis said he was gonna need some girl's help singing harmony on the next song.  He asked this one girl if she would do it & she said no way, he said no pressure but he'd need some lovely lady to come sing the part- then I piped up & said that sure I would do it.  Travis turned to me "You'll do it? Well then get up on here." Then he added "If you f**k this up they'll throw s**t at you," I looked him in the eyes & replied "If you f**k it up, I'll throw s**t at you" which made us both giggle.  I handed my camera off to the front row & attempted to boost myself up on the stage which was no easy feet being at a weird angle & being as short as I am.  The stage wasn't that high up off the ground but it wasn't happening without help from other people.  When I finally got up on the stage, Travis pulled me in for a hug & a kiss on the cheek "this girl is gonna sing the harmony" and so began into "Mouthful of Cavities"!! Travis started strumming & smiling right at me.  Behind me out of the corner of my eye I saw Brad biting his nail, Rogers was smoking a cigarette, Glen was sitting at his drums & CT wandered around before heading over to his steel guitar.  Brad's mic was too far away, I attempted to pull it down so it could be closer to me but I was still nowhere near it.  I started to ask him to fix it but I was too caught up in the moment.  So I was a million miles away from really anywhere near the mic- pretty much anyone beyond the first few rows couldn't hear me too well. Without monitors in my ears, I really couldn't hear myself at all so it was hard to stay in key and not be pitchy. With it being Brad's mic, the sound was hooked to his monitors so therefore whatever sound there was, was going straight into his ears! At one point though, Travis smiled so big at me that I didn't care what I sounded like.  His smile said it all.  I looked over at Brad at one moment when Travis & I had a good harmony & Brad's eyes were closed while he was playing his bass with a huge grin on his face. I glanced over at CT & we exchanged eyes for a moment & we both smiled. I danced around on the stage inbetween my singing. I was having a blast up there. I felt so comfortable up there with them.

 

When we were done singing, Travis pulled me in for another hug & kisses on the cheek & he turned to whisper in my ear "that was badass." Then he hugged me again- like an embrace from an old friend who was really happy of something they had done. "Give her a hand everyone," Travis applauded while I got helped down off the stage by my friends.  I turned to miss jersey & asked her to pinch me as it didn't seem possible what just happened did.  More songs played & we continued singing & dancing & Travis asked us if we were still having a good time. And we really were. We exploded with cheers.  So much elation from the guys & the crowd.  The jam breakdown ripped version leading into No Rain was amazing & the best jam that I've ever heard of theirs.  The guys took a brief break off the stage for a few minutes & then came back out from behind. During their break, miss jersey & I headed over to the merch table where Tara was. She was impressed that we had a list of all the stuff we needed to get for melons. I told Tara that you tell melons that you're going to a show & people want you to get stuff for them. When they came back on, Brad strapped on a guitar & Travis took the bass.  Brad stepped up to the mic to say the next song was about sometimes missing something & then they started into "I Won't Be the Same."  I know that I listened & sang without a dry eye the entirety of it.  It was amazing to see & hear him perform it right in front of me.  It made me want to hear more live AJ.  They switched back to their usual instruments & CT adjusted the mic & pulled out his harmonica from his pocket.  When "Change" ended, Travis looked up to the sky & shouted "We love you Shannon!!"- gave me goosebumps.  They had to nix "Time" because ironically they ran out of time as they were on a time constraint.  The venue was being turned into a dance club & they wanted them done. I took Brad & CT's setlist off the stage.  I was determined before the show even started that I was going to take it.

When the guys were done playing, we all stuck around waiting for them to come out. It was nice finally getting to meet some melons who I've only talked to online & on the forum.  To see them & talk in person definately makes it that much better.  So many people came up to me & complimented or commented on how amazing my singing was.  It was a little overwhelming & more nerve wracking than being up on the stage.  Travis came out & I went over to him to sign my Melon book (filled with pictures from the last show I was at). He decided to just open & flip thru & whatever page he landed on was where he was going to sign. And that is exactly what he did.  I hugged him again & thanked him for the night.  He told me thankyou & he appreciated that I had the balls to get up on stage.  Brad walked past me & we high fived again while he headed to the merch table.  Then I went over to Glen & asked him to sign my book.  He looked at me like he recognized me but couldn't figure out who I was. When I said my name, he called me by my full name like it's all one name. It makes me giggle & smile. The page he signed is one of my favorites- he told me he was going to make a doodle on it & then he said it looked like he vandalized my page the way we were holding it.  Then I went over to Rogers & said hi & gave him a hug.  He did the same thing that Travis did by flipping to a random page to sign.  He said I really am very short- I said well he is a giant so standing next to me makes me look even smaller.  Then I noticed CT standing to the side of him & I whapped him with my book & turned to say "hey stranger" then he hugged me.  I handed him my melon book for him to sign.  Then I pulled out my Awol book to for him to finally sign.  He stood & very intently looked at each page.  He asked why he hadn't seen that before.  He wanted me to make copies for him.  Brad was standing near us & I handed him my Melon book too. I had a specific page I wanted him to sign and then he started to look thru the whole book & wanted to see the Awol one too. Then I asked them if they had a moment if they wanted to take a look at my vigil book too that I had brought with me. CT had it & Brad was looking over his shoulder.  CT said my pictures are exactly what he loves about us fans.  And Brad said nothing better than the Melon family.  I turned to talk with CT a little more, somehow we got to talking about Awol again & I told him about my Texas excursion with the nation & he was hanging on my every word with the interest of my adventure.  He was asking where they played & seemed really into it & happy to hear about it all.  CT got a text & I poked fun that he might not know how to respond.  He glanced me that classic look that CT gives me everytime I see him. It was what I had been waiting for.  There were a handfull of us standing around & the management told us we had to leave & move out even though we weren't in the way.  But we were too close to the entrance.  CT & Glen said something back to them & they were very rude to the guys.  We were like fine, we'll just go into the casino instead.  Glen led the way out over to the bar.  Everyone seemed to scatter thru the casino.  CT disappeared probably to go to bed.  Brad said he was going upstairs that he'd be back.  Travis & Tara were seen roaming around for a bit before heading to their room.  Most of us hung around the bar area.  A few of us all got Glen a beer at the same time & somehow I got handed a beer along with my drink.  I played slots with a melon friend for a bit.  Then everyone disappeared & I wandered around by myself.  I spotted Rogers sitting by himself at a Black Jack table when I headed over to him.  I was like hey I know you. That must be my classic line. When I was standing there, he said his luck got better- I said it was the melon magic.  Some people came up & said how good he played & such. I turned jokingly & said how it kinda sucked & he could've done much better.  He jokingly thanked me & we both laughed.  He thought it was funny, I made Rogers laugh.  I sat for a little bit but after my hands getting worse, I decided to move on.  I wish I had stayed, my melon friend who replaced my spot won a few hundred. Eh such is life. I went to play slots near Brad, he was my melon luck instead of Rogers.  I did really well at that point.  Then Brad was talking with some people about the vinyl that was coming out & the process that went into it.  He was explaining it but my attention span was very low at that point.  I wandered over to the bar where Glen still was with a group.  Brad was standing back over near us there.  I asked him what he thought about me being up on stage.  He said it would've been even better if I could've heard myself- Travis sometimes forgets that when he invites people that they're not going to have monitors. He said other than that, it was badass. He said he could tell I was having a great time up there & it was nice to see so much happiness from such an avid fan.  I turned back to talk with Glen again. I had a candid chat with him & I got to see a side of him that I never had before.  Our chat was something else that is for sure.  Fan lust is a fascinating thing.  Someone asked about a tour & what they were doing next.  He mentioned something about a cover tune ep that was coming out with bands that they liked.  He rattled off the list of it but between fatigue & booze, I couldn't remember it even a few minutes later.  I heard from a few of the guys that they were going to do a small stint of some shows.  Who knows what the future holds for Melon, but I will follow whenever I can.  We all stuck around at the bar area until the guys headed to their rooms & we headed out toward the hotel for a little rest of shuteye for a few hours before heading out on the road towards home the next morning.

AWOLNATION 12-12-12 Ho Ho Hoedown at Boston House of Blues

When the kidlet got home from school, we got ready for the show & decided to take the train into the city. He was so excited to be getting to see Awolnation again with me.  My camera died the night before so I was bummed that I wasn't going to be able to snap away like I normally do. Luckily the mister was kind enough to loan me his. But it is nothing like what I was used to so I decided ahead a time that I wouldn't take many pictures. So we hopped on the afternoon train and headed right in. When we arrived, we stopped for a quick bite to eat. After having some dinner, we walked over to the venue to go wait in line. There were only a few people ahead of us as we had thought the doors were at 6 & the show at 7 when it really was the doors were 7 & the show at 8!! There were probably about 10 people ahead of us. It was frigidly cold but luckily we had both layered up so weren't too bad having to wait outside.

 I wrote on my hands & was going to on his as well but he was freezing & said he was all set with having anything done. I wrote a #9 on one & AN on the other & when the security guy was putting wrist bands on he said if I wanted to be able to drink I'd have to take it off. So I ran inside like they let me & washed it off, of course nothing but cold water ran but I scrubbed & was able to manage to get it off. Then I got my band. I might not have much to drink but I wanted to have that option. It was so cold outside so we were all grateful when the doors finally opened.  We went over & checked our coats & got a drink & headed towards the front. We didn't get right on the rail but right behind them & found the people we had been hanging out with in line before the doors had opened.  There were 2 bands that played before Awol came on. A Silent Film started the set. They're a British band that neither of us knew any of their songs but they were good & happy to be ending their stint of shows in Boston. They were pretty good. Then Younghawke Blood played next. They were catchy & have a hit on the radio that everyone around us seemed to know. There were some drunk girls behind us that I had to shield the boy from, one of them was very drunkenly apologetic that she kept bumping into him & me. We both just shook our heads & put up with it. Luckily her & the group she was with headed off in another direction & we could enjoy watching without having to deal with them any longer. The people in front of us had moved over a little & left a space so the boy & I were able to get up along the rail.  The set ended and the guy from the radio station that was dressed like Santa came out for an appearance from the balcony & all of a sudden there were candy canes being thrown everywhere. Which is never a good thing before a band is ready to come out on stage. The lights went back down & the intro to M.S. started & we all went wild as a crowd. When the guys stepped out on stage, the lights went up & both the kiddo & I waved at Dave & he saluted back at us & smiled that big grin of his. People were still throwing candy around & Aaron looked out & said people should quit it. Then they started into GFS. NYF got the crowd singing along. During Wake Up, Dave threw a pick to the boy, he thought he dropped it when really it landed in the sleeve of his shirt. During MF, we got Kenny's attention & he waved & smiled at both of us. Drew was further away but all my jumping up & down, I finally waved back & forth with him.  It was pretty rad being one of the few people around me knowing Cannibals, the girl next to me asked how I knew that song. I said it was the 5th time I had heard it live. She seemed impressed. I was just like, I have been around a while & get to hear great songs. She nodded.  When AIN came on, Aaron told us all to put our arms around the person next to us, even if we didn't know them for a little unconditional love. It was the first time I listened to that song & didn't feel the need to ball. I cried a little out of happiness, being able to share the show with my son.  When it ended & Aaron said he wanted everyone to move as close to the rail as possible so that noone would get hurt, I had a feeling I knew what song was going to be next. "Lets see how many girls we can get to crowd surf" and then he yelled let the games begin, I knew exactly what was next, "Joke." Myself & the guys that had been in line with us shielded the boy while I just kept my hands up & ducked down a bit.  I knew things were bound to get crazy when people were crowd surfing between the songs. And it really did. The security guys in the front did an awesome job catching people & helping them back up on their feet. When Sail came on, I thought the crowd was going to errupt. It pretty much did.  The security guard had opened a water but then was going to have to put it down so he handed it to the boy who said he wasn't thirsty. I, on the other hand, happily accepted it & chugged it down.  It was just what I needed.  Aaron slowed things down & sat on the edge of the stage for an acapella version of "Lean on Me."  Then he exited the stage & then they all came back out for KOS.  Which everyone around me sang along with. Aaron stayed on his guitar this time around. The guys totally rocked out. At the end Dave pulled his setlist off the stage & I pointed at my kiddlet & he high fived him when he handed it to him. And then he high fived me.  It was late & we had to head back to the train station & the boy was exhausted so we didn't stick around after. Although we did look to see if we could find the bus on the way back but we didn't see it along our travel back.  When we had gotten to the venue I had thrown my phone in the abyss of my bag & couldn't find it.  I thought I had lost it in the rush of trying to get in & get to the front of the crowd.  Little did I know that it was just in a different section that I couldn't see & on the train ride home, I was able to find it, to my relief. All & all, an epic show to end off my 2012 run of Awolnation, joined by my son. Really incredible.

 

All of a sudden the new year is here & already in full swing

I have been an absolute slacker when it comes to my writing. I will make a point to sit down & scrawl more. It's gotta happen. I've been busy trying to put my life in order and writing things down has to become a part of that again. Funks come & go & low points sometimes make it hard for inspiration to peak. I will need to sit & write about the 12-12-12 Ho Ho Hoedown that I went to to see Awolnation for the last time of the year with my elder kiddlet. I'll make sure to do that immediately. For now, I'll make this post short & sweet & head out for the day with my head up. I have a cup brewing & good tunes on while the sun shines in my window. I've got a smile on my face.  Things are looking up for sure.

AWOLNATION Texas adventure day 3- House of Blues Dallas

We began the day on the early side so we could get out & on the road as soon as possible. Our morning was graced with some wonderful piano playing (along with us singing). It made for some calm. It was a few hours to get to our next destination but we were ready to set out.  The same 4 from the day before climbed into the car & we began our adventure.  As we were driving along & headed into nowhere Texas, a tiny little town along the way, we stopped at a Subway for something to eat & take a break from driving for a little while. We went in & behind the register there were Frankenweenie bags. I said it was a sign of how epic they day was ahead. We asked if we could each have one...and he let us have them! And then I went over & asked for another (I had an idea for my kids to have Aaron sign them). We enlightened the guy at the counter with AWOL facts after he recognized the shirt that one of us was wearing. Even in the middle of nowhere Texas people recognize it & we got all giddy. We enjoyed our food & then headed out for the rest of our drive.  We listened to & sang along with AWOL for the rest of the ride. With my horse voice, we pulled into Dallas eventually & when we arrived at the venue the first thing we saw was the bus. We went into get something from the gift shop so we could get early admittance in & to scope out the line which was just a couple people. We hopped back in the car & headed over to the hotel that we were staying at & discovered it was only about a block away & that we'd be able to just walk back & forth. We went up into our room & relaxed a bit & then showered & got dolled up for the evening. We got the whole group together & then headed over to hang out for a while in line. When we were getting ready to head in, myself  & another nationer noticed Rock Well & Gibran taking stuff out of their van so we headed over & ended up chit chatting with those guys for a little while. With plenty of time, we got a bite to eat, sharpied our hands & arms & enjoyed our time together.

 

Eventually it was time to  head downstairs & some of us got yelled at since we were pretty much running to get to the front to be on the rail- which was padded!! After years of shows, I have never been to a show where there was a comfortable padded guardrail. I made my spot over where I have standing lately, close to Dave's side of the stage. The lights went down & Rock Well came out to drop some beats & there was a feeling like no other. We as a group decided that our word for the night was 'spearmint' to use if they asked for his freestyle. He picked our word again! And then the 3rd word he had already used before so we decided to pick another one & I threw out 'orgasm.' He made a comment how it was like I had one & then put that into his rap. It was awesome!! We all got so excited. Then Imagine Dragons came on the stage. Where I was standing it was right in front of the bass drum & Dan kept coming over right in front of me & he pointed & was singing right at me a few times. It was pretty cool. He said he had been having a bad day & then he came out & had us & it changed everything. You could tell there was so emotion & energy that he got back from the audience & he gave it right back. It was an awesome set. And then the wait for Awol was so anticipated. Then the musical intro came on & we went crazy wild.  Every show is just amazing & different & the buzz is just so incredible. Rory was filming & everytime he went past us, we all made it clear we were in the front row. The show was nothing short of amazing. Aaron got up to the edge of the stage during JOMS & then walked over us & surfed in the crowd & then went back on the stage. Then he got back off & went thru the front near the barricade & he high fived/grabbed my fingers as he went by. During All I Need, I got my emotional self, but not as bad & Dave noticed & made a motion of me wiping my tears. When Knights of Shame got to the middle part, Zeale came out & it was incredible. Kenny & Zeale hugged as he was getting off the stage. It was so neat to witness it. The show ended & we all went to get drinks & head back upstairs. The merch table was overcrowded so I was glad that I had gotten what I had wanted the day before. We were hanging out & ran into Dave as it looked like he was getting ready to head out so I wanted to catch him before he did. I showed him my book & he said that it was cool that I make them. He headed out & we all went outside & went over to where the bus was. We plopped ourselves down on the sidewalk where we sat for a very long time. We hung out with Drew for a bit & he told me that the card I got him was first in his bag & then in a spot in his bunk which I thought was cool. We watched many people go on & off the bus while we hung out waiting around. I caught Patti at one point when he was going past us & had him look at my book too since it was on his birthday that my book was from & I thought he might enjoy looking at it. He wanted to sign on the front of the book but as I discovered any ink on the cover tends to wear off quickly. So he found a spot inside it & then he stuck around & chatted with all of us. It was nice that he spent quite a good amount of time with us. We hung with Hayden for a bit. And Kenny, he went past us a few times. He even sat down on the sidewalk with us for a bit. He commented on my voice which at that point was really bad,  he said it sounded like I had been shouting & screaming for 3 days. Which was pretty much true. Dave walked past us & said that he thought Aaron might've done what his nickname was to us since he was who we were waiting for. After a while the guys went past us & didn't even say anything, it was pretty awesome. Zeale, Gibran, &  Rock Well were hanging out with us for a bit too. We weren't leaving until we were the last fans standing (or sitting which is what we really were doing). We finally were & we got Berko to go in & get Aaron to come out & see us. And he eventually did & it was pretty epic. He seemed happy to see us & we were so happy to finally see him. We headed back to the hotel & I started packing up my stuff as I had a very early flight back. I decided to just pull an all nighter & just crashed on the plane. It was an amazing end to an incredible weekend.

Nationchella Day 2- Awolnation in Texas: Hullabalooza, College Station

After a late evening, we got up & all started to get ready. It took some of us a while scrubbing the sharpie off our arms before we could head out. We stopped off at a taco stand for one of the best breakfast burritos I've ever had. Before we left, we decided to go & get the guys some flowers & a card just as a thank you and whatnot. We thought yellow roses would be perfect. The whole yellow rose of Texas thing plus yellow symbolizes friendship & "the color yellow evokes feelings of joy and lightheartedness." And according to Aaron, "whatever flowers you're into, I guarantee I seen 'em." So it seemed fitting.

We got out of store & hit the road, the 4 of us headed towards the venue.  We happily listened to good tunes while we drove. We got lost on the way there & ended up going in circles for a while. Finally we got into the festival to meet with the rest of our group & from the get go everything was messed up. There had been a bomb threat at the University near by so things got bumped back. Little did we know what a catastrophe of a day it was going to be. There was supposed to be a special meet & greet set up specifically for us. That fell thru. They told us that it would be taken care of & to patiently wait. Our VIP privileges were nothing short of a joke. Not to harp on the negativity, but there was nothing really special about our insanely expensive tickets that we paid for. Nothing was set up or ready for us when they let us in. We got let into the area where there were a couple rows of folding chairs set up. The stage was far away from us & separated by everyone with a moat.  We all made jokes about how there was probably alligators in the water. With our VIP privileges we were supposed to get free drinks & food. Myself & another nationer wandered up to the tent where there was a set up & we were told to go to another tent which had nothing. Then we were told that we could go to the other tent because we wanted to talk to someone at this point. We then went to another tent to go talk to someone of some sort of management to maybe get something done. But we just got a run around which made us both angsty. And then we ran into the AWOL Merch booth. Poor Mike, their merch guy, had to listen to us both rant & rave about the stupidity of the day.  They finally set up the booth & we were able to get drinks but nothing was iced & everything was warm. The pizza was good though.  That was about the only good thing.  We kept watch of the AWOL bus so we didn't have to pay attention to the awful acts that were on the stage. Drew & Kenny made appearances off & on. And at one point we noticed Kenny & Aaron skateboarding. At  one point we also saw a mod of fuzzy boot wearing, scantily clothed girls get on & off the bus. We sat thru an entire day of waiting.  Then it looked like the drums & guitars were getting adjusted but then they disappeared. And more hip hop/rap artists performed. More people filled in & we were up against a barricade closer while the sun began to set. Someone came out & told us that we could go over & have the meet & greet with the guys- along with a bunch of other people. When we went over there we were shifted around & then told that it was not happening again as the guys had to get ready to get on the stage. At this point many of us were beyond pissed. We gave up our spots in the front to then be told to go back. Someone in the group yelled at the guy who kept having us go back & forth. We were able to pretty much get back to the spot we were in just shifted over a little. We were still grumbling a little from having to go back & forth. As soon as Megalithic music started, all that melted away.

 

And when Aaron came out on stage he threw a kiss to our direction & put up his fingers in an A. They started playing & the wait all day for them was so worth it. The energy & intensity that is usually there came off of them even though they were so far away with the moat in between. The people behind us were chanting "Sail" the whole time which was pretty annoying & our group kept looking behind us & giving them looks. We rocked out & shouted  & cheered & excitedly danced. When Sail finally did come on, the crowd behind us was finally happy. And Aaron surprisingly said the "maybe I should kill myself" part of the song. We all looked at each other shocked because just earlier that morning we had been talking about how he never says it, and then he did!! As he often does, Aaron exited the stage- and on walks Zeale!! What a pleasant, unexpected surprise! We all cheered for him. At one point myself  & a couple of us yelled for Drew & he must've heard it as he raised his arm & pointed right at us. Their set ended & we were told we could head over to the bus as the guys would be coming out soon after, 3 times is a charm right?

We were standing around & Zeale came over to talk with us. Kenny came off the bus & headed over to us. We handed him the flowers & card we had gotten, which had been watered & carried around all day. They were a little withered by the time we finally got them to them. He thought that was sweet of us. Eventually we were able to get Hayden's attention & had him come over to see us.  Then Drew came off the bus & danced toward us with Aaron behind him. Drew headed straight over to give me a hug & Aaron hugged another nationer from our group! Kenny sauntered off the bus & him & Drew were dancing together. It was so fun & awesome to be there hanging with them after the hassle of the day.  I had a wonderful chat with Drew about how awesome it is that after all this time that he still has such a musical connection with Aaron. I started off the conversation with "you know what I like?" And I think it intrigued him.

We hung out for a while and then it was time for us to disperse & head out. We were all hungry so we decided that we should head out to eat & then go over to a nationer's house for another slumber party before attempting some shuteye to then get up in the morning for one more day of epic.

Part 3,  the conclusion of the Texas adventure soon to come...

To be continued...

AWOLNATION 3 days of Texas...part 1 Austin Emo's East

It's been almost a month of settling in & letting my thoughts come in clearly that I now sit & ramble about my adventure of epicness of Awol & my nation family. I got up ungodly early to head out to the airport so I would have plenty of time & not have rush around. I had the mister drop me off & getting thru security literally took me 5 minutes if that and then I headed into my gate to wait, trying to rest but my mind was racing around.  My flights went smoothly & even my layover went over without a hitch. I landed in Austin & headed over to the venue after catching a cab.  I stepped out of the cab & was greeted with a cheer, the best way to be welcomed in.  As I was heading over to my group of friends, Patti & I crossed paths & we said to one another with a smile.  Then I continued over to the rest of the 5 waiting around & making the start of the line with hugs & smiles & wonderful conversation. Although most of these wonderful people I never met other than online, I felt like I've known them for years. 

We sat around for hours just relaxing, writing on our arms & hands to prep for the show & eventually other people started showing up. And so did a couple other people who were in our group as well.  Before I got there, Drew had been hanging with the group for a few but had to shower. As we sat there Dave went past us & we decided we were gonna play it cool & not do or say anything but that only last a couple minutes before we all called out to him & he waved at all of us. Kenny went past us & said hi to all of us as he headed inside. A few of us walked over to the local sub shop for a bite to eat & they asked us who were seeing & we then started talking up Awol since none of them had ever heard of them. When we headed back over to continue waiting, I had exhaustion hit me & I needed to lay down. As I started to use my bag for a pillow, one of my nation friends actually had a small pillow for me to sleep on. I drifted off into a short & sweet cat nap, and it was exactly what I needed so that I could continue on with the rest of the evening. I woke up & felt so rested. As we were still sitting around, the photographer from the radio station showed up & was impressed with our arm/hand art & started taking pictures of us.

Someone said you're not gonna find bigger fans than us & it's true. We're a dedicated bunch. We tallied up that between our group at the end of the weekend will have been to 70+ shows. The promoter from the radio station asked if we were there for the meet & greet. We said no but we could be. He said he'd see what he could do but there had been a contest from the station & they were waiting for those people to show up. We all figured that was that & we continued to sit around. We noticed a couple girls were over in a seperate line waiting to be brought in. We noticed that there weren't any other people & a few minutes later the guy came out & said that they could let 10 people in- we had 9 in our group! It felt like fate & then they let us head in. We all headed into the bar area where the meet & greet was happening. We went over to get drinks & found out that those of us had our beverages covered as there was a tab! I asked my nation buddy to pinch me to make sure this was all real. Zeale was soundchecking in the background while we were waiting around for the guys to come out. We stood around enjoying our drinks when they guys made their appearance. They came out & noticed us right away. Dave came over to me & was like hey, we just saw you a couple weeks ago. He said once again I was very far from home. He then gave me a high 5 & proceeded to give everyone around us them. We got some blank posters & had the guys sign them. I also had the guys sign my Nationchella shirt (we had all signed each other's shirts while were waiting around). As we were standing around & chatting Imagine Dragons was doing their sooundcheck. I went over to Drew & asked if he remembered our conversation from Indy & he said maybe, I then pulled out a Drew Blood Garbage Pail card for him. His eyes lit up! He was so excited. He turned to Dave & Kenny & said look what she got me. He turned & hugged me & said it was an awesome gift. He showed Aaron too & they both said it was pretty cool that I found that. Then I went over to Kenny & gave him his replacement bracelet that I made for him. He thought it was cool that I remembered.  We all stood around, drinking & chatting & having a good time. Between my abyss of a bag & trying to hold everything,  my nation friend joked & told each of the guys that "we  can't give her alcohol before the show." One of the nationers got her mom on the phone & Aaron had a short chat with her. I got pictures with each of the guys. I stood on my tippy toes for a picture with Hayden & Drew- I still didn't come up to either of their shoulders. Then we all gathered together for a group shot of all of us. We noticed a couple other people had come in, maybe those were the actual winners of the contest.

The guys said they'd see us later on as they were getting ready to go get ready for the show. We also  got  to meet  the guys from Imagine Dragons. They are sweet, genuine gracious people. We noticed they opened the doors for everyone else so we headed straight for the front row where we took up a good part of it. I stood over by Dave's side of the stage, even further over than I have the last few shows. Kenny still has his keys set further back near Hayden. I heard him say that he likes being over there now.

The crowd filled up & it got crowded quickly. We were right up against the barricade. I had a girl with a very big bag up against my back. Let's just say she was a part of my angst for most of the evening. Behind us a fight almost broke out over something that sounded petty & immature. I tried to drone it out. The anticipation of the show was a buzz from all of us. We decided as a group that if Zeale picked a word from us to do his freestyle, that our word was Chewbacca. Rockwell came out, spun a little & then did his introduction for Gibran & Zeale to come out on stage. Such energy & enthusiasm from those guys. They had Patricia Lynn come out to sing on "Hope Dies." And then when Zeale started "Mr. Black Rogers," Aaron came out! It was so cool to watch them perform together. They both looked so happy together on the stage. Aaron boasted a big beaming smile & happily aimed the pro-go out into the audience before leaving the stage. Zeale used our word for part of his freestyle (sexy, fire, chewbacca), we went a little crazy when he said it. His set ended & the Imagine Dragons came out. I had a much better view this time than when I last saw them.  They put on an amazing show! Dan, their frontman has so much energy & emotion. You tell he had a lot of it during their set. The anticipation grew waiting for Awol to take the stage. Then Megalithic Symphony started & out walked the guys...and Aaron with a large walking stick. He commanded the stage & then headed over to the drums & it was taken off the stage. As always such a great set of epicness. They left out a couple songs this time around but it's ok we got to hear an accapella version of Lean on Me by Aaron which was incredible. As soon as the guys finished Knights & left the stage, a few of us got set lists & then we rushed for water & bathrooms. Then we headed outside to wait around. Kenny came out & we thanked him for yet another amazing show. He stood around & talked with us for a bit. Then Drew came out & he greeted us happily. Someone started the conversation with him that we're a different group of fans, different from groupies. He told us that we are their "fuel." It made us all happily giddy as we headed out to get some food & head over to have a slumber party in Austin before attempting to get a bit of shuteye before embarking on Day 2 of our adventures...

to be continued....

getting to writing

It's been a while now since my Texas adventure came & went. Finally sitting down to write it all out. It was great & the post will be long since it entails 3 days of shows spent with my nation family. <A3