Ginger Presley had our first "official" gig this past Saturday. It was a total trip, and a great warm up for our official "debut" this upcoming Saturday.

Our drummer, Sally, plays in a band with her brothers called Reimer Revolution (RXR). A friend of their's was throwing a "First Quarter Party" to celebrate Spring in their (very rural) home town. The party was held at the Rod & Gun club in their town, and there were four bands booked to play. We were scheduled second to last, with Reimer Revolution headlining the show.

( Read More + Pics )

The first thirty minutes of band rehearsal last night were spent shopping for a Keytar on e-bay.

AWESOME.



In other news, I am coming down with a cold. AGAIN. Hold me.

Friday night was the first gig for Ryan's new band, Booger Presley. (Not to be confused with my new band, Ginger Presley, lol.)

They had a huge turn out, and they kicked ASS. It's always very exciting for me, the first time I get to see Ryan perform in a new band, so I had a lot of fun.

( Pics! )

It's pretty cool when, after introducing myself to my class of new hires*, one responds with a sigh of relief and "Oh, thank goodness. I have a friend who works here who said she hopes I get Joella for training." and then another says "Oh my gosh! Me too!"

:D

I guess I must be doing something right!


*Incidentally, between training new hires (which occupies most of my time at work for two weeks) and practicing as much as possible with Ginger Presley, my presence on the internets will be minimal for the next couple of weeks.

I'm attempting to keep up with my friends page, but I'm skimming, so get my attention one way or another if there's something you specifically want me to read/respond to.

All my love to all y'all!! :)

So, I'm totally in a band now. A band that KICKS ASS.

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OMG I'M GOING TO BE IN A BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*dies*







ETA: I will go into more detail after this weekend, when we will be having our FIRST OFFICIAL BAND MEETING OMG OMG OMG YAY!!

*blink*

The Winter Solstice is already upon us?

Christmas is in 4 days?

*blink*

Where did this month go? Screw that, where did this year go?

I'm just not feelin' the holidays this year. There's no snow on the ground, and as nifty as it is that it's warm enough to rain in December, I really do prefer a white Christmas. I didn't decorate my house nearly as much as I usually do, and I still have most of my holiday shopping left to do. Bah humbug.

Ryan will be hittin' the road within the hour for a jam-packed weekend of out of town gigs. He'll get home on Sunday, Christmas Eve, and we'll have to rush off to my mom's church (I hope I manage to get through the door without bursting into flames again this year) and then to her house for our annual festivities.

Last year, Ryan was gone on Christmas day for a gig. That was a little bit of a bummer, but since he and I normally have our celebration on the Solstice, it wasn't the end of the world. This year, he's gone for the Solstice, and I'm bummed. :( I'll be celebrating by my lonesome, I guess. He told me I should open my present even though he's gone. Ummm....NO. He wasn't supposed to get me anything anyway. My new coat and trip to Kansas were supposed to be my gifts. He's a stinker.

I haven't heard my favorite holiday song ONCE this year. Can't a girl get a little "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" to brighten her day? *sigh*

( In Other News )


Well, that was nice and whiney.

I hope you all have a great weekend, and if you're celebrating any holidays, I hope they're filled with love and joy.

I'm going to spam you with posts for the next couple of days to make up for my absence later this week. You've been warned. :p

I will apply liberal use of LJ Cuts.

This was a pretty fantastic weekend.

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Happy Monday, y'all, I hope your weekends were all as fantabulous as mine! :)

Overall, I had a pretty nice weekend. Friday night was mostly a night to myself, with a stop over to my sister's new house. Saturday, Emily and I had Nika (of the crazy farm) give us haircuts (and heavenly head massages, omg. I think I'm in love with Nika now.) After our little pampering session, we headed out to the crazy farm for a couple of hours of relaxation, after which I returned home to make dinner for me & Ed. We also watched the movie "Broken Flowers", and I want my two hours back. :p

Sunday I was all domestic and stuff until Ryan returned from his gig-filled weekend away, and then we just chilled for the rest of the evening and I got to hear all about his (rather unpleasant, with little sprinkles of goodness) weekend.

Normally, hanging out at the crazy farm is pure bliss, but this time, I saw something that disturbed me. When I walked into the house, a woman who I'd never met before was breastfeeding. And I was disturbed. Not because she was breastfeeding, because I think that nursing is a beautiful, natural thing and I support it, and do not find it offensive in the least. So...why was I disturbed? Well....here....take my poll:


Poll #882447 Speak up?
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

You see a woman breastfeeding. As her child is nursing, you witness her taking sips of beer, and smoking from a pipe full of marijuana that is being passed around. What do you do?

Wow, for a five day weekend, that went by fast!!

I was sure I was going to make some headway on the list of entries to write, but alas, it was not to be. I was so busy with family, friends, and food (WAY too much food) that I didn't have much time for interneting.

Let's see...Wednesday morning began a 5 morning-streak of sleeping WAY too late. I slept until at least 10:00 am each day, which is completely unlike me, but it was much needed and appreciated sleep! Wednesday evening, I went with touretticmonkey (Ed) to a Vegan Thanksgiving dinner at his Grandparents' house. I was a little nervous to meet his Grandparents and his mom, (especially since they knew of me as "the married chick that Ed met online and dated briefly before deciding to be 'just' friends") but there was really nothing to be nervous about. His Grandma and Grandpa are absolutely delightful, and while I think it took his mom a little bit to warm up to me, I think we hit it off just fine. And the food was incredible. After dinner and tea we all sat around in the living room just talking and sharing stories and such. It was very nice!

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For the record, This still holds true. :-)

As you may have guessed, I've had a delightful weekend. That compounded with some of the reading and introspecting (word?) that I've been up to lately has me seeing the world in a new and beautiful way. And it's not a rose-colored glasses kind of thing, either, because I still see all the pain and hate and ugliness in the world, but I accept it as part of the beauty. Part of the whole picture. There is balance. Balance is good. Balance is beauty.

( This Quote, )

which I came across in mnarra's journal while perusing my friends list this morning gave me even more food for thought. I think it's a valuable, universal lesson. Your thoughts?


I've been making lots of progress on my endeavors for personal growth, particularly as they relate to social anxieties and discomfort. I was "on my own", socially speaking, for the majority of the weekend, and you know what? I survived. Not only did I survive, but I had a great time, and saw lots of great people who I don't often see. I almost talked my self into staying home Saturday night, but I'm glad I forced myself out of the house, because I would have missed out on an awesome evening.

( Some details on my weekend )

I know it's been over a week, but...

( Halloween Pictures under the cut )

u93ooq

That's how my name comes out when my fingers are on the row above the home row. :p

There are about 6 million social activities going on this weekend that I could take part in. Initially, I was planning on tagging along with the band to Steven's Point this weekend for their gigs there, but we've been unsuccessful in finding a pet-sitter. Plus, I leave for Chicago next Tuesday, and that's just a whole lot of get-up-and-go for a gal like me, so I've decided to stay home.

Oktoberfest (AKA NotSoberFest) starts this weekend, but I don't know how much I'm feelin' that. I think I'm in that phase where I'm both too old and too young to enjoy rowdy drunken debauchery. Especially without the hubby home to hold my hair back and stuff. ;)

Here's what I'm planning on making plenty of time for this weekend:

Meditation
Yoga
Journaling (hand written)
Introspection/Contemplation
Playing Guitar
Doing stuff with my hands, i.e. gardening, making some jewelry, knitting, etc.

I'm feeling compelled to nurture my relationship with myself.

Last weekend, Ryan and I went to Kenosha, his home town, because his band was playing a gig at his Aunt's brother's bar there. We ended up going down Friday night to spend an extra night with his family.
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I know there are a hanful of my LJ Friends in the Madison area. I wanted to let y'all know that Ryan's band, Three Beers 'Til Dubuque, will be in Madison this Saturday, September 16th.

Ryan will be giving a free Drum Clinc at Drums-n-Moore, and the band will be playing at The Dry Bean.


Drum Clinic Info:

Drums-n-Moore
6300 Monona Dr.

Time: 1:00 p.m.

Topics to be covered: Set-up, tuning, fundamentals, styles, and soloing.


Three Beers 'Til Dubuque:

The Dry Bean
5264 Verona Rd

Time: 9:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m.


Unfortunately, I won't be joining him, but if you're in the area, check it out! Go up and introduce yourself, too. He's the drummer, long brown hair, glasses, looks kind of like a male version of me. If you do attend, let me know what you think! :)

Life is a bit of whirlwind right now, in mostly good ways. :)

I've just come off a great weekend, we took the dogs to camp at a music festival my hubby's band was playing in, and had a BLAST. Saw lots of friends, met some new friends, and everyone one was warm, friendly, and didn't mind my hugginess. I partook (a very small amount) of a psychedelic mushroom treat, and that tends to make me quite huggy. I had a lovely time, and all of Sunday evening radiated love and beauty all around me. The dogs behaved marvelously at their first festival. They were quite popular. It's been at least a year since I've been to a festival like that, and it felt like home. I'm always in my element amongst all the hippies, and surrounded by my kind of music. Good stuff.

This week we're trying to get our house in order before we take off for the weekend to Ryan's home town. His band has a gig there, and we'll be spending the weekend with his mom's side of the family and some of his long-time friends. This weekend promises to be filled with as much fun and love as the last, though in a wildly different environment.

Ryan and I have been putting a lot of focus on our marriage and on it's continued growth. We were stagnating for a while there, and our renewed passion for our relationship is invigorating. We've been spending a little time at least a couple of nights a week in conversation about our marriage, discussing where we've been, where we are, and where we'd like to head together. We've also been revisiting discussions of polyamory and how it shapes up for us. (More on that when I have more time.)

I've also met someone local who I share a lot in common with, and who I'm in the process of getting to know a little better, but based on past experiences, I don't want to say too much about it early on. I'll just say that it's exciting and refreshing to make a good connection with someone new, and leave it at that for now.

Love and Peace to all y'all! :)



ETA: I've had some additional requests for Declarations of Coolness, which I'm looking forward to writing, but may not have the opportunity to do so until next week. Sit tight to those of you waiting on them! :)

-Tuning my guitar while drunk and stoned yields interesting results.

-Wearing a little bit of lipstick and eye shadow every once in a while makes me feel fuckin' sexy. If that makes me a bad hippie, I don't care.

-I AM capable of cleaning up dog puke without puking myself.

( On a more serious note... )

-Started drinking at 8 am.
-Got to meet and hang out with iam_misbehaving, who took lots of probably awesome pictures!
-Saw lots of Ryan's family that we don't get to see often.
-Watched the guys put on an AWESOME show.
-Got DRENCHED, windblown, and hailed on in the severe storms that slammed us shortly after the guys got done playing.
-Had an interesting bus ride home, with everyone (including me) shedding as many articles of wet clothing as possible.
-Stopped at a bar half way home and watched various band members/groupies sing bad karoake.
-( cut for sexual content )

The dinner I made tonight was fantastic. If you want to learn how to make ( these totally awesome stuffed peppers ), then click here to see the recipe in my recipe journal.



For those in and around the Milwauke area (or those willing to travel there) my husband's band, Three Beers Til Dubuque, will be playing at Summerfest on the Miller Lite Oasis Stage this Sunday, July 9, at 2 PM. Let me know if you might be there, so we can perhaps coordinate meeting up. Last year, I had the pleasure of meeting and hanging out with endersgame3 there, while young girls shook their asses in our faces. That could be you!

The band has a web site, but their myspace is more active than that, so click here to check that out.

Okay, that was a lot of HTML for me, so I'm sure several edits are pending.

ETA: I must be getting good at this, I got all the code right on the first try! :)

The bathroom is done. Totally done. It cost twice at much as we'd hoped it would. Thank goodness for a decent income tax refund this year, or we'd not have $0 credit card balances right now. Really, for a nearly complete renovation of a bathroom, we got off easy, money-wise.

And the outcome is.............I LOVE it. I just keep walking in to the bathroom, looking around, and smiling. I'll take pictures and post them for y'all this week sometime.

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(Oh, I'm still working on answers to the rest of your questions. I should get them posted this week, I think.)