Minnesota and Montana 2011

Wow! So it's been a while, and I am STILL on vacation. Lucky girl, right? Yes. Yes indeed. I have had so much fun these past few days, so I thought I'd share a couple pictures (not as many as the last post, I swear!) 

We spent our first night after Chicago in Woodbury, MN with my aunt Annette and her family. No pictures, unfortunately, but we had a great time at a baseball game, eating food from the grill, and playing on the Wii. 

The next day we got up and made the trek up to the Twin Cities for a little trip to Mall of America! 

Here's the three of us on the Log Ride in the Nickelodeon Theme Park. Eliot absolutely loves this ride and makes us go on it every year. Then, every year Elise and I swear we won't go the next year. Aaaaand, repeat. 

We met Grandma at the mall, too - here's the four of us waiting for the park to open. We were right on time!

So after the mall, we drove about an hour and a half to the lake where we stay every year. The first two nights were great! We did some swimming and played cards and went shopping (again). Unfortunately, the third day we were there, it rained heavily and backed up the water systems at the cabin, causing some leakage. So we moved into Grandma and Grandpa's house for the rest of the trip!

Every year we celebrate my brother and uncle's birthdays because they're ten years and one day apart. So here's a picture of our little birthday extravaganza. Aunt Betty and Uncle Loren also came out for the day and it was great to see them!

After a few days at the cabin, we moved on to Montana, somewhere I'd never been before and was anxious to see. And boy, did we do everything. The first day, we got there in the late afternoon, so we mostly got settled and ate a lot.

The second day, we had all sorts of things to do! In the morning, Aunt Lynn took us out on the four-wheeler so I could see a view of the mountains! 

We also took a look at the car Uncle Tommy built - the last day we were there, he took us for a ride. So much fun!

He also taught me how to shoot a rifle! It's hard to see from this picture, but I hit the bullseye. I was so excited to try something new!

On Wednesday, Aunt Lynn and Uncle Tommy took us up to the Rocky Mountains. It was absolutely beautiful! I'd never seen the mountains before (something that Aunt Lynn couldn't believe!) and was so excited to cross this awesome experience off my bucket list. 

Here's Elise and me at the tip-top of the mountain! We're standing on a snow bank and freezing as the wind blows furiously around us - but it was so worth it. What a great trip! Thanks Aunt Lynn and Uncle Tommy for hosting us.

This morning we left Montana and drove through eastern Montana, the corner of Wyoming, through South Dakota, and are now staying the night in Chadron, Nebraska (yeah, super exciting, I know). By tomorrow night, we should be home! I am so excited to get there and see all my friends. I didn't realize how much I missed them until I couldn't see them so often. 

I've had such a great two weeks with my family, and I know I'm going to remember this vacation forever. I am so grateful for parents who love me enough to take me on these great trips and let me see and explore the world for myself. Thank you, Mom and Dad! You have taught me so much and I am grateful for everything you've given me. 

Hope everyone's July has been great so far!

Dave Matthews Band Caravan + Chicago 2011

Just wanted to share some pics/video from Dave Matthews Band Caravan, as well as our adventures in Chicago! The caravan was great - the atmosphere was very edgy and dirty and a lot of fun...I made quite a few "friends" that I probably wouldn't have made anywhere else! 

The first day was definitely the best, music-wise: Amos Lee was fantastic! It was so mellow and I stood close enough to the stage to see him really well, and there weren't a lot of drunken college kids stumbling around. 

Here's Amos Lee on the screen on the right hand side. 

Toward the end of his set, he brought out this guy whose name I didn't catch. He just sang this really funny song about how hot it was outside and how he wanted to shower with his lover and then threw mini bottles of shampoo and conditioner into the audience. Again, not really sure who he was or where he came from, but he was hilarious.  

Next I caught Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. Performance? Pretty good! The audience that he draws in? Super sketchy. Definitely not my favorite. 

I did record a smidge of the live version of "Home." If you haven't heard the original, check it out here. 

Then came Ray LaMontagne, who was both extremely loud, but really great. I always think it's so funny to see what kind of people come to hear which artists. Ray's audience was definitely extra chilled-out, so chill that it almost seemed like they didn't care - until, that is, he started singing "Trouble" and then they all freaked out. 

Super blurry, yes, but there's Ray on the screen. Every time I tried to take a picture or video of him, my phone completely shut down, so apparently it has some sort of aversion to his music. 

After a nice break, I came back for the main event: DAVE MATTHEWS! I was so in awe of the whole performance that I really didn't take any pictures or videos, I just stood and danced and loved my life. It was a great experience overall, and for once, I felt like everyone was there just to be in the moment and have a great time dancing and singing - no one was judging, no one cared if you could dance or  you couldn't, no one even cared if you were dirty and grimy and smelly from the day. Everyone just loved the experience. 

Some of my favorites of that first night: 

Squirm

Rapunzel 

(this is actually a video someone else took of the Chicago concert that night)

Big Eyed Fish

So that was day one. Day two was a little different. Because it is so hard to get into the concert site (it's in Southside Chicago, which, if you didn't know, is an extremely dangerous part of Chicago and not one that you should spend a lot of time wandering around in), I skipped day two. I know, I know, I could've seen Ben Folds live (!!!) and another fabulous show by Dave, but I knew I had Sunday to look forward to, and frankly, I was exhausted from Friday. 

So instead...we went to Navy Pier! 

Mom took these pictures of the ferris wheel that we rode on - this is looking up!

A view of Navy Pier

And a view of the lake!

We had such a fun time, and it was nice to take a break and see some Chicago sites before heading back to the DMB Caravan site on Sunday! 

I went back on the 10th so excited to see Michael Franti & Spearhead perform. I had been anticipating it since I'd seen the lineup, and I couldn't wait to get there. And they were great, musically. Michael Franti has a really strong voice and a great presence. But the thing that made it less than perfect was the location, I think. I walked away a little disappointed and it took me a while to figure out why: he is such a Caribbean, beachy crooner, that to put him on stage on a big gray stage in front of an audience sitting on woodchips kind of ruins the magic of his music. Nevertheless though, I loved him. I want to see him perform in California or something, though. I feel like he's incredible when the location matches the genre. 

Here's him performing - he's the one in the white hat with his arms outstretched. All he really wanted us to do was jump and sing with him.

I also got a video of one of my favorite songs of his: "Sound of Sunshine." But then I really wanted to dance and groove, so I shut the camera off about a minute in. 

After Michael, I went and found a place to sit for DMB, and I ended up meeting some really nice people in their early 30s from Ohio/Florida - they were brothers and sisters. One of them was a real purist, had been listening to Dave for over 15 years and had been to 60+ shows. He was excited to hear that this was my first! They made it a really great experience and it was a nice end to the event. 

Here's a view of the Caravan site. The sun was just starting to go down, and it cast a really great shadow of everything. 

There's Dave on the screen! Just ignore the weird people I was standing behind. 

Once it got really dark, the lights cast a gorgeous hue over everyone. The second photo gives you an idea of just how many people were there. Not only were there this many in front of me, but they extended behind me a good 30-40 yards, and there were just as many on either side of the stage. 

Here's a final view of the Caravan site. Obviously it was much bigger than this, but this gives a little context. Beyond the ferris wheel was one of the minor stages (Lakeside) and to the right was the Slip stage, where Michael Franti played. Way far over to the right was the major stage (Southworks), where I saw Amos, Ray, Edward Sharpe, and Dave every night. 

It was such a great experience, and I'm so grateful that my parents made it possible for me to go by providing housing and transportation (not just to Chicago, but all over Southside Chicago too) for free. I love you guys! 

Drivin' and drivin' and drivin' some more.

Tomorrow is the big day. The day in which we drive 8.5 hours and then I get to spend 6 hours with my favorite men in the world: Amos Lee, Ray LaMontagne, Edward Sharpe, and of course, Dave Matthews.

I spent all of today packing and shopping and making playlists, which is my absolute favorite thing to do. So, here's a little bit of my playlist!

Bryan J. I think he's so funny, and this song is just ridiculous. 

Nickel Creek has slowly become one of my favorite bands. A guy I went to school with/sang in choir with introduced me to the band, and I've been hooked ever since!

I found Jamestown Revival through Rolling Stone magazine, and even though they didn't win the cover contest, I still think they should've. They're very mellow, and they use a banjo sometimes...all of my favorite things.

Gomez is one of the bands that will be performing at DMBCaravan this weekend, and I got this song on the Caravan sampler. I love their sound!

Hope that's given you a little music for your weekend. I'll post some pictures once we get to the caravan!

Writing

Hello all!

As some of you may know, every November I like to participate in National Novel Writing Month, a contest that encourages writers to write 50,000 words in 30 days. The magic number, to save you some math, is 1667 words a day, which is more than you might think. It's easy to get behind if you don't write faithfully every day!

NaNoWriMo is something I love to do because it forces me to be very focused in my writing for at least a month. It isn't a program that is meant to churn out a work of genius, nor are the participants expected to write great prose every day. That's what I love about it. It's about making a mess, getting creative, and seeing what your brain will churn out if you give it enough freedom.

This summer, one of my goals was to write a novel in 30 days, so as of yesterday, I've begun. It's all very messy, but I started a Moleskine for the book in early June, and I've got a lot of notes and excerpts that give me some much needed fuel when I can't get through a paragraph without hating my writing. I'm excited to get writing, but I wanted to let you all know what I've been doing with my summer: National Novel Writing Month in July! 30 days of nonstop writing. And yes, I know July has 31 days. Close enough.

In the meantime, here's one of my favorite songs to write to. I actually love listening to the whole Harry Potter soundtrack, but this is one of my favorites. Gets me focused! 

Happy writing, and happy July!
<3 Adrienne

Eye Candy

I know, I know, a little fluffy today. But I just got my new computer, and I've been having fun uploading pictures of my favorite men as my wallpaper.

Here's a couple of my favorites:

Ryan Gosling. Yes.

John Krasinski. I found this picture of him with the scarf and I couldn't help but sigh contentedly. It makes me happy knowing somewhere out there is a guy who can wear a scarf and not look ridiculous.

Johnny Depp. 

Alright, so not really eye candy. But I do love Flight of the Conchords. And Bret (right) is adorable in a geek-chic sort of way, right?

Who is that, you ask? Why, it's Paul McCartney, of course! I love this picture. Clearly he didn't realize anyone was taking his picture, which makes it all the more enchanting.

And now, for the man who truly steals the show, Robert Buckley. A former economist turned TV actor, he currently stares on One Tree Hill, which, as some of you may know, is one of my favorite guilty pleasures. Look at that second picture. Glasses? An economics book? It's like a dream come true. 

Hope that brightens up your Friday a little! <3