Textual Healing: My ACL Recap 2008

Let's cover the basics of this year's festival:

Who I saw:

What Made Milwaukee Famous - great way to start the weekend.

Vampire Weekend - apparently it wasn't a memorable performance b/c I keep forgetting that I saw them

Jamie Lidell - AMAZING...his performance was an unexpected surprise

Patty Griffin - beautiful as always...

Gogol Bordello - start wearing purple, wearing purple....loved the "lion king"

David Byrne - Yay for the dancers :)

The Swell Season - good, but definitely made me realize how tired I was

Fleet Foxes - nice way to kick off day two

The Fratelllis - eh

The Lee Boys - fun times

Eli Paperboy Reed & the True Loves - even more fun times

MGMT - another band that I keep forgetting that I saw, but I think I'm mentally blocking that crowd experience...seriously, Jen even texted that therapy may be required, and I concurred

John Fogerty -  I LOVED THIS SHOW....my fav performance, hands down! Plus he rocks a plaid pearl snap & bandana like no other...

The Black Keys - sounded awesome...I was camped out for the next show though

Allison Krauss & Robert Plant - loved that they sang "Black Dog"

Beck - enjoyable

Stars - surprisingly energetic beginning of day three

Blues Traveler - pretty much what I expected

The Raconteurs - good

Band of Horses - great show, as anticipated

Foo Fighters - sounded great, for what I heard of it

**Kevin Fowler - didn't really watch him, but he earned major cool points with me for playing "Sweet Emotion" and "Fat Bottomed Girls" which we heard on our way out....

"Loves" of this year's festival:

1. Jen came! Plus all of the other wonderful friends I spent time with.

2. The additional beverage options....especially the addition of Vitamin Water.

3. My preparedness....although my bag was heavy, I liked having everything I needed!

4. The little booklets instead of just pamphlets for the schedule....loved the book!

5. The fabric wristbands....awesome!

"Dislikes"....

1. The ever-growing mob of people.

2. The "dust/weed" fog that encompassed the entire area.

3. Thieving kids...one girl walked by talking about she just stole 5 pairs of sunglasses from on of the vendors...not cool, my dear....not cool.

4. My poor timing with my camera...I was like 10 feet away from Dave Grohl at one point...plus me and Jen think we were sitting next to the band members of Flyleaf pre-Jamie Lidell (if so, we are concerned about a few of their habits).

5. The two hour delay on texts....which I find ironic considering that AT&T is my carrier, and they are one of the big sponsors of the event. Blake commented that I might need "textual healing" after my weekend...and I agreed that it would be necessary. 

Overall, it was a wonderful festival experience. I had a blast listening to great tunes with great people. It's a little sad that it's already over, but  I must confess that it will be nice not to be out in the heat covered in grime with a questionable fog surrounding me at all times.

PS - Jen sat across the aisle from Allison Krauss on her flight home!

listen.read.LOVE.repeat.

It has come to my attention that I've had a very selfish focus/attitude over the past several months. I was reminded that I have been granted a lot of "free" time, and I think it is appropriate that I start using that time for a greater purpose.

Enter my current brain-child revelation:

listen.read.LOVE.repeat.

One day it occurred to me that I have more than my fair share of books and cds lying around, many of which will never get touched by me again....and it hit me that a lot of people probably have an excess of these items as well. I started thinking of ways these particular items could be used to benefit others. 

Here's the concept that I developed:

1. Take donations of used books and cds. 

2. Resell the items for a set price (currently thinking $5).

3. Put all profits towards a charity (possibly Children Mothers of Uganda).

Not only is this a way to expose people to different books/music for a reasonable price, but the more amazing thing is that it could help provide funds to save lives. This concept combines several of my passions, obviously music and literature...but also promotes recycling and more importantly a cause. The underlying idea is that we would listen to the needs of others, read information about how we can help, love people through our actions and repeat the process. 

This whole thing is still in the brainstorming stage...so I would appreciate any comments/suggestions. I'm currently investigating whether or not there may be any legal issues, and praying over which charity to support. 

I'm also praying for my faith to look and sound like this...

even if the ones I love turn around and crucify me, 

I won't ever let You down, 

I won't fall, 

I won't fall, 

I won't fall as long as You're around me

-washed by the water by needtobreathe

hurricane

I recently heard the song "Hurricane" by Jimmy Needham...and the lyrics just really resonated with me:

I have built a city here

half with pride and half with fear

just wanted a safer place to hide

I don't want to be safe tonight

I need You like a hurricane

thunder crashing, wind and rain

to tear my walls down

I'm only Yours now

I need You like a burning flame

a wild fire untamed

to burn these walls down

I'm only Yours now

I'm only Yours now

I am Yours and You are mine

You know that far better than I

and if destruction's what I need

then I'll receive it Lord from Thee

yes, I'll receive it Lord from Thee

and it's Your eye in the storm

watching over me

and it's Your eye in the storm

wanting only good for me

and if You are the war

let me be Your casualty

'til I'm Yours alone

I am only Yours

I am Yours alone, Lord

come be my hurricane

It's a hard idea to grasp...that destruction may be needed....definitely a concept that I wrestle with...

hip to be square

I think it's my restless nature kicking in, but I've been looking for ways to get involved/grow/learn/etc so that I'm not just going to work and doing the same old routine. I love the academic setting, but I'm not ready to commit to anything serious (ie. pursuing my masters)...so instead I recently started looking into the Informal Classes that UT offers. They have a fairly extensive catalog of courses to choose from...and, thanks to my erratic interests, I was fairly overwhelmed by all my options. Feel free to check it all out here.

Here are all of the classes that appealed to me...some slightly more legit choices than others...

Basic Pistol I - this is essentially what I already learned at Ladies' Night at Red's Shooting Range.

Hang Gliding - but alas I am too chicken....maybe one day...

Breakdancing - dang all the reality TV dance shows that make me think I could do this.

Intro to Street Jazz - curious as to what constitutes "street" jazz...I have visions of West Side Story.

Oil Painting - this is the only way I will get back into painting regularly...but it is also one of the most costly options...will have to wait for the summer.

How to Write a Comic Book Strip - my brothers used to make me do this all the time; might as well put my talents to use.

Writing Your First Book - they make it sound so simple.

How to Become a Private Eye 101 - umm...seriously considering this one-day seminar; and now, as if it wasn't bad enough that I am already in a Hall & Oates phase, I have the song Private Eyes permanently stuck in my head. 

These classes caught my eye, but only because I'm highly skeptical of the course content...

Write a Book in 3 Weeks - is this something that can really be taught?

Forgiveness Made Easy - refer to previous question. the "made easy" part is what I question.

Meditating with the Angels - really? it's sad that someone is going to make money for teaching this class...and even sadder that someone will pay to take this class.

I actually signed up to take the following two classes...

Texas Wine & Cheese - I mean, how could I pass a class up that involved wine and cheese?!

Personal Expression in Photography - keeping my fingers crossed that I will get in...out of college, but still subjected to being on a wait list for the class that I want!

long ride home

This past weekend, I made a long over-due trip back to Buna to catch up with my family, etc. It was weird going back this time around...especially since it was just me (no Mitch or Taylor tagging along for this trip). Heading back to the piney woods always brings back a surge of memories and emotions...some good, some not-so-good. In my mind, Buna exists in a space that has been frozen in time...in other words, I essentially expect everything to be the same as when I left it...even though I know the town (and the people) are changing just like everything else.

This weekend made me question why I've chosen to stay away for so long...it was a lot like having a hearty helping of comfort food for the soul. Nothing exceptionally great happened (in fact it was more of a sobering time), but I was just reminded of the community of people that have loved, raised and supported me...it made me realize how much I've taken that kind of environment for granted. 

Highlights of the weekend include:

*Visiting both sets of grandparents

*Hanging out with my parents/aunts/uncles/family friends at their Sunday School social

*Nabbing a picture of the cow that is my mom's namesake (b/c it was born on her b-day)

*Eating at Fausto's with my parents (along with the entire Buna coaching staff) 

*My mom's beef tips and rice...mmm...good stuff

*Gumbo courtesy of Tammy Gatlin :)

*Digging through old photographs for a Christmas gift project that I've started

*Watching the UT football game with my dad

*Getting a FryDaddy and 2lbs of fish (apparently my papa feels like it's time for me to learn how to fry my own fish...I was told if I didn't screw up this batch, then he would give me more fish to cook the next time I come home)

This past weekend was also incredibly sad...a good family friend, Mr. Bill Lee, passed away on Saturday evening. Growing up, he and his wife (Essie) were pretty much like an additional set of grandparents to me. They've been a part of my life ever since I was a toddler...some of my first memories are from back when my parents would go square-dancing with Lee's (and yes, I do have some glorious pics of their dancing exploits). I think everyone else was a lot more prepared for his passing than I was; his health had been declining for quite some time. I just was unaware of how truly serious his condition was. My mom called as I was driving in on Friday to tell me that she and my dad were headed to the hospital...they had gotten a call that Bill was not expected to make it through the night. It was then that reality really began to set in. 

I was at home by myself when the calls started coming in on Saturday evening to let us know that he had passed....and being the coward that I am, I refused to answer the phone because a.) I was operating on a "if I ignore it, then nothing bad happened" mentality (lame, I know), because answering the phone meant that it was real, not just speculation... b.) I didn't want to be the person responsible for giving the news to my parents, etc. As bad as the "not answering the phone" episode, I am more frustrated with myself for not staying in town to go the funeral yesterday, because I should have been there...especially for Essie.