Hipster Sister

I am turning my 17-year-old sister into a hipster. I showed her "Gotta Have You" by the Weepies and today she told me she has been listening to them all day. I also plan on getting that twig-legged girl a pair of skinny jeans. So far I think Express has the best option for her. Good ones are hard to find!

What?... she's going to college soon, so she'll fit right in. :)

Several Years Late...

I used to be the girl that hated the hype that Coldplay brought to American Culture. I didn't see anything great about them. Their songs were overplayed on the radio and sounded way too much like U2. In fact, I didn't know Clocks wasn't by U2 until a couple years ago.

Needless to say, I have fallen in love with Viva la Vida since its release last June. Little by little, the British band started growing on me and when I heard that they aren't releasing anymore albums after VLV, I got really sad. :(

FORTUNATELY...

Due to my anti-conformity, coldplay-snubbing days, I have several albums to hear and enjoy in addition to their latest! Although I missed hearing their progression from beginning to the present, I can definitely hear how they've changed.

So, I am going to swallow my pride and admit that all of these years I have been missing out. In short... I love Coldplay's old stuff. like, LOVE it. Namely, "Shiver". I know it isn't cutting edge and the most unique-sounding song, but I love Chris Martin's vibratto and usage of falsetto. I have heard critics call that aspect of their older sound somewhat immature, but I think it's great. The melody is super catchy and I love the instrumentation. It totally motivates me at work (which means I should probably end this post and get back to just that).

So, my song crush for the month is definitely "Shiver" from Parachutes. :D

Surgery!

April 3 is the day for my arthroscopic knee surgery! I thought I would be getting in sooner, but I don't mind. It ruins plans I may have had for any sort of weekend, but I don't have those very often anyway.

I was just in Washington DC for about 4 days last week. I went for a DCMA Keystone orientation and actually had a pretty good time. I was able to bring my mother with to be the baggage handler/companion whilst I hobbled along through terminals and to shuttles. It was nice having her along even though everyone at work is now making fun of me for being unable to leave my mother behind. har har, guys.

I met some people that... well, to put it quite honestly, are the probably type of people that I have been hoping I wouldn't run into at these ever-feared DCMA classes. Well, not so much that I wouldn't run into them, but that they would be the only ones to invite me along to an evening of anything-to-do. Drinking is something I have no experience with, and I don't really like the idea of using it to have a good time. Granted, it may ease any tension and loosen up any stiff that may be in the group, but... i guess my idea of a good time is the kind with friends and a good level of sobriety.

Anyway, these guys said they might give Chris and I a call if they got a group together to do anything (Chris is the other keystone from DCMA Twin Cities, only, located in Iowa). They didn't call, but Chris and I bumped into them in the lobby. They were just going to get a bite to eat down by Pentagon Row, and consequently, we joined up with them because our anything-to-do was pretty similar to theirs. Anyway, we took the Metro to a stop near the White House and walked around it (yeah, I "walked"... without crutches. I am progressively learning to walk again!). We gave a shout-out to Barack and the girls while we were there, and then wandered around the pretty desolate Washington DC streets. Our wanderings led us to a place that put most of my companions into somewhat of a stupor, and they were kind enough to share some of the spirit...and they also shared a little of their Jaegermeister knowledge with me. Well, we took a taxi home because my leg was tired, and none of us felt like going through the rigmarole of taking the Metro.

I did have a good time, even though these gentlemen were really not the kind of people I would have expected myself to have fun with. I am pretty sure none of them expected much out of me either. I was a little offended that none of them believed me when I said I would enjoy a gin sour (maybe they don't have those in Boston?). Even though I will never try a Jaeger Bomb, it does sound pretty cool with a Boston accent. So, thanks for the enlightenment on what people from Boston do for fun, boys. :)

As far as the orientation went... I didn't learn that much, mostly because a few boring speakers got me and Chris into a crossword puzzle frenzy that I couldn't get out of until I got home from it all. We were pretty good until that second one...

Don't assume this is an accurate summary of the week. I did take home valuable lessons (for those of you concerned about the usage of your tax dollars contributing to my travel expenses) and have a great Washington DC experience for only having one good leg.

Skiing...

Urban dictionary:
"Biff it": to fall down in a spectacularly embarassing manner
i.e. whoa, you biff it like, twice a day on those stairs

or, in my case, whoa, you biffed it like, big time on that hill.

Skiing, that is. I went to Afton Alps with my friends Jenny and Amanda after work on Monday. It was a great time, and Amanda and I were ready to turn in for the night after one more time down that black diamond hill we were growing fond of.

Well, needless to say, it would definitely be the last time we went down for the evening. I just didn't think I would be taken away by a snowmobile when I got to the bottom.

As for the details...
I stayed toward the tree line, where people didn't do much skiing that day. The grooves were still pristine from the groomer and because the snow was untouched, got a little icy. In an instant my left ski took a sharp right turn underneath my right ski and my left leg twisted behind me. I'm not too sure how far I slid, but it would have been nice if the skis came off when I...uh, biffed. I have never been in so much pain. I hate pain. This is why I've never had anything like this happen to me before--I do my best to avoid it. Plus, now that I'm an adult, I have to deal with the pain that doctor's visits and MRI tests will bring to my pocketbook. Boo.

Anyway, I waited for the snowmobile to come to me, but the hill was too steep to park on. I scooted on my tush to the bottom, then they wrapped me up on the gurney/trailer behind the snowmobile and took me to the medical station. I was very aware of how ridiculous this had become, but the fact that my left knee was in such pain made me pretty apathetic about how dumb I looked.

The Thompsons lent me all of their leg injury tools: crutches, knee stablizer, ace bandage, advil... and I am so thankful for all of these things. If I had to be away from my own family in a time like this, it was nice to be around one that is well equipped for such an emergency. Plus, I'm not so sure I would actually choose my family over the Thompsons--my fam has little to no experience in dealing with bodily injury/accidents and probably wouldn't know what to do anyway. (sorry mom... but your other children were just as cautious as me growing up and didn't teach you those useful emergency procedures.)

I took the day off and saw the doctor to get my knee checked out. I got some Xrays taken and then they sent me to get an MRI scan in Mendota Heights. I don't know the results yet, but I have a follow-up appointment with the doctor tomorrow morning. I'm hoping that it's just a bad sprain, but it's possible that I tore my ACL. (please no!!)

Anyway, that is my great story... but I don't recommend "biffing it" next time you go skiing.

Crutches suck.

Per Sarah's Request

To add to the Fav's list...

...the drummer from MuteMath (Darren King), who, unfortunately for Sarah, is dating Stacey DuPree from Eisley. (according to Wiki)

I prefer the lead singer, Paul Meany, but that is just because I am a sucker for a voice. Watching him sing is really fascinating--very animated. Not only that, but he plays a keytar, which, for some reason is less odd than duct-taping headphones to your head.

The whole band is unique and intrepid in their style. Since buying Kaleidescope Superior from Meany & King's Earthsuit days, I've been a huge fan. I'd always kind of hoped they would lessen their reggae sound... lo and behold, MuteMath is born. I also really respect the way they've entered the music industry under their new name and, essentially, entirely new band. Christians almost sign their own death certificate for "making it big" if they want to enter the Gospel/Christian music scene. Not that my opinion matters, but it's nice to see the talent and the hopeful message without the strings of "Christian's expectation."

(L-R) Roy Mitchell-Cárdenas, Paul Meany, Darren King, and Greg Hill

Paul Meany (below)

There you have it. Waaay too long... it's Sarah's fault. :)

One more...

Ray LaMontagne: "You are the Best Thing" and "Winter Birds."

Cities97 is wonderful. :)

I still love Amos Lee and Damien Rice, though. Acoustic goodness. :)

Music at Work

Since getting an iPhone, I have had those little white buds in my ears nonstop while at work. Because of it, I have fallen hard for four voices:

Gavin DeGraw: holy cow, please always straighten your hair like this.

Fav songs: "More than Anyone" and "Meaning"

Unfortunately, I'm a little tired of "Chariot" and "In Love with a Girl"

Jason Mraz: Like Gavin's, I am a little tired of hearing the same songs of yours on the radio (which is a shame because they are cool. Dumb Cities97) but your vocal talent is pheNOMenal.
Fav Songs: "Absolutely Zero" and "You and I Both"

Martin Sexton: You aren't the youngest and best looking singer out there, but none of them can make their voice sound like a jazz trumpet... or an electric guitar. How the freak do you do that?
Fav Songs: " Where did I go Wrong?", "In the Journey" and "13 Step Boogie"

John Mayer: Thank you for changing your style for Continuum. Whatever you did, made me a big fan. Your live stuff is fantastic, too. I am also glad that you show off your mad skills as a guitar player. There needs to be more multi-faceted musicians like you out there! Oh, and thank you for being very nice to look at, too.
Fav Songs: "I'm Going to Find Another You", "Free Fallin' (Live)" and "Bold as Love"

*sigh* ... There you have it, my music crushes as of late.

i love iPhone.

Hannah