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- I love how my local big box coffee shop plays a good mix of eclectic music. They can effortlessly transition from the classic Björk song “It’s Oh So Quiet” to Credence Clearwater Revival’s popular song “Fortunate Son”.
- Sometimes I love the autumn & winter seasons in my area because the weather tends to get very cloudy, & then I won’t have to always lug my awkwardly shaped sunglasses & its bulky case around in my purse.
- However, I dislike the fact that once the weather starts to get colder, my skin rises to its optimum peak of itchiness, the height of its itch-factor. I could slather on 30 layers of extra-strength lotion every day. I could drink a hundred gallons of water for hydration. I could wrap my entire body in kitchen plastic saran wrap. I could do anything short of shedding my outer layer like a molting snake, but my skin would still itch like hell.
- I often wish I could use a slim, compact purse. My purses are generally oversized & very often get in the way. I am either bumping into things when I’m inside a shop, or I am accidentally hitting people with the back of my purse.
- Follow up thought: I carry way too much little things in my purse. I’m always worried that I will need something while I’m on the road & am not able to stop at a drugstore or convenience store. So I carry lots of little emergency items in my purse, which weighs my purse down heavily.
- However, I’m even more worried that if I start eliminating things from my purse, then that’ll be right at the time when I need that specific item. ( Example: taking the emergency Tylenol out of my bag, & then immediately getting a headache in the car.)
- Final purse thoughts: I am self conscious about carrying such a large purse, even though it was a fashion trend at one point within the last decade or so. I worry that I might look like an uncoordinated bag lady.
- I recently started re-listening to the music I listened to back in high school. I dug up my old CDs that I bought in high school, & I uploaded the music onto my home computer. I have rediscovered my passion for music, & rekindled my love for the same music genres I loved back in the 1990s.
- On that note, I have been rediscovering two genres of music I fell in love with in high school, & have fallen in love with those types of music all over again. I have rekindled my flames of passion for PUNK & SKA music, & I couldn’t be happier.
- I can’t believe it’s already the month of November. Before we know it, I’ll be back in Anaheim, California, celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday with my beloved nephew & niece at Disneyland yet again.
Today’s song of the day:
I completely forgot to mention in my previous blog post that, in between my trip to Washington DC & now, I had gotten sick. I mean, I was “can’t-get-outta-bed” sick. That’s how sick I was, & after I recovered, I had kind of become lazy & stopped writing for a hot minute. Now I’m back, & I’m here to tell you that I went to yet another concert at the Fox Theater in Oakland, California. We stared our evening grabbing a quick bite from the Off the Grid food truck stalls outside of the venue. We nearly missed our concert, as we had forgotten to put a calendar alert on our smartphones. Luckily Jian’s phone beeped that morning, or we would have missed this epic night. I ate at one of my favorite food trucks, called…dun, dun, dun…BACON!
Started in 2010, Off the Grid currently operates 35 weekly public markets throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Off the Grid seeks to maintain a shared sense of space by collaborating with local businesses and communities to active novel public spaces with truly unique experiences. (www.offthegridsf.com)
The best damn freshest bacon in town.
Against Jian’s wishes, I bought more concert tickets for this venue. This time we went to see the Scottish rock band FRANZ FERDINAND perform as a collaboration super rock group called F.F.S. with the popular American rock group, SPARKS. It’s crazy how fast this collaboration band came to be. These two amazing rock bands had only just formed one mixed band this past March (2015). They quickly released two singles & a full-length album by April, & was already making plans to tour around the world in the same year. I had no clue who the band SPARKS was or just how popular they were, but I had been a long-time fan of FRANZ FERDINAND & knew of their popularity for sure. Who knew that these two bands have already been collaborating together since the mid-2000s??? So. Cool.
F.F.S. stage background
F.F.S. drum kit
Steering the topic back to the concert itself, this time I had bought standing-floor tickets. We were able to stand extremely close to the stage, & we were lucky enough to be standing in the area that got the most band attention. How much attention, you ask? Well, let me tell you this, Alex Kapranos & Russell Mael,of FRANZ FERDINAND & SPARKS respectively, constantly would walk/dance over to our side of the stage & high-five the girls smashed up against the safety railing. Also, guitarist Nick McCarthy stage-dived, crowd-surfed, & jumped down into the audience only on our side of the stage. The time Nick jumped down into the crowd, he moved all around amongst the audience & danced along with us while playing his guitar, all without missing a beat. The one time he stage-dove right into the audience, he nearly landed right on top of me. Now, I’m quite a petite lady standing only at 5-feet tall (152cm). How am I supposed to carry the weight of a generously tall man playing a guitar over my head? (Unless I’m some beefed-up bodybuilder, I don’t see that happening.) Seeing Nick stage dive right into my side of the crowd scared me a bit, so I side-stepped out of the way when his crowd-surfing body was headed in my direction. Luckily Jian was standing right next to me & was able to guide Nick & his sleek cream-colored guitar away from our general direction before he headed back towards the stage.
Nick McCarthy, Ron Mael & Alex Kapranos
Throughout the night I kept my eyes trained on co-lead singer Alex Kapranos. Boy, is he attractive looking up close & personal. I was watching the way he enthusiastically danced on stage, & I kept thinking to myself, “Alex’s dancing & stage presence reminds me of a cross between David Bowie & Brandon Flowers.” He was really making good use of his extremely slender legs & his long arms with his flailing dancing around on stage. I also couldn’t help but notice that Alex’s hands were H-U-G-E!!! His fingers were impossibly long & slim (he could’ve held my entire head with just one hand). In general, Alex Kapranos is just a tall, slinky, svelte individual. I don’t think he carries even one ounce of body fat on himself. As for Ron Mael, the other co-lead singer, I was curious as to why he chose to wear a turtle neck shirt & a poncho on stage. In fact, I was wondering why he wore all-black clothing at all. It must’ve been really hot for him on stage. The venue didn’t have very good air conditioning, even though it was a rather mid-sized concert hall. Overall, both singers did a fantastic job taking turns being the lead singer on stage. They really knew how to ramp up the crowd’s excitement.
Ron Mael & Alex Kapranos
Before I forget, here is the setlist for the evening’s concert:
Overall, I had a blast at this concert!! I love Franz Ferdinand, & they did an excellent job collaborating & joining forces with Sparks. I can’t wait to see Franz Ferdinand in concert again. Cheers!
Today’s song of the day:
So last week I finally went to the Bramdon Flowers concert. I had purchased the tickets months in advance, so the anticipation was making me antsy & excited. Since I’ve only seen Brandon Flowers perform with his band The Killers, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect stage performance-wise. I knew he was going to sing songs from his two released solo albums Flamingo & The Desired Effect, & I had a feeling he would perform a few of his band’s hit songs just to ramp up the crowd’s attention. I never knew I could admire him so much as an artist & a songwriter.
Brandon Flowers really knows how to engage his audience & fans. He really made us feel like we were all one big group of longtime friends who haven’t seen each other in a while. He took the time to explain a few of his songs, likes how the inspiration behind the song Magdalena came after experiencing a spiritual Mexican festival focused on musical celebrations. The entire audience erupted in rowdy cheers when he asked the question “Do you think he’s innocent or guilty?” then proceeded to perform a spirited rendition of Jenny Was a Friend of Mine.
The theater of the concert was pretty small, but it didn’t feel small until I got to my seat. I was sitting quite high up in the second tier balcony section. Yes I could easily see everything on the stage, but it was hard to get a clear view of the Brandon & band. It was difficult to spot Brandon, but that was because the stage lighting was so bright & harsh, so he was constantly being overshadowed by the set lights.
I try not to take too many photos or videos during concerts anyway, so I didn’t bother taking good quality photos of Brandon.
After the concert, Jian complained that the acoustics & the sound in the theater was not that great, but I didn’t think of it one bit. I was too busy enjoying the atmosphere, the music, & dancing in my seat. I was clapping so hard the entire time that I actually made a small bruise form on the palm of my hand. I didn’t even notice it until I got home & was in the shower, then I saw the purple & blue spot on my palm. It didn’t hurt at all, but that’s how I knew I had such a blast…being so enthusiastic. I absolutely enjoyed the mix of songs from both of Brandon Flowers’ solo albums (more songs from The Desired Effect than Flamingo), & peppered inbetween were a few of The Killers’ songs as well.
I had such an amazing time at the Brandon Flowers concert. It kind of made me wish I could go to a Killers concert some day. I’ve only ever seen The Killers perform at music festivals, so I’d like to go to one of their standalone concerts. Well, next month I’m going to yet another concert (at the same venue no less!). This time I’m going to see Franz Ferdinand perform with Sparks & debuting their hybrid group called FFS. I’m so excited to see my favorite Scottish band in concert!! I can’t wait. This is going to be the year of concerts for me, even though I am super bummed out that I missed Outside Lands this year, but there’s still more of 2015 yet to come. Cheers!
Today’s song of the day:
Rabbits & Foxes 
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