like throwing a popsicle into a volcano

I survived ACL Festivus 2006! Here is a link to all my pics:

Here's a link to Amanda's pics complete with best fren hanging out photos from Saturday night.

If you want to actually see musician's faces and whatnot, check out Lauren M's photos on her blog. Just goes to show what a press pass, fancy camera, and you know, talent, can do for you.

Anywho, I am slowly recovering from festivus. I'm a lil sunburnt and tired and for whatever reason my eyes are still real red, I'm assuming from some combo of allergies and sweat/sunscreen in the eyes all weekend. I started with a very ambitious lineup, but the crowds + heat made it sort of unrealistic. Here's what I saw:

Friday:
Guster (saw first half...sweated out my entire 32 oz. iced tea)
Wolf Parade (so so awesome and rockin...i love Canada!)
Gnarls Barkley (we were real far away, so the sound was pretty sucky, but they were pretty good)
Cat Power (loved her hotness combined with sultry voice and extreme awkwardness. also loved her backup singers and wished i had backup singers)
Ray Lamontagne (hot anglo-Jesus-looking singer songwriter...real talented and hottt)
Van Morrison (sound + crowd rudeness made this sucky)
John Mayer (heard the end of his set while at the Waterloo hut...pretty rockin guitar playing, but then he encored with his radio hit, so that was sort of grating)

Saturday:
Centro-matic (played my favorite song "Love Has Found Me Somehow"!)
Ghostland Observatory (Kenny thought it was a woman, but pretty sure singer was a very agile dude)
Ben Kweller (poor darlin got a double nose bleed and couldn't finish his set...ended with a pretty good tune though)
Secret Machines (I don't remember it was so hot at this point that's all i could focus on)
The Shins (pretty eh show due to sound quality...indie pop doesn't hold up too well on big festivus stages, I suppose)
Calexico (tried to will them to play Alone Again Or, but to no avail)
Explosions in the Sky (pretty fantastic and delightfully LOUD)
Willie Nelson (greatest hits galore, although sound quality sucked (again) love that guy, though

Sunday:
(Slow start on Sunday, and instead of moving around, just watched a couple of shows in their entirety due to sheer exhaustion.)
White Ghost Shivers (wacky vaudeville-esque Austin band...real talent + baudy humor)
Flaming Lips (we got pretty close and it was goofy fun times indeed complete with inflatable human bubble, go-go dancer alien chicks, a choir of santa clauses, large alien and spaceman dancing balloons, fake blood, confetti guns, super hero guitar techs, and hit singles)
Tom Petty (started raining real hard in the middle of his set...plus there were so many people it was hard to hear from as far back as we were, but we did hear some greatest hits.)

All in all a very fun weekend indeed. Amanda, Alex, and Erik made it to the festivus, plus we got to hang out with Kat and Such on saturday night. Also, plenty of Aneil's friends made cameos. It was real great. Although the heat was still pretty intense, although an improvement over last year. I wished I could've seen more shows, but there were just too many people so it was slow going between stages. Doh. Also why oh why was Stars playing while Wolf Parade played? Doh again.

And I feel it necessary to mention the delicious meat pies and sweet tea. Mmmm.

So, this year's festivus was a success indeed. Although I am exhausted due to a trip to Corpus for a meeting on Monday. (8 hrs of driving isn't the best way to top off a festivus weekend.) My Marketing test is done and done, so hopefully the rest of this week won't be too bad.

So, this week I love: best friend reunions, rocking, rolling, and meat pies. I hate: the fact that I watched "Center Stage" while I could've been studying last night, lack of a new Project Runway this Wed, my ridiculously overactive sweat glands, people who litter, and the crappy customer service at the Watermark hotel in San Antonio.

ain't no mountain high enough

I’m back down to sea level and have had a hectic work-school-birfday-project runway filled week, so this is my first chance to post.

Colorado (specifically Estes Park) was pretty fabulous looking. Like, if Houston is the awkward somewhat smelly guy in your homeroom that you think is nice, but ultimately hope to avoid, Estes Park is the great looking jock with big muscles who is surprisingly nice to everyone. For example, here is the view from the house where we stayed:

The mountains are just THERE, like, just so brazen and THERE. Purple mountain majesty, right there in your face. They are gorgeous and make you feel really really small. Also they air is noticeably cleaner, and lacking in those charming evil particulates I am used to inhaling every day. Although when hiking up small hills I would get winded. Apparently I am an oxygen pig.

The first day there, me + Kim + Dona + Val went to town for burgers and cookies and shopping galore. As a nod to Angela’s “auf”-ing on Project Runway, I let the “crazy necktie lady” at the craft fair dress me up in crafsty couture made exclusively with neckties fashioned into rosettes. I actually look sort of cute, I think. Of course I purchased the hat, although I have absolutely nowhere to wear it. Hmm.

Next day we actually hiked about the national park. It was a lil exhausting, but super fun and really pretty. I kind of got carried away taking pictures, but I couldn't help it. Here are my girls in front of the waterfall we found:

That's Dona (former boss), Kim (engineering guru), and Val (super cool animal loving role model).

I also was real enamored by the elk. If you would like to view my 5 million photos of elk, I will be happy to send them to you. Apparently it is elk mating season, so they were out and about. Here are 2 fellas fighting over a girl, or something:

I also fell in love with these Aspen trees, because their leaves sparkle in the wind/sun. Here I am making myself at home with a clump of them:

So the trip was a success! And I returned for a couple of days only to leave again on Friday for mom's birthday in Lake Charles. We had much fun, with pistolettes, and redneck karaoke, and mom's spectacular roast beef, and birfday cake and best frens. Much fun indeed.

And after another crazy work/school week, I am headed out tomorrow for ACL festivus. If you are in Austin, we must hang out. I can't wait!

In summary, this week I hate: the (non-walk-in) closet-like size of my new cubicle, the fact that I watched a "Flavor of Love" marathon, and my upcoming Marketing midterm. This week I love: Jif peanut butter, the American version of The Office, soap that smells like apples, and crawfish pistolettes.

Gotta go (re)pack. Lub to all!