39 (and holding?)

I can't believe I haven't blogged here since Monolith. I just got word that Silversun Pickups are playing at Monolith this year, but they're the only ones in the line up so far that I really want to see and it's not worth it to go for just one band. I'd also like to see Band of Horses, but they're the following day. Hopefully they'll add some more to the line up.

So yesterday was my last birthday in my 30's. It's hard to belive that Bitchapalooza was 9 years ago. Seems so recent and so long ago.

For my bday I got tickets to see the Breeders later this month, complete with babysitter all set up. Woot! B also took me to a restaurant I've been dying to go to: Frasca in Boulder. I believe the chef and sommelier used to work at French Laundry. It was heavenly! Here's what I had, for posterity's sake:

Cure Farm Spinach Custard, House-Made "Mortadella" and Montasio "Crema"

“ Ž l i k r o f i ”: Red Pepper and Soft Ricota Ravioli, Spinach and Parmesan

Poached Pacific Halibut, Morel Mushrooms, Asparagus and Cipollini Onion Vinaigrette

And for dessert we shared:

Tasting of House-Made Chocolates: Valrhona 70%, Bittersweet, Coconut, Espresso, Passionfruit-Caramel and Hazelnut Bar

and Formaggio: Selectins of Artisan Cheeses with Marinated Table Grapes, Gates of Heaven Wildflower Honey, and Betty's Sandpiper Court Red Pepper Jelly


We had a bottle of Mario Schiopetto “Blanc de Rosis,” Friuli, Italy 2005 and I had a glass of Inama “Apres Vulcaia,” Veneto, Italy 2003 with my dessert

Everything was heavenly! My absolute favorite were the morels served with my fish. I could have eaten a whole plate of those, I swear. The service was fabulous and not snooty.

Happy Birthday to me!

Monolith Festival

Saturday was SO much fun! It would have been great to go to both days of the festival, but one was good too. We got there pretty early and were surprised that the place was fairly empty for awhile. It did have 5 stages, so I guess people were pretty spaced out (no pun intended). First we saw Bob Log III on one of the smaller stages. He's freaking hilarious and a good blues man to boot. You've gotta appreciate a one-man-band, even if you don't like the music, but he was good. And I love a man that asks me to put my boob in his scotch.

Next we checked out Forget Cassettes on one of the indoor smaller stages (ahhh...air conditioning). They were interesting. I love the fact that all 3 players play not only their "main" instrument, but also keyboards. The singer/guitarist is a teeny little thing with a huge voice--a la Cat Power, sorta. And the bassist and drummer are both good boy eye candy. Me-rowr!

After that we hit the main stage and never really left. We had awesome 3rd row, almost center seats and didn't want to lose them. I'm kind of bummed about missing a few of the other acts on the smaller stages, like Matt and Kim.

First up was Margot and the Nuclear So and Sos. I enjoyed them. I like bands with lots of people in them and especially if they have a trumpet.

Next was Brian Jonestown Massacre. They were great. There was some drama, but nothing too over the top. A few restarts on songs and some Anton yelling at the band to tune their instruments. And that poor roadie, Travis--aka Anton's little bitch--he yelled at Travis constantly (who is seen here in a post from a fan on Anton's myspace). I've got a weird fascination/pseudo-obsession with Anton now. Before my view of him was only that which Dig! gave me. Yeah, he's a pompous asshole and a genius musician and definitely insane....but there's something about his eyes that intrigues me....Anyways, their set was really good when they were playing--a few sound problems at the end. Highlights included Anton yelling at the crowd to shut up when they were tuning, not realizing people were cheering because Wayne Coyne had stuck his head out wearing the Capt. America mask. They had some great psychedelic freak out/rock out moments and I especially loved the little Smiths "That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore" take-off that Anton threw into one song--a little play on "I've seen it happen in other people's lives and now it's happening in mine." I should also mention that Anton had at least one full outfit change in the set. Who does he think he is? Britney Spears? :) I do love a rocker man in skin tight black jeans, so I wasn't complaining. They were the only band I saw with 2 full bottles of liquor on stage: a bottle of vodka for Anton and a bottle of whiskey for everybody else.

Next up was Art Brut, who were so much fucking fun! I really wanna hang out and drink with them. Not long into the set, Eddie Argos took off into the crowd (I touched his arm!). He's got the perfect 80's English student look down. Floppy hair, a bit pudgy, blue oxford shirt, untucked, of course. He is a hilarious front man and really knows how to get the crowd going. I absolutely LOVE the adorable bass player--she looked like she was having so much fun. The rest of the band were fun and rocked out too. Definitely check them out live if you ever get a chance. B is not really into them and he loved their show too.

Next up was Spoon. Ya know, they're good and I can appreciate them, but they just don't excite me. No particular reason.

The Flaming Lips put on their consistently fun, happy show. Santas on one side of the stage, aliens on the other, roadies in superhero costumes. Wayne came out in the bubble, which was awesome. They released a ton of big green balls and of course cannon load after cannon load of confetti and Wayne's streamer "gun." Lots of sing along moments. Fun background videos. The crowd was so into it and it was just such a happy, fun show. Absolute highlight of the evening was they played Mountain Side! OMG, I love that song and they played it well.

During their set, Wayne mentioned the "BJM meltdown," not sure what he was referring to. At another point, he told Anton (who was right in front, center) that he "didn't want any trouble." I didn't see what preceded that. Also, Anton was dancing (or something) a couple rows in front of us with a laptop. I never figured out exactly what he was doing.

Downsides of the day:
1) the drunk bitch that asked me how far along I was and touched my belly(!). I told her "No, I'm just fat, honey." Erggg... Dumb cunt.
2)the drunk asshole behind me that got in a fight over seats and spilled an entire beer all over me. I shit you not, I was covered from my neck down to the bottom of my skirt. Sticky and stinky. Fun times.

Other than those 2 assholes, the crowd seemed really laid back and cool. Oh yeah, maybe I should add a (3) for my calves hurting like hell for two days after from climbing the stairs (basically up a mountain) several times. But maybe that's a good thing, since I haven't been to the gym this week.

So we also happened to get the "UFOs at the Zoo" DVD from the library this week and were watching it with the boys. We told them "that's what mommy and daddy did on Saturday." They were absolutely riveted. Later, Miles kept singing Yoshimi and told us that when he grows up he's going to "help out and play with the band called The Flaming Lips." He also said he's going to eat lots of healthy food so that he can "beat the robots." Hey, we must be doing something right! Maybe next time we'll take the kids. I did see some people with a kid that was about 10 years old.

Oh yeah, Wayne said they tried to bring the UFO to Monolith, but it got confiscated by the government because the lights were from Russia and possibly had contamination from Chernobyl. True or not? You be the judge. Who knows.

Some sites with good pics/reviews of the festival:

Flickr 1
Flickr2
Fuel
Delicatessen
Wyo Beat
Bass Geek

This New Blog

I finally got around to shutting down my old blog and setting up this new one. Obviously a lot of stuff to do here, but at least I have my old posts archived. Maybe once I get it looking all purty, I'll be reinvigorated to post more (ha). Basically, I didn't like the fact that the old one was connected to my family's blog and blogger wouldn't let me separate them (bastards). I couldn't bitch about anyone--family, friends, colleagues, etc. for fear that they'd read it. >:-)

So lots going on. We broke down and bought a minivan. It fucking rocks.

Tonight I'm taking my mom for a girl's night out to Cafe Brazil. Yummmmmmm....It's also to thank her for babysitting the boys all day tomorrow, while B and I go to the Monolith Festival. Anybody know where I can get some weed? J/K!!!! I'm totally looking forward to it, especially Brian Jonestown Massacre (we can only hope for some drama), The Flaming Lips (of course), and my new favorite band Art Brut. OMG, can I gush a bit about how much I love them? Just listen to the song "Modern Art" here. And I don't care what they say, they sound like The Fall. I know it, everybody knows it, they know it. Hey, if you gotta sound like someone, it may as well be them.

God, I used to love The Fall. I haven't listened to them much over the last few years, but recently checked out their new album , which is actually pretty good.

Funnily enough, I actually hung out with Brix Smith, formerly of The Fall, when I worked at the Dominion Theater in London. She was dating the violinist, Nigel Kennedy, at the time. She would hang out with us in the box office, presumably from boredom. She talked a LOT--my main memory of her. At the time, however, I really wasn't into The Fall. If I'd only known....

So I have digressed very far. Tomorrow I will be rockin' it out like a teenager. Yippee!

7/27/07

More Random Ramblings

Man, I have a hard time blogging these days. I really think it's the "new blogger." I hate it and I just don't feel inspired these days. Our summer has been terribly busy, which is good for the most part. Tons of birthday parties, barbeques, soccer things, school things, etc. We've only managed to get to the cabin once, which stinks. And it looks like we won't get back there until Labor Day weekend. Bummer.

Here are some random things I'm into right now:

1) Izze Sparkling Clementine drink: it's not pop, but juice mixed w/sparkling water. I just finished one. Deeeeelish! And only 135 calories for the whole bottle.

2) Brain Gyms: I don't completely understand them yet, but they're easy exercises/activities you can do to get your brain to work better. I just read "Smart Moves: Why Learning is Not All in Your Head" by Carla Hannaford and it was truly fascinating. The boys' school is really into Brain Gyms and they recommended that M start working one on one with their "expert" who studies with Hannaford. The idea is to help his brain and senses work better together to make up for his hearing loss. It's great for kids with learning disabilities, special needs, and anyone, whether they have issues or not. It helps you relax, focus, and learn better. I'm going to try to do more with boys and do them on my own, especially when I'm on the computer too much at work and feeling "brain dead." Check out http://www.braingym.org/.

3) Golden City Brewery: Golden's SECOND largest brewery. 10 points to whoever gets what the largest is first. It's a little house that has been converted into a brewery. There are tables set up outside and they serve awesome beer. They close early (7 pm) due to the fact that it's in a residential neighborhood. The beer is awesome, there's a wooden train for the kiddos to play on, the setting is totaly relaxed and so Colorado, and best of all, before closing the beer slinger comes out and sings Irish drinking songs. It rules!

Okay, that's it for now. I need to blog about books sometime. I've been reading a lot. But now I'm off....

6/14/07

Out on the Town with KG

As I stated in my previous post, KG was here last week and we had a fun weekend with too much alcohol. I took Friday off and we went to Boulder, where we had sushi and strolled the Pearl Street mall. We took it easy that evening. Saturday night we went a little crazy. Had microbrews and tequila at some Irish bar with Jim, our new favorite bartender/encyclopedia of knowledge, then dinner and mojitos at Cafe Brazil. she just sent us some pics. I like the yellow lighting of them:







We all regretted it the next day, but went to her nephew's first birthday party.

Saturday, B and I have a sitter once again (2 weekends in a row!) and are going to see Dinosaur Jr., if we can figure out where the hell they are playing. The last time I saw them was a million years ago on a double bill with My Bloody Valentine. It was great! Have you seen recent pictures of J Mascis? WTF?

6/7/07

Oh Happy Day


I just bought tickets to go see this at Red Rocks. Yippee! Just a few months left to find a babysitter...

So blogger still sucks, but I'm back again (for today anyway). KG is back in town and I'm looking forward to hanging out with her. I even have a sitter for Saturday night!

Mexico was awesome. Missouri sucked (but it didn't suck more than I thought it would, so I guess that's a plus). I've been sick as a dog since before I went to MO and it just won't go away. Ever have that feeling you've swallowed barbed wire? I've had it since May 27. Tomorrow I'm taking the day off to hopefully get some rest in the early part of the day and get some fun in the evening with KG.

Things I like right now:

1) Frozen lemonade bars: Take 18 low fat graham cracker squares and crush them up. Mix with 1/3 C melted butter in the bottom of a square cake pan. In a separate bowl, combine 1 quart of vanilla frozen yogurt (slightly melted) and 6 oz. of frozen lemonade. Spread mixture over graham cracker crust. Freeze overnight. Best when topped with fresh raspberries. Mmmmm.....

2) Hommus and pita chips (it's gotta be the chips, not the regular bread). I could OD on this stuff.

3) Locally grown organic food. I just finished "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver, and it has kicked my butt to become more diligent about eating locally as much as possible. Luckily for me, it's Farmer's Market season. After talking to B, we decided that we're going to use some of our new income to eat with more of a conscience. Plus it's damn healthier. Read the book: it rocks.

4) My new Tweezerman tweezers. I could turn into a browless freak with these. They're addicting. Amazingly superior to your average tweezer.

5) LOL80's. This site made laugh HARD.

6) Mamapop! These girls love the same crap that I do. One of the few sites that I usually check several times a day.

7) Saynotocrack. More funny stuff.

4/24/07

I Like...

...that I finally got a damn Allure Beauty Box--after 2 hours and 45 minutes of trying! I am absurdly excited over this. It better have been worth it.

...my new haircut: short and sassy!

...my new housecleaner. No need for explanation.

...visits from relatives. My parents were here last weekend and B's parents and sister will be here Thursday. They boys are so excited.

...that I finally got a duvet cover for Jack's bed that matches Miles'. I've been looking on ebay for months.

...that it will be in the 70's here this weekend. Now if we can just get over today's snow...
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Currently reading:

"Queen of the Oddballs: And Other True Stories from a Life Unaccording to Plan" by Hillary Carlip: Just finished this one. What a fun book. A quick read too. She's led an interesting life.

Water for Elephants: A Novel by Sara Gruen: I'm listening to this one on CD. It's about a guy who loses his parents and joins a circus. So far it's really good.

"Snow Flower and the Secret Fan: A Novel" by Lisa See: I'm also listening to this one on CD, but had to take a break when it was due at the library. It's pretty good, but not really living up to the hype, IMO. It's about a Chinese girl who lives in the era of foot binding.