(no subject)
I went to a concert.
I can't hear.
I can't talk.
I still have a headache.
It ROCKED!
I want that on a t-shirt.
So I went to Salem this weekend with Kat, Amy, and Amy's younger brother, Nathan. To see Jeremy Camp and TobyMac with Matthew West. And then to see my sister and her family.
There was a meeting I was supposed to go to on Thursday at 1:00, but by 10:30 I knew there was no way I could make it. If I went, I'd probably fall asleep during it, would be able to contribute and remember nothing, and would be taking a serious risk Friday. So I slept until 9:30 that night.
And, since I slept so late, I couldn't sleep Friday morning. So I didn't. I stayed awake and finished my book. Sleep No More by Greg Iles. Not bad, but not my style. It's one of his more... I don't know how to phrase it. Not exactly "spiritual", but I think it shows quite a bit of theology that I just completely disagree with. Anyway.
So Friday I got no sleep. And proceeded to drive to Salem. I got a bite to eat, dropped some stuff off at Pastor Dan's office (although I forgot to grab my camera), then went to pick everyone up. Then we drove down to Salem.
Traffic wasn't that bad, and it was a fun drive. We made great time and soon found ourselves at the motel. We hit a snag, though, when we went to check in. They didn't have us down for the employee rate, and the manager stated that if the only way to get that rate is to book the rooms online (which is total bull. There are two ways of booking a room with the employee rate: call the 800 number, or set up the reservation manager-to-manager, which is what I did. Or thought I did. All I really know is that Christian set up the reservation for me. Next time I'll just call the 800 number or make it myself with a prop-to-prop reservation). Since the manager was essentially saying "I don't give a rat's ass," we had to pay full price. Which worked out to be around $45 for Kat and Amy, but $70 for me. Why? Because they could split the bill with each other. I couldn't. Grr....
So, after checking in we ate, then hung around for a while before leaving for the concert. We got there at about 5:45, and there was already a huge line (it started at 7:00). Fortunately, though, that line was not of cars, or I would have been in a very, very foul mood. I hate traffic.
Anyway, we get there, stand in line, go in, and track down our seats. Not bad. Except the gal that helped us find our seats gave us the wrong row, so we had to move back. Behind a couple who were taller than me (and yes, that includes the woman). So that made picture-taking very difficult (we used Amy's camera).
Speaking of picture-taking, I WANT AMY'S CAMERA!!! Oh my GOD it's sweet. If I were to try to take pictures from that spot, with my camera, zooming in, I wouldn't be able to get a very close zoom, and the picture would be blurry as all get out. Hers had great clarity, even with my shaky hands (I was holding the camera above my head, and I have shaky hands, anyway). So I need to get all the specs on the model she has so I can track one down myself.
And now, for the musical critique...
Matthew West gave a solid opening. It was just him on an acoustic guitar, which was pretty nice. He decided to take a moment to introduce everyone to his band; he stepped back, looked at the white sheet behind him, waved, and said, "Hi, I'm Matthew West." It was amusing. Anyway, he sang a few songs, then made his exit.
Then Toby came up and explained how he and Jeremy had been wanting to do this tour, but they came upon a little problem: who goes first, and who closes? How do you decide? Well, Toby said, they thought of arm wrestling for it, but that would be no fair; Jeremy would kill him. So they decided to alternate: Toby would close one night, Jeremy the next. And so, Toby introduced Jeremy Camp.
It was a good performance. Especially when we found out that Jeremy has the flu. So he's sick as a dog, but gave a very strong performance. I did miss Jared and Mike, though. But the new guys are talented (although J never did introduce them).
Towards the end of J's set, I started feeling sick. I about coughed up a lung, was feeling over-heated, and debated sitting outside the amphitheater during Toby's set. But I really didn't want to miss it. So, during the intermission, I decided to splash some cold water on my face, get some food and cold water to drink. Went out, stood in line forever....
Only to find out the concessions won't take debit. Crap. So I went to the ATM. It was out of order. Double crap. So I decided to find another bathroom, splashed more water on my face and neck, soaked a paper towel and then put that around my neck. I could hear that Toby had taken the stage (he'd already done at least two songs), so I headed back.
Now this bathroom was right next to the "backstage" area. How do I know that? Because there was a big barrier blocking the corridor past the bathroom, with a curtain to conceal everything beyond.
Anyway, I noticed there were some teen girls talking to someone on the other side of the curtain, so I paused to see who it was. It was Jeremy Camp. So when he turned to leave the girls, I pointed at him and said, "Hey, Boss!" He saw me, recognized me, and asked how I was doing. Of course I said "Fine," thanked him for finally coming back to Oregon (a running gag from Chicago and Normal), and prayed for him really quick. And then we both turned and left (at which point I saw a herd of teen girls coming down the corridor and heard their friend say, "You just missed him!" And I enjoyed my evil smile).
Anyway, I returned to my seat, feeling a little better (although still warm, and my throat still hurt), and enjoyed the rest of the concert. Toby always puts on a good show, and has some very talented people with him. He closed with Jesus Freak, at which point he brought Jeremy back on stage. All in all, a solid effort.
After we finally left the amphitheater (remember my hatred for traffic? We hung around for a loooong time), we decided to go to Denny's. We were tired, but also very hungry. And then we went to the motel and turned in.
Saturday morning I called my sister, and then we drove up to her place, then followed her to the Independence airport. Along the way we saw a small plane taxi right next to some houses. At first we thought it would kind of suck having your house right there, but then we saw an open garage -- with a plane inside. Nice. Anyway, there's a restaurant right there, so we ate.
Good food. I'd love to go back during the spring or summer and eat outside while watching the planes take off. And it was good to hang out with Vicki and Tony, even if my voice wasn't completely there (I lost it at the concert). But, after a while, we knew we had to get going. So we did.
Stopped at Clackamas Town Center, where I got a few books (Shakespeare's complete works, some of Machiavelli's writings, a guitar book, and a book that's a collection of incredibly weird news stories) and a new watch (exactly like the one I lost in the cave). Also ran into a couple people: Aaron, the intern we had over the summer (he's doing good), and Holly Love, a girl I went to school with and haven't seen since graduation. Ho-ly crap. We didn't catch up though, and I doubt she recognized me (what with the added height, weight, gravel voice, and hair -- both facial and on the top of my head).
And now I'm at work, although I really don't want to be. Not only does my throat still hurt (although that's suddenly starting to ease up), but my stomach was doing somersaults and my nose is trying to decide whether to be stopped up or a faucet. And my shoulders are more sore than they should be (I had Last Days practice today, so spent some time on the cross). So I think it's safe to say I'm coming down with something. A couple people suggested Airborne to me, so I picked some up before coming in to work. It supposedly will prevent you from getting sick if you take it when you're healthy, and speed up the recovery if you take it when you're actually sick. So we'll see how that goes.
*sigh* And now I better get back to work. Which, at this point in time, is watching Predator 2 on TNT. They're just entering the meat locker armed with the Liquid Nitrogyn guns.
I can't hear.
I can't talk.
I still have a headache.
It ROCKED!
I want that on a t-shirt.
So I went to Salem this weekend with Kat, Amy, and Amy's younger brother, Nathan. To see Jeremy Camp and TobyMac with Matthew West. And then to see my sister and her family.
There was a meeting I was supposed to go to on Thursday at 1:00, but by 10:30 I knew there was no way I could make it. If I went, I'd probably fall asleep during it, would be able to contribute and remember nothing, and would be taking a serious risk Friday. So I slept until 9:30 that night.
And, since I slept so late, I couldn't sleep Friday morning. So I didn't. I stayed awake and finished my book. Sleep No More by Greg Iles. Not bad, but not my style. It's one of his more... I don't know how to phrase it. Not exactly "spiritual", but I think it shows quite a bit of theology that I just completely disagree with. Anyway.
So Friday I got no sleep. And proceeded to drive to Salem. I got a bite to eat, dropped some stuff off at Pastor Dan's office (although I forgot to grab my camera), then went to pick everyone up. Then we drove down to Salem.
Traffic wasn't that bad, and it was a fun drive. We made great time and soon found ourselves at the motel. We hit a snag, though, when we went to check in. They didn't have us down for the employee rate, and the manager stated that if the only way to get that rate is to book the rooms online (which is total bull. There are two ways of booking a room with the employee rate: call the 800 number, or set up the reservation manager-to-manager, which is what I did. Or thought I did. All I really know is that Christian set up the reservation for me. Next time I'll just call the 800 number or make it myself with a prop-to-prop reservation). Since the manager was essentially saying "I don't give a rat's ass," we had to pay full price. Which worked out to be around $45 for Kat and Amy, but $70 for me. Why? Because they could split the bill with each other. I couldn't. Grr....
So, after checking in we ate, then hung around for a while before leaving for the concert. We got there at about 5:45, and there was already a huge line (it started at 7:00). Fortunately, though, that line was not of cars, or I would have been in a very, very foul mood. I hate traffic.
Anyway, we get there, stand in line, go in, and track down our seats. Not bad. Except the gal that helped us find our seats gave us the wrong row, so we had to move back. Behind a couple who were taller than me (and yes, that includes the woman). So that made picture-taking very difficult (we used Amy's camera).
Speaking of picture-taking, I WANT AMY'S CAMERA!!! Oh my GOD it's sweet. If I were to try to take pictures from that spot, with my camera, zooming in, I wouldn't be able to get a very close zoom, and the picture would be blurry as all get out. Hers had great clarity, even with my shaky hands (I was holding the camera above my head, and I have shaky hands, anyway). So I need to get all the specs on the model she has so I can track one down myself.
And now, for the musical critique...
Matthew West gave a solid opening. It was just him on an acoustic guitar, which was pretty nice. He decided to take a moment to introduce everyone to his band; he stepped back, looked at the white sheet behind him, waved, and said, "Hi, I'm Matthew West." It was amusing. Anyway, he sang a few songs, then made his exit.
Then Toby came up and explained how he and Jeremy had been wanting to do this tour, but they came upon a little problem: who goes first, and who closes? How do you decide? Well, Toby said, they thought of arm wrestling for it, but that would be no fair; Jeremy would kill him. So they decided to alternate: Toby would close one night, Jeremy the next. And so, Toby introduced Jeremy Camp.
It was a good performance. Especially when we found out that Jeremy has the flu. So he's sick as a dog, but gave a very strong performance. I did miss Jared and Mike, though. But the new guys are talented (although J never did introduce them).
Towards the end of J's set, I started feeling sick. I about coughed up a lung, was feeling over-heated, and debated sitting outside the amphitheater during Toby's set. But I really didn't want to miss it. So, during the intermission, I decided to splash some cold water on my face, get some food and cold water to drink. Went out, stood in line forever....
Only to find out the concessions won't take debit. Crap. So I went to the ATM. It was out of order. Double crap. So I decided to find another bathroom, splashed more water on my face and neck, soaked a paper towel and then put that around my neck. I could hear that Toby had taken the stage (he'd already done at least two songs), so I headed back.
Now this bathroom was right next to the "backstage" area. How do I know that? Because there was a big barrier blocking the corridor past the bathroom, with a curtain to conceal everything beyond.
Anyway, I noticed there were some teen girls talking to someone on the other side of the curtain, so I paused to see who it was. It was Jeremy Camp. So when he turned to leave the girls, I pointed at him and said, "Hey, Boss!" He saw me, recognized me, and asked how I was doing. Of course I said "Fine," thanked him for finally coming back to Oregon (a running gag from Chicago and Normal), and prayed for him really quick. And then we both turned and left (at which point I saw a herd of teen girls coming down the corridor and heard their friend say, "You just missed him!" And I enjoyed my evil smile).
Anyway, I returned to my seat, feeling a little better (although still warm, and my throat still hurt), and enjoyed the rest of the concert. Toby always puts on a good show, and has some very talented people with him. He closed with Jesus Freak, at which point he brought Jeremy back on stage. All in all, a solid effort.
After we finally left the amphitheater (remember my hatred for traffic? We hung around for a loooong time), we decided to go to Denny's. We were tired, but also very hungry. And then we went to the motel and turned in.
Saturday morning I called my sister, and then we drove up to her place, then followed her to the Independence airport. Along the way we saw a small plane taxi right next to some houses. At first we thought it would kind of suck having your house right there, but then we saw an open garage -- with a plane inside. Nice. Anyway, there's a restaurant right there, so we ate.
Good food. I'd love to go back during the spring or summer and eat outside while watching the planes take off. And it was good to hang out with Vicki and Tony, even if my voice wasn't completely there (I lost it at the concert). But, after a while, we knew we had to get going. So we did.
Stopped at Clackamas Town Center, where I got a few books (Shakespeare's complete works, some of Machiavelli's writings, a guitar book, and a book that's a collection of incredibly weird news stories) and a new watch (exactly like the one I lost in the cave). Also ran into a couple people: Aaron, the intern we had over the summer (he's doing good), and Holly Love, a girl I went to school with and haven't seen since graduation. Ho-ly crap. We didn't catch up though, and I doubt she recognized me (what with the added height, weight, gravel voice, and hair -- both facial and on the top of my head).
And now I'm at work, although I really don't want to be. Not only does my throat still hurt (although that's suddenly starting to ease up), but my stomach was doing somersaults and my nose is trying to decide whether to be stopped up or a faucet. And my shoulders are more sore than they should be (I had Last Days practice today, so spent some time on the cross). So I think it's safe to say I'm coming down with something. A couple people suggested Airborne to me, so I picked some up before coming in to work. It supposedly will prevent you from getting sick if you take it when you're healthy, and speed up the recovery if you take it when you're actually sick. So we'll see how that goes.
*sigh* And now I better get back to work. Which, at this point in time, is watching Predator 2 on TNT. They're just entering the meat locker armed with the Liquid Nitrogyn guns.