I have decided to put this blog to rest. I have many other projects that need my focus right now and to be honest it is so much easier to post comments and pictures to facebook. If I feel the need to vent or express I will use that for now. In the future I plan on moving to a more adaptable blog format but that is probably many months from now.

Thank you to all who read, commented and supported me.

Lots of love,
Reba

Commence radio silence...

After a crazy day I came home to a laundry list of things to do. But the sun was shining on what was mostly a cloudy day. I decided I needed a "me moment".

I made myself a "ghetto mojito" (no mix or mint, just lime juice, splenda, seltzer and rum) in my new MBC tumblers. I sat outside with my movie star sunglasses and read a book (Breaking Dawn) for about 45 minutes. This time of day is always my favorite and reminds me of summer. The sun slowly going down, maybe a day at the beach or pool ending, getting ready for fun evening plans...

So I made my own moment yesterday. I enjoyed my own personal happy hour and was thankful for the quiet moments in life. A few hours later I proceeded with my list, a much happier person.

So work has been stressful, what else is new. I took a drive on Wednesday at lunch just to clear my head to focus for the afternoon. I ran into Safeway for a snack and a quick Starbucks stop.

I had entirely took much in my hands when going to the car. As I unloaded into my trunk my drink cup was knocked over. I thought great here we go! But no, thanks to my handy-dandy resusable cup, it didn't spill. I had the top on the closed feature (which never seems to work). Thankfully for some reason, it chose this moment to work. I was ready for a huge mess and my afternoon to go downhill but it didn't.

Again, its the little things that sometimes make or break a day. Moral of the story: reusable cups save more than just the environment, it saved my sanity for the afternoon. :)

This week the artist of the week is courtesy of my brother Jeremy. Late last summer he got me 2 albums from Kings of Leon (his fav band). It was great to hear new music and to hear a band that was really talented.

You can tell they are in it for the music and longevity, not just a trendy one hit wonder. Their fourth album Only by the Night was the first to really register on the national radar. This album is one that works as a whole piece together, not just snippets for singles put together. Listening to their previous albums you can see how they got there. The new album was fresh with a makeover for their slick new videos (If you see videos of them on You Tube prior to Only by the Night, do not be scared by the lead singers freakishly bad haircuts!), and their music on prime time shows like Gossip Girl.

Now maybe I'm a big fan because I love to see musicians develop and change. Normally when a band releases an album that is different from past works, some people really hate the change, well I'm the one that loves it. Who wants to hear the same album, regurgitated 5x by a band. Grow, change, give us something new.

So back to KOL...they are family, brothers and a cousin, and from the south. You can get more bio here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kings_of_leon

Their music is layered, passionate, haunting and at times really soars like the climax of a movie (Arizona, Use Somebody, Closer). It is rock (Be Somebody), with a twinge of southerness and even blues (Charmer, Knocked Up) and somehow it all works.

I see them as tried and true musicians who I'm sure would be awesome to see live. If you have not heard of Kings of Leon or their first mainstream hit "Sex on Fire". Check them out.
http://www.myspace.com/kingsofleon

Enjoy!

Hi Friends,

I am formulating a creative project in my head and needed some assistance.

Can you please post a few descriptive words that come to mind when you think of me. This can be describing me, my personality, my look or my skills. I'm not looking for anything agrandizing, just looking to create something with words and I needed some help brainstorming. Here are some example: creative, redhead, curly, organized etc.

Thanks!

The other morning I was getting ready for work and dragging big time.

It has been a long week and for that reason was taking things slow. It was a gloomy day and I was having a hard time getting motivated. As I was eating my breakfast I heard a bird singing in our backyard. For some reason it made me happy, flipped a switch and I thought everything is going to be okay.

Either I am crazy or content with the simple things in life.

Short post and a few days past due...

Awesome band I learned to love in my college days. Kind of rock, alternative mix, with a twinge of a celtic influence and phenomenal live. They've had a ton of great CDs since then. I'm a big fan of Indian Summer from 2004 with "Life Less Ordinary" and "What About Everything?"

I still have fond memories of the band singing to me and my friends as we hung out of the bathroom window of the Beta House at HSC...

http://www.carbonleaf.com/
http://www.myspace.com/carbonleaf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_Leaf

I watched the movie on DVD last night and it was almost like seeing it for the first time. In the theater I was paying so much attention to what was or was not in the book. It was great to just sit down, relax and enjoy the movie. And it was great to watch it in the basement with stereo surround.

On rewatching it, I liked it even better. This is the kind of movie that is made for people who like romance and believe that you can fall in love quickly. It is not made for cynical people who don't like that kind of thing. Luckily I believe in fairy tales so this was right up my alley.

The movie stayed true to the plot of the book although a few conversations took place in different settings for the sake of time. That didn't bother me as much as I thought it would because it still conveyed the essence of the book. They did a great job showing the Edward-Bella romance and the backgrounds of the characters. Some of the scenes were artfully shot, like at the end where Edward has to save Bella, and I really like that.

It was also cool to see where the music was used in the movie now that I've listened to the soundtrack like a gazillion times.

My biggest pet peeve( that I don't know if I will get over) is where James bit Bella-on the wrist. In the book it was on her hand and in the rest of the books there are multiple references to the cold scar by her thumb. Maybe I'm a bit OCD but I think that was an important detail that there wasn't a reason to change.

So my Twilight friends, you know who you are, any thoughts on the movie?

I've decided that for this phase of my life I'm a diet pepsi girl. Growing up I was a fan of Diet Pepsi, mostly because my aunt drank it so I thought it was cool and could normally smuggle one when I wasn't allowed it.

In college and post college it was all about the DC (diet coke). It got me through many all nighters and hung-over mornings.

Lately, since I'm admittedly back on the caffeine after an almost 3 month break, I'm liking diet pepsi again. For some reason it just tastes better to me now, not as overly sweet. Not sure why I flip flop but after all a girl's allowed to change her mind. :)

And there you have it folks, my random musing/moment on the week...

Perhaps I am feeling nostaglic as I prepare for my 10 year college reunion (Go Squirrels!) but I was listening to Pat McGee yesterday. I was listening to an awesome bootleg of a 2003(?) concert of Pat playing accoustic somewhere in Philly.

Those who knew me in college knew I was a HUGE Pat McGee Band fan. Perhaps because they had a song "Rebecca" I was a little biased. But I had a blast listening to the music, going to concerts and even meeting band members once or twice. Throughout college and a few years after I have seen the band or the lead singer live probably a dozen times. It was pretty much the sound track to my college years and early 20s.

The band went through a few changes, life got busy and I stopped going to a lot of live shows. Their last release I know of was in 2007; These Days. It is a solid album with great songs that makes me wonder why they never made it big. I probably haven't seen the band live since 2004 (?) or earlier. Right now the lead singer Pat McGee is touring on his own and with some other groups.

At any rate the music is great and even better live. The summertime Wolftrap show was an event! Their early stuff is still great years later and These Days stands up as a great Pop/Rock CD that could easily be played on VH1 or AC radio.

So take a listen for the first time or again. My personal faves are: Rebecca (obvious), Fine (reminds me of meeting Rob), Passion (awesome live), Hero, and Come Back Home (shows the songwriting is better than ever).

You can find the music on itunes or hear Pat solo on the myspace
http://www.myspace.com/patmcgeeband (must listen to Rebecca)
http://www.patmcgee.net/

They even have a wikipedia page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_McGee_Band

(As a side note one of the ex-band members actually leads the band at my church, I have not yet confessed I was a groupie. Let's keep that a secret.)