End of Summer Resolution

I can't believe the summer is almost over. Think about it, today is the 14th of August! Where did July go? It feels like it only lasted three minutes. 

I've had a lot of fun this summer, there's been quite a few adventures. Of course, Florida Summer is a little different than the rest of the country. Mostly because our summers last pretty much all year. Whereas I'm accustomed to the Upper Peninsula summers, which is about three seconds long. 

With the summer months coming to an end and another fall upon us, I'm trying to make some changes.

I'll be starting Insanity in the next few days in hopes of losing some inches. I've never been a scale kind of gal, the number doesn't do much for me. I much prefer to track the way I look and how I feel. I'll be honest though, I feel pretty great lately. I don't necessarily look the way I'd like to when I catch a glimpse in the mirror. But since having my gall bladder removed last November, I have lost some weight. I'm back into clothes that were previously dwelling in the dark corners of my closet. That is a great feeling!

I've been working for a really cool company. They supply vessels with all kinds of things, from life jackets, nuts and bolts, to cigarettes! Everything a ship would need for several weeks at sea, we provide them with. It can be very fast paced throughout the day, and the days tend to run long. I really enjoy it so far. I am working as a temp, so I'm trying not to get attached, but I am hoping to be hired on permanently.
As well, I took an exam last week to qualify in the city as a Library Technical Assistant. I passed! Which is fantastic, and I'm really proud of myself for passing. So with having passed, I will be placed on a referral list for an open position. It could be months before I would even be asked to interview, but knowing I've completed a major step in the process helps with the waiting. 

I'm working really hard to get things where I want them to. It seems like the pieces have started to fall into place. It's a good start at least.

Part of making my life (and myself) better, I intend to start blogging more regularly. When I first disconnected the cable, I thought I'd be spending a lot more time reading and blogging. Maybe even (finally) working on more short stories. But that never really happened. So I'm going to make an honest effort now.

I've had a few great ideas already pitched to me, but I'd love to get some input from you! Is there anything you'd like to read? Any posts you'd like me to expand on? Please comment, shoot me an email, etc. All ideas are welcome! I can't guarantee I'll take every suggestion, but I'd love to know what you guys would be interested in reading!

The Time Pinterest Changed My Life

As you guys remember, I got rid of my cable tv. This was a huge life change. As if that wasn't enough, there has been a long list of other things that have changed since that time.

For starters, I switched jobs. This wasn't really a choice I had, working as a temp will do that to you. So I left one job and had about two weeks of unemployment before I started a new one. Still doing the same sort of thing, data entry and processing. Only instead of working for a Carpenter company I now work for a Ship Chandler. Neat, eh?

I also moved in with my beloved. This wasn't really that big of a change, we've practically lived together since we've been dating. I knew pretty early on that I didn't ever want to be without him. And now I don't have to be except in my working hours. It works out.

Since I haven't had cable tv to occupy my time, I've found other ways of being delighted. Mostly, reading Buzzfeed on my phone. Man, I love that site. So funny. So good.
We also got an XBox 360, which has ignited my long lost love of playing video games. Primarily, GTA IV. I'm addicted. And you can imagine, during those two weeks where I wasn't working, I didn't do much sleeping. I was mostly applying for jobs or going on crazy missions for the mafia. The nice part of an XBox is also the fact that you can access Netflix and Hulu Plus through it, so I've been able to catch up on my favorite shows I miss out on without cable.

No longer having cable has also allowed me to be a little crafty when it comes to things. So I've been spending a whole lot of time perusing the boards and pinning things. Especially for decorating ideas, man they have some cute things on there.

But recently I was looking up different ideas for painting my fingernails, and I stumbled upon a sweet little trick that has rocked my world. 

(Here's the part where this turns into one of those How-To Blogs)

I love painting my nails. Every Sunday, I get out this ridiculous case I have that's filled with nailpolish. I take off my current nail polish, clean, cut and file my nails. Then I paint them all over again. Depending on who might be around, their toes or fingers will also fall victim to my nailpolish.

On top of loving painting my nails, I have a fierce addiction to glitter. I. Love. Glitter. I wish it was still socially acceptable to be covered in glitter like some sort of fairy princess. I love it. So I try to incorporate glitter into my nails as much as possible. 

Every girl in the world knows exactly what happens when you use glitter fingernail polish, though. It's a bitch to take off. Fingernail polish in general sucks to take off. Its always stuck in your cuticles, you have a stain sometimes to your fingers depending on the color you've used. Glitter, though. Man. Sucks. You'll have glitter all the way up your fingers and arms sometimes.

Thanks to Pinterest though, I found a way to make it all so much easier you guys. And! It only takes ONE cotton ball to do it. One. Just one!

I was going to link you to the Pin that I found that helped me, but I actually took pictures of me using this process. That way you know it's legit. It's not one of those "Pinterest tricked me again!" things.

So, you gotta take some nail polish off, right?

 (I made sure I was wearing super Glitter)

Take a cotton ball, and pull it apart so its in one long piece. Then break it up into small pieces, like I did here:

I poured my remover into the cap, just about half a cap full. Then, taking a small piece, I dipped just a teeny bit into the remover. The cotton ball soaks it up quick, so you don't have to dunk it all the way in, just a small bit.

Then put a piece on your fingernail. I covered all of my nails and let the cotton ball sit until they were all covered. It looks weird, I know.

But surprisingly? When you go to take the cotton off, its a piece of cake! Just slide the whole piece from your cuticle, towards the end of your nail. Easy peasy.

                                                            No glitter mess here!


The best part, even after covering all of my nails, I still had bits of cotton left. So what was left over I was able to use to clean up my fingernails. It was so awesome. And a great saver! I used just ONE cotton ball, and half a cap full of nail polish remover. IT ONLY TOOK THREE MINUTES!

Normally, I end up taking like half an hour going over my nails when I take off my polish. Making sure it's all off, no leftover polish or glitter residue. This whole process only took a few minutes. It was so easy. And kind of fun, too.

I love that Pinterest. So much.

A Summer Experiment... In Torture

A lot has changed, folks.

For starters, I lost my gall bladder in a horrible skiing accident. Kidding, but I really did lose it. But we parted ways in a brutal break-up that was three months of horrific pain and is still lingering on, as all bad break-ups do.

I had switched jobs from doing customer service for a cable tv provider to selling auto insurance. I loved my job in the cable/phone/internet industry. I loved my co-workers and enjoyed what I did every day. But I figured I'd take a leap of faith (in myself) and take a position in sales. I had done minor sales in my customer service position, and really enjoyed it. 
Turns out I loved selling insurance. I thrived on it. There was no bigger high than turning someone around from a solid no to getting them set up with a new auto policy. It was a rush. Unfortunately, I wasn't really happy within the company I worked for. Not naming names, but I found that staying within that company was crushing my spirit, each day harder than the one before. I have some pals in a different department, and they love it there. But it just was not for me. So I took an even bigger leap of faith, and walked out the door in hopes of finding the perfect job for me.

And I have found that as a temp for a contracting company that builds trusses and panels for homes. I do mostly data entry, but on the engineering side so I get to play around with AutoCad and fun things like that all day. It was a huge pay cut, and there won't be much opportunity for overtime that I can tell at this point, but I love it. I'm excited to go to work every day, and when five o'clock hits, I wonder where the day went. Plus I get to listen to my ipod all day, and that ain't so bad.

So, hurray for me. I found exactly what I was needing. Unfortunately, in getting what you want there are some sacrifices that need to be made. And in this drastic pay cut meant one thing: I'd have to cut back on some of the frivolous things I've become accustomed to.

Now, if you've read my previous blogs, you know I am a tv junkie. There's no better way to put it. My DVR is my best friend. I'm a sucker for fall tv, I look forward to the summer shows that never last long enough (Rookie Blue!) I. Love. Television.

Therein lies the rub. Previously, I was getting a huge discount on my cable tv. This allotted me the joy of having a dvr in every room of the house and every channel that could possibly become available to me. And I wasn't good enough with JUST that. Heavens no, I also have a Netflix instant queue account that I take advantage of frequently.
So about a year ago, I lost that discount. But that was okay, since I was making more money in my sales position. However, now I also am no longer making the same income. And spoilers: Cable tv is expensive.

Which leads us to the title of this blog. I've decided to take the summer and try something completely different. We've disconnected all of our cable television. Not even basic cable. We knocked it all the way down. So any television watching will be done with Netflix, Hulu+ or any other internet streaming website if needed. I have a plethora of dvds, and of course there's a Redbox on every corner if I need something a little more recent.

I'll take the summer doing this. Because hopefully by the end of the summer, I'll have found a way to pay for cable once again, or I will realize I'm completely fine without cable.

I keep telling myself I'll do okay. I'll have more time to read, as well as write (Hey, first blog in months!). And plus, its summer! Now I wont have an excuse not to go to the pool, or outside in general. Though it does seem a little like the kid that wants to play video games all summer vacation. "You're a kid, go outside and PLAY!"

Wish me luck. Send me Netflix recommendations. Keep an eye on my blog for updates, because I'm sure there will be more as the summer progresses. And mostly, have a fantastic summer!

Changing Things

Lately things have been changing.

I started a new job in June. Not just a new job, but a new career. Legitimate, having to take college courses to work there, new job. It's been really exciting making this change, but really hard. It was a hard decision, leaving a job that I had been at for two years and really loved. Not only did I love my last job, but I was really good at it. 
My new job, I started out not loving and not being so great at. But day by day, it's gotten easier. I started picking up tricks to make it easier, and that's helped a lot. Now I look forward to going to work again because of the challenge. I've never liked being bad at anything, especially my job. So I've been trying really hard to get better at it, and I've definitely seen some improvement. Hopefully every day will get easier and I'll only start to like it even more.

Not only did I switch careers, but in August I started to get sick. Not just sick, but I was in pain. I'd go to the emergency room and have all kinds of tests (and medical bills) done and they couldn't find anything wrong with me. They chalked it up to high blood pressure (which I tried telling them I only had because I was in so much pain) or because I'm overweight. 
I saw specialists that did even more tests and came up with the same kind of non-answers. It started to feel hopeless. Not only was I in severe pain no one could figure out, but I was in so much pain I couldn't do my job properly and even became scared to drive. One day I drove home and not only passed my turn into my community, but I couldn't remember changing the stereo in my car from the CD player to the radio. Terrifying. I tried telling the doctors, Hey, I'm in so much pain I'm practically drunk driving here.

Thankfully, I have a good family doctor. She doesn't always have the answers, but she believes me. She knows me to the point that she can look at me and know that I'm in pain and how bad it is. She didn't give up on me. 
In turn, she referred me to a surgeon. He sent me for more tests, and said there was no reason for me to have any kind of surgery, namely the surgery that my family doctor thought I should have. The appointment was a disaster. I had him press down on my side where the pain was, which to me felt like a brick it was so hard inside. He tried telling me it was just my rib that I was feeling. I became frustrated and loud with him. He thought I was trying to get drugs. Finally, he said he'd send me for one last test. While waiting for the tests results to come back, my pain spiked. 

I wasn't sleeping at night. I was in so much pain that I started jerking myself awake in the night. So that was making my days even harder, I thought I was starting to go crazy. And even worse, the doctors couldn't find anything wrong with me.

As a last ditch effort, I called in the troops. I made my mom call the surgeon. She explained we were waiting for test results. Over the phone they told her my test results were clear, everything came back normal. Then she did what only a mom could do. She threw a shit fit. She started going on about how much pain I was in, how much work I was missing and how she didn't know what to do. Thankfully, they talked to the doctor and decided to fit me in that same day. 

We went into the appointment not having much faith in anything. But then the surgeon came in. Even with the test results being normal, he believed me and the pain I was in. They fit me in for an appointment on a Friday afternoon. The following Monday they scheduled me to have my gall bladder removed.

The surgery went really well. My gall bladder was normal, which we expected it to be, but when I woke up in recovery, the pain I had was gone. I was still IN pain, but it was a different pain. Just waking up from surgery pain. 
It's been a week now since I've had my gall bladder out. I'm still pretty sore, bending down or turning at the waist is still horrible. Sneezing and coughing is traumatic. But I've still not experienced the pain I've had for the last three months. I can't get comfortable in bed, and one thing they don't tell you about laproscopic surgery is the gas bubble you're left with afterward. The gas bubble is enough to make you want to rip your hair out, its the most uncomfortable, painful thing. The nice thing is, this pain goes away. It takes a few days, but it does. I'm just waiting for the next few days when being so sore has gone away and I can wear pants again. It's exciting.

One other thing has changed in this whole process as well. While going through all these tests and being told that it was just because I'm overweight, I got frustrated. My frustration was mostly because I've always been overweight, and I've never been in any kind of pain. My tests results are always normal, so my cholesterol is good, I don't have diabetes, there's nothing wrong with me. Except for being plus sized, I'm healthy. 
The pain was so bad, I'd do anything to get rid of it. I'm a pretty heavy soda drinker, and I cut down to only two sodas a day. I started drinking water several times a day. I make sure to drink at least two bottles of water or two full glasses of water in a day, more if I can. 
On top of cutting back on soda, I also started watching my calories. I never changed what I ate, I just started to paying attention to the number of calories. I found a really great app that is available for both iPhones and Droids alike, called MyFitnessPal (it is also available online as well). My supervisor at work recommended it, it had helped her lose over sixty pounds. My best friend also uses it, and it helped her lose 30+ pounds. 

I've tried all kinds of diets. I've tried all kinds of exercise routines. There was a time that I was working out every morning and became frustrated because not only was I not losing weight, I was just tired from  getting up early and working out every day for several weeks. Nothing has ever stuck with me. Not that I don't want to lose weight, I'd like to be healthier, but I get frustrated and give up. 
However, counting calories works for me. I make sure to log everything, even if I know it'll put me over how many calories I should have in a day. It keeps me accountable. And seeing those numbers, it helps. It makes me take a ten minute walk to the end of the street and back. It makes me put my can of soda back in the fridge and grab a bottle of water instead. And it works. That's the best part. Just taking an extra thirty seconds to log in what I ate for dinner is helping. Its been about three weeks and I'm down almost ten pounds. 

The past six months have been crazy. Lots of changes. And going forward there will only be more changes, I'm sure. But I'm looking forward to it, especially since soon I'll be out of pain and will be able to enjoy each step along the way.

Also, one thing I can definitely recommend if you're counting calories and trying to lose weight? Totally get surgery. Recovering from surgery, you're not hungry (especially if your surgery is abdominal related) so when you do eat, you don't eat a whole lot so your portion control is amazing!

(Also, I don't really recommend having surgery, it sucks. But its nice to have a bit of a silver lining.)

2012 Boob Tube Escapades

If you remember, two years ago I posted a blog about the new fall shows and what I thought. I didn't do it last year, mostly because there weren't many new shows that I liked. Most of the new shows from the last year were mid-season programs. 

After an overwhelming vote of yes, I'll be posting in the coming weeks about the new shows that are coming out this fall season. I will be posting about primetime shows mostly, since I know not everyone has premium cable channels like HBO, Showtime, etc. A handful of the new shows coming out are already available through OnDemand, and there's a few premiering this week as well. I've seen a few already through my cable provider's Primetime OnDemand channel. 

So, here we are!

Go On - When I first saw previews for this show, I didn't think much of it. I love Matthew Perry, but after Friends, he hasn't had a stellar reputation. A few seasons ago he had a show called Mr. Sunshine that I really enjoyed, but I think it only lasted about 8-10 episodes. 
Go On is about a radio host (Perry) that is trying to come back to work after the loss of his wife. He swears he's ready to be back at work, but it hasn't been long since his wife has died, so his boss sends him to a therapy group. The therapy group is a mismatched group of people going through losses. Its an eclectic group with a weird creepy guy, the type A personality that writes down everything, a young kid that doesn't talk about why he's there, a Spanish grandma type, a loud bossy bitchy lady. You get the idea. He hates the group, obviously, and doesn't understand why they're dwelling in their sorrows. So, as part of the pilot episode, before the group leader comes in he starts them off in a March Madness type competition, to see who has the saddest story. They call it March Sadness. Hilarious. The show is really funny, but it has a serious theme to it, so I did find myself tearing up in a couple scenes. I hope it gets a good run, the premiere was very promising.

The New Normal - I really really enjoyed this series premiere. There's two stories to the show. One side is about a young single mom, Goldie, with a nine year old girl that lives with her bossy well-to-do grandmother. She's down on her luck, working as a waitress and catches her boyfriend cheating on her. But she loves her daughter, and decides they'll take off and start on their own. The other side of the story is about a gay couple wanting to have a baby. They've found a program where they pick the egg of a woman, one of them will be the dad, and they'll have a surrogate carry their baby. Sounds great, right? Well, the first woman they meet immediately starts black mailing them, threatening to drink and smoke if they don't give her money. So they're devastated. Cue the meeting of Goldie and her daughter. They need money, the guys want a baby. The premiere made me laugh out loud in several parts with witty quips, but it has a nice meaning behind it as well. I like the idea of a show about people helping each other and becoming a family. I'm sure there'll be a lot of protests regarding the show's premise, but  I hope that won't stop it from having a fantastic first season.

Ben and Kate - The last couple seasons Fox has been coming out with some really funny comedies. Ben and Kate is another one on that list. Its about a brother and sister, the sister is a single mom with her stuff together. Ben is the older brother that shows up randomly, makes a mess of things for Kate, and takes off. Ben and Kate have great chemistry together, which makes it fun to watch. In the premiere Ben comes in on his whirlwind as he's prone to do, but realizes his sister needs him and maybe he needs her, too. The cast is good, the little girl is the kid from We Bought A Zoo, and she's really cute. Ben's best friend is hilarious. It'll be a good addition to Fox's Tuesday night comedy lineup.

Revolution - This show has a fantastic premise. It starts in present day, with a guy rushing home to his family, saying "it's going to happen in fifteen minutes". They're freaking out, calling his brother who is in the military and just so happens to be on the interstate. Well, "It" is a total loss of power. One by one they show the houses in the neighborhood losing power, cars just stop on the interstate and die out. Planes start falling from the sky. 
Fifteen years later, society is still without power. There's kids that don't know what tv is or what having electricity was like. There's a militia that seems pretty terrifying. They come after the dad from the beginning of the show, wanting him and his brother. His daughter goes off in search of her uncle with one of the guys from the community and her dad's girlfriend (or something, not really sure). In search for the uncle they run into more scary militia guys. At one point the girl's brother finds a house in the middle of nowhere, and the woman living there has what seems like a generator running a computer, communicating with who knows who. 
The show is really interesting, I'm looking forward to see how it will go on. The idea itself is really great, because what would we do if all of a sudden everything lost power? But I'm just slightly afraid it'll go the way of last year's Terra Nova. Which also had a great premise, but they didn't know what to do with it so it kind of fizzled out and was cancelled. 

The Mindy Project - Mindy Kaling is an amazing writer, so funny and talented. I'm really looking forward to her new show. I enjoyed the opener, it was funny and snarky. The same kind of humor we're used to from The Office. But she's not reprising her Kelly Kapoor character, she's Mindy. A doctor that should be on top of things, but instead is crushing on another doctor and can kind of be a hot mess. There's great chemistry in this cast too, so it should be a fun watch.

Saving Hope - I'm not sure how new this show is, I think it started this summer. I watched the premiere earlier this week, and absolutely loved it. Its about a couple that are surgeons, headed to get married. On the way, they're involved in a car crash. He saves someone else's life, and then just collapses. He had head trauma and is now in a coma. His fiancé is at the hospital with him, trying to care for him and her patients as well. As he's laying in a coma, he's also walking around the hospital and witnessing everything. His spirit, I guess. But as he's going through the hospital seeing everything (and things he may not have noticed before) there are other people like him, that are stuck in the hospital for one reason or another. I liked it a lot.

I've been using this link to keep up with the new and returning shows. September is a big month, there's a lot coming out! Thank goodness for DVR.

More shows I'm looking forward to watching:
Guys With Kids - Dad's are easy comedy, and from the previews it looks so funny. Guys at a bar watching the game with their babies on their chests? Easy comedy, sure. But sometimes you need that!
Last Resort - They're saying it'll be like a new LOST. I'm doubtful, but they have a good cast and it looks interesting.
666 Park Avenue - It has Terry O'Quinn in it. That's really all I need to watch the show. But from the reviews I've read it's supposed to be good. It looks kind of creepy.
Chicago Fire - I love cop/fireman shows. I loved Rescue Me. I think following Fire Departments makes for a good tv show. I like the way firehouses are like a family, but also seeing the guy's in action and with their own families outside of the fire house.
Mob Doctor - I love mob anything. Godfather will always be one of my favorite movies. It looks like it'll be interesting. 

New Shows I'm not sure about yet:
Made In Jersey - Do I have to say why?
The Neighbors - Apparently they're supposed to be aliens? Who knows. I just like comedies.
Animal Practice - It looks dumb. They'll use the animals for overused roll your eyes jokes. I can just tell.
Nashville - I get the feeling it'll be like that Katherine McPhee show, Smash. 
Beauty And The Beast - Really? Really.


There were a lot of great shows from this past season and mid-season you should also check out, given the chance. 
Scandal - I'm not a politics person, but this show was shocking and kept me guessing. It's about a group of lawyers (that aren't really a law practice) that "fix" things. Helping people that are being investigated,  even working with the President. 
Revenge - This was a big show last year. It's currently on Netflix, so I recommend getting caught up before the new season. I originally thought it'd be awful. How could they have it run long term, when its about a girl revenging her dead father who was betrayed? But its very smart and keeps you on the edge of your seat.
Once Upon A Time - A show about fairytale characters that don't know they're fairytale characters? It sounds dumb, right? Not at all. It's fun to see the characters as they lived in "their" world with magic, and revisiting the fairytale stories. The way the show is written, its interesting the way they portray the characters in the "real" world, and figuring out who they are. It's a fun fantasy show, different from everything else that's out there.
New Girl- Probably one of my favorite new shows in the last few years. The cast is fantastic, the jokes are hilarious. It's sweet, and snarky. I could watch it every day. 

I'll keep you posted as I watch more shows, and like I did last time, I will post with updates with what I'm still watching, what's been cancelled, and what I deleted off my dvr. 

Happy Watching! And please let me know if there's new shows I missed, or something I should be watching!

Thanksgiving 2011

I really like Thanksgiving. Not just because I'm a fat kid (well, mostly that) but I like that everyone takes the time to look back on the year and think about what they're most thankful for. So, to be cliche, here's what I'm thankful for this year!

My Mom and Sister-

Most of my life it has been just the three of us. For most of my childhood we lived apart from most of our family so we always did things just the three of us. After losing my grandma this year, we realized it's just the three of us again, and we don't rely on my aunts and uncles and cousins anymore. Just the three of us. Living 1600 miles apart, my sister and I are closer than we've ever been, and I love calling to chat her ear off about tv and whatever else. I love my mom more than anything, and my favorite days are the ones I spend just hanging out watching movies and eating junk with her.

Baby Audrey and Black Betty-

For the first part of this year I had my beloved Dodge Neon who got me through some serious mischief and was like a best friend to me. That car played a big part of changing my life when I made the decision to move to Florida and it was a sad farewell, but if it hadn't been for that car I can't say that I would've ended up here. And every day I am thankful for my new car, my Ford Focus. I love that car so much, and enjoy the time I spend just driving around listening to music. Every day I feel very lucky and blessed to have a new fantastic car. And it makes me proud of myself for my hard work in getting and keeping it.

My Friends-

Most days I wouldn't get through things if I didn't have the amazing friends that I do. They make me laugh and cheer me up. When I don't know if I can do something, they believe it for me and give me the confidence I need in myself. It's good to have friends to count on, whether it's just for a good music/movie suggestion, to go to a movie with, or to drive you to Taco Bell after the bar. I cherish all of my friends, some for very different reasons, and hope I'm half the friend to them that they are for me.

I'm thankful every day for the life I have in Florida. Maybe this isn't where I'll be forever, but I know right now I'm where I'm supposed to be.

Now I'm doing something I've never done. I'm cooking dinner. The full Thanksgiving, turkey, yams, stuffing, mashed potatoes, everything. And I don't cook. Ever. But, I figure someday I will have to know how to cook Thanksgiving. And maybe it's time I give my mom a break and do it for her. Although, she's working very hard supervising.

Happy Thanksgiving, I hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday!

A Month Of Awesome: An Ode to October Part 2

October was a month of music for me.

October 8, 2005 I had one of the best days of my life. I went to a movie (Waiting..) with a good friend. Afterwards we got McDonald's. And then we drove around downtown Denver listening to Rage Against The Machine, admiring the buildings and the scene kids. Then we went to a concert that changed me forever, Death Cab for Cutie (Youth Group opened). I can't explain how or why that particular concert changed me, but it did.

As it turns out, on their fall U.S. Tour of North America, Death Cab for Cutie had a show cancel, and they scheduled a date in Orlando, FL last minute. Six years to the day, I got to see Death Cab for Cutie for the second time. I didn't have a good friend to spend the day with, but I tried to make it as awesome as I could. I danced around in the rain, I went to a movie (Contagion) and sang at the top of my lungs. Twenty-six year old me is considerably different from the girl that saw Death Cab in 2005, but I felt the same way I did the first time I saw them. They put on an amazing show, and you can't help but have your heart stolen a little bit when you see them live.

A week later I got to see my favorite band play, for the second time with them as well. New Found Glory headlined the Pop Punk's Not Dead Tour, and it was amazing. There were a total of five bands playing (This Time Next Year, Man Overboard, The Wonder Years, Set Your Goals and New Found Glory. In that order.)

I stood in line almost three and a half hours before the doors opened. It was a lot of fun people-watching, and it was a really beautiful day to spend chillin' outside. I made friends with the people standing behind me and we hung out throughout the concert and afterwards. The show was amazing, I enjoyed most of the opening bands.

New Found Glory put on a kick ass show. My favorite thing about them is how they try to play as many songs as they can, talking as little as possible between songs. Watching New Found Glory play live fills my heart with joy. I've never been as happy at any moment in my life as I am when I listen to New Found Glory, and seeing them play live is heavenly. They played some new songs and some old but goodies. My favorite was their cover of Green Day's Basketcase, but I always love when they play anything from their Self Titled album.

After the show (Which ended with Confetti cannons..amazing) I hung around the merch booths with my new friends. I chatted up the bassist from The Wonder Years, and got him to call my friend that got me listening to them. I got to meet Chad Gilbert from New Found Glory for the second time, solidifying my opinion that he's the nicest guy on the planet.

October 22nd I had the pleasure of seeing another one of my favorite bands live. I discovered Gasoline Heart last year when I went to see The Ataris play in Orlando. Since then I've been pretty much addicted, I listen to at least three Gasoline Heart songs every day, and in June got a line from one of their songs tattooed on my chest. They are very easily my second favorite band after New Found Glory.

Kyle Cox opened, and I've seen him before. I really enjoy his music. His music is soft and mellow and is delightful. This time he played with a drummer and a lovely lady singing along, last time I saw him play he played alone with his guitar.

I've also seen Don't Panic before, and I love to watch them play. It's fun to watch a band that plays that makes it so obvious how much fun it is for them to be on stage. They're full of energy and make you want to get up and dance.

This was my third time seeing Gasoline Heart, but only my first time seeing the full band play. I honestly couldn't tell you if I prefer the full band or the lead singer Louis playing by himself. The fun part about both is you there's songs you don't hear without the band, and there's songs you only hear when its just Louis. Gasoline Heart songs make me want to jump in my car and drive until I find something important, or until I do something impressive with my life. They make me feel born again (see what I did there?)

I feel most like myself when I'm listening to music, especially so when I'm at a concert or a show. And seeing three of my favorite bands back to back was amazing. I go to most shows by myself, I don't really have (local) friends that have the same taste in music as I do. October has definitely been the month where I've been the happiest this year, spending it blessed by fantastic live music.

All of the bands I've mentioned are either on Spotify or Bandcamp or iTunes. Check them out, I hope you'll fall in love with them the way I have. Maybe you'll find a band that you'll love so much, you'll have to tattoo one of their lyrics on your body because you can't get it out of your head.

This month really has been amazing, for so many reasons. And honestly, I don't mind that I'm ending it with a killer sinus infection/allergy outbreak/generally yucky-feeling. Well, I mostly don't mind it.