Catching Up

I just realized its been more than 2 weeks since I posted!

Time flies in general but especially this time of year - its almost Christmas, eek!
I suppose I should probably start Christmas shopping sometime soon - honestly I feel like everyone already has too much stuff so the idea of buying more stuff kind of makes me cringe.

Relationship Status: Friend Zone - and its not great, actually fairly miserable but more about that later.

So......let's see. What have I been up to? Its been a busy few weeks.

Visited the Italian Art exhibit at Minneapolis Institute of Arts.....twice.
Its a really beautiful exhibit and I would definitely recommend even if you aren't particularly into fashion. What struck me is how styles are recycled and recycled - you can really see that in the progression from the 1940's to current day. No pictures are allowed sadly but it is worth the value to go and there have also a LivingSocial deal for half off the price of admission.  

I've been to several shows since the last post: Wet with Bae Tigre, Har Mar Superstar with Pizza Underground, and Shakey Graves with Sean Rowe. All the shows were awesome. Har Mar Superstar was definitely a super fun dance party but I was really blown away at the Sean Rowe and Shakey Graves show - the other opener was Esme Patterson and she was fantastic too. Barr Brothers was definitely my favorite show of the year but this show was certainly in the Top 5.

Thanksgiving! So much to be thankful for this year. Spent the holiday in Nebraska with the family and had a wonderful time. My niece and nephews are growing up so fast - its sort of incredible actually...and makes me feel a little old!

Visited the Minneapolis Holiday Market last weekend. There have definitely been many mixed reviews on the holiday market. Here is my take: Yes, it is a bit crowded and the set-up could have probably been done better to allow for better flow. Yes, it is challenging to access for anyone with any type of physical disability. Yes, you do have to pay $6 to get in when the Holidazzle Parade was free. All that being said, it was really enjoyable and helped me get into the holiday spirit. There are lots of good eats and drink and wares to be had. If you keep your expectations in check, I think its an enjoyable experience.

Circling back to relationship status.....so yeah, during the Thanksgiving trip, I saw special someone from Nebraska and we ended up deciding that we were best off just being in the friend zone. He can't see past the distance to what could be which is too bad. So.....friend zone but also going on some Tinder dates to get back into the groove here locally. Hopefully Prince Charming will show up sooner or later.

This week I'm in town all week! Looking forward to getting life maintenance stuff done and Third Thursday at MIA and then seeing Jeremy Messersmith on Friday.

Cheers to a great week!

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First Aid Kit

So much good music this week. 

By the time I got around to seeing First Aid Kit on Thursday night, I was almost a little burnt out of going to shows but this was the show that I was most looking for and it did not disappoint. 

The way I would describe the show is magical and ethereal. There were moments of humor and also one instance of an ugly cry from me when they sang "Ghost Town" completely unplugged. 

In the end, it was a really beautiful show. 

My favorite song that was performed was: Master Pretender 

Just have to add was that the Bleachers and Stars shows were really fun also - great songs, great energy, had an awesome time. 

Cheers to Sunday Funday! 

My Junk

What do you do at 1am when you can't sleep because of you old friend insomnia? I suppose in the absence of anything else to do, one blogs. 

I keep thinking about this one particular quote from Mad Men where Faye says to Don Draper "I hope she knows you only like the beginnings of things." 

For some reason that quote really resonated with me at the time I first heard it on the show and for some reason, it has come back around. 

This week has not been the easiest. 

I don't necessarily want to get into all the ugly details but suffice to say, my heart took a little bit of a beating this week. 

But I am learning things about myself, which is perhaps the purpose in all this. 

I need to work on my communication skills. 

I don't react well when things do not go the way that I want them to go. 

I can be in a relationship or involvement where there is distance involved but this is not workable for others. 

I need to make sure I am putting effort into someone that is worthy and stop putting effort into relationships (romantic or otherwise) where the effort is not reciprocal. 

Some day it will be my turn to be in the happy couple photos that I see all over social media - its not my turn right now and I need to be ok with that. 

I always wonder about those photos - especially when I see them used on Tinder. What happened between happy family photo and Tinder? You can't love everything about a person all the time, so maybe the percentage between what the person can stand and can't stand became off balance. 

So, that's some of my junk. We all have junk - some just hide it better than others. 

The End. 

Random Thoughts

Good Morning lovelies.

Writing this post from my bed, snuggled with my cat Zoey, drinking coffee and looking out the window at the already winter wonderland of Minneapolis and listening to the Barr Brothers. 

I went to see the Barr Brothers last night at the Cedar and honestly, it was one of the most soul feeding shows that I've been to in quite some time. The musicianship was incredible. The music was just beautiful, the lyrics, the sound filled up the space and I think everyone in the crowd was completely wow'ed. I won't hesitate to see them again anytime that I can. 
Favorite Song from the entire set was: How the Heroine Dies 

Oh! I do have to mention that I saw the New Pornographers earlier in the week which was also an inspired show but in a different way. Neko Case and the set was perfection. Super high energy show, fun crowd, great time. Favorite Song from the Set: Adventures in Solitude. 

Winter arrived in Minnesota in a hurry this past week. Its so easy to forget the magnificent Autumn that we had when the snow and cold temps come. There was so little transition time this year between the seasons. I can't deny that I was a bit crabby this week - I feel like it always takes me a week or two to embrace the cold. Hopefully I am nearing the tipping point between crabby and embracing - feels like it is close. 

Not much else new - lots of shows this week: Bleachers with Wild Cub, Stars, First Aid Kit. Looking most forward to First Aid Kit in the mainroom at First Avenue. Will try to remember to post a review. 

Relationship status: Disappointed. Winter weather meant no visit from Nebraska special someone this weekend. Hopeful for a visit next weekend but he hasn't committed to that yet and I'm not going to beg for a visit. Logistics of living 6 hours away are causing a strain I think. Not seeing each other for weeks is causing a strain. That being said, I have no interest in dating at the moment - just no energy for it. We will see what happens - the best course of action is to let the universe dictate what happens next. 

All that being said, after all the annoyances and gripes, Life is ultimately good and I am blessed and I need to make sure I focus on that fact on a daily basis. 

Cheers to a new week! Lets make it a fabulous one! 

First Avenue Heartbreak

I experienced my first show at First Avenue last night that I didn't love. 

The artist was Banks. I love her album and was super excited for the show especially because I love that venue. 

She was nervous - that was obvious from the start. Understandably I felt. About 10 minutes into the show though it became obvious that she was lip synching. How disappointing. I don't know that I've ever been to a show where the artist lip synched before. 

The crowd was also something to be desired. All sorority girls and bros from the U. All obnoxious and rude. I just really hate it when people get there when the show is starting and push their way up to the front. And don't get me started on the couple basically having sex right next to me. 

All in all - not the best show and definitely a let down. 

I'm Baaaaaaack!

I was talking to someone the other day that I know only from social media (never met in person) and they mentioned that they had read one of my blog posts and I thought to myself.......oh, that's right, I have a blog! 

I am officially a Minneapolis resident as of August 8th or thereabouts. The place that I had mentioned in my previous blog post did not work out but it led to finding an even better place that I absolutely adore in the Longfellow area. Getting unpacked has proven to be a challenge - as I have been traveling so much the past couple months for business and pleasure that I have barely been home long enough to unpack much. I am making progress though. 

Took my first trip to the Badlands and the Black Hills at the beginning of August. I didn't really know what to expect and was absolutely blown away by the beauty and energy. The Badlands definitely has an other worldly feel to it. Will definitely not be my last trip to South Dakota. 

Let's see.....been going to lots of really great shows lately. War on Drugs, CHVRCHES, Ty Segall, to name a few. Caroline Smith and Lizzo absolutely blew my mind. I have huge lady crushes on both of them - so talented and beautiful. 

Oh - it was my birthday since the last post! I am now officially 37 years of age - well as of today, 37 years and 2 months. Birthdays are great - its a nice time to recognize that I am blessed to have lived this long and experienced what I've been able to experience...too many people don't have that opportunity. I am also not ashamed to admit my age or lie about my age - why would I do that? Every year gets better and better anyway. 

Current love life status: Hiatus for the month of October with the exception of a special someone that lives in Nebraska. Currently occupying my mind is the logistics of really liking someone that lives 6 hours away. 

Looking forward to this week: Banks at First Ave, Dirty Dancing Musical, and the big event of the week....The Twin Cities Book Festival on Saturday. 

Well....thats probably enough for this blog post.
Cheers! 

Moving to Minneapolis!

Well, I found a place.
Its pretty much perfect in every way except that it does not have an AC unit.
Old mansion. Lyndale and Franklin. Stained glass but modern updates to kitchen and bath.

I'm super excited. Its the first place I looked at - is that crazy that I haven't even looked at anywhere else?
I'm definitely ready to move to that side of the cities.

Sigh. Big life decisions take energy out of me.

Now to start the decluttering process at my current place!

Cheers to Tuesday!