Hey friendly followers,
I started a new blog to track my final semester of life at UT. Find it here, if you're interested:
http://cowgirlking.blogspot.com
Peace,
Cat
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
If the children don't grow up/Our bodies get bigger, but our hearts get torn up.
Back in Texas.
One of the first things I noticed on the plane from Charlotte was the accents. It seems to me that, in many cases, you either completely love the accents of the people who live where you are from, or else you are attracted to any accent that DOESN'T resemble the accents formerly described. I fall into this latter category. I loved the "Joisey" accents, the Long Island accents, the random international accents I would run into in and around New York City. There was something a little dirty about being around the people with southern accents again. I think, more than anything, it was just this instant reminder that I was back.
I'm grappling with the notion right now that I am still, indeed, the girl who lived in New York this summer, who interned at Rolling Stone. I'm having to really remind myself that these experiences are still with me, that they haven't disappeared just because I've changed locations. There is a great sense of loss, a sense of being at a place and time where I'm treading water. So I'm just going to have to come into these last few months at the University of Texas with the same eagerness I approached NYC with. Realistically, it won't be the same, but I will still strive to find the same exciting experiences I found in New York. I'm in a bit of a rut right now, kind of loping around every day, seeing San Antonio buddies here and there, spending time with my dad and our dogs, but mostly just exercising and doing not much else. Talking to my mom today, I realized that this is a natural reaction after so much activity - I need to be lazy and recharge my batteries. The problem is, I'm not enjoying it, because I know there's such a short time limit on this free time. I start school a week from tomorrow, and I want to fit in so many books, so much guitar practicing, so many other activities before then. I just have to work on the balance of everything. Balancing life - it's a tricky thing, and seems to take a lifetime to figure out how to do it.
My last day in New York was a good one. I got up semi-early, and exercised to wake myself up. I did some laundry and started to pack. Then it was off to the movies. I caught "It Might Get Loud," the documentary with Jack White, the Edge and Jimmy Page, and it was stupendous. Plus, during the previews, the trailer for "Where The Wild Things Are" came on (an extended one I had never seen before that doesn't seem to be posted online), and I wept. Openly and in a big way. It felt amazing, especially since I was attending the movie alone. It felt free and rejuvenating, just a really nice moment. After the documentary, I rushed home, had dinner, did some more packing and cleaning, and walked briskly the twenty-five miles and 4ish avenues to the entrance of Central Park where Summerstage was. Unfortunately, the venue was already full, but I could hear a song I recognized playing. I walked around to the back of the venue, and stood by the gate and just listened to Ms. Martha Wainwright sing her beautiful tunes, and I could just see the ballet dancers' hands waving in the air as they accompanied her music. There was an intermission, during which they let some more people inside, so I rushed in hoping to just catch a glimpse of that lovely fresh Wainwright visage. No dice - when the dancers came back on, they were being accompanied by a CD track, and I couldn't wait any longer - had to run to the dorm to check out. I did that, bought some water, and tried to get a little sleep. After about an hour of the stuff, I woke up, showered and dressed, grabbed my things, and headed for the shuttle.
The shuttle to Newark was crazy, but it got me there bright and early at 4am and I was grateful. I leisurely checked myself in, settled into a seat, and read a little, trying to stay awake. The trip back was uneventful, which I completely appreciated. And here I am.
I move to Austin on Thursday. Initially, it looked like I was going to have to make 2 trips, so I wouldn't be moving back for good until Saturday. Those plans have changed, so I'll be back on Thursday. I won't lie, I'm not really excited. My heart still aches for New York. However, it's good to see family again (wish I could see my mom before Labor Day weekend!) and there are friends I'm dying to see, too. Also, it'll be good to get a feel for my neighborhood, and hopefully carve out a safe bike route to campus. I'll get to use Gregory gym, meaning I'll get to run (it's too damn hot to run outside right now, so I've been restricted to my elliptical), and I'll just generally be able to gear up to get back into the swing of things. One more semester - it's kind of crazy, really.
I miss my friends from New York. I especially miss Caroline and Chris, because they were such good pals to me. I miss work and the rest of the people there. I miss the city itself. I miss the double anonymity and attention of it all - I rarely feared walking out my front doors, because I could shove my iPod earbuds in and be immersed in my own world, while turning heads all at the same time. I hope to recapture that confidence in the next two days, because I want to bring the healthy and amazing changes I've made in myself back to Austin. For now, it's time for sleep!
One of the first things I noticed on the plane from Charlotte was the accents. It seems to me that, in many cases, you either completely love the accents of the people who live where you are from, or else you are attracted to any accent that DOESN'T resemble the accents formerly described. I fall into this latter category. I loved the "Joisey" accents, the Long Island accents, the random international accents I would run into in and around New York City. There was something a little dirty about being around the people with southern accents again. I think, more than anything, it was just this instant reminder that I was back.
I'm grappling with the notion right now that I am still, indeed, the girl who lived in New York this summer, who interned at Rolling Stone. I'm having to really remind myself that these experiences are still with me, that they haven't disappeared just because I've changed locations. There is a great sense of loss, a sense of being at a place and time where I'm treading water. So I'm just going to have to come into these last few months at the University of Texas with the same eagerness I approached NYC with. Realistically, it won't be the same, but I will still strive to find the same exciting experiences I found in New York. I'm in a bit of a rut right now, kind of loping around every day, seeing San Antonio buddies here and there, spending time with my dad and our dogs, but mostly just exercising and doing not much else. Talking to my mom today, I realized that this is a natural reaction after so much activity - I need to be lazy and recharge my batteries. The problem is, I'm not enjoying it, because I know there's such a short time limit on this free time. I start school a week from tomorrow, and I want to fit in so many books, so much guitar practicing, so many other activities before then. I just have to work on the balance of everything. Balancing life - it's a tricky thing, and seems to take a lifetime to figure out how to do it.
My last day in New York was a good one. I got up semi-early, and exercised to wake myself up. I did some laundry and started to pack. Then it was off to the movies. I caught "It Might Get Loud," the documentary with Jack White, the Edge and Jimmy Page, and it was stupendous. Plus, during the previews, the trailer for "Where The Wild Things Are" came on (an extended one I had never seen before that doesn't seem to be posted online), and I wept. Openly and in a big way. It felt amazing, especially since I was attending the movie alone. It felt free and rejuvenating, just a really nice moment. After the documentary, I rushed home, had dinner, did some more packing and cleaning, and walked briskly the twenty-five miles and 4ish avenues to the entrance of Central Park where Summerstage was. Unfortunately, the venue was already full, but I could hear a song I recognized playing. I walked around to the back of the venue, and stood by the gate and just listened to Ms. Martha Wainwright sing her beautiful tunes, and I could just see the ballet dancers' hands waving in the air as they accompanied her music. There was an intermission, during which they let some more people inside, so I rushed in hoping to just catch a glimpse of that lovely fresh Wainwright visage. No dice - when the dancers came back on, they were being accompanied by a CD track, and I couldn't wait any longer - had to run to the dorm to check out. I did that, bought some water, and tried to get a little sleep. After about an hour of the stuff, I woke up, showered and dressed, grabbed my things, and headed for the shuttle.
The shuttle to Newark was crazy, but it got me there bright and early at 4am and I was grateful. I leisurely checked myself in, settled into a seat, and read a little, trying to stay awake. The trip back was uneventful, which I completely appreciated. And here I am.
I move to Austin on Thursday. Initially, it looked like I was going to have to make 2 trips, so I wouldn't be moving back for good until Saturday. Those plans have changed, so I'll be back on Thursday. I won't lie, I'm not really excited. My heart still aches for New York. However, it's good to see family again (wish I could see my mom before Labor Day weekend!) and there are friends I'm dying to see, too. Also, it'll be good to get a feel for my neighborhood, and hopefully carve out a safe bike route to campus. I'll get to use Gregory gym, meaning I'll get to run (it's too damn hot to run outside right now, so I've been restricted to my elliptical), and I'll just generally be able to gear up to get back into the swing of things. One more semester - it's kind of crazy, really.
I miss my friends from New York. I especially miss Caroline and Chris, because they were such good pals to me. I miss work and the rest of the people there. I miss the city itself. I miss the double anonymity and attention of it all - I rarely feared walking out my front doors, because I could shove my iPod earbuds in and be immersed in my own world, while turning heads all at the same time. I hope to recapture that confidence in the next two days, because I want to bring the healthy and amazing changes I've made in myself back to Austin. For now, it's time for sleep!
Thursday, August 13, 2009
'Cause tramps like us, baby we were born to run.
Today was my last day as a summer 2009 intern at Rolling Stone.
It was a busy day, really almost a day like any other. Except this day began with me checking in with Human Resources to make sure all my papers were in order, and ended with me turning in my Rolling Stone badge to them. I said goodbye to my boss-in-the-office, Caryn, and almost wept. This summer has just been so mind-blowingly amazing, I couldn't help myself. These people have changed my life. I wore the same outfit I wore on my first day at work - not necessarily on purpose, but I realized this morning and it seemed right. After work, after the brief almost-teary goodbyes, after waving to the fabulous Rob Sheffield one final time, I got my things together and headed out with my lovely co-interns. We went to dinner at a nearby burger joint (that had veggie burgers!) and we chatted and settled into the idea that the summer is almost over. I'm still getting used to the idea that I'm going back to Texas in just over 24 hours, really. It's hard, it's sad, it's exciting and fun. It's lots of things all at once.
I'm sure I have updates for you, like spending time with Jason Soudah wandering around New York and getting delicious hot chocolate, like rapping with Caroline yesterday for some crazy project that I pray doesn't make me a sadly-unfortunate viral internet star, like soaking in the last of the city. I'm getting a bit sick, and I'm hoping it holds off for one more day - tomorrow I'd like to hit up Strawberry Fields/the Dakota apartments, see "It Might Get Loud," do my laundry and pack, and see Martha Wainwright at Summerstage. If I don't get to do all of it, it's ok, 'cause I'll be back. There's tons more to say, but it's bedtime.
It was a busy day, really almost a day like any other. Except this day began with me checking in with Human Resources to make sure all my papers were in order, and ended with me turning in my Rolling Stone badge to them. I said goodbye to my boss-in-the-office, Caryn, and almost wept. This summer has just been so mind-blowingly amazing, I couldn't help myself. These people have changed my life. I wore the same outfit I wore on my first day at work - not necessarily on purpose, but I realized this morning and it seemed right. After work, after the brief almost-teary goodbyes, after waving to the fabulous Rob Sheffield one final time, I got my things together and headed out with my lovely co-interns. We went to dinner at a nearby burger joint (that had veggie burgers!) and we chatted and settled into the idea that the summer is almost over. I'm still getting used to the idea that I'm going back to Texas in just over 24 hours, really. It's hard, it's sad, it's exciting and fun. It's lots of things all at once.
I'm sure I have updates for you, like spending time with Jason Soudah wandering around New York and getting delicious hot chocolate, like rapping with Caroline yesterday for some crazy project that I pray doesn't make me a sadly-unfortunate viral internet star, like soaking in the last of the city. I'm getting a bit sick, and I'm hoping it holds off for one more day - tomorrow I'd like to hit up Strawberry Fields/the Dakota apartments, see "It Might Get Loud," do my laundry and pack, and see Martha Wainwright at Summerstage. If I don't get to do all of it, it's ok, 'cause I'll be back. There's tons more to say, but it's bedtime.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Leap and the net will appear.
I'm leaving this city in less than a week. As a matter of fact, at this time next week, I'll be sitting around with my dad in San Antonio, probably doing laundry and petting the dogs and trying not to be too heartbroken. Today, some scary things happened that reminded me that New York City isn't perfect, and it's a little dangerous, but some other things happened that reminded me that when you take the leap, the net will appear. Tons happened this past week, and unfortunately, I can't go into super-detail with some of it, because I think it's supposed to be a little secretive. Still, I'll give you what I can.
The work week was great this week. I met up with Erica and talked about how she got to where she was, plus any advice she could give me for my own future. I'm going to stop by HR this week to make sure they have all of the paperwork they need to keep me on file for a possible position in the future, should one open up. I'm also planning on getting a l'il somethin' for Erica, because she has been the best boss I could possibly ever imagine. Working with her is stupendous, because she's super supportive and sweet, but she also has high expectations of us which pushes us to do our best. We had our last luncheon this week, at which we got tons of hilarious and fascinating stories about the stars behind the Rolling Stone covers.
Thursday was unreal. All I can disclose is this: Adam Lambert walked by me while I was sitting at my desk, and then another celeb was in the office because he was in town, and if you want to know more, you'll have to ask. Even then, I can only say so much until stuff from that interaction becomes public. I know, super cryptic and I am so sorry, but just know this - it was the best imaginable cap to this incredible summer at Rolling Stone. I've still got three final days, but I consider Thursday's events to be my send-off, and what a send-off it was.
I woke up at 1:45a.m. Friday morning to go with the roommate and her pal Pam to wait outside of the Today show for the second time - this time, it was for Jason Mraz. He performed beautifully, despite being a bit sick/losing his voice a little, and he was so generous and sweet to fans, signing autographs and taking pictures. Toca was still Toca, which made my heart happy, as he is the only one from the original clan to be with Mraz. For those who missed the show, the J-man performed "I'm Yours," a reggae'd-out "The Remedy," and "Make It Mine." Freakin' awesome. Then, I trudged home, slept for three hours, and headed back out to meet Caroline. We met up outside of the RS office, and then took the F train to Brooklyn. I love the trains to Brooklyn, because they take you above ground, which is always my favorite part. We hopped off at 7th Ave, and wandered around looking for a good-looking pizza place with seats. We found one, chowed down, and then wandered back up to Prospect Park. The neighborhood we were in was fantastic, really beautiful brownstones. Caroline guessed they were 12 million bucks, which is just PAINful. Still, gorgeous! Anywho, the park was beautiful and there were chairs set up for the "free" ($3 "donation" they pretty much guilt you into) Celebrate Brooklyn! show, and we ended up as close as we could possibly sit, in the smack-dab middle. Sitting on chairs felt SO nice, and then the music began. Jones Street Station was pretty OK; there were 5 guys who could each play their instruments very well, but they were a little too cutesy and the lyrics were a little airy. Then, the band we were kind of there for came on - Deer Tick. They were the same kind of folk rock/alt country band, but with much more grit and more life-stained lyrics, which is exactly what I wanted. They were fantastic, just brilliant, and the best part was that the lead singer proposed to his also-singer girlfriend when she joined him to sing a duet. SO. CUTE. I've never seen something like that before, and it was magical being a part of it. Then, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals came on, and Grace is amazing. She's like Duffy, if Duffy sang Jenny Lewis' tunes. She has this incredible voice that just booms out of her, but her music is much more Nanci Griffith-ish (instead of bluesy pop like Duffy's.)
Then today, I got up early so I could work out and then head to Greenwich to meet up with my pal Jason Soudah. It's always a complete treat to spend time with him, and we waxed poetic on life while we wandered around the city. We tried on numerous hats, and one fit me PERFECTLY and was SO begging for me to buy it, but I didn't have the cash on me and I am really having to pinch pennies here at the end, so I'll just have to wait until I get home and find something equally stupendous. I definitely feel like I'd like to start wearing a hat or something - just some kind of accessory, since I never wear anything but jeans and tees and stuff. The scary parts of today were these: apparently, a plane and helicopter collided over the Hudson, which is super sad and scary, and then when I was just about to walk into my building this evening, a block and a half away, two cars hit each other and I think possibly even hit a pedestrian (it's hard to say, but an hour later I walked past the collision on the way to the grocery store and got chills when I saw a baseball cap just lying in the street). It definitely reminded me to be aware of my surroundings.
I am definitely a bit exhausted from all of this activity, so tomorrow my plan is to sleep in, take it super slow in the morning (read/stretch out/watch TV/other relaxing things) and then, if I'm feeling up for it, go for a run, and then grab what will hopefully be my last batch of groceries. On the list: cereal, yogurt, bagels, spread. The first two are for breakfasts, the second two for lunch. I've tried to pack sandwiches, but I've just ended up hating the types of bread I've been buying. Hopefully the bagel idea will help me out with this. My brain is all kinds of scattered right now. I have loved this summer more than I can stress, and I will miss this place terribly. On the other hand, I'm incredibly excited to see where life will take me next. Will I move straight back here? Will I end up in a brand new city that I've never explored before? Will I travel around? Will I write for a big publication, or do everything at a start up? Will I work for a record label, or managing a band? Will I be in a band? Will my drum lessons lead to a crazy and incredible music career? The only things I can guarantee are, I will do something I love, I will spend as much time as possible with the people I adore, and I will be open to it all. "There is no 'someday,' life is now. This is it."
The work week was great this week. I met up with Erica and talked about how she got to where she was, plus any advice she could give me for my own future. I'm going to stop by HR this week to make sure they have all of the paperwork they need to keep me on file for a possible position in the future, should one open up. I'm also planning on getting a l'il somethin' for Erica, because she has been the best boss I could possibly ever imagine. Working with her is stupendous, because she's super supportive and sweet, but she also has high expectations of us which pushes us to do our best. We had our last luncheon this week, at which we got tons of hilarious and fascinating stories about the stars behind the Rolling Stone covers.
Thursday was unreal. All I can disclose is this: Adam Lambert walked by me while I was sitting at my desk, and then another celeb was in the office because he was in town, and if you want to know more, you'll have to ask. Even then, I can only say so much until stuff from that interaction becomes public. I know, super cryptic and I am so sorry, but just know this - it was the best imaginable cap to this incredible summer at Rolling Stone. I've still got three final days, but I consider Thursday's events to be my send-off, and what a send-off it was.
I woke up at 1:45a.m. Friday morning to go with the roommate and her pal Pam to wait outside of the Today show for the second time - this time, it was for Jason Mraz. He performed beautifully, despite being a bit sick/losing his voice a little, and he was so generous and sweet to fans, signing autographs and taking pictures. Toca was still Toca, which made my heart happy, as he is the only one from the original clan to be with Mraz. For those who missed the show, the J-man performed "I'm Yours," a reggae'd-out "The Remedy," and "Make It Mine." Freakin' awesome. Then, I trudged home, slept for three hours, and headed back out to meet Caroline. We met up outside of the RS office, and then took the F train to Brooklyn. I love the trains to Brooklyn, because they take you above ground, which is always my favorite part. We hopped off at 7th Ave, and wandered around looking for a good-looking pizza place with seats. We found one, chowed down, and then wandered back up to Prospect Park. The neighborhood we were in was fantastic, really beautiful brownstones. Caroline guessed they were 12 million bucks, which is just PAINful. Still, gorgeous! Anywho, the park was beautiful and there were chairs set up for the "free" ($3 "donation" they pretty much guilt you into) Celebrate Brooklyn! show, and we ended up as close as we could possibly sit, in the smack-dab middle. Sitting on chairs felt SO nice, and then the music began. Jones Street Station was pretty OK; there were 5 guys who could each play their instruments very well, but they were a little too cutesy and the lyrics were a little airy. Then, the band we were kind of there for came on - Deer Tick. They were the same kind of folk rock/alt country band, but with much more grit and more life-stained lyrics, which is exactly what I wanted. They were fantastic, just brilliant, and the best part was that the lead singer proposed to his also-singer girlfriend when she joined him to sing a duet. SO. CUTE. I've never seen something like that before, and it was magical being a part of it. Then, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals came on, and Grace is amazing. She's like Duffy, if Duffy sang Jenny Lewis' tunes. She has this incredible voice that just booms out of her, but her music is much more Nanci Griffith-ish (instead of bluesy pop like Duffy's.)
Then today, I got up early so I could work out and then head to Greenwich to meet up with my pal Jason Soudah. It's always a complete treat to spend time with him, and we waxed poetic on life while we wandered around the city. We tried on numerous hats, and one fit me PERFECTLY and was SO begging for me to buy it, but I didn't have the cash on me and I am really having to pinch pennies here at the end, so I'll just have to wait until I get home and find something equally stupendous. I definitely feel like I'd like to start wearing a hat or something - just some kind of accessory, since I never wear anything but jeans and tees and stuff. The scary parts of today were these: apparently, a plane and helicopter collided over the Hudson, which is super sad and scary, and then when I was just about to walk into my building this evening, a block and a half away, two cars hit each other and I think possibly even hit a pedestrian (it's hard to say, but an hour later I walked past the collision on the way to the grocery store and got chills when I saw a baseball cap just lying in the street). It definitely reminded me to be aware of my surroundings.
I am definitely a bit exhausted from all of this activity, so tomorrow my plan is to sleep in, take it super slow in the morning (read/stretch out/watch TV/other relaxing things) and then, if I'm feeling up for it, go for a run, and then grab what will hopefully be my last batch of groceries. On the list: cereal, yogurt, bagels, spread. The first two are for breakfasts, the second two for lunch. I've tried to pack sandwiches, but I've just ended up hating the types of bread I've been buying. Hopefully the bagel idea will help me out with this. My brain is all kinds of scattered right now. I have loved this summer more than I can stress, and I will miss this place terribly. On the other hand, I'm incredibly excited to see where life will take me next. Will I move straight back here? Will I end up in a brand new city that I've never explored before? Will I travel around? Will I write for a big publication, or do everything at a start up? Will I work for a record label, or managing a band? Will I be in a band? Will my drum lessons lead to a crazy and incredible music career? The only things I can guarantee are, I will do something I love, I will spend as much time as possible with the people I adore, and I will be open to it all. "There is no 'someday,' life is now. This is it."
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Make way, whatever will be will be...
My mind is a blur of past events. This week was insanity, as I've been to three free concerts within the past three days. INSANITY! OK, so I believe we left off near the beginning of the week...
Work was good this week, although I can't remember anything crazy happening. I also don't particularly remember what I did AFTER work this week. Laundry, and reading, I think. It's been nice to just kind of come home and mostly RELAX. I've been pretty good about keeping up with my internship-course journal, although I'm one entry behind at the moment. Still, I have the rest of today and tomorrow to write it up, and then just ONE more week to write up before I ship it off this upcoming Friday. Then it's one more week...
Thursday after work, I bought groceries, made dinner, and went to sleep IMMEDIATELY after eating. My alarm went off at 11:30 and I managed to only hit snooze once. Then I was up and showering, packing my purse with the goodies I wanted (Wheat Thins, a bottle of water, two magazines and a Sudoku book) and I met up with Kate at the subway. We headed to the Today show area at around 1:15 a.m. and were there by 2. We got into the "fan pass" line, and there were only 3 people in front of us. We sat down on the sidewalk, and rested, chatted and slept on the ground in the middle of New York City for the rest of the night, into the morning. It was the first time I ever camped out for anything, and it was AWESOME. We met so many kooky characters! There were two guys who approached us, kinda bro-ish looking fellows, and told us they had a condo and we could come up and watch the show with them if we wanted. They said they were awaked to early-morning soundchecks every single Friday. It was funny, but we declined. My only regret was not asking them to use their bathroom, because it would have probably been cleaner than the McDonalds restroom I ended up using around the corner (eeeewwy). Then, three German guys (probably in their late teens) came and sat on the street with us, asking us if they had missed the party. Adorable. We chatted with them for a while, probably an hour - turns out, they were on their way to Jamaica for vacation, and originally were going to fly out of Frankfurt straight there, but had either missed their flight or weather had forced them to switch, so now they had flown into NYC at 9pm and were grabbing a connecting flight at 4am to Miami, and from there, they'd get to their final destination. They had decided it didn't make sense to get a hotel room, so they were out exploring the city. While they were with us, a trash guy came up to ask us who we were waiting for, and when he hadn't heard of the band I showed him my copy of Rolling Stone with the Kings of Leon on the cover. He shook his head and said, "Nope, I just don't know!" After the Germans left, Kate and I laid down and she napped. I closed my eyes and listened to the summer night sounds, and felt a little grimy but totally content. At 5:30am, they checked us in and let us into the venue, which is basically just an open paved area that they organized with tons of gates. We were super close in front of the stage, and then of course it began to rain. At first it was light enough, and I had been warm and sticky enough, to where I enjoyed it and left my umbrella in my purse, but when it started to pick up, I took my umbrella out. I stayed dry for as long as I could, but when the Followill boys took the stage for a sound check, everyone called for umbrellas to come down so they could see, and I went ahead and obliged. Unfortunately, taking one's umbrella down meant water that had collected on it pouring down on everyone in the surrounding area. We were soaking wet, but singing every lyric at the top of our lungs. Fabulous. The guys played all three songs they would play for the show, and then left the stage hurriedly to change clothes and probably drink or do whatever else rockstars do before shows. The show came on at 7am, and when you're standing in the filming area, you can watch the show on TVs up on the side of a building, and there are speakers surrounding you so you can hear everything. People freaked out when Al Roker came out to do his weather thang, and of course there was one last downpour that soaked me through to the bone before the weather finally decided to get awesome for the rest of the show. I saw Meredith Vieira and all the others up close, which was fun, and we even managed to collect a silly foam microphone as a souvenir. Before we headed into the venue, I forgot to mention that they gave us poster material, and so Kate and I made signs. Hers was for her mom - it said "I <3 Terri Grady," and mine said "Austin <3s K.O.L." The Kings are all Sooners, which I think adds a special bit of irony to my poster:-P I ended up doing a write-up of the show, which I didn't think would get posted, but it was totally posted. AWE-SOME. Then, exhausted me got my butt in gear, put on some fresh clothes, and headed to the office to meet up with my co-worker and friend, Chris, to go to an acoustic Silversun Pickups performance that he won tickets for. We got there a couple hours in advance, and managed to make it inside before the rain hit again (thank goodness!!) The room was SUPER tiny, as there were only 200 of us there. It was SO great, and the crowd was good - there was just a great vibe there. There were also pictures taken, and they snapped one of Chris and me. We matched, which was pretty hilarious to my other RS co-workers. Anywho, the Silversun Pickups were AMAZING. Dead-on, sound-wise, and such a GREAT repore with the audience. It was just a fun show, and Chris' write-up made the website, too! After this, I headed home, ate dinner, and SLEPT.
Yesterday was awesome as well, because after sleeping in, working out and takin' it easy, I headed to Central Park's Summerstage and sat in line for three hours to be right up against the stage for M. Ward. We were SO close, which made it UNBEARABLY awful that we weren't allowed to take any photos. But the sound was great and it was great to be near. The opening band SUCKED - "Floored by Four," Mike Watt and Nels Cline(from Wilco)'s experimental group. Excruciatingly boring. It was this weird psychedelic crap that just went on and on and on. But then Ward absolutely destroyed. He played one of my most favorite tunes, "Chinese Translation." He also did a bunch of covers, the rockin'-est being Chuck Berry's "Roll Over Beethoven." It was a beautiful night, I was hanging with two fab ladies (Kate and Angelica) and then I headed home, had some sweet ice cream, and passed OUT. Today, it's super rainy so I'm doubting I'll get to do any of the other free events I was planning to hit up. I'm about to go for a run, and then just play it by ear, methinks.
I'm devestated that I've got just two weeks left here. It's unimaginable to me. It's flown by so quickly, and although I'm definitely looking forward to things back in Austin, I'm going to be homesick for New York. It's so strange, I was even telling Kate this morning - I've been following the Austin American-Statesman on Twitter, and there have been so many shootings and fires and everything else there, it almost feels safer here! (Crazy, no?) I'm gonna miss beautiful Central Park, I'm gonna miss hiding away in my room when I feel like it, but going out and doing fun crap whenever I dont. I'm going to miss work most of all, although I am starting to almost feel closure there. Don't get me wrong, I'm DYING to get a steady job with RS, but as for this summer, I have accomplished everything I set out to - I have one reporting credit, and an actual story credited to my name. I've done really excellent work. I've met Rob Sheffield and chatted with him about crazy stuff. I saw Conor Oberst on the 4th of July from very close range. I've been to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Annex. Those were the "must do"s. And along the way, I've grown so much and learned so much more about myself. I know that no matter where I end up when I graduate, if I love working there as much as I've loved working here this summer, life is going to be amazing.
Work was good this week, although I can't remember anything crazy happening. I also don't particularly remember what I did AFTER work this week. Laundry, and reading, I think. It's been nice to just kind of come home and mostly RELAX. I've been pretty good about keeping up with my internship-course journal, although I'm one entry behind at the moment. Still, I have the rest of today and tomorrow to write it up, and then just ONE more week to write up before I ship it off this upcoming Friday. Then it's one more week...
Thursday after work, I bought groceries, made dinner, and went to sleep IMMEDIATELY after eating. My alarm went off at 11:30 and I managed to only hit snooze once. Then I was up and showering, packing my purse with the goodies I wanted (Wheat Thins, a bottle of water, two magazines and a Sudoku book) and I met up with Kate at the subway. We headed to the Today show area at around 1:15 a.m. and were there by 2. We got into the "fan pass" line, and there were only 3 people in front of us. We sat down on the sidewalk, and rested, chatted and slept on the ground in the middle of New York City for the rest of the night, into the morning. It was the first time I ever camped out for anything, and it was AWESOME. We met so many kooky characters! There were two guys who approached us, kinda bro-ish looking fellows, and told us they had a condo and we could come up and watch the show with them if we wanted. They said they were awaked to early-morning soundchecks every single Friday. It was funny, but we declined. My only regret was not asking them to use their bathroom, because it would have probably been cleaner than the McDonalds restroom I ended up using around the corner (eeeewwy). Then, three German guys (probably in their late teens) came and sat on the street with us, asking us if they had missed the party. Adorable. We chatted with them for a while, probably an hour - turns out, they were on their way to Jamaica for vacation, and originally were going to fly out of Frankfurt straight there, but had either missed their flight or weather had forced them to switch, so now they had flown into NYC at 9pm and were grabbing a connecting flight at 4am to Miami, and from there, they'd get to their final destination. They had decided it didn't make sense to get a hotel room, so they were out exploring the city. While they were with us, a trash guy came up to ask us who we were waiting for, and when he hadn't heard of the band I showed him my copy of Rolling Stone with the Kings of Leon on the cover. He shook his head and said, "Nope, I just don't know!" After the Germans left, Kate and I laid down and she napped. I closed my eyes and listened to the summer night sounds, and felt a little grimy but totally content. At 5:30am, they checked us in and let us into the venue, which is basically just an open paved area that they organized with tons of gates. We were super close in front of the stage, and then of course it began to rain. At first it was light enough, and I had been warm and sticky enough, to where I enjoyed it and left my umbrella in my purse, but when it started to pick up, I took my umbrella out. I stayed dry for as long as I could, but when the Followill boys took the stage for a sound check, everyone called for umbrellas to come down so they could see, and I went ahead and obliged. Unfortunately, taking one's umbrella down meant water that had collected on it pouring down on everyone in the surrounding area. We were soaking wet, but singing every lyric at the top of our lungs. Fabulous. The guys played all three songs they would play for the show, and then left the stage hurriedly to change clothes and probably drink or do whatever else rockstars do before shows. The show came on at 7am, and when you're standing in the filming area, you can watch the show on TVs up on the side of a building, and there are speakers surrounding you so you can hear everything. People freaked out when Al Roker came out to do his weather thang, and of course there was one last downpour that soaked me through to the bone before the weather finally decided to get awesome for the rest of the show. I saw Meredith Vieira and all the others up close, which was fun, and we even managed to collect a silly foam microphone as a souvenir. Before we headed into the venue, I forgot to mention that they gave us poster material, and so Kate and I made signs. Hers was for her mom - it said "I <3 Terri Grady," and mine said "Austin <3s K.O.L." The Kings are all Sooners, which I think adds a special bit of irony to my poster:-P I ended up doing a write-up of the show, which I didn't think would get posted, but it was totally posted. AWE-SOME. Then, exhausted me got my butt in gear, put on some fresh clothes, and headed to the office to meet up with my co-worker and friend, Chris, to go to an acoustic Silversun Pickups performance that he won tickets for. We got there a couple hours in advance, and managed to make it inside before the rain hit again (thank goodness!!) The room was SUPER tiny, as there were only 200 of us there. It was SO great, and the crowd was good - there was just a great vibe there. There were also pictures taken, and they snapped one of Chris and me. We matched, which was pretty hilarious to my other RS co-workers. Anywho, the Silversun Pickups were AMAZING. Dead-on, sound-wise, and such a GREAT repore with the audience. It was just a fun show, and Chris' write-up made the website, too! After this, I headed home, ate dinner, and SLEPT.
Yesterday was awesome as well, because after sleeping in, working out and takin' it easy, I headed to Central Park's Summerstage and sat in line for three hours to be right up against the stage for M. Ward. We were SO close, which made it UNBEARABLY awful that we weren't allowed to take any photos. But the sound was great and it was great to be near. The opening band SUCKED - "Floored by Four," Mike Watt and Nels Cline(from Wilco)'s experimental group. Excruciatingly boring. It was this weird psychedelic crap that just went on and on and on. But then Ward absolutely destroyed. He played one of my most favorite tunes, "Chinese Translation." He also did a bunch of covers, the rockin'-est being Chuck Berry's "Roll Over Beethoven." It was a beautiful night, I was hanging with two fab ladies (Kate and Angelica) and then I headed home, had some sweet ice cream, and passed OUT. Today, it's super rainy so I'm doubting I'll get to do any of the other free events I was planning to hit up. I'm about to go for a run, and then just play it by ear, methinks.
I'm devestated that I've got just two weeks left here. It's unimaginable to me. It's flown by so quickly, and although I'm definitely looking forward to things back in Austin, I'm going to be homesick for New York. It's so strange, I was even telling Kate this morning - I've been following the Austin American-Statesman on Twitter, and there have been so many shootings and fires and everything else there, it almost feels safer here! (Crazy, no?) I'm gonna miss beautiful Central Park, I'm gonna miss hiding away in my room when I feel like it, but going out and doing fun crap whenever I dont. I'm going to miss work most of all, although I am starting to almost feel closure there. Don't get me wrong, I'm DYING to get a steady job with RS, but as for this summer, I have accomplished everything I set out to - I have one reporting credit, and an actual story credited to my name. I've done really excellent work. I've met Rob Sheffield and chatted with him about crazy stuff. I saw Conor Oberst on the 4th of July from very close range. I've been to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Annex. Those were the "must do"s. And along the way, I've grown so much and learned so much more about myself. I know that no matter where I end up when I graduate, if I love working there as much as I've loved working here this summer, life is going to be amazing.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Tell me, whatcha gonna do now?
Hilarious discovery of the day: my blonde, banging head can be seen in this video taken at Conor Oberst's performance on the 4th of July (you can finally see for realz how close I was!) Watch the right corner of your screen, and you'll see me in the beginning and again near the end. I'm probably in more videos by this YouTube user (she has 5 more videos recorded from the show), so if you have time and wanna go Caitlin hunting, feel free.
Mother Superior jumped the gun.
I'm going to divert a little today from the normal "this is what I'm up to" post, because I was linked to the following article by a friend, and I'd love some outside perspective on this:
Spinning in the Grave
Weiner allows for the fact that music journalists do still carry some weight because there's just so much music to shift through, and he definitely seems to think music journalism can still be worth it. But he also makes good points as to why music journalism seems to be falling on really rough times. As this is my profession of choice, I wanna know - do you follow music journalism, and why? I skimmed through the two comments left on the article, and I'll be going back to those to try and pull in as many users' opinions as possible.
I'm trying to brainstorm now - what would be some improvements to make m.j. more appealing? Focus on the interviews/profiles, stay away from reviews? I still like to read a good review when I have time. I definitely think, for my generation, that time is a huge issue. Why read through a bunch of reviews, when (as Weiner points out) I can spend that time listening to the music myself, streaming from MySpace or in 30-second clips on iTunes? I love to read and watch interviews (when they are done well) of my favorite musicians, but time is still an issue there. I'm just more LIKELY to read an interview, I think. Granted, I do feel like some of my colleagues who have recently graduated do have some downtime, but is that time spent reading magazines, or is it more likely to be filled with television programming? I have lots of questions, and I'm definitely lacking in the answers department. Anyway, I just wanted to throw this out there as a general question. What do you think?
Spinning in the Grave
Weiner allows for the fact that music journalists do still carry some weight because there's just so much music to shift through, and he definitely seems to think music journalism can still be worth it. But he also makes good points as to why music journalism seems to be falling on really rough times. As this is my profession of choice, I wanna know - do you follow music journalism, and why? I skimmed through the two comments left on the article, and I'll be going back to those to try and pull in as many users' opinions as possible.
I'm trying to brainstorm now - what would be some improvements to make m.j. more appealing? Focus on the interviews/profiles, stay away from reviews? I still like to read a good review when I have time. I definitely think, for my generation, that time is a huge issue. Why read through a bunch of reviews, when (as Weiner points out) I can spend that time listening to the music myself, streaming from MySpace or in 30-second clips on iTunes? I love to read and watch interviews (when they are done well) of my favorite musicians, but time is still an issue there. I'm just more LIKELY to read an interview, I think. Granted, I do feel like some of my colleagues who have recently graduated do have some downtime, but is that time spent reading magazines, or is it more likely to be filled with television programming? I have lots of questions, and I'm definitely lacking in the answers department. Anyway, I just wanted to throw this out there as a general question. What do you think?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
