Happy 4th of July!

Every holiday makes me think of our troops. I think of the thousands of men and woman spending their days fighting for our freedom. I think of them being away from their families and friends when they should be at a BBQ having a burger and a beer and watching the fireworks. I know I should think of them more often. It is because of them that I can sit here in my sweats listening to my neighbors' loud music and type this blog post.

The 4th of July makes me truly think of my life as an American. There is no other country like ours, folks, and I think we forget that. We complain about the economy and the government and hundreds of other things... But you know what? You have the freedom to complain if that's what you want to do. In these trying times when the U.S. isn't always seen in a great light, I'm still PROUD to be an American.

I think that's the way it should be.

Drivin' down the street today
I saw a sign for lemonade
They were the cutest kids
I'd ever seen in this front yard

As they handed me my glass
Smiled and thinkin' to myself
Man what a picture perfect postcard
This would make of America

It's a high school prom
It's a Springsteen song
It's a ride in a Chevrolet
It's a man on the moon
And fireflies in June
And kids sellin' lemonade
It's cities and farms
It's open arms
One nation under God
It's America

Later on when I got home
I flipped the TV on
I saw a little town that
Some big twister tore apart
And people came from miles around
Just to help their neighbors out
I was thinkin' to myself
I'm so glad that I live in America

It's a high school prom
It's a Springsteen song
It's a ride in a Chevrolet
It's a man on the moon
And fireflies in June
And kids sellin' lemonade
It's cities and farms
It's open arms
One nation under God
It's America

Now we don't always get it all right
There's no place else I rather build my life

Cause it's a kid with a chance
It's a rock and roll band
It's a farmer cuttin' hay
It's a big flag flyin' in the summer wind
Over a fallen hero's grave.

It's a high school prom
It's a Springsteen song
It's a welcome home parade
It's a man on the moon
And fireflies in June
And kids sellin lemonade
It's cities and farms
It's open arms
One nation under God
It's America

~It's America by Rodney Atkins

CountryFest - The Pics Tell the Story

I've gotten special permission from Garnet and Lauren to post these few pics from our crazy weekend at CountryFest.

Ok, I lied a bit there... I didn't get their permission, but
a) they don't read this blog (not for lack of TRYING TO GET THEM TO) and
b) there's nothing here they would object to.

Also, unfortunately there are no pics from Thursday because I'm a loser and forgot my camera.

Enjoy!

Common Theme of the Weekend #1 -
Garnet and Lauren reading Twilight in the tent.

P.S. Common Theme of the Weekend #2 was my lack of balance,
even when sober. No pics of that on my camera,
but if I can get some from Garnet I promise to share.
Seriously.

The stage, I believe on Friday during the Chuck Wicks show

Garnet (front) and Lauren (back) in their super awesome hats...
Friday again, and it was effing HOT OUT.
I wish I had pics of my sunburn to show you as proof,
but I wasn't that on top of things.

Yep, that's me on the right. Moving on.

Yep, reading again. You go girls.

This is us trying to convey how cold we were on Saturday night.
Pre-Brad Paisley, post big ass down pour.
Nice face Garnet.

Jason Aldean on Sunday, I believe singing Big Green Tractor

Video Time!
This is a short video of Kellie Pickler singing Red High Heels.
She didn't go on 'til after 9:00 pm, so it's pretty dark, but you can hear it!
If you listen carefully you can also hear me and Garnet.
Sorry about that.
It was one of the most FUN performances of the entire
weekend and she has a new fan in me!

Tuesday Tunes - CountryFest Chronicles

It's no secret that I'm a huge HUGE music/concert fan, so it should come at no surprise that an event that would allow me to see 20 concerts in 4 days would be an amazing experience for me.

CountryFest did not disappoint!!!

Day One - Thursday, June 25th
Line Up
Gloriana
Randy Houser
James Otto
Rodney Atkins
Taylor Swift

Thursday was the highlight of CountryFest for me. Gloriana was pretty good, though you could tell they hadn't had a TON of outdoor show experience. The girls were a bit scream-y into the microphone. Randy Houser and James Otto were also pretty good, and James Otto was giving the VIPs crap during his set. It was AWESOME! I love Rodney Atkins, and he put on a great show. Not to mention the fact that he's incredibly cute, so that doesn't hurt either. I'm absolutely obsessed with Taylor Swift, and she was AMAZING in concert!!! Due to this fact, the rest of the weekend kind of went downhill for me. Brad Paisley was great on Saturday night (more about that later), but Taylor was my favorite. She's coming back to Minneapolis in October (with Gloriana and Kellie Pickler), and I'm desperately hoping to get tickets. I read somewhere that her shows are selling out in under five minutes, so I'll have to be on top of things once the tickets go on sale!

Day Two - Friday, June 26th
Line Up
Trailer Choir
Chuck Wicks
Joe Nichols
Kellie Pickler
Montgomery Gentry

We didn't go down for Trailer Choir, mostly because Garnet and Lauren had no idea who they were, and I'm not a huge fan of them. We went for Chuck Wicks and he was great. I love his song Stealing Cinderella, and I was able to get a video of it with my digital camera. It's not the greatest quality, but it'll be a nice memory. Joe Nichols was also pretty good, though I'm not his biggest fan... Kellie Pickler was FUN! She interacted with the crowd a lot and was very real on stage. At one point she even asked the audience if we were hot because she was "sweatin' like a hog." I laughed so hard at that, lol. She also played I Wonder, which is a song that makes me cry every single time I hear it. It hits extremely close to home. I hope I'm able to get tickets to the Taylor Swift concert because then I would get to see Kellie again too.

Day Three - Saturday, June 27th
Line Up
Joey and Rory
Jamey Johnson
Jake Owen
Craig Morgan
Brad Paisley

It rained like holy Hell on Saturday, so we didn't head down to the concerts until it was time for Brad Paisley. He puts on a GREAT concert, and it was so cool because there were TONS of people there and EVERYONE knew all the words to the songs. That didn't happen with the smaller bands, so his show was more like being at an arena concert except outside. He had some really funny graphics that went with his songs, and Celebrity and Alcohol were definitely fan favorites. We did get downpoured on at one point, but it was all part of the atmosphere and it was a great time!

Day Four - Sunday, June 28th
Line Up
Julianne Hough
Keith Anderson
Jimmy Wayne
Jason Aldean
George Strait

Sunday was kind of a downer day for me, to be perfectly honest. It was ridiculously windy, so the sound quality was no where near the previous days, even when it rained on us at Brad Paisley's show. Julianne Hough was somewhat disappointing, which was unfortunate because I think she has a lot of potential. Keith Anderson and Jimmy Wayne were both relatively ok but kind of boring. Jason Aldean put on a good show, but by the time we got to him I was exhausted, and the wind was probably messing with things for him as well. We didn't end up staying for George Strait, but we could hear his show from our campsite. It sounded like it was pretty good, but I didn't really know his songs and Garnet and Lauren were both getting tired, so we took off early.

All in all, like I said, it was an amazing experience! If I did it again I think I'd try to bring a larger group of people simply because there's more to do with a larger group and no one really feels left out, but I'd definitely do it again in a heart beat!

Top 10 Faves From CountryFest 2009
1) Taylor Swift
2) Brad Paisley
3) Rodney Atkins
4) Kellie Pickler
5) Chuck Wicks
6) Jason Aldean
7) James Otto
8) Joe Nichols
9) Jimmy Wayne
10) Randy Houser

Yeeeeeeeeeeeehaw!

The Question Game

Hey y'all! I'm still at CountryFest, which means that, yes, this post has been scheduled in advance for your enjoyment. You can thank me later.

Anyhoozits, this post is an experiment! (I know, right?) I'd like to know some stuff about YOU! So here are a five questions, feel free to answer in the comments or on your blog, but don't forget to link back and let me know so I can read your blog! Have a good weekend!

---

What is your favorite blog post ever? (It can be yours or someone else's!)

If you had to get a tattoo (other than the ones you may already have), what would you get, why that, and where would you get it?

What is your favorite piece of decor/artwork in your place?

Where would you go for two weeks if you had no limitations?

What is the meaning of life? (For YOU.)

Friday Funny...Guest Blogger Style

Hey everyone! Happy Friday!

While I'm off rocking out country style, my fantabulous friend Aimee from Determined2Fly has agreed to be a Guest Blogger here at Jaxie Fantastic. Treat her well, I'll be watching.
(Well, no I won't... But treat her well anyway, dammit!)

Love!

---

In lieu of my darling Jaxie being off galavanting doing the country fest-ness...here's my contribution to her usual Friday Funnies page: www.xkcd.com




So periods suck...and here's my most embarrassing moment and even though TMI Thursday is past and I'm not entirely willing to share it otherwise :) I figure it's time I give a little piece of me to blog-land.

So I took a trip to Ankara, Turkey where I lived with a host family. My host family did not speak any english (though it was a requirement to host one of us darling Americans)...the Father was the only one to speak mildly understandable english. Well this lovely trip happened to fall on the week of my ungodly awful periods that I was having at the time because I had yet to discover the wonders of *the pill* gods. My host family, being the wonderful generous people they are, took me to a public swimming pool in order to cool off in the 100+ degree heat. I, not thinking we'd be there long, did not bring any spare ~supplies~. We were sitting there far longer than i thought, and well...the most embarassing thing happened when I stood up...I had bled all over myself and the seat. I'd also like to point out that the customs in Turkey are that you are not to make eye contact with males nor initiate conversation with them unless you're a hussie. I had to politely excuse myself, while my amazing host mother (not a damn word of english) hurried after me with a newspaper so I could cover my bottom half. I ran to the bathroom and in tears threw out the mess i created. She drove me straight home while "tisk"ing and speaking in Turkish to my host sister (who was all of 7 years old and had no idea what was going on). Yay for being *unclean*. So she showed me to the shower, took my clothes from me without a word and put them in the laundry. That woman is amazing, because not a damn stain was in them when it was all said and done. A little Turkish hospitality goes a long way! So burning from embarassment we returned to the pool area where we promptly left. I think i embarassed my host family too. I suppose I'll never know what my host mother thought...I'm not sure i want to know really.

So there's my piece of embarassment for the world to see. Jax, when you get home feel free to post a lot to push this to the bottom of your page hehe!

God put us here on this carnival ride We close our eyes Never knowing where it will take us next Babies are born and at the same time, someone's taking their last breath It's the wheel of the world It's the wheel of the world turning around

"Wheel of the World" ~ Carrie Underwood

Tuesday Tunes - The Vacation Edition

As you all should know, if you've been paying attention, I'm leaving tomorrow for Country Fest 2009. Oh yes... It's my first "vacation" since 2007, and I'm very excited for a break from "real life" for a few days. Granted, I'm just in Wisconsin... not some tropical location, but still. Vacation is vacation. Plus, I'm going with one of my best friends who's moving to Alaska in July, so having this time to hang out with her will be great.

Anyhoozits, I'm working on lining up an amazing guest blogger for you, so stay tuned. I know you'll miss me, but you'll just have to push through. I promise I'll give you a killer re-cap when I get back.

Let's rock.

1) Back Home by Yellowcard
2) Cheers Darlin' by Damien Rice
3) I'll Be There For You by Bon Jovi
4) Old Man Time by O.A.R.
5) Airbag by Radiohead
6) Solitude by Edwin McCain (feat. Darius Rucker)
7) Mainline by the Honeydogs
8) Get Up by Unwritten Law
9) Cowboy Take Me Away by the Dixie Chicks
10) The Great Escape by Boys Like Girls

Throw it away
Forget yesterday
We'll make the great escape
We won't hear a word they say
They don't know us anyway
Watch it burn
Let it die
Cause we are finally free tonight
~Boys Like Girls

The View From the Cheap Seats

It's official. Fantasy football season is HERE.

It's no secret that football is my favorite sport. It's actually kind of an obsession, really. You'd think I was a guy, the way I sit in front of the TV all day on Sunday (and Monday night, don't forget Monday Night!), watching every single game because Heaven forbid I miss my running back scoring 3 touchdowns with 210 yards (that'd be 39 points in my fantasy league, holycrap). Not only do I love football, I love fantasy football as well. I love the competition and the stats, the preparation and the bragging rights, and I love the way it gives me someone to root for in every single game.

Anyway, in an effort to not torture and alienate my current readers with my sports babble and rants (you're welcome), and possibly to branch out to a new group as well, I am starting The View From the Cheap Seats. That will be my place to rant and rave about whatever sports related topic I see fit.

For now, it looks like crap. I'm working on that.

In other non-sports related news... I'm still looking for Guest Bloggers for later this week while I'm at Country Fest. Again, the email addy is over there. -->