Coachella 2011...

Sadly I was physically a little out of sorts this past weekend for the Coachella. This whole not smoking thing is actually fucking me up hard core. So, I didn’t take notes, and I didn’t take very good pictures since I had no idea how to work mom's camera that I took. Alas, this blog will be a blog of highlights of the 3 day trip to the desert to hear a ridiculous amount of music and check out some weird art.
Coachella 2011:
BANDS:
Friday
Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears - my surprise fave. Fucking awesome funky band with a little jazz, a little rock, a little blues, some brass and even a lil Jimi move at the end.
Ozomatli - Funky and fun!
Cee Lo Green - was 20 minutes late, and the peeps literally turned him off when his time was up. Oops!
Tame Impala - Lovely
Lauryn Hill - surprisingly fantastic! She was rumored to be a train wreck, but honestly did a fantastic job.
Cold War Kids - Great set.
Interpol - Faboo
Sleigh Bells - Adorable.
The Black Keys - fucking awesome - my other favorite of the night.
Kings of Leon - played well, but just boooooring.
Saturday
Joy Formidable - reminded me a lot of Sia. Not my cup of tea music wise, but she was adorable to watch.
Freelance Whales - one of my faves. So lovely, so happy!
Trampled by Turtles - so awesome, would love to try to see them again somewhere.
Gogol Bordello - of course one of my fave bands of all times. Loooooove them! But my calves hate them.
Erykah Badu - I was so sad. She actually didn’t do that great of a set. She was having major sound issues and I just couldn’t get into her :(
Cage the Elephant - another disappointment, but I don’t really blame them - I blame where we were sitting. I think if we were more in the mix it would have been a better set.
Elbow - I thought I was watching Peter Gabriel. An absolutely gorgeous performance. So mellow, so beautiful. Brought T to tears.
Mumford & Sons - My fave of the night! So sweet, so lovely, so happy, huuuuge crowd. They played perfectly!
Animal Collective - not my fave music wise, but they did put on a trippy set.
Arcade Fire - Beautiful. They were happy and on it and brought it. Loved them!
Sunday
Jimmy Eat World - love them. They were so much fun and another very happy set!
Fistful of Mercy - Another surprise. I know Ben Harper, but not this band - loved them. They harmonized wonderfully!
Foster the People - My fave of the day. They put on a great set and didn’t play one of their hits!!
Duran Duran - they rocked it of course, but honestly did you expect any different?
Chromeo - very fun.
The Strokes - played all their hits, but still loved listening to them.
PJ Harvey - very cool, especially her last couple of songs where she pretty much turned into a rockstar.
Kayne West - Sorry..just don’t get it.
ART:
The Creators Project is a global culture and technology community created by Intel and Vice, showcasing artists. They partnered with a few bands to create some gnarly visual experiences. The opening of Animal Collective's set was insane. The sound started as a low rumbling and got louder and louder and louder like a rocket about to take off. It vibrated the entire grounds and the light show literally looked like the main stage was going to explode. I actually considered running for my life briefly. It was pretty intense! For Arcade Fire - a giant container was held above the stage by a crane and during one of their hits opened up and all these giant white balls fell out onto the crowd. They looked like balloons but bigger. The crowd went wild and from our vantage point you didn’t even see the people anymore, just white balls bouncing around like a giant bubble bath. They also lit up and changed colors! So beautiful!
There was something called the Bugaboo Zoo which was giant bugs created out of bamboo and they lit up at night! There was a huge pagoda that was gorgeous and a nice escape from the sun. Something called Candelaphytes which looked like giant fishtales and moved very slinky like in the wind. The Reel Mobile looked like a giant reel to reel player and it lit up at night also. Music blasted from it all day. One of my faves was Wish - a giant sculpture that looked liked dandelions made up of mirrors and glass. These also lit up at nite. The land sharks of course were back. I love those fucking things! As well as the Balloon Chain. There was a crazy electric volted coil thing that turned on every now and again that was pretty trippy. There were many other things but those are what I caught.
PEOPLE:
Lots of Indians, a couple dressed like characters from CATS, a full on bunny suit, people in underwear, Lots of gals in bathing suits, I think all the men worked out this year cuz there was a lot of great bodies out there. Not gonna lie. I was dying. Many of the usual e-tard kids all glow sticked and make up'd out. A dude in a blue body suit. A couple that decided to have sex right in the middle of everything while I was watching The Strokes. My favorite was watching the people walk by glancing at them then realizing what they were actually doing. ALOT of pot. I think I came home with a contact high. The one thing I would like to point out though, is with 90,000 people I've never seen a fight, I heard there were only 20 arrests on Friday and the worst thing that happened was some chick tried to jump off the Ferris Wheel (Yes she was on drugs and someone caught her dumbass by the ankles so she was ok). It’s truly amazing to me to see that many people all just enjoying everything. People are happy, dancing, chill (yes lots of drunks and drugs but still!), it really is just a giant festival of art and music and brings people together to enjoy just that. That is what truly blows my mind every year.
CONS:
I would give my left leg for a fucking chair. My back just cannot handle sitting on the ground or standing for 3 days in the desert. My allergies were complete shit due to the dust/grass. It’s hot as fuck. Not enough water stations. The crowds do get a little much at times. And always remember to get a locker. It kinda blew carrying everything around this year. It will also cost you your ass. Food and booze is quite expensive. Throw in your tix price and the hotel and you just might as well bend over. Another bummer is the bands - not them personally - but them all playing at the same damn time and you more often than not have to only catch part of sets so you can book it somewhere else to catch another. So the cons aint all that bad, but just be prepared for those sorts of things. The parking is waaaaaaaaaaaay better than last year, they do seem to have a handle on how to handle the crowds a bit better so that was pretty awesome. They did the layout slightly different this year that made a big difference. They need to work out some sound issues (sometimes heavy base can be heard while you’re trying to listen to something else) but they are doing their best to get it right and they are defiantly going in the right direction.
QUOTES:
(This section is of course mainly for my 2 beautiful co-horts, but you may find it amusing)
"When she's wheeze laughing, you know it’s funny"
"I can’t see through my tears"
"You got a tent? I got a pony!"
"Jami's the heavy, I'm the mule"
"Where's that metal pole, Jami will trip on it"
"This is why I can’t play golf" (Visual. Patti)
"Jesus" (Visual. T's face)
"Did he pee?"
"Cookie DeFranks"
I'll try to add more as I remember them, or the girls remind me.
CLOSING:
It’s a pretty gnarly weekend. The music is phenomenal. You always find new music. The atmosphere is a trip. It’s a modern day Woodstock. Your just not in the real world for 3 days. You’re in a blurry haze of music, art, people, heat, exhaustion, emotions, food, booze, laughter and tears. There's nothing like it. So goodbye Coachella 2011. Will I see you next year? Who knows. God pass anyone?

R.A.D....

Well, as you saw by my last blog...Warrior Dash. A few days prior to that I took a R.A.D. Self Defense Class. This stands for Rape Aggression Defense. Since I've been on a kick to do active interesting things as of late (Sadly my financial situation will be slowing this down ALOT) I figured this class would be a go. Its free. Its through the public safety department at my work. Why not? Its a 3 day class - 4 hours a nite after work. The 1st nite was lecturing about rape. No means no. Etc. We had about 8 gals in our class. I'm not going to say I was bored. But I have no problem being aggressive. I know no means no. Some douche bag tries to test that, he only will once. I'm just not that girl. But - I think this class is perfect for girls who need something like this. The 2nd night was our instructor teaching us all the techniques. The first being how to yell. She tested me, laughed and said "Good voice!" "Actor" I responded. But most of the girls had a hard time with this. Then the fight styles. Very similar to karate. I aced it of course. Not to brag, but I've trained to box, took karate for a few years and am just a feisty girl as you all know. I took to this like a fish to water. All the other girls were so amazed by my strength, how hard I punched and kicked and how skilled I was. I was flattered, but modest too - trying to convince these women I've had training - you have not - theres a difference. Day 3 we fight the R.A.D. men. These are 2 cops padded to the nine that attack us in 3 different scenarios - we fight back proving we learned how to defend ourselves in class. I was surprised that all the girls (even the one who took the class before) were nervous! Some of them were saying "I"m not going to be able to fight. I'm too weak. I'm too scared. I'm embarrased. We want to watch you fight Jami!". I was in awe. The 8 of us stood together in the hallway with padded helmuts, elbow braces, knee braces and hand things and all the girls were so scared. I was so excited! I tried to pump them up. "Its going to be awesome!" "We get to fight these guys! For real!" "Your are all going to do so well!!!" We started being taken into the room one by one. We were not allowed to see the gals fight before us, but were able to stay and watch the ones fight after us. This of course was to keep us from seeing what scenario we were walking into.
The 1st scenario we were "At an ATM at night" Our goal in all 3 scenarios is to get away. There was a taped off area, and once we passed a certain part we were "free". 1st dude comes up behind, bear hugs you and takes you to the ground. None of us were expecting that. We didnt really practice for that one. (I actually thought he just lost his balance) I found out later, I was the only one he didnt get a grip on. An old move from karate and my dad I leared was to arch, so as we were going down I did just that and rolled with him then right off him. I kicked him in the head and took off. I met the dude 2 blocking my way, and I also found out I was the only one that ran right at him instead of trying to run around him. I leaped up and punched his head, knocking him down (I dont believe he was expecting that) and literally ran over him to my spot. The 2 gals who watched me shrieked with excitement. Scenario 2 we were "Walking in a park". I honestly dont really remember what I did here...but 4 of the girls were in this time and thier cheering made me feel great, knowing I did something pretty cool :). Scenario 3, which is the video you see here (and I think after you watch mine, you can see the other girls if you like). We were to stand there with our eyes closed until one of the dudes actually touched us. When I saw this video I realized why all the other girls were cheering me on, and loving to watch me fight. I do just that. I fight. Hell I got so in to it I almost fall over from the momentum I had going after the guy! ha ha!! Unfortunatly I did hurt one of them they told me later, I guess I caught him pretty good across the temple. Ooops! :)
I was quite proud of how well I did in this class, and how strong I actually am. The cops teased me later on saying I should join the UFC and calling me Mohammed Ali. They also used me as an example alot with the others girls, saying I was an exception. I was strong and quick.
But this is what really stuck out with me in this class. The other girls. The change in them after our fights. These girls, these timid girls who couldnt yell, who were so nervous to fight, who didnt think they could actually fight the cops - Kicked Ass!!! I felt like a proud mama watching these girls do such a great job, remembering what the instructor taught them. Fighting. Yelling. Doing so well. And best of all thier beaming smiles at the end of class, thier confidence!!!
These are girls that might have frozen up if they were ever attacked, thinking they could not defend themselves and now know they can fight back.
This has inspired me. I emailed my instructor telling her I was interested in being an instructor. Every women should take this class, especially those who are timid and shy and weak and dont think they can defend themselves. It was a great experience, and I'm so happy these girls did so well!!!!

Warrior Dash 2011...

Months back I heard of this thing called Warrior Dash. I've been trying to add all kinds of active things into my life lately (Pole Dancing, Burleque, Circus Fitness, Zumba, Self Defense, etc). I'll keep you posted on how they all turn out - but today I did Warrior Dash 2011. I plan on doing another blog about the Self Defense Class as well (Did that a couple days ago...but I only have energy for one right now). Anywhoo.
I sent out one of my "Hey wanna do this with me?" emails to some peeps about this Dash and ended up with a great group of 9. (We had a few others that unfortunatly dropped out at the last minute). Most of us met at my place early this morning to get out to Lake Elsinore by 10am. Our wave was 11am. One friend did it last year, and 2 friends had done a mudd run before but I have never done anything like this. The only thing I was a little concerned about was the running. I dont run. I cant actually. Ever since I blew my knee apart, running is not possible for me. It also kills my back, and honestly I just dont like it. But this particular event was obviously geared towards people who just want to have a good time no matter what size or shape you are and no matter what kind of physical shape your in. So I was game. The obstacles are what excited me. Its like playing fort or playing on a giant playground!
We all caravan out and pull into the parking lot quite excited. We slap on sun block (Most of us...I'm laughing at the ones now sunburned) gather only our nessasary items and head up. As we walk into the area, there is a group of people in red tee's cheering us on. We check in, get our warrior gear and hang out taking before pictures until its time for our wave. We all gether together with 700 other people (There was supposedly 700 per wave) do a 1-2-3 WARRIORS! Cheer and they blast 2 huge columns of fire and we slowly start to trot. As any marathon, the group starts to spread out and me, my coworker and my roomie end up sticking together as the rest of our crew takes off ahead. I attempt to run for a bit, but this doesnt last. My knee starts barkin (I did wear my brace!!) and I opt for speed walking. The nice part is my 2 companions are little tiny women so they can still jog to my speed walking.
1st obstacle is a giant hay stack. The group is still kind of thick so we have to wait for people to climb over it, but we score it pretty easy. Next up smashed up cars with tires you run through in between. As I grab the corner of one of the crunched cars to hop over, I slice my thumb. It was a tiny little cut but it bled like a bitch. We then ran thru some mud, my co-worker almost ate it. Then some walls showed up, about 3-4 feet high we had to hop over, then go under barb wire, then over the wall, etc. We then came up to a wall with ropes hanging down we had to climb up and over. Next up I believe was this awful rope box thing we had to go thru. My brace came undone and kept getting caught. A lovely fellow runner that looked like Julia Stiles kept rescuing me. After that we ran across some beams over a ravine, then up a rocky hill. Unfortunatly my knee torked a bit here, but didnt get too bad. We then ran into the lake and had to jump over logs in the water. I of course turned to check on my friend and fell head first into the water. Yup. After that was a rope climb thing that went up, across then down. I opted to balance my way across the beam and did quite well. We then ran up another hill thing and started heading down the home stretch. By this point the water had made it extremly difficult for me and my co-worker friend and our shorts were falling down, so we were having to hold them up. Roomie at this point had gone on ahead to join up with 2 of our other crew. Then was the giant rope wall that we climbed and over which was a blast the we start toward the finish line. People are cheering and we hear our names...there's our mom, Keri and Amy shooting pictures. Then Tully shooting pics as he must have finished way before us. Not shocking. We leap over the fire and slosh thru the mudd. It was so squishy and weird!!! I'm laughing the whole time. We cross the finish line and I see photographers on ladders - I scream and give my best warrior cry hoping that'll make it into the photos of the Dash People. We rinse off in the lake, donate our nasty shoes to a charity, head to the car and change then chill in the beer garden eating BBQ beef, Turkey legs and beer.
It was a fucking blast.
Even though I'm not a runner, I smoked all the obstacles. They werent that difficult, but it felt great hopping over things or climbing walls way better then the people around me. I'm starting to accept my strength a little more, which I'll get more into during my self defense blog. But I did it. I did a 5K with random obstacles and a great group of friends. I'm enjoying this active kick I'm on. I'm not a marathon runner or a body builder or an athlete anymore, but keeping the random variety of active stuff is awesome.
I'm a Warrior!!!