Nine ~ Feb 24th

We left Paris that morning and took a train to London & headed over to Kings Cross Station for our train to Edinburgh Scotland. Where we found the Harry Potter Platform 9 3/4.

In Paris I bought some mini macaroons, then on the train they had these little mini cans, in case you couldn't guess I like mini things.

When we got to Scotland it was VERY cold but thankfully our hotel was just across the street on Princess street. Actually after we got off the train we found the exit to the street, it was a whole of stairs. We were looking at the stairs & Mimi was saying no way, when a girl with pink hair came up to us and said "ok here is the deal you need to take the lift up cross over the tracks take another lift down then there is a ramp." There were really just nice people everywhere we went.

See my princess bed.

We were so happy to be back in a nice hotel with our awesome view & heated towel rack. We rested for a bit, watched part of a Marilyn Monroe movie, Let's Make Love before going out.

We freshened up and were ready to hit the town. This is what we saw as we walked out of our hotel. The lights & the mist were just magical.

Notice the building that says The Scotsman,

I would like to take a moment to give a shout out to some of my favorite Scotsmen.






Chelsea kept trying to take pictures to twitter but said none of them showed how awesome it actually was. The below picture comes the closest to how crazy awesome Edinburgh was.

Here is a cool little alley way.One of the things on our list to do was eat at a pub, Mimi read about this one in Chelsea's book. It is called The Last Drop, it is suppose to be haunted because it is across from where the gallows use to be. The only thing it was haunted by was a cute waiter, good music, good food & a drink called Pooh Bear which Mimi adored (don't worry it was only steamed milk with honey & cinnamon, Imight be wrong about the cinnamon maybe it was nutmeg.

When going up the stairs Mimi said look Scottish chairs, so I ran and sat down in the Scottish chair so she could get a picture of me in it.

Chelsea told us to hurry because the lift was coming, all the lifts were small we could never fit all three of us with all three of our bags in one. Thankfully we didn't have any bags this trip up.

Do you see how pink my cheeks are, that is how cold it was outside.

When we got back to the room I closed the curtains to the window by my bed then went into the little nook it made and sat behind the curtain with my pillow looked out the window at the castle & wrote in my journal while listening to Travis.

Creation

As anyone who reads this blog regularly knows I have a special love for the band Travis. In the booklet for their album The Invisible Band under special thanks it says, "And to you for getting this record. These songs belong to you now." They understand that when you create something that the reaction of that creation is going to be different for each person. Each of us have had different experiences in our lives to make us react differently to art.

When I was a senior in high school I took an art class, a painting class to be exact. Which I loved, of course I was never really good but it was something I enjoyed doing. After high school I continued to paint in my room and stick the paintings in my closet. One day while looking for hangers my mom found my paintings and looked at them. When I came home my mom told me she found my paintings and how much she loved one in particular. It was of a field of grass with a barbwire fence and a blue sky. Sometime later when we were remodeling my moms kitchen we were talking about colors and what she wanted to paint. She brought out my painting and said she wanted me to paint it on her wall. Although I was flattered that my mom had wanted me to do that I refused. It was scary to think about having to see people react to my painting. I think we argued about it for about a month and I don't really remember what persuaded me to change my mind probably a combination of my mother & sister.

Soon after I painted the mural in our dining room we had a bridal shower for my friend Lindsey. I was very uncomfortable as there were going to be a lot of people coming and I would have to watch all of their reactions to the painting. But I kept thinking about my mom and how happy it made her and my nephew Bryant who loved it. He would run along the wall and rub his hand along it like he was feeling the grass. That was enough for me to be happy that I painted it, but I still would always watch to see how others responded.

It is hard to create things and even harder to share those creations. But how glad I am for those who are brave enough to pour their hearts and soul into something and than share it.
In this video Fran Healy from Travis talks about how to write a song. He says "Good songs come from the space between thoughts....it should just come out of darkness and it is light" If you crack open Stephenie Meyer's book New Moon and turn to the acknowledgements you will see "Thank you to the talented musicians who inspire me, particularly the band Muse-there are emotions, scenes, and plot threads in this novel that were born form Muse songs...also...Travis... have been instrumental in staving off the writer's block." When I then think about the many people (particularly women) who have been inspired by Stephenie, it would seem to me that inspiration is like fire, it spreads. Alright when I wrote that I was not thinking about the scriptures in Matthew (chapter 5: 14 - 16) 14 Ye are the a light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15 Neither do men light a a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16 Let your a light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
But it is kind of perfect and when you think about it as a candle it works the same if someone lights their candle (or receives inspiration from your creation) it does not take away your light it spreads & creates more light.
Last year a member of the Presidency of my church President Dieter F. Uchtdorf was addressing the women of the church at a conference for us. In his talk entitled Happiness, Your Heritage He talked about "The work of creation" and said...
Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty.
You may think you don’t have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us. The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before—colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter.
The more you trust and rely upon the Spirit, the greater your capacity to create. That is your opportunity in this life and your destiny in the life to come. Sisters, trust and rely on the Spirit. As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, you improve not only the world around you but also the world within you.
I believe truth is universal and those who seek truth can find it everywhere, a song, a poem, a book, a leader, a teacher or a friend. I wanted to thank all those who are brave enough to create and share their creations. You inspire me and make we want to be brave as well.

French Lessons

Reasons I want to learn French


This may also be the reason I want to learn to disco dance.

I don't listen to Jack very much anymore but I still do think he is adorable with his surfer ways.


Fran may only be singing a French name the one time, but it still gets me and counts.


Don't worry he sings more French words in this one.


Maybe the above songs made me start listening to full length French songs. I was listening to them in the car and Debbie said "I can't understand what they are saying."


Such a sweet video


Monogrenade


I am so happy to add Muse to my list, sigh. Muse, I do I belong to you.

Born To Rock

It all started with the music video for the song "My Eyes" by my favorite band Travis. In the video Fran (the lead singer) is wearing a t-shirt that says Born To Rock. As soon as I saw it I wanted a shirt of my own. To my joy they had the t-shirt for sale when we saw them in concert in LA. Here I am wearing my Born To Rock t-shirt standing next to Dougie from Travis.

Well a few months after the concert I was signing up for an online forum and needed a screen name, I choose Born To Rock. While looking for a signature one day I stumbled upon this cartoon by Tony Carrillo aka F Minus.
It was just so perfect, I had been a fan of F Minus for years. Tony Carrillo the cartoonist is a Arizona native and will soon be a brother in law to my brother in law Russ's brother (did you get that?).

Well today Changing Hands (the bookstore) was having a Super Hero Day. Where Tony was going to be doing drawings and there would be other super hero stuff. I went with Debbie, Russ & the kids, William dressed up in his Super Man PJ's. Russ caught up with Tony as Tony drew a picture of the family, William was the super hero of course. When it was my turn I told Tony about how I had found the born to rock cartoon and how all my friends had loved it. I did not tell him about why I picked the name & had a t-shirt. So you can understand my surprise as I watched him write on my picture Born To Rock just like my t-shirt. It was such a magical moment, and so cool to have a drawing of myself done by the artist of my favorite comic strip.

Funny how something so small can just make you so happy.

Dancing for your pleasure

I was so excited for November and now it is December so how did it pan out? Well first was the release of two albums Travis's Ode To J. Smith & Little Joy's self titled album. Both were great, and let's be honest I had heard most of the songs before they came out anyway. But it was nice to have the whole thing legally.

A friend was asking me my thoughts on Travis's album, I am not the person to ask I love them too much to be objective. But as usual Fran said it better than I ever could..."Travis are an organic band. These records decide for themselves what they will be. They come to us out of the blue. We will always endeavor to make timeless music. My message is either get on the bus or get off because this bus is moving. Where? We don't know... But that's the best part.
All I know is that stating your taste says more about you than about us. I'm glad you enjoyed one of our records. Cherish it.
However if you can hear some difference in albums and songs then you are not listening closely enough... Since the very first song we recorded together till the last one, if you listen close enough you will hear our hearts pounding with every note played. That is what a hard core fan hears. I am happy to state this is what I am. I don't hear music any more. I hear heart and soul. I hear blood rushing.
I am the number 1 Travis fan.
Challenge me if you dare :)" - Fran Healy
Here is one I really like that I already did not blog about.


This is one of my favorite songs from Little Joy. For some reason it makes me want to watch a Doris Day & Rock Hudson film.


Quantum of Solace was not as good as Casino Royale, a car, airplane and boat chase were a little too much for me. But for an action movie it wasn't half bad but it was no Jason Bourne.

Last but not least was of course Twilight. I want to start off by saying I have heard people complain that the movie did not have this or it did not have that. Yes I know because it is impossible to cram a 500 page book into a 2 hour movie. It is like Pride & Prejudice I love the book and I love the 5 hour movie with Colin Firth that is very true to the book. But I also like the 2 hour not so close to the book adaption, because it captures the heart of the book. And truth be told if I am in the need of a little P&P hit I throw in the 2 hour version before I do the 5 hour.

My point being that although I did not think the movie was perfect I still love it because it captures the emotions I get when reading the book. If I let myself stop wishing for things that are never going to be in the movie I easily get swept up and feel the torture Edward feels, the surety Bella feels about her heart and the happiness Edward finds from that.
If you hate the books or hate the movie, I really would not waste your time trying to sell me your hate. Asking why I like Twilight is like asking why I love Jane Austen or why as a little girl I pretended to be Cinderella twirling around the ball with Prince Phillip...I don't know why like I also don't know why guys like Die Hard movies, Halo or Firefly but I have tried to be more understanding, ask Russ I watched the new Hulk with him. I would also like to say concerns are not the same thing as hate. If you would like to discuss concerns that is fine. I don't think people realize part of the reason I love Twilight so much is because of the friendships it has brought me. How could I not always love it?

Travis Is Coming

This was just announced on Travisonline

US Date Announced

Travis are pleased to announce a very special, intimate show for their fans at the legendary Troubadour in Los Angeles on Tuesday, November the 11th.

The show is to celebrate the release of the new album "Ode To J. Smith" (4th November), and will be the band's only show in the US in 2008.

Tickets go on sale tomorrow Saturday, 18th October at 9am (PST) through Ticketmaster.

This is all just happening so fast I don't know what to do.

November Please

I am looking forward to a few things this November, the first being Travis's new album Ode To J. Smith. It comes out on November 4th along with another band who I am excited to hear more from, Little Joy.




I thought they sounded a little bit like The Strokes then come to find out it is a side project for the The Strokes drummer. You can read and hear more at their myspace page.

Then I have two friends B-Day's Mimi's is the 6th and not far behind Alexis will be celebrating hers on the 14th. The same day Quantum of Solace comes out. Now let me say no one hated James Bond as much as I did. Even when Casino Royale came out and everyone told me how good it was I could not bring myself to be one of those people who goes to see James Bond movies. But my brother rented it, I saw it, loved it and hope the second "new" James Bond movie will be just as good.



Then on the 21st Twilight comes out.
Twilight HD Exclusive Trailer

Song To Self - Travis

I know anyone who knows me or reads this blog knows this already but for anyone else just let me say, I love these guys. I just wish I lived in the UK so I could already have their new album in my hands. If you would like to see the actual video for Song To Self you can see it here.

Something Anything - TRAVIS

Back to you

I have these two friends Melanie and Melissa we use to work together and although it has been almost two years since we have worked together we have stayed close. We all love The Office and during the season we meet at Melanie's house and watch it together. On one of these nights a few months ago there was discussion about movies I had not seen (There Will Be Blood & No Country for Old Men) but I felt a need to contribute to the conversation so I said, the girl in No Country for Old Men is married to Dougie the bass player from Travis. Melanie laughed and said everything always comes back to Travis & Muse. Then her husband Jeff asked if Travis and Muse were connected I told him no, only by my love.

I wonder if Melanie was aware of how true that statement was. Today while at church a friend asked me what I thought of Travis's new EP another friend only heard us talking about music and asked me if we were talking about Muse. I had to laugh and say no Travis he responded with oh yes your real number one.

I started this blog September of 2007 and have done a total of forty four posts (including this one) in those forty four posts I mention Travis, eleven times (counting this post) & Muse, five.

Just to prove that I am not the only one who loves Travis & Muse here is a fan made video I found on youtube called Travis & Muse - Can't take my eyes off of you

Ode to Travis

This is the cover of Travis's new EP J. Smith, artwork done by Fran Healy. I have had their new song J Smith for a little while now but I just went and purchased the songs on the EP today. I have to say I am very excited for the whole album. The song I added to my playlist is J. Smith and if anyone is interested in reading some of the history of the song you can go here to read Fran's blog. http://www.travisonline.com/band/?id=175&p=1


Here are a few highlights: " Dougie then picked up the bass line like he'd been practicing it all week yet he hadn't heard this ever. It was weird. With the bass and drums locked in, the rest of the song began to roll out, lyrics and all. Andy arrived in the middle of this and casually switched his amp on and sat listening for a couple of minutes before doing his first screetch on guitar, kind of Jimmy Hendrix vibe, sparse then picking it up with some really gentle arrpegio to later unleash the beast that has been locked away since the solo of All I Want To Do Is Rock. "

"Such a lot happens in this song in a very short space of time. The main body of the song is 2 and a half minutes and the outro takes it to 3 minutes... and it leaves everyone that has heard it with the same puzzled face. Luke from the Kooks said it was mental. Paul McCartney said it sounded like nothing else we had done."

Just go to 1:40 how it builds until they top it off with the choir singing. I love it.

Just in case anyone wanted to hear these lovely chaps’ accents here they are guessing ringtones.

What is really important to you?

This blog has asked several bands "What is really important to you?" Just click on the bands name and it will direct you to a page with a video with the bands answer. Fran and Andy from Travis talk about their sons which is really sweet.
Check it out...
http://99matters.de/?p=30

fran healy on how to write a song

This is so beautiful but at the same time makes me a little sad.

My Eyes

Fran recommended this video for William so William this is for you.

thinking of the words to say

I have been sitting here at my computer trying to find the words to tell you about the best day I have ever had. I thought maybe if I looked at some pictures of the trip it would help but I found myself just staring at the picture of Fran and me in disbelief. It was the most magical day and I think it might just make me happy for the rest of my life. Let me just say I don't expect anyone to read all this but here we go. Russ & Debbie dropped Alexis and I off at the venue around one-ish while they went to visit Russ's brother who lives in LA. Alexis and I decided to walk around and see what we could find. As we came around a corner we saw a tour bus then two more buses farther down. Next I saw the drummer (Neil) crossing the street. I freaked out and started telling Alexis to look. We hesitated for a second but decided to go for it. We went over said hi and told him that we came from Arizona to see them and that they are our favorite band. Then I apologized for being freaked out and he told us not to be freaked that the band would be around all day so there was no need to freak out. He was very nice and had amazing eyes we were stupid and did not think to take a picture with him. Awhile later we saw Dougie and we got the courage to stop him and ask for a picture. He was very nice he even asked if we had any request. We also saw Andy the guitar player and thought he was coming over to the bus but he got in a taxi with a friend and drove away. A while later a crazy bum came over and talked to us and we were uncomfortable so we walked away. While standing on the street corner waiting for the light to change I saw this boy who Alexis had pointed out earlier as coming off one of the other buses. I was pointing to his shoes trying to get Alexis to remember him & trying not to be obvious when Alexis noticed that Fran was standing next to me. The light changed and he started to cross Alexis was trying to let me know with out saying his name but I looked back at the bus so she pointed to him. By now he was in front of us so Alexis called out "Fran" but did not say it loud enough. So I cleared my throat and called a little louder "Fran". He stopped and turned around and I put my hands up in surrender and said we do not want to intrude. Fran said no it is fine, sorry I just woke up. I told him how I wished I had just woken up since we had driven here from Arizona that morning. Then I said something along the lines of sorry but I have just really wanted to say this to you for along time, he smiled and maybe even said something encouraging so I told him that they are my favorite band and thanked him for writing his music and that it means a lot to me. He said thank you and asked if he could sign something for us and that he even had a sharpie. I told him good because I left the one I was planning to bringing on my kitchen counter. But we asked if we could take pictures with him I think he said oh yeah lets do pictures. So I took a picture of Alexis with Fran and then we switched. When Alexis was getting ready to take the picture I tried to stop her so I could ask if I was scrunching my shoulders but she had already pressed the button so I was talking in my first picture. I felt so stupid for talking during the picture I told Fran sorry it is just that I scrunch my shoulders when I get nervous so he began to rub my arm and I being embarrassed tucked my face into his shoulder. Needless to say we took another picture and I could not hide how extremely happy I was. Then Fran asked if he could sign our tickets and told us we could keep the sharpie (he is so sweet). He told us that he thought we would enjoy the show that they had added some improvements and then I think we said good bye. Instead of following him like we wanted to do, we walked back around the corner where Alexis & I started squeezing each other and squealing in delight basically we acted like a couple of 12 year old girls. We called Debbie & she suggested we go get the pictures developed so we could get them signed later and there was even a CVS across the street so we did. Then we got in line for the show, Debbie and Russ showed up pretty soon with Dinner. When we got in they only let a certain number into the pit which was amazing because it was not crowded at all. But the security guards tried to take our signed tickets from us. It did not take them long to realized there was no way they were going to pry the signed tickets from our dead hands. So they let us keep them.
The show was amazing Fran’s voice is incredible, their harmonies are incredible, Andy is unbelievable on the guitar, and Dougie is delightful with his hips and dimples. Set list played as written:
-Selfish Jean
-Eyes Wide Open
-Writing to Reach You
-Love Will Come Thru
-Re-Offender
-As You Are
-My Eyes
-Pipe Dreams
-Beautiful Occupation
-Side
-Driftwood
-Good Feeling
-Closer
-Sing
-All I Wanna do is Rock (I am not sure if this is when the were suppose to play this but Russ & I both yelled All I Wanna Do Is Rock & then they played it.)
-Turn

E: 20 -unplugged
E: Flowers in the Window
E: Humpty Dumpty
E: Why Does it Always Rain on Me?
Here are some pictures from the show.

After the show we waited forever for them to come out but the wait was absolutely worth it. Debbie and Russ got to meet Fran and Dougie also and we got to get our pictures signed. Debbie told Fran how her son William loves the song My Eyes & Closer and Fran talked to her about his son it was very sweet. (I would also like to add that it was Dougies idea to take another picture)
THE END

Travis - Tony Boney

The day is almost here and the excitement is killing me. Tomorrow Debbie, Russ, Alexis and I are driving to California to see Travis in concert and I feel like it is Christmas Eve. To share my excitement I decided to post my favorite clip from my Travis video. It is of Fran & Dougie just messing around in their hotel, and all I have to say is I LOVE FRAN, enjoy.

Smile Like You Mean It

One of my guilty pleasures is sometimes I watch America’s Next Top Model (I know, judge me if you will). Last week one of the models made me laugh pretty hard. It was while she was being criticized for smiling in a music video they shot with Enrique Iglesia when she was not supposed to be smiling. Her defense was simply “Enrique smiled at me”. I loved it probably because I can totally sympathize with her. There are many things that make me smile and good looking boys are definitely one of them. With it being Thanksgiving and all I have decided to list some of the things that make me smile.

A lot of my favorite things I have already posted on them so I won’t repeat myself and other are just obvious so I will try not to bore you.
Shannon Hale is one of my new favorite authors. I am currently in the process of reading all her books and everyone I have read so far I have loved. I have recently discovered something else that makes me smile. Weight Watchers makes these ice cream bars that are dipped in Oreo crumbs they are really good and best of all they are only 140 calories. I looked for boots for ever and I finally found a pair that I liked and I have to admit that I really like them, which I kind of feel bad about. I would love to hear what things make you smile.

Ode to the band Travis

Picking a favorite band is not something someone just does. It is something that just happens, kind of like falling in love. It does not work to pick someone and say that is the person I am going to fall in love with. It just happens. I never thought “hum, what band should be my favorite band”. Travis is my favorite band because it is their music and their lyrics that mean the most to me in my life.


Fran Healy once said "sometimes songs are like bookmarks to your life," of course Fran finds away to describe what his songs are to me. So many of Travis’s songs bring me back to different times in my life, good times, time spent with my friends and family. It is funny to think about the conversations I have had about Travis with different friends and how loving Travis has kind of strengthened our friendship. And that is why more than any other band I want to meet Travis, ok mostly Fran, so I can tell him thank you for making his music. I still can not believe that I might get the chance. I have bought my ticket for Travis. They are playing in Arizona but on a Sunday so I am going to their show in L.A. (Wed. November 21 Wiltern Theatre). *Edit I did meet and you can read about it Here!

Here are some of my favorite Travis quotes:

Turn
“We'll never know unless we grow. There's so much world outside the door. I want to sing To sing my song I want to live in a world where I'll be strong”

Safe
“Now lift your head up to the sky. Now you can tell apart the black from the white.”
“And I feel safe I feel so brave. I'm not afraid of anything they've got to say. Don't go astray, you've got to be just who you are.”

Sing
“For the love you bring won't mean a thing unless you sing”

Follow the Light
“Me I'm on the longest road where everything's overload but I've got my heart and soul so don't throw me overboard”


All I Want to Do Is Rock
“Today I'll stay not walk just rock”

Happy
"I'm so happy 'cause you're so happy"