Life Right Now/Random Thoughts and Things

I rarely write "currently" or "life lately" posts because, to be honest, my life isn't always that exciting. Not that I'm complaining. Sometimes I like to reread my old journals (including my LiveJournal), and I have to say that I do not miss living a crazy life worthy of a teen soap opera!

I'm happy with the way things are in my life right now, but I don't always go out and do a lot of things that I'd consider "blogworthy." I mean, if I'm being totally honest here, most of my weekends are pretty low key. And by low key, I mean that at least 80% of my weekends are spent living like a hermit, escaping to the world of books. Nothing wrong with that, right? 

Anyway, today I've decided that I actually have enough random things I want to share to write a post. Some are more exciting than others, but they'll give you a good snapshot of my life right now.

Right Now in Entertainment:

- I'm slowly making my way through my gigantic stack of library books. I returned a couple today, but, of course, I had one waiting on my hold shelf. At least I returned more than I checked out (which is rare for me!).

- I'm currently reading Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin, and I'm having trouble getting into it. I think part of the problem is that I've been reading it in very short spurts, but I don't know. I feel like it's taking me forever to read it. I started it on Tuesday, and I'm not even 100 pages in! I hope it wows me soon because I was on the waiting list at the library for at least 3 months for this, and I was so excited when I finally brought it home!

- Speaking of books, I still need to finish reading and commenting on the blogs that participated in Steph and Jana's Show Us Your Books! link-up. I've gotten so many great recommendations so far, and my "To Read" list just keeps growing!

- I've been on a huge Dallas Green kick thanks to the release of the new City and Colour album last Friday. I knew he'd be exploring some new sounds on this album (his willingness to play around with different musical styles is just one of the reasons I love him), and I definitely wasn't disappointed! 

- In addition to If I Should Go Before You, I've been listening to the entire Alexisonfire catalog on shuffle every afternoon on my drive home from work. The weather has been beautiful lately, so I've been enjoying it by opening my sunroof and singing at the top of my lungs. Definitely one of my favorite things to do.

- And just one more Dallas Green related thing (sorrynotsorry). When I was trying to figure out what live Alexisonfire video I wanted to include in my post last week, I found some videos of them performing back around 2004-2006, and I could not get over how young they look! I know it's been like 10 years and I've seen plenty of pictures of them from that era, but man ... They're just so adorable with their headbanging. Also weird/funny: Dallas with no facial hair and significantly fewer tattoos and George actually wearing a shirt. Haha.

(P.S. The quality of this video isn't as shitty as the still frame would have you believe. Also, this is a shortened version of the song, but you can at least get the idea.)

Okay, I promise to stop going on and on about how much I love Dallas Green ... For now, anyway.

Right Now in Random Shit I Like:

- I've been having some issues with breakouts lately. It's nothing serious (thankfully I've never had any major issues with my skin!), but it's annoying. I started using Aveeno Clear Complexion Foaming Cleanser a couple of weeks ago, and my skin looks so much better already! It's also not drying out, which is a problem I often have when I'm trying to fight breakouts. (By the way, this isn't sponsored or anything, I just really like this product and wanted to share it!)

Via

- I always take a late morning break at work in an effort to recharge. I'm usually starving by this point, and my new favorite thing to snack on is a Clif Bar. If you haven't tried them, you should ... They're so fucking good! They have a ton of varieties, which is really nice if you're like me and find yourself eating one every day during the workweek. (Again, this isn't sponsored ... I just really love these. If you don't believe me, see the picture below.)

Right Now in Things I'm Looking Forward To:

- I'm getting really excited for Christmas this year. I've been pretty depressed around Christmas for the past few years, so this is a nice change. I think I'm mostly excited because Eric and I will be flying to my hometown to spend Christmas with my family. This is something I haven't done since 2008 (and my grandmother passed away the following month). I'm hoping I can shake off the sadness this year and just enjoy the time with my family. 

- Eric and I finally picked a destination for our anniversary trip next month! We were having a hard time agreeing on where to go, and it suddenly just clicked for us in the most random way.

At first we considered going back to Europe (we considered Greece and Spain), but we really didn't want to spend that much money. It just wasn't practical for us to blow thousands of dollars on a vacation this year, so we started researching places closer to home.

New Orleans was pretty high on both our lists, but we knew we'd probably end up spending a lot on food and alcohol if we went there ... So not exactly a "cheap" trip.

We then started considering places within driving distance, and Colorado seemed like a good option. The only problem is that Eric has already been there several times, and we really wanted to go somewhere that was new to both of us.

So then I just started researching bed & breakfasts in random states we'd never been to that were 15 hours away or less. I found The Chocolate Turtle in Corrales, New Mexico and asked Eric what he thought. He thought it seemed like it was exactly what we were looking for, and we booked a room shortly after.

New Mexico is completely random and pretty far away for a road trip (about 13.5 hours, according to Google Maps!), but I think we're going to have a lot of fun. And, really, we were sold after looking at pictures like this:

Via

I can't wait!

If anyone has been to New Mexico (specifically the Albuquerque area), please feel free to give me some recommendations on places to eat, things to see, etc. We're only staying 5 nights, and we have a few things in mind already, but I'm always open to suggestions!

10 Reasons Why I Love Dallas Green (And Why You Should Too!)

Since the new City and Colour album, If I Should Go Before You, comes out tomorrow (and I'm ridiculously excited about it!), it seemed like the perfect time to share some reasons why I love Dallas Green.

If you don't know who Dallas Green is (or why you should care), please allow me to introduce you. You can thank me later.



1. No one can sing better than he can. A bold statement, I know, but his voice literally gives me chills.

2. He sounds just as good (if not better!) live as he does on a studio album. I've seen him live 3 times (once with Alexisonfire and twice under his solo moniker, City and Colour), and I've been consistently blown away. But don't just take my word for it ... You can see and hear him in action in the video below. (I even chose a really stripped down version of this song. This is just Dallas and his guitar, and it's really fucking amazing.)



3. Not only is he an incredible vocalist, he's also an amazing songwriter and guitarist. (And, if that wasn't enough, he also occasionally plays piano.)

4. He doesn't always stick with the same old sound from album to album, and has managed to find success with a couple of very different genres of music. Alexisonfire is a post-hardcore band, while his work as City and Colour has, for the most part, featured acoustic guitar and a more "folksy" sound. He also teamed up with Pink to record Rose Ave., an album of completely new material, under the name You + Me. To further show the contrast in some of his work, below you will find a video of Alexisonfire performing live. (While I didn't take this video, I was at this show. I was 26 and I thought my heart was going to explode the entire time because I was so excited and so happy. It's a great memory.)



5. And, because he's such a versatile artist, I really believe he can appeal to anyone. (Even if it's just one song that really stands out.)

6. He cares less about being a celebrity and more about sharing the music he creates. In past interviews, he's said things like, "... I never wanted it to be about Dallas Green as a person, but about the music." (This was in reference to the focus being solely on him as a singer/songwriter versus as part of a band. If you want to read more, that article can be found here.)

7. And, while he's serious when it comes to his music, he's not always a serious person. Case in point:

Image courtesy of Pinterest (I couldn't find the original source.)

8. He released the song "Nowhere, Texas" in an effort to bring attention to the issue of violence against women. He released the song digitally and donated the profits to the YWCA of Canada's Rose Campaign. You can listen to the song below.



9. Like me, he can be pretty "old school" about certain things. (He's only 4 years older than I am, if you were curious.) For example, at both of the City and Colour shows I attended, he made a request about halfway through the show asking audience members to put away their phones and actually experience the show (instead of watching through a camera lens). Maybe I'm weird, but I agree with that sentiment. I'm not above taking a couple of quick pictures or video clips at a show (I mean, I took the first picture in this post), but, for me, it's all about getting into the music and living in that moment.

10. He genuinely cares about his fans. When I saw him at The Slowdown in Omaha back in 2011, a girl in the audience passed out. He actually stopped everything to ask if she was okay, and when he didn't get much of an answer, he came down into the crowd to check on her. I probably would have passed out again if I awoke to see Dallas Green standing over me. I mean, I freaked out when I realized he'd touched me in his rush to check on the girl. (I had turned to my friend, and I felt someone touch my back and say, "Excuse me." When I turned around to see who had walked by and to check on what was happening, I saw Dallas disappearing into the crowd. I turned back to Ashley and proceeded to freak out and fangirl all over the place. #noshame)

I hope I've convinced you to at least check out some of his music. If you want specific recommendations, feel free to ask ... I love talking about the music I love!