Pearl Jam RULES!!!

Sorry for this being a tad late, but after my mini tour of Pearl Jam concerts and work to catch up on, I was too tired to write anything during the week. I'll give a day by day account of the concert trip:

Thursday 7-6
Kathy and I are scheduled to depart from Burbank Airport at 6:30 pm, for an hour (approximately) flight to Las Vegas, in which our show starts at 8 pm. That would give us a bit of time to check in, get our tix at the window since they are tickets bought thru Pearl Jam's fan club. Now, there had been some weather issues in Vegas that day that had me worried our flight would not be on time. I see that there is a flight that leaves Burbank at 5:55 pm, and I ask the guy at the Southwest Airlines counter if we can get our tix switched to that flight. It ends up not being a problem (as i find out later why that was the case) and so kathy and I are thinking we're gold, gonna have more time to get to the hotel, get a drink, and go to the concert on time.
I come to find out, that our flight is delayed due to weather issues, and the flight I was orginally suppsed to go on, has been cancelled. The flight was to be delayed an hour, so now we aren't leaving for Vegas til 7pm at the earliest. 7 pm comes by, and we board the plane, not actually leave the ground til 7:20 pm. The pilot says the flight is 32 minutes long (I love flying to Vegas!) and we should arrive shortly after 8 pm. Timewise, not too bad, our tickets will be available til 30 minutes after Pearl Jam takes the stage, and with an opening act, that gave us til approx. 9:30-9:45 just in case. We end up landing in Vegas at 8:10 pm, catch a taxi to MGM where we are staying, I check in, Kathy leaves her stuff with me, goes to the MGM Box Office to get the tix, and we agree to meet up when our shit gets taken care of. I check in, drop off our bags in our room, kathy got the tix, we have good seats, and we meet up at 9:00 in front of the arena. I get the ticket, we go in, get to our seats, at 9:10 pm, and then 5 minutes later, PEARL JAM TAKES THE STAGE!!!!!! The rest of the night was a bit of a blur, so many great songs, the show lasted about 2 and a half hours, which wasn't long enough for me or Kathy, but considering it was the first of 3 shows over the next 5 days, it was a good way to start things off.

Friday and Saturday 7-7 and 7-8
Nothing really exciting to report, had breakfast each day at my favorite place at the NYNY Casino called America that has the best pancakes EVER!!! Then onto some gambling at a couple different casinos including Hooters, which was the old San Remo hotel just remodeled and Excalibur, all these places took my money at craps, and i wasn't too happy about that. Friday night we went out to dinner and see my bestest friend Rachel at Postrio for fine dinner and drinks. It was great to see her and her co-worker Terri Lynn, whom I'm madly in love with everytime I see her. I tell her all the time, if she ever breaks up with her b/f, i'm on the first plane out to marry her in Vegas :P The drinks were flowing, the laughs were to be had by us all, and it was a fun night. The best part of it, which touched me deeply, was that we didn't have to pay for a single thing we ordered, food and drinks included. NOTHING. Rachel took care of it all. Needless to say, we left a fat tip for each of the girls, the least we could do for them for hookin it up and taking care of us in our time there. Kathy and I will be back in Vegas on Sept. 23rd, for Frozen Fury 9 to party with Rachel.

Sunday 7-9
This Pearl Jam show is here in LA, at the Forum, which is an outstanding venue to go see a show. There are no luxury suites in here, just a lower bowl and upper bowl. It used to be home to the Lakers and the Kings, and there isn't a bad seat in the house. Our seats on this night were to the left of the stage, on Mike McCready's side, 4 rows up from the floor and 2 sections over from the stage. I would consider tonight's show to be their greatest hits show. Every big song by them you can think of was played tonight from all their cds, all 8 of them. Even Flow, Alive, Jeremy off of Ten to Rearviewmirror and Last Kiss, with some other songs like Crown of Thorns and Why Go? mixed in there. For a sunday night show, it felt like a friday or saturday night show, and the time relfected that. The show was 2 hrs and 45 minutes long!! Mind you, I had work to go to the next morning, and still hadn't slept much from the Vegas trip, but hey, that's the price you pay to see your favorite band of all time play!

Monday 7-10
Our seats for tonight were on the opposite side of the arena from the night before, a few rows back further, but still great seats. The one thing I will say, is that sitting in the Fan Club area, you are surrounded by other "devoted" fans like yourself. I saw in other parts of the arena where if the song wasn't one of thier bigger hits like Alive or Daughter, they were sitting. Not in our area for any of the 3 nights, everyone, including Kathy and I were on our feet the whole show, singing and screaming at the top of our lungs with the other die hard fans. This night was different from the night before, in that they played a bit more obscure songs, but great songs none the less. I still knew them all, and sang along to them, but as the show was winding down, they played a song in one of their encores, that made me realize my 5 days of bliss was about to end. It's a song off of thier 4th studio CD, No Code, called Off He Goes. The words speak to me so much about them and how i feel for them. I wait all this time in between their studio releases and concerts, and then it's all over in a flash. Off they go, into the sunset, and I never know if the show I'm seeing will be my last of them. This tour came 3 years after their last one, and they're getting up there, I don't know how much longer they'll want to do it. I appreciate every show they've ever put on, but it also speaks to how fast time flies in life. I first saw them when i was 19, and now, I'm 27.

Viva Las Vegas!!

So the day has finally come, tomorrow is the day I've been waiting for now for over 3 years. PEARL JAM IN CONCERT!!!!! Not only that, but the show will be happening in beautiful Sin City, Las Vegas! I can't wait, it's like Christmas Eve for me right now. I'm packin up my bag, go to work early tomorrow so I can get outta there early, board a flight to Vegas, and by 8pm, will be rockin out at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. \m/ (-_-) \m/

After the show, my sister Kathy and I will be chillin at the MGM hotel, which will be the first time I've ever stayed there, and am looking forward to that. The next two days are chill days, mostly days that I will spend drinking or already be drunk. I will meet up with my friend Rachel who lives and works in Vegas, and get to kick it with her for a bit. She's one of my closest friends, and I do miss her very much. It's not often that I get to see her now that she lives in Vegas. Friday night, she will be working with a friend of hers that I absolutely adore, named Terri Lynn. If she wasn't already taken, I would move up there and marry this girl. She's smart, sassy, sexy, the whole package! I can't wait to see her as well, and when the two of them work together at Postrio Restaurant in the Venetian, the drinks are a flyin! The party won't end in Vegas either, I fly back saturday afternoon, and proceed to see PJ here in LA on Sunday and Monday. It will be 5 days of heaven for me in July.

I hope you all have a good weekend, and I will be back with pics to share of my trip to Vegas!

What a letdown/work progress

Today was the day of the big game for me in the World Cup, Mexico vs. Argentina in the round of 16, winner moves on, loser goes home. It started off so well for my peeps, with Marquez of Mexico scoring in the 10th minute of the game, but it all went downhill after that. Argentina tied it up on a goal that looked like was headed in by one of Mexico's own players, but was credited to Hernan Crespo of Argentina. The game went into extra time tied 1-1, and in the 98th minute, the most beautiful goal scored of the tournament was scored by Rodriguez of Argentina, giving them the lead that they would hold onto 2-1. Mexico is now out, and I'm bummed out about that. First the US gets eliminated, now Mexico, all my rooting interest teams are gone.

On a brighter note, this week at work i was given a raise! I guess my boss and company is satisfied by the work I've done since I've been there, and while I acknowledged that I'm grossly underpaid, this raise was a nice surprise. For my first entry into the IT world, starting off not knowing how to write SQL codes and process data, I am proud to say that I have put in the effort to get better and have in the months that have gone by. I have learned so much about my field in these short months, and now have been given more responsibilites within the company. I'm a junior Network Administrator to our FTP server, and have more duties with keeping the network goin smoothly, on top of my data work. I'm grateful to have this job and to get this experience which will go a long way for me in the future. My next challenge is to finally take the A+ exam, which will be in 3 weeks. After that, I will be going for my MCP. I'd like to take the test for Server 2003, but we'll see about that after I take the A+.

Oh well, at least in 12 days I'll be in Las Vegas watching Pearl Jam play at the MGM Grand Garden Arena!!!

Blogging purpose/Father's Day

As i sit here on a saturday night, i wonder a few things. Why do people do this? What is your reasoning for it? The reason i ask has a couple parts. First off, some of you may have known or read about my sister, Marie. She has a blog which was alot of fun to read for many reasons. I was able to get to know more about her through her writing, and she has a wonderful writing style. She stopped blogging a couple months ago, not for any major reason in particular, but she just feels she's done with that. Blogging served it's purpose for her in a time of transition in her life. The last post she wrote is very telling about her in her life. She is doing well if you wonder, but has decided to move on.

I started this blog at a time in my life filled with much uncertainty. I didn't know where i was going or what i was doing in my life. My title is telling of that, i felt that i was someone who rambled, not making much sense out of my thoughts or actions in life. I have since found direction and purpose, finishing my computer training school in february, graduating as validectorian of my class, got my first job in the IT field and am on my career path for success. I started to write again just as a means to express myself to others. I have a close group of friends in my life that i confide in and trust. There's just something about being able to express your thoughts that makes me feel better. A couple of my friends know about this site, but i'm pretty sure they stopped checking it out when i went on break. Which is good for me, not for any big reason, just that right now i have thoughts in my mind that may make certain relationships become different.

I just found out that my ex has her own blog about her life. Good for her, but part of me is afraid that she'll find out about my site. I don't want her to know what's goin on in my life in great detail. I know she's moved on in her life since we broke up, hell she has a kid now with her new boyfriend, but i have a feeling of privacy that i don't want her to know stuff about me. We'll see if she's able to find out about me. I never told her i had a blog, but something tells me she would try to find out if i did have something.

Tomorrow is Father's Day, and it will be a low key event with my family. Marie came over to my parents house and we all went out to lunch at a peruvian restaurant that my dad likes. Great food, great company, and a nice quiet day. We celebrated today cuz my dad is getting ready to leave for Spain on monday, and needed tomorrow to get his work organized and needs to pack. I love my dad very much, he's been such an inspiration to me on how to overcome adversity, what hard work and dedication can reap, and how to be a loving father and friend to me. As i get older, i understand and appreciate all the sacrifices he made for me and for my sisters. He sacrificed career advancement to make sure he was at every baseball game and soccer game i ever played. He always attended my sisters' softball/tennis/ballet event that they took part in growing up. I just wanted to write about how much I love him and am grateful to have a good relationship with him now as an adult.

Countdowns

Well, another day is in the books, I can't believe that it's already June! My countdown to Las Vegas has begun, being less than a month away. The FIFA World Cup is also starting up on Friday, and i can't wait for that to begin. For 30 glorious days, soccer will be in the spotlight showing the best players the world has to offer, and since it only comes around once every 4 years, those 30 days are pure bliss.

This weekend i'll be goin to an Angel game with my friend amado. You can see who he is by clicking on my myspace link if so inclined. I don't use myspace that much,mostly to keep in touch with peeps i've lost contact with, and to see what else is goin on with my friends. My important friends i talk to on the phone, so it's not a big deal for me to see or talk to them on myspace. I don't want my friends to know much about me, my thoughts or feelings, so they don't know about my blog. I had told a select few, but i doubt any still check up on it, especially since I stopped writing for a while. I think I may get a bit deeper here now that I'm sure they don't read.

One tidbit I'd like to share is that right now in my life, I'm lonely. Not in a literal sense, cuz i have my family and friends, but in the emotional sense. Monday was the birthday of my ex. We still talk, and in fact she's on my myspace friends list, but I've just been weirded out with her b-day just happening. I know that we weren't good for each other, and us breaking up was a good thing, but it makes me sad when I think of the fun times we did have, and celebrating her birthday by doing something or goin somewhere. I miss sharing those times with a significant other. It's the little things about a relationship that I very much miss. The goofing around, staring into her eyes for minutes on end, making her laugh, and so many more things to list here. I have someone that I wish I could share those things with, but it doesn't seem to be in the cards. I feel like Albert Brenneman from Hitch. When he asks Hitch if he knows what it's like to not be with the one you love, only to watch them with someone else, hoping that she finds the happiness she deserves even if it isn't with you? Sigh.......well, payday is friday, at least i have that to look forward to.

IT'S HOT

I hate summertime, the heat just kills me. It sucks the life out of me, i become irritable and cranky, and just am miserable. Today in the beautiful San Fernando Valley, temps reached up into the 100's. As i write this at 12:21 am, it's still 84 degrees. That's just not right, it shouldn't be that hot at night.

Anyways, today i went to lunch with my friend amado. We ate at this great bbq joint in the valley called Bear Pit and the food is delicious. After that, we went to the mall to check out new computers at the Apple Store. He's looking into getting a Macbook Pro, cuz since he moved out of his house into an apt in Santa Monica, he doesn't have a computer. He left his desktop back at his old house and doesn't have the space for it in his apt. We don't get to hang out often, but when we do, it's cool. Between his work schedule (he works graveyard at a call center for DirecTV) and him living in Santa Monica, it's hard to find time to get together.

I also enjoy talking to him, cuz he understands the pain of working in the IT field. I can tell him what goes on at my work, and he'll actually understand what i'm saying and be able to help me out on things to do at work. I can talk to my family about work, but they wouldn't understand a word of it if i go to them saying that our backup domain controller is a piece of shit e-machine running on an outdated AMD Sempron processor with a broken CPU fan. So it's nice to vent to someone who understands the field. He's really my only friend who i can say that about. He's also been great in helping me get better in the field, and alot of what i've learned has been from him.

Well, my sunday has a bit of everything planned. I will be attending church in the morning, followed by possibly a t-ball game in the afternoon watching my friend kerry's nephews play. That of course could change, since it's supposed to be another scorcher weather-wise. Another day in the 100's is in store. What type of weather can you not stand?

Guess who's back......back again......

Well, i doubt there's anyone out there who still reads this, but if there is anyone out there, hello again. It has been a long time since i last wrote something here, and that is my fault. I got into a routine of not writing for a couple days, which turned into weeks, so on and so forth. How fast the time flies, I can't believe that it's june already. It seemed like yesterday, i was talking with excitement about the LA Kings playoff chase, only to have my hopes dashed again and miss out on the NHL playoffs for the 3rd year in a row. To satisfy my playoff urge, I decided to go to a couple Clipper playoff games. Now before anyone thinks i'm a bandwagon fan, first and foremost, I HATE the Lakers, and my team has always been the Clippers. Growing up, my friend in grade school had season seats to the Clippers at the old LA Sports Arena, and i saw many a clipper game there, back when they were shitty. So now that they are good, i get to enjoy their successes. What makes it sweeter is the fact that the Lakers got bounced out of the playoffs before the Clips did.

Anyways, i'm rambling here, now for a quick update. I'm 5 months into my job, and it's going well. I've gotten real good at SQL query work, and I also am part time desktop support for my office and our sister company. I've seen and learned so much on the job, that I never got to experience before. Yes, I've made my mistakes, no one is perfect, but overall I've learned so much and am grateful for the opportunity that I have now. It's summertime here in LA, so the heat is on. I hate it with a passion. I wish that winter was here again, or at least the time of year that winter happens, cuz lord knows we don't really experience winter.

I went to Las Vegas 2 weeks ago, to visit my friend Rachel whom I haven't seen in many months. It came on the heels of a rough couple weeks at work, and i needed to get out of town. The trip was amazing, i got to see my first Vegas show, the Blue Man Group at the Venetian, which btw is the hotel she's a bartender at. I gambled, won 160 bucks at craps, and drank heavily. In fact, most of the weekend is hazy due to my drunken state. Since I've been back, I feel more refreshed, and have re-charged the batteries in life. I will be goin back to Sin City July 6-8th, to see Pearl Jam play in concert and hang out with Rachel. My sister Kathy and I will be goin, and doin a Pearl Jam mini-tour ourselves. We'll be seeing them 3 times in 5 nights. I can't wait for that to get here.

I hope everyone is well out there, and I'll be writing a bit more, not everyday, but probably twice a week or so. I've missed you all very much, and now will be checking up on you. I hope things are well out there, have a good weekend!!!