Tuesday Tunes: Its a Twofer Tuesday!

I'm now on Soundcloud (which I absolutely LUUUURVE), and my two newest obsessions (as of last week) are

Naughty Boy-- La La La
 and for a complete change of pace,

Another Love by Tom Odell

 Take a listen and let me know what you think!!

Solstice At Cleveland Museum of Art- The 2013 version

This past Saturday, The Cleveland Museum of Art played host to one of my two favorite annual parties- Solstice! If you haven't been to this event yet, I seriously do not know what you are waiting for. This year was by far my favorite solstice party yet. In part because the Atrium was open, but I have to say, the Museum REALLY made it a music and art festival this year. There were DJs in the Atrium and live bands outside, and AWESOME music in both places. I literally danced my feet off. Seriously. They still hurt.

I've done a few different things with this recap post over the years, but this year, I just decided to document every one of my friends that I saw at the event! This is a picture heavy post!!

My handsome date, N

The balloon people. At the end of the night, there were a few non-museum people in them. If you follow me on instagram, then you may have seen some of the shenanigans. 

Dave and Jess

Jess and I 

(I was wearing a dress from Alex & Alex, and my own turquoise beaded bag from India. My earrings were aquamarine and pearl, also from India)

Danny and Gina (note the AWESOME Gallery One wall projected on the walls behind them)

Sara and Anna 

N and I

Ladies in balloon dresses: So these balloons were blown up and then "sewn" into dresses. 

JP and Nadine

Kyle on the left, N. Colleen and Dan on the right. 

Dragons!! 

Gina

Sean & Matt

Kelly being assaulted by a balloon person. I think Sean was in it. 

Kelly and Lisa

Allison  and Christina

Alex bustin' a move!

Allison and I

Overall, an EXCELLENT night! I danced, I laughed, and best of all, took lots of pictures to remember the night by! If I didn't see you at the event this year, I hope I have at least convinced you to attend next year! I do not say this lightly: it is absolutely THE BEST PARTY OF THE SUMMER!! 

Things I Lurve: Next Issue

I luuuuuuurrrrrrrve magazines. Much to N's chagrin, a number of them arrive at our home each month. Right before I went on vacation, I learned about Next Issue- a monthly subscription magazine service that gives you electronic access to some of the post popular U.S. magazines for download on your iPad or other tablet device.

You can get your pick from 84 titles for $9.99 a month which includes magazines like Allure, Details, Cooking Light, Elle, Fitness, Bazaar, Instyle, Lucky, Marie Claire, Saveur and Self, to name a few. If you upgrade to the Premium service you can add weekly titles like People, New Yorker and Entertainment Weekly too! Now, it doesn't have every U.S. magazine title, but since it includes most of the titles I subscribe to anyway, I see it as a great value for money.

Even with all the subscription discounts from the actual paper products, I consume well over $14.99 in magazines (although I don't have a subscription to any of the weeklies, as much as I enjoy them). In addition to the savings, there is the real benefit of being environmentally friendly by avoiding paper, and not having to carry heavy magazines everywhere; not to mention not having a spouse who is annoyed by magazines covering every surface! On the downside, you can't exactly tear out pages from the magazines, but I've found that I end up never looking at them again anyway (at least not from the fashion magazines), so that's not a huge loss for me.

Have you given Next Issue a shot? They offer a free 30-day trial... will you try it?

Disclosure: I have no affiliation with Next Issue whatsoever. I just happen to be a fan of the product!! 

Awesome Weekend (part 2) aka The Night Donnie Wahlberg became my favorite New Kid

... The Package!!

And what a concert it was... Boyz II Men, 98 Degrees, and of course, the inimitable NKOTB. And the Q got LOUD. As in louder than the Cavs playoffs games, when LeBron was still around. Kelly, Allison and I were in the FOURTH ROW!! By far, the best concert seats I have EVER had!

At 7:30 pm sharp, the lights went down, and Boyz II Men took the stage. They played a short and sweet set, of which my personal favorite was I'll Make Love To You, serenaded to a crowd of screaming women, while faux rose petals rained down on the arena from the rafters. Oh yes, there was even a rose ceremony.

They absolutely did NOT disappoint... the coordinated white outfits, the emphatic finger waving, the sweet sweet 90s dance moves... and they still sound REALLY REALLY good.

Up next was probably the weakest act of the evening- 98 Degrees. To be honest, I was never a 98 Degrees fan girl, even in their heyday. I guess power ballads don't really do much for me. Still, they put on an entertaining show. My favorite part was when they brought four ladies up on stage and sang to them. There was one woman who was absolutely ADORABLE!! With her curly hair and glasses, she looked alternately terrified and completely exhilarated to be there! I'm sure it was a night she will never ever forget, and I really hope that someone was taking video so she can have that memory forever!!!

The lights went down once again, and after a short break, out came the main act... NKOTB!! I cannot even describe the screams that this band elicits--- I mean, it was nothing short of absolutely deafening at points. The "Kids" still look really really good, and even though the youngest (Joey McIntyre) is 40, they are in really good shape. How do I know? Not only did they dance their asses off, but they also lifted their shirts MULTIPLE times, so show off their incredible abs.

Joey McIntyre

 


We Own Tonight (on their new album "10")

They played a mix of new and old songs, and with Donnie Walhberg whipping the crowd up into an absolute frenzy, there was no shortage of screaming and singing along. At one point, Donnie totally made out with a woman in the audience. NO LIE!!




One of my favorite parts of the concert was their cover of Prince's Kiss...



I mean, seriously?! I will say, there was definitely a LOT of hip thrusting....

Jordan Knight

Just when I thought the concert couldn't get any better, they dispersed into the crowd for Tonight. Donnie LITERALLY walked RIGHT behind me!! Here's video evidence...




 He then proceeded to be totally awesome, although I'm pretty sure he drank a fan's beer...



As the song ended, and he made his way back to the stage....it happened.

As he walked by, our eyes met for a millisecond, and... HE TOUCHED MY HAND. The three middle fingers on my right hand, to be precise. And that was it. THAT was the moment Donnie Wahlberg became my favorite New Kid On The Block. Every boyband fantasy I ever had as a teen came true in that very moment.

And then, after an incredible two hours, with Hanging Tough, it was over.

In the light of day, and with the memory of an incredible evening, I ponied up my $9.99 to buy the new album, and have been listening to it on repeat ever since.  DAMN YOU DONNIE AND YOUR WASHBOARD ABS, YOU HAVE ME BRAINWASHED!!!!

Sometimes I wonder why the boybands from the 80s and 90s continue to tour. I'm pretty sure they don't need the money... maybe its because they still have fun doing it (NKOTB always look like they're having an absolute BLAST on stage).... maybe its because they like knowing they can still pack an arena with 95% screaming female fans.... maybe its because they like tugging at those nostalgic strings, knowing that their fans now have way more disposable income.... either way, to them I say "well played, Gentlemen... well played."


BOYBANDS FOR LIFE!!!

An Awesome Cleveland Weekend (part 1)

This weekend was so incredible that its awesomeness cannot possibly be contained in a single post. So, for the first time ever, I'm going to leave you with a cliff-hanger...

This past Saturday, I did something I haven't done in years-- I did a race!! When I say "race" I use the term loosely--- there were no timing chips, and I didn't exactly run the whole way. And that was perfectly fine, because the actual "run" was not the point of the race!! What is this strange race, you might ask? Why, its the COLOR RUN!!

Billed as the Happiest 5k, the run raises funds for a local charity. There are multiple color stations, which you run, or walk through, while volunteers throw powdered color at you. At the end of the race, you're supposed to look like you ran through a rainbow!!

Zumba warm up

Allison wondering if she will get that call...

All colored up!! 

I have to say, the color run reminds me a lot of the Indian festival of Holi. Celebrated in February or March (governed by the Lunar calendar), Holi is the official welcome to Spring in India, and involves the throwing of colored powder and colored water. Water balloons are also frequently involved. Growing up, this was one of my absolute FAVORITE festivals--  I mean, look how fun this is!!! 

 Holi (photo credit)

Anyway, getting back to the Color Run, this Saturday's event was attended by over 8,000 people, and judging by the looks on everyone's faces, it WAS the happiest 5k! If you missed out on the fun, the Color Run is coming back in September; you can find more details here...

The rest of the day involved naps and relaxation....

... because Sunday, it was time for (to be continued...)