Currently...

Listening to Aim and Ignite the new album from Fun. I've embedded a player here so that you can hear a couple of my favorites from the new album, that I've been anxiously awaiting for nearly a year.

Wow. Wow. Wow. It's spectacular! Go buy it in your local store or on iTunes!

A little background and a disclaimer:

I don't generally like new music. Period. It usually takes quite a while and several hearings for new music to grow on me. I first heard Fun at a Jack's Mannequin concert in the Winter of '08 in Denver. My understanding is that this was mere weeks after they had formed as a band. So they are a brand new band, this is their first album. The lead singer is Nate Ruess, formerly of The Format, and his voice is what grabbed and has held my attention. His voice is amazing, and so unique. From the moment I heard the opening chord of Benson Hedges, which was their opening song the first time I saw them perform, I was hooked. Since that concert I have been hungry for more and have been listening to The Format to hold me over until the album came out Tuesday.

I love the album! Which, again, is unusual for me. I'm not typically someone who can listen to an album from beginning to end, I like to skip through and find my favorites. I listened to this album 3 consecutive times from beginning to end on my commute the next day after its release. 3 times. It's that good. I enjoyed the early releases I was familiar with, like Benson Hedges and At Least I'm Not As Sad, but I also really enjoyed the new songs. Be Calm has a great feel, as does I Wanna Be the One. The Gambler brought tears to my eyes (probably not too safe while driving, but I held it together). So many of their melodies and choruses feel very nostalgic and familiar, like music that I grew up listening to, which I really enjoy.

I cannot urge you enough to get your hands on this album! And even better, if you can see them live, GO! I've seen them live twice, and it is not to be missed. I'm so disappointed that I won't be in the Denver area the next time they are here that I considered driving to another state just to catch another live show. Like my boyfriend said when we saw them take the stage for the first time before they started playing, "Oh great, another hippie, Weezer wanna-be band." He promptly ate his words. Trust me, looks are deceiving! I rarely expect the opening bands to be worth my time or interest at concerts, but I'm glad that, at least once, I've been proven wrong!

Happy listening!

I'm a liar. A busy liar.

Ok, so much for all of that updating I was promising! Ha! It will still happen, of course, just not on the schedule I had originally set for myself.

July has been a very unexpectedly busy month for me.

I have registered for more classes for the fall! (I know, right?) "Thank you, sir. May I please have another?," was all I could keep thinking to myself...sigh. It is inevitable though, an education is an asset for a nurse. So, I must complete these last 2 pre-requisite courses and then hopefully I will be accepted to nursing programs ASAP! I go in to interview with one nursing school next week, which is exciting, but I am a bit worried about as they are a new school and I would like to be confident that all of their accredidation is on the up-and-up before I sign up.

This summer has flown by more quickly than I had imagined was possible! It has been so wonderful to not worry about school during that time!

I held a fairly successful 1 day garage sale! Another day to hopefully follow in August! I have so much junk to get rid of, it's about time to sort through some of it.

During July I also helped a friend labor and give birth to her first baby (a LOOOONG process, really, really, painfully long). And am now the proud pseudo-auntie to a beautiful, healthy baby girl.

I orchestrated our 4th annual camping and whitewater rafting trip for the boyfriends birthday! It was a fantastic success, with the exception of some "minor" tent malfunctions. More to follow on that...

Oh, and not to go unmentioned, I have of course made time to see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince three (3!) times to date! It's fabulous, possibly my favorite film of the series! If you haven't already... GO SEE IT! It is so funny!

So, here we are, August already! How did that happen?!

I am in the middle of planning a fall vacation to celebrate my graduation. But I am working out the technical kinks to posting the Dooce book reading in Denver. I have quite alot of video coverage and must edit it down into acceptable chunks for Vimeo to accept (or else tech support, aka, the boyfriend will do it for me).

More to follow, as always, I will try to be a bit more consistent!