Two-tone weekend

Yesterday was beautiful. Today is rainy. Amazing how the weather affects me. Yesterday I woke up early, got so much done before 10 I was proud. Today I slept until I had to get up and motivate myself to work on things. Currently listening to Regina Spektor. Now U2. Hmm, I don't think I ever blogged about that awesome concert.

On October 6th at 7:00 I went to see U2 and Muse at the Georgia Dome. As much as I like U2, I might not have gone to the trouble of paying for tickets, driving in bad traffic, searching desperately for a place to park, and attending the long concert if not for the fact that Muse was also there. Let's talk about Muse for a moment. I've been listening to them for about 5 years now and they've never performed in a place that was accessible to me until now. It was pretty exciting. Granted, they are quite over-dramatic at times and other times they sound a lot like Queen (which is not bad to me but I've heard people complain about that aspect of the band as though it makes them less creative). But they're one of my favorites all the same. However, one problem besides their being in England or on tour in faraway place most of the time has created a disconnect between them and potential U.S. groupies: their blatant anti-Americanism. Now, I'm not a conservative... I'm probably more on the liberal side although I consider myself a moderate so I'm not of the Team America World Police mentality when it comes to people of other countries making comments about the United States. However, members of Muse have in the past made claims such as that September 11th was planned by the U.S. as an excuse for war. That seems a little crazy to me. I don't know. I read that in Wikipedia a few weeks ago and now I can't seem to find the statement. Funny how that website changes around Anyways, my point is that Muse is not making it easy for Americans to like them. I tried to buy a t-shirt in support of the band a few months ago and discovered that the ones I wanted had to be shipped from England, which would cost 9 pounds alone. The shirt was 20 pounds and buy the end of it I decided a graphic tee was not worth $48.00.
Well I'm ranting so let's get back to the story. We had not realized how bad the traffic and parking was going to be so we ended up getting to the concert 30 minutes late. Our fault. The concert itself was amazing. It was really exciting to finally hear all the music that I'd been listening to on my iPod for years in person, live. Despite my qualms about Muse, their performance was immensely enjoyable. I suppose I only have these qualms because they make Muse less accessible to me and what is important here is enjoying being a fan and loving the music. U2 was great. Of course they got a little political at the end but that doesn't bother me at all. I appreciate the attempt to bring social justice issues to a group of people who are willing to spend $8.00 on a can of Miller (seriously, that's ridiculous!). One touch I particularly liked at the end though, was at the final encore (there were at least 2 encores) Bono came out wearing the same jacket he'd been wearing all night and we all learned that the jacket was actually covered in laser diodes. It was so funny and quite sneaky of him. The lasers were shining all around, pointed at the crowd. I suppose he could have put an eye out but to my knowledge, no harm done. Anyways, it was a great deal of fun for all. I had some of my best friends along for the experience and it was a good excuse for them to drive into town so that we could get together. I would definitely do it again sometime if I get the chance.

Wonderful weekend, busy week

This weekend was full of nice quality time with the hubby. It was the first real relaxation we've had in a while and I'm trying not to get used to it because the busyness is not over. We went shopping for some fall clothes at the outlet mall in Dawsonville. Then we went over to Piedmont Park to enjoy the rest of the gorgeous Sunday. The weather was perfect and we came at just the right time for people watching. There were the normal dog-walkers and skaters but I think the free spirits were out in full force. I love watching hippies. They're way fun. First we noticed a large ring of bongo drummers in a circle setting their beats. Nearby a random collection of people, engaged in various tasks of rhythmic gymnastics, were hula hooping, tight-rope-walking, baton twirling, etc. We started to walk toward the bridge that overlooks the small lake in the park when we saw an enormous beach ball, I'd say around 6 feet in diameter, rolling toward us. Two people followed, pushing the ball towards the open area of the park. Intrigued, we casually followed behind to discover a large ring of people laying on their backs, feet in the air. They used their feet to bounce the ball high above them while stronger young men surrounded the perimeter of the circle in order to redirect a stray hurl back to the feet. It was overall great fun to watch.

This week has not been so relaxing. I go to work to do personal tasks and 8 people have something to ask me about that needs to be resolved right then and there. It's ok. I just feel like lately I haven't been getting very much done even though I've been incredibly busy. I'm looking forward to tomorrow, Friday, and the promise it brings of another potentially wonderful weekend. But this will only happen for me if I am able to accomplish enough during the workday to relieve my mind of the burden of my rather long to-do list.