2012, A Year To Remember

This morning when I went on Facebook, it gave me the option to see my 2012 in review. Naturally, I clicked it to see what it would say, and the following items were what I was shown:

• The photo album I posted after last year's SnowGlobe Music Festival (NYE in South Lake Tahoe)
• The day that Steven and I became Facebook friends after we met at said NYE festival
• My birthday on February 26 when many beloved friends of mine wished me well
• When I started working at the Disney/ABC Television Group in March
• A glorious trip to Vegas that I took with some of my closest to see Bassnectar and celebrate my birthday, my birthday twin's birthday, and our Papa Bear's birthday
• The end of the job I started at DATG in March, and the start of a new position there
• Photos and video from Coachella with the Famaree
• Photos from the utterly life-changing Lightning in a Bottle experience that I shared with some of my favorites, new and old
• Photos from my fifth and last EDC in Las Vegas
• A funny "Brotip" that I shared that states, "Ladies, guys are sick of hearing you ask where all of the "nice guys" are. They're in the friend zone, where you left them." (So true, by the way.)
• The end of my other job at DATG
• Posts about this year's SnowGlobe Music Festival
• The making of Steven and my relationship "Facebook Official," and it's end
• And the assortment of friends I've added, and pages I've liked

Overall, looking at the year 2012, I see so many good times, with so many dear friends. I am so blessed by the experiences that I've had and the people that I know and have met. I need to remember to say thank you to my Lord far more often than I do. 

Now, because I tend to view things from multiple points of view, I see the amazing life that I have lived and been given and am thankful for it, but at the same time, I see an array of experiences I've had before. 

I love music festivals and music, but do I want all my years to consist of just that? No. While they bring to me a new love for life and remind me that there are peaceful people out there like myself, I know that I want more than just that. With the exception of my jobs and having a boyfriend, Facebook could only find music festivals or raves to show me as highlights of my year. I want more! 

So it is with great joy, overflowing joy, that I tell you that I have finally acquired the final pieces of the puzzle that I needed in order to go to Spain and return to my European life! (Which is even better news, because as I was searching for alternative job options in case I couldn't go to Spain, I realized that none will work for my wild spirit and I just yet.) I am overjoyed and cannot wait to return to the life I have felt pulled to for years. I couldn't be happier, and I haven't felt so right about something in quite a while. Praise be to God! 

Today's Thoughts: I can't wait to see what my "year in review" for 2013 will look like! I have a feeling it's going to be a year I am incredibly proud of. God's plans for us are so much greater than our own. We will never understand His timing, but we must trust it, and not worry, because in the end, everything works out, and if it doesn't, it's not the end. 

COACHILLEN

This past weekend I had one of the most amazing life-experiences to date -- I went to the Coachella Music Festival for the first time. Coachella is an event that I have been aware of and wanting to go to for about 4 or 5 years now, but never managed to make. Our group ranged from 2-20 at any given time, and there were about 18 of us sleeping in one beautiful house. The group was amazing, as always, and we had a splendid time.

I wasn't really sure what to expect of the weekend, but what I didn't expect was to have such a well-rounded experience. The performances ranged from different subcategories of EDM (electronic dance music), indie, rock, and more. I feared that my weekend would be completely filled with EDM and I wouldn't get my indie fix, but it was quite the contrary. Some of the highlight acts for me included The Black Keys, The Rapture, Madeon, Radiohead, Bon Iver, The Shins, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, SBTRKT, Sub Focus, Dr. Dre & Snoop, Justice, Modeselektor, arraabMUZIK, Nero, Minnesota, and Company Flow. Those are just some of the talent that performed over the three-day period at the 5 stages, and I'm sure there are many others I heard and loved, but don't know who they were.

Bon Iver is one of my all-time favorites, and the set did not disappoint! His voice is just as beautiful live as it is on disc, and they put on one hell of a show. "Skinny Love" and "Blood Bank" happen to be two of my three favorite Bon Iver songs of all time, and I was blessed enough to hear them both back-to-back while being held in a sweet, loving embrace. It was such a euphoric moment. I couldn't stop grinning and smiling and thinking, "I am one lucky gal!"

Each act that I saw brought some element of WOW to my life, and left me with such a sense of satisfaction in one way or another. The only downfall of the weekend was the 105*+ weather we faced each day. Drinking water, squirting ourselves with squirt guns, and blasting my face with my $2.99 hand fan could not eliminate the overpowering heat. I have never been so completely drenched by my own sweat in my entire life, or known it was possible to survive such heat. But, when the day started to burn off and the night creep in, the temperature cooled off so nicely, and the wind was warm and inviting.

When I think about the weekend I don't remember the terrible heat and slight bro-overdose, I remember the special and cherished times that I had with some of the most exquisite people I've ever had the pleasure of knowing. I am unsure if I will return to Coachella next year, but I am so grateful to have been able to experience it once in my life. I suggest that everyone try and attend at least once, it is worthwhile.

Today's Quote: "Live the life you love, like you can't get enough" -"Give Me A Sign"

Bi-Blogging and Coachella Bound

As if I don't already have a hard enough time posting on this blog, I have taken on the task of a second! My "brother" and I have decided to start a blog and write about the Coachella Music Festival! The blog that we started is The Coachella Scoop. We will be posting daily and highlighting the different artists that will be at the festival, as well as any updates, information, or contests that we come across. We are both avid music lovers, who have "dedicated our lives" to festivals and gatherings that try to promote and encourage a peaceful, loving lifestyle. So follow us on this epic journey, and get ready to have your eardrums ignited with some new sounds! (Can you say eargasm!?) 


The festival is held in Southern California in Indio, and lasts for three days. This is the first year that they have made the festival take place two different weekends, but that didn't stop tickets from selling out within hours of them going on sale this past Friday! I have never been to Coachella before, so I am incredibly excited about the prospect of going this year (weekend two, see you there!). For three whole days we festi folk will have our insides twisted to the glorious sounds from the likes of The Black Keys, M83, Swedish House Mafia, Pulp, Arctic Monkeys, Afrojack, Madeon, Datsik, Alesso, R3hab, Wolf Gang, Radiohead, Bon Iver, Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg, The Shins, David Guetta, Kaskade, Miike Snow, Feist, St. Vincent, SBTRKT, Awolnation, Kasabian, At The Drive-In, Justice, Florence and the Machine, Avicii, La Roux, Beirut, The Weeknd, Girl Talk, Calvin Harris, The Hives, Dada Life, Porter Robinson, Beats Antique, and TONS more! 


We shall see how this bi-blogging life works for me, but I think it will encourage me to be more consistent with this one, and give me some insight to the artists that I will be seeing in 93 days! Just another little chapter of this crazy, beautiful life! :) 


Today's Quote: In honor of this lovely holiday, "Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step." -Martin Luther King, Jr.