Moar Music!

So, 'tis the season to be making lists, and one of the most popular lists right now is everyone's top music of 2010. As a self-proclaimed music-head, I decided to make a list of my own personal favorites from this year.

Adrienne's Top 10 Songs of 2010
(in no particular order)

• The New Pornographers - Crash Years
• The Black Keys - Tighten Up
• Arcade Fire - Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)
• Mumford and Sons - Roll Away Your Stone
• Local Natives  - Airplane
• Yeasayer - Madder Red
• Lady Gaga - Bad Romance
• LCD Soundsystem - Dance Yrself Clean
• Rogue Valley - Cleaning Slates

Honorable Mentions

• Sleigh Bells - Ring Ring
• Dawes - When My Time Comes
• Florence and the Machine - Dog Days are Over
• The National - Bloodbuzz Ohio
• Coronado - Deerhunter

Top 10 Albums
(in no particular order)

• Arcade Fire - The Suburbs
• Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More
• Yeasayer  - Odd Blood
• Chromeo - Business Casual
• Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest
• Local Natives - Gorilla Manor
• Beach House - Teen Dream
• The New Pornographers - Together
• LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening
• The Black Keys - Brothers

As it turned out, a good majority of my favorite artists from these lists were at Lollapalooza this year. I didn't make it to all, but I still lucked out with the ones I did see. Here are a couple photos of me rocking it out at Arcade Fire.

Maybe I'll make a couple more lists this year - I know my mom is dying for a Christmas list from me. But for now, I'll stick with the tunes. And if you haven't even checked out these artists this year, better late than never.

Peace, love and poinsettas,

A

White Star has provided you with your own person bellhop!

So I know Thanksgiving was last week already, so this is a little late, but I still wanted to write a little bit about things I'm thankful for. I'm not going to write out a big list of all the obvious (my friends, getting my job, Blair - my cat, etc.) but wanted to one one thing that stand out to me this year - FAMILY.

For Thanksgiving this year, it was the first year that we celebrated without my Dad. He has left Delta/Northwest after 20 years and has started a new job with Airbus. The job has better benefits, includes a payraise, and he gets to keep his flight benefits for our family from Delta. Sounds good, right? Well, the kicker is, it's in Wichita, Kansas. So he's been in France since October, training for this new job, and when he comes back next week, he will be instantly searching for a place to move into in Kansas. Long story short, it sounds like a crazy deal, and it IS crazy  - we have no idea what the next few years will be like with this new job - BUT Delta was a crazy employer and there were a lot of issues already. And Delta wanted to move all engineers down to Atlanta in the next couple year anyway, so might as well move to where you're wanted if you have to leave! Anyway, the point IS, I'm really thankful for my Dad, and my whole family, for making these sacrifices. He is a great role model and I hope that someday I can be someone to look up to for my own kids.

We did have a fantastic Thanksgiving, however. My mom, sister, and I drove to a suburb near Chicago to visit my aunt, uncle and cousins for the weekend. Being the spoiled airline family that we are, driving the 8 hours to Chicago was something that we were not at all used to. But we had a great time and a little bit of girl bonding was included in the drive. And when we got to Chicago, we had a fantastic weekend with our family. I hadn't seen that part of our family for about four years, and it's was great to see my youngest cousin grow up into a real lady, and grab the senior photos of her brother, and meet the fiance of my favorite cousin, just a few months younger than me. We spent the trip playing board games, and (of course) eating! Nathan and his fiance Tiffany are getting married in June, so it feels great to know we will be seeing them again in six months. Here's a photo of all the cousins after playing a game of Guesstures.

This has been a seriously crazy year, and my family has been very important to me. From living with my uncle, Scott, when I was up in Vancouver, to relying on my parents for almost every need this summer while I was struggling with finding a job, I have been very fortunate to be surrounded with family who supports and cares for me. Not to mention, my sister is a fantastic friend and an amazing person! So, that's what I'm most thankful for this year.

I'll leave you with a little something to hum along to while you're trying to stay warm this week. It's definitely getting cold out there! Have a fantastic winter weekend and stay safe, we are supposed to be getting over 5 inches of snow tonight!



Peace, love, and frozen grapes,

A

Beaujolais Nouveau

It's another week into November and it's starting to look like a real winter wonderland outside! Last Saturday, the Twin Cities area was hit with about 10 inches of snow, give or take. And since Dad is still in France doing his work training, guess who was left to snowblow the driveway - this gal. Not exactly my favorite way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Oh well, at least Mom is back home so I haven't been quite so lonely this last week.

I was re-reading my old blogs post-Olympics about how I was beginning a new chapter in my life, being back in Minnesota with a college degree and starting to gain new experience. I made the prediction that 2010 would be, oh gee! - "the best year ever!" And while it's hard to say that one year of your life has been better than all the rest, I would admit to having a fantastic year. And I still have over a month left! I have successfully survived my unpaid internships and a short stint at Target, secured a job with bennies and am preparing to move out to Minneapolis in the next few months! I also enjoyed quite a few fun excursions and activities with my friends, including Lollapalooza - definitely the best weekend of 2010. And deriving from that weekend I have started seeing an amazing guy, which is a major plus when comparing to my relationship troubles from '09. I was definitely right in my previous entries: this year would be about change.

Two blog posts ago I was noting how odd it was that the year was half over, and now it's almost completely passed us. I swear, I will just blink and it will be 2011 already.

I want to finish this short and sweet blog with a little treat that has been floating around the web this week: the new Girl Talk album - All Day. He promised his listeners a free download of the album when it arrived, so if you haven't listened already (hopefully most people have), check it out! I'm crossing my figners to get to his concert in March. TGIF!

Peace, love, and iPhone autocorrect,
A

Week Four

So after all my bitching and moaning about not having a job or money over the summer, that thankfully this blog and all of it's (few) readers didn't have to hear about, I have just finished my fourth week in a real, big- girl-with-benefits job! I'm working with the Minnesota AIDS Project, who hired me on after a great internship from April-August as the new Special Events Assistant.

This means, I will be working on our big special events for the company, mainly our annual Minnesota AIDS Walk, held every May. I have also been taken under the wing of our Communication's Director and doing some work that actually pertains to what I studied in school (imagine that), including social media, some biz writing, etc. So, I think that the position is really perfect for me!

On top of all that, I find working for a non-profit such as ours to be more rewarding every day. It might not give the best pay and although I have no personal tie-ins to AIDS or HIV, as I get branched out of my summer special events corner and start working with the rest of the departments, I am realizing how much I appreciate the work that goes on in our building. We really do some amazing things that have a huge impact on the way people in Minnesota are coping with HIV every single day. Over the next few weeks, I'd like to highlight a few of our services and programs so that my friends and readers can get some sort of  idea of the fantastic work that goes on at the office.

On a side note, I got moved into my new cube today next to the rest of the Development department. I was exiled in a teensy cube on the other side of the building for the first four weeks of work and just got to move today! *Chair dance!* It's definitely nice to have my own space and get settled in. The cube for my future intern is right behind me so once they get hired I can just sass them all day. Actually, although I am pumped to have an intern, if you know me at all, I'm not the most authoritative person so I'm expecting a learning experience for me as well.

Also, TGIF. I'm really itching to get done for the day. Looking forward to a nice night with the girls, and then Saturday with the boy :) IF I don't get snowed in. We have had some amazing temp highs earlier this week, but are expecting around 12 inches of snow tomorrow? Yikes. Not sure I'm ready for that. Will keep you posted on the snow status. I would like to get back into the blogging habit, so if you don't hear from me sometime next week, I probably died in a snowdrift. Can't believe my last blog post talked about looking forward to summer. Now I'm dreading winter and Thanskgiving is in two weeks. Wowza time flies.

Anyway, I will leave you with this earworm, When My Time Comes by Dawes. Cuz I feel like my time has finally come in getting my "real" job and making my mark. *silent cheers*And also because Dawes played at First Ave last night and I'm tragically disappointed that I missed the show. Enjoy.

Peace, love and daylight savings,

A

Hey you're playing with my delirium

So today is May 5th. Wow. Hello 2010, I thought we were still just getting started and you're already almost halfway gone. It's strange to think that if I was still in school right now I would be finishing up my semester in EC in two weeks. It still feels like I just graduated! I guess time flies when you're having fun.

Since the beginning of 2010, and graduation, I have:

• Secured two internships with awesome non-profit companies, one doing special events, one doing public relations/marketing. I am equally passionate about both jobs and am hoping to gain some some excellent experience and knowledge this summer. (There's also the Target job, but that one's just there to make my life stressy)
• Had the experience of a lifetime in Vancouvsie :)!
• Saw Chris Koza, aka loml, perform in St. Paul
• Somehow have managed to keep in touch with my EC friends, PL friends, old roomies, and others all over the world, literally!
• Aaand, yesterday, I did the sad, final move-out from Eau Claire. It's so strange to pack up an entire two years of college life and cramming it all into a room at my parents' house. Not to mention forcing me to really realize that my campus and college days are over and things from here on out are gonna be full of change.

Some of these things I'd like to see for the rest of the year:

• Finish up my 3 jobs/internships and find a real job for the Fall
• Move out of ma and pa Widener's - hopefully somewhere downtown!
• Not get too stressed out working 50+ hours a week and only getting paid for 15 of them
• Being organized! I already have so many weekends/weeks over the next few months and I have to stay organized to keep track of what I'm doing. Organization is not my strong suit, so we'll see.
• Go to Lollapalooza!! (Bought my tickets already so I know that's a go)

Whew! It feels good to write down a few goals and accomplishments. When I started this blog right after graduation almost 5 months ago, I didn't know what I'd be doing right now, and I definitely think I'm on the right track to getting a job I want. We'll see how the rest of my goals go by the end of the year, or at least by the end of summer.

Speaking of summer, I cannot wait for it! With 85 degree weather downtown today, I can feel summer getting close. No one I know has put in their boats in Prior Lake yet, but when that happens, I think that will be the official start to my favorite season. Hopefully I won't be too busy to enjoy it!

Also, my good friend Jeff sent me a mix CD all the way from Ireland and I got it in the mail yesterday. It was such a surprise! Always nice to know that someone is thinking about you. Anyway, here is a link to one of my favorite songs he put on the mix. Check it out!!
Ladyhawke - My Delirium
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QN8HwUxFouM

Peace, love, and margaritas,
A

Defying Gravity

Whoah! It's been a helluva long time since I wrote anything here. I guess I got into some sort of depressive slump when I got back from Vancouver, and when it comes to writing online to noone/everyone, my ambition has been low to blog. However, things are not all that bad back in Minnesota. I am a struggling graduate, looking for my dream job. At this point, almost ALL jobs are dream-worthy. I did secure a part-time job at Target and (YAY!) an (unpaid) internship downtown at a little place called the Minnesota AIDS Project both in the first couple weeks of being back in the U-S-A.

So far, I really like working at MAP. I'm one of the Special Events interns and we already have our big event in a few weeks on May 16th, so woohoo!!! I've been kept pretty busy doing tons of logistics tasks like writing and organizing about 40 thank-yous, organizing sponsors, researching past events or with other cities to see what to change, and corresponding with volunteers needed on event day. Also, it's pretty much gay-town at MAP, so baaasically it's perfect for me. Because as my fave Canada faggy, Kris, told me, I'm pretty much a gay man in a woman's body. Hmm, I don't really know what else to say on that matter, feeling pretty awkward now. Moving on.....

So I pretty much decided that 2010 is going to be the best year ever! I'm done with school now, I am at a turning point in my life, and who knows what I will be doing in the next six months. I got back a month ago from one of the greatest and most valuable opportunities of my life, and it's already benefiting me. I'm also realizing a few things about myself, now that my life is heading to a new chapter, and I'm finally ready to let go of some things I've been struggling with. Won't go into detail on this matter, but for the first time in over a year I'm feeling like a weights been lifted off of my shoulders and I'm seeing more clearly. I'm feeling really excited about the rest of the year, and especially summer, now that it's getting SO nice out!

So that's the latest update on my life. I'm glad to be back into somewhat of a schedule because I thrive on being busy. The friend count is low being back in Prior Lake, but other than that, and the fact that LOST and Glee are now on at the same time, everything else is peachy!

Peace, love, and Sue Sylvester,
A


Also, I happened to be thinking about my friend McKinley yesterday, who took his life a couple of months ago. He was absolutely brilliant and adored, and it bummed me out a lot, but I found this poem of his, and it really inspired me. RIP McKinley

Sunrise

This is a poem about sunrise.

This is a poem about watching red and pink respiration finesse the base of the horizon, with eyes closed knowing that this is all there really is.

This is a poem about holding someone’s hand or arm or your own hand or nothing and the rush of morning pours over you.

This is just a poem about sunrise. This is not a poem about anything else.

This is not a poem about a first date, the fact that you hate someone you used to love, getting snubbed by your crush, rushing to see someone who you haven’t seen for ten hours and now it’s almost eleven, heaven-sent individuals or hell-bent residual mistakes.

This poem is about the feeling you get getting up at home or elsewhere carefree and free to appreciate the elation based in the sun and encased in it’s run along the tips of whatever it’s framing. It’s the same window with the same view but the difference is you. You’ve seen every sunrise but your eyes are never prepared for what they share with the morning. It’s about the first warming rays of the day erasing the night’s decay and playing games with your levels of vitamin E.

This poem is not about oppression, about how the possession of wealth has stealthily been divided among society so that while we prioritize money it’s funny that so many don’t have enough, or about how tough it is to live the American dream if you didn’t start out sleeping with riches.

This poem is about 5:00 AM, when you’re awake and don’t have to be, or you do have to but you happened to notice that below the blackness is opening up an orange hue and you forget how tired you are and that the stars are fading just that the trade from night to day is amazing and the blazing entrance makes you remember that it might not always be just you and the sunrise but it is always you and the sunrise.

This is not a poem about anything except sunrise. It’s about standing on the handrail of a second-story balcony thousands of miles from home with the smoke from your Black & Mild getting in your eyes as you strain to see the sun come up over the L.A. skyline. It’s about sitting on the shore of a secluded mountain lake alone at home with the water lapping the fog wrapping around your ankles and being thankful for everything in existence, which to you right now is this sunrise. Sunlight goes much deeper than the eyes, it finds your center, and everyone must be meant to arise a little bit earlier. 

Our worlds revolve around our daily lives, but each day evolves from inside a sunrise.   Wake up.

By McKinley Lukes
RIP 1/18/2010

So many tars

Welp, I'm unemployed! Work officially finished on Friday, after a week of wrap-up around the IBC. We had a lot of take-down and I had no more days off after my Whistler trip for my final week. Our wrap party was a success Sunday night after the Closing Ceremonies, and I must say, it should be illegal to schedule work the day after a party is thrown for 2,300 people, with over $100,000 spent and 11,000 drinks consumed. Pretty awesome time, to say the least.

The rest of the week had a bit more work than we've had recently, and was filled with our final goodbyes to coworkers. Starting Monday, people's contracts were ending and people were heading back to their homes with no job (me included, soon).  It's pretty depressing to think about going back to Minnesota after having such a fantastic time up here. I've been in Vancouver a bit over a month now, I'm finally getting a feel for the city and getting to know the friends I've made, but now boom, work's over, and I have to say goodbye already. Not to mention, the work I've been doing has been amazing!

My sister and mom are coming up to Vancouver next Saturday so I will be spending this next week bumming around till they arrive, hopefully getting some applications in for back home. I am quite excited to see them though! I have been assigned to create an itinerary for our plans next week. Any suggestions?

Here's a pic of most of my fellow runners and me. I will miss working with them so much!

That's all I have for now, just gonna be stuck on the couch for the rest of the night, watching the Academy Awards. Let's all keep our fingers crossed for Meryl!

Peace, love, and Oscars,

A