a friendly shout out

I read an idea for a blog topic recently entitled "the friends I can't wait to meet" and started thinking about what that might mean to me...or anyone. I tried to come up with the perfect friend in my mind. Perhaps they would be rich and/or famous. Or maybe they would be a mentor of sorts and teach me everything I need to know about what I am trying to do with my life right now. They could be the most encouraging person in the world or the funniest. Or maybe it would just be someone who is in the exact same place in life as me and would truly understand everything. As I tried to dream up these amazing people, my mind kept drifting to those I do know and I was reminded of what incredible friends I have. Fifteen years ago, if I would have found myself thinking the same thoughts, I would have never been able to dream up the friends I had not yet met. I suppose it is realistic that in another fifteen years, I will be looking back and seeing additional friends I did not know now, but today I was reminded of how blessed I am. None of my friends are very famous (no offense friends) and none of us are in exactly the same place in life, but they are perfect and I couldn't ask for more. So, as titled, this is just a shout out to all of my amazing friends. You are "the friends I couldn't wait to meet"! I am so thankful to have you, I love you and be reminded today of how special you are!

colorado came to visit

I've been excited to get out and enjoy the local music scene in Portland and finally went to a concert last weekend. Ironically, I went to see a band from Colorado I discovered last fall and am in LOVE with. I mentioned Elephant Revival in an earlier post, but didn't even have my camera with me at the last concert, so I wanted to finally share some of their sound.

I stepped into a unique venue, an old funeral home on SE Milwaukie, for this one and found a friendly atmosphere. With a glass of wine in my hand, I sat on a couch chatting until Bill Nershi took the stage. For those of you that don't know, "the nersh" is the founder of The String Cheese Incident", another great CO band. He played so much great music, I almost forgot there was still a band coming out until Bonnie joined him on stage with the washboard.

After a few more random collaborations, including Bridget joining in with her fiddle, the whole band finally took the stage and played a TON of music, including s couple songs from their new CD, which will be released in Colorado next month. Here are a couple highlights:

Just when it seemed like the concert would be over and the wee hours of the morning were sneaking in, Bill Nershi took the stage with the whole band and played a few more songs.

It was a great concert. Amazing music. Fun venue. Dancing people. I love Elephant Revival. They groove together on the stage, swap several instruments, take turns singing and create awesome music. Consider checking them out! Find their upcoming shows on their website.