September 24th - 26th

It has been a really great weekend-ish.

Thursday - Lauren and Jacob came over to hangout. We didn’t do much of anything, which for Lauren and I is pretty normal. We typically just sit around on our computers and watch TV. But I enjoy it. It is good to have people that you don’t have to entertain. You just are.

That night Children 18:3 came to play at The Channel
I saw them three times at cornerstone this year, I remember last year after listening to like 200 bands online we just got so tired of listening to music, we only listened to about 10 seconds of one of their songs. And wrote it off as horrible. I wish we had given them a second listen. But we did give them a second chance this year, and fell in love.
Regardless of whether you are a fan of their music or not, they put on one of the best live shows.
Lots of make-up, spins, crazy insane stage presence and of course! The drum solo (SO good!)
We blew up like 120 balloons, and at the beginning of their set we released them.
This is the first show that we have had at The Channel that I kinda released my duties just so I could be up front to dance and sing and enjoy the show. It was awesome., they did not disappoint. We spent most of the show playing volley ball with all the balloons and going nuts. I have missed being up in front in the energy of a concert. There just isn’t anything like it.

It was also my one year anniversary of working at The Channel.
And in typically Katie fashion, I decided to make the whole weekend a celebration. I don’t think anyone else knew that I was celebrating. Or even what I could have been celebrating. But for me it was a milestone. The Channel has meant so much to me. (but that is a whole other post)


Friday I worked at TJ Maxx, it was actually a really good at work. A few people I knew came in.
And maybe it was just that I was still celebrating, but it was such a good day.
And I got to end it with another fantastic show. Jonathan Whitten and the Fortunate Sons and Andy Lehman and the Night Moves.
Jonathan always puts on such a good show,
And it was Andy’s CD Release Party.
I met Andy last year around Christmas, The funny thing is that I had heard about him and read some random article about him somewhere earlier that year. So I was pretty excited to see him play.
I think he was acoustic that night, anyway I was impressed from the get go. Then he ended up playing for a private party the next night and we got to hangout between his sets. I was smitten.
I ended up getting his first album and was blown away with the lyrics and simplistic yet deep feeling of the songs. So long story short he ended up sending me some of the demo’s from the new album he was about to start working on.
If I wasn’t totally in love to begin with, that did it for me. They are the kind of songs that you feel. You hear them and can feel the stories, the passion. I love songs like that.
I think he originally sent my like 5 songs, and that was back when I was driving like 28 miles to work. So I would listen to those songs everyday on this crazy winding road on my way to work. even now when I drive that road I feel I should be listening to his music.
So through out the year he had sent me different versions of the songs, so needless to say I was extremely excited for the cd to finally be out.
Andy decided to play the whole album in full for the show, Which was totally brilliant. You walked away knowing exactly what you were buying in the album.
I got the album home, there were only two songs I didn’t really know. And I wasn’t really sure how I felt about them. But the more I have listened to it the more I have fallen in love. It immediately went into my “Clear my Head” play list on Itunes.
Two of my favorite songs “Back to Where the Roads are Mud” I loved this song way back from the demos and maybe it is because it talks about the scent of a dryer sheet (which I LOVE) but maybe it is because I think we all have moments when we want to go back to the ways things used to be.
And the one that has crept onto my favorites list “Moving with You” to start with when I hear this song I would think I don’t know how I feel about this song. But about a minute into it I start really feeling it.
“let your hair fall whichever way your hair will fall, and let your love come how it wants to come” probably my favorite line ever.
So good. So if you get a chance check out his album, it is titled “Lowcountry”

SOOOOOOOOOO, after the show we were going to have a water balloon fight but it was rainy and kinda cold outside so we decided to just go back to my place. After a strange trip to Bi-lo. We cooked random food and I honestly have no idea what we did. I know it was a lot of random videos online and awkward family photos. So about 3:30 or 4 everyone headed out. Except Lauren.
I got in a random mood to color, so I found all my coloring books and my crayons and laid on the floor. I still don’t know why that is so comforting to me, but anytime I am having a bad day or am too hyped up I can just lay out on the floor with crayons, coloring books and music and life is suddenly better.

So about 6 am. Lauren and I decided to call it a night.
Haha, I remember us both waking up around 11, and just looking each other in the eye and non verbally communicating that is was way to early and that the other had better not get up. Then we feel back asleep.

Woke up around 1:30 pm, Alyssa then came over and we sat in the living room coloring.
It was a perfect day in my book (btw I originally typed “it was the perfect book in my day”)
Come that evening we have only been up about 5 hours so we feel like it is about 1pm and it is really about 6:30pm. It was a mistake to stay up that late. I need to remember I am not young enough to bounce back after all nighters like I used to.

So Jacob Johnson played that night. He is always very entertaining. Even if it is the same thing over and over. You can always expect a good show.

So overall, a fantastic weekend of shows. And hanging with my girls.
A great way to celebrate the last year of my life.
Even though there have been A LOT of ups and downs, The Channel has been my constant.
It was good to be reminded and to celebrate that.