Thursday, August 07, 2008

CrueFest 2008 in Sacramento



The other night my boss told me he had an extra ticket to Crue Fest for the next day. he asked if i wanted it. OH YEAH i did! I had been trying to win tickets on the radio for weeks! as soon as i got off work, i freshened up and got into the "funVan" that my friends had rented. We had a cooler full of beer, a DVD of Motley Crue videos and we were on the way! The bands scheduled to play were Trapt, Sixx Am, Papa Roach, BuckCherry and The almighty Motley Crue. We got to Sacramento around 3, and sat in the parking lot and had a little "tailgate" party.

(my boss billy)

(our buddy Dave. I dared him to wear this into the show, but he chicken out)

Doors opened at 4, but we were still hanging out, drinking and listening to the Crue. We made our way in, and to my surprise we had floor tickets. i have been to a few concerts, but NEVER had floor tickets, so i was excited.. after everyone got their souvenirs, and beer, we headed down to the "pit" Nobody really was there yet, but the band trapt was playing. we wormed our way up front, and i gotta tell ya, got a good place to be. there was only one person in front of me, and then there was the stage. It was hot. it was humid. but i didnt care! When trapt finished their set, everyone around me went to get more drink, but i wasnt going anywhere! Next up was Sixx Am.

they are a band formed when Nikki Sixx wrote an autobiography about his years with Motley Crue. (he is their bass player, and the bass player for Sixx AM) He formed a band and they put out an album to coincide with the release of his book "The Heroine Diaries" the album is like a soundtrack. so far I had read a few pages of it, and its a pretty good book.

(lead singer of Sixx Am, John Michaels)

(Michaels and Nikki Sixx Jammin on the Gutair)

(Gutair player DJ Ashburn. he rocked it)

(Mr Nikki Sixx himself)

(DJ Ashburn again)

after Sixx AM, Papa roach took the stage. This is the 2nd time i have seen them in concert. Back in 2000, i had gone to see Eminem and the Anger Management tour. Papa Roach opened for them. (except they werent that famous at the time)
this time they put on a ROCKIN show. it was amazing. being so close, whenever the lead singer would headbang, i would get his sweat on me (gross huh?) But i wasnt going to give up my spot.

(lead singer of papa roach, Jacoby. He also hosts the MTV show Scarred)



(he was so close, i could have touched him. but i was more into taking awesome pics!)

After them, BuckCherry took the stage. I like their music, so it was bound to be a good show. the lead singer was very energetic! he was jumping and running everywhere! it was hard to get a good pic of him, but i sure tried!

(buckcherry gutair player)

(lead singer of buckCherry)



(this guy was a BALL OF ENERGY!)


Now its time to the Crue. they just put out a new albums "saints of los angeles" From what i have heard, its a pretty good album. Having grown up listening to their music, i was anxious to hear them today. the concert up to this point has been fantastic! And the Crue did not disappoint.

(i tried to get a good pic of Tommy Lee. But it was getting dark and i was pushed back from the stage)

there were lights, there were fireworks, and the LOUD music! (the pics get a bit fuzzy because it was getting dark, and i was taking pics from my cell phone. but the pics i got were awesome, because of the lighting.)
(lead singer Vince)



(Nikki Sixx jammin)


(billy headbanging away)


(i like this pic. it turned out really good. )
(Nikki and the other gutair player jammin)




it was a very good concert. i had come off night shift the night before, so i ended up staying awake 34 hours straight. with help from a LOT of coffee and just the energy from being SO excited! im glad i have friends who are into this kind of thing. i am sure there will be more to come!

changes


on the way back from oregon, a friend of mine called me and asked if we could come by and help him move some things. plus he said that he had a table that he thinks i would LOVE. so we went down, and checked it out. i fell in love with the table as soon as i set eyes on it. (but i did wonder if it was going to fit) we worked out a deal, took it home, and set it up. the table fit like a glove. we now eat every meal at the table. Beautiful!

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

oregon trip


a couple weekends ago we headed up to oregon for some much needed time away from reno and the smoke. plus it is so peaceful up there that every chance we get, we head up that way. Friday evening came, and as soon as Joseph was off work, we jumped in the car and was on our way. Got in around 11. then had a beer and visited with my mom.
Saturday brought a trip to the falls. it was perfect. nice and hot, and cool water made for a great day. drank some beer, went swimming, and just Relaxed! That evening we headed into the small town and they had a Festival going on. at 10pm they put on fireworks and boy were they great! the actually were way better than the ones that the Nugget put on this year in Reno. it probably was way cooler since we were able to lay on the grass right under them!
Sunday we headed into Roseburg to go to the movies. We saw the Dark Knight with my mom. and then we came back home, and actually just visited and watched some cable tv. (i miss that!) Monday we had a nice breakfast and went swimming for a bit. Then it was time to head back to reno.


we stopped in Grants Pass at the Dutch bros MAIN coffee house. (its becoming a tradition) its really cool. looks like a bar, sounds like a bar (loud music is always pouring from its open windows) but its a coffee shop. We got our coffees, and it was time to head home. back to the daily grind.