this is why i love nashville

let me give you a run-down of the last weekish.

saturday:i woke up at the crack of dawn... scratch that... way before the crack of dawn, at 4am, to go help set up with ellie's run for africa. the run took place at percy warner park, and i had never been there before. i quickly google mapped directions and made my way out there, only to later discover that there are several entrances to the park, and i chose the wrong one. twice. i spent almost an hour driving around in the middle of the woods, and it was gorgeous, especially with the early morning fog all around me. i wish i had taken some pictures, but i was trying to hurry and find where i was supposed to be. anyway, i was assigned to help out with the inflatable games (moon bounce, slide, etc) but later they moved me to be one of the people standing on the running trail to make sure people went in the right direction, and to be there in case anyone got hurt. the run was quite the success; i believe somewhere around 800 were pre-registered to run, and they raised over $50,000 to help children in africa receive an education.i

they also had several booths setup where people could find other ways to help out with everything going on in africa. one of the booths was for mocha club, which i joined that day. i had been meaning to join for awhile, and i figured that was the time to do it. the idea behind mocha club is that you donate $7 - the price of two mochas - a month, and you get to pick which cause the money goes towards. one of the main spokespersons for mocha club is dave barnes, and so he was out and about at the run, and my friends and i ended up talking to him for a little bit after he had some fun in the moon bounce.

sunday: that same group of friends and i headed out to a bar/venue to see andy davis perform. i don't know how many of you are familiar with his music, but he is great, and to top it off he's one of those artists who is a million times better live, so if you ever get the chance, go see him. now, nashville is a big city, especially compared to the place where i grew up, yet it's very small town, especially in the music world. so guess who showed up to watch andy perform. his good friends, matt wertz and dave barnes. now remember, the friends i was with were the same friends who had just talked to dave the day before. there were a few moments of awkward eye contact where i'm sure he was thinking "those same four girls, again?" ha. but yeah. and while you're at it, be sure to check out jesse ruben and parachute, both of whom opened for andy.

monday:well, as you probably know, i am a hanson fan. however, what you may not know is that taylor hanson recently started up a side project with james iha (formerly of smashing pumpkins), adam schlesinger (of fountains of wayne), and bun e carlos (of cheap trick), called tinted windows. now, i don't hate tinted windows, but i'm not really a big fan either. i didn't buy the album, but i have listened to quite a few of the songs online and such. they had a radio show with a local station here on monday, and a few of my friends went. i met up with my friends at the radio station after the show (and saw taylor running away for a minute when i showed up, ha) and we headed out to dinner. long story short... we went to the bar downtown which sponsored the show, and eventually adam and james showed up. they didn't stay for long and i didn't get to talk to them at all, but how many people can say they were in a bar with james iha?

wednesday: some friends and i braved the storms (read: tornado sirens were going off all evening) to go see curtis peoples do a short little (free) performance. i guess this was some sort of retreat for songwriter's to get their songs on tv shows and in movies, and it's going on all week. it was a showcase, so he only played about four songs, and several other people performed, but we just went for curtis and left as soon as he was done. another great show.

well... i guess that's enough name dropping for now. i love nashville.

on growth.

allow me to preface this with an obligatory apology for my lack of recent blogging: i'm sorry. there. that's done. moving on.

over the past few weeks i've been thinking about the past year or so, and i am beginning to realize how much i've grown since last summer. i feel as though i have grown significantly in all areas of my life: emotional, professional, spiritual, social. the two biggest areas i think would be professionally and socially.

professionally: without boring you with work info, i'll just say that the majority of the things i do on a daily basis now, didn't even exist a year ago, and some of i am proud to say i came up with on my own. while i don't necessarily have a passion for what i do, i don't hate it and it does interest me, at least a little bit. i am seriously considering taking up an accounting class or two (on the company's dime, of course). as far as the company goes... while we've had our ups and downs, i am still very thankful that i found this job. i have met some great people working there, and there is never a lack of entertainment in the office. and getting to work from home two days a week is a definite bonus. also, my two-year anniversary with the company is coming up in a couple weeks. crazy.

socially: a year ago, i would go to work, come home, talk to my friends in indiana, and go to sleep. that's about it. very rarely would i go out with anyone. i had a few good friends move away at the end of summer, which made it even harder. in the winter i was ready to give up, quit, and head back home or back to anderson. as soon as i made the decision to stay, things seemed to make a 180 turn. i have since met several new friends, and the old friends i had i am forming even closer relationships with. i finally have gotten involved in my church, and that has made a world of difference. one of the friends who moved away last year is back. and most importantly, the move from my isolated antioch apartment to my awesome house on belmont has made a huge difference.

i am very happy with life right now, and i couldn't say that six months ago.