Thanksgiving!

It's that time of the year, again. The time when everyone posts what they're thankful for on Facebook, leaving you to question your own life and figure out what it is that you're thankful for.

I have a lot of be thankful for, I know. Willy reminds me constantly. And I try to tell them, as often as I can, how much I appreciate having a band that is as talented and fun to be with as mine. So allow me to gush a little bit.

1. Jesse. Finally, a bass player who can not only play bass well, and by EAR no less, but who can also play keyboard so I don't have to. A bass player who has character, who moves around the stage with me, who plays along when I do goofy singer things, who actually SINGS with me. Jesse, who is definitely the best looking person on stage, taking the attention way from me every night with his curly hair and Undertaker-like hat. I am so thankful for Jesse that I'm willing to put a tracking device in his neck and keep it active for the rest of his life.

2. Chris. Hands down the best drummer I've ever known, and I didn't even need to sell my first born child to get him! This is a guy who pushes himself without needing someone else to do it for him. A guy who actually really wants to be the best. He's a gaddamn show off, and even if Josh says it throws off the attention sometimes (lol), I don't particularly mind because how many other bands can say they have a drummer who can do the shit he does? I'm thankful because after going through, what 6-7 drummers in the past, he's the first guy I've ever met who can just do the things you ask him to do without an issue. "Hey Chris, how about you throw some double bass in there?" How does he answer? Does he say, "I'll work on it, later" like the French dude I played with for one show who came to rehearsal with a huge shiny kit and a zebra striped drum mat? No, he just does it. Because he's Chris and he can.

3. Josh. Okay, he annoys the hell out of me, but there's no denying that he can play circles around all the other jack-offs in this town. Plus, he knows how to write music that isn't boring and stupid. And yes, there's a lot of other things I could say about him (he's one of my best friends at this point) but I'm sticking to music. I'd murder him if he tried to leave. I would go straight up Misery on his ass and break his ankles. He knows this. I will not be forced to work with another shitty guitarist who plays in drop D because it sounds "heavy". I will never be forced to sing Paranoid again.

I'm thankful for these three guys. Not just because it's good to play with them, and write with them, but because I can hang with them. When we tour, it's not just work. It's like a vacation. A magical smelly vacation full of heavy metal and BBQ. After having spent more than a week on the road with these guys, I know there's nothing else I'd rather be doing than get cooped up in a van and driven all over the country to play in front of audiences that could go from tens to hundreds. I love it and I love them.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Heading South!

So I finally downloaded an app to blog from my phone. As some of you know, I'm pretty quiet before shows. Even the day of, I try to keep my talking to a minimum. So it's kinda annoying to be in a van with my band and not able to join in much of the conversation. You don't realize how much you miss talking until you can't.

So instead, I'm gonna blog! Specifically, I'm gonna blog about the conversation they were having about what's on everyone's minds; the election. I have a confession! I was a registered Republican, as recently as when I lived in Virginia. I truly believed in conservative ideals. I liked their strong Christian values. Then Obama was elected. Suddenly I realized, all those "Christian values" were, were a thinly veiled way of controlling other people. How did I come to this conclusion? Health care.

So, I grew up without health care. I had asthma and terrible allergies and we never knew why. I had no idea I was allergic to dogs until I was in college and I started to see a pattern, but like most families, we had dogs. I loved my dogs! But I was constantly sick, I caught flus easily, my asthma was bad. My mom would take me to the doctor whenever it got serious. High fevers, ear infections, that kind of thing. As a kid, I never understood the value of those doctors visits. My mom paid cash. My dad was the only one working because it would have costed MORE for my mom to put us in daycare than it would for her to just stay home and take care of us. They made me feel like we were normal, but once I got up college and my asthma got worse, I knew that wasn't true.

One winter, I got asthma bad. Really bad. Dry air always hurts me, but my attack got so bad I couldn't breathe. I felt myself getting light headed as I struggled to breathe, so my mom did the only thing she could and took me to the ER. Some treatments later, I discovered it cost over a thousand dollars. Yes, more than a thousand dollars. I was in college and suddenly the value of health care made sense. I tried my best not to get sick, but things always happened and my asthma didn't get better.

Fast forward to my first job. Right out of college I got a good job and they offered health care. Suddenly I could see a doctor when I needed to. I saw her for asthma, she gave me Advair. I saw her for whatever I needed, and never had to worry about more than a $15 copay. I've had health insurance ever since, and now I understand that value. I understand what it's like to grow up sick, in a nation full of opportunity.

Well I'm one of those "haves" in a world of "have not"s, now. I have a good job, a home, and a family. I'm lucky but there are so many others who aren't. I don't think it's right that children should grow up without health insurance when all it would take is for us to share a little. I understand that some people think that being forced by the government to share is wrong. I get that they don't like the feeling if government control. I get it. And I'm against a lot of government regulations. I just think that maybe we, as Americans, should look at the big picture. Our country will only be stronger if we all have access to health care. That kid who gets treatment for his asthma, he might be your doctor someday. That kid who gets treatment for a birth defect, he might create the greatest invention the US has ever seen. But they can't if we don't help. And I can think of no greater Christian value than charity, especially charity that helps treat the poor and destitute. Double especially when they live in the same country--, hell, the same city as you.

If you are a "have", please think of the "have not"s. Nobody is "entitled" to health care, food, clothing... But in a country as great as ours, shouldn't we want them to have it? I do. That's why I voted for Obama. He sold me on Obamacare. Because of his campaigning on the subject of healthcare for all, he made me into one of his biggest fans. I just want to hug him for all those kids and adults who might never have to live in pain ever again.

And then the weekend died..

There's nothing in the world that feels quite as good as proving someone wrong. Remember this blog post on Reverse Psychology? About how when someone doubts me it just makes me want to shove it in their face? Yeah, well that seemed to work out well because this past weekend's Rocktoberfest went really well! I was able to do my duet with Another Lost Year, nothing went wrong (besides their generator not working and out set being pushed back, no big deal tho'), and we wound up having a great time! Monday's show at Baltimore Soundstage went pretty well too, if you ignore certain less than savory fans that seem to come whenever there's a hardcore band around.

I have nothing against the hardcore genre in general, but sometimes their fans... well, they're not my favorite fans, I'll say that.

But we made some new fans, so these past two gigs worked out pretty well. I came home on Saturday to find Willy had gone out late with friends and wound up staying up to wait for him. His phone died, so after he stopped speaking to me for about 6 hours I began imagining what the coroner in DC would say...

"White male, red hair, goatee, smells like beer, found dead at the Friendship Heights Metro station..."

But he came home safe and I gave him a good talking-to about going out alone without letting me know his destination and who he was with. To be honest, most of my time home this weekend was spent sleeping. I got 2 prescriptions from my orthopedist, recently; a strong painkiller, and a muscle relaxer. I can't take either while drinking, so I have to make a conscious decision on which it's gonna be. This weekend it was drinking.. but yanno what? I never really got too drunk. I'm kinda disappointed. I got tipsy at Rocktoberfest, but not as drunk as I would have liked. Same thing at Noise in the Basement. Slightly tipsy, with a headache too. Not fun.

I think I'm gonna need to start organizing my drinking in a better way. I've been doing vodka/diet coke or diet Red Bull lately, but I find that I don't find my sweet spot unless I'm drinking a lot more than I used to. I don't like that.. I used to be such a cheap date! I'm still getting to that happy place on dirty martinis, but I can't usually get a dirty martini at the kind of "establishments" I usually go to. I'm gonna have to start coming up with a game plan for my drinking..

...starting with the Renn Faire this Saturday! This is the last weekend of the MD Renn Faire so Willy and I will be going on Saturday. The game plan? Filling my mug with beer. Several times.

Oops..

My bad. I haven't written anything in a while. I'm not sure if I have anything worth writing today, but I'm gonna give it the ole college try!

Things are better, at work. I've been placed in the full reception/security position, so I'm doing what I'm used to; sitting down, typing, checking in guests, answering phones, ect. I like it. It leaves me a bit of extra time to do a lot of scheming, though. In true I WANNA WORK I WANNA WORK I WANNA WORK Nina fashion, I've started various projects. Here are a few of them:

1. Started a short story for Halloween.
2. Wrote up a menu for an O'Toro's food cart.
3. Researched home beer brewing (I made mead at home!).
4. Planned a Christmas party.

Well, all my scheming must have annoyed the hell out of Willy because apparently it stresses him out. I don't know why, but he told me to focus on one thing at a time, which I have a terrible time doing. So for now, it's time for me to do more Halloween Party planning, which is gonna take a bit more effort now that this party has exploded. It's actually got a theme now (it's a surprise!) and a lot more people are coming than I expected, so we're working with Willy's dad to make it look as good as we can.

In other news, I'm done recording for Queen of Hell and Time's Arrow! It was a lengthy process, but it's beautiful. Also, I have two gigs this week! I'll be in South Carolina for Rocktoberfest on Friday, followed by Noise in the Basement for 98 Rock on Sunday and Monday. METAL!

Reverse psychology!!

I'm one of those silly people who thrives on reverse psychology. If you tell me I can't do something, I'll work hard to do it, just because I want to SHOVE IT IN YOUR STOOPID FACE.

Background story:

I was asked to do a guest vocal appearance during an upcoming show with a band who goes on after us. The band is certainly not our style (modern radio rock), but, when someone asks me to sing with them, I consider it a compliment. That they actually want to hear me do something for them because they think I can and they think it would be entertaining makes me happy! Why would I say no? So of course I said yes. I listened to the song and thought, "okay, not what I usually do, but still doable". I listened a few more times, got the lyrics, and began studying.

I forwarded the song to a friend of mine, who responded by saying that the song "isn't in your style", "is really high", and "I would say no".

...

Oh no you didn't. People, I am not one of those vocalists who is pinched into a tiny corner because of "style". You're talking about someone who learned to sing by mimicking. I didn't take voice lessons at a young age. Here are the steps I take when learning a song:

1. Get the song
2. Get the lyrics
3. Listen to the song
4. Sing along
5. Repeat steps 3-4 until it's perfect

That's how I roll. It can be any style. I've done this with motown, I've done this with metal, I've done this with Broadway, and I've done this with opera. The song I'm going to be guest-vocalizing on is radio rock. You think I can't do radio rock, you've got another thing coming. Am I gonna do it exactly like the other person did it? No, because I'm not a robot. Am I gonna do it well? You're damn right I am. It might be fueled by the fact that someone didn't believe in me, because as usual, I got somethin' to prove, and that something is that I AM ONE BAD ASS MOTHER $%&ER. That's right people, I am the Shaft of female fronted heavy metal. I come, I conquer, I tear #$&* up and leave the ladies (and gentlemen) begging for more. Bitches. Because if nobody's gonna back me up then I gotta be the one to do it. Because if there's one thing I know for certain, it's how to sing. It's the one thing I know I can do better than anything else, so please, do not test me. Do not try to tell me something is "too high" or, "not in my style" because bitch, I will make it my style. I will make it my ho. I will smack that song around until people say "daaaaaaayum".

Now. If you will excuse me, I'm gonna go listen to the song another ten thousand times.

/NINA OUT

Mission: SUCCESS!

Well, I can breathe now. Metal Quest was indeed a success, and now I don't have to worry about another show until this Friday when we play with Kamelot. HOWEVER, that show isn't a show I put together myself! All I gotta go is make myself presentable and put on a good show. WHEW. For those of you who were not there on Saturday, here's a quick recap.

Metal Quest started out in a flurry of putting together goodie bags and setting up merch tables. Third Eye Comics couldn't spare anyone, so we wound up not having any vendors besides Raven's Own. I was fine with that. We had room for all the bands to sell their things and nobody complained. Hurray! We brought water and beer for the bands, because at the end of the day, I was worried that we wouldn't make enough money to give them something, and we (A Sound of Thunder) at least wanted to give them some food and drink for their trouble. All of the bands were extremely cordial and appreciative, so it made my job much easier.

So the show started an hour late because the venue said it was cool, and people came! They DID! Ender's Game went on at 7 and they actually had a good crowd, thank goodness, because they were fantastic. As a matter of fact, when I was running around getting organized, their sound check suddenly made me feel very calm. That's how good they were. I was personally worried that the bands would either be rushed, or, they wouldn't have enough time, so I was strict with the timing and did a load schedule. Well it worked, but only because all of the bands were so great and professional! Everyone went on/off stage on time and we finished at the correct time! It all felt very good and natural. The best part is that despite talking all day, introducing all of the bands, and being worried about door sales, I actually put on one of my best performances. The guys and I had, I think, the best crowd we've ever had. The floor was full of people! I was very happy about it. At the end of the night, we made enough through door sales and pre-sales that we didn't operate at much of a loss. The only money we lost was for food and drinks, but that's fine. We're able to send some money to the Hero Initiative charity, and that's what matters.

This Friday, like I said, is gonna be a lot less stressful. I'm hoping a big name like Kamelot will draw as big as it did last time I played with them, which was maybe 4 years ago now. That time, the place was absolutely packed. Unfortunately, it's Prog Power weekend, so I know a lot of people will be out of town. Here's hoping that enough people are left to give us a good crowd! We've pre-sold a lot of tickets, so I know we'll have some folks there for us, at least. To be honest, I was never a HUGE Kamelot fan. They're okay, but they never really got me like, say, Edguy. I do really like their new lead vocalist though, so maybe things will be different this time. In any case, it should be a good night. I even took Friday off so I could rest my voice and be at 100%. Not sure what I'll wear, though. This weekend had a decidedly nerdy theme. Perhaps something a bit more.... ethereal? Nah. I'll figure it out. In the meantime, I think some much needed rest is in order. I've spent way too much time being the boss! It's time for me to let someone else be the boss, for a while. At least until the itch to put together another show comes! ...oh wait, there it is.

Metal Quest bands:

• Ender's Game
• Burning Shadows
• Dethlehem
• A Sound of Thunder
• Aries
• Rare Candy

Being an adult is STUPID!

Well, it's finally happened.

I've put Willy and I on a budget.

Nobody pouts like Shirley Temple!

Yes, ladies and gentlemen. At the tender age of 28 (WHEN DID THAT HAPPEN!? I could have sworn I was 27...), I've put an end to our going-out-whenever-we-want, buying-whatever-we-want, random-trips-to-the-Renaissance-Faire ways. I took all those talents I have for planning shows and applied them to my normal boring blah blah day to day life. I made a spreadsheet in Excel. I calculated. I did maff. Why? Because I realized that it really sucks when your bank  account hits zero and you've got a week until your next paycheck. Because honestly, I'd like to actually put more than a few hundred bucks away. Because my poor car has been neglected for months, now.. and I kinda need him up and running for all these band things I've been borrowing Willy's car to travel to, lately. There's also the fact that Willy and I make pretty good money, and the fact that we keep bankrupting ourselves mid-week is irresponsible and embarrassing. I mean hell, we've got friends with kids now. All we've got is a cat, and you're telling me we can't be financially responsible because we've got an addiction to top-shelf vodka and costume pieces for the Renaissance Faire? C'mon. We can do better then that.

What real budgeting takes is some self-control, which, admittedly, we have very little of. Especially me. For some reason, it's a lot easier for me to not eat than to eat the food I bring to work every day. I guess I'm spoiled. I do my damndest to pack a lunch I won't feel guilty about, but at some point, that lunch just feels unappetizing. So I just gotta force it down and tell myself, "Shut up and eat that tuna! You're doing this so you can buy Guild Wars 2!! (And also fit into those jeans from 3 years ago!)" But it's not as easy as all that, so sometimes I just let myself go hungry and tell myself I'll eat it the next day. Because I am dumb.

Man do I miss being an irresponsible teenager! Or better yet, an irrisponsible college student. College was fantastic. I'm a multi-tasker, so I thrive on the kind of stress that homework/social responsibilities/a part time job puts on a 20-something. I think my mom said "get a job" all at once, which I actually laughed at. See, I've had a job every summer starting at 15, and then once I hit college, it went from every summer to just all the time. I did random stuff. I worked at Suncoast (before Best Buy ate them) in a mall, I worked at the Maryland Renaissance Festival, I was a teaching aid for elementary schools (2 different ones!) and I tutored at our school. "Get a job"... are you kidding!? I loved working! I loved it because all the money I got was pocket money. I didn't need a car because I took Metro. I didn't pay rent because I lived with my parents. They paid for all my food. All I had to do was go to school and goof off. And boy did I goof off! I still managed to get good enough grades that I found a job straight out of school. That's where the trouble hit me.

"Isn't this more fun than watching cartoons in bed?"

My first job was in Chantilly. It was a 1.5 hour car ride each way. I was so exhausted each morning that I got into a car accident during the first 3 months I worked there, and realized I needed to move away from home. At first it was a "during the week" thing. I'd go home on the weekends and live with my friend Joe during the week. Then I realized it was easier for me to stay there all the time, so I got my VA drivers' license, changed my address, became an adult.

The problem is that rent was so cheap that I never learned to budget. I had several things to think about... rent, car, car insurance, student loans. Not too many bills. The older I got, the more bills I got. Suddenly I'm paying for electricity, cable, a cell phone, a mortgage, HOA fees, gym dues... grown up things! Grown up things are horrible, but the thing about them is that they exist for comfort. I have cable. Why do I need to go out to entertain myself? I have vodka at home. I have a plethora of comic books, some unread. I even have some guy living with me I could talk to every once in a while! So in theory, I shouldn't need to add more expenses to my bills because I've got so much else to entertain myself with.

"Quit drinking and read me!!"

Unfortunately, I'm not that kind of person. I need to be out. So I either need to make myself look at the gym as a happenin' place where fun things happen, or I need to just shut up and sit on the couch and read all those Batwoman comics I've been hoarding before I make us both go broke with my expensive dirty martini habit.

Hell, I even bought my own martini glasses! And a shaker! Theoretically, I should be happy as a clam on my faux velvet red couches, lounging in a pair of animal-print pajama pants and an old band t-shirt I picked up in the mid-west while reading comic books and drinking martinis.So why aren't I? I'm spoiled. I'm really really spoiled.

Well, after the birthday party excursion I go to on Saturday night, I will make it my business to spend this entire Labor Day weekend at home! That's right, people! After I get wasted in DC, I'm gonna come home, hug my cat, and try my best not to go outside and spend money. I'll probably go to the gym. That's it. I swear. What? You don't believe me?

Yeah, me neither.