10,000 Times

 

For this, my 175th post, I thought I would celebrate a blog milestone: this week I some.how passed 10,000 page views.  This is both an over (and oddly enough) understatement as A.) a modicum of those are my own visits BUT B.) the numbers only go back to June for some reason, so data is missing from March, April and May.

There’s a lot more statistics I’ll share at a later date about exactly how I might have gotten that many, but today I figured I’d provide a chance for some of you to catch up on the previous 174 posts with my “Top Ten” selection—now with updates on some older ones!

 

May 4th, 2010: President Obama speaks at my graduation

Another National Anthem

     

 

June 20th, 2010: Introduction to Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp

Into the Woods

     

 

August 29th, 2010: Moving from Ann Arbor to Houston

If You’re Gonna Play in Texas (You Gotta Have a Fiddle in the Band)

  

 

October 14th, 2010: The Houston Museum of Fine Arts

Sophisticated Lady

   

 

November 20th, 2010: A collection of stairs (yup, that’s it…)

On the Steps of the Palace

  

December 5th, 2010: The John Cleary Gallery Christmas show

A Snowglobe Christmas

  

December 19th, 2010: Ultimate party crashing

The Party’s Crashing Us

   

 

January 16th, 2011: Hester’s goodbye party at Girl Talk

Shut the Club Down

   

 

February 3rd, 2011: Dead Man Walking at HGO plus after party

Woman on the Tier

  

 

February 10th, 2011: Amelie/Yann Tiersen at Fitzgerald’s

The Ballad of Booth

   

Obviously this is only a brief smattering of these last eleven months… so feel free to do a little back catalogue viewing whenever the boredom ensues.  You know, like how you felt about a third of a way into reading this post.  I love comments and/or suggestions and while you’re at it, go ahead and subscribe—I’m still at a paltry (and unlucky) thirteen.

Anyway, here’s to approximately 10,000 more!!!!

Artist: Blu Cantrell/ Album: So Blu

Shut the Club Down

 

If you’ve read my blog in the last month then you are most likely aware of some shenanigans I’ve gotten into with a certain trio of twenty-somethings.  Unfortunately, one third of that trio had to part ways with Houston and, as a depressing byproduct, with me!  If you’re aware of our previous outings (and innings) then you know there was no way we weren’t going out without a fight. Or as I like to remember it: a night of Girl Talk, glow sticks, giant balloons, grief and goodbyes.

Brad got us all tickets to go see Girl Talk, a D.J. who is currently on a nationwide tour.  He was originally supposed to play at the House of Blues but they sold out so quickly they had to change to the Verizon Wireless Theater (where I saw Vampire Weekend with Liz) in order to accommodate a larger crowd.  I happened to arrive a little late during the interval between the opening act an the main stage performance, increasingly encouraged by a stream of “He’s almost on!!!” and “Hurry while you can still find us, we’re ten feet from the stage dead center” and “ look for Hester, she’s waving her glow sticks for you!!” texts from Brad.  Needless to say this feat was much easier said than done in a room full of glow-laden products (sticks, bands, necklaces, etc). 

“Umm… no seriously guys, WHERE’S HESTER?!?!?”

 

Just about the time I managed to find her neon raised hand I could see she was also yelling something to the nearby throngs in a manner I can only describe as regal (she is British after all).  Then, as if straight out of a Charleton Heston film, the crowd parted in order that I could pass through. … Seriously.  As I was too stunned to think to take a picture, I have created an artists rendering  of the event:

LET HIM PASS!

 

The concert (is that what it’s called when you go see a D.J.?) began soon after and I can say it definitely wasn’t like a night at the symphony.

 

Giving a shout out to the violin section???

 

First of all, they have much more festive decorations.  Giant rubber balls anyone?

 

But come on… that’s amateur stuff.  I’ll see that and raise you a giant inflatable tube filled with confetti.

 

And if you’re gonna have confetti in a tube, why not just have it everywhere!!

 

Aw hell, let’s just throw in a toilet paper blower and call it a night.

 

 

But what good’s a party if you don’t have some interesting guests to keep you entertained.  Let’s take a look at some of our favorite personalities throughout the evening.

Early on in the evening this girl got in a fight with another girl and ended it by throwing her drink everywhere.  She stood in this one spot and cried for about 20 minutes, all the while people were just dancing all around her.  WHAT WAS HAPPENING?!?!

 

Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the emotional spectrum, these two couldn’t stop making out right in front of us.  Side note: did you know that one theory on how the design of the heart shape ( <3 ) came about is that it mimics the shape of two heads kissing?  I submit this as exhibit A.

 

DO YOU HAVE A CARD?!  CAN I USE YOUR PICTURES FOR MY BLOOOG!?!

 

And finally, my favorite personality of the whole evening:

I WILL MISS YOU!!!!!!!

 

A fantastic evening for a fantastic farewell for a fantastic friend.  FANTASTIC!!!

 

 

Artist: Girl Talk/ Album: Feed the Animals

The Party's Crashing Us

 

So let me begin by re-living the conversation I had on the phone with my mom last Saturday as I was headed home from work:

Me: “Hey, have you made it back to Crockett?”

Mom: “Oh not yet, we’re in Trinity.  We stopped off and looked at some new bedroom furniture which put us behind a bit.  You done with work?

Me: “Yeah, I think I’m just gonna have a quiet night in… no plans set up.”

 Mom: “Good! Now you just stay in and go to bed early, ya hear?”

Welllllllllll that’s at least how I intended for the evening to go. About twenty minutes after I arrived home I got a call from my friend Michele who invited me out to have celebratory drinks with her husband, Brad (who had just had his last day of law school), and their friend, Hester (who, for the remainder of the evening, Michele and I affectionately kept on referring to as “The Scarlet Letter”). 

So let me break it down for you a bit.

Calhoon’s Saloon: (which I have since discovered is actually called Cayhill’s)

I meet up with the gang at a bar, get a drink and we all start a game of pool (two thirds of the Southern Baptist wickedness trifecta if I remember my Baylor handbook correctly) and have the pleasure of being introduced to Hester, whom Brad met while doing a semester in Cambridge. For some reason she has family who live in Montgomery, Texas and so she is spending some time in our lovely city.  Midway through the game another patron comes over and puts four quarters on the table, to which Michele quickly responds: “THANK YOU!!”  Now, I thought maybe she had asked for change from the bartender and he sent it over or something, but after realizing he was just saving the next game on the table I just stood there with a perplexed look on my face and asked “who the hell are you talking to.  That’s not your money!”

While Brad and Ms. Prynne continued to play (I managed to nudge the ole 8 ball in the pocket a little too early and they pretended like I hadn’t just so they could finish the game to the music they put on the jukebox) Michele recounted a conversation she had with her boss the day before.  Apparently she told him they were going out for drinks to celebrate Brad’s semi-freedom and he incredulously interjected “What? Drinks?!… ugh that’s so typical. You’re young and in the city, you should be out crashing corporate Christmas parties at all the hotels downtown.” 

My only response was an emphatic “ummmm, why AREN’T we out crashing corporate Christmas parties at all the hotels downtown!!!!!”  So… we did.  With a mighty handful of hotels to choose from we decided on the Intercontinental cauuuuuuse, you know, it’s the Intercontinental.  That, and if it was a dud then the Hotel Derek was just a stone’s throw away.

The Intercontinental:

For future reference, the Intercontinental is the motherload of locations for corporate events. Take in mind that I don’t actually have anything to compare it to, but there were three simultaneous parties going on: 1. Exxon’s ArcticProject 2. Aramco’s tropical island themed shindig and 3. some company I don’t remember who had a mediocre poker night theme.

Exxon:

Getting in was surprisingly easy considering that we were obviously not dressed for an elegant evening out on the town.   We waltzed right in there like we owned the place without ever looking (or feeling, quite frankly) guilty. Oh, and I had paisley on as well, which I’m pretty sure is the real reason we got in.

Straight to the dance floor with a little help from the not too horrible band up on the podium.  The podium which also happened to be showing slides from said ArcticProject.  Photo’s like the following, which carried the party atmosphere when even an infectious ABBA song just couldn’t keep the people on their feet.

Quite a toe-tapper

 

Michelle and Brad, who we started calling Dorothy because of his blue gingham shirt

 

Aramco:

Not wanting to run out our not so welcome we headed over to the balmy, palmy tropical Aramco party.

 

On our way in a certain wooden box caught my eye and I had to take a picture of it… it’s from POTTERY BARN.  As I was taking the picture Michelle reached in while saying: “Screw Pottery Barn, I’m taking these for all of us!”  

Yoink!

 

 

Modeling the latest in tropical chic

 

We didn’t spend long at all inside the ballroom because A. nobody was really dancing and B. we began the evening’s first round of my new favorite game: “Umm… hey guys, where’s Hester?”  The way you play is you start to go somewhere, realize you’re down a party crasher and ask “Umm… hey guys, where’s Hester?”  It’s pretty fun, and Brad took this moment to inform us that he’s actually a champion player seeing as how he had already played, except in place of an upscale hotel his game board was the whole city of London.

Round One: Can’t see the Hester for the palm trees

 

Turns out she wasn’t too impressed with the lack of dancing and decided to check out the booths set up on the other side of the ballroom, where she made friends with a gentleman who was showing her his personalized photo flip book… which, by the way, is not a euphemism.

 

 

Corporation Unknown:

Dorothy thought we should at least check out the other party before we headed out to the Black Swan (no relation) at the Omni Hotel where we were meeting his friends later.  This one was a “poker night” theme and I got a little video of some dance action:

MICHELE, YOU KNOW THIS!!!! (As a side note: get it little middle aged biscuits! With the exception of the guy on the left who is comically uncoordinated, but he’s at least trying nonetheless!)

 

After a quick bathroom break we were off to… uh oh, looks like it’s time for “Umm… hey guys, where’s Hester?” ROUND TWO! She was fairly quickly found back in the Aramco party talking to some of the other guests.

Hester: “Now, ladies, why on earth is no one dancing?  I mean, the floor is practically barren.”

Lady: “Oh my gosh I know!!! It’s so lame out there.”

Michele: “So which company is this again? It’s getting a little hard to keep track.”

Lady: “It’s the Arammmmwwwait a minute you don’t work here?”

Michele: “Nope… just killing some time before we meet up with friends.”

Lady: “Oh what the hell, I’m gonna quit next week anyway.  Have a fabulous time!!”

But before we even had the chance to be fabulous it was time for “Umm… hey guys, where’s Hester?”: Quickfire Challenge.  I believe it was Michele who said: “You know, I bet she’s over at that flip-book booth.  I could see her eyeing them earlier and I don’t think we’re getting out of here without one of those things.”

Aaaaaaaand we didn’t:

Please forgive the hideous filming. I’m not all fancy with the video editing at the moment.

Michele and I stayed to have one made and while it was being put together we discovered we had reached (surprise) a hidden level on the “Umm… hey guys, where’s Hester?” game! Michele headed back into the tropics, I checked out the fortune teller booth to see if I could cheat a bit, and Dorothy went to check the hotel bar.

Attempting to phone a friend in the afterlife.

Turns out A was at the bar chatting with some Danish (or maybe Norwegian, I can’t remember.  Some country where they eat pickled herring) and German business men.  Before we finally got out we stopped off and had our picture taken by the Aramco photographer in front of the Christmas tree.

Photographer: “You know we’ve actually had people from the Exxon party crashing over here and getting party favors!”

Michele: “HOW DARE THEY… … … steal our idea.”

Merry Christmas!!!! Love, Michele, Joseph, Dorothy and Demi Moore circa 1995 !

As we were leaving the parking garage:

Attendant: “And the reason for your visit?”

Michele: “Ummm, the Aamco party?”

Attendant: “Okay, that’ll be $6.00.”

Now, two things you should know.  1. What Michele of course meant to say was the Aramco party, Aamco being less a petroleum company and more a transmission repair shop.  And 2. Because we were at the “Aamco” party we ended up getting a 2/3rd discount on the parking!!!

 

The Black Swan:

So then it was off to the Omni hotel, where The Black Swan nightclub is located.  Nothing much to report from our final location except that we danced until exhaustion set it.  Well, that and I’m about 93% sure I met Miss Texas 2007. 

And now, to conclude our evening, some blurry dance pics. (The man in red in the first picture we lovingly called the Mexican Billy Ray Cyrus because of an uncanny resemblance to the singer.  I kept hoping for him to break out into “Achy Breaky Corazon” but he never did.)

      

   Continuing my shoddy-photography-as-late-nineteenth-/-early-twentieth-century-paintings theme from an earlier post. 

 

Dorothy jammin’ it out

 

Plus any time we got especially heated from dancing we could just step out to the gorgeous Omni courtyard:

 

All in all it was a pretty friggin’ fantastic evening!!!!  Stay tuned for Dance Night: Law School Graduation Edition (with special guest star, Dobbie, from the Harry Potter series)

Artist: Of Montreal/ Album: The Sunlandic Twins