Ok, Theresa has been after me to post a blog for ages, and honestly, I came around a couple times and couldn't figure out how to log in (couldn't remember my password I guess) and ran out of time. So here I am and this is gonna be long-winded because a lot has been going on.
First off, and heavy on my mind right now is work - or lack thereof. I am a sub teacher, for sure, but I have not ever gone 2 whole weeks without work unless I wanted to, until this past 2 weeks. Hopefully tomorrow, I get a call - I'm ready and my bank account is screaming, afraid that it's circling the drain a little too quickly. I was also supposed to begin a NEW job tomorrow with Central Texas College - a contract with the army for Bsep classes to help soldiers increase their ASVAB scores. So, apparently the contract is in dispute going on the 2nd or 3rd time and this is lasting over a week this time...still no answers on if or when we will start. I'm in limbo and not sure what to do since I have actually 2 planned sub days for the school system lined up, but they could call me for Bsep classes any day. Wish me luck there!
Aside from lacking important fundage, I had a BLAST on my trip to Nashville with my gf Silvia this past week! I had won tickets to the CMA (Country Music Association) Awards for Nov. 11th (Wed) and it included lots of stuff - plane tickets (which I didn't need cuz it's a 2.5 hour drive), 2 nights in the great Renaissance Hotel, right downtown, some country music-related events, and a gift bag (which I really hoped included an ipod, but it didn't, and I was disappointed - still...receieved a couple t-shirts, 5 cd's, a flashlight?, some hand sanitizer (no, really), and some cute guitar pick earrings. So, this was a grand prize and I won it on the internet (for all you doubters who don't think people really win those random sweepstakes things). 
We attended all the events, which included backstage tour of the CMA awards where we saw Daughtry and Vince Gill practice their AMAZING song, and saw the goings on of how things were run behind the scenes. Then, there was a private concert at the Country Music Hall of Fame by Kellie Pickler (from American Idol). She's a lovely girl with a pottie-mouth, who is quite ADD and ditzy (not unlike me in front of an audience!)...and very personable, sweet, and also mucho talented! It was a pleasure to almost meet her and see that she has a tattoo on her right foot in the same place as me. lol. So, after our private show (maybe like 100 people there, and us in the front row), we caught our little shuttle to the Limelight, where we saw the CMA Writer's series show with 5 song writers who played their own songs - they were awesome, and I even knew many of the songs too! Loved a few of them - am I becoming a Country Music Fan? Hmm... Anyway, during this show, we ordered a couple drinks and the best damned chicken quesadilla I've seriously ever had (if you have a chance, check it out, seriously!) and enjoyed sitting with the two little college girls from FL who we met because they were winners too. But our waitress never showed up and after hunting her down and telling her we were looking for her (wanted more drinks, of course!) she still didn't come back. So 10:30 came and we were tired of sitting, so we left. No, the place was packed and we did not hunt her down to pay for our stuff...it was just a madhouse and we were ready to move on! Should I feel guilty? Well, we had gotten a couple more drinks at the bar, so our judgement was not exactly in that best place, and well, sh*t happens. Afterwards, we met up with our friend Anne, who is really Silvia's friend mostly, but I've hung with her before too. She came down to go out with us and boy did we have fun! It was a blast - drinking, dancing, singing with all the bands as we went in and out of the bars on Broadway! Loved it. Then Anne's purse was stolen as she danced close by and had not been paying attention long enough for it to be swiped. The rest of the time was spent nursing my feet while they looked for the purse or someone who could help. Basically I hobbled back to the hotel room with them, as my feet were really killing me by this time! (New boots!) I slept hard, Anne prayed, and then she was up and out the door at 7:30am to look for her purse. Luckily she had her work phone in the room because, seriously, all her other belongings to include keys, personal phone, credit cards, id, etc - were alllll in the purse! (No, don't ask me why). By the luck of the saints, she actually received a phone call a couple hours later saying someone had found her purse and ALL its contents on the street and had turned it in to the Hilton at the front desk! Now, that is Southern Hospitality...it's just weird that someone took it and threw it down without even taking the cash in the first place! Anyway, Wednesday, we nursed our heads and made our way to Demo's for lunch (a lady the night before at the Limelight had told us to try it). It's on Church and 3rd I believe, and it is a GREAT place! Good hometyle cooking and low prices - very friendly staff! We had our first MEAL of the trip! We shopped up and down Broadway, and loved every minute of it (well, I did - they waited outside a couple stores for me...lol). Then it was time to head back to eat our lunch leftovers out the boxes while we prepared for the big events!
We attended all the events, which included backstage tour of the CMA awards where we saw Daughtry and Vince Gill practice their AMAZING song, and saw the goings on of how things were run behind the scenes. Then, there was a private concert at the Country Music Hall of Fame by Kellie Pickler (from American Idol). She's a lovely girl with a pottie-mouth, who is quite ADD and ditzy (not unlike me in front of an audience!)...and very personable, sweet, and also mucho talented! It was a pleasure to almost meet her and see that she has a tattoo on her right foot in the same place as me. lol. So, after our private show (maybe like 100 people there, and us in the front row), we caught our little shuttle to the Limelight, where we saw the CMA Writer's series show with 5 song writers who played their own songs - they were awesome, and I even knew many of the songs too! Loved a few of them - am I becoming a Country Music Fan? Hmm... Anyway, during this show, we ordered a couple drinks and the best damned chicken quesadilla I've seriously ever had (if you have a chance, check it out, seriously!) and enjoyed sitting with the two little college girls from FL who we met because they were winners too. But our waitress never showed up and after hunting her down and telling her we were looking for her (wanted more drinks, of course!) she still didn't come back. So 10:30 came and we were tired of sitting, so we left. No, the place was packed and we did not hunt her down to pay for our stuff...it was just a madhouse and we were ready to move on! Should I feel guilty? Well, we had gotten a couple more drinks at the bar, so our judgement was not exactly in that best place, and well, sh*t happens. Afterwards, we met up with our friend Anne, who is really Silvia's friend mostly, but I've hung with her before too. She came down to go out with us and boy did we have fun! It was a blast - drinking, dancing, singing with all the bands as we went in and out of the bars on Broadway! Loved it. Then Anne's purse was stolen as she danced close by and had not been paying attention long enough for it to be swiped. The rest of the time was spent nursing my feet while they looked for the purse or someone who could help. Basically I hobbled back to the hotel room with them, as my feet were really killing me by this time! (New boots!) I slept hard, Anne prayed, and then she was up and out the door at 7:30am to look for her purse. Luckily she had her work phone in the room because, seriously, all her other belongings to include keys, personal phone, credit cards, id, etc - were alllll in the purse! (No, don't ask me why). By the luck of the saints, she actually received a phone call a couple hours later saying someone had found her purse and ALL its contents on the street and had turned it in to the Hilton at the front desk! Now, that is Southern Hospitality...it's just weird that someone took it and threw it down without even taking the cash in the first place! Anyway, Wednesday, we nursed our heads and made our way to Demo's for lunch (a lady the night before at the Limelight had told us to try it). It's on Church and 3rd I believe, and it is a GREAT place! Good hometyle cooking and low prices - very friendly staff! We had our first MEAL of the trip! We shopped up and down Broadway, and loved every minute of it (well, I did - they waited outside a couple stores for me...lol). Then it was time to head back to eat our lunch leftovers out the boxes while we prepared for the big events!The CMA awards were on t.v. so I have nothing special to say other than we went through a box of tissues for the nosebleeds! The coolest parts for me was seeing Taylor swift do a song at our end of the auditorium, and to hear the song by Daughtry and Vince Gill that we had seen during the rehearsal. Afterwards, we followed the crowd to the much talked-about "after-party" where we were told we'd hob-knob with the stars and all that.
This party was a bunch of well-to-do stiffs, honestly. The food was fantastic - shrimp the size of my fist, smoked salmon, and too many other things to list - fav food was the goat cheese spread on cracker with fig...yum. The bar was open, and my feet were throbbing with the same boots from the night before, so I drank for medicinal purposes. After like 4 vodka with tonic and a splash of cranberry's, I was not so mad at the party-poopers and lack of stars, so we made the most of it, dancing to songs we knew, mingling with other trip winners we recognized, and grazing. Most people had left after about an hour and we kept waiting to see if "anyone special" would show up. But no. So, finally, we left, heading back to get Anne to go out again, and she passed us somwehere, on the way back to the room while we were on our way to Tootsie's again. One drink later, we decided to call it quits and so ended our second night in Nashville...boots off on the walk home this time! The next day, Anne went off to work and Silvia and I went to the Grand Ole Opry - took a few pics, and headed into my new favorite mall! I was kiosked to death, and loved every minute of it. I can now do fun things with your nails - just like the salons, without all the fuss and cost of a salon visit, by the way. :D Driving home, I realized just how exhausted I really was, and I h0ped I remembered to thank Silvia for driving!
Well, I think that even if I have other stuff to share at this time, I will stop here. Don't thank me - just come back another time when I have other stories. LOL. And thanks Theresa, for giving me the push to blog again. I will try to come back at least once a week!
