Nashville ya'll

I’ve really been terrible about blogging about events. And writing about Nashville has been on my to-do list for almost two months now and I just haven’t gotten around to it. But a new year is a great time to start fresh and I do want to write about this trip while I can still remember the details.

About a year ago, my parents talked about wanting to go to Nashville, which was weird because all three of us are never interested in going to the same place. We decided that would be my parental present for my 33^rd birthday. 

The only issue was getting to Nashville. After lots of Xanax, a shot and nearly breaking my dad’s fingers from squeezing his hand too tight, we made it to Nashville.

We did a lot of touristy things, including visiting the Johnny Cash museum where I wanted to sob because I never got the chance to see Johnny live. The highlights of the trip were definitely a trip to the Grand Ole Opry and our Nashville TV show tour.

First, the Grand Ole Opry. They perform in the famed Ryman Auditorium during the winter months. We had amazing seats, third row (Thanks, Mom!) The host for the evening was Ricky Skaggs, who I probably wouldn’t recognize if I ran into on the street, but was fabulous none the less. The environment of the old-school radio show was great and so fun to participate in. The final performer of the evening was Vince Gill, another childhood favorite of mine, who sounded better than ever.

The next day, Dad watched NASCAR while Mom and I went on a tour of the Nashville TV show sets. We went to all the places that are famous from the show, like the Bluebird Café where Garth Brooks signed his first record contract in the kitchen. We got to see places where they film, scope out the apartment building where Hayden Panettiere lives and even see Deacon’s house.

The best part of the tour, though, was getting to return to the Ryman. That place is completely different in the daylight. The way the sun comes in through the windows is absolutely magical. We got to grab guitars and stand on the original stage, where everyone from Johnny to Garth has stood. It was a special moment and my favorite of the trip. 

When we got back to Raleigh, my dad told me he would remember this trip for the rest of his life. That makes two of us.

Touching Brad Paisley

Well, I restarted the blog in July and already missed posting about an event, an Aerosmith concert in Atlanta. My friend Brad posted about that here, so I will just refer everyone to his blog for that since I was too lazy to write about that.

What I am not too lazy to write about, however, is touching Brad Paisley. So, I attend a lot of Brad Paisley concerts. And I''ve written about Brad Paisley a lot on this blog before.

Why I Heart Brad Paisley
This is Country Music
Back to Brad

But this past Friday night was the first time I got to actually touch Brad Paisley! Mom and I went to see Brad at PNC Amphitheater here in Charlotte as her birthday present. I think this was the ninth time I've seen Brad. I need to double check my ticket stubs to be certain about that.

We had pretty great seats, which Mom had to throw some people out of, but we definitely weren't within touching range.

About halfway through the show, Brad grabbed his guitar and said, "Let's go!" and hopped off the stage and started walking through the audience. I realized very quickly that he was coming to sing at a smaller stage at the end of my row. He was also going to be walking right by me! 

I am not quite sure what came over me. It was sort of like when my friend Micah and I chased down Cam Newton.  I started running, pushing tweens and cougars alike aside. As Brad and couple of security guards walked by me, I was able to reach out and touch him. The sweat was dripping through his tight t-shirt. He hopped up onto the small stage where he and a few band members sang a few songs right in front of me. He took a concert with 70,000 people and made it feel like an intimate experience where there were only 10 people in the whole world. It was something that I hope I never forget.

Everything else about the show was typical Brad Paisley. He performed a few of his newer songs. My favorite song of his latest CD is Perfect Storm. But his best stuff continues to be older, Then, Everything, Waiting on a Woman. I have a feeling Brad I will see each other next summer. 

Bringing Sexy (and blogging) Back

So, more than a year ago I wrote a blog about how I was back. I haven't updated my blog since then.  Since I started this blog in 2011, I have managed to attend a live event every month, even if I have been too lazy to blog about it. The only problem with not blogging about these events is that I easily forget what I attended and when and memories start to fade.

So, without further adieu, I decided there's no better subject to restart my blog with than Justin Timberlake. First, a few words about Katherine. Kat has been one of my closest friends since we were 14 years old. She's the type of person that will take on almost any adventure I can come up with. When we realized last year that Justin Timberlake wouldn't be touring anywhere near either one of our cities, we made a snap decision to go on StubHub and purchase some really insanely-priced nosebleed tickets to see Justin and Jay-Z at Yankee Stadium. We made plans to stay with some of her friends in Jersey (thanks, Leonards!) and hit the road. We had an amazing day in NYC that ended with a concert that was more of an experience than a show. While I love Justin in a way that is probably unhealthy, being able to see Jay-Z in his hometown was a once in a lifetime experience. I also got to experience the joys of the NYC subway system in mid-July. When I hit the shower at 2 a.m. after 14 hours in the city, the dirt and grime came off of me in puddles.

Now here we are, almost a year later. Justin is still touring, a clear sign to me that his marriage is in trouble and it's only a matter of time until we are together forever. This time, our drive was only 20 minutes to the Hornets arena. We were joined by my friends Becca (who also is a little unhealthily obsessed with Justin) and Brittany. Here we are before the show started. (Side note: Kat recently got a Shailene-Woodley-eqsue haircut that looks amazing!)

Justin had no opening act because he doesn't need one. For almost three hours, he danced and sang his heart out. There was a brief 10 minute intermission, which I think Justin took just to get cleaned up because he was sweating like me on the subway in July. The stage setup was pretty simple, with plenty of room for Justin to dance around. His band, The Tennessee Kids, seems to have even more members than the Roots. One of their members, Max, is a Charlotte native and he received a warm reception from the audience. There was a great mix of old songs and new. There were a few of his older hits that we didn't get to hear in NYC, including Summer Love (very appropriate!) and Until the End of Time. There were a few times that Justin sat down at the piano or grabbed his guitar, but for the most part he was constantly dancing. Kat and I loved the fact that he was wearing white tennis shoes, making it easier for us to watch his feet move at a seemingly impossible pace.

Hands down, my absolute favorite moment of the evening started when Justin and some of his dancers stepped onto a catwalk that suddenly came apart from the stage and started to move. The catwalk slowly made its way further into the audience, going higher and higher. The audience squealed as Justin got closer and closer, making sure every section felt like they were included. Once the catwalk stopped, he hopped off onto a separate stage in the center of the arena. It felt like a completely different, more intimate concert. He did some Michael Jackson cover songs and then grabbed himself a shot of Justin Timberlake 901 tequila and proposed a toast, which could be best be described as a tribute to Charlotte, his dedicated fans and Southern women. "There's nothing better than a woman from the South," he declared. (I'd like to take this moment to point out that Jessica Biel is from Minnesota and that JT was not wearing a wedding ring.)

Then he picked up his guitar and talked about how much Elvis' music means to him. And then he played Heartbreak Hotel and I could feel my heart breaking into a million pieces. It was my favorite thing that Justin Timberlake has ever done.


Early in the show, Justin thanked us all for being fans for so long and joked about how we'd all grown up together. Everyone laughed, but it's very true. Since the days of the Mickey Mouse Club, Justin's been one of my favorite parts of pop culture. I think he's managed to do something that many child celebrities seem to struggle with, become a successful adult without alienating his fan base.

 According to my FitBit, we had over 70 active minutes that night, which can all be attributed to awkward white girl dancing. When Justin and his band brought down the house with a cover of Bell Biv DeVoe's Posion, our sweat barriers just broke and we gave up any attemps to not be disgusting. Before the encore, Kat and I jokingly stretched because we knew Sexy Back was yet to come and we'd need to be ready to dance. Towards the end of the song, Justin shouted out, "I still run this bitch!" Yes, yes, he does, and I look forward to dancing with Kat and JT when we are 42. We still plan on running this bitch.

Randi's back....back again...Randi's back...tell a friend

Well, it's been almost a year since I've blogged and I must say I've missed it! And I hope that some of you have missed me too! But, thanks to some inspiration from my friend Phillip's blog , Randi Resolves is back!

2013 has brought many adventures for me so far. I'll include some little micro-blogs about some of these events here and I have many events coming up this spring and summer that will definitely deserve a blog. 

For those new Randi Resolves readers, here are some posts that might interest you.

• How this resolution got started
• How my big mouth ruined my life
• Seeing Darius Rucker and Brad Paisley in concert for the first time
• A resolution in review

On to the new stuff! Here's a quick rundown of some of the stuff I've done so far in 2013.

Sister Act: The Musical

I won these tickets in the most unusual way. In August, I started my new job uptown and the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center's Facebook page said there were tickets available for the first four people to meet their representatives at the corner of Trade and Tryon and say the word "rejoice." I was the second person at that earned me two orchestra seats! So, on January 8, Alisa and I went to enjoy the seats. The show was amazing. It was much funnier than I thought it would be and the score was one of the best I've heard. It was filled with toe-tapping songs and the choreography was excellent. We had a great time.

Swimming with the Dolphins

In February, I went back to the Bahamas! And I got to return to the Uniexo Dolphin Experience, where I first visited in 2011. I was so excited to be back and Patrick, my favorite dolphin trainer, remembered me. This time, I splurged on the Swimming with Dolphins program. Two dolphin trainers and two dolphins were matched up with 10 swimmers. We each took turns, two at a time, getting to jump into the water (which was very cold) and got to swim one-on-one with a dolphin for about 30 minutes. My dolphin was Kayla, who turned out to be pregnant-and famous! Kayla is the dolphin from the Disney movie Zeus and Roxanne.

All I had to do was put one hand on Kayla and she would follow me everywhere I went. At one point, the flippers I was wearing were starting to come off. Patrick told me that if I stopped to put on the flippers, Kayla would stay with me. "She knows you're handicapped without those things!"

I was hesitant to stop swimming, but my dolphin did stay with me! And then I got to swim underwater with her where she talked to me. This was a truly once-in-a lifetime experience. After our individual swims, we got to teach the dolphins tricks using hand signals. Then the dolphins and trainers did a show to demonstrate their skills and training. I am so lucky that I got to go to this amazing place, not once, but twice.

Wicked: The Musical

In March, Mom came to Charlotte to cash in her Christmas gift from me, tickets to Wicked the Musical. Wicked is probably my favorite musical. Wicked is truly a love story about two friends who could not possibly be more different. Though they hurt each other, they manage to overcome it all to remain friends. The music, set and story are wonderful. I think this was my fourth time seeing Wicked and I hope to go again soon!






D.L. Hughley, The Comedy Zone

At the end of March, I returned to an old resolution stomping ground, the Comedy Zone at the N.C. Music Factory. The Music Factory is one of my favorite places in this city, so just being there made me happy. Frank, Alisa and I bought tickets to see D.L. Hughley. I knew from TV specials that he was funny and I also thought it would be fun to see someone in the middle of the Dancing with the Stars process. D.L. has not been getting great scores on the show and isn't necessarily the best dancer, but he tries really hard and for that reason alone, I've been voting for him. I feel like the judges are unnecessarily mean to him and I am usually a fan of the underdog.

D.L. showed up dressed, as usual, to the nines. He was hilarious. Drinking some sort of dark liquor, he couldn't help but crack himself up as he told some of this jokes. He had great interaction with the audience. He focused on a lot of political stuff and made us all laugh at ourselves. It was a great time.

Afterwards, we went down to VGBG where we played Jenga and had great beer. I love that place and hope my resolution gets me back there very soon.

So, that's what's been going on in the world of Randi's Resolutions. Next up is a Charlotte Knights game next Saturday. Thanks to those of you that read my blog and have encouraged me to keep writing. I hope to do just that!

Bring it On brought it

At the beginning of this year, I decided to change my New Year’s resolution to taking a class every month and attending live events every other month. Well, guess what? I didn’t like it! So, I am going back to my 2011 resolution, because that is what makes me happy! I am going to try to attend an event each month, but at the very least every other month.

Anyway, for the month of April, I returned to the theater! My friend Cheryl and I went to Blumenthal Theater to see Bring It On the Musical.

For those of you that aren’t initiated into the wonderful world of cheerleading movies, Bring It On was a movie starring Kirsten Dunst and Gabrielle Union in the early 2000s as rival cheerleaders. A sequel came out later and apparently there have been 9 Bring it On Movies since then, most of them straight to DVD.

Anyway, on Friday the 13, my dear friend Cheryl and I headed to uptown Charlotte for the show. And what a show it was. I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. When the lights went down, a high school gymnasium style Jumbotron counted down the last few minutes until the show began. You could feel the anticipation in the theater.

I don’t think I have ever ooed, ahhed and gasped as much in my entire life as I did for those few hours during the musical. The show was breathtaking. The dancing, cheers and stunts were out-of-this world amazing. The play’s story takes pieces from each of the Bring it On Movies to create two new main characters: Campbell and Danielle. Rich white girl is captain of the cheerleading squad at rich Truman High School. She thinks her life is over when she is transferred her senior year due to redistricting to urban Jackson High School. She struggles to fit in with the Jackson High dance crew. The musical adds its own characters and a 2011 touch. There certainly wasn’t Facebook and Skype chats in Kirsten Dunst’s day! The movie was not only about cheerleading but about loyalty, ethics, acceptance and most importantly friendship.

The soundtrack for this show is being released next week and I can’t wait to download my favorite song from the show, “Cross the line.”

When Ran met Cam

As anyone who knows me personally certainly knows by now, I met Panthers quarterback Cam Newton on Friday, April 13. I wanted to write about this experience while it is still freshly in my mind so I can remember all the details as time goes by while sharing it on my blog for those that are interested.

First, let me say that my love for the Panthers knows no bounds. Even in the final Jake years, I stayed faithful. I've endured taunts for the flag that's up at my desk at work or the Panther on the back of my car. It takes a lot of strength to be a Panthers fan.

So, naturally, I was excited the Panthers grabbed Number 1 draft pick Cam Newton in an attempt to rebuild the team's offense. I was lucky enough to attend Cam's first NFL game last August and I even blogged about that experience. A few minutes in, Clausen was already being booed for his poor performance and the crowd started chanting, "Cam, Cam, Cam!" It was pretty awesome to be there as he took the QB position as a player in the NFL for the first time. And I saw some amazing things. And even though the season didn't go as well as all faithful Panthers fans hoped, there were some amazing moments. We might not have earned a lot of Ws, but the games were fun to watch again.

Of course, I was disappointed with the losses, but what really struck me about Cam Newton is that he seemed disappointed too. Of course, all football players want to win, but most of them lose a game, shake their heads, then smile for the cameras. Not Cam. Cam Newton is a man that is not used to losing. Cam got mad. Cam got frustrated. He was the first quarterback who seemed as frustrated as I was. That, combined with his repeatedly outstanding performances, earned my respect.

So, on Friday, my co-worker and friend Micah and I were sitting on the patio at the Salsa's restaurant in Arsley, having some Mexican food and talking about football. "Did you hear that Cam is a finalist to be on the cover of the new Madden?" Micah asked. I nodded. "You know about the Madden curse, right?" she asked.

Of course, I do. But I don't really believe in curses either. Apparently, Cam doesn't either. Anyway, just minutes after our football discussion, we saw two waitresses come running out of the restaurant with a cell phone, heading towards the parking deck at top speed. "What the hell?" Micah asked.

"Probably a customer left their cell phone and they are trying to catch up with him," I said, unfazed.

Micah, though, ever observant, followed the ladies with her eyes. She said the first thing she noticed were two INCREDIBLY large men. As they turned around to address the waitresses, Micah gasped. "OH MY GOD, RANDI. THAT'S CAM NEWTON!"

I did not even turn around to verify. I just grabbed my phone out of my purse, yelled at Micah to grab a pen and paper as I had none and took off running. We left our purses, our food, everything at our seats and started running across cobblestone. My purple heels were making my trek across the cobblestone difficult so I shouted out to flat-wearing Micah ahead of me, "Grab him! It's up to you!"

Later, Micah would describe herself as shouting at Cam like she "went to high school with him." As she got into the parking deck, she was temporarily out of my sight, but I could hear her yelling, "Cam! Cam! Cam!"

As I came around the corner, trying to catch my breath, I realized the other man with Cam was Panthers offensive tackle Jordan Gross, who had an amused look on his face. I am sure that hanging out with Cam is always quite an experience.

"Hi, there," Micah said, breathless. "I am sorry to bother you. Would you guys take a picture with us?"

"Absolutely not," said Cam.

Micah and I looked at each other, not sure of what to do. "Oh, OK," we both said nervously. "Thanks anyway."

Cam laughed. "Girls, I am just kidding. Get over here!"

After an awkward moment of finding a stranger's car for Cam to place his leftovers, we took a couple of photos. Of course, the quality wasn't great in a dark parking deck with a camera phone operated by two shaking girls, but having the opportunity to meet him and have my photo taken was a priceless experience.

Reliving the moment over and over afterwards, I asked Micah what she would have done if I had in fact fallen on the cobblestone as I feared. "No offense, Ran, but I would've grabbed your phone and kept going."

I nodded agreeably. "Good answer."

It's true: This white girl can't dance

Do you have fond memories of hula hooping as a child? Letting the hoop go round and round your waist, over and over again?

Yeah, I don’t. My only memories of hula-hooping involve me desperately trying to find some kind of rhythm and constantly bending down to pick up the hula-hoop.

With all those fond hula-hooping memories, it only makes sense that my friend Alisa and I would take a dance class that involved a lot of hula-hooping! A few weeks ago, we purchased a Living Social deal for a dance studio right around the corner from house, bRisque. It was a great deal with $19 getting us five classes. We figured we’d try it out some different classes and see what we liked.

We chose a class that our friend Jean had described as low impact. Did Jean warn us that we were about to assault ourselves with hula-hoops? Hell to the no!

So, we walked into class and were warmly greeted by our instructor Issis and the other classmates. We quickly grabbed a spot in the back of the class. As we’ve previously discussed on this blog, I am rhythmically challenged in ways that can’t even be described through the written word. Issis rolled out these weighted hula-hoops nonchalantly.

Alisa looked at me with what can only be described as panic. “I can’t hula-hoop,” she whispered.

And I had to laugh. Because the way she said it indicated that she though maybe I had some hidden hula-hooping skills I was about to bust out. “Me neither, “ I assured her.

“Alright,” said Issis. “If you’ve never used a weighted hula-hoop before, I must warn you. It is going to hurt. These little ridges here will hit your abs and it hurts.”

Awesome.

Fellow white people, I have to admit that Alisa and I managed to fulfill every white person stereotype as we rocked and swayed and flopped around, trying to keep our hula-hoops up. Did I mention we were the only two white people in the class? Everyone else swished their hips as the hula-hoops rolled effortlessly around their waists.

After a good five minutes of hula hoop assault, we moved on to the dancing portion. Again, we tried our best but failed to match the instructor’s smooth moves. However, each time I looked at us in the mirror, Alisa and I were laughing hysterically. I don’t think I have ever enjoyed a workout so much.

We went back to the hula-hoops. As I was concentrating on getting my hula-hoop going, I heard Alisa yelling, “Holy crap! Holy crap! Holy crap!” She had a good 45 seconds of constant hula-hoop motion going. That’s the best two rhythmically challenged girls could ask for.

We stayed after class to talk to Issis about some of the other classes and what they entail. She was so nice and kind. We told her we have no rhythm and she kindly explained that society has a lot of stereotypes of what certain people can do and that it’s important to ignore that and find our own rhythm. I think that was the nicest way to say white girls can’t dance!

While we aren’t going to be entering hula-hooping contests anytime soon, Alisa and I had a great time. The bRisque environment is very welcoming. Even one of my fellow classmates came over to try to help me. I am sure we looked like absolute idiots, but certainly no one made us feel that way. I can’t wait to go back and try some other classes.

As far as my February beer sampling goes, I went no further than my own fridge to try a new beer this month. My friend Michelle brought me a sampling of different beers from Trader Joe’s for the Super Bowl and I had a few left over. This month’s selection was a Stockyard Oatmeal Stout. What does an Oatmeal Beer taste like? It was sort of a roasted malt and oatmeal flavor. It was also a little bitter, but a good bitter. More of a dark chocolate bitter. It was delicious. Thanks, Michelle!