Portland, OR 1/28/2008

First I'm going to spill the beans. I'm writing this from my home in Salt Lake City because Lydia and I decided that it would be the best idea for us to both fly home early instead of sticking it out until the tour comes through SLC (Feb 01). We were both just getting way too sick and, after one terrible sleep-less night, I made the decision- weary of possible future nights like this and the severe effects it might have on my oh so unsteady blood sugar related health problems. I later found out that our decision was a reallly smart one and I'm absolutely glad that I made it.

In my last post I explained that, instead of staying in San Fransisco, we decided to
start the treck toward Portland. The trip was supposed to take us around 10 hours and, we figured, between the 7 of us we would be able to drive all night and make it without a problem. I started the night driving because we were planning on staying at a friends house so the boys all celebrated Chris's 21st birthday. Lydia and I being the only two who didn't drink that night made me the pre-determined driver by default because Lydia was sick. This was fine and nobody was drunk or anything- after-all we were planning on only driving the mile or so to our friend's house. When we all made the decision that it would be safer to just start our treck north to Portland it was also me, by default, that would be the first to drive and that was just dandy by me. I love driving and, since I had sold my car in November, haven't had much time to drive at all in the past few months so I gladly took the wheel. Everything was great for the first 5 or so hours and Chris sat up front with me as my wingman while everybody slept. I love Chris and I enjoyed our conversation during those hours.

Things started to get a little shaky when, on the road, we were stopped and told that we would need chains for our tires to continue through Northern California. We were caught slightly off guard by this request so we had to turn the whole rig around and go to a walmart a few stops down. There we bought chains for the drive tires and what-not and then continued on our way. Chris took over the driving and Mattie as his wing-man while I sat in the back and tried to get some shut eye.

Sure enough, when we got to the out-post where everyone was stopping because of this required chain-thing, we found out that we were mis-informed and that, instead of putting chains only on the driving tires of the van, we would need chains on every single tire in our rig INCLUDING the trailer. Not having these and not wanting to go alll of the way back to the walmart, we decided to stop in that little mountain town to make a bathroom break and, hopefully buy the extra chains we needed at the gas station there.

When we stopped it turned out that the gas station wouldn't even be open officially for another hour. Good thing the bathrooms were outside because I really had to go. It was cold, we were all uncertain of what was ahead when it came to ice and cold, and everybody was exhausted, so we decided that the best thing to do would be to sleep until sunrise. This, however, turned out to be quite impossible for me for whatever reason- partially because there was little room in the van for sleep, partially because I had an energy drink of some sort not too long before, partially because I was freezing and didn't have a pillow or a blanket because I wasn't planning on sleeping in the car, and partially because I was already exhausted, hungry, and my blood sugar was going crazy.

After a ridiculously long night of me not sleeping but my brain starting to freak out because of this hypoglycemia problem, getting started again at sunrise after spending like 30 minutes figuring out the chains and then driving for .10 miles only to realize that they weren't required when the sun was up, and having like a mini mental freak out due to blood sugar and exhaustion, I made the decision to call someone up to buy me a plane ticket home from Portland (assuming we ever make it). It was a terribly long day of driving and trying my best to rest and stay calm while boys from Georgia (with next to no snow experience) navigated the icy and snowy mountain roads of Northern California and Oregon before we actually made it to Portland that evening. I think it took us around 17 hours in total of actual driving time to make it from San Fransisco to Portland. Oi.

Once we got there we hooked up with an old friend of the band's from Georgia. After everybody got settled, Mattie drove Lydia and I to where we were staying that night. We decided to stay with my old friend Rudy and his room mate and now awesome friend Michael in Portland instead of staying with the boys.
Michael and Rudy
Part of this decision was because I knew that it would be a good idea to stay someplace quiet where we could get some much needed rest although it was also in part because I promised Rudy that I'd stop by if I was ever in Portland. Here we were. What a good decision. Michael and Rudy was awesome to Lydia and I and made us feel comfortable with their warm hospitality. THANKS GUYS!
The Hiku board at their house. Mine is the first outsider's hiku! It reads:
We're here last minute
There's nothing like a rescue
The flat bed couch rules.
The next morning Rudy drove us to the airport and off we were on a direct flight (thank GOD) to SLC. My lovely boyfriend picked us up with flowers for both of us! The rest is history.

Although I backdated this entry to appear on the date I would have LIKEd to post it, I am actually writing this on February 4th. just short of a week from my flight. I have been sick and in bed for most of that week and am not FINALLY feeling good enough to venture out into the cold on my bicycle and look for jobs.

When I got home I found out that the job I was looking forward to coming home to is still so slow and has no accounts for us artists to work on. This means that all of the employees are out of work and we all need to probably find new jobs either indefinably or until they get enough work for us that we can come back. Who knows what will happen. All I know is that I need another job again and soon so I can pay bills for March. All of your prayers are greatly appreciated ;)

Chase and me on tour!
So, wait- Why was it such a good decision to come home early? As it turns out, the band got stuck in Portland and ended up missing a FEW shows. This delay put them about 24 hours behind in driving and they had to make, in their own words, "the most epic drive of our band's history" from about Portland to Denver and possibly further without much sleep and rest. They told me later that they are glad that we got to come home and that it would have been a terribly difficult drive for us two sick kids. What a blessing that we were able to be warm and at home while we were beating this illness instead of on AGAGAG's most epic drive ever. haha. I love those guys.

Oh what a life this is! Honestly I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm blessed to have a supportive family and an absolutely incredible and loving boyfriend who is always right at my side through thick and thin.

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

San Fransisco, CA- 01/27/08

We made it to San Fran! I can't believe Lydia or I haven't died yet. (JUST KIDDING). Alcatraz!

Although Lydia is still really sick. She is a trooper and is pulling through pretty well. I still have a tough cough but, other than that and the fact that I realllly need a shower, I'm doing dandy. We drove the few hours it was from Sacramento to San Fransisco and go to Slims, the venue, a little early. Sadly, they didn't have a shower room or anything like that for the bands touring through so, instead of a full shower, I washed my hair in one of the band's private bathrooms sink style. The chill rooms for the bands at Slims were actually pretty nice. All of the bands got their own rooms far away from the crazy crowd. Most venues have rooms like this. These types of band-only chill-out rooms are commonly referred to as the "Green Room" or Green Rooms. When a venue has a nice Green Room then the venue is a nice venue.
To the left is a pic of Lydia at Slims feeling a tad bit better. Better enough to come in, sit down, and use the computer for a bit. While she was online I decided to walk around a little bit. I went by a few of your typical city blocks only to find out that I was a little out of the way from where I would rather be DOWNTOWN. It's chill though and I had a nice 30 min walk.


Yes, I agree, SanFransisco is weird.

So I'm all walking around SanFran and am finally getting a chance to talk on the phone with Tyler without tons of people around... FINALLY... when lo and behold. You would not believe what I walked by. Right there, on this off-broadway and out of the way street and block is, probably, the only thing that I know of San Fransisco: The Chrome Bag store and factory. Yes, folks and fellow cyclists, of all the places I get dumped out onto in San Fransisco I just happen to get dumped right down the street from the Chrome shop and walk right by it. haha. I don't even have a Chrome bag but I just thought it was hilarious that this was the only place I was at and the only thing I really saw of SanFran. Fixed Gear kids, eat your hearts out.

For those of you who don't know what Chrome is... A Chrome bag is like the trendiest bag of choice for cyclists around the United States and often the bag of choice for those most privileged cyclists who ride as bike messengers and bike couriers for a living. Nike is to basketball as Chrome is to cycling. Urban Outfitters is to indie-pop kids as Chrome is to fixed gear culture. It was hilarious. I'm so glad to have walked by that place.

The show was pretty cool. Again, I really liked this venue and had a good time at it. Although I wasn't technically allowed to film, I got away with it anyway and got some awesome shots of the AGAGAG show.

An old friend of AGAGAG named Frank who used to be in a band called Showbread (from Savannah just like AGAGAG) for a short while lives in SanFran and came out to hang out with us for a little. He offered us his house to stay in and we greatfully took him up on it. After the show, and Chris's(AGAGAG's bass player) 21st birthday celebration, we headed over to Frank's house. Frank lives like right smack dab in the middle of SanFran and, after looking for a safe place to park the van and the trailer we all decided that no such safe place exists at ALL anywhere near where Frank lives.

Our most logical option at that point was to try to get a few hours of driving in toward Portland where we would be staying for the next few days. Portland is a bit of a hike from SanFran so I decided to take the wheel and let everybody rest up for a long night's haul. We figured we could take it slow since we had the next night off before having to play in Seattle which is only a few hours from Portland. We had a few contacts in Portland to stay with so without further adoo, we took off.

All I have to say is that we absolutly should have just risked parking the van on the crime-ridden streets and stayed with Frank that night. I'll explain why in my next post.

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

Sacramento, CA- 01/26/08

Seriously, for as lame as Palmdale was, Sacramento was awesome. I was still feeling really sick but, believe it
or not, you can really get better quick when the girl who had been picking up your slack when YOU were really sick gets... really sick. So Lydia had a fever today and so I had to pick up the slack. About 10 Day-time cold pills, 4 cups of mint tea, 7 cold-eeze zinc cough drops and 2 boxes of tissues later, I was running merch and selling out the best night of the tour so far! The shows were awesome, I got some video work done, and I made a few, as Tyler Durdan would say in Fight Club, single serving friends. I actually had a great time and really loved the venue. Everything about the night ruled except for the fact that I was worried about Lydia. She has it bad now. Thank God I'm getting a little better and we can trade off so she can sleep.
Oi Oi Oi.

This is Chase chillin with me behind the merch after the show. I love this kid.

I'm totally excited about going to San Fransisco tomorrow! I don't think the venue is downtown-downtown BUT it's not in a suburb that's for sure. I'm excited and I hope I feel good. We stayed in Sacramento tonight with a band we are on tour with called Dance Gavin Dance. They are moderately nice people but the house they let us stay in is the pits. They don't pay for heat so it is freezing and there isn't any toilet paper. We bought some for them so the girls could use the facilities but you can kiss taking a shower goodbye. It's FREEZING and cold in there. No hot water or anything. Lydia and I slept in the car instead of on their cold floor. I hope Lydia feels better. She has a fever and is sleeping in the van (which isn't really that bad at all. It stays warm and stuff but I'm sure she'd feel much more comfortable in a nice warm bed with adequate bathrooms, etc.) Tomorrow should be better... At least we are in a nice neighborhood.

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

Palmdale, California- 01/25/2008

No offense to Palmdale but it was the worst experience ever. Not only was I sick and I slept in the car for the second half of the show, but, the show itself was lame. The kids were lame, the venue was cold and damp and lame, and we had to pay for food which was pizza which was lame. The only cool part of the show was the part where I sat behind the merch table and watched one of Jeff's (from Poison the Well) movies he let me borrow: Man Bights Dog. It was totally interesting and he rocks for letting me watch it.

Oh yeah...

We saw a rainbow on the way. Yay.

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

San Diego, CA- 01/24/08

San Diego, CA

I woke up yesterday morning at my girl Lauren's house in San Diego and man I felt horrible. Thanks Glass House for keeping the doors open throughout the show keeping the whole place freezing cold and damp. (the temp was low and it rained all night) There is a bug going around and every body's band has been effected. I guess it was my turn. I had a fever and couldn't get very far without feeling very week. I sucked it up anyway and went with Laurena and Lydia to take Lydia to the beach for the first time in her life. She had never seen the ocean!!! That was a fun experience... except afterwards I felt like crappp. We stopped to meet one of Lauren's friends on the way back to her pad but by the time we got back I thought I was going to die.


SO- when everybody else went to the show, I stayed at Lauren's house to sleep. Thank GOD we were staying there for two night in a row or else I wouldn't have been able to do that. After sleeping almost all day except for the few times I ate, and listened to The Rock pod cast, and talked to my wonderful boyfriend, I felt a lot better. I slept all night and now, the next morning, I at least have enough strength to chill with everyone and push forward to the next show. This was a day of much needed rest.


My best sick pic
We just ate like the best breckfast I've ever had (including the worlds most amazing bacon!) and I'm ready for the rest of the day. Don't get me wrong, though, I think we are all going to try to take it easy for a few days. xo

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

Pomona, CA- 01/23/2008

Pomona, CA
I was excited to go to the Glass House (the venue we were playing at) again. Tyler, Hawk, and I had all been there like 6 months ago for Facedown Fest and we had a great time. It was awesome going from a place where I have bad memories to a place where, not too long ago, I had experienced very good times. It was my last trip to Pomona with Tyler and Hawk that really made me aware of my feelings for Tyler. I had liked him for a while before we went but, for some reason, our road trip really drove it home for me. So, anyway, yea I love Pomona. Not to mention it's a way cute little city.

Too bad it rained and was freezing the whole time. The show was fun and I got some really pretty video footage of the boys but at the end of the night we were ALL getting sick. We decided to just drive to the place we are staying just north of San Diego so we could just sleep in and try not to get even more sick. Best part of this decision was because the girl we are staying with is one of my most trusted and beloved friends LAUREN WEEKS! YAYYYY it feels so good to be with her. I feel at home wherever she is and, I know she'd take care of us if we were sick (which we all pretty-much were after the damp cold venue and weather). So we drove to her place in Encenitas, CA and crashed... HARD.

Oh yeah, while at the Glass House, I got a chance to talk to a guy named Martin who was just plain awesome. It was awesome having his company for a good conversation! Thanks Martin! He is from a band that jumped on the tour for a few shows in California. Another member of his band named Matt has also been an awesome comrade for the last two days. I'm glad to have met the guys in that band.

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

Hollywood, CA-01/22/2008

Hollywood, CA

We rolled into CA today just in time to load into the venue. The guys were playing at the Trouboudour in Hollywood and, apparently, that's a big deal. Hahahahaha. Sometimes I love being
clueless about certain aspects of pop-culture because it makes some people so angry. The fact that I had never even heard of this venue made some of the people working there so annoyed but I got a kick out of it. Turns out it's just one of the more famous venus on the planet or something and every famous musician has played there. It was a fun show but I seriously don't know what all the hype was about. They wouldn't let me film and stuff but I got some fun pictures. I've been taking pictures with this little point-and-shoot camera and, to sound perfectly pretentious, I'm used to a Digital SLR so it's been slightly frustrating learning how to make these pictures look good. Anyway I was sure to get the sign for the venue in all of the photos.


...Except this one :)

We stayed that night with a girl we knew from living in Savannah named Amanda. Her house was soooo cute! She lived in North Hollywood in this normal little neighborhood. It was very very different from what I remember of Hollywood from the times I'd spent there amid the hustle bustle and difficult relationships. I have to admit, I'd rather not ever be in the LA or Hollywood area after my experiences there. It sucked driving in and seeing so many familiar places. All those places reminded me of sad times and well yea whatever. I'm glad that now I have another HAPPY memory to add to the plethora of LA and Hollywood crap welled up inside of me. haha. Thank God for second chances!

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

Tempe, AZ-01/21/2008

Tempe, AZ

Tempe was awesome! When we got into town it was warm... like 70 degrees warm! I had driven almost all night so I felt exhausted and wanted to sleep before the show. Thank God right there next to where we parked the van was a.... CATHOLIC NEWMAN CENTER! In case you don't know what that is, a Newman Center is connected to the Catholic church near a University and is like a building that serves as a safe place for students and the congregation alike. I walked in and there was a group meeting. I explained that I work sometimes at the Newman Center in SLC and asked if I could crash on their couch/use their bathroom to freshen up. They were soo cool. So I got to take a nap on one of their couches and even sing some worship with them. How awesome. Best part was that they all knew people from my church and there was even one guy FROM my church there that gave me a hug and said hi. How good is God?

Afterwards, Lydia and I had falafel and walked around in the wonderful temperature! I got a chance to buy the book that I left on the airplane on the way here, The Omnivore's Dilemma, and I also got a chance to mail some postcards. After walking around for a bit and seeing tons of bicycles everywhere (Tempe has more bicycles in it than I have EVER seen in any other city) we decided we wanted to rent some bikes and go riding before the show. The problem was, though, that we were on foot and had to walk to this bike shop across town to rent a bicycle. We walked to the shop (like 1.5 miles) just to find out that we have to walk to the OTHER side of town to their OTHER shop to rent a bike (3 miles or so). So we did that and, by then, it was getting late. The prices were too high to rent anyway so we decided to just walk the rest of the way to the venu which turned out to be another 1.5 miles or 2 or something. All this walking was terribly painful only because we were wearing crappy shoes. Turns out fashion flats aren't made for walking. I'm writing this post like 3 days later and my right foot STILL hurts really bad. haha.

When we made it to the venue the rest of the night was smooth sailing... except for the part where we stayed with some random chick that they knew who was not too cool and our van almost got stolen by tweekers. We made it through, though, and were off in the morning toward California.

I would like to take this time to re-illiterate how much I LOVE cacti. Seriously, folks, what cool plants. The deserts of Arizona are way cool to drive through and, when you stop for gas, it's like being in a road-trip movie. I want to go do that drive again someday on a motorcycle.

Yes, Arizona is cool.

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

San Antonio, TX Day 02-01/20/2008

San Antonio, TX Day 02

Today we had the day off and I woke up in a lovely comfortable bed all well rested.What was the noise that awakened me at 10am? Chase was getting a tattoo. Matt, the guy whose family we were staying with (him, his wife, and his children) was tattooing Chase and getting ready to tattoo the other guys. They were getting the Team Zissou logo, each in a different place on their body. Chase, Danny, Derrek, and Chris all got this tattoo. We all ate breakfast and decided that we should go see CLOVERFIELD. We had talked with Poison the Well about it earlier the last night and they said they were going to go as well so we called them and decided to meet at the theater.
Cloverfield was one of the gnarliest movies I have ever seen. I can absolutely say that it was THE scariest movie I've ever seen fosho. Please go see it.
After watching the movie we all freaked out and talked about it for hours, chilled back at Matt's house, visited him at work at the tattoo shop, and got on the road to Arizona.









Welcome to Texas 01

Welcome to Texas 02
I drove a lot of the way to Arizona and Danny and I listened to "Coast to Coast" for a little while. I love talking to Danny- he's right on and straight up. Yay. Our plan was to drive all night and just deal with getting to Phoenix during the day. We figured we'd sleep at the venue or in a coffee house or something. What a crazy night.

Oh yeah, and I got to see cactus for the first time when we were going through New Mexico. I'd never been there... I've never been to Arizona for real too. This tour is really starting to be fun:)

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

San Antonio, TX Day 01-01/19/2008

San Antonio Day 01, TX

So as we pulled into San Antonio it seemed like it might be another less than awesome night. Don't get me wrong, I've been having fun, it's just that yesterday was a harder day and we were rolling up into what seemed like a little more run down part of town. Nobody knew what to expect. Here are my beefs:

1. We aren't selling much merch so we're not making much gas money. We have to drive to Phoenix next and, before the show, we didn't even know if we'd have enough gas money from the band. The boys do NOT want to dip into their own pockets.

2. For myself, I just wasn't really feeling it from the other bands. I've introduced myself and everything but everyone still seems really awkward. I was worried that I'd never really get to know anyone else from the other bands and that we'd always just be random ppl on tour with the opening band.

3. I haven't started filming anything yet and I'm having trouble getting good ideas about what to do. I feel insignificant.

AND

4. It seems like the Dallas crowd just wasn't feeling the AGAGAG set. I mean not only was there hardly anyone there but we sold almost nothing and got almost no feed back.

SO.... I'm going to dedicate this post to how all of the above four points CHANGED for the better thanks to our time in San Antonio.


1. After the guys played (a killer show) people started flipping about them and were coming out to us kids selling merch pretty steadily. We were warned that night that we might not make any tips, and, we ended up getting tipped better than both the previous nights. We sold more than enough merch to get us to Phoenix and I'm sure the guys benefited from the on-rush of positive feed back. This really brought everybody up a notch in the excitement scale.

2. All of the other guys on tour were very friendly and outgoing tonight. It was like a 360 from the last night and I realized I was just jumping to conclusions and wanting too much instant gratification. People need to warm up to people and, as we all decided, a little kindness goes a long way. I had a great time getting to know some of them better today and am looking forward to the rest of the tour.

3. We all came up with great ideas on what to film.

4. See Number 01 :)


That night we crashed with the boy's tattoo artist: Matt. He moved from Savannah to San Antonio a while back and they were all excited to take advantage of his tattoo skills. It's wonderful staying with families. They had lasagna for us and comfortable sleeping accommodations. They even let us do our laundry and put popery on top of the clothes in the basket to make them smell wonderful. They were just plain great. They also introduced me to sweet potato muffins. No joke. They tasted AMAZING like a pumpkin spice late. No kidding, folks.

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

Dallas, Tx - 01/19/2008

Dallas, TX - 01/19/2008

Before I write anything.... We got our passes last night!!!! Oh how cool we feel:)


Man, today was a hard day. Lots of miscommunication and driving around the airport \ trying to pick up a package allegedly mailed via Continental Cargo. Danny (drummer) and I straight up RAN all around the airport like connecting the dots and trying to follow the bogus directions people told us over and over. Long story short we all waisted about 2 hours after driving 5 hours and making ourselves late ONLY to find out that the package was at the OTHER airport. Oh the discouragement.

So the boys go later to the airport after their show and the guys that told us they would have it waiting for us weren't there so... right... more disappointment's. See, we wanted to go to San Antonio tonight BUT we found that we were stuck because we now couldn't get our package of new merch till the morning.

Thanks to God there was a cool dude and his girlfriend from Agusta, GA at the show that GRACIOUSLY let us crash in their apartment. These kids Jon and Erin are just awesome. Jon has a "LOVE LIFE" tattoo all down his side from his armpit to his hip. Strange, too, because today I was reading 1Peter and I specifically wrote down a verse that commanded us as believers to "LOVE LIFE". It was important enough for me to write it down and then, right when we needed some answers about where to stay, some guy from the band's home state offers us a place to stay with the words "LOVE LIFE" tattooed to him. How great is our God?

The show was good. They did really well and I got to jam out. Other than that it was slow and I'm ready to crash. Weird because people don't really move much when it came to the music and what-not. It was probably the most static crowd I'd ever seen.

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

Houston, Tx - 01/18/2008

Want to see pix but don't feel like reading the blog? Check out my Flickr page: RIGHT HERE Don't forget to bookmark it or write down the URL when you go there. I won't be posting it every time.
___________________________
DAY 01 of our Trip: HOUSTON, TX

So Lydia and I took off from the SLC airport for Houston yesterday on the 16th. Tyler drove us (thank you T) and off we went on the adventure of a lifetime... i hope.

It all started with Lydia turning to me on the airplane and saying "hey where do you find those throw-up bag thingies?" To which I promptly found the barfo-baggo and handed her one. Please note that I thought for a second she was joking. Poor gal. Needles to say the rest is history. I thought about taking a photo but decided that, as she says, discretion is the better part of valor. haha.

We arrived in Houston and my Aunt Happy picked us up. That's right her name is Happy and she is one of the coolest people I have ever met. She was putting us up for the night and we were totally grateful. We weren't going to be able to meet up with the boys until the next day so it was fun chillin' with her! Thanks, Hap!

She took us to a way cool farmer's market near her house. I seriously need to learn more Spanish. Did you know people ate cactus? Lydia and I saw probably the world's largest chili spoon there.



We walked back to Hap's place and on the way talked to some cop whose son knew the band Blue October or something. Funny thing was.. .I had no idea who that was so I wasn't impressed. Before long our guys showed up and Happy released us into their.. uh... van. Their new red van was appropriately stickered "Oh DANG!"on the front windshield.
After proclaiming that the boys scare her and that we should eat our veggies and take our vitamins, she waved us goodbye and we were off to downtown Houston.

It starts...
Downtown Houston, TX
Before the show, Lydia and I got a chance to walk around and explore Houston a little. We met some interesting people and found some places to eat. Downtown Houston is pretty cool. I had never been downtown and we got a good little taste of it.

At the show the bands were all friendly and nice. We met Dance Gavin Dance at a guitar center before we even got to the venue. As we set up, watched, and then tore stuff down I realized there is a lot to be learned in this little realm of the world. It was very intense and I feel overwhelmed. Not to mention that tonight was the first night I've ever seen Poison the Well live. I grew up with them being on my "fav rotation" and tonight was the first night. They played a ton of old songs and it was sweet.

I was looking forward to seeing a friend, Josh, from a band called Sivan tonight but he had to work. Next time Josh. :(
This is Mattie watching Poison The Well
I think it's safe to say we all love that band.

After the show, loosing mattie, and getting lost in the van, we made it back to Derrick's aunt's house outside of Houston. Her name is Aunt Carol and she seemed totally excited to have us. She had food and beds all ready for all 7 of us. We can only hope to be so lucky the rest of the trip. Ok that's enough for now I have to sleep. I'm exhausted from just being overloaded with new experiences. Tomorrow off to Dallas.
Anyway, more to come. I need rest first.

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

TOUR DATES!

The Official Tour Dates for the
A Girl A Gun A Ghost Shows Lydia and I will be on:

Jan 17 2008 8:00P
Warehouse Houston, Texas

Jan 18 2008 8:00P
The Door Dallas, Texas

Jan 19 2008 8:00P
White Rabbit San Antonio, Texas

Jan 21 2008 8:00P
The Clubhouse Phoenix, Arizona

Jan 22 2008 8:00P
The Troubadour Los Angeles, California

Jan 23 2008 8:00P
Glasshouse Pomona, California

Jan 24 2008 8:00P
Epicentre San Diego, California

Jan 25 2008 8:00P
Palmdale VH Palmdale, California

Jan 26 2008 8:00P
Boardwalk Sacremento, California

Jan 27 2008 8:00P
Slims San Francisco, California

Jan 29 2008 8:00P
El Corazon Seattle, Washington

Jan 30 2008 8:00P
Hawthorne Theater Portland, Oregon

Jan 31 2008 8:00P
The Venue Boise, Idaho

Feb 1 2008 8:00P
Avalon Salt Lake City, Utah


We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea

2008... it starts...Western Tour

So, in light of my almost 6 month streak of working with small companies that don't always HAVE work for me and the fact that the winter is VERY slow for freelance video work , I have decided to take advantage of a few other opportunities that have been presented to me this new year. There are many adventures a-brew and I'll reveal them slowly as they actually unfold so keep your eyes peeled. (I know how oh-so important I am in the scheme of the world lol just kidding). Anywhichway I figure I'd keep all of you updated even if just to make sure that my closest family and friends know where I am incase something "happens"- mom that was for you. Rest assured, though, I'm not expecting anything to "happen" other than some good old life experience and possible future opportunity. As the campus minister at my church, Seth, told me today: "You never know where God will send you, right?" I am deciding to embrace something new instead of sitting around and loathing in my lack of money and lack of a job option that will be making me 50 grand a year.

Goodbye self-loathing...
HELLO ...Western tour with a bunch of crazy rock and roll bands.



That's right folks I'll be touring with my long time friends Mattie, Chase, Derrik, Danny, and their band called A Girl A Gun A Ghost as well as a few other bands including Poison the Well. I know these guys from college days and Mattie is one of my most trusted friends. I'll be touring with them for about 2 and a half weeks hitting the entire west coast as well as some other western states including, and starting out in, Texas. As usual I will be keeping track of my travels via blog and documentary style video.

Along with me I am bringing a friend from church. Her name is Lydia and we've decided to make this short trip a ministry opportunity. Most of the bands playing these huge concerts we'll be working are secular bands. For a few dates there will be one Christian band playing (the chariot) but for 90% of the dates the bands are secular only. I'm very excited to have Lydia along to spend some quality time with my buddies and me Christian-style. The Lord sends his followers with support so I made sure to include Lydia on this adventure to make sure that we are effective and safe along the way. She is from the non-denominational church that Tyler and I frequent called The Rock and has been a good girl friend to me since I moved out here.

My travels will start with me going to Houston shortly after mom's visit to Utah. I might drop in on Happy in Houston and see how she is before the tour actually starts. Lydia and I would appreciate your prayers during these 2 and a half weeks of rock and roll goodness! Keep an eye on my blog for pictures and updates.

If you are a friend of mine who lives along the west coast and is reading this blog, expect a phone call soon:)

We could be closer than you know,
Chelsea