Chillin' With A Plain White T

Have you ever met a celebrity? If you have, did you sit with them and just have a normal conversation? I don't mean talking about their career or traveling around the world or anything like that; I mean just hangout with them for a moment in time and see a glimpse of what they are really like? I have, and I didn't even know I was talking to a celebrity at the time.

A few years back after I had started working at the Casino, the Plain White T's were performing in July. I remember being really excited about the show because they have quite a few popular songs that have been on the radio and their name is really out there. For some reason even though I knew their music, I really didn't know what they looked like. I mean, I was a fan of the music but I never really took the time to learn about the band members.

Before the show that night I was prepping and getting ready for the show. I remember it was a really hot day and inside the building it was just so hot. I had to take some empty boxes outside out back and I was relieved because I desperately needed fresh air. When I went outside and discarded the boxes I decided to sit down on the back stairs for a couple minutes so that I could cool off. The back stairs is also the area where the tour buses are and where the bands were hanging out. I don't know why I never put two and two together that I was basically hanging out in the area where the Plain White T's were but I guess at the time I was just tired, and possibly a little out of it.

So I'm sitting there, staring out at the parking lot when I see a figure sit next to me on the other side of the stairs. I kind of look over at the corner of my eye and I didn't recognize the person so I kept on looking straight ahead. A few seconds later the guy goes, "Wow, I can't believe I've never been to New Hampshire before, this area is great!" I just looked at him for a second and smiled. (Damn, why was I so unfriendly)

Another few seconds go by before he talks again. "Sooo, are you from around here?" Honestly at the time I don't know why but i just wasn't feeling talkative and now this random stranger is asking me questions like this!?

So I responded, "Yeah, I work here I'm just getting some fresh air before I have to go back inside and get to work." Smooth Mary, real smooth.

Then the guy goes, "Yeah, I'm with the band, gotta get back to work soon too. But hey, what's fun to do around here? Some buddies and I were thinking of going out around here or something maybe you know some places?" Okay, this guy is nice. So I started telling him about some cool places in the area and then he started mentioned some places around the country he's been to and he was actually a really interesting guy. We talked for a few more minutes before I had to go back inside and he had to get back to work with the band.

A couple hours later when the concert had started, the opening band, Mae, had just finished performing and Plain White T's were up next. I was all excited to finally see them up on stage and live in person! The crowd was going crazy! The guitarists and drummer go on first and then all of a sudden the lead singer emerges and MY JAW JUST DROPPED IN THAT INSTANT. The second I saw him step on stage I was in shock. The lead singer of Plain White T's was the guy I was sitting and talking to on the back stairs a couple hours earlier. OMG. How could I not know who this guy was? Did I really have an entire conversation with this guy and not know that he is a huge celebrity who travels the world and is the lead singer of a band?! Yeah, that happened. I met this guy and I didn't get an autograph, or picture, or anything! Ugh!

At first I was so mad because I realized that I had totally just treated this guy like he was any other guy, and I wasn't even that friendly at all. But then, I realized, he probably really liked that. Being a celebrity he always has girls all over him trying to talk to him, get pictures, beg him for autographs and all sorts of stuff. I was the total opposite. He probably enjoyed being able to talk to someone who had no idea who he was. I realized that I had made a celebrity feel like a normal guy for just a moment in time, and that actually made me feel good. I don't have proof that I met him, all I have is the memory. What I do know is, while Tom, the lead singer, is mobbed by millions of people every year, he will always remember me as the regular girl who treated him like a normal guy. (Even if I didn't know it) ;)

Music To My Ears

I have been asked a bunch of times what is so appealing to me about bands like Sublime, Radical Something, Jack Johnson and others like them. Okay, first of all, what is there not to like? But seriously, I actually have reasons and history behind why I listen to the music I listen to. I could give you the short story and just tell you that I stumbled upon some Jack Johnson songs back in the day, but that would be leaving out vital information about why the music means so much to me. So here it goes:

When I was in the 8th grade, I had a young science teacher. He was definitely fresh out of college and considering he was our only male teacher that year, yes a lot of us girls thought he was cute. (Which now that I think about it that is pretty creepy because he definitely creeped on a lot of us) Anyway, he wanted to be the "fun" teacher so before every class, he would have music playing as we walked in. What kind of music? JACK JOHNSON. My science teacher was a huge Jack Johnson fan and wanted to share his music with all of us. Some days he would play one of Jack's music videos on the T.V. in the room, and if there wasn't a music video for a song, he would just play the song.

I had never heard of Jack Johnson before this point, and I fell in love with the music right away. His voice was simply music to my ears; always so soothing. I literally never skipped that class. Even if I was feeling sick I still went to that class because I was excited which Jack Johnson song my teacher was going to play that day. I also liked it when my teacher would talk about how he discovered Jack Johnson, and shared memories from when he went to one of Jack's concerts out west. I realized that year that I wanted to go to those kinds of concerts, I wanted to find more music like Jack Johnson, and even more, I wanted to meet Jack one day.

The summer before going into high school I started to really search for music and discovered not only great new music that none of my friends listened to, but I also learned a lot about life in other parts of the country, like California, Hawaii, and some islands in the Caribbean. I was a girl in junior high, trying to figure out who I was, and I kind of found myself in the music. Which I know sounds like totally weird, but it's true. I really discovered my true style.

The music also inspired me to apply for a job at Hollister Co. Of course I really liked the clothes too, but come on, how could I not want to work in an environment where I can listen to really chill music, and see Huntington Beach, CA at all hours of the day? That company was my way of being able to live the life I feel like I belonged in. I have to thank Hollister, if I didn't work there, I may not have discovered Radical Something. One of their songs, "California" was on our playlist one summer and catapulted me in to listening to more bands like them. After going to their concert, and also working at a small concert venue, I realized what makes their concerts so awesome.

I would never want these bands to become big enough to where they are selling out stadiums and arenas because the concerts aren't as intimate. Why do you think Jack Johnson never plays in big places? To an even more extreme, why do you think he only plays in Hawaii and the west coast? Because that is where the heart of the music comes from, and with this genre of music you need to keep it real. Honestly I'm glad that not a lot of people like this genre, because everything that becomes mainstream gets tainted. The last thing I want is the music that made me who I am today be soiled by constant media, and have it be listened to by millions of people who don't even understand the meaning of it.

Well, there's my rant for the day. Also, I was really inspired to write about this topic right now because like I have proclaimed in my blog a couple days ago, I am now a "pencil-pusher".. so naturally I need distractions from work. ;)

Oh, and can we just talk about how cute Jack is??? Of course he's not single though! :(