U-S-H-E-R-R-A-Y-M-O-N-D

Went to the Usher concert on Wednesday night. AMAZING! It was quite the eventful night outside of the concert itself.

I left work at lunch in order to get some last minute accessories and to ensure I had enough time to get ready. Concert was at 7:30 and dinner with the girls around 5:30 meant I had to leave my house at 4:00.

I got a text from John around 2:30 letting me know that his first bus didn't arrive so he was going to be late. Damn. I continued getting ready and got another text at 3:30 telling me that traffic is at a standstill and he isn't going to be home until 5:30 or 6:00. CRAP! Unfortunately, this means that I won't be able to ride down to Seattle with my girlfriends and could possibly miss dinner altogether. My adorable friend Lauren was genuinely disappointed that I wouldn't make it for the ride down to Seattle.

My only other option was to take my daughter over to my brother's house, which is five minutes away, hoping my mom, who lives with my brother, will be home from work soon (my brother was going to the concert too, so he was not an option). At this point, I had resigned myself to going to the concert all by my lonesome, which sucked because half the fun is the drinks and dinner with the girls, right?

So imagine my elation when I spot Grandma's car already parked in the driveway! Whoo hoo! I was just at a rolling stop before I shoved my precious daughter out of the car.

Ok, the concert. Again, it was AMAZING! I went with three girlfriends: Lauren, Anna and Suzie. Sadly, we had pretty awful seats and we tried to prepare by bringing binoculars, which we ended up forgetting in the car (the binoculars was a whole other debacle). Our seats were so far from the stage that Anna said, "We need binoculars just to see the big screen!" We were also overdressed for that part of the arena. In Suzie's words, "We should have just come in sweatpants and sneakers." To top it off, we were so high up and so steep that when I would get up to dance later on in the night, my legs would be so tense with the fear of falling! I was slightly sore the following day!

The opening act was Miguel:

Image found on www.hoodrellic.com

I have never heard of him, but Lauren knew of his song All I Want is You. I missed most of his performance trying to figure out a way to get the binoculars from the car. On the way back to our seats, Lauren heard him yell to the crowd, "Los Angeles, let me hear you scream!" Uh, don't you mean Seattle?! Whatever.


Image found on The Den of Snakeyes blog

 After Miguel was done there was a break. During the break, the DJ was playing some awesome old school that I must download. The next opening act was Trey Songz and I was looking forward to seeing him, but come on, he is no Usher. Imagine my surprise when a countdown clock came on the screen starting at five minutes and the crowd went nuts! Everyone around me (my girls had left to get some drinks) had stood up screaming for him. Am I missing something? Ok, Mr. Steal-Your-Girl had a great body that he showed off and some singing chops, but again, no Usher. Trey Songz's performance was pretty good and there were some really good video montages that played, but I was ready for the main event!

The lights went down and the stage was lit up. Usher's voice came over the loudspeakers but he was nowhere on the stage. The crowd was pretty loud, but they really lit up once Usher was spotted on a platform to the back of the arena (yes, by my section!). The platform was then raised by harnesses and Usher hovered over the crowd on the floor seats. I was terrified of plummeting to my death in the seats we were in, I can't imagine having to be suspended on a platform by what looked to be four teeny tiny strings!

Lauren was a bit disappointed with Usher's appearance: slim fitting pants and a longer tuft of hair up top. Suzie, on the other hand, couldn't stop saying how hot he looked. Me? I didn't mind the pants, but the hair was not so good.

The choreography was one of my favorite parts of the show. It was sexy without being raunchy (ok, some raunch, but that is ok by me) and it always amazes me how the female dancers can do what they do in heels. I can't do choreographed dance for anything (my body doesn't like to be told what to do), but everytime I see dancers on the stage, I feel like I missed my calling from another life.

There was a point in the concert where an audience member was picked to go on stage with Usher. The girl was smokin' hot. All I remember about her were her pants. They were black and shredded to the thigh. Something like this, but with more skin showing (like, a lot more skin showing):

Found at Discount Women's Dress Shoes

Usher was really playing to the crowd with this bit. Totally toying with the Shredded Pants Girl. He ended up on top of her, between her legs, which he had to guide. Now, I don't know about you, but my legs would've instinctively clamped onto that man! At the end of the routine, Shredded Pants Girl was straddling Usher and I just about fainted. That man is so sexy.

Usher sang a lot of his old hits, which was what Lauren was looking forward to. He did a chair routine that mimicked his My Way video and he put on some roller shoes like he used in the U Don't Have To Call video (well, at least that's what I thought it was. He made a big deal about the shoes but I don't recall him actually rolling anywhere). But we were very disappointed when he did a quick five minute mash-up of the songs from Confessions. That is probably my favorite album of his and it lasted no longer than the blink of an eye. But that is the only complaint I have. Well, there was also the random canon sounds that scared me.

Usher ended with OMG, complete with pyrotechnics and lights. Perfect ending to a nearly flawless concert.

I found out that Wednesday's concert kicked off his OMG Tour and I was excited to know we were among the first to see this concert. If he is coming to a town near you, it really is a concert worth seeing. My recommendation would be to splurge on the floor seating and don't forget to wear your shredded black leggings.

In the Heights

Lauren and I have again bought season tickets to The 5th Avenue Theatre. This is our second year as season ticket holders and one of Lauren's college roommates, Fernanda, decided to join us this year. The more the merrier!

We went to our first play of the season last night, "In the Heights". Per The 5th Ave's website:

"...In the Heights tells a universal story set in Manhattan's Washington Heights – a place where the coffee from the corner bodega is light and sweet, the windows are always open, and the breeze carries the rhythm of three generations of music. It's a community on the brink of change, full of hopes, dreams and pressures, where the biggest struggles can be deciding which traditions you take with you, and which ones you leave behind."

I honestly don't know much about Broadway plays and have never heard of this Tony Award winning one. The synopsis made me interested in it and then positive reviews started pouring in, which got me excited!

The set was intricate and amazing. It really held my attention and kept my eyes moving while we were waiting for the play to start. Then Graffitti Pete break-danced onto the scene and I turned to Lauren and said, "I can already tell I am going to love this play."

The play was about Washington Heights, a low income, largely Latino-based community in New York. The main character, Usnavi (pronounced oo-snah-vee), was the name his parents picked when they were immigrating to America and saw a ship pass with the name of "U.S. Navy." Oh how witty! The entire play had fun little moments like that.

The other thing that really pulled me in was the music. I was surprised how urban it all was; Usnavi did very little singing and rapped the majority of the time. The singing itself isn't what Broadway goers are used to either. Instead of the usual sing-acting (as I like to call the traditional Broadway belting), the actors sang songs that are easily radio friendly. Their naturally strong, melodic voices rang through the entire theatre. It was the type of singing that gives me goosebumps!

"In the Heights" was full of characters with large personalities (think Gloria from "Modern Family"), even bigger voices, and a beautiful set to match the terrific music. I don't normally buy soundtracks to musicals, but this is definitely one to own.

This really was a wonderful play to open up the 2010/2011 season and I can't wait for more!

P.S.
I never wear dresses, but I wore one to the play last night. I now remember why I don't wear dresses. I felt like I forgot my pants.

Might As Well jump. JUMP!

I went to the AIRobics class again last night and actually thought to take pictures. I just had my phone with me, so we couldn't get any usable action shots. Here is Lauren and I striking a pose during the first break.

We are starting to get some beautiful weather here in Washington. Perfect for those lunch time walks. I am debating buying a pair of Skechers Shape Ups to add a little umph to my walks. Does anyone else have them? How are they working for you? They cost a pretty penny, so I am doing a little research before spending that kind of cash money.

Here Battah, Battah!

I love thinking outside the box when it comes to exercising. Yesterday, a co-worker, April, took Lauren and I out to the batting cages during our lunch break. Lauren and I have never gone to the batting cages before. The last time I held a bat was when I was struck out over and over again during team sports days in elementary school. I sucked. But going to the batting cages sounded like fun; you don't have to worry about striking out and being the sucky player on the team. Aside from that, it is super cheap! They offer bats to use for free and it costs $1.00 for 20 balls. April told me that she normally does $2.00 worth during her lunch breaks. Ok, Lauren and I will do the same. Of course the guy behind the cash register convinced us to do six rounds for only $5.00. I am so glad he did because it was a blast!

We got to the batting cages and I was immediately intimidated by the large iron fenced structure. Then seeing the ball zooming towards April made it worse! But as intimidated and scared as I was, I was equally as excited. Lauren, on the other hand, declared, "I am not doing this."

We watched April hit the last few balls of her first round and then I went in. Lauren had the stance and conviction of backing out. I went in and started getting that jittery anxious feeling. Being in the cage was completely different than standing outside of it.

You put your token into the slot and a yellow light comes on by the machine that shoots the balls out (forgive my lack of knowledge on the proper terms, we shall call this the "launcher") to let you know that the machine is on. I started jumping up and down like an over-eager two-year-old. Next, a big red light comes on right under the yellow one. I was freaking out at this point. The lights on the launcher looked like the eyes of a lopsided monster about to attack me!

The first ball launched, I swung and missed. The second one launched, and to my surprise, I made a connection with the bat! I hit the ball to the ground, but whatever, I hit the ball! Every un-athletic bone in my body reverbrated with joy. I hit the ball! I hit the ball! I hit the ball!

It was so much fun and all too soon my turn was over. Lauren saw that I didn't kill myself and decided that maybe it was safe to enter the cage. Surprise, surprise, she loved it too! Here are a few pictures from our fun lunch break at the batting cages (it's too bad that my phone doesn't reflect what a truly beautiful day we had here yesterday):

April showing us how it is done!

 

Lauren exhibiting how Betty Boop would be hitting the balls.

This is the picture that will be on my baseball card.

And here is an action shot for you.

I didn't break a sweat, nor was I tired when we were done in the batting cages, which was great since we had to go back to work, but I was surprised to wake up this morning and find that my left side and, ahem!, my left butt cheek were slightly sore.

The batting cages is definitely a fun thing to do during my lunch break instead of going out to eat. I will certainly be back. Now if you will excuse me, I need to go find a pink pair of batting gloves and a pink bat.

Trampoline Fiend!

Dull workout routine? Try something outside the box.

We have found the funnest workout EVER! Trampoline AIRobics! Sky High Sports in Bellevue is a trampoline arena. You need to seriously check out the gallery on their website and you might understand how much fun I had last night. It was an hour long class of sweat, laughter, some pain, and pure childhood fun.

I haven't been on a trampoline for at least the last fifteen years. I am a scaredy cat, which is why I have never done any sports or ever been athletic. I am afraid of basketballs, baseballs, footballs, soccer balls ... you get the picture: No team sports for me.

But OMG, this was such a fun time and anyone can do it! Well, at least anyone 10-years-old or older. But you don't have to be an athlete in any way, shape, or form. The moment that I stepped onto the trampoline, I was stiff and scared. I couldn't do the simple jump, land on your bottom, push up with your hands, then land on your feet. I watched my two friends, Lauren and Germaine, have no issues with this routine. I paused and watched them to see how I could emulate their movements. The major difference I noticed was that they were relaxed and not stiff. The second difference I noticed was that they were full on landing on their bottoms. I was too scared to land on my bum that I would angle forward instead of back, causing me to land first with my heels, then legs, then finally bottom. By the time I had landed, there wasn't any momentum left to land back up on my feet. So I wiggled out the stiffness and I went for it, and I did it! It was a small feat at the time, but it really helped me for the duration of the class. The key was really to relax and just jump with abandon!

There were two breaks during the class. By the time the first break came around, I had sweat dripping down my face! That hasn't happened in forever either. On the days that I go to the gym, I always end up doing an hour of the elliptical, the cross-trainer, or a bike/treadmill combination. Since no one is pushing me to go! go! go!, I tend to do just enough to keep my heart rate up. Plus, let's face it, an hour of the same machine is monotonous and B-O-R-I-N-G. But AIRobics was awesome because I was working out harder than I do at the gym without even noticing it. My mentality was that I was playing, not doing cardio.

Hopefully you can find something like this in your area, because it is really worth it!

Welcome To Day One!

Happy Monday! And welcome to Day One of Phase One on The South Beach Diet! I love when the first of the month falls on a Monday! There is something so promising about starting anything on Monday the 1st.

Today is actually my first Monday back at work in three weeks. Jan 11th I stayed home because my daughter was sick. Jan 18th was MLK Day - no work. And then we all know what happened last Monday (ouch!). So forgive me if I start to get grouchy as the week goes on as this will be my first five-day work week in over three weeks!

Ok, now that I have rambled on about my lack of ambition to come into work, onto the diet!

First off, I didn't realize that "SBD" could be misinterpreted as "silent, but deadly", so I will likely stop referring to The South Beach Diet as such. A special thanks to Germaine for pointing that out. 

Other than the name snafu, I am feeling pretty good about attempt number 5,801 to lose weight. Don't all diets give you that feeling in the beginning? But there is a main reason I am excited about this round - TOFU NOODLES!

My fellow dieter, Lauren, loves tofu and found these wonderful tofu noodles. I tried them a week ago and love them! They will surely work in curbing my craving for pasta this month. There is definitely a texture difference between tofu noodles and flour pasta. When you bite into the tofu noodles, they have more of a - hmm, what's the word? Crunch? Snap? Basically, they aren't as chewy soft as flour or whole wheat pasta. But for those of you that are "low-carb and loving it", these are a staple.