The Raconteurs

People who are skilled in relating stories and anecdotes interestingly

On Tuesday night I went to see the Raconteurs play at the Bank of America Pavilion here in Boston. If you are thinking to yourself, "Who are they" you are not alone. I originally got tickets to the show because I knew the two front men of the band, Jack White from the White Stripes and Brendan Benson. I loved what they did single of each other, so I figured I really couldn't go wrong seeing them in a band together. Plus I knew one song of the Raconteurs and I liked it.

Now, let me just paint you a little picture:

The lights go out, the crowd goes wild as the shadow of the band members enter the stage and pick up their instruments. All at once an explosion of sound and lights fills the outdoor venue. People are on their feet the entire show, even though there are comfortable chairs right behind them. The boom of the drums, the electric sound coming from the guitars and the unique voices make it hard to resist swaying and singing along.

The band full on ROCKED OUT like I have never seen before. I have never seen someone play the guitar the way they did and was truly amazed to be witnessing it. I found myself laughing and giddy and jumping around without caring what I looked like because the people around me were doing the same. I full on enjoyed every moment!

I did however have one "You have got to be kidding me" kind of moments. As the concert started the 40 year old guy standing next to me pulled out a pipe!!! For all of you naive people out there...No, not a tobacco pipe. He was super nervous and kept looking around because he didn't want to get caught. After he puffed away for a little while my inner beast came out. Before I realized what i was doing, I grabbed his arm and said, "If you're going to do that, go somewhere else. It's bugging me." The guy was super apologetic, as he should have been seeing how I could have turned him in and sent him packing.

Anyway, the Band was amazing and put on one of the best Rock Shows I have ever seen. They even came back and did 5 more songs for their encore. I have attached some video so you can all check them out. None of the video is from the show I went to because I couldn't find any that I thought was good enough. Just promise me you will listen to it all the way through. At first you might think, "Oh Sarah and her weird music" but just wait until the guitars start to sing! How can you not love that!

This next video is the one that they closed the show with. I was blown away! Shelly, this is the one you NEED to check out!

Also, at the bottom of the page is a link to a sound clip. They sang this cover of a really old song, keep it clean, and I loved it. Just click the play button next to the title when the page loads up. Take a minute, have a listen, and for goodness sake see them live if you get the chance.




The Raconteurs - Keep It Clean (Charlie Jordan)(Live 930 Club 20080527)

Memorial day weekend

(Sorry it's taken me so long to post it)

On Sunday as I came out of church and sat waiting for my bus to come, I began to hear the strangest sound.  It sounded like a full band which I thought was kind of weird seeing how most street performers were one or two people at most.  I began walking toward the sound and discovered a HUGE parade! None of the buses would be coming because this parade ran right down the street that my bus would have to take me home. So, I started walking and was able to enjoy the parade all the way home.  

 

How cool is that little red truck! 

I tried to take a video of this little old lady playing in this band but didn't pull out my camera fast enough.  She was so cute and looks so tired in this picture because of how much she got into her drumming.  I loved it!  Well... I loved it up until I ran into the scariest beings on this planet.

CLOWNS!!! Okay, I knew there may be a chance that I would cross paths with a clown or two, but I was not prepared to literally cross paths with them...and not so many of them. 

  
Okay, things are still alright.  They stay on their side of the street, I'll stay on mine.  (Is that not the scariest clown you have ever seen sitting on the back of that car!)

"What....NO, I said you stay on your side of the street and I'll stay on mine! That's right kid, sick your dog on a stick on him!" I stood there and waited at a far enough distance until they both went back to their side of the street.  

I thought it was safe, so I continued walking.  I was really proud of myself for not having to have any scary interactions with these demon clown people until this train came chugging along. The clown on the back took one look at me and started shouting, "Lady, Lady! You're going the wrong way!!! Lady, can you hear me...The party's this way.  You're going the wrong way!!!" I took off running like a mad woman and yelled back, "Um, my kind of party's this way." He yelled something back but I was too far gone to understand what he said.  I have never been so grateful for working legs before in all my life.  

Now, check out this cute little boy and how he decided to watch the parade.  I thought it was adorable.

The Zoo

On Monday, Kristin, Kenley and Cora were nice enough to let me tag along for a trip to the zoo.  We had a blast looking at all the animals and even got to go into a room full of butterflies.  

Cora was so excited and loved all of the animals. She was happiest when she could get down and run around on her own.  Look at the excitement in her face when she was able to let go of Mom's hand and take off.   

The butterfly part of the zoo was so much fun.  You could get right up close and there were so many different kinds of butterflies.  

I loved this next group of pictures. 

Kristin (thinking) "Oh, aren't butterflies just so beautiful"

Cora (thinking) "I wonder what these things smell like"

Kenley (thinking) "I wonder what it tastes like.  I'll just take a little bite, no one will notice!"

The zoo had this fun little scale. You would jump as far as you could to see how your jumping skills compared to the animals and insects.

I could jump 6 feet, as far as a rabbit.  Kenley could jump 8 feet, as far as a moon bear. 

And, Holy Crow! Check out how far a snow leopard can jump!!! 

The day was fun and by the end we were all ready for a long nap! 

A Slice of Cake...Yes Please!

Earthfest is a free music festival put on by Wholefoods and a local radio station to promote a greener lifestyle.  Cake was the big performer of the day, so Anna, Liz and I decided we had better go check it out. 

The Hatch Shell, where there bands perform, is right next to

 the Charles River.  It was the perfect location! I loved seeing all the sail boats and all of the people out enjoying the weather. 

We had such a great spot and could see Cake perfectly. They were so funny and sounded amazing.  I loved every minute of it and knew every song they played!

 

There were so many people there that little kids were climbing in the trees just to see the show. 

I have to say, the funniest part of the whole concert was when the lead singer pulled out a piece of paper, laid it on the table next to him and would periodically look over at it for the lyrics to a song.  It was a new song that I had never heard.  I died laughing.  Way to keep it real John McCrea! 

Look how many people are back behind us.  Now imagine that across an entire park! It was amazing!

After the concert was over, Liz, Anna and I decided to sit on one of the docks to finish eating the picnic that we had packed.  While we were sitting there I kept thinking to myself, "wouldn't that be great if the band just walked onto the dock?" Next thing I knew, John McCrea, the lead singer, was standing across the dock from me! 

I jumped up, camera in hand and approached him.  I didn't know his name at the time, so I walked up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder.  He was so cool and extremely nice.  He sat there and talked to us for a good 5 - 10 minutes which I was completely impressed by.  I don't have a picture of the event because he asked that we not take a picture with him.  He said that he was off work which I completely understood.  I mean I'm a little bummed that I don't have a picture to document the moment but, what can ya do? 

All I can say is that if any of you ever have the opportunity to see cake perform, you most definitely should.  The music is great and the lead singer is a genuinely nice person.  

By the way, I'm not sure why two of the videos don't have a picture on them. Click on them anyway, they still work! Enjoy the tunes and sorry about the shaking.

The Bay of Fundy

Did you ever wonder what the ocean floor looked like without the water and the fish? You did! Well, you are in for a treat because I am going to show you. On our way home from Prince Edward Island we stopped at the Bay of Fundy. When the tide is out you can walk up to a mile on the ocean floor. You just have to be careful because when tide comes back in you don't want to be wandering around out there.

This is what it looked like when we got there. The tide was pretty much out...so we went down to play.

When the tide is in you can see where the water level is by looking at the rocks. I know it doesn't look like much but just wait!

Can you believe that! It was hard to imagine that in just a few hours the water would be back and completely covering me.

If you wanted a close up of the green stuff behind me...well, here it is.

It was unbelievably windy out there and the clouds kept coming and going and coming and going.

This is me again...among the green stuff that lives on the ocean floor.

To say that it was a little muddy would be a major understatement. I was really careful and didn't get my shoes as muddy as Cassie did. (see below)

Canada was great, The Bay of Fundy was amazing and I highly recommend you all go someday!

I just couldn't leave without writing my name on the ocean floor!