It's been such a crazy May, and my drive to write got away from me as I focused a bit more on my job during our ratings period. But now I am back, and I hope you're all having a great holiday weekend-- and taking some time to remember the men and women who lost their lives fighting for our freedom.
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This is one of my favorite days to cover the lack of news at work-- all the pomp and circumstance, the salutes and tributes, and the amazing stories of heroism that we get to report on. It's an incredible reminder of how lucky I am to live in this country, and to be grateful for everything life throws my way.
While we're honoring our fallen heros, I think this weekend is also about celebrating our freedoms. Jason and I decided to celebrate ours with a weekend full of music and food.
Motown
Our celebration started Thursday night, with an incredible show.
Jason actually bought me tickets to "Motown: The Musical" for Christmas. It was the perfect end to a difficult May ratings period for the station. It was the perfect way to de-stress from my stressful month of putting together well thought out television broadcasts.
As for the show, it was fantastic. The music was phenomenal, the dancing was great and the actors cast to play the Motown legends were on point-- specifically, Diana Ross and Michael Jackson. The story is one you've probably seen time and again-- through Dreamgirls, and many a bio-flick on different Motown legends, so the fact that the dialog and story line were a little lacking didn't bother me much.
This show was much more about the music and the evolution of Motown, than it is about a story.
More than the acting, singing and dancing-- I think my favorite part about the show was the energy from the crowd. Everyone around us was singing-- though not always on key-- and dancing in their seats. It was an awesome sight, and not something I've seen since we went and saw Mama Mia on New Year's Day several years ago. I loved it-- even the woman sitting behind us singing loudly, off-key and after the rest of us sang the lines.
If you get a chance, go see it. You won't be sorry!
Before the show, we hit Mikuni for some cocktails, sushi and sesame chicken & tonkatsu. Now, I am not a very big fish fan, so our sushi was veggie style-- but it was delicious none-the-less. Those of you who live, or have lived in Sacramento know what I am talking about! Our waiter was even kind enough to keep me from ordering a not-so popular drink off the menu... that in and of itself is worthy of a 20% tip!
Macklemore
On Saturday, we headed into the city for some good old fashioned hip-hop fun! I happened to see Macklemore and Ryan Lewis were coming to San Francisco thanks to an Instagram post. It had been so long since Jason and I had been to a concert... Last time was Common and N.E,R.D. at the Cuthbert Amphitheater in Eugene in 2009. That's a long-ass time. So, when the tickets went on sale, I bought a pair.
Since we were going to have to head into the city for the show, we decided to make an adventure of it. We've had several co-workers tell us about the Capitol Corridor-- which goes from Sacramento to San Francisco and beyond (in both directions). Since driving into the bay area, and finding parking in the city is such a pain in the ass-- and so painfully expensive-- we booked a pair of tickets and hopped the train. The ride is beautiful, and takes the same amount of time as driving-- especially if there's traffic.
We dropped out stuff off at the hostel, yes I said hostel. Listen, before you judge-- there are options to book a private room with your own bathroom-- which is awesome. Breakfast in the morning is complimentary-- and it costs way less than booking a hotel room. Plus, we were less than a mile from the venue, which meant we could walk.
And walk we did. We spent much of the afternoon wandering around the city-- taking in the sights and snacking on some awesome food.
On our way to the show we stopped at this little spot. I found it while googling restaurants around the area. Let me just say, the food tasted so much better than it looks, and the wait for dinner wasn't too bad-- about 20 minutes. I've heard the brunch wait is terrible-- which is part of the reason we chose to go to dinner.
The other reason was the fried chicken and the ribs. Oh my goodness! Some of the best I've ever had. The biscuits were also awesome, and the pepper jelly was delish. Add this to your list of restaurants to try the next time you're in San Francisco.
If we didn't have a show to go to, I would have said dinner was the highlight of the trip-- but the concert was actually the best part of our 24 hours in the city! The opening act was great. The second act was a snooze-- but when Macklemore and Ryan Lewis came out it was a fucking party!
That white boy sure knows how to put on an amazing show! The set was incredible, the songs performed were a mix of meaningful, heartfelt and dance-worthy. And the mother fucker ended on Downtown, complete with confetti and indoor fireworks-- so what else could we ask for? By the end of the night we were drenched in sweat, our feet were sore and our throats were hoarse. In fact, mine still is!
Also, my little audio-file told me it was hands down, the best concert he's been to. So, that means I scored big in the bad ass fiance column. If you like Macklemore at all, I suggest you do yourself a favor and buy some tickets to his show, if he happens to be coming to a town near you.
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