Variety Fail

The kids and I were driving through a shopping center today when we came upon two window displays at a local clothing store. So I'm wondering if you all can give me a little help in which outfit I should choose because there is SO much variety it's just overwhelming me.

Women's:



Men's:



So, what do you think? White top or white top? Denim or denim? I'm just so torn.

First-Hand Account from Lucky No Doubt Fan

If you read my review of the No Doubt show at the Nissan Pavilion in Virginia, you know that one fan had the experience of a lifetime...being pulled on stage by Gwen Stefani!

Bob has kindly agreed to share his experience with all of you here, complete with pictures and video.

One thing you should know...Bob is a firm believer, as I am, in the power of prayer and the law of attraction as found in the book "The Secret." And he utilized both to make this happen, which I find tres cool.

Here is the story, straight from Bob himself. I'm sure he'd be happy to hear your thoughts so leave him lots of comment love, please. :) Enjoy!



OK...BEST concert I have EVER been to!!! One truly amazing night. My dream finally came true! From start to finish, this was my day:

Actually, rewind. First, I was just eager at the possibility of being front-row. But after getting home from work Saturday night, I read online that Gwen had been pulling fans on-stage at recent shows. So I planned on waking up early the next morning, getting to the store, making an amazing eye-catching sign that would be sure to grab Gwen's attention.

Tossing and turning. Anxious.

Fast-forward! I woke up yesterday morning earlier than I should have, and sat around getting nothing done. I kept trying to think of an awesome idea for a sign, and nothing would come to me. So I got ready. Thought about shaving, but didn't. But I don't regret ANYTHING about yesterday because everything fell perfectly into place!

So anyway, I hit the road around 12 and head for Best Buy to buy a memory card, and to Michael's to pick up some supplies to make a sign. I got back out to my car and my first attempt was dreadful. It was just a yellow posterboard with black marker that read, "Pull me up Gwen PLEASE" Not fancy enough.

So I took a couple minutes (and only a couple minutes) and threw together a sign made of yellow posterboard, cut into the shape of an arrow pointing down. Going down the arrow, in glittery letters was the word HUG with two question marks on the head of the arrow.



I thought, 'This'll never work' but I thought I was running later than I was. I hit I-95 ready for the show. Speeding. Doing 90 and blasting "Hella Good" and the rest of the No Doubt catalog...feeling GOOD!

Got to the venue at 3pm, and they said parking gates wouldn't open until 4:30pm so I went to Target to pass some time. Bought a new shirt because the one I was wearing wasn't bright enough. Also bought some hot yellow sunglasses. Changed in the bathroom, headed out to my car, then realized the memory card I bought at Best Buy in Baltimore didn't work in my camera. Ran back into Target and bought one that did.

Got everything ready and headed over to the venue at 4pm. They were letting people in already. So I parked and headed to the Fan Club line. Met two really awesome people over there (who for reasons we discussed while leaving will remain nameless!) and hung with them until the gates opened.

5:40-ish we get in. I take off running, faster than I ever have before, and caught up with them (They had already taken off). We ended up front row, just right of the center. The Sounds rocked. So did Paramore. Now the good stuff.

No Doubt comes out, opening with "Spiderwebs". While Gwen's covering the stage, back and forth, I'm holding up my sign. 5 years ago in almost the same exact spot, Gwen had sang a line of "Simple Kind of Life" to me, and before she did, she gave me this look that said, 'Get ready. I'm choosing you!' Sounds silly I know.

But during "Spiderwebs", she glanced at my sign and gave that same look. I felt then that she'd definitely pull me up. She just lingered while looking at it. So I kinda knew.

They do a couple more songs, and Gwen starts reading other signs before the next song. She starts off to my right, and she's moving closer and closer...and I'm getting nervous. Then she skips over me. I was crushed. I thought, 'Oh no...this isn't gonna happen for me.' She read another sign, then they went into the next song, so I thought, 'Good, she didn't pull anyone up yet. I still have a chance.'

I don't remember honestly if she did one or two more songs. It's all a blur at this point. But after whichever song came before "Simple Kind of Life" (I honestly cannot remember right now) the lights came up and I held my sign up again. I'd been holding it up quite a bit and felt ignored. She kept skipping over me.

So this time, she walks right over to me, and I'm holding it up and thinking, 'Oh Sweet Lord, this is it!' She glances down, and (I cannot remember exact dialogue) but she says, "What's that? What's that say!?" So I hold it up, and she says, "Give it here!" so I try to reach but it was too far. So security hands it to her.



She holds it up, and I snapped two pics of her holding it...then, to my complete shock and amazement, she says, "COME AND GET IT!" Then whirlwind. People behind me start pushing me over the railing, while security is pulling me from the other side.

Security lights the way to the stairs and I run (I think I ran - I don't remember!) up the stairs. I do remember I almost tripped once I got up there. It's vague. But I remember it.

And there she was. Arms wide open. Gwen was waiting to hug me. In front of thousands! So I give her the warmest hug, which she returned just as warmly. And it felt like it lasted SOO long.



And I leaned in and thanked her for her work in helping HIV/AIDS research (campaigns such as One) and I told her that I'd lost (someone very special to me) to that disease and it meant a lot. There was this true bonding moment...just in that instant. But it lasted an eternity. And it meant the world.

Then she noticed my camera and said, "Do you want a picture!?" I remember the crowd roaring behind us, and she took my camera out of my hand, held it in front of us, and snapped two pictures.



Lemme just say...I had NO idea what to do with my hands. As I recall, one was around her bare waist. I remember thinking, 'I'm crossing a line, they're gonna throw me out!' but it was all cool. I remember Gwen giving me a second hug, and I turned around and waved to the entire band, and headed back down the stairs.



I truly hope I remembered to thank Gwen...but if I didn't, I was able to mouth it repeatedly to her at the end of the show. I went back to the spot my friend saved for me and enjoyed the rest of the show. Amazing. Absolutely amazing.

At the end of the show, so many people approached me, and a number of people even asked for pictures with me...which was kind of mind-blowing. I've always dreamed of someday being a celebrity...for what I don't know...but tonight, I had a taste of it. And it tasted like Reese's Peanut Butter cups, and milk - sublime.

Dreams absolutely do come true. Gwen made mine come to fruition on a stage at Nissan Pavilion in Bristow, Virginia on June 14, 2009. So very grateful. All you need are the powers of whatever you believe in - prayer - positive thought - The Secret - sounds a little out there to some...but I'm proof :)

Hella Good - No Doubt 2009 Tour at Nissan Pavilion in Virginia

Note: To fully enjoy the pics, click to enlarge. Also, I have an exclusive from the fan who was pulled on stage (see below) and will be bringing you that soon!

I know "Hella Good" is probably an overused title when it comes to No Doubt reviews, but my gosh...it is SO fitting I just had to use it! I was able to enjoy the band's 2009 tour from the pit at the beautiful Nissan Pavilion in Virginia last night, with more than 21,000 fans surrounding me.

Here's a shot at how far back the crowd was behind me (taken when Gwen asked us all to turn around and acknowledge the fans with lawn seats in the back):



Another cliche that so aptly applies to lead singer Gwen Stefani: She really IS more beautiful in person. As a mom of three in her late thirties, I was in awe of Gwen's ability to have such tight, phenomenal abs after two kids and 39 years on this earth. Neither words nor pictures can accurately portray how amazing she looked, but you can get an idea by this:



Speaking of motherhood, one of the most touching moments of the night, for me, was when Gwen sang the lyric, "I always thought I'd be a mom," from "Simple Kind of Life." The crowd cheered since, as we all know, Gwen is now in fact a mom. And her whole face lit up and radiated pride as she gave a knowing nod back to the crowd.

It's very obvious that No Doubt loves their fans as much as their fans love them. Gwen interacted with the crowd throughout the show and gave several shout-outs to Virginia. Here's Gwen singing "I'm just a girl...from Virginia:"



As fans handed Gwen various gifts, she made it known that she loves to receive. "Is that a present? I'll take it." She donned a backpack from one fan and a flag banner from another, which she called a "butt flap." At one point, something went flying up onto the stage toward Gwen, which was a little unnerving, but she played it off cooly and announced that it was a wedding invitation:



She read several signs that fans held up, including one from a young girl who was turning ten. Gwen wished her a happy birthday and asked her if it was her first concert (it was).

Another fan, Bob, was richly rewarded for his sign, which read in glittery letters, "Hug?"



"Come and get it," Gwen replied, and Bob went onstage for the hug and two photos with her, living out every No Doubt fan's biggest dream I am sure. (As I stated above, I'm in touch with Bob and will be bringing you his story exclusively in an upcoming post soon, so stay tuned!)

Those up front who missed out on the chance to go on stage got their share of the fun when Gwen suddenly jumped down into the audience and sang amongst the crowd, which drew huge cheers and applause. Such interaction really sets No Doubt apart in the realm of fan appreciation, for sure.

The entire performance was flawless, with Gwen's vocals just blowing me away. With a lot of singers who sing live, the sound is so often different from what you hear on an album. But if Gwen hadn't changed up the lyrics to some of the songs and added in the shout-outs, I could've been fooled into thinking she was lip syncing (she was not). It was that good.

There were two costume changes, for a total of three costumes that Gwen wore. First:



Second:



Third:



The award for most creative costume, however, goes to No Doubt's drummer Adrian, who wore this ensamble, complete with a pink tutu:



The stage set-up wasn't that elaborate but the screen that played in the background made up for it. Some of the cooler shots included:







I didn't get a shot of the best one from the night, however, which was of No Doubt in their earlier days. Gwen looked like a baby on the screen she was so young!

I missed the opening performances by The Sounds and Paramore, so I was thrilled when they all came out on stage with No Doubt during the finale to sing a cover of Adam Ant's "Stand and Deliver:"



At the very end of the show, No Doubt threw out souvenirs for the fans, including drumsticks, guitar picks, sweaty towels, and cups of water. One cup went hurtling my way and my hand got soaked by the water. I never wanted my hand to dry off, let me tell you! You can see the cup coming my way here:



You can see more of my pictures from the show here and videos here.

Many thanks to the AMAZING people at Live Nation and Nissan Pavilion for making this review possible and really going out of their way for me. I got a sneak peek at how much hard work they put into these shows and believe me, it is impressive!

For tickets and information on No Doubt's tour, click here. If they haven't come to your area yet, you DEFINITELY want to snatch up whatever tickets may be left fast. It's SO worth it!

I'm Just a Girl...

....in the PIT!! That's where I'll be tonight, bringing you all along with me virtually for the No Doubt/Paramore show at the beautiful Nissan Pavilion in Bristow, Virginia.



Stay tuned to my Twitter feed and to my Twitpic account for coverage. I'll be posting a full review of the show soon!

Many thanks to Live Nation for this fabulous opportunity!

I Always Feel Like Somebody's Watching Me

So you know those really annoying Geico commercials:



Yeah, I hate them too. BUT....I couldn't resist this little idea when I saw the Geico Money Dude on my Netflix mailer:



And oh have my kids had a field day with this! GMD likes to stalk me most when I'm watching television. He has snuck up on me twice next to our couch:





He's so subtle that it sometimes takes me awhile to notice him:



He was last seen staring at me while perched on the entertainment center in my bedroom (I didn't get a chance to snap a picture of him there), but now he seems to have disappeared. My kids claim to have no idea where he went.

But I know he's out there somewhere....watching me. Creepy GMD.

CF Rocks DC

If you live in the Washington DC area, there was only one place to be Saturday night: at the 9:30 Club catching Chester French's phenomenal performance. CF, along with Hollywood Holt opened for the very bada$$ Lady Sovereign. While they were all amazing, I'm going to focus on Chester French because I <3 them times infinity. :)

After watching CF's performance on Jimmy Fallon, I knew that the energy from them would be off the wall. And I was right.



My friend/assistant Heather and I were in the front row (I was actually able to rest my purse and beer on the stage, ha!) and got to soak up all of that energy as it poured off of DA and Max and flowed over the crowd.



As you know from my previous interview, these two are talented beyond words. DA's voice was smooth and sexy (like buttah!) and that boy can work a tambourine! Max was right in front of me and I got a close-up view of his tight guitar playing while he simultaneously played the keyboard:



Still blows me away! And both of their moves just make you want to get on the stage and dance with them (as three lucky girls got to do. *jealous*)



What I love most about CF, though, is how in-touch they are with their fans. They mingled with the crowd after their perfomance, took tons of pictures with everyone, and were really just so down-to-earth.



The highlight for me was when Max and DA remembered who I was when I said I was "Blonde Blogger." DA even remembered my real name, saying, "Oh, Dawn!" and gave me a huge hug. And just so you know...because you really must know this....DA also called me "sexy." ;)

The only downside of the night is that the pics of me with DA came out so bad. I'll be brave enough to share this one with you:



But the most important picture (Heather and I with DA on CF's tourbus) came out so bad that my husband couldn't stop laughing. It was that bad. *sigh* Of all the pictures, that one was the one that I really needed to turn out good. Oh well...here it is cropped:



Heather is a journalism student so I was thrilled to bring her along with me to interview CF (her first interview ever!).

The intereview is in two parts because a couple of fans walked by and wanted a picture with DA. So I paused while he took the photo. See what I mean? EVERY fan is important to them and treated like a friend.

Finally, I have tried three different hosts for these videos and all of them darken them so much that you cannot see DA's face. Which sucks for you because he has a really cute face. :)

Here is the on-the-street, tourbus-side interview with DA, with a transcript below. DA starts by offering Heather tips for interviewing, then, in the spirit of CF's brand new album "Love the Future," talks about future plans, as well as Mick Jagger and pelvic thrusts. ;)




Part One - Know that my way-too-loud laughter at DA's shout-out to you all was due to the fact that I thought he was making a joke about my blog title. I thought he was referring to himself as the other blonde of "So Two Blondes Walk Into a Blog" because even though he's a (very hot) redhead, there is some blonde there!

And this is just more proof of how sweet he is...when we realized he wasn't joking, he felt so bad that he put his head into his hands and made the most adorable, "I'm so sorry" face. Then he let me shoot a quick correction. But seriously? He could've called my blog "Five Brunettes Walk Into a Phonebook" and I could not adore him any less. :)




Part Two - D.A. explains who inspired his astounding, on-stage energy.




Part Three- D.A. gives a corrected shout out to my readers (you!).

Interview Transcript:

HEATHER: You once tweeted that, when the Lady Gaga show got cancelled in DC, that two of your best shows [that] you’ve ever done were in DC and Richmond. So what is it about DC that made it so memorable for you?

DA WALLACH: DC is just the, the most exuberant city I feel like. For whatever reason, I don’t know if it’s us or if it’s DC, when we came to DC we just played an acoustic show before in a sneaker shop and there were...I was shocked at the number of people who came out because we do it in a lot of different cities, and I was just amazed at the number of people we had supporting us in DC just organically, maybe off the internet or whatever.

But I love DC, I would probably live here if I didn’t live in Wisconsin and you know, I spent summers here a couple of times in high school because I have family out here and it’s just a great place to come.

H: So when will you be headlining your own tour?

DA: I don’t know when we’re going to headline our own tour, it’s a little bit of a mysterious prospect because we’ve never headlined, so we don’t know how many people would come out to see us in a given city. But I think we can safely say we’ll try it in the fall at some point.

H: So you’re really awesome performers.

BLONDEBLOGGER: We’ve noticed you’ve acted really well in all of your interviews, any plans to do SNL, any improv, any kind of acting?

H: Because we would love to see you do that.

DA: Man, we would definitely do SNL in a second. Yeah, we would do SNL in a heartbeat. I mean, we don’t act but we like messing around and having fun and when people put cameras in your faces it’s usually the best option. So, we’re friends, so, so I’m giving you the real genuine side.

H: Who have you seen, that you’ve taken influence from when you perform? Like, what was your first show?

DA: Well, I’ll tell you a show I saw that stays in my mind and remains inspirational, and that is my mom took me, in like sixth or seventh grade, to see The Rolling Stones in Madison, Wisconsin and even at 60 years old, Mick Jagger is running back and forth across the stadium, and dancing his ass of and, you know, not that it competes with The Rolling Stones of the 60’s or 70’s, but I certainly feel like I can’t let a 60 year old man out-energize me every night. I’m not there yet, but I’m aspiring to his level of you know, energy.

BB: Your energy was amazing tonight.

DA: Thank you very much.

H: Yeah, I noticed the thrusts [like] you did on E!

DA: A lot of pelvic thrusts. We do a lot of pelvic thrusts.

H: It’s your signature.

DA: It is my signature. I just like people to know that that whole section is just working, you know what I mean? Just trying to clear the rumors up, you know? It’s all functional.

***********************************



Functional indeed! Mick Jagger doesn't have a thing on DA!

I'd like to thank 42West for making this review/interview possible, and thanks again to Heather for her assistance. Of course, thanks also goes to DA for the interview and the hugs. :)

Be sure to check out Chester French's website as well as their Twitter accounts. You can also choose from a number of fun packages CF is offering along with their "Love the Future" album here (I so want that safari trip!), and get a free download of CF's "Jaques Jams" mixtape here.

Su-Fine! Dane Cook's ISolated INcident Tour, 1st Mariner Arena, Baltimore, MD

Friday night, Dane Cook rocked the house hard with his ISolated INcident Global Thermo Comedy Tour at the 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore, MD. I had the privilege of reviewing the show from amazing seats thanks to the wonderful people at 1st Mariner.

I have been a fan of Dane for a long time now and I am clearly not alone, as thousands of people filled the huge arena. Think Britney Spears' crowd level. It was that big.

Here's something you need to know about Dane and this particular tour. This is his first time touring since losing both of his parents. His mother passed away first from cancer and shortly thereafter, his father became ill with cancer as well and died within nine months of his mother.

So it would be hard for anyone to pick themselves up after such a loss, much less find laughter once again. But Dane performed with energy and zest in honor of his parents, who were his biggest fans, and even included them in his routine. He called the show his "therapy."

One of the best parts of the show in fact, was about how Dane's parents got to see the good part of his fame (such as the packed arenas) but not the bad. Which would include the haters that come along once you're a celebrity. Dane had me both laughing and cheering him on as he recounted stories on that issue (I won't give away any of the jokes).

And what he revealed, to me at least, was that he has a HUGE heart. This is a guy who can crack jokes about the most crude things in one breath, and then turn around and make you laugh about very profound, deep moments from his life. That not only takes talent. That takes guts. And the crowd loved him for it.

More proof of the big heart that lies beneath the animated, boyish exterior: directly in front of me were a group of Marines who yelled out "Oo-rah!" Dane heard them and knew right away they were Marines.

He stopped his act to acknowledge them, thanked them for their service to our country and promised he'd be back in Iraq to perform for the troops as he'd done before...despite having a dog take a chunk out of his arm the last time he was there, lol ("But then I thought, maybe there's a bomb in my arm!" Dane said. "Good dog!")

The jokes Dane tells for ISolated INcident lean heavily toward the sexual. There were less of the type of jokes I love best from him (car alarms and parking garage squeals, the friend nobody likes, don't get on the flight, pickles, etc.), but I was still laughing until I cried. I did hear others commenting on the same thing, though as we left the show so I wasn't the only one who noticed.

One thing that I found funny....the girl next to me visibly tensed up every time he cracked a crude, sexual joke and all I could think was, "What are you even doing here? Don't you know what Dane Cook is all about?!"

Seriously, if you're that easily offended you do not want to go to a Dane Cook show. Everyone else around me was in hysterics, though. I think the girl might have been brought to the show as a date by the guy she was with. Man did he read her wrong if that's the case!

If you're a Dane Cook fan, you know that nothing is too offensive and nothing is off limits for him - politics, racism, and even the death of his own parents were all part of his act. Which just proves that humor is what makes Dane tick and if you have an open mind and a good sense of humor, you will totally get him.

And if you get him, and you have the opportunity to see his show, you're going to have the time of your life:

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~Visit Dane Cook's official website here. You can also find him on Twitter here.

~Click here to see upcoming dates and to purchase tickets for Dane's ISolated INcident Global Thermo Comedy Tour.

~For more information on the 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore, Maryland, click here.

~Follow Dane on tour with the VIP Pass iPhone app.

~Watch the "ISolated INcident" television special on Comedy Central, May 17.

~Purchase "ISolated INcident" on CD and DVD, in stores everywhere May 19.