Coachella Smoachella

Is it just me, or does it seem that tumblr users are primarily composed of 15-year-old girls?

I've been trying to get into the whole tumblr thing, but I still don't really get it to tell you the truth. Must be a generational gap (kidding, sort of). I feel so out of the loop. I don't even really know how to use Facebook anymore. I slow down when I'm driving past the nearby high-school during lunch-time just to check out what the girls are wearing these days. I bet all of those girls have tumblrs.

Made a group decision to skip Coachella this year, even though the lineup looks killer:

In other news, I made an awesome soup last night for dinner! Pumpkin-tortilla. Click here for the recipe.

Try it out, you won't be disappointed! Keep in mind though that you might want to add a little more broth than the recipe calls for as the soup condenses down a lot after an hour of simmering. Enjoy!

IT'S OUT

After months of anticipation, the lineup for Coachella 2011 has arrived. I'm particularly excited to see YACHT again. They put on a great show. I'm also looking forward to Gogol Bordello, Mumford and Sons, & Sleigh Bells. Start saving for your festival passes and maybe we'll bump into each other come April!

Coachella. Was. Amazing. I don't even know where to begin. It's hard to describe the experience.

We drove to Palm Desert on Thursday night. As we were navigating our way through the mountain passes, we noticed that a stream of headlights were following us, making all the same turns. It was then that we realized that this was a pilgrimage of sorts.

We got to the condo around 11:30 pm. We stocked up the fridge with a 30-rack of Coors Light, a 12-pack of Stella, bloody mary mix, vodka, orange juice, milk, eggs...the works. We were exhausted from the day of traveling and we knew that we had a big day ahead of us, so we went to bed soon after that.

Walking into the festival for the first time (after standing in a 2-hour line to go through security), we really had no idea what to expect. Everyone there looked like they just stepped out of an Urban Outfitters catalog. After a few minutes of traversing through a swarm of people, everybody started to look exactly the same. Nobody stood out. When I became aware of this, it dawned upon me: Coachella is a place where anything goes. I started doing cartwheels.

120-something bands and artists were performing at the festival. We caught about 5-7 shows a day. Here are my Top 5 favorite performances:

1. Major Lazer

Why? Out-of-control, non-stop energy. I felt like a dancing zombie. Was extremely sore the next day.

2. Passion Pit

Why? They performed on the first day right as the sun was setting over the mountains. It was definitely emotional.

3. She & Him

Why? Because it made me want to be famous and because of their killer cover of "I put a spell on you".

4. Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros

Why? It was a truly genuine performance. They looked like they were having the time of their lives. Their backdrop (a painting of the Emerald City without the poppies) was pretty cool too.

5. Phoenix

Why? Because their performance surprised me. I didn't think they would be that good live.

I took around 850 pictures this weekend, so obviously I can't share them all. Here are a few of my favorites:

This past weekend was truly the time of my life. It changed my outlook on a lot of things - from how I listen to music, to how I think and feel about life in general, if you can believe that. I am still digesting everything and recovering from a serious deprivation of sleep, but I feel so lucky and blessed, especially to have had experienced it all with Noel and Morgan.

I might just have to make this an annual tradition...

The Wait is Over!

... well, almost.

I feel like I have been counting down the days for months. Now, Coachella is just 4 days away and I can barely contain my excitement! Morgan and I will be flying to San Diego on Thursday afternoon, where we will meet up with Noel. We will drop in on my parents for a short visit, and then we will drive to Palm Desert that evening. My grandparents were nice enough to agree for us to use their condo there.

Yesterday, I put together a playlist of songs by artists that will be playing at the festival. Here are some of my favorites:

Vampire Weekend - Horchata

Local Natives - Sun Hands

She & Him - Home

Girls - Lust for Life

The xx - VCR

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros - Om Nashi Me

And of course, I have been pondering over wardrobe selections for the past couple of months. I can't wait to show you pictures (that is, if I can find a way to sneak my camera in).

This weekend, my dad came to visit me. In the four years that I've been in Colorado, he has never come to visit me by himself. In fact, I don't think that we have ever spent prolonged one-on-one time together. When I was growing up, there were plenty of mother-daughter trips, and similarly, father-son trips. The only difference between them was that my mom and I would go to New York to shop and see shows while my brother and my dad would go on river rafting trips and things of that nature.

It was nice to get to spend time with my dad without having any sort of agenda. He came in on Friday afternoon. I picked him up from his hotel and we went to Whole Foods for a light lunch. Later that evening, we went to Jax fish house for dinner. The next day, we went to the Buff for breakfast and saw Shutter Island afterward. That night, we went to Japango for a sushi feast. My dad is the kind of person that usually orders teriyaki chicken at sushi restaurants, but this time, he let me take the reins when it came to ordering. I've been telling him for years that you can make a whole meal out of sushi and I think he finally believes me now. Today, we watched a DVD that he brought from home called Isn't She Great, an autobiographical movie about the life of Jacqueline Susann, author of the best-selling novel, Valley of the Dolls. We had both recently finished reading the book, so it seemed fitting.

I'm really glad that we got to have some "QT" time together. My dad is so uplifting to be around, and lately, I've been in need of some cheering up. Mission accomplished :) Thanks "Dadman"!

On the way back from dropping him off at the airport, I stopped off at ARC, a thrift-store chain in Colorado, and bought a pair of brown lace-up boots for $4.99. I've been a thrift-store hound for awhile now, but recently I've decided to refrain from department stores and boutiques and stick to second(and third and fourth)-hand garments. It's cheap (which agrees nicely with my monthly budget) and it's original.

In other news, I am about a twenty dollar-bill away from purchasing my Coachella ticket. Within the next couple of days, I'd also like to buy my ticket to see Devendra at the Ogden. As of now, I don't have anybody to go with, but there are a few weeks before the show. Worse comes to worse, I can just go stag. I love DB that much!

The week ahead will be a stressful one. However, I am looking forward to Friday - Alice in Wonderland finally comes out!! I can't wait :)

Coachella or Bust

Well, the official Coachella lineup was released yesterday. It looks a little something like this:

Umm.... are you kidding me?
I've been wanting to attend the Coachella Arts and Music festival in Indio, CA since high school. I have a feeling that this is going to be the year all my dreams are going to come true.