In-laws in Town

I don't really feel like writing, but it's been a while since I posted so I thought I would write something...
The end of the semester at school was a whirlwind, super busy tutoring tons of students the last few weeks. Glad it is finally over. I had a nice week

This past weekend, Joe's parents came to visit and we attended our first concert at Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, IL....and it was a good one! We saw Tony Bennett! It was his 85th Birthday Celebration. Had to believe he is 85 years old the way he sings. It really is effortless for him and his voice still sounds great after all of these years. Unfortunately, we couldn't bring cameras so all I have is some grainy photos from my phone...even more reason to get an iPhone!

We had a nice time at Ravinia, Millennium Park and hanging out at various spots in Chicago with them.
The fun doesn't stop there! My Mom comes to visit us this weekend. Busy times ahead.

Here are some select photos from Joe's parents visit as well as my one and only super bright video of Tony Bennett singing one of my favorite songs. You can view all of the photos HERE as well.

Miss Jackson if you're Nasty!

Finally here - Janet pictures and videos!

We had a BLAST at the concert!! She was amazing! I don't know if any concert will ever top that for me. The dancing was great, the whole show was great. She is so talented.

Seeing Janet was really a childhood dream come true for me. I have loved her and her music as long as I can remember. She did all her hits from back in the day...I was in heaven!

I got a little teary during the ballad part in the middle of the show, she sang Nothing (a new song which is great), Come Back To Me, Let’s Wait Awhile and Again. A couple of those songs were my favorites growing up...they remind me of being a little girl/teenager in California and listening to them over and over. Really beautiful songs.

After the show I wanted to go again. I was so pumped! She did 3 shows in Chicago and if I could afford it I would have gone to all of them! I LOVE Janet!
I didn't take my good camera - I think those types of cameras are banned from concerts - but Kameko and I both had our little point and shoot cameras and we still got some decent pics and videos. Thanks to Kameko for the close-ups!
You can watch the slide show below or click on it to view them large on my Picasa account.
Video's are below as well. They aren't the best quality, but it's something! Please disregard any off-key singing, that was probably us! hahaha!



Opening video before she came out. Note the guy in the lower right. He had some moves. :-)


Pleasure Principle (one of my fave songs ever!)


Nasty Part 1


Nasty Part 2


Escapade


If - Part 1


If - Part 2 and Part of Scream (I was going crazy at that part...note camera shake)


Rhythm Nation (MY FAVE!)

The Good and the Bad

Today started as a good day but now I'm pretty bummed out.

Tonight is the Janet Jackson concert at the Chicago Theatre. I can't believe today is finally here! I was/am super excited for it. However, my excitement was quickly ruined as I was getting ready to go to work this morning. I got a call from the last firm I interviewed with. I don't think I ever blogged about it, so here's the recap. I nailed the interview, he told me he was "very impressed" with me and the job seemed like a perfect fit. It was with an awesome firm and I was super pumped. I was praying I would get this one. I was expecting to hear from him any day now  because he emailed me last week and told me they would be making a decision this week.

So, when the phone rang this morning and I saw the firm name on the phone I was hoping he was calling me with good news. Nope, it was bad news....of course. My heart sunk when he said, "unfortunately......"

He was calling to tell me that they offered the position to someone else with a little bit more experience than me. I do appreciate that he actually called. That was nice. He said again that he was very impressed with me and that he would keep my resume because they might be hiring more people later on. Damn it. Damn it. Damn it. I am so mad because it seems like all the people looking that have 3-5 years of experience are taking all the jobs that I should be getting. The 1-2 year experience Jr Designer jobs. UGH!

So my happy day was ruined by this call. Then I had to call Joe to tell him about it and I probably ruined his day too. This sucks. He was counting on this one as much as I was. Bummer. You can always count on me to call and deliver the bad news. Booooooooo.

I'm hoping to cure my sadness and wallow in my sorrow with some drinks tonight before the Janet concert.

Someday I will deliver good news on this blog....someday.

Another Interview, Weekend, and Janet!!

I have another interview this Wednesday with a different company. I just found out about it today from a former classmate of mine. They called right away for an interview after I sent my resume. I'm not really sure what it is exactly, but I will find out more when I talk to her tonight. It's a project management company  of some sort located downtown, they are looking for a project assistant. It's good to see that there is some activity as far as jobs go, seems like I have heard about a lot of potential openings lately, but not really within the architecture and design firms themselves. At least its something...

We had a nice weekend. We went over to our friends Megan and Scudder's new condo out in the suburbs to watch the big Bears/Packers game on Sunday. Too bad the Bears lost. :-(  

They recently bought  a new place and it was nice to see it. The condo was really nice and we had a nice time over there. I took a big crock pot full of yummy nacho cheese dip (Cathy's famous recipe) and they had lots of other game day food. We also played that Just Dance game on the wii. Only a couple songs, but man, I was addicted! I want that game! I got the highest score on the two songs we played. Go me!

In other news (I cannot believe I forgot to post this earlier)....I am going to see JANET JACKSON in concert on March 8th! WOOO! I am so excited! She is going on tour, it's called her Up Close and Personal Tour. The tour will be smaller venues and she will sing all of her hits. I am so pumped! She is playing at the Chicago Theatre, which will be really cool. Its smaller and I have never seen a show there, so it should be so fun! I am going with my friends Kameko and Megan. I CANNOT wait. I have always been a fan of Janet and I will probably get emotional seeing her live, since I never have. Her music has always inspired me and a lot of it reminds me of being a kid.  I never got to see Michael, so I couldn't pass up the chance to see Janet, another one of my favorite singers/performers, live and in concert. I am SO excited!!!

http://www.janetjackson.com/index