Summer Fun - Part 2 (Long Post)

 So today is all about the concert.

We finally were able to get in line at 5:00.  Thankfully we weren't to far back in the line so we didn't have to stand there a long time.  Had a chance to chat with people and wonder why so many were carrying folding chairs and blankets.  Finally found out those were people who purchased general admission tickets.  Whew!  There was no way I wanted to sit on the grass or in a lawn chair.

Once inside a nice attendant helped us find our seats.  Middle Section, Row 20 back from stage and seats 9 & 10.  Not bad!

A couple of "selfies" because well... just because!

Loved the covering over part of the Pavilion and how the clouds were in the sky.  It was sunny so I worried that it might be hard to see once the concert started.  No worries though because by the time it started the sun had moved and we could see the stage just fine.

Before the crowd started filling up.  You can see how close we were. 

   

In May they held the Expo 74 Celebration here (we didn't go) Saw this on the side of the building so took a shot of it.

This was on a wall behind us and I thought it was a neat saying.

Had to get a picture of the flag and yes, part of the Clock tower.

Loved the graphics on this drum and didn't realize at first that this was the name of the opening acts band.  

So here they are on stage.  Then a guy next to us informs us that 2 of the Band members are John Fogertys sons.  The guy in front in the black on the left of the photo is Shane Fogerty and the one in the Green shirt is, Tyler Fogerty (he was a kick to watch).

  

   They played for about an hour give or take before the next act.

Next up was George Thorogood and the Destroyers.

I'm terrible at taking videos so the ones here will not be complete songs but at least you'll hear part of the songs.

Sadly my video skills were not able to get Bad to the Bone, instead I got about 17 seconds of the song and a video of the seats and concrete under my feet!

It was fun finally being able to see them since we had previously purchased tickets back in 2021 but the concert was cancelled a week before hand due to a band member having Covid. (That sucked).

They probably played about 90 minutes and it was really fun to listen to.  I especially enjoyed the saxophone player.

Finally time for John Fogerty! - Hard to believe he's 79 years old.

Behind the band was a movie screen and various scenes would be played to match the songs being sung.  This was from, Bad Moon Rising.

Here is the little video I got of the song.  Again I apologize for my lack of video skills.

                    This one was from the song,  Green River.

This song was the tribute song he wrote for his wife Julie,  Joy of My Life. -  His sons, Shane and Tyler played with him during the concert so they had quite an evening of playing both with their own band and then with their dad.

The guitar he is playing here was one he customized himself and played at Woodstock.  Eventually he ended up giving it away and then as a surprise on Christmas his wife had purchased it back for him.  You can read the story about that guitar HERE

This song was, It came out of the Sky.  The video had aliens and spaceships and was super fun to watch.  Music was great!

Some of the lights from the upper portion of the pavilion canopy.

This is from the song, Centerfield.  This song was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Finally I leave you with another short video:

Looking Out My Back Door...

We did not stay in Spokane so after the concert was over around 10:30 we left Spokane and drove home.  We got in around 1:15 am.  The concert was amazing and I loved every minute of it.  

The weirdest thing that happened...a couple sitting behind us had been drinking beer most of the night ($15 a can) and I over hear the guy say,  "I wonder if the lady in front of me would mind if I pee on her because I have to urinate!"  -  I turned around and asked him if he was talking about me or the other lady that was in front of him.  He was rather embarrassed and said,  "You heard that?" - "Yep, I replied, I've got really good hearing!"

The worst thing that happened...I ended up coming down with a cold and spent the next 2-3 days in bed because the cold medication I take makes you quite sleepy.  It was worth it though.

Summer Fun - Part 1

 Oh my gosh it's been a month now since my last post.  I'm still alive although no one has inquired as to that so I'm not sure anyone missed me.

Anyhow...The summer has been a "busy" one for sure.  Much of it was spent working on the house.  Mike has done the majority of the work but I've helped out a little here and there.  

Spent a Saturday morning pulling staples from these stairs.  Each one had between 20-25 staples that had to be pulled.  It's a big stair case so there were a lot of staples.  More on the house remodel at another time.

Today's post is about fun (pulling staples is NOT fun.)

So we took a little trip out of town on Friday the 16th of August.

We headed to Spokane, WA.  Today is just a hint of what we did.

Took this on the way up.  These are a common sight in this area.  They are extremely HUGE up close.  I just liked this shot of the fields, clouds and the wind turbines.

We got to Spokane and met a friend of mine who lives there for lunch at Casa de Oro on Division street for a lovely lunch.  Sadly I didn't think to get pictures of our food or my friend.  After lunch Mike & I headed to our main destination.  

After finding a place to park at a parking garage in a mall area we headed out and about.  Took this next shot inside of a Giant Red shoe.  I took Mike's photo on my phone and he took mine on his.

After we exited the shopping mall I snapped a few photos of things that I thought were interesting.

Mural on the side of an underpass.

Metal sculpture of runners on the way to River Front Park (click to enlarge.) I had hoped to get more pictures but Mike was wanting to get over to the park and wasn't slowing down long enough for me to shoot more.

The fountain at the park.  Lots of people kept running inside to get soaked.  Didn't get any shots of that though.

Big Red Wagon.

  

We found a spot where he could rest while I wandered around and took a few pictures.  I liked this metal fish sculpture.

I didn't walk close enough to find out what these were but I liked them anyway.

Picture of part of the falls.

Power plant

Metal Goat Sculpture. - I thought this was the one called, Garbage Goat but after reviewing another website it's not.  Apparently there is one that looks like this:

(Not my photo) somewhere in the park.  You can read about it here:

There is a section of the bridge area over the falls where you can purchase a lock tag and have it attached to the fence.  Sounds like a fun idea but at a $100 a lock it was a (no-go) for us.

More of the falls and an interesting building in the background.

The Pavilion in the park.

I wish I had wandered around longer to get a bunch more photos as I know I missed a lot of things in the park but I didn't want to leave hubby sitting all by himself for a long time.  He has a hard time walking around for long periods so that's why he didn't go with me.

We spent from 2:00 till 5:00 just hanging out in the park.  Why you ask....

See that part that says,  John Fogerty + George Thorogood & the Destroyers?  (I didn't get the date in, rats)  Yep,  we had tickets to that concert!!!

More on another post

Book Review - The Christmas Inn by Pamela Kelley

 

Thanks to Net Galley, the Author and Publisher for the ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) of this book in exchange for my honest review. Book description from Net Galley below:

Explore this delightfully cozy and joyful novel of second chances at the most wonderful time of the year, from USA Today bestselling author Pamela Kelley.

A feel-good novel as delightful and comforting as a cup of hot chocolate on a cold winter’s night, The Christmas Inn is bestselling author Pamela Kelley’s most heartwarming and magical book yet.

Riley Sanders didn’t plan on losing her job as a content marketing manager right before Christmas. When she calls her sister Amy to vent, she learns that their mother has broken her leg and could really use some help at the inn. Riley decides to head home to the inn, nestled along the shores of Cape Cod, in time for the Christmas rush. She is happy to help and needs something to distract her as mistletoe is hung and snowflakes begin to fall.

When she gets there, she not only finds delicious cookies and a crackling fire to lift her spirits, but also the sense of family she’s been missing all along. There’s Franny, a woman who has just lost her sister and has four unopened letters from her that she plans to use to open her up to new experiences on the Cape. And there’s Aidan, her high school sweetheart, now a widower, who is staying at the inn with his nine year-old son, Luke. What begins as a quick stay over the holidays to help her mom turns into something that means much more—a second chance at romance, a deeper sense of found family, and all the joy and wonder that comes with Christmastime on Cape Cod.

My thoughts on the book:  Yes this book is very reminiscent of a typical Hallmark  movie type theme.  And in fact that Author makes mention of (Hallmark) several times through out the book in describing the setting and scenes in the book itself.

What I liked about the book:  The characters were fun and believable and easy to relate to.

The author was very descriptive of the characters, the settings, the food, etc...this was both a plus and minus for me.  I like having good descriptions of things but sometimes felt she went a little overboard on the descriptions or they were repeated a lot throughout the story.

Besides the "romance" aspect of the story there were also plot lines for the other characters besides the main character (Riley).  

It was light hearted, fun and easy to read.  No explicit sex scenes (which for me is a plus as I don't think they are necessary for a book to be good), no foul language either (also a plus for me).  - It's the kind of book you can read from start to finish in a day or put down and pick up a few days later and get right back into the story.  

What I didn't like about it:  Again I did feel some of the details were repeated over and over such as the (wine/cheese) which is mentioned a lot in the book. I almost thought that the people drank way to much wine and ate way to much food to be normal.  But that's just a minor "picky" detail about the book that you could easily overlook.

Over all for this kind of genre of book I would give it a 4 star rating. It was a nice, pleasant book set at Christmas time and fun to read.  So I would recommend the book to anyone wanting to just sit down with a cup of tea, coffee or even a glass of wine and enjoy a relaxing time reading.