Happy December! It's officially the best time of the year. Sweet jazz music in the city, hot chocolate by the fire, Christmas tree decorating...And of course: Funny Christmas hats! I am overly excited to start buying gifts and wrapping them and putting them underneath the tree. It is definitely my favorite time of the year. I decorated my tree last night with Jon. I made him wear a funny Christmas hat, too.

I never really enjoy receiving gifts for Christmas. I love giving gifts to my family and friends the most. I have a fond memory of Christmas, and that is waking up to a fresh coat of snow on the ground outside. It brings me back to my childhood memories. That, and gingerbread houses. I am going to master that this year!

I am currently on the phone with Rich trying to explain what a Chelsea Grin is. Speaking of Chelsea Grin, they were in town last night, which excited me very much. I left class about a half hour early and headed over to Rockville Centre to only hang out in the van for most of the night. The show was long...For some reason, Long Islanders enjoy putting five locals on the bill, followed by the tour package.After the show, we headed back to my house to drop off the van and then went for some well deserved Taco Bell. Finally we called it a night and the boys showered and we passed out. Somehow I made it to class this morning, but I really wish I could have spent a few more hours with them.

I'm going to keep this short and sweet for now. Perhaps I'll take a nap and re-update later.

My new job has been kicking my ass. I went from working about seven hours total a week at my old job, to working 10+ hour days at the new job. I can't keep up, and now I go to bed as early as my grandparents. I really hope my paychecks are worth it.

Jonathan and I went to see Paranormal Activity tonight. Although it was very creepy, it was kind of a let down. I also managed to spend $40 at Sephora on two items. Tomorrow I plan on going to the mall after class to buy a dress at H&M that I should had just bought yesterday when I was there.

I am also in need to write a paper that I have put off until last minute, once again. School sucks...I'm so over it!

Xo,
Bean.

Tour was absolutely amazing. I had such a great time, even though we had a few minor setbacks here and there. First, Atlantic City was a good time, even though I didn't really win anything. Last Monday I met up with the boys in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. The show ended up being shut down, so Joey, Tyler, Drew and I went to Taco Bell while the rest went to TGI Friday's for Jess' birthday. Fellow tour mates, Chelsea Grin happened to be at the same Taco Bell, so it was a blast to meet them. We stayed at Midge's in Delaware that night.

Tuesday was Mt. Airy, Maryland. 20 miles from the venue, the belt breaks on I-70. We pull over and call AAA and a mechanic. The mechanic is super stoked that we were a touring band and insists staying open later to help us, (turns out, he's also a musician and showed Rob and Drew his music). So, we detach the trailer and me, Pete, Bill, Lou, Joey, and Tyler wait while Rob and Drew go to the mechanic. We decide to call the other bands to see if they would be willing to detach their trailer and come get ours. American Me couldn't because it turns out that Aaron had the swine flu! So he was sleeping in the van, and that was understandable. We call Chelsea Grin but they weren't even at the venue yet. We then call Attila who manage to jerk us around for five hours. Finally, one of the guys in Chelsea get in touch with us to tell us that Attila's manager, Alex, told everyone that we had everything under control and not to come get us. His plan was to have us not show and Attila would end up getting more money for headlining. So, I quickly call Rob and tell him to grab a cab and head to the show, so that way their manager would feel threatened. He did, after Drew ripped him a new asshole. Finally, Chelsea Grin gets to the venue, plays their set and then willingly comes to save us. We made it to the show with minutes to spare and got the money we earned. After the show, we all gathered in Chelsea Grin's van (I managed to roll over a spilled bottle of soda, soaking my pants). We grabbed some dinner and got to a hotel close to the garage.

Wednesday we were thrown out of the hotel room because the manager thought we had all stayed in one room, which wasn't true. Chelsea slept in their van in the parking lot, but managed to get yelled at anyways. We quickly showered and head to the garage which was conveniently placed next to a shopping center with a grocery store and a Subway. We all ate lunch together and hung around until the van was done. Then we headed off to Fredricksburg, Virginia. The show went really well. However, it was in some sort of church community center so the local bands were praising God the entire time.

Thursday we played Nitro, West Virginia. It was a shitty venue in a shitty town. The crowd was great and I had a fun time hanging out with the Chelsea boys. After the show we drove over night to Virginia Beach. We woke up and were obviously super early to load in, so we explored the mall and had some drama due to record labels and pushing back CD releases, etc. So after all was said and done, the show went really well. We sold tons of merch and headed to a party close to the beach. AK and I drank some Jungle Juice and proceeded to get wasted. Him and I, plus Matt and Dan took a stroll down to the beach. Matt and Dan went in the water, but AK and I aren't too fond of the ocean, so we drew in the sand and then headed back to drink some more. In the process of walking back to the house, Joey was on the roof and saw AK and I walking together. From that moment he started a nice little rumor that AK and I had a hook up on the beach. This makes me laugh because he's only 18, so I come off as a cougar. The night continued with heavy drinking and me passing out on top of Tyler in the van and the Chelsea boys throwing up outside their van.

Friday we drove to Drew's Meema's house in Pittsboro, North Carolina. She made us breakfast and let us shower. We then drove, for what seemed like hours due to traffic, to Raleigh. Josh put me in a bad mood for a bit, so on top of the massive crowd and the bouncer pissing me off about where we set up the merch table, I through a fit. Eventually, some nice kid bought me a beer and that lead to many more and my rendition of Axl Rose's signature dance move and the rumor of AK and I to spread even further. This was my last day on tour, so I was on the verge of tears when I had to say goodbye to everyone. I miss everyone so much.

Yesterday Josh picked up from Meema's house. We got food, and then he dropped me off at Winnie's. Winnie, Chris, and I hung out all night.

Today I came home. I'm not looking forward to going back to school and work. I may or may not have some exciting news soon. I'm hoping my life becomes more exciting. My new job is nice, but I feel so out of place. This week put things in perspective for me. I realized what I love, and I'm wondering why I ever dropped out of music school...

Tuesday I started my new job as a receptionist at a salon (gotta get myself through college, somehow!) Today I worked a 10 hour shift. It was not as bad as I expected it to be, though. As soon as I got home I was invited to come out bowling. Pete came over and him and my parents ordered food. Then Pete and I played an intense game of Rock Band II (I got through 76% of Iron Maiden on expert bass). Then, with our forearms in pain, we met up with Lauren, Nick, Kev, Zizzo, Hodge, Chris, and Natalie at the Garden City bowling alley. We divided ourselves into two teams (Chris and Natalie played as one person): The Hot Dogs and the Gutter Rats. I was a Hot Dog, and we lost twice because Lauren is a really bad bowler. I didn't do so bad for once! We played two games and went out separate ways. Tomorrow Pete, Diana, Sean, and myself are going to see West Side Story on Broadway! I'm beyond excited. After that we will spend the night at Broadway Bar for some fun times. Sunday I am probably going to go to Atlantic City with the folks and meet up with Dr. Acula on Monday. Hopefully Josh comes through with the ride back to NY, otherwise I'm pretty much screwed. Oh well, I guess we'll see what happens.

Pretty gnarly quality, but basically proof that Lauren should never become a profession bowler.

Yes! My hair is finally getting longer! I mean, I did get a trim yesterday, but I think that helped a little! Now I just need a little black hair dye and I'm good to go. I wish I could be a blonde, but I don't think that will be happening anytime soon...

My sister bought me a new Polaroid camera for my birthday. It's a lovely limited edition one from Urban Outfitters. Too bad the film costs an arm and a leg and is scarce these days. I want to take as many as possible before the film disappears. I've contemplated taking it on the road with me, but it's a little too big to carry around with me. I think I'll just stick to my point & shoot digital camera.

I've been so broke. I really can't wait to start my new job so I can have some money! I've reduced my price for photography to $50 until I leave for the open road. So far Isaac responded for a photo shoot. Hopefully I can get at least one more before September 27th. I've been so broke that I can't even afford much food. I have been eating left over spaghetti that I polished off earlier tonight. It's rather sad.

So, my mom told me the other day that NCC offers jobs people with a BA in psychology (or any major, really) if they are continuing onto their Masters. This is insane! I'm hoping she heard right, because if so then I will apply and apply until I can be called Professor Bean!