Snow storms, ice storms, & earthquakes-- oh my!

Hello, everyone! 

Happy Sunday! To my Walking Dead fans out there-- what did you think about the return of Season 4 last week? It was something else, I must say. Very suspenseful, and surprisingly a bit comedic. I am looking forward to watching the show every Sunday with a couple of friends here on campus. 

Not only am I looking forward to evenings of zombies, but I am also looking forward to going to church next Sunday! Today, my friend Andrew whom I've known since high school (also attends my college) invited me to check out a nearby Presbyterian church with him, since he knew I attended one back home. I agreed to go and at 10:30 this morning we walked over to the church. Next week will mark its 156th year! It's been restored over the years and it is quite lovely. It has a balcony in the sanctuary which wraps around the wall. The pews face inward to the center of the pulpit. Suspended from the ceiling was apparently a new addition to the sanctuary-- 3000 origami cranes strung on several threads! Everyone there was so welcoming and the service was short but enlightening. During the sermon, the preacher added a personal anecdote, reflecting on the barn dances we have at Montreat (yes, indeed, he did bring up Montreat!). The overall concept of this service was synergy (by definition is the interaction between two or more organizations to produce a combined effect greater than the sum of their separate effects) and he finished with the remark about Montreat and how, at the barn dance, it doesn't matter your age, gender, sexuality, nor race-- everyone is there dancing together to have a good time and to celebrate their faith. Needless to say, I'll be going back to the church each Sunday if I'm on campus and not at home. 

Origami cranes hanging from the ceiling

How did everyone do in Georgia's second snowpocalypse? I feel we were better prepared this time around. Classes were cancelled a day in advance, though during the first day of snowpocalypse, Atlantans received rain instead of snow. It was a good day for me, though, being able to catch up on homework. The second day, the snow fell, and the third day it iced over a bit, making the land one slippery place to trek. The weather warmed up by the third day, though. The sun was out and began to slowly melt away the remnants of the snow. I decided to check out the city, in hopes of going to the top of the Westin or the Hilton to get a different photo overlooking the snowy city. 

Early morning - snow!

Daytime

Freedom Parkway

ICE

MORE ICE

Obligatory "I'm about to freeze
my butt off" selfie.

When I got to the Hilton, I bought a frappucino before attempting to go up the elevator. I'm not much of a coffee person, but I had a sweet tooth and the Starbucks was all out of hot cocoa syrup! When I reached the elevator, it arrived, and I boarded. Much to my dismay, it asked for a hotel card to use the elevator. Instead of waiting around for a hotel guest to board the elevator, I went to the enclosed bridge which connected the Hilton to the Marriott and walked across it. I wound up cutting through a business conference! I went up the escalators to find my way to the Hyatt, but opted out of going into the Hyatt and instead wandered on down the street. I found myself outside of the Hard Rock Cafe, just a block away from the Westin. I passed by Hooters and the Ritz Carlton. Workers were either salting or shoveling the sidewalks. I decided to walk in the direction of the Tabernacle, and though I didn't pass by it, from a distance I took a photo of the Tabernacle with Skyview Atlanta in the background. I decided not to walk all the way to Centennial Olympic Park, but instead I went to the Westin. 

Look at that beautiful blue sky.

Empty restaurant at Peachtree Center

The Tabernacle and SkyView Atlanta

Can't remember which building this is... but it's cool.

Selfie at Hard Rock Cafe

The Westin

View from bridge between Hilton
and Marriott

Nothing unusual
here, just freezing.

I was wearing my Panic! at the Disco hat from last week's concert, and the bellhop immediately commented on it. "Yes, I was one of the many hundred out on Luckie  Street the other night." We had a conversation about what went down, and the bellhop shared a story of his experience at the Tabernacle a few years ago. After our conversation ended, I asked where to go in order to ride the elevator to the top of the Westin. When I got to the 5th floor, one of the hotel clerks said it was closed because of the inclement weather. Disappointed in not being able to capture the snow-covered city from above, I trekked back to my place. I considered taking the subway to get to Oakland Cemetery, but opted out of the slippery walk to the station. 

Wrote my name in the snow, again.

Across from the Ritz-Carlton

Auburn Avenue?

One of my favorite shots taken with my DSLR rather
than with my phone.

So artsy.

For Singles' Awareness Day-- err-- Valentine's Day-- I went home because I took on a babysitting job for my friend's sister. We had a good time eating pizza and chocolate cake together. Later that evening, I didn't feel it, but my mother and thousands of other Georgians did-- an earthquake! Evidently, in South Carolina they had an earthquake which was a 4.1-4.4 on the Richter scale. It's been about 10 years since our last little quake, and I didn't feel that one either. Relieved it wasn't any worse! To learn more about it, click here.

Just a mockery of how we react to "disasters"
Hey, safety first!

I'm just throwing this out there-- I'm not a fan of Valentine's Day. I see it as just another highly commercialized holiday and a force driving us to remind us to express love for those in our lives. We do not need one day out of the year where we actually remember to tell friends and family that we love them. Instead, do it frequently (every day is more ideal). As for gift-giving, be spontaneous. Some of us expect too much on Valentine's Day. Me? I anticipate chocolate, but I don't expect it. Now, I don't mind getting extra chocolate for 'free' another day out of the year, but I don't need it. I just wanted to say I love my family and friends, every day of the year. By being spontaneous, I mean surprise your spouse with some roses on an unexpected day. Hand your best friend a chocolate when they aren't expecting it. Don't wait until February 14th to make them feel special or to make their day. 

My Valentine :-) love my pup!

I don't have much else to say about my weekend other than that I am looking forward to a better week from here on out as the last two have been a bit of a challenge in various ways. I'm going to start hitting the gym this week (finally!) so I can start strengthening my muscles for skating again. I plan to go to the rink a couple times a month, or more as my schedule allows. 

Hope you enjoyed the photography!

Until next time, 

Kelsey


P.S. I have updated the song of the week to Muse's "Apocalypse Please." Very fitting, I would say. :-)

When I literally Panicked! at the Disco...

Hello, all!

I must warn you, most content in this blog post will pertain to the concert I recently attended at the Tabernacle, and how it ended in an evacuation. If you're willing to endure a long post about first-hand details of what exactly happened, then keep reading. 

On Friday, February 7th, 2014, Panic! at the Disco was headlining at the Tabernacle music hall. Junior Prom and The Colourist were the opening acts at the show. Hanna and I had been looking forward to this concert for months, as I am a big fan of P!ATD. I got Hanna into them last January, and now she is officially hooked. I was looking forward to it the most though, not only because I'm such a big fan, but also because I'd just had a rough week and needed something to get me smiling.

from Panic! at the Disco's Facebook page:
Fans camped out at the entrance to the show.

Hanna and I met up at my dorm to have an early dinner consisting of pizza and caffeinated soda. After stuffing ourselves enough to where we wouldn't get hungry whilst stuck in the mosh pit at the concert, we headed for the Tabernacle. I was dressed in my P!ATD shirt from their last headlining tour from 2011, and was armed with cash to buy some more merch from the "Too Weird tour." 

We arrived 3 hours before the concert was set to begin. When we got there, we managed to get a parking spot right next to the venue and the ferris wheel ("Skyview"). We walked toward the entrance to check out the line to get in. We kept walking and reached the corner, turning as we walked. The line was enormous. We got to the next corner and walked. By the time we reached the end of the line, we realized we could've walked directly from the car across the way rather than walk around the block. Oh well... EXERCISE!!!

The line in front of us.

Though we had awhile before they could let us in, we passed the time away talking and eventually found ourselves feet away from the entrance. We presented our tickets and darted straight to the merch line. Glad we got in line when we did, because it wrapped all the way around the room! I bought a winter hat and scarf with the band's name printed on it, and a t-shirt. Hanna and I went back upstairs and worked our way toward the stage, entering from the left side. We managed to work our way in and didn't have a lot of trouble seeing the stage as we were lucky not to have too many tall people in the way. 

Success.

Rocking my new winter hat :)

After about fifteen minutes of waiting in the mosh pit, Junior Prom went on and played for a short time. Then, the Colourist went onstage and played. Their drummer was amazing and she had the sweetest voice! They just released an EP last summer and said we should expect a new album this spring. 

Junior Prom

The Colourist

Anticipation was building up inside as Hanna and I waited anxiously for P!ATD to go on. The last time I saw them live was when they opened up for another pop punk band, Fall Out Boy, in September 2013, but since they have released a new album, I've been looking forward to seeing them headlining a show. 

Once the stage was set, Panic! at the Disco ran out on stage and opened us up with Vegas Lights. A short clip can be found on my Instagram here. Everyone was jumping up and down to the music. Once Vegas Lights ended, they went straight into Time to Dance. 

Lead singer Brendon Urie singing Time to Dance

The jumping started and you could feel the floor shake. When I was last at the Tabernacle for P!ATD in 2011, the floor felt the same with all the jumping, but I didn't think much of it. Well, at the end of Time to Dance, the stage manager walked out to talk to Brendon, where Brendon walked to the front of the stage and said, "you guys are breaking the actual building." Now, I thought he was being humorous because perhaps he was impressed by our energy in response to their music. But that wasn't the case. The crowd cheered, probably thinking the same thing Hanna and I were thinking, that it was a joke. The stage manager kept feeding information to Brendon, and he too was surprised-- "we have to stop... the floor is cracked apparently." He asked the stage manager if they could come back, and looked at the audience to say, "okay, give us a second to duct tape the floor, and uh, we'll be right back." Sadly, it was going to take more than duct tape to fix the problem. We were soon given instructions to evacuate the building. 

Stage manager talking to Brendon Urie

The crowd that filed out of the Tabernacle

Fans sobbed or complained as they filed into the street, blocking cars which were trying to drive down Luckie Street. People had their phones out, sending snapchats and posting to Instagram or Facebook, showing the social networking users the crowd of people standing outside the Tabernacle. We waited in the cold to hear an update on what was to happen. We soon learned that the concert was over, and cancelled, and that we would probably get a refund and P!ATD would be coming back in the summer (according to tweets and other social networking posts made by the band). Hanna and I, disappointed, walked next door to Skyview Atlanta, had our picture taken, and rode the enclosed ferris wheel. The skyline looked beautiful. The last time I rode Skyview was in September, during the daytime. 

The wheel is incredible at night!

Bokeh

View of Skyline... kinda.

I couldn't resist.

When we got off, we went back to the car and drove all the way to Steak n' Shake for a midnight meal. On the way there, we listened to P!ATD's third album, sang along, cried, and complained like any typical "fan girl" would. 

Midnight at Steak n' Shake

When we finished eating, Hanna took me back to my dorm and then she left for home. I stayed up to look at all the news reports that were released, since we noticed all the news teams parked outside the Tabernacle. As I watched a video from 11Alive news, I spotted Hanna and me in the crowd of one of the photos shared by another concert attendee. 

11Alive News... see us?

Now you should be able to spot us.

On one article I read that the fire marshal said, "We'd have a story either way-- an evacuation or collapse." I'm glad they chose the evacuation.

Just when I thought my week was going to turn around, the fun ended abruptly. Here's to hoping for a better week! On the bright side, The Walking Dead returns tonight! I'm looking forward to watching the rest of Season 4 this semester. Now that I'm on campus, I'll get to watch with friends! In a few hours I'll head next door to see the premiere. 

I just wanted to say I am thankful the staff at the Tabernacle caught the problem before it became a disaster. Hopefully they will repair the 100-year-old facility soon so that other upcoming performances won't be hindered. 

Have a great Sunday evening!

Until next time,

Kelsey

Survived the snowpocalypse + ROME! (no, not Italy)

Happy Sunday, ya'll!

Are all my Georgia readers (particularly those in the downtown and metro-Atlanta areas) recovering well from the snowpocalypse? It has melted away in most areas, though when I was in Rome, GA this weekend there were still some spots of snow about the area. Speaking of the weather, how about this beautiful weekend we've had? Did you get to break out the shorts and t-shirts? I've enjoyed the weather this weekend, but I hear we are to expect rain this week. Dear Georgia, please make up your mind which season you wish to be!

I went home Friday morning, and braved the long, cold walk on the icy sidewalks to get to the subway station... 

Just having a little fun taking snow pictures...

Foot prints and tire tracks on my driveway

Okay I'm lying-- I definitely took our bus transit to get there rather than slip around with my bags. I settled in at home and snuggled with my sweet dog for awhile. Since my brother was out of school for the day, we decided to take Ruby to the park to run around a bit. While we were down there, I invited Carson to the park to come hang with us since it had been awhile. 

Cute little Ruby.

I just had to take a dog selfie.

Awkward selfie with Carson!

What happened to calling shotgun?

That afternoon, the twins came over for a sleepover. Before my uncle left, we hit up Pallookaville for dinner. I enjoyed a delicious grilled cheese sandwich while my mother, uncle, and Sarah had one of Pallookaville's famous corn dogs. Kason managed to down a milkshake and a philly cheese steak sandwich. Hannah also had a grilled cheese. 

Pallookaville... and Kason

After my uncle left and we settled in, I introduced the twins to the first Harry Potter movie! I wish they were finished with reading the series, but I just couldn't wait. I have no doubt they will read the books in time, but I felt the need to share something with them from my childhood. Needless to say, they fell in love with the series and wanted to see more. The next morning we watched the second film-- the Chamber of Secrets-- and they enjoyed it. The girls demanded we watch the third one, but I told them it would have to wait since I had to leave for Rome in a matter of a couple hours. We might need another cousin sleepover again soon! :)

My friend Anna and I decided to go see my friend Jackson in a show at Rome Little Theatre. They were putting on a play called A Few Good Men. Jackson played Private Louden Downey and did a great job. At the end of the show, we said hello and arranged to have dinner next door at a Thai restaurant. We enjoyed the food and made great conversation. It was cool to catch up with my "clone"! After dinner, Jackson headed back to the theater to prepare for the evening show, and Anna and I went back to the car to head back home. Roadtripping with Anna was fun and we plan to do it again soon. Perhaps not Rome next time, but definitely somewhere else, just to explore. 

On the road!

Historic De Soto Theatre
(Rome Little Theatre)

"A Few Good Men"

Jackson!

I have a busy week ahead of me! I go to my second counseling appointment tomorrow after ASL, and I am looking forward to it. I have a couple tests this week in my least favorite subjects and I am far from thrilled about them, of course. Here's to hopefully mastering the material before Thursday! On Friday, I am to see Panic! at the Disco (for the third time) perform again here in Atlanta! Needless to say, I am very excited, and one of my best friends will be joining me there. On a sadder note, this Saturday I am going to the memorial service of my friend's brother. My heart goes out to one of my childhood friends-- Abby lost her older brother this past Thursday. I know they were close and I remember Matt as a fun, friendly guy. My brother recalls a time when we were very little and we used to play at our local pool on long summer days. May he rest in peace. 

I wish you all a wonderful week and as far as the Super Bowl goes, I hope your favorite team wins. Me, on the other hand, could care less who wins. :-P 

Until next time, 

Kelsey