Best of 2010

I know I'm not alone in my fondness for those year-end "Best of" lists.

Since this has been a big year, Gleefully speaking, I'm taking this opportunity to write my own list: My top Glee-related experiences of 2010. They aren't all going to be strictly about Glee, though. Some of them are ways Glee has influenced me and my life for the better. Let's see if I can come up with 10...

In no particular order:

1. I actually won something! Back in May, I won a copy of "Glee: The Totally Unofficial Guide" from Rob at Gleeforum. This marked the first (and only) time I've ever won ANYTHING. I have to say, the feeling was pretty heady!

2. For my birthday, my hubby set this blog up for me. I have to admit, I had no idea how to even log on at first, much less actually post anything. I'm slowly figuring it out, and am enjoying the outlet. I even managed to link the blog to a related twitter. AND customize my twitter background to match the blog! Yes, these are major events. Trust me.

3. I actually learned how to upload pictures from my camera! AND post them places! This may not seem like a significant development, but if you'd seen my poor hubby trying to help me with my earliest posts, you would understand. If not for my fondness for Glee and sharing my projects/exploits with other fans, I'd probably still be languishing in a mire of technical incompetence.

4. One year ago this week, I hosted my first Glee night to celebrate the release of the "Road to Sectionals" DVD. I just HAD to share this crazy show with my friends, and it turned out to be the start of a nice tradition.

5. Chris Colfer responded to one of my tweets! I obviously don't need to elaborate on why that was significant.

6. In the 48 hours following the tweet from Chris, my twitter went from 2 to 96 followers. Granted, in that same amount of time, Chris himself gained about 6,000 followers, but it's all about perspective. Thinking positive, here! I made it up to 100 for one magical day several weeks ago, but then I actually tweeted. Lost a few after that.

7. Awards season! I am an awards show junkie even when I'm not rooting for anyone in particular. This year gave me plenty to cheer for. How I love seeing my Glee babies all dressed up and happy! I don't always like what's going on with the show, but those kids work so hard and they deserve to be recognized. The sheer quantity of nominations boggled the mind; the actual wins were icing on an already delectable cake. My favorite awards show moment? The "Born to Run" opening at the Emmys. Epic!

8. In a fit of passion, I spontaneously bought tickets for the Glee Live! tour in Phoenix. I'm a wife, mother, scout leader--a grown-up with responsibilities, gosh darnit! Sad to say, this was the wildest thing I'd done in YEARS. The three weeks between purchasing those tickets and the actual show were some of the best I've had in a long time. The anticipation was invigorating! I went a little crazy and had a mini makeover--a stylist friend helped me with my hair and makeup (no small feat). She also took me shopping for concert-worthy attire, primarily so I wouldn't be mistaken for my younger, cooler sisters' chaperone. It felt so indulgent! Cute and hip are not usually words I would use to describe myself, but when I went off to that concert, that's exactly how I felt.

9. My blog passed 500 views! I'm reasonably certain they aren't all me. And I know friends and family aren't checking in because this is sort of my secret outlet. Shhhh! So thanks to those who have popped in, and especially to those few who have commented. Even though I don't know who is actually reading, it does feel a little less like I'm screaming into the void, so to speak, when that number creeps up.

10. The best thing this year was *drum roll* Glee Live! and the time spent in Phoenix with my sisters. Amazing memories. It feels like a beautiful dream; the kind that just doesn't happen enough in life. Good thing I took pictures!

Wishing you a 2011 filled with love, laughter, and loads of Glee!

Gleewear

Not gonna lie, I'm obsessed with Glee merchandise. I get giddy when I actually see something in a store, since the pickings were slim for so long. The problem is that the commercially available products don't always appeal to me. For instance, why must nearly every product carry a silly catchphrase like "Free Your Glee" or "Music is My Life"? I like my glee where it is, thank you very much. And it is a bit of an overstatement to say that "music is my life". Incidentally, I have the same problem when looking for greeting cards. Give me simple and to the point!

I have a pair of lounge pants with the logo on them, the quest for which resulted in journeys to not one, not two, but SIX different Walmarts in an attempt to find them in anything approaching my size. The pants that launched a thousand ships...




I have two Glee logo tees with ONLY the logo on them, as well as my souvenir shirt from the concert in May. However, being a weird, devious little person, I prefer wearing things that test the gleekiness of others. If I wear a shirt that says "Glee" right across the front, any old casual fan can say, "Oh yeah, I watch that show". When I go out in my Nana Connie's Cupcakes shirt, though, only the diehards will get it. Pretty sneaky, huh? That way I can determine who the TRUE gleeks are!

My hubby is a fantastic graphic artist, and he designed these shirts for me. The square root one is from last summer, but the others were for Christmas. He used Zazzle for the printing. Having used both Zazzle and Cafe Press, I think Zazzle produces a better quality image. Unfortunately, my camera does NOT produce a quality image, but you get the idea.



I have several "as seen on Glee"-type things as well, but I'll save those for another time! I know you can hardly wait...

Glee Tree

I like to decorate a bit for my weekly Glee gatherings, and I was particularly excited for the Christmas episode. Naturally, things spiralled slightly out of control. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you "The Glee Tree".

I made the ornaments with big craft buttons in bright colors. I printed out the promo pictures from season two and cut them to fit inside the buttons. Then I covered the pictures with clear epoxy (which, by the way, is the greatest stuff ever, followed closely by Mod Podge). The hooks and ribbons are just hot glued on.

I finally found a use for those stickers I bought ages ago! I actually had them done up as refrigerator magnets , but since there was epoxy left after finishing the ornaments, I used the dregs to cover them. Now they are nice and shiny!

The logo topper is another sticker/magnet turned festive decoration. It's glued to an inverted ball ornament.

Here are all of the ornaments...unfortunately, I don't have Sam, Coach Bieste, or Blaine, but I wanted them to match and those three weren't involved in this photo shoot. I'm especially bummed after having seen the episode! How amazing was Bieste? I am so in love with that woman. *sigh* Well, I'll just have to find a way to incorporate them next year.

And finally, here are the bitty sugar cookies I made to go with our cocoa. The trees are in honor of "O, Christmas Tree" from the Christmas CD, and, of course, gold stars are an all-occasion given. The gingerbread men with the sweet little heart buttons are for Kurt and Blaine. I thought I'd made plenty, but my friends set upon them like locusts! They were gone almost instantly, so I'm glad I thought to take a picture before everyone arrived.

Such a great night filled with three of my favorite things: food, folks, and Glee!

Dear Santa Murphy,

Oh, Santa Murphy, I want to believe in you so badly. Some of my friends say that you aren't real; that the magic is gone. I've been thinking a lot about that, and even though I have my doubts, I'm not ready to give up on you just yet. I know you can make my wishes come true, because you've done it before. You gave me a show that brought fun, friends, music, and laughter into my life in ways I never would have imagined. It has been the sweetest gift ever! If it's not too much trouble, I would like to request the same thing this year.

Obviously, I'm a huge fan of Glee, the characters, and the cast. I have to be honest, though. The show is different now than the one I fell in love with over a year ago. Yes, there have been some amazing moments this season, and I'm completely enamored of both Coach Bieste and Blaine. Still, something feels...off? Awkward? Heavy? Forced? I can't put my finger on exactly what it is. At the risk of sounding like an old fuddy duddy, I would like to express a few thoughts. I understand that my opinions are just that, but I write out of respect and affection, so I hope you will hear me out.

I realize fans love to get involved (believe me, I KNOW), but in this case, the customer is not always (or even usually) right. The worst time to take suggestions from fans? Probably at big events like Comic-Con where everyone is emotional and fired up because they've been waiting in line all night. At that point, they will cheer for anything. No matter how bizarre the concept, the crowd will go wild. That doesn't necessarily mean it's a good idea.

As much as I love Kurt (and Chris), I also love the other characters. I would be thrilled to see their storylines expanded and the actors challenged a bit. I mean, what's going on with Santana? She obviously has self-esteem and intimacy issues, but are those issues going to be explored? Please tell me the boob job was not just to pave the way for a few boob jokes! Does Mercedes grapple with anything that isn't in some way food related? Is the relationship between Mike and Tina built exclusively around Mike's abs and being Asian? Do any of these kids have interests aside from glee club and trying to hook up? There are so many possibilities! Yes, Chris is a standout, and he's certainly deserving of the attention he's garnered, but frankly, no one else has really been given the opportunity to develop much depth.

Please don't assume that all fans are young and/or left wing. I'm probably not a "typical" fan--over 35, religious, middle of the road politically. I do live in a painfully conservative area, however, and I'm sad to say that among my friends, viewership has dropped dramatically in the second season. The messages that Glee presents are valid, but sometimes the people who need to hear those messages are turned off by too-frequent "in your face" moments. Pushing issues may move people toward a degree of tolerance, but never true acceptance.

I'm not a parenting council, but I AM a parent of teenagers. It is dangerous to imply that all teenage girls "put out" and that celibacy is silly and backward. I, for one, hope Quinn sticks to her guns from here on out. Rachel, too, for that matter. I'd wager more people regret having physical relations too early than regret graduating from high school a virgin. I realize that sex happens, but I don't think respect for different points of view is too much to ask. Isn't that sort of supposed to be the goal of the show?

Resist the temptation to give in to the lowest common denominator. I think there is a tendency today for people to want everything handed to them, preferably NOW. And sometimes those people are extraordinarily loud and pushy about it. But it's okay to make the viewer sweat a little! Give us references to think about, jokes to figure out (or not), implications without definitive conclusions--leave room for our minds and imaginations to roam. Some things are just better left unsaid. Or unseen, for that matter. Feeling a little bit naughty is one thing; feeling violated is quite another. There's a fine line between the two. The first thirteen episodes managed to jauntily walk that line . Since public opinion has entered the mix, the line has blurred, making it harder to know where the limits should be.

So that's my two cents, Santa Murphy. Thanks for listening. I hope you have a very happy holiday. Please give all the beautiful, magical elves in your workshop a big hug from me. And a long vacation. And a raise.

Love,

me

Good Advice Gone So, So Bad

This is not strictly Glee related, but in my mind, pretty much everything relates to Glee in one way or another. Yet another aspect of the crazy, I suppose. At any rate, I thought some of you might get a kick out of this, especially those who write (or read, or speak coherently). I apologize in advance for the primitive-looking post. I ended up taking screen shots of the pdf and cobbling them together in blogger because I'm not advanced enough to figure out how to link to the file. I'll cheerfully accept that slice of humble pie, since the meat of this post makes me feel so dang smug! Anyhoo...

Have you ever wondered what might be written in those crazy pamphlets on Emma's desk? After today, I think I might have a pretty good idea.

If you have a few minutes to kill and are in a place where it's safe to laugh and/or weep, take a look at this. "This" being an honest to goodness pamphlet my son brought home from the school counselor. I wish I was kidding, but I'm not.

Please bear in mind that this was written by professionals. TWO professionals, even. And in complete earnest. My favorite part is the unintentional innuendos. See if you can spot them!

Who Thinks He Should Be Treated Right?

Can you not picture this as a pamphlet on Emma's desk? The cover would read, "The Golden Rule: Give it to Others as You Would Like to be Given It." She could offer one to Karofsky. Or maybe Sue.

Clearly, the issue at hand is not the content so much as the execution.
I imagine that these two intrepid linguists sat down to write, got their introduction hammered out, then realized the introduction pretty much covered everything they had to say...
Counselor #1: "Shoot! We still have five more panels to fill!"
Counselor #2: "No worries--just break out the thesaurus!
Counselor #1: "Brilliant! If we also switch the words around in each paragraph, we can repeat ourselves indefinitely. I bet no one will even notice."
Counselor #2: "Let's throw in some slang words as well. Kids love those."

And so on. And thus. Furthermore. And so it was. The end!

Brush With Greatness!

Much as I love Kurt, I love Chris exponentially more. Seriously, what a remarkable guy. And his tweets are epic! Well, I got the shock of my (obviously somewhat boring) life the other night when he actually responded to my inquiry about his growth spurt.

Needless to say, there was shrieking. Followed by a pervasive numbness in my extremities. Aaaaand maybe some hyperventilation. No worries though...I'm good now! I actually printed out a screen shot of his twitter page while that comment was still at the top. Is that weird? Not sure what I'll do with it, though. Frame it? Make it into a t-shirt transfer?

I am just beyond thrilled that he answered! I always love reading his tweets and the priceless things he says to his fans and in general. Based on interviews and the accounts of others, he seems like such a wise, lovely young man. As a mom to two young boys who are, for all intents and purposes, social llamas, I have the deepest respect for Chris. Growing up at the bottom of the heap is rough! To see him come out of difficult circumstances as a well-adjusted, kind, clever person gives me hope that my own sons will get past the challenges they are now facing. And, of course, he gives my boys hope that someday the attributes that cause them so much grief now will ultimately become the gifts that set them apart from the masses. So thank you, Chris, not only for making my day but for touching my life as well. Love you, Sweetie! Or as Chris would say, "Sweatie"...

Lego Glee

Idaho winters are long and cold, and occasionally stir-crazy morphs into actual crazy. Case in point, my brief foray into custom Lego minifigs. It started as sort of a lark...one of my kids made an off-hand comment about how cool it would be if there were Glee Lego sets. Apparently, the validity of any franchise is directly linked to whether or not trademarked building blocks are available. Who knew? Anyway, the remark led to us musing about possible collections. Next thing I knew, we were constructing Kurt's bedroom. We didn't have all of the parts necessary, so I ended up customizing a few things and ordering pieces I couldn't create myself. Of course, there was no point in having Kurt's bedroom without having Kurt, so that's when the project sort of snowballed. Single Ladies Kurt paved the way for Tina and Brittany.

I liked putting together the vanity area!

I HAD to have a hanging chair swing, so I cobbled one together out of Legos and Sculpey.

It's hard to tell here, but he's wearing a little tie and the sparkly vest and glove.
Brit and Tina are almost entirely hand-painted.

Then I decided some of Kurt's other classic outfits would be fun to replicate, so...yeah.

This was my first supplemental Kurt. Obviously still a little rough.

Weirdly, this is one of my favorite Kurt looks. Something about the color combination, maybe?

Hee hee...I love the little microphone and stand! The ruffles were a real stink to do, by the way.

Yes, I made a "roach brooch". Crazy is in the details, as they say.

I realized later that he was wearing the brooch with this ensemble also, but the first one was such a turkey to make that I just let it slide.

My original vision was to assemble the entire glee club, so I have bits and pieces of different characters...Puck's head with the mohawk (and a Big Quench for him to toss), Mercedes' torso and legs wearing the infamous technicolor zebra hoody and those cool tall sneakers, Quinn's pink capris with gold ballet flats and a peasant blouse, Artie's wheelchair, Finn and Rachel in their bowling outfits (with a pink bowling ball, naturally). Despite the project's inherent nerdiness, I'm actually rather pleased with the work I did. I did manage to finish Sue, at least!


Sadly, I was ultimately stymied by the lack of usable heads. Alas, Lego doesn't make much in the way of "heads of color". I had thought to use printable decals to design faces to put on blank heads, but my lack of computer/design savvy foiled that effort. *sigh* Well, I have my little Kurt brigade, anyway. Maybe this winter I'll get another wild hair and plunge back in. Maybe.

Emmys!

The Emmy nominations were announced this morning, and I was up bright and early to watch the live stream. Anyone who knows me will attest that I am NOT a morning person. But since there are precious few things I won't do in the name of Glee, dawn found me hunkered down in front of my computer in my Grumpy Bear pajamas. I figured the Glee noms would be plentiful, but I had no idea they would THAT abundant! 19 nominations! Bazinga! So much excitement when Lea and Matthew's names were announced, as well as the nod for Glee as best comedy. I admit to mild disappointment that nominees in supporting categories were not presented live, mostly because I was thoroughly enjoying listening to Sofia Vergara mangle the names. She is one hysterical lady!

A quick search turned up the rest of the list, and I very nearly toppled out of my chair when I found that K. Chen, NPH, Mike o'Malley, Jane, and (the proverbial cherry on top) sweetie Chris had all been recognized. What a stellar morning for Glee and devoted Gleeks everywhere!

I love that the cast and crew are genuinely supportive of each other and get so crazy excited for individual successes, when really, in an ensemble like this, there could be lots of hurt feelings and resentment. They all seem like such kind, down-to-earth people and it makes my little heart happy when great things happen to nice folks.

Good luck, my Glee Babies--I'll be watching with bated breath! Bring home lots of hardware!

Some Enchanted Gleevening

I should mention that I have a minor obsession with details. If I'm going to do something, then by gum, I am going to do it RIGHT! Especially when food or Glee are involved. When those two things merge--well, suffice it to say, things tend to get a little out of hand. When my friends came over for Glee night, we couldn't just watch the show and eat popcorn. I would always have an assortment of show-inspired snacks to serve. Cupcakes, slushies, donuts, Sour Patch Kids, soft pretzels, I'm Sorry cookies, celery, dip (I prefer to think my lovely Puck refers to chip dip rather than the other kind), and cheese puffs all made appearances, among others. I drew the line at Sue Sylvester's master cleanse and wine in a box (I don't drink alcohol and prefer not to drink sand)! But it was fun coming up with something different each week and it became a bit of a game--my friends would look at what I had on the table and try (usually in vain) to place the reference.

When the finale rolled around, I decided to go big with a dinner party. The theme? Breadstix. I reviewed "Hell-O" and "Home" to get an idea of the interior and recreated it the best I could in my kitchen and living room. I don't have a lot of space, and the floor plan is open, so my first order of business was dividing the kitchen from the dining area. I put up a curtain to divide the space, and constructed (translation: cobbled together with a hot glue gun) a screen out of 12x12 tiles and photo frames to sort of block the kitchen from the living room (at least so people couldn't look in to the sink). In a fit of passion, I actually put up window dressings in the living room (THAT only took 6 years), and had Barry install dimmer switches so I could control the ambient lighting. Yeah, I know. But at that point I was just going for it.


I took down all of my regular decor and replaced it with props. You gotta love the dollar store, because I found tons of stuff there, including the posters and small framed prints I used on the wall. I also picked up a bunch of fake grapes and vines, as well as battery operated tea lites and white Christmas lights. I couldn't believe I actually had to BUY Christmas lights--who doesn't have white lights lying around? Me, it turns out. I must have been feeling extraordinarily festive when I hit the after-Christmas sales, because I had probably ten boxes of colored lights and not a single string of white. Curse you, Past Me.


Like I said, I'm a details person. I also love making props and custom items. So I sort of had a heyday with this. I bought steins at Savers and painted them with a crackle finish to make the bread stick mugs. The napkin rings had quotes printed on the inside. I spent a few hours putting together pearl necklaces for the guests. The best part was the table tents, which hubby very generously designed for me. I gave him the text and an idea of what I wanted them to look like, and he did the rest. They turned out so amazing!

The tagline reads, "Where the joyful and urgent break bread".

Thank you, Finn, for loving pizza and not something gross!

For dinner, I made spaghetti and meatballs, and one of my sisters and a friend brought pizza (Hawaiian and pepperoni, naturally). We had Shirley Temples and sparkling cider to drink. I asked everyone else to bring their favorite Glee-related goody to share.

My sister, Shannon, made these tasty little morsels.

My boys were surprisingly excited to help out with serving so I could enjoy the meal with my friends. They answered the door and escorted people to their seats, then made sure everyone got pearls to wear. Hubby dished up the plates in the kitchen and then they brought everything out, even offering to grate fresh parmesan cheese over the pasta! I had them hide plastic mice on two of the plates and the people that found them won a prize (Glee gum). It was so wonderful to have helpers! I don't know how I managed to not get a picture of Barry--he actually drew a mustache on himself. Again, I'm blaming it on that sloppy Past Me.


Everything was very well received. There was ooohing and ahhhing and lots of laughter and good conversation. The funny thing was that the majority of my carefully executed references went right over most of the guests' heads. It turned out that many of them weren't even aware of Breadstix, much less the fact that Brittany allegedly found a mouse in her pasta, or that Sue wore a string of pearls with her tracksuit when Will stood her up. Heck, they didn't even recognize most of the quotes on the napkin rings *gasp*! I'm still trying to figure out if my friends are remiss in their fan duties or if I'm just way over-the-top nuts. Maybe a little of both? Whatever. At any rate, I had a blast planning and pulling everything together. Now I can start thinking about what to do for the Season 2 premier! I'm thinking something with Christmas lights...

The FULL Experience

The concert was Saturday night, and the VIP festivities were to begin at 6:00 PM. We spent the earlier part of the day checking my twitter account in the hotel business center in an effort to figure out what the cast members were up to and fantasizing about what wonders the evening might hold. Since this was the first show, there were no spoilers floating around. We really had no idea what to expect. Both the anticipation AND the speculation were delicious!

Following a light meal at the Hard Rock Café and an emergency trip back to the hotel for band-aids (my cute new wedges didn’t feel so cute once the blisters started forming), we arrived at the Dodge Theater. We waited in line for a bit with a few hundred other Gleeks…luckily it wasn’t a super hot day and we were in the shade. We finally got in, reported to the VIP table, and headed in to the pre-show party.

They had a photo booth and food, and everyone just sort of milled around. I was all excited because they were giving out free Dove hair care samples and Pepsi. Yeah, it doesn’t take much to get me going! At one point, Cory and Amber came out. I think the original plan was that they were going to just stroll through and say howdy, but of course they were instantly mobbed and couldn’t really stroll anywhere. We were pretty close, but didn’t actually get to meet them before they had to go back for warm-ups. Rats! We got a few good pictures, though (at least of Cory…Amber’s short and I’m short, so I couldn’t see her at all). They seemed lovely, and Cory is darling in person. He has such a nice smile and a palpable enthusiasm about him, although he did look a tad weary.

Once they left, our goody bags and tickets were distributed. We got a sweet tote bag, water bottle, and shirt. I also bought a program. Later, I would suffer an acute attack of cheapskate regret…I wish I had also picked up the pin set, but oh well.

The program was pretty good, but didn’t really tell me anything I didn’t already know. Plus, according to whoever wrote the trivia portion, the square root of 4 is unicorns. Obviously, the writer was just picking things off the top of his head—remembered the answer was something whimsical, took a shot in the dark, and totally missed. But, really? That’s like Glee 101 knowledge. At any rate, I digress.

They let us in to the auditorium before the general public arrived. Our seats were row 5, just to the right of center. This turned out to be right behind the four pit rows, with an aisle in front of us. This was advantageous, because, as previously mentioned, I am vertically challenged. So, even when people were on their feet, I had a fairly clear view of the stage.

The opening act was The LXD, and in summary, “WOW”. I’ve always been fascinated by dancers, and these are some of the best I’ve seen. They actually seem to defy the laws of physics and limits of the human body. Harry Shum Jr. did the cutest dance, and everyone went nuts.

After a brief intermission, the lights dimmed and Sue Sylvester and Will Schuester appeared on the overhead screen. They did a little exchange, Sue insulted our intelligence, people dressed as Cheerios came around passing out barf bags, and then FINALLY the show began. I won’t give a blow-by-blow account here, as by now everyone has seen video and heard what went on, so I’ll just touch on a few of the highlights.

The opening number was DSB. It was such a rush when the curtain opened and the original six glee clubbers were all standing there in the semi-darkness. I loved how they each got a personal moment to shine as the spotlight hit them one by one. The sweetest was Chris—the light came on and he did his patented Kurt pose: hand on hip, look aloof, sweep through the bangs, but then everyone started screaming and for just a beat the character slipped. He smiled so brilliantly and gave this shy little wave and it was just Chris. I actually teared up a little because he looked so perfectly happy and I was so very happy for him, and just thrilled and honored to be there at that moment in time.

The other major event occurred during DROMP. Lea emerged from the far side of the auditorium, just singing her little heart out, and made her way along the aisle right in front of us! It was totally surreal…how many times have I watched “Sectionals” and dreamed of being in that audience, watching her perform what I consider one of the greatest numbers in Glee history? And there she was! Singing right in front of me! Needless to say, there was squealing. So much squealing, in fact, that I almost didn’t notice the commotion going on behind me. When I finally tuned in and looked around, I saw that ALL of the glee boys (sans Artie) were coming down the center aisle toward the front of the theater. Further, they were headed in my direction! They walked right in front of us, hands up, issuing high-fives as they passed. The moment went by in a blur…I remember Harry being first in line, and I know I squeezed Chris’s hand (really, who could resist?). Cory and Mark were, as one would expect, completely stunning. Oddly, I have no recollection of Dijon, but I don’t know where else he would have been. No offense, Dijon—you are also very cute! After that, I’m pretty sure I stopped breathing, and I sort of looked at my hand in awe. It was my first contact with famous people EVER, and I had their sweat on my hand! I was in raptures of delight until Megan pointed out that much of that sweat was probably not actually theirs. Ewwww! Thanks for the buzz-kill, Meg!

Other highlights: Push It (just as heinously inappropriate as it was on the show, much to my naughty delight), Single Ladies during MLWSWY (that just never gets old), Defying Gravity (gorgeous…Chris sounded like an angel and Lea is so powerful), and Bad Romance. At that point, “Theatricality’ had not aired, so it was quite a sensation! It was actually really cool seeing it live because we could see what everyone was doing all the time instead of just close-ups of individuals and snippets of the group. Bless Chris for wearing those insane heels—poor guy must have drawn the short straw!

The whole show was completely brilliant and I still can’t believe I got to go. I am in complete awe of my “Glee Babies”! They work so hard and shine so brightly--what a joy to be there with them for those few hours. I’m so glad I have fun sisters who were willing to pick up and leave their families to indulge in a few days of reckless fan-girl abandon. We’re already planning on going again next year. Fingers crossed for a venue closer to home…road trip, anyone?

The Agony and the Ecstasy...Glee Style

When I found out there was going to be a Glee tour, I literally swooned in ecstasy. I was THAT excited. I’m not a big concert goer. I’m a cheapskate in general, and honestly, there aren’t many acts I consider worth the money. In (sad/hilarious) fact, the last show I actually paid to see was Tiffany when I was in probably junior high. And no, it was not at the North Hills Mall. But Glee? Sign me up! Imagine the let down when I learned that the tour would be a truncated one, visiting only four cities. Big surprise, none of them was Boise. Not even Salt Lake! Or Seattle! Come on, people, seriously?! *sigh* There may have been some weeping and rending of garments, followed by grudging resignation. As the song says, "There are dreams that cannot be."

Fast forward about a month. I was at Sunday dinner with my extended family, waxing Gleeful with my sisters over grilled chicken and mashed potatoes. They are but two of the many I have exposed to the wonders of Glee this year. I mentioned, wistfully, that a live tour was in the works but that the nearest venue would be Phoenix. Silence reined for a few moments as this information was digested along with the recently consumed spuds. Megan, the youngest, coolest, and most impulsive of us finally piped up and suggested that we just go for it. Say wah?! Oddly, it had never even dawned on me to ask if they wanted to go. I mean, I knew they liked the show, but I didn't realize they had reached that special level of fan-crazy.

The next 24 hours were a jumble of activity and elation, as we booked a flight, hotel room, and rental car. We decided since we were already on the crazy bus we might as well go totally nuts and spring for the VIP tickets. No sense in flying to Phoenix for nosebleed seats, right? And since I’d never done anything like this before, I wanted the FULL experience.

Up next: The FULL experience!

And away we go...like a herd of turtles.

Okay, it took me about an hour to figure out how to actually post an entry, which is pathetic, even for me. I have sort of a love/hate/violently explosive relationship with technology. Let's hope this is not an omen of difficulties to come.

My indulgent and ever-so-patient hubby put this blog together for my birthday. I presume this is because he is hoping I will stop rambling about my Glee obsession OUT LOUD and just write about it instead. There will be some backtracking for a bit, as I recount some of my recent squee-worthy Glee experiences/ projects.

The blog name is hubby's creation...he's punny that way. I feel like it needs a clever tag line. Ideas?