yes yes yes!

I mentioned previously how I had been THISCLOSE to seeing the Yeah Yeah Yeahs twice before.

As someone who has no patience, or tolerance for not getting my way, the fact that Karen, Nick and Brian had eluded me this long was torture.

My over-active imagination had built their shows up to something ... almost religious.

Through the interweb and the vastness of YouTube, their performances were, in my mind, legendary. As Sarin and I were driving to SEA, I said: "I worry they won't live up to my expectations."

Um, yeah, I'm retarded leotarded. They totally blew me away.

I have never seen a performer command a stage and control an audience like that. Karen O., my longtime girl crush, was incomparable. She was theatrical, but unpretentious. Engaging, but effortless. Grateful, but authentic.

After Maps, she said "I love you guys - and I don't say that to every crowd." And you believed her, because she's Karen O and well, she wouldn't lie.

She would drink water, then spit it in the air and on herself. She put the mike in her mouth and held it there. She fucking rocked Maps semi-acoustically.

One of the things I was most excited for were her costumes. Karen is legendary for dramatic and over-the-top costumes. Again, she didn't disappoint. Her opening outfit was this crazy string-like thing. From there out she added and subtracted elements, making her costumes part of the show.

Officially, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs were ... perfect. And lived up to every expectation I had put on them.

It was shorter than I would have wanted, although no length of time would have satisfied me. Regardless, I was glued to the stage. Even those big inflatable eyeballs couldn't distract me. I was angry when I was pushed, out of sheer irritation that my attention was being diverted. It was needed elsewhere - straight ahead.

In summary - best. show. ever.

I took a few pics. Here they are. *Note: I am not a photog, nor do I claim to be.

Seattle Saturday

So, Sarin and I came up with the BRILLIANT idea of driving to Seattle, spending the night, going out, seeing the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and coming home for Franz Ferdinand.

We are the fucking coolest chicks alive.

Saturday, we drove to Seattle - which is, in our minds, bizarro Vancouver. We did a bit of shopping, went to the Experience Music Project and went out.

This was our night out:

Walk outside to smoke. A boy talks to us and asks us where we're going. He tells us of a different place, we go, and continue to get ridiculously intoxicated.

Sarin was a pimp and totally got us drinks all night. It was pretty sweet, I'm not going to lie.

As the bar is closing, some hot dude starts chatting with us, and from there on, the details are fuzzy.

What we know:

We got home ok.

So, really, all the fuzzy doesn't matter. We didn't lose each other. Yes, some questionable life choices were made, but in the end, all is well.

Sunday morning, however, was ridiculously painful.

Art Star

This weekend, something I never thought would happen, is happening.

Sarin and I are heading to Seattle. And we are going for a very specific reason:

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are playing the Bumbershoot Music Festival.

I have loved the YYYs since Big Daddy downloaded Fever To Tell on my computer. It was the first full album I had liked in a really long time. I put it on heavy rotation and kept it there. I became infatuated with Karen O. There is no other way to say it. She is the fucking coolest chick alive - easily.

This weekend is all the more sweet because seeing them perform has been in my grasp twice before, tickets in hand and everything. sigh.

My first solo trip to NYC I bought tickets for the second of two sold-out shows they were doing at the Bowery Ballroom. Unfortunately, a few days before the show, I realized that the show was on the evening I was leaving. I couldn't go and my heart was sad. I even made an attempt to buy tickets from scalpers, but alas, there were none.

The next time was the summer I interned in New York. I had tickets for a show they were doing at the McCarren Park Pool. Turns out, after working my ass off, impressing enough people and being offered a job there, I had to move the week of their show. I thought at the time, no worries, I am getting my dream, I can give up my tickets.

How naive was I?

Well, all that 'close but no cigar' business is over this weekend. This Sunday, I will be getting to finally see them.

I honestly don't think I have ever been this excited for a show before.

Other than Jarod's shumka dancing of course.

Stereotypes Galore!

Tonight, my evening consisted of meeting some friends, walking around the West End, going to yoga and then for cheap Thai food.

Plus, I'm a visible minority.

I think Vancouver is seeping in, and I am not so sure that I like it.

Seriously? Yoga? What the fuck?

I don't know what has happened to me. First climbing, now this.

If anyone knows where 'normal' Iris is, please let me know.

I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning

Well I am. So I will write.

This week has been busy. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, I am a busy bee, with people to see and things to do.

Ok, well, more just sitting around with Sarin, hanging out.

First, let me properly introduce you all to Sarin. She is, like so many of my favorite people, from Edmonton. And to best sum it up, she is my bizarro. We share many of the same thoughts and interests and well, kinda everything. She has her own versions of Smelly, Priscilla and confusing boys, that she makes my life feel less alone.

Anyways, my social weekend consisted of two houseparties and one amazing concert.

Friday night, Sarin and I went to a houseparty I was invited to by a friend, with the promise of boys.

And boys there were. Ladies, if you have been wondering (like I have been) where all the single straight men are, well, there was a house in Kits the all apparently lived.

The boy-to-girl ratio was ridiculous, but alas, none of them struck my fancy - well, to be fair, between the dancing to Jizz in My Pants to building a torch, they didn't have time to do much else. After watching one stand on a car, with no shirt and said torch in the middle of the street, we were confident the police would be arriving and darted out of there.

We grabbed some latenight (gasp) healthy eats at The Naam and headed home.

Saturday I met a friend for lunch at a Mexican joint by my place, hit the beach with another friend and then headed to the show with Ash and Sarin.

Phew, I'm tired just thinking about it.

After the show, Sarin and I went to another houseparty. I stayed for a little while, but then headed home.

The lesson from this weekend is that I am not a houseparty person. I have to be incredibly drunk to find any sort of pleasure from random, non-coherent interactions with strangers. I don't know how people find this enjoyable.

HOW?

Most people are stupid. Most drunk people are intolerable. So why, as a semi-sober person, do I want to interact with them en masse?

Sorry, that went a little ranty. My apologies.

Sidenote - the real issue with sleep problems is that I am now ready for a nap, but instead, I have to jump in the shower and head to work, where I am expected to be bright, and creative and presentable.

This is going to be a really long day.

sigh