Sara and I have been together for over a year now.

Seeing AC/DC for the first time…which included a full size locomotive engine on stage.

LOST on Wednesday nights with Sara, the McNeely's, and Adam.

A trip to Chicago in March with Sara to see the Jimmy Eat World "Clarity 10 Tour".

Signing Abandon Kansas to Gotee.

My first show at the Ryman…Death Cab for Cutie.

A trip to Maui in May with Sara and her family…which included a day trip to Oahu to see filming locations for LOST.

My niece Eva Sephora was born on July 25 to my brother Brandon and sister in-law Samantha.

Holding Eva for the first time on August 8.

Carnton Plantation concerts from SixtyFour and an Eagles cover band.

Seeing Metallica for the first time…which included an encore with Lemmy from Motorhead.

Taking Sara to her first Penn State football game (a white out)…even though I was sick, it rained, and we loss.

Seeing Them Crooked Vultures...which included legendary bassist John Paul Jones.

A trip to FL in October with Sara to see U2 for my first time and go to Universal Studios.

Road trips with Sara that included visiting wineries off the Natchez Trace and Fall Creek Falls.

Seeing Jay-Z and Bruce Springsteen for the first time…a 3 hour set from the Boss included the entire "Born to Run" album.

Witnessing THE Titans win of the year at LP Field with a 99 yard drive and a 4th down last second touchdown pass.

Seeing SixtyFour go from a performance at a housing clubhouse in January to an electric show at 12th & Porter in December.

Spending Christmas in Indio/La Quinta, CA with Sara and her family that included a day at DisnleyLand, my first ostrich burger and date & banana shake, and evenings in the pool with 2 Buck Chuck.

Ending the year in PA with the Moist family.

Sara and I went to Cali for Thanksgiving, specifically the San Diego area. We flew in on Thanksgiving and drove up to Dana Point to meet the family. Overall we were very busy, driving up and down the 5, hitting as many spots as we could.

On Black Friday we spent time in Laguna Beach after grabbing breakfast at The Greeter's Corner Restaurant...

...and then hit up the Irvine Spectrum for some insane shopping while getting some killer food and brews at The Yard House.

The next day we drove north to visit the Zappin's and Oatley's. We hit up Kingsroad Cafe for breakfast, cruised by their friends boutique, did some shopping in Santa Monica, and ended the day with dinner at C & O Trattoria in Venice followed by a walk on the pier. It was a great time. 

The next day we hit up Kono's Cafe at Pacific Beach for an AMAZING breakfast burrito brunch... 

...and then hit up the Coronado area, specifically the beautiful Hotel Del Coronado. 

For dinner that evening we were treated to a home-cooked Korean meal courtesy of a family friend. I even tried the jellyfish. 

Our last day in SD we hit up the San Diego Zoo with Sara's mom. Pandas, gorillas, hippos, rhinos, and elephants oh my!

And yes, I finally had In-N-Out for the first time. 

After returning back to TN, and starting back at my new/old job,  I got the privilege to return to Cali this past week with Relient K. They performed their version of "Sleigh Ride" with Tom Wilson (Biff from Back to the Future) on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Tuesday evening. It was surreal being backstage as the other guests included Jim Carrey, Rosario Dawson, and Fred Willard. 

I even walked away with a Christmas gnome from the set.

On Friday night, Halloween, I got to see a band I have wanted to see for a long, long time...NINE INCH NAILS. The show was spectacular and by far the best light show I have ever seen. I went with the Lacroix brother so check out some pics that James took HERE. Thanks to Steve's wife Sarah for the hookup. 

On Saturday Sara and I went and watched the younger Boer brothers play soccer. In the evening we went to another Predators game. This time Gotee recording artist Stephanie Smith (whose album I A&R'd) performed between periods. Sara and I even made the big screen...but not during love connection. The game went into an over-time shoot out which was the first I've seen and quite entertaining.

 On Sunday Sara and I scored free tickets to see the Titans. The seats were killer. 30 yard line 26 rows up. Thanks to Amanda and Tim McGraw's management (RPM). This game went into over-time too and we had a blast.

It's been great to do things recently I haven't done in the 8 years I have lived in Nashville. And this weekend I got to do 2. The famous Loveless Cafe isn't too far from where I live and I have always wanted to eat there. So on Saturday morning Sara and I went. We had tried going there a few weeks before but the wait was an hour and 20 minutes and we had somewhere else to be. So, after only an hour wait this time we were treated to some of the best southern cooking I've ever had considering I ordered ham & eggs for thei first time...and ofcourse we had their famous biscuits.

Afterwards we drove along Natchez Trace for what was a cool but beautiful day. We stopped at some scenic spots and enjoyed the view. I love the south.

We then hit up the Franklin Pumpkin Fest. We got to see the Jackson boys all dressed up and enjoyed some Bayou Billy soda. In the evening I got to see my Nittany Lions defeat Ohio State to become 9-0 and #3 in the nation! My brother was in attendance at OSU and sent me these pics. 

On Sunday the 2nd thing I got to do that I haven't done since I have lived here was go see the area where Johnny Cash lived. Sara took the time to look it up online and figure out how to get there. In 2002 the Man in Black passed away and then later his house burned down during renovations by a BeeGee who purchased it (yeah, disco sucks). It's so sad that the house is no longer there but it was great to see the area where the house was as the foundation was still there. The view onto the lake was beautiful and obvious why Johnny purchased the house in 1968 and lived there until his death.

We then drove over to the Hendersonville Memorial Gardens to pay respect.

In all, it was a very eventful and extremely fun weekend. Like I've said before, it's been amazing to see places and do things I haven't done in all the years I have lived in Nashville. I love it here!

My dad had a business trip lay over on Thursday 8/21 so we grabbed dinner and had some killer conversation time. It was great to see him. I went to another Sounds game with Sara and some kids she watches. Again, the fireworks were awesome. The next day we took a trip to Murfreesboro and met up with Tobin to see Abandon Kansas play. They definitely impressed me and though I don’t think their album matches up with the energy they have live, I look forward to keeping any eye on them.
I got see the mighty Stone Temple Pilots for the first time when they rocked out the Grand Ole Opry on 8/24. It was amazing. I was just glad Weiland showed up. He is by far one of the best modern day frontmen you will ever see. I felt like I was transported back to 1994 when they opened up with “Big Empty”. It was a kick ass show.

I went to yet another Sounds game with Sara, Derek, and Danny but this time it was Thirsty Thursday (ie, $1 beer). The tickets were free and the beer was cheap so obviously you can’t turn down entertainment like that plus the people watching is great.

I took a trip Labor Day weekend with my bros Phil and Tobin to St. Augustine, FL. It was the first time I could remember I took a “guys” trip. We stayed on a boat called the Flip Side (owned by the former drummer of Creed and now Alter Bridge) and lived it up large for 4 nights / 3 days. We probably drank way too many Goombay Smashes on Reggae Sunday at the Conch House. But the drinks were free and the hang time was killer. It was a very historic town and a very chill environment. Their tourist slogan was “A quaint little fishing village with a huge drinking problem”. Thanks to Richard, Roli, the McClelland family, and the rest of the SSB guys for the hospitality and great times. I had never been to St. Augustine before and always wanted to go, so I’m really glad I did and that I made a trip with some good dudes who have become great friends this past year. Here are some pics.

Once I got back to TN Sara and I grabbed dinner with the Boer family. Debb sure does know how to cook a killer meal and not just cause I hadn’t had a home cooked meal in a while. Then on the weekend Sara and I had dinner with Beth and Devan at City House in the Germantown area of Nashville. It was my first time eating there and I freakin’ loved it. We followed that up by hittin’ up 3 Crow for Emmy’s and Derek’s birthdays. A lot of friends came out and it was great time seeing everyone and catching up.

I went to my first Tennessee Titans game yesterday. My bro JR had free tickets and I of course took the opportunity to go. I have never been to a pro football game before and it was killer to go to game 1. Not only did the Titans pull out a win against the Jacksonville Jaguars but Penn State alumni quarterback Kerry Collins came in and drove the team down the field for the game clinching touchdown win. As one of my favorite ESPN commentators says, “He was as cool as the other side of the pillow”.

Penn State football has started and so far we’re 2-0. I think we’ll have a really good season and I can’t wait to go home to PA at the end of the month for the Illinois game which is also the WHITE OUT game. And in case you don’t know what that is then click HERE.

Anyways, that’s the latest.

I have lived in Nashville for 8 years now and I have never gone to a baseball game for some reason. So Friday evening my friend Sara and I went to a Nashville Sounds game. The weather was amazing and the stadium was packed for “Pure Faith Night”. I grabbed a hot dog and a cold one and enjoyed the game. People watchin’ was a must as there was an eclectic crowd. The Sounds lost but we were treated to an incredible fireworks show at the end of the game. I was really blown away by how good it was. To be honest, the whole evening was better and cheaper than a movie. Bill was there too and came up to our seats to say hello. We talked for a while and ended up being the last 3 to leave. It felt great to do something I have never done before. Fun times indeed. Oh yeah, Bill loves his iPhone and grabbed this pic.

On Saturday Sara and I took a road trip to Auburn, AL. Why Auburn? Well one of the bands I signed to Mono Vs Stereo in 2003, Chasing Victory, broke up last year right before everything went down in my personal life. They reunited this summer for a few reunion-farewell shows and Saturday evening was the last. I couldn’t miss it. These were some of my most favorite people to work with and one of my most proudest accomplishments in music. It was an emotional evening seeing them perform their songs for the last time. I invested a lot into these guys and they always gave back. We got some killer hang time with them before and after the show that proved our relationship goes way beyond business. These are guys I consider friends and I know I will stay in contact with for years to come.

On Sunday we headed back to TN but made a stop in Birmingham to grab brunch at The Village Tavern and do some shopping at the Summit. Be warned, they serve their Jamacian coffee with a kick...of brandy and rum that is...and it was killer. When we got back in TN we grabbed dinner at the new Boscos in Cool Springs. I find myself enjoying the simpler pleasures of life even more now. Conversations outside on a beautiful evening can’t be beat.

Yesterday the mighty Underoath came through town. I made sure to watch my bro Ryan Rado and his new band, Ill Patriot, open up the show before heading over to Virago for sushi with Sara. Also, like I said earlier, I have lived in Nashville for 8 years and surprisingly I have never been to Bongo Java. So Sara and I hit that up too. Again, beautiful weather outside and great conversation. We then headed back to Rcktwn for the Oath and enjoyed a killer set. Their last album “Define The Great Line” was one of those albums that helped me get through this past year. These guys are huge and not just because of their great music. Their hearts are in the right place.

So in all, it was a KILLER past 4 days. It’s like I said in the last post, I am enjoying my time with my friends, appreciating great conversations, and enjoying new experiences. Life is good.

How many times did I say killer?