My mom always used to tell me to use my retainer.. but… ah well….
A couple of years ago, I started noticing that my teeth were moving. And I’ve been on and off the last few years about whether or not I should get my teeth realigned. After many decisions to put it off and revisit again, I finally bit the bullet. In fact, I think I committed so quickly that I didn’t really think about the (social?) repercussions.
My boss pointed out that people will FOR SURE think I’m a teenage once I get braces back on. Siiiggghhh. Annnddd I didn’t think too far about the events I’ll be attending this summer (two weddings! Other type things!) where I’ll have to SMILE?! Sigh… I totally forgot what it’s like to have metal teeth, but I guess I’ll be remembering very soon.
Your mind will be blown...
I went to the orthodontic office today, thinking I was just gonna get xrays done. Turns out I did my teeth molding, xrays, and I also got separators put in too. Plus I made a new spunky friend at the ortho office (she’s so cute and energetic)! Umm… so… I guess I’m getting braces next week??? *pannissss*
FAQ:
Why get teeth realigned again? Cuz I miss having straight teeth. :( I’ve noticeably seen my teeth moving the last couple of years.
Are you getting Invisalign? / How come you’re not getting Invisalign? I’m cheap. Invisalign is $1k more. I’m saving mah monies.
How long is the realignment procedure? 1.5 to 2 years. :(((
My hair weighs 95 grams! (0.21lbs/3.35 oz) I swear it feels like 5lbs with gravity...
A little over 22 inches long!
Donating my hair again to LocksofLove or some other sort of wig-making charity to benefit people going thru chemotherapy. Yay! Haven’t had short hair since 2007ish. Very excited to play with different hair styles again~! :))
Thanks to Tarrin for the hairstylist recommendation: Robert at Spank Salon in Alameda was super detailed and in the zone while cutting my hair. Love him! And thanks to Brent for taking the pics and support, as always! People are gonna think that you’re dating a teenage boy now~
Doodling on envelopes for hand-written letters!
(Address smudged out to upset the stalkers.) This was a collaboration piece with Brent, featuring his patented chicken!!
So nostalgic! (My favorite part of flipping thru Wizard magazines were all the hand-drawn envelopes that people sent it~)
Back in late September, I discovered that Weezer was doing a Memories Tour, performing their first two albums on two back-to-back nights. I also found out about an “Ultimate 2-night VIP package,” which included:
Premium tickets for both nights! (first 10 rows)
Meet and Greet & Photo Op with Weezer
Backstage Tour with Karl Koch
Pre-show party
Exclusive Weezer gift bag
Crowd-free merchandise shopping
Well, OF COURSE I got the 2-night VIP tickets!! One for me, one for Brent to come with me so I wouldn’t be alone~ It was $500 each, but it was well worth every penny.
Thank you soooooooooooooo much to Calvin for helping me with some of the logistics!
And…. thanks to coworkers for putting up with me that whole day when I was freaking out at work….
Day 1: The Blue Album
Brent and I arrived at the Nob Hill Masonic Center around 4:30PM, where there were people already lined up to get their VIP passes. Very small crowd, less than 100 people getting VIP passes. They let us in to buy merch way before the general admission folks arrived (doors opened at 7), which was pretty sweet. Turns out I couldn’t afford anything… ah well!
Shortly after, Karl Koch (the unofficial 5th member of Weezer) gave us a tour of the stage area that was being set up, with a Q&A afterwards. To get their sound as close to the Blue Album sound, Weezer brought out from storage some of their first amps! Very awesome~
@Weezer tweeted out this photo during the VIP tour. Brent and I are in it! :D
Next, we got goodies! Weezer tote bag, Hurley CD, Weezer tshirt, and poster (not pictured)!
Then… we met Weezer. (Oh God, this video is embarrassing, but I’m glad Brent recorded a recap because my mind was racing… *sigh*)
omg.
Weezer Blue Album poster! LOVE the border design!
We went to check out our seats for the show. Oh. Em. Eff. Gee.
Pinkerton’s my favorite Weezer album. Even the night before, VIP fans I talked to didn’t seem to like Pinkerton as much as Blue, and someone mentioned that I’m a “rare one” for liking Pinkerton. *shrug* Maybe I just loved listening to it more as an adolescent because there’s so much raw emotion in Pinkerton: a bit of alienation, a bit of heartbreak, a lot of struggle. Across the Sea, The Good Life, El Scorcho, Pink Triangle (one of my favorite guitar parts evvaarrr), Falling For You, how can a Weezer fan seriously NOT like these tracks? Perplexes my mind…..
Anyway, I was stoked. Weezer’s never performed the whole Pinkerton album in its entirety ever before (other than at the LA Memories Tour), and I was getting reeaaalllyyy pumped! Brent and I got there early again and saw that there were a lot of familiar faces from the night before’s VIP tour. Karl showed us a bit of the stage again, and taught us some sound equipment stuff that was pretty interesting!
We got some different goodies, which was pretty AWESOME! Thank you event organizers for giving the VIP fans different items for the second night!
They then had us line up to meet the band again. Brent and I befriended Kingsley and Mike (aka HALLIWAX! I complimented his LOST jacket the night before, of course! It’s so brilliant)! Kingsley wanted to be the last in line for the meet+greet, and we decided to wait with them at the end of the line. We had a ball together! Shared stories, joked around, and shared goodies together! All =w= fan love! <3
After a while, it was getting close to our turn to meet the band again. Buttterrrfflliiieeessssss!! The night before, Brent gave me the idea to bring in something that they could sign. “There must be sooommmeethinngg I’ve made in the past that’s Weezer related…” Ah-hah! The ceramic Weezer box I made in high school! While there were about 5 people in front of us in line, I took out the box and held it in my hands, chanting in my head: Don’t drop the box. Don’t drop the box. Don’t drop the box. Don’t drop the box. I think people were talking to me, but I just.couldn’t.answer. Don’t drop the box. Don’t drop the box. Don’t drop the box.
“Hi guys. Would you guys please sign this box I made like…. in high school?”
And then all these things were happening.
Rivers was signing first so I had to make sure the pens they were using were permanent silver sharpies so it will write on the black glaze, Pat Wilson said he liked my Oakland shirt, Brian Bell said “Whoa, you made this?”, and I had to explain to Scott Shriner that I had to improvise with a new pic of him to replace the side that has Matt Sharp on it. It’s all a big blur to me and I got shuffled along to take a pic with them and then I stood off to the side and Don’t drop the box. Don’t drop the box. Don’t drop the box. Putting the box away, putting the box away. Breathing.
Thanks for making all my Katy Perry Teenage Dreams come true, Weezer.
Autographed Weezer box!
Shortly after, they rounded up the VIPs again for a surprise: Rivers was sticking around to hang out with us for a bit longer! I have this horrible tendency to not say anything intelligent or anything worth anybody’s time whenever I meet musical idols. (“Umm… hi… i love your music??”) And I don’t want to take up other people’s time either so I just panis, don’t say anything, and just ask for a picture and run away to hide in my little corner.
Thanks for taking a pic with me, Rivers!
Showtime!!
So earlier in the night, Mike showed us a custom-made Weezer flag that he ordered a while back. He brought it to a Seattle show and waved it around in the large crowd. Supposedly Rivers spotted the flag and shouted out to him. Mike brought the flag down with him from Seattle (just to see the SF Memories Tour shows, btw! <3 Dedication!), and even had this whole plan for when he’ll bust out the flag (El Scorcho was the plan), involved a collapsible flag pole that he snuck in (hilarious story about this too), and he was totally ready to be escorted out by security. I told him I’d record him, and I was ready to go for El Scorcho.
Except…. Things got really exciting when Weezer started playing some B-Sides: Suzanne and You Gave Your Love To Me Softly. During the latter, I look over and saw that Mike was pulling out his flag! Here’s what happened:
IMPORTANT [self preserving] DISCLAIMER: UMMMMMM Okay, for the record, my voice was shot already from the night before this, so it was already cracking. I promise I’m not as hysterical as I sound. I was just doing my regular cheering… that happened to make my voice crack….. okay, fine, I really was freakin out about Weezer….!!
In conclusion: best birthday gift to myself ever. Thank you, Weezer, Karl, ILoveAllAccess, new friends, and BrentBrent for two fabulous back-to-back days! <3
