Favorite Moments

Favorite Concerts of 2012

After attending 70 concerts 2012, including #100 of my lifetime, it's hard to pick a specific favorite so here are a few that I couldn't imagine not seeing in the past year.

January 13, 2012 - The Bright Light Social Hour @ North Star Bar, PA

Source via The Swollen Fox

Hands down my favorite music discovery in 2012, The Bright Light Social Hour knows how to rock the house and literally brought me to a state of euphoria throughout their set. I hand learned of the band only hours before the concert and became an avid fan by the end of it!

March 30, 2012 - Delta Spirit @ TLA, PA

Source via The Swollen Fox

After over a year of listening and obsessing over Delta Spirit I finally got to seem them live in 2012. It ended up being the first of four times seeing them in the year but it was certainly worth the wait. Rocking out to a live version of "Bushwick Blues" was definitely one of my favorite music moments of the year.

July 20-22, 2012 - XPoNential Music Festival @ Wiggins Park, NJ

This might be slightly cheating since it was a festival but XPoNential's lineup was exceptional this year! Including performances from Wilco, The Avett Brothers, Dr. Dog, Dawes, The Lumineers, Delta Spirit, Kaki King, Kathleen Edwards, Delta Rae, JC Brooks and The Uptown Sound, and J.D. McPherson...See! I wasn't kidding when I said their line-up was stacked.

August 17, 2012 - My Morning Jacket @ The Mann Center, PA

Source via The Swollen Fox

Can anything top hearing My Morning Jacket cover "Rocket Man" as the skies open up to an epic downpour? I don't think so. This was my third time seeing MMJ and they once again did not disappoint.

Favorite Trips 

2012 was full of big and small trips in and out of the country. Here's a look back at some of my favorite frolicking adventures. 

After realizing there isn't much to do in Cleveland besides the Rock-N-Roll Hall of Fame Museum we headed to Pittsburgh to explore a much more exciting city. Fries on their sandwiches, Cathedrals that could be mistaken for Hogwarts, a jokester named Andy Warhol, gorgeous skylines, and fun ice cream games I must say this city is pretty awesome. 

Bonnaroo is more than a music festival, it is truly an all around experience. From the 14 hour drive down to Tennessee to the camping, endless music, silent disco dance parties, and the epic stories that come out of the four day festival exceed your expectations every year. 

My epic two week adventure with my twinnie Elizabeth was unforgettable but I  have to say Portugal is my favorite place we visited. Portugal it's the hidden treasure of Europe; A rich history, beautiful culture, and some of the most hospitable locals I've ever encountered, it's impossible not to instantly fall in love with the country. 

Tanning, Swimming, Kayaking, Music and of course craft-brews it was a great way to spend one of the last weekends of Summer. 

Favorite Festive Recipes

Vegetarian Chilli

Spaghetti Squash

Vegan Ice Cream

Black Bean Burgers [recipe forthcoming]

Favorite Random Moments 

2013 Adventures Coming Soon!

2012

Source: Tea Time for Sylvie-Lou!

2012 was certainly a year full of adventures. Some planned and enjoyed to the fullest. Others eye-opening and difficult to swallow. Yet all of them were unforgettable learning experiences, allowing me to realize so much about myself and where I want to be in 2013.

Due to a hectic end of the year (weren't you preparing for the end of the world too?!) I have a bunch of festive-recipes to catch up on AND my first adventure in 2013 is not only planned but it's next weekend!

That's right folks, in a few days I'll be heading south to visit my best-friend in Miami. I haven't been down to visit her in too long to count so let's just say I'm beyond excited to get away from the bitter-cold weather of Philadelphia and reunite with my soul-mate for FOUR whole days in the sunshine state.

Keep an eye out for epic frolicking adventures and of course lots of yummy recipes!

So here's to a fabulous 2013 for all of us jokestaaaaas ツ

Source: Tea Time for Sylvie-Lou! 

New Music

I am usually sad to see the days of summer begin to dwindle, but this year I couldn't be more excited for fall! September is going to be the start of many great things this year, including: my new job, birthday count downs, and of course new music! Here are a few new albums I can't wait to get my hands on:

Two Door Cinema Club - Beacon (September 3rd)

Field Report - Field Report (September 11th)

Dave Matthews - Away From The World  (September 11th) 

Avett Brothers - The Carpenter (September 11th)

 

David Byrne and St. Vincent - Love This Giant (September 11th)

Band of Horses - Mirage Rock (September 18th) 

Brother Ali - Mourning in America and Dreaming in Color (September 18th)

The Killers - Battle Born (September 18th)

 

Mumford & Sons - Babel (September 24th)

 ♫ Enjoy ♪

Bonnaroooooooooo!

FINALLY! After last Saturday's debacle of a ticket sale I have officially purchased my Bonnaroo 2012 ticket!

 

Though I'm a little annoyed I couldn't get the level four pricing I am still very excited to go to Bonnaroo this summer. I'm driving down with Kevin again AND I'm meeting my beautiful friend Stephanie down there! The lineup is pretty stacked (Radiohead, The Avett Brothers, The Shins, Dispatch, Ludacris, Ben Folds Five, Childish Gambino, The Civil Wars, Dawes, Delta Spirit, Alabama Shakes, The War on Drugs, and so much more!) and Bonnaroo is still planning to announce more bands soon. Plus I can already hear the silent disco calling my name...

 

Summer 2012 is going to be AMAZING =)

 

New Year, New Blog!

Last year was a great year with many amazing adventures and memories [*] [*] [*] [*] [*] [*] [*] [*] [*] [*] but it was also a very tough transitional period of my life. I learned from all the ups and downs of 2011 and I couldn't be happier to take on the new year.

2012 New Year's Resolutions...

• Run, run and run some more! Last year I realized that I truly enjoyed running and completed my first half marathon. I hope to do another half marathon in addition to the broad street run!
• Read more, bored-internet-roaming less. This may seem kind of hypocritical to say since I'm writing a blog but I have found myself bored, checking and rechecking for a notification or new email when I could be doing more productive things with my time, such as reading! 
• Do more "Do It Yourself" Projects. I love creating things and with the help of pinterest I have become obsessed with trying out any and all DIY projects I come across
• Visit a new country...hopefully Spain with Elizabeth! (crossing my fingers!) 
• Work less, hang out with my friends and family more. So many times over the past couple years I have found myself working multiple jobs to pay for bills and my student loans but now that I have found my big girl job (and my restaurant job is closing) I will finally only have one job! This opens my weekends to enjoy the company of the people I love the most =)
• Eat better, eat fresh. I have removed all meat and poultry from my diet for over a year now but every now and then when things get hectic I forget to stick to balanced diet. This year I am going to attempt to cook more, eat fresh-local-organic, and hopefully enjoy more balanced meals. 
• Keep moving forward. I have grown so much in the last year, I hope 2012 brings just as much growth and improvement! 

<3 Kasando

 
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