californ-i-a

i have to be honest and admit i wasn't as excited about going to cali for the week as i usually am. partially because i had just entered an autumn frame of mind, and going to the heat of southern california wasn't very appealing, and partically because i knew it was going to be a lot of running around, back and forth from san diego and LA, and (what i expected to be) long boring days of photoshoots and video shoots. i couldn't have been more wrong. flying there and back (and everywhere in between) was miserably inconvenient, but other than that, it was the one week in this whole music adventure that i wouldn't have wanted to miss.
so, of course, let me blog all about it

first there was San Diego, which i suprisingly already blogged about (kudos to me),



i was somewhat disappointed when i found out that i wasn't allowed to be in the show with little man, yet somewhat relieved as i was very anxious to get some sleep. i usually spend my first 2-3 days in california delirious from lack of sleep due to the time difference, and i was trying to not do that to myself this trip. i was told the show went well, and i woke up early with my little one the next morning and walked down to the water, and then around 'little italy' in dt san diego, happy for a chance to get some exercise.
then we went back to LA for the rest of the week. we stayed in our same hotel, our little home away from home. it is simple but what makes it nice is that it has everything you need--a good restaurant, a coffee shop, a nice outdoor pool...so if i get stuck, which is quite common, it isn't the end of the world. every morning my alarm clock woke me up (that would be my son), and we would sit outside and eat breakfast. it was a daily ritual that i looked forward to, especially once i learned how to beat the system of the $12.95 buffet by ordering a free kids breakfast of fruit and yogurt (which was partly for him, mostly for me), and just ordering hot tea and oatmeal for myself for a lower cost of $7:)
here's our sunny bfast spot:
the night we got back, the band did a private acoustic show an LA radio station. they had about 50 people there, including listeners who had won tickets. the station owns a penthouse condo where they have these types of events frequently. it was interesting, in a good way, to hear the songs played acoustically. they also interviewed them and did some talking. it was a really laid-back event.







next came the photoshoot. unlike the rinky dink one in NYC in the summer, this time was the real deal for sure. Here is their photographer. just visit his website and you will see what a big deal he is. and then there was video shoot, with a legendary director which really sent us all over the edge with excitement. we pulled into this huge space at a dam which would have been empty on any other day, but had instead been filled with Rv's, tents, tables, gear--essentially a mini and temporary village had been set up to prepare for the next 12 hours of shooting. goosebumps chilled up my body as it sank in that it was all there for us. and the food, my God, the food! i'm used to not knowing when and what my next meal will be (on the road), but here there were people that brought out a new meal every 2 hours it seems, and new snacks every hour. i had to really exert some will power so that my stomach wouldn't be sick the entire next day. the point is, we were overwhelmed. in one week we 1. heard the band's song on the radio for the first time, 2. the band went on radio shows for the first time, 3. experienced a real professional photo-shoot with a legendary photographer (i forgot to mention that the guys were able to keep all of the thousands of dollars worth of clothing that they wore in the shoot), 4. had an amazing experience on a music video set. the guys felt like rock stars probably for the first time.






ok so suddenly i have just become self-conscious that i may come off as bragging. you have to understand that i tell all of this in no other but the spirit of a giddy 7 year old on christmas morning. that's how we all felt. we are grateful only to the Lord for His goodness and providing these opportunities, knowing that we are not promised anything more and it could all end in an instant. or the music could simply just not go anywhere. we hope it does, however, to touch billions of lost and hurting souls....





and here's some cute pictures of little man playing in the studio where it all began



ok, there you go. now let it be known that i have sacrificed some much needed sleep in order to create this very long and thorough blog.
and yet I am still not quite caught up. now we've started touring again. so i'll have to save the rest of the update for another sleepless night (sigh)