I visited my brother in Colorado for his birthday. He and my sister-in-law have moved since I last saw them, and their new home is in the middle of nowhere. Actually, it’s in an area considered to be a ghost town, which is right up my alley, haha! Needless to say, I wanted to explore all the deserted structures nearby, but we also visited Bishop Castle, North Lake, Monument Lake, a few cemeteries, and Lathrop State Park.
It sounds like we were constantly running around; however, we had plenty of downtime, too. We lazed around the house with a fire going, watching horror movies and TV shows (mostly of the cooking variety). My brother caught up on “Outer Banks,” and his wife and I got him hooked on “Squid Game.”
It was so relaxing. I didn’t want to come back. We’re already planning my next trip. I want to go out in the summer, because I always seem to go when it’s cold. On the other hand, Marilyn Manson is touring in September and has stops in both Denver and Albuquerque, soooo…
Anyway, here are some photos from my trip.
The most haunted building in TrinidadMonument LakeNorth LakeBishop CastleLathrop State ParkThis was at one of the cemeteries in AguilarSame cemetery Another Aguilar cemetery Walsenburg cemeteryNot far from where my brother and his wife live. I Googled it and the area is defined as a ghost town.
It’s day one of a new year, and while I am not known for preaching positivity, I will say that we all have a chance to make 2025 great.
I don’t know how y’all fared in 2024, but it wasn’t such a terrible year for me. I got to see and meet Danny Worsnop (Asking Alexandria/We Are Harlot) with my mom, and she amused him so much that he told a story about her on Facebook. My dad took me to the Marilyn Manson/Five Finger Death Punch tour for my birthday. I have been a fan of Manson for almost 25 years, and it was my first time seeing him. As an added bonus, The Funeral Portrait opened the night (and they were phenomenal). And while we’re on the subject of concerts, I finally made it to the promised land: one of my best friends took me to see Creed for Christmas! I missed them during their heyday – I was, like, 10 – and that always depressed me. I was so excited about their reunion, and they were worth waiting for. Mammoth WVH and 3 Doors Down were the openers, and both bands kicked ass!
On a personal note, my best friend moved back to Alabama! I had missed her and her family terribly. I gained self-confidence this year. My friends and coworkers helped immensely with that challenge. I like myself better at 37 than I did at 17.
The negatives for 2024 were huge, I will admit. We lost my paternal grandmother in October. She was my last grandparent, the one I spent the most time with and knew the best, so when I say that it’s been a struggle… More than my own grief, I’ve been very concerned about my dad. It’s only been two years since his youngest brother passed. Now it’s just him and my uncle Chris. If you could spare a thought for them, that would be lovely.
I’m also stuck in a job that doesn’t make me happy, but I plan on changing that as soon as possible. I guess that’s a minor complaint overall, though it does impact me almost daily. Still, I’m thinking positive! I will find something better in 2025!
Happy New Year to all my readers/followers! I hope this January 1st finds you well. Drop me a comment and tell me a good thing about your 2024, or tell me what you’re looking forward to in 2025.
Here are a few pictures from the past 12 months.
Danny WorsnopJericho RoseMe and Dad at the Marilyn Manson showBirthday!Halloween with the bestest and her family 🎃With Jesse at the Creed show 🤘🏻Creed at State Farm Arena 🔥Christmas 🎅🏻
Hello, all, and welcome to my new subscribers! One thing you will quickly come to realize is that I always say I’m going to do regular life updates here, then I never do. I guess I just don’t think I’m that interesting, so I never do personal posts unless something exciting is going on.
Which means…
Something exciting is going on!!!!
2024 is shaping up to be a year of awesome tours, whatever your preference may be. For me, this is looking to be the year of nostalgia.
First, I posted on Facebook, semi-joking about driving up to Nashville for Creed and my friend from Georgia was like “Or I can take you to the show in Atlanta.” So, I’ll be seeing 3 Doors Down, Mammoth WVH, and Creed in December.
Then, last week, I reminded my dad about a promise he made in 2016. He said if Marilyn Manson came close and I bought the tickets, he’d get me to the show. Well, that year Manson actually played in Birmingham, but I chose not to go (long story). Now, however, Manson will be in Nashville four days after my birthday – and, much to my delight, Dad’s promise still stands!
Y’all have to understand why seeing Marilyn Manson is such a big deal for me. I have been a fan for 25 years and I have never managed to attend one of his concerts. I was too young when my brother introduced me to his music, and soon after, Manson was banned from Birmingham. (It wasn’t a statewide ban, but seriously, where else in Alabama would he play?) As stated, he was able to book shows in Birmingham in 2016 and 2017, but circumstances were against me and I had to skip them.
Finally. Finally, I will be seeing Marilyn Manson. And I. Can’t. Fucking. Wait.
My dad regrets that promise. Lol. He’s not a Manson fan. He doesn’t hate him or anything, he just thinks he’s boring. My mom would probably enjoy the show, but unfortunately, she started having seizures in December 2022. She hasn’t been officially diagnosed with anything yet, and she has been to a concert without incident since then, so it would probably be okay. However, when she asked her neurologist, she was advised against live shows. And honestly, I would never want to put her through that. Neither of us was thinking when we went to see Shinedown. Or, more accurately, I was under the impression she hadn’t had a seizure since January and the concert was in April. She was put on a fairly high dosage of an anticonvulsant at the end of last year and seems to have things under control, but again, I will do everything in my power not to put her in a situation that triggers a seizure. I’ve held her hand through a few, and it’s scary.
Anyway. That’s my big news. As for the rest of my life… I work and come home. Haha! Y’all know how it is.
I hope this post finds all of you well, and I hope positive things are happening for you in 2024!!!!!
P.S. – Manson looks good again! Well. He looks good for him.
Daughters of Mara is a hard rock/metal band that originally formed back in 2001. After recording and releasing a full-length album entitled I Am Destroyer in 2007, the band called it quits and went their separate ways.
Now, however, Daughters of Mara is back! Consisting of basically the same lineup that made that stand-alone album (minus one), the project has reformed, and today they dropped their first single in many, many years, “Happy.”
You can check it out below or find it on your favorite streaming service!
Daughters of Mara is:
– vocalist Shawn Zuzek [songwriter/producer]
– drummer Dave Elitch [Killer Be Killed/The Mars Volta/session musician]
– guitarist Eric Friedman [Submersed/Tremonti/Projected]
– bassist Andy Gerold [Marilyn Manson/There Is No Us]
I spent last week in Colorado. Trinidad, to be exact. I flew out to visit my brother and sister-in-law, and to enjoy five days far away from my job.
We didn’t plan things to do, we just did them. My brother smoked burgers and ribs because I love his cooking. We traveled highway 12 and ventured up to Simpson’s Rest, neither of which we’d managed during my previous trips due to the weather. He took me down to New Mexico, over the Raton Pass, through Carson National Forest, and into Eagle Nest. On my last full day, we drove to Rye and checked out Bishop Castle. I climbed to the second highest level there, but was too chicken to go to the top (especially since it was raining and the stairs and rails were wet).
Other than that, I had downtime with family. We ate good food and watched a lot of Netflix and Hulu. I convinced my brother to sit through the Fear Street films (he actually didn’t mind them), and I think I got him hooked on “Outer Banks.” Oh, and I was introduced to my newest furry nephew, Lucifer.
I could go on and on. However, I’ll just tell my story in pictures. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, after all.
(The cats get uploaded as individual images. I’ll group each day trip into a gallery.)
LuciferLucifer again ❤️HanzoFishers Peak, taken from Simpson’s Rest The sis-in-lawMy brotherSimpson’s Rest North LakeCuchara Cuchara Cuchara Cruising Highway 12New MexicoBishop Castle Double rainbow coming down out of San Isabel National Forest Lake IsabelRandom things
We almost missed our first flight, our second one was delayed (because some genius put us on a plane that wasn’t equipped to fly/land in snowy conditions, despite the fact that we were headed to Colorado Springs), and my mom had a mild case of elevation sickness on our third day there. Other than that, the trip to visit my brother and his wife was an absolute success!!!! I had visited last year, but we didn’t get to do a lot of sightseeing, and this was Mom’s first trip – and first time flying. The whole area is so beautiful. (Raton, New Mexico, wasn’t that impressive, though. Lol.)
We’re both dying to go back already. I’m aiming for some time during the summer so we can get out and explore a little more. Below are pictures I took during our excursions, and one from the plane because I’m that person 🙂
This was captured about 10 minutes from DFW Driving towards Trinidad The Raton signScenic overlook coming into Colorado from New Mexico Their cat, Hanzo, who was sad because we wouldn’t allow him in the guest room
I will do a longer blog about my trip early next week, but for now I wanted to drop in and share some pictures. I just didn’t want to break my posting streak while on vacation (as lame as that is).
We fly back home tomorrow, which sucks. It has been a fantastic five days – complete with much needed family time, lots of snow, some exploring, and really, really good food. I can’t wait for our next trip out here!
Central ParkThe view from 12We took a drive down to Raton, New Mexico
I don’t share a lot of personal things here, but I’m gonna give up a small tidbit today.
I have had a rough month. I can’t explain it, because even I don’t fully understand. Suffice it to say that it’s been a daily struggle for just over four weeks. The only things (besides music) that have brought me joy are my furbabies: Marceline, Vlad, and Elwin. And so I’m basically dedicating a post to them. Because furbabies.
Marceline
Vlad
This basically shows their personalities. Vlad is a ham and adorable, while Marceline is dignified…and kinda grumpy.
Mostly Music 