Keep Calm and (Only) Carry-On: a Backpack Review

The Jansport & me in Jamaica, 2013

My trusty blue backpack has been with me through a lot of space and time. Together we've seen four time zones, three countries, and perhaps the furthest distance by now—the 7th grade. It’s held everything from sleepover PJs and Shakespeare anthologies to a full week's worth of clothes crammed into spaces you would never expect it to fit. It has truly been larger on the inside and an excellent companion to have by my side. If you’re nerdy enough to get the Doctor Who references, then you also know that there comes a time to say goodbye to every great companion. With one strap tied together and the other slowly ripping out of the seam, the Jansport has reached its limit.

Knowing how long it lasted and how many places it went, I set out to find the perfect replacement, a bag to make Mary Poppins proud. I took to the internet and researched travel backpacks, then familiarized myself with prices and styles and compiled a list of qualities I wanted out of my new companion:

• Carry-on compliant. The non-negotiable bullet. If it measured more than 22x14x9, I closed the tab.
• Flexible/No wheels or internal frame. I wanted something pliable that could be shoved under a seat if necessary or squished a bit in a full trunk.
• No dedicated laptop space with extra padding. This one made the hunt a lot harder. I don’t normally travel with a laptop and a lot of the backpacks out there have built-in padded laptop compartments that eat up valuable packing space.
• Capacity of at least 34 Litres or 2100 cubic inches. i.e., no smaller than my old Jansport.
• Two large compartments. Why do all the backpacks out now only have one large compartment? Oh yeah, because of the dedicated laptop space.
• Cute. I know, now I’m just being picky, but if I’m going to spend a decent amount of money on something I intend to use for years, then I get to add “cute” to the list.

The Solution
A backpack where the only thing larger than the capacity is the name: the eBags TLS Mother Lode Weekender Convertible Junior. It met all of the above requirements and had the added bonus of being on sale (so naturally I added a set of hideously charming gummy bear packing cubes). I found an extra coupon code plus free shipping, and the decision was made.

The Test
So exactly how much does it hold? I'm packing for its maiden voyage, and tomorrow we set out for a five-day trip to Oklahoma, where the wind comes sweeping down the plains, the rain comes out of nowhere, and if you're lucky the sun will make a quick appearance too--and that's just on Thursday. I planned outfits for every day plus a few backups, laid it all out, and hoped it would all fit.

The Conclusion
The capacity is excellent, but you have to be careful not to fill it to beyond carry on capacity. I will never use the expanding option if I'm carrying it on a plane, but the luxury is there if you can afford the added space. In general I travel with a carry-on bag and an extra (empty or mostly empty) tote bag that will fit under a seat so I have room for any items I might acquire on the trip. Everything on the packing list fit inside the backpack, but I opted to put the denim jacket and extra purse in the tote instead to cut down on some of the bulk. Even with the extra purse, jacket, and my filled regular purse, there is still plenty of room for me to come home with more things I don't need in the tote.

For anyone considering this bag AND packing cubes, I would recommend the small or slim cubes. Though the large cube does fit inside this bag, it fills the largest space completely, which to me is the equivalent of packing without one. The medium fills most of the inside and the small fit nicely with room to spare in the outer pocket.

The jury is still out on durability and comfort since I haven't left yet, but I'll update when I get home next week with a recap of the pros and cons of taking it out for a spin (as well as a new dorky picture, I'm sure).

Update 5/23/14: 

With everything listed above, the packed bag weighed in around 20 lbs, so I'm not going to lie to you and say it was a pleasure to carry and felt like nothing on my back. It felt like, well, 20 lbs going for a piggy back ride (it was sort of reminiscent of my days working with toddlers, only it didn't demand Skittles or kick me in the spine). And on the way home after I had spent all weekend lifting and moving things? It felt more like 47 lbs on my back, but then again I really can't blame the fact that I'm out of shape on my luggage choice.

In the positive column, it DID help me catch a connecting flight I fully believe I would have missed if I was lugging a suitcase. I landed in Atlanta around 9:10 PM. My connecting flight departed at 9:47, which means boarding began right around the time my first flight landed. My connection turned out to be two terminals away, and then an escalator and EIGHTEEN gates down from where the skytrain dropped me off. No moving sidewalks, no shortcuts, just a small, tired girl with a big backpack and very limited time. I pulled my usual move of weaving quickly in and out of slower pedestrians and managed to land myself in the boarding line just as my zone was called, and I did it all without taking anyone out by dragging a suitcase behind me. I'm sure there are many more tests for it to pass before I fully embrace it as the permanent replacement, but it served me well this weekend and I stand by my backpack choice.

Do you have a great travel bag? Tell me about it in the comments!

Underneath: How I Became a Hanson Fan

Ten years ago yesterday, Hanson released their third studio album, Underneath. It was their first independent album, and their first risk at taking complete control of their music career. Ten years and three independent albums later, I think it's safe to say it was a smart decision. Underneath debuted at #1 on the Billboard Independent chart and had a handful of other bragging rights, but you're welcome to visit Wikipedia for a more thorough lesson (or better yet, watch their documentary Strong Enough to Break).

Believe it or not, I'm not writing this to tell you a list of accolades Underneath has achieved in the last decade or how the songs have stood the test of time. This is a more personal story. Most of my posts here are related to traveling and seeing recent Hanson shows. For once, I want to rewind--not to 2004 when Underneath was released--but to 2006, the first time I heard it.

Maybe I should start by coming out of the closet. Hi, I'm Holly! And I haven't been a Hanson fan since 1997 like a lot of the hardcore fans in this fan base. Sure, I heard "MMMBop" in 1997, and I loved it. I had Middle of Nowhere on cassette, and I listened to it every day for hours on end. And then one day, I just didn't anymore. In fact I pretty much forgot about Hanson until 2006. Curiosity struck and one day I found myself Googling Hanson, wondering what in the world had happened to those three long-haired brothers that sang "MMMBop" and defined the summer before 4th grade.

What I found was that they were still making music, and their most recent album was called Underneath. I ended up at Wikipedia, the very same page linked up there in the first paragraph. I planned to skim the track listing and search a few of the titles on Youtube to get an idea of their new sound. So at 18 I sat there in my little dorm room, rediscovering this band that means so much to me now, and this was the very first thing that I read:

Track Listing:

1. Strong Enough to Break Wind

I'm not even kidding; that's how I got reacquainted with Hanson. All I could think was "Have they really gone that far downhill and taken some strange, uncharacteristic Weird Al turn?" (no offense to Weird Al, who is a lyrical genius as far as I'm concerned--but not just anyone can pull that off!) I almost closed the page and left Hanson right there in that 4th grade vault, but after a moment of harsh judgment, I kept reading to see what other ludicrous titles might accompany such an absurd first track. When I reread the list and realized my mistake, I stopped and laughed so hard that I cried. My eyes had somehow merged together "Strong Enough to Break" and "Dancing in the Wind," and to this day I think it's the best reading mistake I've ever made.

After I finished crying over my own stupidity, I eventually made it over to Youtube and heard "Broken Angel" and "Crazy Beautiful" for the first time, and that was it for me. If you ask a Hanson fan about the moment they became a fan, you'll get a lot of stories about the first time someone heard "MMMBop," a few mentions of Oprah and MTV, and some laughs about mistaking them for girls the first time. Truthfully, I don't remember how I discovered Hanson in 1997, but if there was a "moment" for me, it's this one, made up of Youtube and accidental potty humor and an album called Underneath. What a love story.

How To Tell Your Loved One That You're Going to Australia

1. Sit by idly and steep in your own jealousy when Hanson plays an Australian tour in 2012. The fact that it's the year Hanson decided not to tour the U.S. at all makes it hurt worse that you weren't financially prepared for this.

2. Start secretly stockpiling money so you can go the next time they return. (Now try saying "start secretly stockpiling" three times fast. No relevance--just funny.)

3. To build up excitement and keep yourself motivated in your savings goal, look at pictures like this:

Photo by DAVID ILIFF. License: CC-BY-SA 3.04. 

4. And these guys:

Photo credit: fir0002 | flagstaffotos.com.au

5. Open up a separate savings account because you're GOING to go to Australia. It's happening, and it doesn't matter that you don't know if Hanson is returning in six months or six years. If you wait until tour dates are announced, there won't be time to save and you'll have to start back at Step #1.

6. Do internal flips when you're at a Hanson show in Vancouver in October 2013 and they FINALLY allude to returning to Australia "soon." You've been saving for almost two years now, and the slow churn of "soon" should be just enough time to afford your dream vacation.

7. When they finally announce tour dates in March 2014, it's time to write a blog post coming clean about your plans. Post it somewhere and tag your friends/family/significant other in it, or send them an email with the link to make sure they see it.

8. Allow 3-5 minutes of hyperventilation/intense anger/lamenting groans of anguish/jealousy/etc. from your chosen loved one. You've had a few years to get used to the idea; let them have a few minutes for it to sink in. (Hi Mom, Dad! Still love you! Hope the feeling is mutual.)

9. If the symptoms from Step #8 do not subside, comfort your loved one with the information that you've been saving responsibly for the trip. Ensure them that it is both safe and affordable and that you'll be traveling with a group of trusted, equally crazy friends. Remind them that you did this in 2012 before you went to Jamaica, and things turned out fine (except for when the bus broke down on the way to the airport, but leave that part out).

10. If symptoms still do not subside, refer your loved one to THIS IMAGE.

____________________________________________________________________
Update April 3, 2014, The Reaction:

One reaction I received from this "announcement" was better than I ever anticipated. On April 1st, I got up early for work and emailed the link to my dad. At best, I hoped for a stressful five minutes of reading time followed by a big sigh of a relief and some form of "haha, you got me!" (and probably a "that is SO like you"). I thought it would be your average lame attempt that only fooled anybody for about two skeptical minutes before the big reveal. What happened instead was pure April Fools' gold.

I got off work hours later and called Dad. It became clear within a few seconds of the conversation that he had indeed read the article--but not in full.

"Please tell me it's a joke," he said. Not so different from the reaction I got to the Jamaica article which was NOT a joke.

I just told him, "If you don't know the answer to that question, then you didn't read it all."

He admitted that he skimmed it but stopped reading because he had "already seen enough."

I told him to go back and read it again all the way through this time, and that as an ex-English teacher, I was pretty disappointed in his reading comprehension. At that point he had already believed it for hours and seemed unsure whether or not the "real" joke was that I was making it out to be a joke but was, in fact, going to Australia. Poor dad.

So to be clear, I am NOT going to Australia (this time ;-)), but I AM pretty pleased with my trolling abilities.

____________________________________________________________________

Update May 4, 2014. The prank that won't die:

Hi, me again. You thought this post was done a month ago? Me too. So what has happened in the month since April Fools' day in regards to this Australia trip? Nothing, because--and apparently I can't say this enough-- I'M NOT GOING. At some point in the last few weeks, I did decide it's time to replace the backpack I've been using as a carry-on item for trips. I can understand how maybe a sudden interest in new luggage might reignite my parents' suspicions of a big trip looming on the horizon, but the truth here is my 15-year-old Jansport is finally dying on me. The timing may be ironic, but the strap chose now to start falling off, and that just won't do.

I started researching travel backpacks to find the perfect fit, and I posted on Facebook about the one I chose. Innocent nerd talk about luggage ensued. Nothing of importance happened, or so I thought.

Fast forward to today, when my mom "admitted" that she had seen a friend's comment on Facebook about our new matching backpacks for our trip to Australia. Cue utter confusion on my end because--I'll say it again--I'M NOT GOING TO AUSTRALIA, and as such, there is no secret comment about our secret trip that my mom accidentally saw. True, I do have a friend going to Australia with her husband (in a trip completely unrelated to Hanson), and she did comment on my Facebook post about needing a new backpack. But I couldn't understand how my mom made the jump between me knowing someone going to Australia and me going with her.

Until I reread the comments:

Now if you're me, you know that the "we" my friend is referring to is her and her husband. But if you're my mom, it looks a whole lot like your daughter really is going to Australia and her friend just outed her on Facebook not knowing that her mom would see it. I have to say, I'm pretty delighted by the ambiguity in those comments and how much it really DOES sound like we're picking out backpacks to go to Australia together when taken out of context. I don't think I could have planned it better if I thought of it myself.

At this rate, I don't think my parents will fully believe I'm not going until August has passed. Even then, I should probably go visit a friend for a week just to keep up appearances, and then next April Fools' Day I can post a blog called "How To Tell Your Loved One That You Never Went To Australia."

Best April Fools' prank ever.

Spend Less; Travel More: 6 Tips for Saving Money on the Road

One of the most common misconceptions about traveling is that to travel far and wide, one must be rich. While having an excess of disposable income will certainly make travel easier (and more comfortable), it’s simply not necessary. I can sum up my travel motto in one word: FRUGALITY. Here are some of the best tips I use to make traveling more affordable.

1.  Pack well.

Don’t just make a packing list, make a thorough packing checklist and double-check that you followed it before you leave. How does a packing list help you save money? If you do it right, it keeps you from making your first destination a grocery store to pick up a new toothbrush, hair brush, and socks because you forgot to bring them.

Forget everything you’ve ever been told about only packing what you need. Figure out what you might not need and pack it anyway. The important distinction here is need vs. want. You might not need a rain coat—then again, you might find yourself in Seattle, $50 poorer with a new raincoat and boots because you wanted the packing space for more t-shirts (sad yet true story). I’m not saying load your entire trunk with snow shoes and beach towels; I’m saying suck it up and stuff in the umbrella you might not need instead of the cute wedges you wanted to bring. Ask yourself "If I don't pack this, what are the odds I'll make an emergency run to the store during my trip to buy one?" If odds are high, take it with you!

If you’re flying, check your airline’s baggage restrictions and make sure you know what can’t go through airport security. Measure your carry-on bags and weigh your checked suitcase at home first (better yet, don’t bother to check a bag if it costs extra). If you pack something that gets confiscated, you’re not only going to have to buy it when you reach your destination, you’re going to have to replace it again when you get home. 

TL;DR recap: Don’t set yourself up to buy things you already own! Big waste of money.

2. Do your homework on flights and airports.

Check flight prices for nearby airports instead of just the one closest to your home. Depending on where you live, sometimes you can save hundreds of dollars by driving an hour or two to depart from a further airport. If you’re driving yourself to the airport and plan to leave your car for an extended period of time, don't forget to check parking rates. Long-term parking typically ranges from about $5-$10 per day. It may not matter much if you’re only gone for three days, but paying $5/day instead of $8/day can make a big difference if you’re gone for weeks.

You might think it's obvious, but don't accidentally park in short-term parking! One of the airports I frequent labels their parking lots "deck" and "surface" instead of "short-term" and "long-term," whereas another local airport uses their surface lot for short-term and garage for long-term. It's easier than you'd think to get it wrong, so make sure you read signs and prices.

Tip: Some airport hotels offer extended parking with the purchase of one night’s stay.

3. Find travel buddies to split costs.

If you’re driving, gas is infinitely cheaper the more people you have in the car. Same with hotel rooms, which leads us to…

4. Don’t pay full price for hotel rooms. 

There is always a cheaper hotel on Priceline or Hotwire if you’re willing to book without a hotel name. I know it sounds scary if you’ve never done it before—but so does the $60 Motel 6 you can see with your own eyes off of the highway. If you’re a risk-taker, the best deal is usually bidding with the Name Your Own Price function on Priceline.com. You choose the star rating and general area within a small radius, and you name a price you’re willing to pay. If your bid is accepted on the first try, you almost definitely bid too much. You only get one bid per day using the details you want, so plan accordingly. Start bidding well before your trip, and lowball that first bid. Go stupidly low—the worst thing that can happen is you have to try again tomorrow. I never increase my bid by more than $5 the next time I try, because that’s how you overpay. It’s a game you can lose if you don’t know what you’re doing, but I’ve stayed in a 3.5 star hotel for $50/night with this tool. Make that 3 nights at $50/night with 4 friends…guys, that’s $37.50 per person TOTAL for the whole trip. Full price feels like an insult after that.

If you want to save money but want the security of certain amenities like free parking or an airport shuttle, try Hotwire’s Hot Rates or Priceline’s ExpressDeals instead. The discounts aren’t as deep as bidding, but you get a handy little list of guaranteed amenities before you book.

For extra homework to improve your odds with Priceline’s Name Your Own Price, check out betterbidding.com.

5. Eat cheap.

You can still go out for a nice meal if that's something you enjoy, just cut the little corners where you can. I never eat out for breakfast while traveling. Find out if your hotel has a continental breakfast and take advantage of it. When it doesn’t, figure out a cheap breakfast food you can eat every day and buy it from a grocery store instead of hitting up McDonald’s every morning (for me, it’s Pop Tarts and Slimfast). Bring a water bottle and buy a jug of water to refill it with instead of buying a new bottle every time you stop at a gas station. I’m no good at math, but I’m pretty sure a gallon of water for 97 cents trumps the 20 oz. for $2.50 at the truck stop. Use coupons. Split large meals (oh hi, foot-long subs!). Order from the dollar menu. Repeat.

If you’re flying, try to plan your meals for before and after your flights if at all possible. (Have you ever eaten in an airport? One meal can practically fund 47 more plane tickets.)

6. Go easy on the souvenirs.

If you’re going somewhere special and already have an item in mind that you want, plan to buy it and have an idea of how much it will cost. It’s not the things you plan to buy that break the bank; it’s all the little things you didn’t factor in along the way. You don’t need the cute little keychain/picture frame/snow globe/etc. that you saw in the gift shop. Don’t start collecting post cards, magnets, shot glasses, or anything you can buy at a Love’s. If you want a free way to remember destinations, take fun, creative pictures instead!


Of course my real secret is this: saving money for travel doesn't end with trip expenses.  If you’re serious about saving, you remind yourself every day when you walk past Starbucks or see a pair of jeans you like. You don’t need to sacrifice everything for travel money, just make well thought-out purchases and cut out the impulse buys. If you see something you like today and still want it in a week, go back and buy it. If not, remember that $3 here and $20 there adds up to a plane ticket after a while.

What are some of your favorite tricks to save money while traveling? Share in the comments.

A Hanson Fan's Guide to Tulsa

If you're a big Hanson fan, chances are you're going to wind up in Tulsa, Oklahoma at least once in your life. For many of us, "Hanson Day" has become this strange annual fan pilgrimage, an event where you can reunite with friends who are usually separated by states and countries and entire oceans. Tulsa has since grown to become more than the home of our favorite band; it's a place for our eccentric family reunion (and it comes complete with that weird cousin you always avoid. You know it's true).

Really, this is not new information. Hanson has given us several guides to Tulsa in the last few years, and if you're a repeat offender, you've probably been to most of these places already. But just in case you've missed the guides and are looking forward to a future trip to Tulsa, here are a few places you might want to check out. Places with * are within walking distance of 3CG/most downtown hotels:

Restaurants

Chicken & Waffles at Caz's

• Mexicali's*:Yummy Mexican cuisine, conveniently located about half a block from 3CG. 
• El Guapo's*: More Yummy Mexican cuisine, and you can eat on the roof for a good view of downtown! I recommend the trio of Tacos El Guapo.  
• Caz's Chowhouse*: Southern fried goodness. I linked this one directly to the menu because that's all you need to convince you to check it out. Also about half a block from 3CG.
• Joe Momma's*: The perfect late-night pizza stop. One of the few places open late in downtown Tulsa.
• Blue Rose Cafe: I haven't actually eaten at this one to attest for the food, but it has a prime location right on the Arkansas River. Maybe I'll finally try it this year. (I hear there's an autographed drum head from Hanson hanging on the wall somewhere, too.)
• Fast Food: I always forget how exciting it can be to come across a chain restaurant you don't have at home while traveling. Here are a few fast food stops you might not have back home that you can drive to once you've figured out downtown Tulsa has no food at midnight: Taco Bueno, Whataburger, Sonic, Chick-fil-A, Panda Express, Steak 'n Shake.

Shopping

• Dwelling Spaces*: Before there were annual MOEs & thought-out PDF guides to Tulsa from Hanson, there was Dwelling Spaces. We all knew it, and we all owned their I Heart Tulsa shirts. Inside you'll also find Joebot's Coffee Bar. If you're nice, they might even make you a coffee with a Hanson symbol on top. 
• Ida Red: Like Dwelling Spaces, a clearly Tulsan boutique. You can find more cute souvenirs and t-shirts here along with a ton of unique soda flavors and foreign candies.
• Utica Square: If you want to do real shopping and not just hunt for souvenirs, hit up Utica Square. It's sort of an upscale outdoor mall.
• Glacier Confections*: You know those fun flavored chocolates you see on Hanson.net every Valentine's Day? Those are coming from Glacier Confections. If you care about chocolate at all, do it, and try something exciting. 
• I Heart Hanson Pop-up Store*: Okay, so you don't need me to tell you to go to this. What you do need me to tell you if it's your first time is to 1) expect to wait in line, and 2) expect to spend money. If you show up at the store at 5 and have dinner planned for 6, you may wind up having to choose between tacos and t-shirts. 

Inside the first I Heart Hanson Pop-up Store.

Spoils from Dwelling Spaces, Ida Red, & Hanson. I wasn't kidding about expecting to spend money!

Sight Seeing

• The Center of the Universe*: It's located at the top of a pedestrian overpass downtown. Go stand in the middle and figure it out. For all its "unique" appeal, I will say there is a place just like this in Charleston, SC with no plaque or official name to draw any visitors. My friends and I found it by climbing on stuff; go figure. 
• TBS Video location: You can visit the shooting location for the "Thinking 'Bout Somethin'" video at the intersection of N. Greenwood and E. Archer St. If you walk about a block past the intersection and under the overpass, you'll see the mural used in another scene in the video. 
• Cyrus Avery Centennial Plaza: You can see a little bit of Route 66 History at the old 11th Street
  
  Bridge. Who knew one of the founders of Route 66 was from Tulsa? "Championed by Tulsa, Oklahoma businessman Cyrus Avery when the first talks about a national highway system began, U.S. 66 was first signed into law in 1927 as one of the original U.S. Highways" (wikipedia). And that's the most history you'll EVER hear out of me.
• The Golden Driller: Because who doesn't want to stop and take a picture with a 76-foot school-bus-yellow oil drilling man? 
• Guthrie Green*: This one is pretty new to Tulsa. It's a public park that holds all kinds of events from farmer's markets to food trucks to one mile barefoot walks, if you attended Hanson Day in 2013. 
• The Philbrook Museum: The gardens here are gorgeous. If you're into art and photography and can catch this place on a sunny day, go take some pictures. Tip: It's free on the 2nd Saturday of every month! There's a list of other discounts and free admission guidelines on the website.

The Philbrook

And I don't care what the 10 day, 5 day, or 24 hour forecast says...pack a jacket!

Got any questions or suggestions of your own? Leave a comment.

(Back to) Back to the Island 2014

I no longer believe in the concept of a "once in a lifetime experience." That phrase is an excuse to let yourself do something when you're feeling a little reluctant or if you want to convince yourself that something is better than it really is. I called Tulsa a "once in a lifetime experience" once; seven trips later, I've given up. And now, back from my second time in Jamaica with my favorite band, I've simply resigned myself to a new mantra: "There's a first time for everything" (and often a second, third, fourth, and so on).


This year held many improvements over last year's event, and the biggest and most important improvement was the music. I went home last year thinking about all the best parts of the event and then realized that the music didn't even rank in my list. I was stoked about the tie-dye, the snorkeling, and Isaac's drink mixing session; the shows were almost an afterthought for me. This year the music was the best part by a landslide, as it should have been all along. I read somewhere that Hanson played a total of 89 unique songs over the course of the four day event. EIGHTY NINE. I'm not doing the math on how many unique songs we got last year, but it felt like maybe 15 (okay, that's an exaggeration). This year only three songs were repeated: "Best of Times" (they seemed to be filming some sort of video for it), "Thinking 'Bout Somethin'," and "Every Word I Say." Repeats are welcome when it's two versions of EWIS, and I'm always down to do the TBS dance.

If you want to check out the full details of the setlists, you can head over to hansonstage.com and click Database > setlists by date. I met the owner, Katie, in Jamaica. She's fantastic and I've used her site to keep track of my own setlists for years. It has some pretty neat features so if you haven't yet, check it out!


The Activities

For me, the activities started with Hancyclopedia Trivia with Isaac. I do have to say it may be impossible to top last year's drink mixing with Isaac that had him taking shots straight from the bottle and attempting the soulja boy dance. The trivia felt pretty short, and the next day Matt Wertz showed up for Isaac's event. Turns out he was supposed to be at ours too but forgot.

Zac's tie dye event was much less chaotic than last year's big cluster of people. He told us in advance that he would be coming around to each group, so there was no giant mob circling him the entire time (with the exception of a few fans that did seem to follow him from group to group). Zac also did his tie dye homework this year and came prepared to teach us not only the basic "cinnamon roll" twist pattern, but also a new heart pattern, and told us to soak the shirt in vinegar to help keep the dye. I brought an extra shirt to dye so I could do a test run before ruining the one provided in our merchandise package, so I decided to try a heart on the plain one. I had Zac draw the heart and tie that portion for me, then did the dye myself.

So if you'll excuse the totally necessary pun: Zac held my heart in his hand and I dyed.

        

Taylor's after party was also better than his cooking class last year. Zac, Andrew, Dimitrius, Paul McDonald, and Matt Wertz all made appearances on the stage to show off some dance moves as Taylor chose the music. Isaac hung in the back and from what I hear did a few shots with fans. When I found him I got a cheers with my water, you know, the partier that I am and all. 

The Solo Shows

One of the big appeals of this trip was the announcement of Hanson's first ever solo shows. Each night, one brother took to the stage alone for a 45 minute set. It was a really unique experience getting to hear so many songs solo that have always been full-band songs to me. Every Word I Say, Get Up and Go, RAIN? I mean where did that come from?! I do have to laugh because Isaac introduced the song by saying they had never played it before, but I definitely heard Rain live in Tulsa once. I will absolutely not complain hearing it again as an Isaac solo in Jamaica, though.  Taylor's set seemed pretty quick with just seven songs, but he was the first to do a solo show.  It opened with a weird coincidence where it started raining during "Make it Out Alive," so I sang "We may not make it out all dry" quietly to my friend Rachel, and the very next verse Taylor sang the same thing. The standout performance here was definitely "Every Word I Say," which I can imagine may be the only time we ever hear that as a solo. 

Zac's set had 9 songs that opened with "This is the Jam," which had never been played before. I always envisioned it being this sort of big crowd anthem in my head, but there wasn't really any crowd participation like I had hoped. The set ended with a KILLER rendition of "Devil's Nachos." That song had been played live one time before, I was there for both, and let me tell you his performance in Jamaica blew the one in D.C. waaaay out of the water. 

He kept joking that the crowd needed to be louder or that he would just put down the guitar and walk off, and how he had only ever seen that happen at metal shows but that maybe we would see something similar later. At the end he did just that, laid the guitar down on an amp that left us suffering a horrible sound until someone came and moved it, and by the time we realized what was happening, he was gone. A few people seemed confused and thought he was mad but I thought it was a genius way to exit before anyone could mob him, and he gave us the rockstar exit he had already alluded to earlier in his set.

Isaac joked that they saved the best for last, and his show was a pretty great way to end their first ever solo sets. We got a full 10 songs out of him and probably the rarest songs with "Rain," "Too Young to Kill," and "Someone." The crowd energy felt huge for his set, and you could tell every person there was having a great time just watching him do what he does best. I can't wait to see the product of all the recording during "Best of Times."

The trip felt so incredibly fast I can hardly believe it's over. If you challenged me to pick a favorite part, I don't think I could. The music really blew me away this year, and a few of my favorite highlights include:

• "In a Way" opening the 2nd show. The DRUMS. 
• Getting to hear "Every Word I Say" not only full band again, but as a Taylor solo for the first time. 
• Isaac's solo set. Period. 
• "Devil's Nachos." 
• Finally got a photo with Taylor where I don't look like I need 12 more hours of sleep and a hairbrush. I then made a fool out of myself during the M&G photo op, so I guess the world is balanced once again.    

You can check out more photos on my facebook page HERE, and if you're curious about last year's BTTI event, there's a review of that HERE too.

My Anti-Bucket List: 2013 Edition.

Back in early 2012, I wrote a blog post proposing the concept of an "anti-bucket list." The idea is to identify a list of things you have already accomplished instead of setting a list of unattainable goals for the future. Besides, sometimes I find the experiences I never dared to dream up and write down on a list to be more fulfilling than those I've been anticipating. Spontaneity can trump years of plans if you let it.

Since revisiting my original Anti-Bucket List, I thought of all the new things I've done in the last 19 months and decided maybe it's time for an upgrade. Then I took it a step further. What if instead of tallying up all the fun things I've ever done into one big trophy of a graphic, I held myself to a single year. 2013. Could I accomplish enough in one year to warrant a new list? Would such a list be disappointingly barren, or surprisingly full? It's a challenge I may take on yearly from now on--not to fulfill a set of predetermined requirements, or to make myself feel useless if I can't come up with anything--but to take the time to identify the fun, unexpected things I have accomplished this year. It serves as a fun evaluation at the end of the year as well as motivation to keep going in 2014.

So here it is, my Anti-Bucket List for 2013: the traveling fan edition. What's on yours? (think outside of the box; it doesn't have to be travel-based). What else can you add in the next month?

Photo: Negril, Jamaica 2013

Want to make one of your own? Try www.picmonkey.com. It's free and simple to use.

Anthem Tour: Charlotte

Charlotte, NC, Nov. 20th, 2013

The final show of a tour is one to be both anticipated and dreaded. It’s bound to be good, but the thing about happy endings is that by definition, they have to end.  It sets in motion that anxious feeling of not knowing when you’ll see your favorite band again (unless you already have a flight booked to see them in Jamaica in January…you know, just for example).  I've heard people refer to it as PHCD—Post Hanson Concert Depression.  Call it what you want, but the only cure I know is already having the next show planned before you reach the “last,” and of course, it’s temporary. The only real treatment is to never stop going, always outrun the "last" show.

Charlotte was the closest stop to my house all tour, so it felt really strange to get in my car and drive myself to a single show.  No delayed flights, no car full of friends, and worst of all, I had to get back in my car and drive home afterwards instead of heading to some new city where I can’t park to save my life. It's probably how normal people always experience shows, right? (and makes for a kind of uneventful blog post, sorry!)

The whole day was uncomplicated. The weather for the walk was perfect, and we had a great turnout nearing 200 people. Taylor called me "Vanna White" for holding up the walk registration sheet at the end, and I had to laugh when my friend Valerie accurately pointed out that that would make him Pat Sajak. (irony: Vanna White is actually from my hometown)

              

The show began with a Hanson tour finale tradition by pranking opener David Ryan Harris. During his last song, Hanson & crew blasted a different song over the sound system and came out doing some strange dancing in a line. It was so random I feel like it must have some real, concrete origin that none of us recognized. The dancing reminded me of marionette puppets (Isaac did it best), and there was something oddly familiar about it that I can't figure out. Taylor came out with a box on his head. We may never know.

(There's a poor excuse for a video of the end of this over on my instagram)

Perhaps more unusual than Taylor in a box was the older lady and her man friend that came to stand behind us. The things they were doing before the show even started belonged under the privacy of a set of high school bleachers or some equivalent. We were happy when the guy left until she started screaming in his absence, the kind of screaming that comes at random intervals and doesn't even seem to line up with anything happening on stage. She talked right over Hanson asking us to be quiet for their a capella "Too Much Heaven" cover, so I finally turned and tried to politely say "They're about to sing without any instruments or microphones. If anyone is talking, we won't hear it." She muttered something angry but was mostly quiet during the song (at least, quieter than the two guys that started shouting and distracting everyone about 10 seconds later). Have I mentioned that those a capella key changes will change your life? Because they will. I don't always elaborate enough on the pure talent of this band, but if you're not impressed by three a capella key changes done seamlessly in harmony, then you don't understand music.

After they finished, Isaac ranted about how he thought he was in the south where people were supposed to have manners, but that maybe the northeast was better. He was starting to play "For Your Love" when crazy lady pushed me in the back and shouted "B**** you have NO right to talk to me like that!" Cue really confused blank stares from everybody around me, because I hadn't said a word since before the last song. It was either the worst delayed reaction ever, or she had been carrying on a fictional argument with me in her head. After another silent moment when I thought it was over, she pushed me and said "You won, B****!" and then left. After a similar situation in Seattle and gum in my hair in Vegas, I think I've somehow taken on the role of pied piper of the crazies.

The solo set was perfect because Val got to hear "For Your Love" after her wedding, Zac pulled out "The Walk," and Taylor finally played Crazy Beautiful as a solo after I chased him all over the country asking for it (scratch that--continent. The last place I asked was Vancouver. I'm exaggerating, but only a little). For the encore at the end they brought David Ryan Harris out and played a few Christmas songs, the perfect finale for a show so late in the year.

I drove home with that sad mixture of feeling completely satisfied and nostalgic knowing that my favorite memories from this tour are just that--memories, past tense. I think that's part of what we're all feeling when we refer to some type of post-show depression. It's not just that we're sad there isn't another show to look forward to (yet), it's that we had some really great moments already, and you can't relive or replicate them no matter how hard you try. So you come home, and you tell it to your friends. You post pictures on Facebook, or you update your blog and know that even if you can't go back, you can still remember. And you can start plotting for next time.

Revamp!

Welcome to the new and improved If You Give a (Fan) a (Ticket)!

If you've been here before, welcome back. If you're seeing this page for the first time, you're late! (kidding, glad to have you.) I started this blog five years ago after my 11th Hanson show. I knew that I loved writing, that I would continue going to shows, and that I wanted a place to keep track of all the fun details. I suspected the stories would get crazier and the memories more fuzzy, and I was right. You're looking at the result, and I'm glad to have kept up with it for this long. I hope you'll enjoy it and the changes I've made.

What's new:

• The url! www.travelingfan.net. R.I.P. jasminesprinkles. (Hindsight: never name a blog after an inside joke with a Hanson that you didn't quite get and that they'll never remember anyway.) No worries, all old links should still redirect to the right place.
• The facebook page: www.facebook.com/travelingfan. Like it, share it, frequent it! 
• Google + page
• Email: holly@travelingfan.net.
• The wrap up post to my Anthem Tour blog series. You can find it right here or scroll down to read it underneath this post. 

What's coming:

More changes. The Facebook page is brand new and pretty empty. I haven't even started a twitter yet. You can probably expect a few more design changes and maybe some new additions to the website in the near future. If you have any suggestions for changes, please let me know either here in the comments or at my fancy new email address.

Thanks for reading! Feedback is welcomed :-)

Holly

Anthem Tour: Vancouver & Home.

Vancouver, BC, Canada, Oct. 2nd, 2013

It’s cold. You’re sitting in a sleeping bag on a sidewalk in a country you’ve never been to before.  It’s past midnight on a Tuesday, but to the drunks wandering in and out of the bars, it’s perpetually Saturday.  Homelessness peppers the sidewalks, and there are so many questionable activities going on that nobody is surprised by the five girls in clean sleeping bags beneath the venue marquee. You wonder if this is normal in Vancouver.

One man finally stops.

“What are lovely ladies like yourselves doing camped out on a sidewalk?” he asks.

“We’re here for the Hanson show,” you say.

You’re prepared for the usual onslaught of “MMMBop” jokes and irrelevant cracks about long-haired children and mistaken gender.  Instead, he says:

“Is it really worth it?”

You can’t tell him about all ten of the shows you saw in the last two weeks, or the fifteen or fifty or two hundred you saw before that.  You can’t show him some mental montage of all the places you’ve been and the people you’ve met. You can’t even pull out your phone to show him a song clip because you’re not about to pay out of country roaming fees for ten seconds of the wrong part of “You Can’t Stop Us.”  You can’t tell him these things because he’s drunk and you have about a twelve second window before his attention wanders to the next sedentary female, and because even if he wasn’t, some things can’t really be explained.

You settle for “Yes.”

He insists on buying you fries and water from the McDonald’s down the street because he’s wasted and maybe it seems like a pretty chivalrous thing to do for a bunch of sidewalk sleepers. You politely decline and he’s off to the next bar on this Tuesday/Saturday night.

The night drags on. Someone asks if you're "George's girls," and it takes you a moment to realize that logic says George is a pimp and you've just been mistaken for prostitutes (in sleeping bags?).  An older woman in a blonde wig insists you take a handful of contraceptives from the bucket attached to her hip, but you decline those too. You also decline the drunk guy who keeps saying that he "NEEDS" to sleep in the three-inch-gap between you and your friend. You tell him he doesn't.

Yes. Still worth it.

***

The Vancouver show was one of my favorites all tour, weird camping experiences and all.  The small fan club event held before the regular show was a definite highlight and worth the wait. There were around 50 fan club members in attendance, and we got a few acoustic songs, a Q&A, and group photos with the band. I sincerely hope our photo is a full body shot so my friends and I can all have a good laugh at the variety of footwear going on (hello, rain boots & platforms!). 

My favorite part of the event was "On and On," hands down. First, it's my favorite song from this year's EP. Second, they stepped away from the microphones and walked to the front of the stage to sing the final chorus directly in front of us, face to face, and it was GORGEOUS. And third, I've been saying all along that the last line in that song screams Brokeback Mountain, and Hanson finally confirmed that they're aware of the similarity too. It's this really sweet love song, and the last line is "I can't quit you." (I believe the original line in the movie is "I wish I knew how to quit you," but it was close enough to send me into a fit of giggles the first time I heard it in Tulsa this year). Anyway, Hanson blows my mind singing this gorgeous a capella version of one of my favorite songs, literally five feet in front of my face, and then they end the song like this:

"I can't quit yoooooou........Jake Gyllenhaal." Ladies and Gentlemen, my favorite band.

They surprised all of us at the end by asking if we had any requests. People immediately shouted for "Cried," and they eventually gave in and played just the chorus. Then they played all of "Ever Lonely," which made up for the fact that I couldn't think of a single thing to request. I'll be better prepared next time. 

During the regular show, my friends and I really appreciated Zac bringing out "Fire on the Mountain" for the first time this tour. They know fans travel to multiple shows, so it's always nice when they switch the setlists up a bit. I can remember thinking a few songs in that I should have asked them to play "Something Going Round" when I had the chance during our group pictures. I didn't ask, but I was thrilled when it showed up near the end of the set list anyway. It's always been one of my favorites live; I love when they drop the music and stop singing and all you can hear is the crowd carrying on the word "NOW" without them at the end.

Afterwards, we waited by the bus one last time to say goodbye at the end of my favorite trip to date. Taylor was sick and didn't come out, but we thanked Isaac and Zac for a great run of shows and left with pictures and smiles knowing that all of us would be back next time, and knowing that "back" doesn't necessarily mean Canada, but anywhere.

We woke up deathly ill right on schedule the following morning (thanks again, Zac) and started the 22 hour drive back to L.A. The one thing I didn't get to do in Vancouver was visit an old Supernatural set and take nerdy pictures there (Supernatural:TV::Hanson:music, okay?). Naturally, at the U.S. border I turned my phone back on to see a post from a friend we said goodbye to the night before. There was Jensen and Jared and the Impala, parked in her hotel lot we had parked in just 24 hours before, shooting a brand new scene. I guess you can't win them all.

As if the 22 hour drive and subsequent cross-country flight weren't complicated enough, I woke up to an email saying that my flight home was canceled. I was re-booked on a red-eye a full 11 hours after my original flight instead. But wait, there's more! My connecting flight was delayed, too. TWICE. By the time I got home, I had to beg a coworker to cover my shift, I had to pay for an extra day's parking at the airport, and I had spent roughly 33 out of the previous 72 hours in cars or on planes. I came home, dragged my things inside, and opened my suitcase to pull out my phone charger before crashing into bed. Inside is a wad of ticket stubs shoved in with dirty socks and rain boots and a pair of drumsticks tucked into an umbrella bag.

Yep, still worth it.