Vacation...

Have a great week, everyone!

Poetry Friday

Wow! I just realized that yesterday was my 100th post! Cool.

For today's Poetry Friday I have an original cinquain about spring. It's been a brutal winter in the Midwest (and more cold coming this week), so I am so happy to see robins popping about the yard and tulip leaves sprouting out of the ground! My kids' spring break also starts this afternoon-bring on the chaos! Actually I'm very much looking forward to full days with no hectic schedules and family fun!

LONG WINTER by Kelly Polark

Cozy

from the cold. I'm

wrapped in my comforter.

I emerge from my warm cocoon.

It's spring!

Check out more poetry links with Julie Larios at The Drift Record today!

This or That Thursday

Today's This or That involves activities that sharpen the mind. Many people enjoy crossword puzzles. Others enjoy sudoko. Some do both. Both activities force you to think, concentrate, and stretch your mind for a short period of time. Sudoko is a logic based number placement puzzle. Did you know that the word sudoko means single number? Maybe that will be a crossword clue someday! The first crossword puzzle was created in 1913 by Arthur Wynne. See it here.

Do you enjoy these activities?

I have never tried sudoko, but I do like crossword puzzles. I don't have much time nowadays to sit and do a crossword puzzle as much as I'd like, but I can see myself doing them frequently when I'm an empty nester (which thankfully isn't for a LONG time!). In the lazy, crazy days of summer, I seem to try crossword puzzles more. Since many of my blog readers are writers, my guess is that crossword puzzles will dominate this week. We're word people!

Here are a few of many online links to games:

Crosswords at Boatloadpuzzles.com.

Websudoko.com

Washington Post has Sudoko and Crosswords online.

Do you enjoy sudoko or crossword puzzles? Please comment and/or click on the poll on the right!

Also, a big THANK YOU to Solvang Sherrie! I won a cool bracelet on her blog yesterday!

Tune For Tuesday

Today's tune is a blast from the past. Last week I posted my random music shuffle survey where my Itunes chose titles of songs for answers to questions. One question was "How would you describe yourself?" The random song answer was "Desperate But Not Serious" by Adam Ant. Funny, huh? It's silly for an answer, but it is my favorite Adam Ant song. I've never seen the music video so for my own enjoyment and hopefully yours, here's a new wave pop song from 1982. It's from the Friend or Foe album which also includes his biggest US hit, "Goody Two-Shoes."

Desperate But Not Serious

Just Dance

Hope you all had a great weekend. Mine started with a night out with classmates from high school (we are planning a reunion). It was fun to catch up with old friends. Saturday I spent outside with the kids. Sunday we went to lunch and the Lincoln Park Zoo with my mom and sister. The francois langur monkeys were the most entertaining. Two of them were hugging and cleaning one another. That was a crowd pleaser. A baby monkey (pictured) also would climb away from his mom, then scurry back to her. So cute! Also, entry to Lincoln Park Zoo is free, so can't beat that in a bad economy! For a March day, the zoo was filled with families. I also rented Twilight and watched it last night. Have you ever rented from Red Box? Only a buck a night! Anyway, I just read Twilight in February so I already pictured Rob Pattinson as Edward (sigh) and Kristen Stewart as Bella. I liked Peter Facinelli as Dr. Cullen, too. I also liked Taylor Lautner as Jacob Black, but he seems too short now for the sequel...I pictured Esme, Rosalie and Jasper a bit different though. Of course I liked the book better, but I did enjoy the movie. I'm not a huge romantic (I'm a comedy movie lover), but I do have to admit, the movie made me swoon a bit. Overall a great weekend. I hope you enjoyed some springtime fun as well!
Here's a fun video I found online. This guy, Ely Kim, dances to 100 different songs in 100 different places. It's not as sentimental as Matt dancing all around the world with people...but it is pretty funny! At first I thought I wouldn't watch the whole hundred songs, but I just had to keep watching. Then I started dancing and watching. Dancing is contagious! I have already started filming my own video of me dancing in ten different places to ten different songs (I'm a bit lazier than Ely). Now we'll have to see if I have the guts to post it here when I'm done!
Start out your Monday dancing.
Dance Ely Dance!


BOOMBOX from Ely Kim on Vimeo.

His song list:
001. Heart of Glass / Blondie
002. Jimmy / M.I.A
.003. Deceptacon / Le Tigre
004. Im on Fire / 5000 Volts
005. Je Veux Te Voir / YELLE
006. The Way I Are / Timbaland
007. Too Young / Phoenix
008. Over And Over / Hot Chip
009. Stick It To The Pimp / Peaches
010. Say My Name / Destiny's Child
011. Pin / Yeah Yeah Yeahs
012. Geremia / Bonde Do Role
013. Let Me Clear My Throat / DJ Kool
014. Point Of No Return / Expose
015. Bubble Sex / The Seebach Band
016. Pump Up the Jam / Technotronic
017. Let's Make Love And Listen To Death From Above / CSS
018. Hella Nervous / Gravy Train
019. Me Plus One / Annie
020. Don't Go / Yaz
021. Bootylicious / Destiny's Child
022. Electric Feel / MGMT023. Boys Don't Cry / The Cure
024. Lose Control / Missy Elliott
025. Ride The Lightning / Evans And Eagles
026. Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough / Michael Jackson
027. Hearts On Fire / Cut Copy
028. Tainted Love / Soft Cell
029. Between Us & Them / Moving Units
030. It Feels Good / Tony Toni Tone
031. Polaris (Club Mix) / Cyber People
032. You Never Can Tell / Chuck Berry
033. Huddle Formation / The Go! Team
034. Pump That / FannyPack
035. My Love / Justin Timberlake
036. Hung Up / Madonna
037. Justice - D.A.N.C.E (MSTRKRFT Remix) / Justice
038. Cybernetic Love / Casco
039. Creep / TLC
040. When I Hear Music / Debbie Deb
041. B.O.B. / Outkast
042. Bubble Pop Electric / Gwen Stefani
043. Miss You Much / Janet Jackson
044. You Spin Me Round / Dead Or Alive
045. Slide In / Goldfrapp
046. Kelly / Van She
047. Mine Fore Life / The Sounds
048. Disco Heat / Calvin Harris
049. Nighttiming / Coconut Records
050. Club Action / Yo Majesty
051. Pogo / Digitalism
052. Lip Gloss / Lil Mama
053. Heartbeats / The Knife
054. Enola Gay / OMD
055. Goodbye Girls / Broadcast
056. Kids In America / Kim Wilde
057. Kiss / Prince
058. Tenderness / General Public
059. Push It / Salt N Pepa
060. Circle, Square, Triangle / Test Icicles
061. Day 'N' Nite (Crookers Remix) / Kid Cudi
062. Shadows / Midnight Juggernauts
063. Paris (Aeroplane Remix) / Friendly Fires
064. Out At The Pictures / Hot Chip
065. Me Myself and I / De La Soul
066. AudioTrack 10 / Diplo
067. Girls & Boys / Blur
068. Heater / Samim
069. I Wanna Dance With Somebody / Whitney Houston
070. Hands In The Air / Girl Talk
071. Limited Edition OJ Slammer / Cadence Weapon
072. Meeting In The Ladys Room / Mary Jane Girls
073. NY Lipps / Soulwax
074. Lex / Ratatat
075. Gravity's Rainbow (Soulwax Remix) / Steve Aoki
076. Once In A Lifetime / Talking Heads
077. Leave It Alone / Operator Please
078. Half Mast / Empire Of The Sun
079. Hardcore Girls / Count and Sinden feat. Rye Rye
080. Dance, Dance, Dance / Lykke Li
081. Never Gonna Get It / En Vogue
082. Blue Monday / New Order
083. Crazy In Love (Featuring Jay-Z) / Beyoncé
084. 10 Dollar / M.I.A.
085. Love To Love You Baby / Donna Summer
086. Steppin' Out / Lo-Fi-Fnk
087. Karle Pyar Karle / Asha Bhosle
088. Love Will Tear Us Apart / Joy Division
089. Straight Up / Paula Abdul
090. My Drive Thru / Santogold, Casablancas, NERD
091. Like A Prayer / Madonna
092. Freedom 90 / George Michael
093. Black & Gold / Sam Sparro
094. B-O-O-T-A-Y / Spank Rock and Benny Blanco
095. Great Dj / The Ting Tings
096. In A Dream / Rockell
097. Don't Stop the Music / Rihanna
098. Hong Kong Garden / Siouxsie & The Banshees
099. It's Tricky / D.M.C.
100. Bizarre Love Triangle / New Order

Poetry Friday

The luck of the Irish was with me this week! Highlights Puzzlemania bought another word puzzle from me, and I won a crockpot cookbook from Brenda on her blog! Thanks Brenda!

Another great project that I submitted to this week is the Peace Project. Read more about the Peace Project here at Laura Salas's website. I submitted the following poem.

PEACE ON EARTH by Kelly Polark

Peace on Earth
What’s it worth?
A million tears?
A child’s worst fears?

Peace on Earth
What’s it worth?
Thousands dying?
Widows crying?

Peace on Earth
What’s it worth?
Countries in debt?
No answers yet?

Peace on Earth
What’s it worth?
Law obstruction?
Mass destruction?

Let’s coexist and be wise.
Tolerate and compromise.
But what can all of this be worth?
The very future of this Earth.

The Poetry Roundup is at Wild Rose Reader today!

This or That Thursday

I'm a junk food junkie. Yes, I admit it. I love fast food. I try and limit my fast food intake to once (maybe twice) a week. I know it's bad for you. Sometimes it tastes awesome, sometimes it tastes like it's been sitting under the lights for five hours. But I love it anyway.

Do you enjoy fast food? If so, what is your favorite fast food establishment?

This will be a tough one, because we have so many fast food restaurants to choose from. I will list as many as I can in the poll: McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy's, Taco Bell, Arby's, Culver's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Sonic Burger, In and Out Burger, Jack in the Box, A&W. Holy fried food, there are a lot!

My top three choices are Culver's, McDonald's and Arby's. But you know me, I'd be happy to eat at any of these fine restaurants. My current favorite at Culver's is the tuna melt and those cheese nuggets are way good. Now I usually just make my own tuna melt at home though. I love McDonald's french fries and fountain Coke. When I was pregnant with JD, I craved Big Macs. Arby's has a good roast beef or chicken bacon swiss.

Man, I'm hungry now...

What is your favorite franchise and what do you order?

The Ghost of You

My Chemical Romance - Ghost Of You


Today's Tune for Tuesday is totally random due to my survey below. It was selected by shuffle of my Itunes library! It is a great video and song from 2005 by My Chemical Romance (one of my favorite bands). The video is well done. Read my random survey below!

What does your music library say about you?
1. Put Your iTunes, mp3 player or whatever on SHUFFLE
2.For each question, press the next button to get your answer (no cheating!!)
3.You must write down song/artist even if it doesn't make sense
4.Include any comments in parenthesis
5.Post the answer to #25 as your Title (if you blog it)

1. What do your friends say about you? Dear God by Avenged Sevenfold (well, I am a Christian…or does it mean, Dear God!?”
2.How would your coworkers describe you? Say It Ain’t So by Weezer (Luckily, I have no coworkers!)
3. How would you describe yourself? Desperate But Not Serious by Adam Ant (Quit laughing!)
4. What do you like in a romantic partner? Empty Walls by Serj Tankian (I don’t get it..)
5. How do you feel today? The Deeper the Love by Whitesnake (Awwww, aren’t I sweet?)
6. What is your life’s purpose? SexyBack by Justin Timberlake (Now you’re talkin’! ;)
7. What is your motto? I Want You by Third Eye Blind (Oh, my!)
8. What do you think about the most? All the Promises by Queensryche (Cross your heart…)
9. What are you going to do on your next vacation? She Goes Down by Motley Crue (I think my husband just booked a weekend away after he read this…or maybe I’m going to Australia!)
10. What do you think of your first love/date? Walking After You by Foo Fighters (Cute!)
11. What is your life story? Brace Yourself by Brides of Destruction (I’m a cautious person, but you never know what life is going to throw at you!)
12. What did you do yesterday? It’s All Love by Rockstar Supernova (Hey, I love my family!)
13. What do you think of when you see the person you like/love? Everybody Wants Some! By Van Halen (that just made me giggle!)
14. What describes your wedding? Bound by Disturbed (Interesting!)
15. What will they play at your funeral? Strutter by Kiss (But I’ll be struttin’ no more…)
16. What is your obsession? Welcome to the Universe by 30 Seconds to Mars (Does this mean I’m obsessed with astronomy…or Jared Leto?)
17. What is your biggest fear? Hey Baby by No Doubt (my biggest fears do concern my babies!)18. What is your biggest secret? Disarm by Smashing Pumpkins (Dis arm or dis leg?)
19. What is your biggest turn-on? Headstrong by Trapt (Hmmmm.)
20. How do you describe your friends? Skin Divers by Duran Duran (hee, hee!)
21. What would you do with a million dollars? Midnight Show by the Killers (Sounds like I could have my own private concert!)
22.What is your opinion of the opposite sex? Get Out the Door by Velvet Revolver (Hilarious!)
23. What is your biggest regret? Get Some by Chevelle (These are getting too funny!)
24. What would you rather be doing right now? Happy Face by the Toadies (Really, I am happy! :0)
25. What will you post this list as? The Ghost of You by My Chemical Romance

Okay, this was too fun! Feel free to post yours too. Rena, you have such an extensive song collection, I’d love to see yours!

And the Winner is...

Thank you to everyone who entered my first contest! I loved reading all the fun poems! Carol from Carol's Corner is the lucky gal who was randomly chosen to win Douglas Florian's Dinothesaurus! Congrats, Carol!

Also congrats to authors Heidi Bee Roemer, Kim Hutmacher, and Laura Crawford on their new blog, Wild About Nature! They have some great book reviews about picture books about nature. Check it out!

Lastly, I noticed Christina's superhero a few days ago and had to make one of my own.

THE ROCK WARRIOR

I use my supercool lightsaber to make my way to the front row of a concert. My cool glasses protect my eyes from any pyrotechnics used during the show. The shades also highlight mispelled words in blue while I'm typing, too! My lightsaber shrinks to form an always sharpened pencil for my writing sessions. As an added bonus, my shades can see through walls so I can easily check on my children while they are in another room. The lightsaber's a good laundry and toy picker-upper as well.

Make your own superhero at The Hero Factory!

Poetry Friday

I've been down and out with a bad case of the flu most of the week, so I'm not sharing a poem today.

BUT please peek at the post below and enter for a chance to win Douglas Florian's newest book, Dinothesaurus: Prehistoric Poems and Paintings! It's DINOmite!

Poetry Roundup is at The Miss Rumphius Effect today!

Contestosaurus

Today I am hosting my first book giveaway! I've been fortunate to be a winner on other blog contests, so I'm spreading the love. Plus I want to celebrate fellow blogger Douglas Florian's newest book release, Dinothesaurus!

Here's the scoop:

I am giving away a brand new, hot off the presses copy of Dinothesaurus: Prehistoric Poems and Paintings by author/illustrator Douglas Florian!

What do you need to do you ask? It's easy and fun! I'm a lifelong fan of poetry, so I'm going to ask you to write me a short little ditty.

Please write a haiku (a poem with 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables) or a couplet (a two line poem that rhymes) in the comment section on this post! Any topic!

I will hold this contest open until noon on Saturday the 14th. Then one of my poetry loving kids will pick a name out of a hat.

If you mention my contest on your blog (and tell me about it), I'll put your name in another time!

I'm looking forward to your poems!

Tune For Tuesday

Today's tune is "Give It Away" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. What's better than rockstars painted in gold metallics?! This 1991 song gave the Peppers their first mainstream hit and the first of seven Grammy awards. Lead singer, Anthony Kiedis, also released his autobiography called Scar Tissue in 2005.
Enjoy the funky grooves of "Give It Away!"

Red Hot Chili Peppers - New Music - More Music Videos

Check my blog tomorrow for a cool book giveaway contest!



Other cool giveaways!

Carrie Harris is hosting a very funny Snarfy Subtitle Contest.

Brenda has a Crockpot Naming contest with a cookbook prize.

Shelli's Comment Your Butt Off contest is still going on (and my butt does look slightly flatter...).


Also, I finished reading Sophomore Undercover by Ben Esch over the weekend. It was a fun, quick read with a likable underdog main character. And lots of giggles. Lots and lots of giggles. I recommend that you read it! And if you do have the book, take a picture of yourself with it and send it to Ben and he'll put it on his website!

Out of the Mouths of Babes

I found this survey on my writer friend Ann's facebook page and also on Shelli's blog. I asked my 9 year old son, 6 year old daughter, and 4 year old son 25 questions. Here are their answers. I also printed out their answers and put it in a keepsake box, because some of their answers are so cute!

HOW WELL DO YOUR KIDS KNOW YOU?

What is something mom always says to you?

J9 – I love you.
E6-Brush your teeth.
JD4 - I love you. You’re cute.
2. What makes mom happy?
J9 – Coke.
E6- When we want you to do something.

JD4 – Everything I say.

3. What makes mom sad?
J9 – Dying relatives.
E6 – When there’s yelling

JD4 – I don’t know.

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
J9 – By being yourself.
E6 – When I was a baby, you made me laugh real easily.

JD4- You’re making me laugh right now!

5. What was your mom like as a child?
J9 – Ambitious and happy all the time.
E6 – You went to school.

JD4 – Cute. Happy.

6. How old is your mom?
J9 – 37
E6 -37

JD4 - 15

7. How tall is your mom?
J9 – 5 foot 8
E6 – 5 foot 8

JD4 – Almost as tall as Dad.

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
J9 – Read us stories.
E6 – Writing.

JD4 – Snuggle.

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
J9 – Facebook.
E6 – Writing.

JD4 – Do your workin’ on your computer.

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
J9 – Writing.
E6 – Because of your writing.

JD4 – I don’t know!

11. What is your mom really good at?
J9 – Everything.
E6 – Writing.

JD4 – Writing. Playing. Reading books.

12. What is your mom not very good at?
J9 – Playing Star Wars on Playstation.
E6 – Singing. Well, when you look at the words, you’re okay.

JD4 – Fix things.

13. What does your mom do for a job?
J9 – Substitute teach, write, Mom.
E6 – Mom, writing.

JD4 – Write

14.What is your mom's favorite food?
J9 – Tuna salad sandwich
E6 – Chocolate cake!

JD4 – Pasta, mac and cheese

15.What makes you proud of your mom?
J9 – That you’re a nice person.
E6 – When you play with me.

JD4 – When you look at me.

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
J9 – Pee Wee Herman
E6 – Minnie Mouse

JD4 – a Power Ranger red or black or white or silver one

17. What do you and your mom do together?
J9 – Read.
E6 – We play school.

JD4 – Do puzzles, lay together, hug.

18. How are you and your mom the same?
J9 – We are both a Polark.
E6 – We both have brown hair.

JD4 – We have brown hair and red lips and a body.

19. How are you and your mom different?
J9 – I’m a boy, and you’re a girl.
E6- You don’t have brown eyes.

JD4- Different eyes.

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
J9 – Because you say I love you.
E6 – Because everybody loves me.

JD4 – Because you marry Dad and you started loving me too.

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
J9 – He’s a weird guy.
E6 – Because he’s my dad.

JD4 – Laughing at him.

22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
J9 - Concerts. Potosi and Hayward.
E6 – Teaching.
JD4 – a restaurant like McDonalds.
23. What is your mom’s favorite TV show?
J9 – Nip/Tuck
E6 – Young and the Restless
JD4 – Young and the Restless
24. What do you want to be when you grow up?
J9 - Guitarist
E6 – Model
JD4 – Firefighter
25. What is your favorite time you’ve had with your mom?
J9 – Reading Harry Potter.
E6 – Snuggling with you.
JD4 – Disney World.

Poetry Friday

This week I returned to my former profession as a grade school teacher. I now occasionally substitute teach at the school where I used to teach third and fourth grade. It was truly fun to go back and be part of a school again. My colleagues were so friendly, and the kids are a hoot and a holler.

This week's poem reminds me of when I taught third grade. I came to school with a new short haircut (my hair was previously long), and boy, did it shock my students! Kids are so wonderfully honest. One child exclaimed, "Oh, no, Mrs. Polark! What did you do?!" The consensus of the class (that I heard through whispers or straight to my face) was that they liked it better long.

Enjoy Bed Head by Kenn Nesbitt

This week's poetry roundup is at Picture Book of the Day!

This or That Thursday

Last night I attended an SCBWI regional chapter meeting. Our group meets on the first Wednesday of every month at a Barnes & Noble in a mall. My husband also has a meeting the first Wednesday evening of the month, and my two oldest children attend Religious Education classes on Wednesday nights. So, it is a treat when I do get to attend a meeting. We had two speakers that talked about "Write What You Know." We also had time to critique two stories. One regular in our group had great news. Lori Degman announced that she had won the Cheerios Spoonfuls of Stories contest! Her story 1 Zany Zoo was selected for the top prize. Simon & Schuster is publishing her book, and a mini version of the book will be included in future Cheerios boxes. Fellow blogger Tameka Brown was named runner-up in the contest! Congrats ladies!!
So speaking of Barnes & Noble, my This or That for today involves buying books. Where do you regularly buy books? Do you buy most of your books at a big chain bookstore, a local bookstore, online, or a variety of places?
My choice is all of the above. I do buy books from Amazon.com because of the convenience. As much as I love browsing through bookstores, a busy life with three children does not allow me to do that often. Over the holidays, I did buy the majority of my Christmas gift purchases at a Borders bookstore. A few times of year my husband and I bring the kids to a Barnes & Noble and let them each pick a book. We also take them to the school book fair to purchase one as well.
How do you buy your books?

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner

Yes, I'm a winner! (at least that's what my parents have been telling me since I was little...) But seriously, I've had some pretty good luck with some blog contests lately. Last month I won a supercool Wornfree rock tee from Katie Darby at Katie Darby Recommends (see picture). Here's the rock haiku that secured my big win! Wornfree tees make reproductions of t-shirts worn by rockstars. Mine is a reproduction of a tee worn by John Lennon. Cool, huh!

Did you notice the book I am holding in the picture? It's Ben Esch's debut novel, Sophomore Undercover! Ben gave away quite a few books on his blog-because he's awesome like that! I finally finished the last Harry Potter book with my son, J-Man (I about cried, it was so good!), so I am ready to dive into this book that I've heard from Murph (and others) that it is hifreakinglarious! Read Murph's review of SU here.

Last week I won P.J. Hoover's The Emerald Tablet on Christy's blog, too! Another book that was on my To Read list! Saweet!

And to top everything off, my blog enjoyed its 5,000th post on Monday! I'm shocked that there have been 5,000 hits since I started in mid-September. Thanks everyone for visiting here! Check my blog next week for a book giveaway! It's the least I can do for Pete's sake!

Thanks again to Katie, Ben, Christy and YOU!

You can be a winner, too! Check out Shelli's blog Market My Words for her "Comment Your Butt Off" contest! You could win a free website!

Tune for Tuesday

I am back in the classroom today after almost ten years. I am subbing at the grade school that I used to teach third and fourth grade. I'm excited to be back in education and to visit with my former colleagues. So I thought today's tune would have a school theme. I searched the internet for school/teacher songs, and this is what I came up with for today.

"High School Never Ends" is a catchy song by the band, Bowling for Soup. Yes, their band name is as silly as are some of their songs! You may have heard their song "1985" that was big a few years ago. In fact, my best friend told me that "1985" reminds her of me due to my fondness for Duran Duran and 80's hair bands!

The "High School Never Ends" video and song are a bit goofy, too. The ending of the video is gross, but other than that, it's a catchy tune!

Listen to "High School Never Ends." NOTE: Don't listen with small children, there is a swear word in the chorus...
Do you agree?

A Rockin' Review

So, I went to a concert Friday night. I know, I know. I already made two posts about the upcoming concert, and now you may be sick of hearing about it...but I'm not, so here's my review! (and don't be grumbling Avenged Sevenfold, Avenged Shmevenfold!)

My rock posse included my mom (yes, my mom), my hubby's Aunt Beth, and our friend, Ginny (who just had a baby six weeks ago!).

Beth drove us to the concert and after talking sweetly to a nice parking attendant, he directed us to parking very near the door (we slipped him a few bucks for his kindness). This was key as we didn't want to drag our winter coats in as we knew it would be hot with the crowd.

Next we entered as the first band finished playing. We had general admission tickets so had to find a good spot among the crowd. 'Twas a younger crowd and many teenage kids with their moms or dads (who did NOT know what they were in for-well except for my mom, she knew what she was in for, because she's a rock concert devotee like her daughter).

The next band was Papa Roach, a favorite of mine. The lead singer, Jacoby Shaddix, whipped the crowd into a frenzy with his energy and music. He even came out into the crowd about four times, which hardly ever happens with other bands. The fans appreciate it! Jacoby even managed to slime me as he passed me in the crowd and his sweaty, sweaty hands brushed mine in a quick high-five. The crowd was very into the whole show, my favorite song being "To Be Loved." Jacoby is the most energetic frontman I've ever seen live.

Jacoby in the crowd

Buckcherry, Beth's favorite, was next. I like Buckcherry, too. This is my third time seeing them in the last seven months! Josh Todd, the colorfully tattooed lead singer, sang hits like "Everything," "Too Drunk," and ended with "Crazy B..." My favorite was "Everything." The crowd unfortunately did not seem as into Buckcherry as Papa Roach, but I was entertained as I know most of their songs. Josh Todd's raunchy talk and songs made some of the parents with their teenage daughters or sons cringe a few times!

Josh Todd framed by hands throwing the devil horns.

Avenged Sevenfold (A7X) was last. The majority of the crowd seemed to be at the concert for them, the fans went wild. I was so excited to see them live up close. Avenged is my 9 year old son's favorite group so I took lots of pictures for him (he is too young yet for his first concert, plus I didn't want to be a cringing parent when the F words flew!). The lead guitarist, Synyster Gates, is my favorite lead guitarist. I love the crazy guitar riffs he plays. I danced and sang to every song, and they played an extra song for us as it was their last stop of the tour. My favorite song of the night was A7X's "Unholy Confessions." A nice man gave my mom and Beth his extra tickets to sit next to him in the seats by the general admission pit, because it was four hours of standing, jumping, and dancing. Ginny and I chose to stay in the crowd of sweaty, stinky teenagers, we were pretty close to the stage so I didn't mind.

Here is the stage and singer, M. Shadows with lead guitarist, Synyster Gates (obviously NOT their real, given names!)
Overall, an amazing night with some of my fave bands! Luckily I could have a lazy day on Saturday, because I was exhausted! Beth went on and saw Buckcherry and Papa Roach three hours away the next night, too. Now that is a fan!