Norah, Kara & Me

We started out with a bottle of chardonnay, onion rings {cuz we're classy like that} and some pasta at Rock Bottom Brewery.  The restaurant was directly across the street from the concert venue, so we had plenty of time to visit. 

Two girlfriends,
more like sisters,
bonded for life
catching up on gossip
enjoying a rare night out... 
without any boys! 

Kara and I went to see Norah last Sunday evening.  What a phenomenal voice!  Even in a larger theater, it seemed intimate, etheral and awe-inspiring!  The opening act was a pleasant surprise to us too!

Okay, I do have one little complaint but it has nothing to do with her or the opening act.  There was a single man who sat DIRECTLY in front of me.  No worries, right?  Move one way or another and you can see again (we were stage right).  Yeah, not so much.  This man was a bobble-head... and the WHOLE night he moved his head and/or his body back and forth and back and forth and...  yeah.  Grrrrrr.

Back to the music... I had never heard of of the opening act before that event, but was pleasantly surprised! Cory Chisel is an Americana folk artist who grew up in the Midwest. He is known around town as Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons, but he sang with a woman. I had to google to find her name... Adriel Harris. Beautiful songbird that plays the ivories, tamborine and sings alongside Cory. I would definitely consider a few of their songs for download. Check out some of their music online if you're looking for something new!

And then, along came Norah.  Quick intermission and stage change... beautifully suspended origami birds appeared above the set.  Twinkling lights and a band of about five others completed the ensemble.  Norah was absolutely incredible, and so worth the ticket price (and yes, another birthday present to me).  She sang both new and old songs (the haunting Miriam, Chasing Pirates) and the crowd sat mesmerized.

All musicians were on stage at one point, similar to this video, and it was vocally amazing!  The bass, keyboard, squeezbox, voices...  loved every single minute of it.  Norah ended the evening with two encore songs, and Come Away with Me, one of my all time favorites!  Definitely, a night to remember.

And I'm not sure, but I think the two-week long of birthday celebrations have finally ended... anything from this point forward I will lump into the beginning of anniversary celebration!

Thanks for joining me for another celebration, Kara!

Smooches!

love ya, girlfriend!

...a little bit of celebration, with just a touch of bittersweet this weekend
as we get ready to send Kara's son Sam off to basic training...

good luck & God bless, Sam!

Heavy on my mind & heart today...

Two very good friends going through treatment for cancer today.  One I've known for 20 years, the other for 12.  Both equally strong women, loved by many.
Know that you are in my thoughts and prayers as you fight the battle!

  “Casting all your care upon him; for He careth for you.”

1 Peter 5:7 

Happy Birthday, my dear friend!

I am thinking of you, today, my dear friend Kara! 
As you travel once again to Rochester and face the battle that no one should have to endure, I thought of this poem that I read recently and it spoke to me about your journey.  My friend, Carla, wrote it.  She lives across the ocean in Portugal, and her words speak the language of many. 

Without Time

These days, I look myself in the mirror.
And I see, every trace of time in the territory of tiredness.
Shadow over shadow, every disillusion.
Yet, the inner child who stares at the mirror, remains as alive and kicking, as ever.
And so, as an ongoing chord, this contrast aches.
And so ache the dreams yet unlived, in this finite body that carries me.
Pain, of you I ask only: teach me to dance!
To gather every little piece of me, again, in a single necklace of flowers.
Without time. Without trace. Without yesterday. Without tomorrow.
While there still is the light of a glance.
Truth returned in every mirror.

                                                                        ~ Carla Gouimar

Thanking the Lord

...for answered prayers! For those that have been praying with me, I just wanted to share a quick update about my friend Kara and the good news she received today:

Dear Friends and Family,

I just wanted to let you know that I received wonderful news today. I received the official word that there is NO active cancerous process occurring in my body! The injections that I received last week should have significantly elevated my cancer marker and instead my cancer marker bottomed out at it's all time low...5.3!!!!! Now more than ever I believe in miracles. As far as I am concerned I am done with cancer once and for all!!!!

Thank you for your prayers, cards, hugs, calls and most especially your love. I can't imagine having walked this road the last 14 months without your support. God has been so good to me, and all of you have been a light in the midst of the darkness. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I love you all.
Kara

God is good.

Kara is home!!

Good news... the cancer did not spread (as she had feared) and she is now back home resting. Kara took the highest dose of radiation available (swallowed) and is radioactive until Monday. Prayers have been answered and she is on the road to recovering from this cancer beast! Thanks to everyone who has kept her close at heart in prayers.

We went out to dinner on Saturday night to Spill the Wine in Minneapolis. Kara joined us and we had a lovely time! Dinner was yummy... and the Chicken Wild Rice soup in a broth-base is scrumptious to tempt your palate for starters. Paired with wine flights, we enjoyed sampling a bit from one another's plates. The ambiance was nice, and we were there early so it wasn't crowded or loud, but the bench and chairs were hard and made it difficult to want to "sit a spell" longer than dinner itself. We left there and headed to Sebastian Joe's for ice cream. This is a place where JP and I went on our first date and hadn't been back in quite some time! I was craving peppermint bon bon (my favorite!) and they didn't have any... so we left and JP drove us to another ice cream favorite, Crema Cafe in South Minneapolis. They didn't have my favorite either, but I settled for an almond ice cream that was to die for!! Kara couldn't help herself and kept going back for more. Perhaps it is HOW she ate it that made her need more?!

On our way home I wanted to stop by the big chair in the community garden. The sunset was beautiful and I had my camera with me for a few silly moments. I even made JP take another turn on the way home into the Eloise Butler Wildflower Gardens. I did a little reminiscing of my childhood as we ran into the trees to find the fresh spring water. My grandfather and I used to fill up gallon after gallon of water at this spring when I was little. I miss you, Grandpa! Ah, the memories!

What a gorgeous night out with two of my favorite people!

Friends

Had a fabulous weekend... more to follow soon!

Going to the Hulk premiere tonight with the boys and I'm a bit behind in everything else too! Will update sometime soon, I promise.

More later on this topic... but today, this subject is heavy on my mind!! Thinking of my dear friend, Kara, and praying for the best with tests today.

I'm not one to use profanity, but this about sums it up best! So excuse the bluntness of it all.

Updated 2:27 pm: She just called called. Kara had more tests today to see if the cancer was in her lymph nodes... it's not!!! Praise the Lord.

I'm breathing a sigh of relief and a moment of calm is suddenly flooding through me. There has been too much bad news this week and I am thankful for a small glimpse of something good today.