So, About Friday Night...

Friday 28th February is going to be etched in my memory forever. 

All thanks to my mister, 3 good friends, and a band called Black Stone Cherry. 

OH.MY.GOD. 

It was a very very special gig, and I seriously can't wait for their UK tour in the Autumn. It was different to any usual gig - there were pauses between songs where the audience could ask questions. Which was so cool! I think my favourite was the guy who asked what he should name his daughter - whilst pointing at the very expanded womb of the woman next to him. With the first song to come out from their new album being called "Me and Mary Jane", there was only ever one answer. It was so funny- we bumped into them outside and it was a case of "oh hey Mary Jane and Mum and Dad!".  They were getting that from a lot of people I think. 

As always with Black Stone Cherry, every song they played was amazing. The setlist was chosen by the fans (which I didn't even realise was going on, what a spanner!), and it was cracking. I can't even tell you how much I love this band! The venue was Koko in Camden, and I was really surprised and pleased that once the security guard had escorted me and my wheels into place, with Uberman as my carer, she let the others stay with us, which was awesome. 

Mega highlights songwise - Ghost of Floyd Collins, In My Blood, Such A Shame, Soul Creek, and probably my favourite song to hear live ever - Things My Father Said. If you read my Download Festival review, you will know that that performance had me (and many others, including band members) in tears. It's a hugely powerful song, and to hear several hundred people singing every word is spine tingling. Goosebumps and hair raising, the works. It was just amazing. 

After it had finished, my amazing security lady/bodyguard, Sandra, refused to let us go until it had cleared down a bit. This was a bit of a blessing in disguise. I feel slightly really bad, because the Uberman had gone down to the merch stand to look for a hoodie for me, and they wouldn't let him back in. I was facing forwards in my wheels, when my friends started looking at me funny - almost like I'd grown a second head. Then I felt a tap on my shoulder, and when I looked round, John Fred Young, BSC's drummer was right there! I didn't know how to react at all, I was like a cat in headlights! He was lovely, asked us about the show, and then posed for a couple of pictures with us. Minus Uberman. Whoops. Az uploaded to Facebook, and everyone assumed he had taken the picture... I really do feel bad! 

*I may also have touched his hair. It was amazing!

We finally got to make our way down, and we still had quite a wait for our taxi home, so we waited by the tour bus. Which had a parking ticket. Haha! We were down by the front, whereas everyone else had crowded around the doors waiting for the band to come out. I get a bit freaked out being in a crowd when I'm in my wheels, so waiting by the front was the best solution. At that point, the drum tech appeared - and asked us if we wanted some signed drumsticks! We couldn't say no, so we came away with those and a drum skin for Mel. 

We stayed where we were, being thoroughly entertained by a man off his tits dancing with his reflection in the door of the Purple Turtle, when Chris Robertson, BSC's singer came by and got on the bus. He looked thoroughly exhausted, I did feel for him. He came back down off the bus, and asked us if we had enjoyed the show. We replied with a big yes, and told him he looked so tired, to which he agreed, and there was kind of an unspoken thing that we wouldn't ask for photos or autographs. He was then mobbed, and we just sat back chilling. There were two American ladies by us, and all of a sudden one of them asked us whether we'd had a picture with him, or gotten an autograph. We told her no, because he just looked shattered- and she just went and grabbed him and brought him over to us. He was lovely, posed for photos, and signed my ticket. So thank you, slightly bonkers American lady, and to John Fred, Chris and the drum tech for being bloody awesome. 

Just before our cab arrived, man off his tits decided to stand behind Chris who was posing for photos and things, and yell out some BSC lyrics. In the most drunken, drugged, London trash accent ever. It was the funniest thing! I didn't get to see the look on Chris' face, but it must have been classic, because another guy just said "Welcome to London!". Hilarious.

My body is thoroughly broken (thanks to hitting the most enormous fucking pothole in the world on the way there! GAH. On the way home, the road was closed, and there were two cars minus their front wheels. That gives you some idea of just how big it was. Grrrr. I HATE POTHOLES!!!), but it was worth it for a gig that I will always remember as one of the best I've ever had the pleasure of attending. So thank you to Uberman, Mel, Az, Carl, Black Stone Cherry, Random OffHisTitsMan, Crazy American Lady and Lunatic Taxi Driver for making it a bloody brilliant night. All I want to do is rewind and do it all again!

I will leave you with some pictures!

\m/ Can it be tour time yet?! \m/ 

A Picture...

...That makes me happy.

Good Night!

5 Things I'm Thankful For

Hello Everyone, 

This weekend's second LBLC Post is 5 Things I'm Thankful For. 2 posts this weekend, huzzah! Another lovely topic, which has made me smile, and focus on positive things when I'm not feeling so great! 

So, my 5 things...

5. I am thankful for my eyes and ears. My condition may affect my body, but I have those. I can see, and hear, and I appreciate just how special that is, which I probably didn't when I was younger.

4. I am thankful that I was able to have 17 lovely years with my beautiful Nanny. I miss her so very much, but have lots of wonderful memories. And the Uberman can almost make Hot Chocolate as well as she did. So that's a nice way of remembering her!

3. I am thankful that I got to attend the 2012 London Paralympic Games. It was a very special day, and showed me just how precious life is, despite the problems people face. They were truly inspiring athletes, and on my dark days, I think of them to give myself a kick up the backside. No matter how bad I feel, there are people in a worse situation (I know that sounds awful, but sadly it is true) who still do amazing things within their limits. So I should be focusing on that too, not just wallowing in self pity. 

2. I am thankful for my amazing family. I have been raised in a stable, loving home, and my family are there to support me through every setback, flare, illness, injury and problem I have had or will face. My family are awesome, and I love them all very much. Even if they drive me insane at times. But that's what families are for!

1. I am thankful that I have the most wonderful man in my life. He is my rock, and I do not know what I would do without him. 

Take a look at the other ladies' blogs, to see what they are thankful for!

Karen  Louise  Keshia  Rachelle

Leave me a comment to let me know what you are thankful for!

10 Day You Challenge - 7 Wants

Today's aspect of the 10 Day You Challenge is 7 Wants. I wasn't really sure how to approach this one - materialistic, idealistic, or in my dreams. So I decided to go for a mix of it all! 

7. I want my family to be healthy, comfortable, and happy. I think this one is self explanatory really!

6. I want to go back to America several times. I want to visit Florida, New York, Las Vegas, and Hawaii. 

5. I want an electric wheelchair. This one, to be precise:

It is a Sirocco, and way out of my price range at the moment. Everytime I visit my local shopping centre, I rent it from Shopmobility and I love it. It's light, fast, and really easy to manoeuvre. I have my own scooter, which is great for outside, or supermarkets, but one of these would be so much better for use inside, going round museums, shopping centres, indoor gigs etc. 

4. I want to know what is wrong with my back. I have had reduced feeling in my legs since February, along with back pain and a deterioration in my walking ability. Hopefully neurology will be able to tell me what is wrong in July. 

3. I want to ride The Smiler at Alton Towers. It looks bloody awesome! 

2. I want there to be a cure for cancer. It is a brutal, evil disease, and the sooner a cure is found, the better. I will always donate to Marie Curie and Macmillan, in the hope that they can slightly alleviate the suffering of people with cancer. 

1. I want a bungalow, in Weymouth, with my Uberman. A place to call my own home. 

So those are my 7 wants! It is a bit of a strange list, but they are the things that popped into my head when I considered the subject. 

Make sure you check out Karen's wants!

Link me to your 7 wants - I enjoy reading the perspectives of others!

Five Things I'm Proud Of

Happy Monday, and welcome to my first official LBLC post! 

Karen, Louise, Keshia and Rachelle have kindly allowed me to become the newest member of the Lifestyle Blogging Ladies Collective, and I am very excited! The first joint blogging exercise I am taking part in is "Five Things I'm Proud Of", so without further ado...

• I am proud of my Uberman. He is working incredibly hard, to make his way in the notoriously difficult computer games industry, and I can't wait to be able to tell you all about the next steps he will take on the ladder. He is part of a team who have created Decoy Studios, and they are all working hard on a game right now. You can see some of the stuff he has been working on and creating here: Uberman's Portfolio. 

• I am proud that this year, I managed to raise over £1000 for the Hypermobility Syndrome Association, by getting a sponsored zebra tattoo. *www.hypermobility.org* I have a condition called Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, and May is EDS Awareness Month. The HMSA deal with all types of Hypermobility Syndromes, not just EDS, and they have been a real source of information, help and kindness for me. To be able to give something back to them means so much to me, and it is probably my greatest achievement to date.

• I am proud that I have learned to crochet. My lovely Nanny tried so hard to teach me to knit as a child, and it never worked, because my brain just cannot process holding and moving two needles at the same time (I cannot use chopsticks for the same reason!). This is a part of my EDS, which we didn't learn about until she had passed away. I decided just after Christmas last year that I should try to learn crochet - to give me something productive to do, and also to try and strengthen my fingers on my right hand. I am not the fastest, and my pain does not always allow me to work on it, but I am about two thirds of the way through a blanket of granny squares for my Mum.  I am proud because I have found a craft that I am able to do, and hope that my Nanny would be proud too!

• I am proud that I am part of two awesome families - the Greens and the Malkins. Both are very different, but equally as mad, and I love them both to pieces and I couldn't imagine life without them all. Family is very important to me, and I am lucky enough to be part of the two best families in the world. 

• I am proud that I have made a commitment to this Blog. It has encouraged me to start writing, which I haven't done since I left school, and I am really enjoying it. Writing is a very personal thing, and for a while, I had no desire to write anything at all. It was reignited with my EDS Fundraiser daily updates, and now I am really enjoying it. It may not be any good, but sod it, I'm enjoying it and feeling like it is giving me something to achieve (alongside my crochet projects) whilst I am in such a health slump. Since starting this, I have also started writing other small things, and if I am still going strong, maybe I will attempt to write something on a larger scale. 

Thank you for reading my first LBLC post! It is a very positive subject and it has really put a smile on my face, on what can only be described as a gloomy Monday. Please comment and tell me what you are proud of - more smiles are in order! 

You can see what the other ladies are proud of at their pages: 

Karen, Louise, Keshia and Rachelle 

And leave a comment to tell me what you're proud of!