Thanksgiving: Great Friends, Great Music and Many Thanks

Thanksgiving is one of those holidays that people make their own.  No matter how it is celebrated, the basics include a great feast shared with family and friends and reflecting on what we are thankful for.

I'm a firm believer that naming what we're thankful for should be a daily ritual (instead of yearly) but for those times when we get too wrapped up in our day to day lives (and believe me, it's easy to do) we have Thanksgiving to remind us to take a breath and remember the people and things we are fortunate for.

Ultimately always thankful for this crew 

That being said, I will not list the billion things that I'm thankful for because my list is long and detailed.

I will only mention the generosity of my friends this Thanksgiving because they cooked me dinner, accompanied me to see live music and all I had to do was take a train ride.

Amtrak was scheduled to leave Whitefish at 9:15pm but it's never on time.  No worries on my end.  I enjoyed a delicious dinner with Dawn and Rebecca at Wasabi and then we bounced around to 1985 at Casey's until it was time for me to board.

1985 - SO much fun

I arrived in Seattle on Thanksgiving just in time for appetizers.  My friends, Sarah and Dan, made a lovely spread of sides: yams, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole, and cranberries.  Our friend, Matt, brought an amazing smoked turkey.

Yum.

Dan made a phenomenal photo story that you can view here: Thanksgiving: Making Food.  It shows the love that goes into preparing a Thanksgiving feast. We had a quaint, relaxing dinner then headed out for Cat Power.

Seattle was silent as we walked from Capitol Hill to downtown.  Even the shops were quiet even though some had already opened by 8pm for Black Friday.

Cat Power headlined the Showbox at the Market.  I loved everything about this venue: the size, the shape, the red walls, the chandeliers.  People who arrived early had been seated so we had a great view of the stage and the sound was incredible.  Cat Power did pretty well considering her reputation of live solo performances.  Yes, she skipped verses in her songs.  Yes, she started and stopped songs because it wasn't the right time.  Yes, she rambled on nervously in a low voice and for awkward lengths of time and we had no idea what was going on.  But, when she did belt out a song, complete or not, her voice was magic.

The awkward pause in "I Don't Blame You" felt like the room was rooting for her to keep going.

I was ecstatic when she played the chords to "I Don't Blame You."  Cat Power's songs are intimate and personal and needless to say, certain songs stir up old memories.  "I Don't Blame You" always causes a vivid flashback to a bittersweet evening at the old Grog Shop.

Cat Power's shining moment came during "Metal Heart" when she left the stage and sang in the crowd.  Despite not playing any songs off of her amazing new album, Sun, I thoroughly enjoyed hearing old songs and spending Thanksgiving a new way: appreciating one of my favorite artists with some of my favorite friends.

On Friday, my old Nordstrom 234 buddy, Matt, and I headed to Portland for more fun.  PEARL JAM.  We arrived just in time to check-into the gorgeous Mariott City Center, grab Peet's coffee and walk across the bridge to the Moda Center/Rose Garden to pick up our tickets and meet some of Matt's friends for dinner before the show.

Walking around Portland

We found Upright Brewery, a newer, rustic brewery in the basement of an office building.  It was fun to meet more people from Ohio that have moved west.  I'm definitely not alone in that life move.

Portland

I think that Pearl Jam has officially stepped into my number one favorite live band slot.  Their shows are phenomenal and always unpredictable.  Our seats, thanks to Matt's dedication in being a Ten Club member, were SO close.  With such a large catalog, you never know what songs you're going to hear and I try, try, try to go with no expectations.  Nevertheless, on the drive down, we chatted about what we'd want to hear.  And, I lamented about Sleater-Kinney's break-up as we drove under the Sleater-Kinney Road sign over I-5.

PJ opened up with "Pendulum" my favorite song on the new album 

Well, I was the happiest in girl in the world when not only did PJ rock ALL of the songs I wanted to hear, they also pulled Carrie Brownstein, Corin Tucker, and Janet Weiss on stage along with R.E.M.'s Peter Buck and Scott McCaughey for Neil Young's, "Rockin' in the Free World."  

Greatest encore ever.  So far.

If you want to see a better video - head to Pitchfork.  This is the first time Sleater-Kinney has shared the stage since 2006.  It was also in 2006 that my friend Amy and I watched Sleater-Kinney's Coachella set and wondered if they were going to take a break.  And, they did.  

Welcome back to the stage, ladies.  Fingers crossed for a new album in 2014!!!

Everyone celebrates the holidays in their own way.  I'm considering making three nights of live music an annual Thanksgiving tradition.  Thanks to Dawn, Rebecca, Sarah, Dan, and Matt for making my holiday one I will always be thankful for.

Natalie