Crushes No. 8,000,001 and 8,000,002

Wow... a double header (when you are old like me a double header is one night followed by the next night) of intense fun, amazing experiences, and incredible music. NOTE: I'm saving my artistic admiration of Misprint Thursday and her Olive Art exhibit for the Bistro Blog. Music... back to the music... it ALWAYS does my soul good. And, yes, I get little crushes then on the musicians. How can you not?

I'll start with a new SL find I think is amazing... CQ Bravin. CQ is relatively new to SL but not new to music. He has simply found SL to be a great forum to perform. I am glad he thinks so because his contributions are incredible. His original selections combine his acoustical guitar with incredibly woven lyrics and melodies. He is of the genre known as "Indie Folk Rock" and calls himself "The Colorful Quiet." His contributions in Second Life are equally incredible. You can find a video shot at another club (unfortunately -why didn't I think of doing this!!) but nonetheless it gives you some reference of how amazing he is. Take a watch.



Sorry CQ... didn't mean to get the microphone right in your face. We will have you back and I will get better shots - promise!! :) onward now to other crush information ... and a cup of coffee should help me power out the rest of this post...

Hours later... I return... sorry about that!

The other crush? Well... none other than the amazingly handsome and fantastically talented Mr. John Mayer. I decided last night... as I sweated and sweated (ok ... really I glowed right? isn't that what girls do?) that I am officially a Phoenician again. My 4th summer now in Phoenix after living in Flagstaff all those years... I've adjusted, acclimatised or whatever else you call it. I can sit, dance, rock out, soak in all those fantastic things you do at an outdoor concert in JULY in PHOENIX. WOOT! 115 degrees? NO PROBLEM. Ok.. not really.. that's a lie... there was a breeze and the sun was going down... so it was probably only 105 :)

Anyway... John Mayer was the main attraction. Colbie Cailliat was the warm up. There was another artist before her I'm ashamed to admit I didn't remember his name. I hate to not recognize all the musicians. He sounded a lot like Paul Simon. Colbie was great. Very cute, almost shy on stage. She told a sweet story about taking an acting class to get over her fear of performing. She shared she didn't realize when she started writing songs that she would eventually have to perform them live for people! And her "Bubbly" song - she wrote that 1 night using the 4 chords she had just learned from a friend on the guitar. Gotta love the humanness of it all :)



But John Mayer was beyond words. Incredibly talented. Gorgeous even with short short hair. Beautiful to look at and listen to. His voice, his music. Wow. He too talked about the heat. He said the heat put him in a frame of mind for blues. Can that guy jam! He wondered aloud how Guns n Roses ever handled the heat and then proceeded to do a fantastic Sweet Child of Mine version in which he sang a line to Jen... *sigh*. He thanked the audience for being so accepting of his craft and for being willing to enjoy whatever he offered us. He commented how cool it was that he could experiment with something that day earlier with the band and it could evolve into something on the stage that night. He called it "organic." Honestly, I'm sure there were a few of us who could have stayed a few more hours. Thank you Mr. Mayer. My soul is a little lighter today... tired... but lighter in a good way.

Creative New Beginnings

Sometimes you can find enjoyment in new beginnings when there is no longer excitement and passion in the same ol' same ol'. Recently, Bigd and I went on a renting rampage within SL on Marco Island. We had just moved a little over a month ago and had a housewarming. Things were settled and the new place is just how we like it. For now, I can't think of any more things to buy for Tortuga Isle... but give it time ;)

So... where to next? Why not a business? Marco Island is being managed now by Jenda Starbrook and there were several open shops and 2 story apartments. One particular spot on the end offered 3 stories by combining the shop and the apartment floors. We hemmed and haaaahed and asked several for their opinion. We had Jenda come over and talk about knocking out walls if we just stuck to 1 floor. Then, we took the plunge and rented all 3! The idea was to create something new and different within the SL communities we currently hang out and enjoy. The idea was to offer another reason to come to Marco Island and help traffic to the surrounding businesses. We figured it also couldn't hurt to help Jenda out and rent a spot or two.

Art. A great reason to enjoy SL. Music another great reason to enjoy SL. Fun non-caloric food and beverage of all kinds - how can you NOT enjoy that in SL! So the idea was born: a fine art, fine dining experience. Borday Moo and Blissie Boucher kicked around names with us all afternoon after the idea had been refined some through conversations with Parker and Joonie. We definitely didn't want to run a club scene nightly. We wanted a nice place to hang out. We wanted a place and a reason to host special events. We wanted to offer something unique to the world of SL. Some wonderful table creations from "IntimateLife - Frisky Designs For The Romantic" also helped carve out the niche. (don't you worry - they are PG) These tables are the kind where you sit, choose your place setting, choose the ambiance, and the menu from meals to beverages. The couch in the bar/lounge level holds some wonderful abilities for large groups to laugh and pose for pictures. Holding 9 with a hidden 10th spot, the challenge seems to be in finding willing participants!



We hope Bistro Olive will become a place for people to enjoy time with good friends. We also hope people will make the place somewhere for special celebrations. The main dining room on the top level offers exquisite views of the ocean and the grounds of Marco Island, as well as the Savoy Jazz Club. There are some special spots to toast or cuddle the one you love. There is room for dancing and places for enjoying drinks with friends. The gallery will feature all sorts of art on the ground floor for purchase.

I am so excited about Misprint Thursday and her artistry! She has agreed to be our debut featured resident artist and has done amazing things. If nothing else, stopping by in a free moment to visit the Bistro and see her work before it is gone will be well worth your while. She has created one-of-a-kind sculptures and interactive art that are displayed on all 3 levels. We will honor her work in a special Grand Opening Reception on Tuesday, July 29, 2008 at 8:30 pm SLT! SL/RL musician CQ Bravin will be there to perform acoustical guitar/coffee-house rock style music from 8:30 - 9:30 pm SLT. He is also one to not be missed!

PLEASE consider yourself invited and mark your calendars to come! We are looking forward to all that is ahead with this new adventure and appreciate everyone's participation and openness and willingness to help. If you know of an artist who we should contact to be on our calendar of featured artists at Bistro Olive, please send me a note in-world or an email. If you know of a musical performer who would be a fantastic compliment to a featured artist reception at Bistro Olive, please also contact us! Bigd Flanagan or I will be on the look-out for both over the next few months. We hope to offer new artists every 2-3 weeks, and the opportunity to have a reception event as well during their showing.

Thank you in advance for supporting our endeavor. Woot!