the warped tour was so much better this year. partially because i liked these bands better, partially because i actually got to stay for the whole thing, and partially because i was backstage the whole time.

after pat's dad decided to take a "shortcut" which got us stuck in traffic and finally getting in with our ultra-cool sticker passes ... we headed to the main stage area to see who was playing. first up was a band called Count The Stars and they were quite good. they have an awesome stage presence. after that was One Man Army who are equally as entertaining. We watched all of the bands from on the stage (minus the Mad Caddies) which offers an incredible viewpoint. its just surreal to see all of those people singing along, jumping, throwing their fists in the air, i cant begin to imagine how cool it must feel for the bands.

Rancid put on this amazing show. ive been waiting to see them live, and it was definitly more than i expected. although they look like these bad ass mofos that you wouldnt want to mess with, they were really cool backstage and really receptive to their fans.

benji from good charlotte was there. and might i add that he is a prick. and i like the fact that i, a not so tall individual, am taller than him. hah! i scoff at his shortness! i jest and the fact that he is a mere dwarf! ... *cough* tons of fans were screaming his name as he walked by and he didnt so much as glance in their general direction. i mean ... flipping them off would have been more considerate than what he was doing. these people are the ones that buy his stupid records, and he ignores them. good idea benji ... piss off your fans.

so that's irrelevant.

so we saw in total, count the stars, one man army, simple plan, rancid, the mad caddies, less than jake, the all american rejects, and motion city soundtrack. i scored meetings with tim armstrong and brett from rancid, pierre from simple plan, brett nick and tyson from the all american rejects, 2/3rds of one man army, and the lead singer of vendetta red. fantastic.

right now today is pretty much a blur. i want to just gush about it but there isnt much to say.

i love music so much im itching for some new stuff.

by the way, thanks pat for everything. for getting me that pretzle during the rejects set, and toting my crap around in your backpact, and making sure i could see during the sets, and helping me meet people (especially the ever evasive tyson ritter), and letting me tag along today ... it was awesome.