I’ve been a fan of Alan Jackson for quite a while. It’s funny, because some people might not even be aware that I am even into country music. But hey, I am from Indiana. I also have family in Kentucky. So growing up, country music was hard to get away from. I remember being in my dad’s shop (he was a self-employed cabinetmaker and had a workshop), and he would have the local country radio station playing a lot of the time. So growing up, I heard a lot of country music, and I just kind of took it along with me. I’ve been into it off and on since I was a kid. It’s not always my primary genre of music, but definitely something that I listen to when I’m in the right mood.

The country artists I’m into the most are probably the somewhat epic ones from the 80s and 90s, since that is when I was listening to country music the most. Singers and bands like Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, Randy Travis, Alabama, Tim McGraw, and of course, Alan Jackson. If I remember correctly, I think he was my cousin Debbie’s favorite country singer. When my family would visit our relatives in Kentucky, we would stay with my aunt (who loved Vince Gill) and uncle, and Debbie would always let me hang out with her and her daughter Tina, who was only a year younger than me. Sadly, Debbie passed away from breast cancer a few years ago. But memories like spending time with her are one reason I still love country music. The Tracy Lawrence song “If the World Had a Front Porch” totally reminds me of this part of my family. We used to spend days and evenings hanging out on my aunt and uncle’s front porch when we were there. It may make me sound old, but days definitely were simpler then.

When I found out Alan Jackson was going to be in Phoenix this year, I decided I had to buy tickets for myself and Ricky. Oh yeah, he likes country music too. I think it’s part of coming from a small town or rural town in Indiana. He’s from Brazil and I’m from Lebanon (the towns in Indiana, of course, not the countries). Anyway, we are both fans of Alan Jackson. I’m not sure what country music fan that’s been listening for more than a few years wouldn’t be. He’s kind of a big deal.

Knowing that I’d be going to see him, I listened to some of his music for a while in advance. It brought back some memories and made me remember some of the songs I’d loved as a kid. I think my favorite song of his is “Chattahoochee”. I mean, it’s just fun to say, and a fun song to sing. So of course I was ready and very excited when we got to the concert venue last Saturday. And I was not disappointed. He opened up with “Gone Country”, a perfect song to start the evening with. And while he did sing some newer stuff, a lot of what he played were the favorites I remembered, including “Wanted”, “Summertime Blues”, “Don’t Rock the Jukebox”, “Little Bitty”, “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere”, and of course, my favorite, “Chattahoochee”. He closed out the night with “Mercury Blues”.

One thing Ricky picked up on pretty quickly in the show is that Alan (or should I refer to him as Mr. Jackson?) likes to point. Like, a LOT. He points so many times in every song. It’s kind of funny. I’m sure it’s just his thing, but Ricky found it pretty amusing. It became a running joke throughout the night.

Say what you will about country music, but I really think it does better than most forms of music at holding up over time. Alan Jackson’s “Keepin’ It Country” tour, the show we went to see, is his 25th Anniversary tour. How many artists in other genres of music do you know that have been successful for that long? I think for a lot of people his songs evoke a lot of emotions, and like me, a lot of memories of different times in our lives. It was fun to see him live with Ricky and get a chance to enjoy some music that has meant a lot to me over the years and to have a chance to wander down memory lane for a bit. I’m glad I got the opportunity to see one of the most epic country singers of our time.

(Oh, and did I mention that he has the same birthday as me? Just a different year…)

While I don’t consider myself a professional photographer by any means, it has become somewhat of a hobby of mine. I love to take pictures while traveling, and I have also had the opportunity to shoot some concerts and major music events such as Electric Zoo and Life in Color.

Feel free to check out galleries of some of my work below.

I am pretty much the epitome of a fangirl. And not just about one thing. There are so many things that I love and am interested in. Most of my friends know that I’m a huge Star Wars fan. I have been for a while. I stood in line to be one of the first to buy tickets to see one of the prequel movies. I dated a stormtrooper (yeah, ask me about that sometime). I put together a LEGO Millennium Falcon. I’m going to the Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim this year… and it’s not the first Star Wars Celebration I’ve been to.

I’ve waited in line for other things too… to get authors to sign books, for example. I’ve met and gotten books signed by both Neil Gaiman and George R. R. Martin. For me, it was more about actually getting to meet the author than getting an autograph in a book. Both of those guys are really interesting people, and it was fun to stand in line with some other fans of theirs to get to meet them and see a bit of what they are really like.

Ever since I was a kid, when I find something I like, there are times that I get really into it. I collect every thing having to do with it. As a kid, it was ALF or the Tasmanian Devil (from Looney Tunes). I had a bunch of ALF and Taz stuff. Then as a teenager, I decided I liked Noah’s Ark and started collecting Noah’s Ark stuff. When I was in high school, I met a friend that got me started watching The X-Files. I got REALLY into The X-Files. Having a friend that was into it too only fed the obsession. We joined David Duchovny fan clubs online, and we watched and rewatched episodes over and over again and analyzed them. Eventually, my friend went away to college, and I met a new group of friends and had a busier social life, so I kind of stopped watching, especially after Duchovny left the show. I never have watched the last couple of seasons. But recently, I’ve gotten back into it. The entire X-Files series and both X-Files movies are available streaming online, so I started a rewatch from the beginning. I’m already in Season 6 and through one of the movies. And it’s still just as good as it was 20 years ago.

I recently regretted missing out on another one of those author signings. Being the fangirl that I am, I was excited when David Duchovny wrote a book (of course I’m reading it, just haven’t finished yet!) and did a couple of signings. Unfortunately, they were only in New York and Los Angeles. I debated for like a week on whether to try to make it to the one in LA, but I decided it was just too much time and money to invest. I’m still kind of sad I missed it… I saw that Chris Carter (X-Files director/creator) was there, along with other celebrities. It looked like it was so much fun. I sure wish it had been closer and I’d been able to make it! (He did post today online about writing another novel, so hopefully there will be more book signings in the future that I can go to.)

I don’t know what it is. With TV shows, maybe it’s that the characters become real and I enjoy watching their stories unfold. It could be the very same thing with books. And as far as fandom, well, it’s a lot of fun to get together and meet other people that are as crazy about something as you are. That’s one reason I’m looking forward to going to Star Wars Celebration in April. I’m so excited to meet some of the stars from the original trilogy as well as just be around other people that are into the movies as well.

One other example involves music. I listen to a lot of music, but I don’t have a lot of favorite bands. Jimmy Eat World is my very favorite. I have been a fan of theirs for a while now. Their music has gotten me through some crazy times in my life over the last few years. I love both the music and the lyrics… they are just very relatable, at least to me. The cool thing is that now, they are a local band to me, as all of the band members live in the Phoenix area. They have not only played shows here that I’ve gone to, but I’ve met band members at other events as well. I mean, how cool is that? Think about your favorite band and what it would be like to run into them at places where you live? Pretty cool.

Ricky makes fun of me for my fangirling over things, but I know he gets it too. He’s just as (if not more) crazy about Tiger Woods than I could ever be about any movie, book, or TV show. I think there’s just something about us as humans, as a part of human nature, that likes finding connection in things. Sometimes we find a connection with people, and that’s awesome. But I don’t think there’s anything wrong with finding connection in stories, either. That’s what they are. Maybe not music so much as books, TV, and movies. As long as we have balance between fiction and real life and don’t get caught up in what’s not reality, I think these kinds of things are good to obsess over sometimes. They might even help us see real life in a different way, in a way we might not have looked at it before. Not to mention, in the right context, they can help us connect with other people too.

So, with that in mind, I encourage you to also find something you can obsess over. Nothing harmful, of course, and not to the point of detriment, but find a story that sucks you in, something you can share and analyze with other people. It’s fun, trust me. And I… well, I will keep calm and fangirl on!