Special thanks to Mark, Vincent and Jim for bringing friends to our Sacramento show at the Sacramento Town and Country Brewery on Saturday. Thanks to Vince for the Delta Kings suggestion and Mark for the Old Sacto suggestions. An Jim, good luck at your next gig- I’ll see you at the Freight! Margie and Devon had a good time and I will post pictures of the event shortly. I think the highlight was Whitney teaching the young Devon how to play drums and Joe and I jamming with him for a while. There are few things more attractive than men being good with kids. Joe and I played up on the stage and actually looked down at Whit playing in front of us- no wonder we had such good timing! I had a small birthday gathering with my family and the band last night and I am very grateful. I also feel lucky for our mentions in the Lamorinda Sun and the Orinda News. We appreciate the local support. We are excited to play the Orinda Fourth of July Parade. Go Stingrays!!!!!

Last night I was lucky enough to hang out at the Jupiter Brewery and introduce some old friends to some new friends. My spunky UCLA mates drove down from Davis and my Berkeley and high school friends got a chance to really meet each other. Earlier in the week, Kristin Bender of the Oakland Tribune and Brian Ball of womensradio.com judged the song competition and gave some great feedback to all involved. I’ve spent most of the week strategizing how to construct a giant teacup for a music video we’ve got brewing, and I must say many of you have come up with some great ideas involving foam, papisan chairs, papier mache and even plywood. I’ve focused on it so much that it must be done. I should also mention that Whit took me out to Venezia for dinner on Thursday and I think long slow dinners are one of the benefits of getting older. I find myself asking every day, why am I walking so fast? I’m not ready to slow my pace, but at least I see that I’m running. Thanks so much to to my friends who left voicemails, e-mails and facebook messages. It really gave me no excuse to pout. Unlike some of my contemporaries, I love that I am older; I m proud to be 26 and I like the creases in my forehead. I think the stories on our faces are sexy and I can’t wait to hear yours. Tonight the band drives to Sacto to for a long overdue show. Hope to see you soon. Thanks for reading this. I’ll post some b-day pics and Sacto pics soon.

There’s nothing like the Vacaville Wine Stroll this past weekend to get a person ready for summer festivals. There were wine booths and friendly people who listened and read the lyrics as they tapped their feet (we still hand out lyrics for people to sing along to). We also had a recording session for 3 new songs that few have heard. And we will play them at Ranchella! We express our deepest thanks to the Last Ambassadors for inviting us and our friends to this fantastic event. They are a great group of guys and they put on a fantastic show. See our gigs page for more info!

Grace writing this one- thanks for reading these posts. I’m happy to share my life experiences with you! I just cut my hair because I’ve been wearing a ponytail for the last 10 years and it’s about time I had some fun (that didn’t necesitate an hour of blowdrying or frying my scalp). Joe got a haircut too, right next to me, which was fun, so let him know how rad he looks next time you see him.

My birthday is June 26th and I will be at Jupiter Brewery on Friday the 27th for anyone who would like to stop by and say hi. It’s a no-cover night to come hang out with me when there’s no show and I can just relax and talk to you. I can’t imagine a better birthday and I hope I can make you a B-Day card to make your B-Day more fun when it comes around. Whitney is eagerly awaiting the gift he ordered for me in the mail.

Last night I had my orientation at Berkeley Comunity Media where I learned that Berkeley originated the “Kill Your Television” bumperstickers. BCM’s motto is “Don’t Kill TV, BE TV”. I have to agree with them. If you want to deny corporate oligopoly, grow and buy locally. So we have to grow our own cultural communication here in Berkeley and then support it. This is why I want to make cable access shows and music videos there. Can you believe they have tons of music shows pumped in from LA local access because they don’t have enough local content? Let me know if you would like to help me change that.

This weekend the band plays the Vacaville Wine Stroll and we’ll take pics so you can see my short hair (so you can recognize me next time I message you on facebook). I’m checking out my friend Brian Enright’s furniture show Saturday. We also record 3 new songs in the studio on Sunday. And yes, we are using the student-run, local Ex’Pressions Center for this album as well and we are happy to pay their graduates to mix the results! I am very grateful to those who have supported us and I can’t wait to show you something new and exciting. Please let me know if there is any way I can come support you this summer!

Good morning friends, Grace is writing this one. Last night we played the Bistro and I was touched to meet people who had read our e-mails and decided to come. Many of you brought friends and family and I am truly grateful to have played for such an enthusiastic group. Special thanks to Claire and family (Kiery right?), Greg, Peter, Fawad, Leena, Ed, Bobby, Vic, Dave, Tom, Anna behind the bar, Dolly and the other Tom! I think there’s a lot of love in the band right now. After finding out everyone’s pet peeves we have settled in to happy adjustments, some of which are the following: let Whit watch sports and let Joe write the set list! I am very lucky to work so hard with my best friends. There are pics from the show in the Photos section, and I saw some flashes out there, so please e-mail me so I can add them to the album.

On the way to the show the band had a a deep discussion about the comparison between foot-binding and boob jobs in which I told them not to read the wiki article because it would just make you want to cry. Whit more accurately commented that boob jobs are more like corsets, which makes sense since the participants are seemingly old enough to want to alter their bodies. That was random, but the fine line between beauty and invasive society-pressured change has been on my mind because I just wrote a song about it and can’t wait to show you.

I also finished the latest video on the making of our next album, so check it out in the Video section. I also just found out that it is nearly impossible to rent a tiger in California, which derails one of my music video plans. This gets more fun and eccentric every day. Thanks for joining us! This weekend Whit and I will stay in Occidental and I may go bridal-dress shopping with cousins (we are going to sneak in cameras so that Whit’s mom can make a dress in the design that suits me best). I’m also cutting my hair really short tomorrow. And oh! I got into business school which I plan to take for one year to educate me before the band launches a grand-scale tour! And yes, I called this post “The Believer” because it is song we debuted with the full band last night, and of course it has a tiger in it, and I can’t wait to tighten it up. Thanks very much for reading this. How’s your weekend looking? -Grace