7:45am. Mom D. comes downstairs to find Dad D. outside with THE VANQUISHER.

Be vewy vewy quiet... He's hunting wabbits.

My parents are truly wonderful people. It’s hard to put into words their general awesomeness. Not only as individuals, but as a pair. This past weekend being Father’s day, we DiDonato children had a bonus opportunity to pour praise and thanks onto Dad D.

Before I dive into the depths of the joyous celebration, I must first detail the battle of the bunny.

A bunny has wreaked havoc on Dad D’s vegetable garden. From the damage, one might assume it was a bunny invasion – but in fact the perpetrator is a single cottontail. Dad D, very passionate about his vegetable plot, promptly procured a fence. Mom D quietly watched from the sidelines as my dad built his blockade, secretly hoping that the cute little bunny would prevail.

Mom D: “I call him Spot because he has a little white spot on his forehead shaped like a heart. And he has a cute little white fluffy bunny tail.”

In fact, the bunny did prevail. The fence was not structurally sound and the bunny was able to get through. Which is why my sister Theresa and I decided that the best Father’s day gift would be a Bunny Defense Kit (BDK).

The BDK consisted of 30 meters (100 ft) of special bunny proof fencing, a special organic rabbit defense spray (egg solids, garlic, nasty smelling stuff etc), a NO BUNNIES sign, a spotlight for evening reconnaissance, a rabbit stew recipe, and the VANQUISHER: a pump action watergun capable of drenching at 12 meters (40 feet).

Here’s Dad D. with his BDK, ready for battle, ready to topple the rule of the rabbit:

Dad D with the Bunny Defense Kit

Please note Dad D’s extreme look of dedication. One of the best traits of Dad D is his relentless drive towards his goals. See how he holds that Vanquisher? That’s dedication.

And sure enough, Dad D started constructing his new barricade almost immediately. Mom D reports that after installation of the BDK, there have been no further reports of vegetable annihilation. In fact, apparently a neighbor just noticed that his produce has been eaten by a small furry creature… perhaps it’s the defeated Spot finding himself a new grocery store.

Before I conclude this post I want to publish a picture of Mom D. She was walking towards me through our backyard and as I held up my camera to snap a picture she kicked a leg and did a crazy pose! She’s an adorable mom.

Mom D!

Best parents ever.

When I was eleven, I wanted to be a paleontologist. I had a big picture book of dinosaurs and loved learning about bones, Pangea, and all things stegosaurus. I remember getting totally stoked when Jurassic Park came out and totally depressed that they mislabeled the Deinonychus as the Veloceraptor.

Steven Spielberg: But Mike D, Hollywood is no place for science!
Mike D: Shut up Steven Spielberg!

While I was enamored by the Cretaceous period, my good friend Steve was captivated by Indiana Jones. I had a big rock with tiny fossils in it, Steve had an Indiana Jones hat and a whip.

So here we are 18 years later. I’m spending my days staring at gray cubical walls and longingly aching for the next day on my Holiday Schedule (Memorial Day! Awesome! …Awesome?) and Steve is alternating between excavations in Israel and teaching time in AZ as he concludes his PHD in archeology with a specialization in Religious Studies. Whoa!!

(image taken directly from Steve’s website)

In new and exciting news Steve and his wife Lesley just had a baby. To celebrate their child and show my appreciation for Steve’s friendship and his inspiring career dedication, I thought an added personal touch to my gift to them could be a sweet silk-screened hoodie for the baby but I’m short on clever design ideas.

Any recommendations?

A few other things Steve likes: Ska, the Marx Brothers, the original Star Wars, and the Tenor Sax.

WOOOOO!!!!

Last night I spoke to Jedd, a fellow kung fu student, about guitar teachers. He passed me the name of an individual from Wesleyan for whom Jedd had great praise. It sounds like an amazing opportunity and I’m really hoping the teacher is willing to take on a new student.

I had a conversation with my mom about the potential.

Mom D: that sounds like a great opportunity!
Mike D: I agree! It’s a little bit pricey though.
Mom D: what is pricey?
Mike D: about $60-65 an hour
Mom D: actually, that’s not that terrible; when Alicia was taking lessons at NEC they were close to that I think.
Mike D: I guess that’s good to know
Mom D: and Theresa with her Gymnastics… yikes
Mike D: wait a minute, did I have any expensive hobbies?
Mom D: no you were really cheap, community tennis lessons and $5 saxophone lessons
Mike D: shouldn’t I have gotten a per diem or something?
Mom D: you weren’t smart enough to ask for one.

Oh Snap!

Special congratulations to Alicia and the Oregon Symphony as they were chosen to play at Carnegie Hall. Woo!

There’s a great write up, including the following short interview with Alicia.

Alicia DiDonato Paulsen assistant principal flute Age: 32 Hometown: Stoneham, Mass. (about eight miles north of Boston) Years in Symphony: 0.75 (I just started in August 2008)

Moment you committed to being a musician: In seventh grade I went to my first-ever rehearsal with the Junior Massachusetts Youth Wind Ensemble. We were playing a band arrangement of Gustav Holst’s “Mars.” It was simply the most amazing thing I had ever heard — I was in auditory heaven. Later, as a high school senior, I discovered the wonders of Mahler’s Fourth Symphony with New England Conservatory’s Youth Philharmonic Orchestra and was seriously, deliriously smitten with classical music. Come hear the OSO play Mahler’s Fourth in May! It will be my first time playing it in 15 years — you’ll be able to find me on stage by the huge grin on my face.

Hardest thing about playing my instrument: It’s SO HEAVY! Just kidding.

Age of my instrument: It’s a hardy 16 — I got it in 1993 as a junior in high school! It’s served me well and faithfully. It’s played with Bono, Elton John, Yo Yo Ma, Seiji Ozawa, Andre Previn, James Levine, Ben Folds … I could never give it up.

How much do you insure it for? A lady never reveals these things :)

How many concert outfits do you own: 15

If you weren’t a musician: In high school, I took a career quiz that indicated I would make a good farmer. I thought this was odd at the time; however, since moving to Portland I have been growing veggies and dreaming of owning chickens and maybe even a goat. So, perhaps a farmer. Also, I have always been interested in linguistics and writing science fiction.

On your iPod: Right now, on heavy rotation, I am listening to “Alone in IZ World” (Israel Kamakawiwo’ole), “Poetry and Airplanes” (Teitur), “Davy” (Coconut Records), Beethoven’s fourth piano concerto as performed by Leon Fleisher (with Cleveland and George Szell) and anything I’m working on for karaoke (usually hair band-esque).

Reaction to Carnegie Hall gig: I am thrilled for the orchestra and very excited that the East Coast will get to hear us. The symphony is sounding amazing; Carlos inspires us to play at our absolute best. The wind section is a pleasure to play with, and I can definitively say that this year has been the best musical experience of my life. I am so proud to be in this orchestra. I encourage Portlanders who haven’t heard us yet this year to join us at the Schnitz — I promise you a beautiful, meaningful and inspiring two hours. We love playing for you!!

Yay Alicia! Check out the whole article here.

On Friday the 6th, Shaun L., Aaron, Viv, and I zipped out to Providence to watch my sister Tree compete in Dancing with the Profs!!

Brown’s ballroom dancing club puts this event together each year. Essentially, professors join the ballroom dancing club team and learn how to dance. After months of practice the professors compete against one another in an exciting exhibition open to the public. Back in October a student representative of the club approached my sister and asked her if she’d like to participate. Since then she’s been training with sophomore dancer Eric Ho for a feisty cha-cha.

Theresa was the first of the six professor contenders to dance. After a brief introduction where the MC applauded her appreciation for chocolate and coffee, Theresa took the stage. After a short video of an interview with Tree and her dancing partner was played on a big screen, the lights dimmed and the music started pumping.

Theresa and Eric were dancing like crazy! It was awesome. The crowd was totally digging it. Here are some photos!

Theresa and her dancing partner on the floor

For those of you with facebook you can see a video here.

Theresa and Eric

After Theresa performed, there were five other professors who got up to dance. My favorite of the other 5 was the chaplain who performed a quickstep. She was extremely animated and was really revved up the crowd. After all the participants had danced, they took a break to count the votes and a few of the ballroom dancing club members graced us with performances.

The best was, by far, a tango performed by two recently graduated students. The dude was stoic and strong and helped me understand what it meant to provide a good ‘frame’ for his partner. The woman didn’t so much rest in his arms so much as drape across them. They spun around the room and while their legs were stepping in a furious, yet calculated manner, they two dancers were almost stationary from the waist up. At various points in their dance, they would both break from their frozen structure to simultaneously whip their heads as an accent to the intensity. It was awesome.

Much to the chagrin of Theresa’s loyal fans, the winner of the night was a different professor who performed a samba (incidentally, the professor who won is Vivienne’s boyfriend James’s adviser.)

It was an awesome night! My only complaint was that there was no pamphlet given out at the door. It would have been really cool to read about the history of the dancers. Most of the night was focused on the professors, which was nice… but I would have enjoyed reading about Theresa’s dancing partner Eric. How long had he been dancing? What was it like working with my sister?

Theresa and Dad D.

I’m really proud of my sis. She did a great dance and was in control of her moves and the crowd. Great Job T!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TREE!!!!!

YAY!

Happy Birthday Mom D!

Yay!

I got some great presents this year for Christmas. Here are some of the big ones:

1. A GPS.
My folks got me a GPS. If you remember some of those unforgettable lost posts, then you’ll recognize the value of this gift. I actually took it and upgraded to a slightly more technological one. The GPS that will arrive at the House of Rock soon is one that uses a bluetooth connection with my phone in order to get up to date traffic information to help me avoid the particularly nasty routes. Cool huh?

2. Guitar Book
When my MBA ends (we’re close! we’re so close!), I intend to spend a lot more time on kung fu, rock climbing, and guitar. Alicia got me a really great guitar book which will hopefully help me step up to the next level of rock. Oh man, all this talk of rock has me wanting to plug in the PRS. Oh man.

3. Espresso Espresso Espresso
Tree got me all sorts of espresso machine extras. A coffee grinder, nice beans, and some really stylish mugs for espresso drinking. I’m extremely excited. With a little practice, I will be able to provide the most delicious of drinks to my guests.

4. New Pants!
I’m working on a video that explains how to quickly and effortlessly hem your pants; all you need is a stapler and a sharpie! In the meantime, these new pants are going to really bump up my personal class level.

5. A Book on Papercraft
This book will make my cubical really intense.

Fun huh?!

Mike D: yeah, I have so much homework. It’s stupid.
Mom D: is it stupid or are you stupid.

I’m back in Connecticut! Here’s what I miss from Portland.

Coffee everywhere.
The trips for coffee were really fun. It was like a constant social sunburn. Mochas galore, date bars, chocolate morsels of unmatchable deliciousness, and oh! what a social network! I swear there’s probably more youth traffic through a single Portland coffee shop than through all of Connecticut (Oregon has 22% more 25-35 yr olds than CT).

Fashion.
In addition to the rampant popularity of skirts, the colors of Portland were very Vivienne. Fun bright clothes and awesome fashion statements. Way to go Portland!

Constant adventure.
My days were so tightly packed with thrills. I don’t think there was a moment of my trip when I wasn’t excited about something awesome. Halfway through my Portland adventure I decided that I should really step it up in CT; bring more fun into my daily life. But then I realized that school is adding a pretty significant ‘c’ coefficient into my equation of fun-motion:
mx” + cx’ + kx = Fun(t)sin(wt)

So perhaps I’ll hold off a bit on any more fun packing until February. Come March though? Look the heck out. I’m going to ramp up the umph.

Walking
Portland is a walkable city. Most of our transportation for the week was via our feet. An unexpected bonus of this method of getting around is that it notably de-stresses you. Walking forces you to leave a little early and creates tiny spaces in your day to collect your thoughts and restart the proverbial servers. It’s so relaxing. I walked more in a single day in Portland than I did in a month here in CT.

Alicia, Dwane, and Sarah!
I love my sister. She is awesome. We made SICK garage band tunes together* and had crazy fun walking around the farmer’s market and making dinners. Portland $7 Pesto? Find it and eat it. Dwane and I went to watch Alicia perform with the Oregon Symphony. Daaaang Alicia was good. She and the other flute started with a little duet thing and it was freakin’ absurd. At the end of the piece the conductor came out and had Alicia and her flute playing counterpart stand in acknowledgment to their sweet performance. Wow.

Dwane, Alicia, and Sarah

It was neat to hang out with Dwane too. Despite my sister’s December ’07 marriage to the Dwanester, I hadn’t actually spent much solo time with him prior to this trip. We were able to talk about work and life quite a bit during our hike around multnomah falls and again as we waited for the Oregon symphony to get cranking. It was really chill. Dwane is wonderful. He has a really fantastic sense of humor and is extremely sharp. On a tour of a submarine he had a discussion with the officer about the method of propulsion for torpedos. Awesome? yes.
I’m very glad he’s part of the Family.

I also got to spend some time with Sarah and despite her ability to effortlessly outsmart me at every Mindbending puzzle at the OMSI**, she was a great addition to the Portland experience. We hit up Powell books, Forrest park, and Henry Weinhard’s brewery (home of my favorite rootbeer!). If you could somehow caffeinate a firecracker you’d get close to Sarah’s addictive personality. So much fun.

I will definitely be going back to Portland. It was too epic of a place to only visit once.

*Check out the garage band creation BIRTH OF SOLITUDE here:
birthofsolitude.mp3

**Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (thanks Michelle & Thor for the free tickets!!)

I have started a journey to Portland, OR.

My flight leaves this morning at 6:30 out of Bradley to Phoenix, AZ. I’ll stay there for an hour or two and then zip up to Portland – arriving at 12:45 West Coast time. This will be the first time I’ve been west of Kansas.

Stay tuned for updates

A few weekends ago my family had a big pig roast to celebrate my sister’s PHD achievement. It was really fun and I realized this morning that I haven’t yet had an opportunity to post about it.

The pig guys, so named because they took care of the pig, showed up at 6am on the day of the roast to start to prepare. There was a giant pig, baked beans like you wouldn’t believe, potato salad, corn, roasted veggies, sausage and peppers, hot wings, salad, watermelon, cake, and the list goes on.

As for the pig? well, it was a little strange to see the beast roasting on a spear of sorts. But it came out pretty good. I had no idea how fatty pork meat was.

The group was fantastic. Theresa had invited a bunch of close friends from high school, graduate school, and family. It’s really fun just to get together with a big group of fun people.

The party went well into the night, probably not closing up until around midnight.

Well done Dr. Theresa! Yay!

This weekend my sister T was ceremoniously rewarded her PHD in social psychology. It was a really fun ceremony. There was a monster parade and bells and drums and hundreds of people wearing robes and various hats.

T walked across stage where the administration gave her the diploma and placed the hood over her head. It was triumphant. The raucous crowd cheered heavily. What perfect weather as well! It was a proud day in Rhode Island to be sure.

Yay Tree! Great job!

The rest of the weekend was reasonably relaxed. My memorial day was spent out at East Peak with Pete. I worked Rat Crack and Cat Crack with some practice ascending. Rat crack was kind of miserable. it wasn’t really a crack so much as an off width – and I hate off widths. Cat crack, on the other hand, was a totally intense crack. For crack climbing you have to jam your joints and fist in between the rock to help pull yourself up. It’s extremely intense. Every move hurts. Today my arms are all sorts of scratched and scarred from the climb.

Then last night we had some pizza and some rockband. This was a good weekend.

On Friday night DiDonato family and friends gathered to watch my sister give her dissertation speech. It was fantastic. She filled every chair in the room (and then some) and gave a fantastic presentation that completed her requirements for a doctorate.

Tree is now the first ever Dr. DiDonato.

Wow.

After the big event we started the partying and what a fantastic afternoon it was! First we hit up some Chinese food. Then it was back to T’s place for cake and more cake. Finally, we went over to a bar on the water and sat and chatted it up drinking drinks and being merry. It was an excellent opportunity to meet all of my sister’s friends in Providence and celebrate and rejoice.

Even since, she’s been in a great mood. And rightly so, because after a very long time… her schooling is complete.

Rock on T!

Today I’m headed to Providence to witness my sister Theresa’s thesis defense. Yes. She is one requirement away from achieving her PHD is social psychology. Way to go Tree!!!!

I’ll let you know how it goes.

It is with extreme excitement that I can officially report that my sister Alicia won the competition yesterday and will be starting her first big-time official symphonic gig with the Oregon Symphony. This is such huge overwhelmingly fantastic news. Alicia’s been working hard and taking auditions furiously since she graduated from college. She’ll be playing 2nd chair and will be starting up in August.

She’ll play for a year and if everyone’s happy she could pull a tenure spot.

Join me in Congratulating Alicia!

Yay!!!!

This weekend I jetted home for Saturday. The morning started with my lending a helpful hand on a few jobs that have been nagging at my folks.

Job 1? The sump pump.

My folks had some flooding issues last week and realized that they had to change out the sump pump. They purchased a new one, but after installing it, realized that they had mistakenly left out a key hole.

Water pumps often need to have water in them in order to start comfortably. So the pump manufacturer recommended drilling a small 3mm (1/8″) hole about 100mm (four inches) up from the pump’s base. It was my task to drill that hole.

It really wasn’t too much of a difficult task. First I took off the pipe clamps and released the pressure in the line. Some water poured out, but it wasn’t too bad. We took off the main water line exiting the house and then I went in to work with the pump itself. I had to unscrew the pipe from the pump. Crammed under the sink, I reached behind the pump – holding it steady as I cranked the pipe above.

And that’s when my hand hit the float switch. At that same moment my mom, my dad, and I quickly learned that we hadn’t unplugged the pump.

A torrent of water exploded up from the floor directly into my face. It was frigid. My mom started shouting, I tried to back out but hit my head on the sink, my dad (arm in brace from a recent ladder incident) desperately trying to grab for the plug.

Eventually someone managed to yank out the plug and we all laughed and laughed at our idiocy.

Lesson learned: unplug a pump before working on it.

Kate and Kurt have both, at one time or another, asked about the picture frame I have on my desk. From afar it looks like a little hippo or robot… but why is it so awesome that it deserves prime desk real estate?

well, it isn’t so much a picture as a card that my sister Alicia sent me for Valentines day last year. Let’s take a closer look.

The Front (click to make bigger):

The Back (click to make bigger):

Isn’t that neat? I love it. So I put it in a frame and keep it on my desk. I think it’s creative and passes along a great message.

So I signed up for Goodreads awhile ago. I have 13 books that I’ve thrown up there and felt proud of my 13 books. Most of my goodread friends have between 2 and 30 so I felt decent about my modest pile o’ books. Most of them I’d read in the last year too… that’s better than one book a month! Awesome!

On Saturday my sisters Alicia and Theresa found the website, signed up, and promptly flushed my proud booklist down into the sewer.

Alicia has 99 books and Theresa has 43. ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY TWO BOOKS BETWEEN THEM.

Now, I’m a competitive individual and normally when my sisters show superiority I get motivated to compete with them. Sometimes it’s not too hard because they don’t know that we’re competing.* But not here friends. At my current rate of reading it will take me almost ELEVEN YEARS to read as many books as them. I spoke to Alicia… she goes through a stack of books from the library every TWO WEEKS. A STACK.

Out of my league.

Sigh.

*This isn’t pathetic, it’s strategy.

My mom made me a quilt.

She’s not entirely proud of it as she claims that the quilting itself is not as majestic as she’d like it to be. But I helped her a bit with the design and I think it turned out awesome.

The quilt is made up of 100 small squares. Each side is 10 squares long and there is a thing black border that ostracizes the outer row of squares. A royal pink and white pattern divides up the background and then 8 black squares are placed in a seemingly random patter across the quilt.

However, there is nothing random about the placement of these black squares. In fact, the placements are quite specific.

Can you figure it out? And can you guess the name of the quilt?

(if I’ve already told you… please refrain from this mini fun contest)

Yesterday was my dad’s birthday. Dads are pretty great. They always seem to know everything and be good at everything.

I’ve compiled a little list of things my dad is exceptionally good at. Enjoy!

Adventure.
My dad is a wizard when it comes to adventure. There were weekend trips to the science museum, sailing races at lake Quannapowitt, spelunking the ‘lemon squeeze’ in NH, and my first climbing adventures up Castle Rock. My dad turned mundane trips to the recycling center into something that could be talked about at the dinner table. We hiked Lincoln, Lafaette, and Haystack in NH and went to a lego dinosaur robot building event. Do you need to read that again? Lego Dinosaur Robots. Can you think of anything that could possibly be cooler to an 8 year old DiDonato?

Music.
My dad paid for much of his younger year lifestyle with the proceeds from his band. It’s name was “Uncle Sam’s Love Thy Neighbor Ragtime Band.” They even put out an album! He played for weddings, in parades, and various town events. The band is still together and when they play, smiles can not be avoided. Dad’s also in another band called “Tabasco Fiasco.” They play more regularly at bars and locations in NE. It’s a great group of guys and the music is really fantastic.
I first got into the Saxophone through my dad. I started learning at age 7 and still get much joy when my dad and I can get together and play some sax duets.

Gifts.
For over 20 years my dad provided to his children a Super Duper amazing flamazing zippy-zappy fantastic sensational extraordinary etc… etc… Present! at Christmas time. the name always changed, but the concept was the same. We’d wake up Christmas morning to find an envelope buried within the Christmas tree. In it, there were a series of puzzles and challenges that lead us to an awesome group gift.

Some of the gifts included:

a computer!
games!
sleds!
an hour long tap dancing class (my personal fav.)!
A family Oragami lesson (a close second)!
Stock options!

Food.
My dad cooks extravagant meals. Most of the time they take forever. And most of the time we hear shouts of “OH NO!” coming from the kitchen. But the end result is always great. Included in this food section should also be Breakfast. My dad makes a great breakfast. One breakfast in particular stands out. It was the day of my SAT and I came downstairs to find a full breakfast feast awaiting me. Bacon, Pancakes, Eggs, English Muffins, Juice… it was glorious!

Saving the Day.

One of the many adventures my dad took me on was a trip where we learned about the geology in Boston architecture with a tour guide. A group of about 12 of us were told what types of rocks were used where, and where they came from.

While we were walking around, two men joined the group suspiciously. But they paid attention to the presentation and seemed interested.

Not far from Government center, we stopped to look at the foundation of a building. I stood near the back, my father behind me.

Suddenly there was motion.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING!” my dad shouted.

When my dad shouts… everyone listens.

I spun around to find my dad gripping one of the men’s wrists tightly.

“what… what?” the man shook with fear.

“WERE YOU GOING TO STEAL THIS WOMAN’S PURSE?!”

The woman who my dad was referring to quickly tightened her grip on her purse. The purse had been open, her wallet showing.

“no, no… I…. ”
“GET OUT OF HERE NOW!”
“listen man… you got it all wrong.”
“DO YOU WANT ME TO GET THE POLICE?! GET OUT OF HERE!!!”

the man quickly left.

“YOU TOO! GET OUT OF HERE NOW!” My dad ordered the other stranger.
“I didn’t have anything to do with this! I’m just watching!”
“GET OUT.” my Dad commanded.

he left. Our tour group relaxed, safe again because my dad saved the day.

——————————————————-
Interested in more stories from Dad D? Click here.

Happy Birthday Dad! You’re the best!

Friday afternoon I left work at about 3pm with Shaun L. to head to Boston for my sister’s performance with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP). We picked up Erich, Nicole, and my mom along the way. BMOP is described as “one of a handful of professional orchestras in the United States dedicated exclusively to performing and recording music of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.*”

This particular concert focused on works written by French Composers.

The concert as a whole was pretty incredible. It turns out that modern orchestra music is awesome. The first piece, a world premier by Betsy Jolas entitled Jour B, was dark, aggressive, and at a few points, actually frightening. It was a little tough to get into the music, but once I got into it I got very into it. There were three points in the first piece where the orchestra members actually shouted out and it startled the heck out of me. It was wild.

My sister was featured in a piece written by Pascal Dusapin called Galim, written in 1998. It was rather incredible. Prior to the concert she had mentioned being nervous because it was a very difficult piece. Once she started playing I understood. It was furiously fast, sporadic, and energetic.

Alicia, in gown, prepares to amaze all with her flutitude.

The third piece was another piece by Dusapin, but I didn’t enjoy it as much as the others.

The final piece was a monster that lasted for about 35 minutes or so. The orchestra was positioned so that the instruments were spread out across the stage. The composer had written the piece taking into consideration the instrument’s location. For example, there was one trumpet on the far left, another on the far right. The left trumpet would start softly and crescendo. The right trumpet would then match the note and volume and then fade. The end result was a feeling that the sound had whipped across the stage from the left to the right. Stunning.

One part of the piece had three percussionists going wild on wooden blocks. It was extremely exciting.

Post concert we met Alicia in the lobby before heading back. Here are a few pictures to conclude this review.

Alicia and her fiance Dwane!

Sister and Brother!

*BMOP website