Jason Castro was my favorite male contestant on Season 7, besides you know who. Jason was real, raw, laid back, and talented. I've been supporting him since the show and recently bought his EP, anxiously waiting for his album to come out in the spring. When I found out he was coming to Ann Arbor, I was thrilled. I remember saying back when he was on Idol "I can't wait till he tours, I'd be there in an instant". I was there. I was there to see him and to see Matt Hires, whom I adore. The concert was at The Ark, which may be my new favorite venue. It was an amazing set up, so intimate. Those are the best kind of concerts. Not one bad seat in the place! I sat on the side...a microphone stand was blocking my view, but other than that I was really close and happy. Before the show, I was recognized by two people. One asked me if I was "the" Chikezie fan. Another said she knew me from the Kelly meet and greet. Oh, Idol fans. Also, it was VERY obvious that most people there were there for Jason, which made me happy. Anyways, Caitlin Crosby was up first. She's great! I had never heard her before, but she definatley made me a fan last night. She's a little Kate Voegle, a little Colbie Caillait. I enjoyed her set a lot- she was cute and told us about her passion for knocking down social media standards and about her ex boyfriend, who apparently is Zachary Levi. Her songs were great, she's a very talented songwriter and vocalist. I downloaded her album as soon as I got home.

Jason was next- when he came out people were screaming and cheering, this one lady yelled "I REMEMBER YOU!". I wasn't sure whether to laugh or be creeped out for him. Jason has not changed a bit. He was still his goofy, laid back self. He performed SO well. I was reminded why he is my favorite. What I love about Jason is how raw and real he is. He's an artist who CAN sing live and sounds exaclty like he does on the album. He is also a very talented songwriter, with a passion for music. He made some typical Jason comments like "who watches American Idol? I do. I like to be on it sometimes." and "I just kept singing Crazy during all the audition rounds because I didn't really know any other songs and it seemed to be working so...I just kept singing it." He was amazing. My favorite song of his EP is "You Can Always Come Home" and my favorite Idol performance of his was "Hallelujah". He sang both :) I took some videos, I'll post them later. I am SO glad I was able to see him, and I will continue supporting him.

After Jason's set he was doing a meet and greet, so I went to the lobby to try and talk to him. The security kept telling us "we don't know how much longer he can sign, because he has to leave when Matt starts". Of course, I was the cut off. Seriously, I was next in line and they all grabbed him and said he had to go. He was clearly a little upset and wanted to keep signing and taking pictures. He looked at me and said "HEY!" and then told the people to wait, but they were not having that. It was so sad, but I'm glad I went anyways, it was worth it to see him perform.

I only stayed for two of Matt's songs (which were great- he is another very talented guy! I love him!) because I didn't want to get home too late. WELL.

On I-94, my car started making this noise...a draining noise, like it was saying "please stop driving me!" I started getting all the way over so I could pull over, and then the heat stopped working and it smelled- BAD. I pulled off at the middlebelt exit (right past the airport) and as I was pulling off, my car made a clunking sound and then just died. Luckily I was able to pull to the far right lane so I wasn't in traffic. I called my dad, because that's the first thing I do when something goes wrong with my car. I didn't have my triple a card, so he called for me using his card. I waited there for an hour by myself, shaking. Luckily Sam called me and talking to her calmed me down. The scariest part was people coming off the exit so DANG fast I thought I would get hit- I sat on the passengers side to make a quick exit if need be. Only a few people stopped, three who were very nice and asked if I had a ride and a two truck coming, and one very drunk guy in the backseat of a car full of men who just kind of slurred "you okay?" as his friend kept driving. I was starting to get very cold, tired, and shaky when a cop pulled up next to me. I totally thought he would stop, ask if I was okay, and stay with me, right? WRONG. He stopped (at the red light) and didn't say a word. Oh, young female all alone in Romulus, MI at 11:30 at night...looks FINE to me. Way to protect the innocent, jackass. (sorry). Eventually my dad came and a few minutes later the tow truck came. We took my car to a repair shop a few miles away and then my dad took me home. I was still shaking and freezing when I got home, and didn't fall asleep until about 2:30 AM..which made my 6 am wake up call a living hell. Depending on what is wrong with my car, this could be the end of the taurus. This is the fourth or fifth time it has died in me in the past two years, and if it's too expensive to fix, we're just gonna get rid of it. Which means no car for me for a while...which could make this job hunting thing even harder. It's tough to get a job without a car. So please pray that things could work out.

I've been fighting a sore throat the past few days. I haven't been sleeping well so I think I may be getting sick- AGAIN. Good news is I started the Daniel Fast yesterday. I did have to drink coffee at one point (yes, HAD to) because I was SO tired driving to Ann Arbor.

I have exciting news! I've got two phone interviews lined up! Although I'm nervous about them now even more because of this whole car thing. One of them (Women of Faith tour) is a job I would do just about anything to get, but I'm unsure about it for two reasons. 1 is that I can't start until late July, so that may hinder my chances, and the second is that once the tour is over in November, I am jobless again...unless I can work for them full time. We shall see. I'll know more details after I talk to them. The second is a children specialist job with Headstart in....Nashville :) I just found out about this and I am super excited. My interview with them is next Friday.

I have more exciting news! Best Buy works closely with the Cristo Rey Network. They asked that all the Cristo Rey schools nominate one student to be a participant in the project “My Education, My Job, My Success”. It is a collaborative video project that will document Cristo Rey Network students as they learn from their jobs and school, love their families and communities and also become leaders in all their environments. The project goal is to show how a 15-year-old student can break the cycle of poverty by integrating school and work. They will turn the video footage into a video blog every month. It is also to show what Cristo Rey schools do and how the students embrace its mission. They chose TWO students out of all the nominations (23). Guess what? OUR STUDENT IS ONE OF THE TWO! This is HUGE, especially since we are so new! It helps that she's one of my girls. She's so sweet, gets good grades, excels at work, and has leadership positions. She is one of my favorites, she runs in every morning to hug me and we talk all the time. To see her reaction yesterday when we announced this amazing opportunity is something I will never, EVER forget. She was shocked, and then started crying. I teared up just watching her, she was so excited. I'm SO happy for her.

Oh, I have even MORE exciting news. Yesterday, Laurence's mom Lisa received a hand written letter from Bono to both of his parents. He expressed his sorrow at Laurence's passing, but his joy in all of the work that Laurence has done for the One Campaign in his short life, and his deserved place in heaven. How amazing is that? Also, the MAD award was sent to Laurence's dad- he said it is beautiful and weights almost 20 pounds! Awesome!

This has been way too long so I'll leave you with some videos. My Jason videos aren't up yet, but I'll edit this post when they are.