blog
Afghanistan Blog #2
:: 2008.08.08
HELLLOOOO!!!!!
So this is blog #2 and I am so happy to write to you today!
This morning, Justin, Brandon and I went for breakfast at the D-Fac.
(dining facility) We had to be at the military airport at 7:00am for
our 9:00 flight on the Blackhawk. We waited for two hours while
soldiers were trying to scare us about the helicopter ride! They sure
do have some great sense of humor out here! We had to put on some
gear before we entered the chopper, a 20 pound bullet proof vest and a
helmet. I was told that since I don't like to fly, I should sit in the back and NOT by the door. We were on our way to two F.O.B's (forward
operating bases). The first one was called Maralis Frasier (im not
sure of the spelling).
We took off and I swear to God, it was the most amazing experience!
I would rather fly in a helicopter than a domestic place any day. We
landed at about 9:15am. We were taken on a tour of the base. It was
mostly a French driven base, only about 20 American soldiers were
there (cute ones at that!) We also met with some marines and took
pictures with their flag. After awhile of talking to them, they asked
if we wanted to shoot in the firing range. Hmm....let me think...HELL
YES! So Justin got to drive the hummer to the range, and I opted to
put on all of the gear and walk my sweaty butt there! I mean, we're
here to experience what the troops do, so why not do what they do and
wear what they wear?? We got to the range, and since I already had
the gear on, I was first. The first one was the machine gun that was
on top of the hummer! This was the first time I've ever pulled a
trigger. The adrenaline that was running through my veins at this
point is just too much to handle, as I was screaming "THIS IS FOR
GRIMES!" (my friend in the military) I couldn't stop firing and I didn't
want to get my hand off of that trigger! When I was done with that
gun, I went to the 250 bravo. I was standing, holding this gun, and I
swear, enlisting went through my head!
The next F.O.B was Methr Lam. I really liked this base! The soldiers
were so happy to see us and we hung out with them for the rest of the
day. These two female soldiers (who were the only two females in the
mechanical unit) took me away and showed me around. Probably to some
places that I wasn't supposed to see, so I won't talk about it, but it
was absolutely amazing. After that Angela and Angelique took me to a little Afghani shop and bought me a beautiful scarf as a souvenir.
So this is blog #2 and I am so happy to write to you today!
This morning, Justin, Brandon and I went for breakfast at the D-Fac.
(dining facility) We had to be at the military airport at 7:00am for
our 9:00 flight on the Blackhawk. We waited for two hours while
soldiers were trying to scare us about the helicopter ride! They sure
do have some great sense of humor out here! We had to put on some
gear before we entered the chopper, a 20 pound bullet proof vest and a
helmet. I was told that since I don't like to fly, I should sit in the back and NOT by the door. We were on our way to two F.O.B's (forward
operating bases). The first one was called Maralis Frasier (im not
sure of the spelling).
We took off and I swear to God, it was the most amazing experience!
I would rather fly in a helicopter than a domestic place any day. We
landed at about 9:15am. We were taken on a tour of the base. It was
mostly a French driven base, only about 20 American soldiers were
there (cute ones at that!) We also met with some marines and took
pictures with their flag. After awhile of talking to them, they asked
if we wanted to shoot in the firing range. Hmm....let me think...HELL
YES! So Justin got to drive the hummer to the range, and I opted to
put on all of the gear and walk my sweaty butt there! I mean, we're
here to experience what the troops do, so why not do what they do and
wear what they wear?? We got to the range, and since I already had
the gear on, I was first. The first one was the machine gun that was
on top of the hummer! This was the first time I've ever pulled a
trigger. The adrenaline that was running through my veins at this
point is just too much to handle, as I was screaming "THIS IS FOR
GRIMES!" (my friend in the military) I couldn't stop firing and I didn't
want to get my hand off of that trigger! When I was done with that
gun, I went to the 250 bravo. I was standing, holding this gun, and I
swear, enlisting went through my head!
The next F.O.B was Methr Lam. I really liked this base! The soldiers
were so happy to see us and we hung out with them for the rest of the
day. These two female soldiers (who were the only two females in the
mechanical unit) took me away and showed me around. Probably to some
places that I wasn't supposed to see, so I won't talk about it, but it
was absolutely amazing. After that Angela and Angelique took me to a little Afghani shop and bought me a beautiful scarf as a souvenir.
It was time to go, so
we got on the Blackhawk and went home, only this time, I sat in the
front where the windows were open and I sat right next to it! I'm
really hoping that this trip has cured my fear of flying. I had a
little too much sun today and I got pretty nauseous, so when we got
back to Bogram I went right to bed for about 2 hours, then I got to
ichat with Joey for about an hour.
Tomorrow is the same deal, wake up at the crack of dawn and go to
two new F.O.B'S. I'll let you know all about it tomorrow!
miss you and love you,
we got on the Blackhawk and went home, only this time, I sat in the
front where the windows were open and I sat right next to it! I'm
really hoping that this trip has cured my fear of flying. I had a
little too much sun today and I got pretty nauseous, so when we got
back to Bogram I went right to bed for about 2 hours, then I got to
ichat with Joey for about an hour.
Tomorrow is the same deal, wake up at the crack of dawn and go to
two new F.O.B'S. I'll let you know all about it tomorrow!
miss you and love you,
Gina
Afghanistan Blog #1
:: 2008.08.07
Hey Everyone,
I'm sorry it's taken so long to get back to you but this is the first time I've been able to get internet access! Imagine that, couldn't get it on the army base in Qatar, but in Bagram, Afghanistan, FULL strength.
So, let me start from the beginning (a very fine place to start).
Brandon, Justin, Nadia and I met in Dulles, Washington where our flight to Qatar was taking off. There, we met out tour manager Joe. Who we now have many names for. (i.e. joe kris, Lt. Dan, and now finding out more about him, Lt. chocolate pants.) I was fortunate enough to be able to sit in between Brandon and Justin. I'm absolutley NOT a fan of flying and they helped me out alot. Especially Brandon who has introduced me to Xanex :) The flight was 12 hours long but it felt a lot shorter than that. We arrived in Qatar where we were greeted by Sgt. Chris and Lt. Bill. These men have been driving us to and from wherever we wanted to go, and have been SO amazing.
There's an eight hour difference from home to here, so we are eight hours ahead. We arrived in Qatar at 6:30 and went to Chili's to eat and get to know our tour mangagers. After that, we went to the army base which we stayed at for two nights. It's an R&R base, so the soldiers are only there for four days unless that is where they are stationed. Nadia and I got settled into our rooms as did Justin and Brandon. We were taken to a place called the Top Off which is the place to go to socialize. It looks like a warehouse from the outside. They have restaurants, pool, darts, karaoke, and of course beer and wine. Soldiers are ony allowed three beers a day though. (I knew there was a reason why I didn't join the army!) Nadia went to bed early and Justin, Brandon and I hung out with the soldiers.
The next morning, we had a meet and greet with everyone during lunch. It was so fun to see everyone and hear their stories. I even met a man from Naperville who was pretty excited to see me! When the meet and greet was over, Brandon, Justin and I went shopping and walked around a bit just to soak things in. We went to downtown Qatar, which honestly, is one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen. We went to see the Dark Knight (third time for me) and then went back to the Top Off to perform for the troops. I lost it when we sang the national anthem and everyone stood up and was singing it louder than we were on the big stage with mics! We stayed outside with the troops until about 2:30am and our ride picked us up to go to the airport at 3:30am, so we didn't get to sleep at all.
After we were picked up, we got to the military airport where we were taken to Bagram in a C-130 aircraft. What a frickin awesome experince. No seats, just cargo nets to place your ass in for 4 1/2 hours. Once again, thank you Brandon!
Sleeping arrangements are good here in Bagram, it's like camp. Nadia and I are sharing a nice bunker, pretty dusty, but didn't expect anything different, it's a desert. I would prefer the base in Qatar for sleeping, but I have feeling the experience in Afghanistan will be much more worth takling about!
So now, the good emails will come. We're going to be taken by Black Hawk to two different bases a day, so I know I'll have some good stories for you! So while you're all home, complaining about the 90 degree weather, think of the troops out here. It's 120 degrees with 75% humidity. I have to change my clothes every two hours!
Until tomorrow,
Gina
San Francisco
:: 2008.07.16
Hey everyone!
Well, it's been a wonderful time here in San Fran! (although it's not over yet!)
The first week was pretty awesome, im not gonna lie! I got to perform with Anwar Robinson and Jon Peter Lewis. These are two men that I've never heard their music before and now i'm a huge fan of both! Jon Peter Lewis impressed me so much! His album comes out July 22nd! Make sure you buy it!
Anyways, the turn out has been good!! I've had some wonderful fans come and take the time to drive all the way from LA and Modesto to come and see me! Thank you for everything Amanda, Heather, Denise and Joe.
My favorite part about the show is that i am able to perform my new original entitled, "Just Me". You can check it out on youtube! My cousin Krissy posted an 8 minute video of me singing it and then also singing my new favorite song to sing, "Gravity" by Sara Barellis. Some other songs I sing are Livin' on a Prayer, At Last, I'll Stand By You, Smile and Killing Me Softly.
I actually got to feel like how it would be if i were Ryan Seacrest for a day. (well, not really) I was asked to host and judge the auditions for singers to sing the National Anthem for the 49ers season! It was really cool to NOT be on the receving side for once! I witnessed A LOT of talent and I was honored to be a part of that process on Pier 39!
Last night started the new line up! Mikailah Gordon, Ricky Smith and myself! It's a blast. Very commical group if i do say so myself! This week, they are holding idol auditions in San Fran and two beautiful young girls who will be auditioning came to our show! GOOD LUCK GEORGIA AND FAITH!
I'll posts again when this week has ended to let you all know how it went. Then it's back to Chicago for Joey and i. Gotta love a nice road trip to Chicago!
SEE YOU ALL AT THE CUBS GAME!!!!
Thank you Detroit!
:: 2008.06.30
Thank you SO much to everyone who showed up for my appearance at the Stars and Stripes festival! It was so much fun and sooo very hot!
It was a successful day for all of us! Anthony Federov, Justin Guarini and I had so much fun performing for all of you and meeting and greeting! ( i think i may still have writers cramp!)
If by chance you couldn't make it, Alana Brown is an angel and posted my WHOLE performance on youtube.com. The songs were "Desire"-U2, " Livin' On a Prayer"-Jovi and "Call Me When You're Sober"-Evanescense.
Thank you to Geoff Repo a.k.a."The Tank" and Joe Ruzicka a.k.a "my fiance" for coming with me and being my band! It's always wonderful performing with the both of you. I love you guys!
Until next time......
May the G-Force be with you,
-Gina
MY FIRST BLOG!
:: 2008.06.26
HI EVERYONE! Welcome to my new website. What do you think? I am so happy with the way everything turned out. I wanted a website that reflected my personality and I think its safe to say we did it. I'll be bloging as often as I can to let you all know whats going on. Please check out the guestbook and say hi to me and everyone else in there. It's empty right now, but I'm hoping it will fill up soon. Do me a HUGE favor and spread the word about the website being ready.
Tell everyone about ROCKTHEGLOCK.COM!!!
I know what some of you are thinking. . . where is your original music? I promise you it is coming soon! I am currently working on several songs in the studio right now and the recording process is going great. Unfortunately I didn't have major record labels beating down my door so I've had to do this on my own, but it will be worth the wait. There's a ballad, some pop, and of course some ROCK! I'll let you know as soon as they are ready. In addition to recording I've been really busy out here in LA. Co-hosting American Idol Extra was SO much fun and although TV is great, performing live is my biggest passion and I've been getting to do that a lot as well. I've been all over the place (Detroit, Chicago, LA, New York) and now I get to go to Afganistan in August. WHAT!?! AFGHANISTAN? I know, I know. . .it sounds a little scary but I am so pumped. It will be me, Justin Guarini, Brandon Rogers, and Nadia Turner visiting our nation's REAL IDOLS for 10 days. Before I ship off to the middle east I get to enjoy 2 weeks performing in the city by the bay. I'm really excited to go to San Francisco and sing with Michael Orland again (pianist from American Idol). Check out the EVENTS page for all the shows and appearances I'll be making. I met so many great friends on tour last year and I hope I get to see all of you again soon.
I gotta run, but I'll blog again soon!
Love, Gina