"You're right where you should be. In Capital City." (Matt Wertz)

True story: I met Lauren last June at a reading and signing by fellow North Carolinian YA author Sarah Dessen. (She took the picture of me and Sarah.) We were two of the only 20 somethings in the room and happened to sit beside each other. We're both from NC, both do crafts, both cheer for UNC, both love Audrey, and have many other similarities. Last summer was not a good time for me and, well, without getting all cheesy, I'm just very grateful that Lauren was brought into my life.

I've been in kind of a funk the past few weeks, with the change of seasons and being ready for a trip home, so I haven't been doing as much lately. But several months ago Lauren invited me to see Matt Wertz perform at The Hamilton, and Thursday that's just what I did.


The Hamilton is a newish venue downtown located in the former three-story Borders space. It's a huge place with a bar, restaurant, and performance space. I've been to a few concerts and Lauren's been to tons, and we both agreed it was the nicest venue we've been in. 

We had dinner at Pret, then drinks and dessert at the venue, and then heard some lovely songs by two great performers: Steve Moakler and Matt Wertz.

I had never heard of Moakler and had limited knowledge of Wertz, but both were excellent singers and performers and I'll be seeking their music out more. I was especially excited that the one song of Wertz that I have -- appropriately called "Carolina" -- was the second song he played.

I've been to several concerts with friends in the past year for artists I have little to no knowledge of. It's been nice to discover new music and new things to do with my music-loving friends.