Haley Reinhart AI (After Interscope) at the Cosmopolitan

[Tusk]

On little sleep, leaving my house at 2 am, finally arriving in Vegas @ noon, getting a room with construction going on next door and having to move to another room, getting a 3 hour nap and as of this writing, I've eaten nothing all day, only drinking two Fat Tire beers and a Sprite (they don't serve food in the Chandelier).....but you know what?

Haley and company made it worth it on all accounts. Proving that she has always been one to look forward and not dwell on the past, this wonderful person that has touched all of our hearts did not disappoint those fortunate to be there for her first performance after the split with Interscope.

Since I knew this was going to be a lengthy performance, I didn't want to leave it to chance, so after I finally settled in in my room, I began backing up and clearing out all my memory cards and making sure all back up batteries for my camera were fully charged...all that done, I commenced to thinking about taking a nap so I was somewhat alert for the show. To make sure, I didn't oversleep, which would have sucked, I set the alarm on my phone, the room's clock radio and my tablet. There was no way I was going to chance missing this.

Even with my precautions, amazingly, I awoke 5 minutes before all the alarms I had set were to go off LOL. Every thing was charged and laid out....check and double check.

I took a cab to the Cosmopolitan, not having been there before. Most of the fare was burned off in traffic as it turned out the Cosmo was closer than I thought (I ended up walking back after the show).

I brought along my two cameras, one for photos the other for filming. I also brought along the photo that I took of Haley's family, Harry, Patti, and Angie, at Carnegie Hall, in a nice suitable frame (it was black and had a velvety feel to it). I also printed out the pic I had taken with Haley, Haleyholic and I @ Carnegie, maybe to get Haley to sign it.

I wanted to be at the Chandelier bar at 6 to make sure I could scout out a decent spot, but a leaking Iron (i'm one of those that can never get the wrinkles out of his clothes, but I did what I could ) that had to be replaced put me behind my schedule.

With a little bit of urgency, I asked around for directions to the Chandelier room, stopping momentarily to get something with the Cosmopolitan logo on it for Keith and Courtney to sign. I took pictures of this impressive place on the way and as I finally located the bar, who did I happen on, but Courtney Leonard

"Courtney!" I yelled, he turned to see who was calling his name. When he saw me, he had a big smile on his face and put his hand out to shake mine (the same way he did the first time I met him and Keith in Spokane, Washington), a very friendly person. I gushed a little bit, and it was obvious he was happy to be there. I told him I came early to make sure to get a good seat, he told me he wasn't sure where Haley was going to come from, but pointed to the stage they were going to be on so I could chose my seat.

"Here, let me take a picture" I said. He declined, he'd rather wait until he was more dressed up, which I understood and went to locate a spot to stake.

I found a spot and proceeded in looking for a menu. Having not eaten anything all day, and probably going to drink some. it was wise to get something that could absorb the alcohol. Unfortunately, the Chandelier does not serve food. Not even appetizers. It was about 40 minutes to show time, I was annoyed that I was behind schedule, but had to get something to eat. I left my spot to look around for awhile. If you know anything about casino's, the labyrinthtine floor plans...eventually I gave up. Returning, I lost my spot and had to look for another.

Settling in, I began to look around the bar, guessing that there had to be other Haliens here to see Haley. I spotted some I suspected, but wasn't sure enough to approach. Then I happened upon someone that I was pretty sure was a Halien. "Are you here to see Haley?" Tim was sitting in the the couch behind me and confirmed that yes, he traveled all the way from Nebraska. Unlike some of us, his family and daughter were also Haley fans. He was also there for the golf, but definitely there for Haley. He told me he was going to be there for all three nights.

We filled the time talking about Haley, how he converted friends by having them listen to the album, we talked about Interscope and so on. All the while, I was keeping my eyes peeled for Haley.

Eventually, Keith walked by. I introduced myself and reminded him we first met in Spokane, but I didn't want to bother him after that show as he was taking full advantage of the Pizza and soda at the KCDA radio station. He laughed and thanked me. I made him promise that he would sign an autograph for me.

I resumed talking to Tim, then something caught his eye... "There you go..." he gestured with his head. I had to put my glasses back on to confirm that yes, it was she in a black top and animal print skirt. Chiara was with her and also looked amazing. They were at the bar, and probably ordering a drink.

The next few minutes, I blanked out a bit (Haley's done this to me before ). This is when she first greeted me with my name. I don't remember much of what we discussed other than to tell her we are in full support of her and so looking forward to what the future had in store. We both skirted around verbalizing about Interscope and she repeated her mantra "I truly believe everything happens for a reason...." I introduced her to Tim and told her that Swansteel, the Stageit winner, was also coming. I then showed her the framed pic of her fam @ Carnegie. Her reaction was sweet and priceless, "For me?" she said, hand on chest, followed by a thank you hug. .Understanding that I took enough of her time, I wished her luck for the show and went back to my seat.

As I was checking my camera, I looked up and noticed Swansteel had arrived and was greeting Haley, who was, by now on the stage. I was able to capture some of it. We then introduced ourselves, but didn't really have much time to talk as the show began.

As with my other reports, I'll let the videos speak for themselves (excrutiatingly slow internet at the Luxor.... 1 1/2 to 2hours to upload a video???).

I had to move myself around alot while filming, having to use both hands to steady the camera. I used my knee, an arm rest, even leaned on the elevator behind me so I could rest my arms on my chest. Hopefully the shaking was minimal. I was worried about the bass being too loud in the video like @ Lolla, but luckily, so far the that didn't seem to be the case, I haven't looked at the all the performances yet, so fingers crossed.

One of the great things about my trips to see Haley are some of the Haliens I meet. I guess, as much as I post, I shouldn't be surprised when some of them know more about me than I would have guessed. This was the case with Greg and Mona.

While I was doing all the pre show stuff with Haley etc. I did notice some people sitting at the table next to mine. It seemed they might have been looking at me. Eventually, I looked over and saw them gesturing my way... I looked behind me, and no one was there, so I looked back and gestured "me?" They laughed and nodded. They figured who I was because @ Carnegie, they were in the balcony and saw where the Reinharts were sitting, after reading my post that I was sitting in front of the Reinharts, they recognised me by my big mass of black hair LOL

It seemed my posts had preceded me. "What's your blog name?" they asked. "Tusk", I told them....they had guessed as much. Then he pulled out this poster from a large tube and said, "Here This is for you"!!!!

Totally unexpected. It was an amazing large poster he'd created from shots he took of Haley at the Hotel Cafe. It was beautiful. I gave them a look of surprise and thanks, wondering how I deserved this work of art. Greg told me he doesn't blog or Twitter but enjoyed reading my posts... I was so humbled and thanked him. Mona laughed and said that Greg would go online to check up on his buddy "Tusk " LOL



Greg said he had also traveled to see Haley. He was at her LA album debut and Carnegie Hall too, and other shows including the Hotel Cafe. He had talked 20 of their friends into going to see her there, and was also a kindered spirit in being motivated to spreading the word about Haley. He told me how, just by seeing her, some of his more beligerent "she's just a TV show contestant" friends were turned after seeing her live.

We exchanged information, he invited me to go to his website to look at some of his other photos. Showed me some of the shots he took of Keith. (When he spoke to Keith he told him he could make a poster like the one he made of Haley for him, Keith gratefully thanked him) A very talented photographer, he and Mona were very motivated Haley fans and a pleasure talking all things Haley with. There were other friends of theirs who were Haliens there too (Kenny C. who was a heavy bidder @ Stageit), but I apologise for not remembering their names...all equally enthusiastic about Haley.

In between sets, I was able to get Haley to sign the pic from Carnegie and Greg's poster for me. I also got to talk to her about this and that, and it was a pleasure. THIS time, I told her that Miguel had reserved the name "Haley" for Haley if she ever wanted to claim it at Haleyfans.com. As I suspected, she doesn't really keep up on the fandom/twitter/blogs as much as we do...the girl is busy, and asked me to clarify what it was..."Is it something to write posts on?"
I said yes, that I had put it on my vids from Lollapalooza. Then she recognised it "Ahhh yes". I told her the offer is there if she ever wants it.

So at the conclusion of the show, I carried conversations with my new friends, and after they left, Haley came up to me and asked me if I recorded the whole thing? I told her that I did but was worried about the bass being too loud like at Lolla. She smiled and said, "Don't worry about it...you'll get another chance tomorrow " (paraphrased...I told her earlier I would be here for two nights) I don't remember much of what else we talked about (again, it happens alot that my mind blanks out when talking to her ).

It was getting late, I got another hug of thanks, I told her she did great and see her tomorrow. She, Courtney, Keith and a couple others sat on a couch to relax. I approached her one more time with Greg's poster and told her that I got Greg's info and will try and get one of these to her Parents. Again with the beautiful grateful smile "Thanks"....Chiara, sitting next to Haley exclaimed "That's beautiful"

That's where my wonderful night ends. I'll try and post what I can....so many songs, and it takes 1 1/2 + hours per video to upload on this slow internet...so it might take 'til tomorrow before the show before I get them all up

Great wonderful night with Haley and Co.