Happy New Year

Donnie hosted a "Day One" party on 1/1/11 at Ultra 88 at Mohegan Sun! No better way then to start the year off with Donnie Wahlberg! Before the party was a Meet & Greet, so he graciously took photos with everyone - both group & solo photos if you wanted.

Stacey & I were in Group B so after waiting in Group A line, we were able to relax a bit before it was time for our Group. And although the Meet & Greet went pretty quickly he was so sweet & handsome. Our quick moment together, I told him that we needed to have a date for Dot Day (they'll be in Boston the night before for their show at the Garden). He pulled back from me, holding my arms and said to me "it's a date" with only the smirk he can give. And whether or not he remembers is nothing because that moment was a date enough for me!

We took our group photo (Stacey, Donnie, Me & Melissa) and then we were all able to get our own individual pictures. The sweetest moment was when we were standing there for our group photo - he paused and asked Stacey & I why we were not on the bus with him earlier that day. (There was the opportunity to take a bus trip with him to the party). We quickly explained it wasn't an option this time but the fact that he knew we weren't there and thought enough to ask why meant the world.This man is the most gracious person - giving his time, energy & love to all of his fans! And I'm pretty sure this might be my most favorite picture of he & I...Then we went into the club to dance & hang out ... he sang a few songs and stood on the podiums to perform for us. And then special guests, Naughty by Nature performed. Overall it was a great night & a great way to kick start the year!

Blue Bloods...

Donnie Wahlberg stars in a new tv show with Tom Selleck this fall. I'm so excited to be able to watch him on tv weekly again! And he plays a cop, again! He plays cops very well.

There was an article about him & his acting that I thought was great showing how he's grown!

Donnie Wahlberg's Birthday Party

Donnie had a birthday party last night at Mohegan Sun to celebrate his 40th birthday (again - as he turned 40 last year). Of course I wasn't missing out!
We had a great location of where we stood as it was right in front of the podium Donnie was going to be on to perform/talk. So nice to be that close!He came out and thanked everyone for being there! Then he had the entire club sing happy birthday to 'us' as he wanted it to be one giant celebration for all of us. Then he came over to 'cut' the cake. The cake had these cool chocolate decorations on them which had pictures of Donnie on them from different years/shows, etc. He started handing out some to the crowd and of course girls got pushy.

At one point he started to walk towards the other side of the club and hand out a few more chocolate pieces. Then, as if by magic, he turns to his left and sees me around one of the security guys shoulder. He gave me a great big grin as if to say 'I know you're here'. He takes a chocolate piece from the tray and hands it to me! ME! Someone else tried to grab it but he took it back to make sure I got it. It was very cool. Here's my chocolate piece which is now in a plastic bag in my freezer!He performed 'Rise & Grind', "I Got It" and one of Jimmy & Roscoe's songs. At the end of the night, he sang along to 'Single'!As the night went on, I was okay that I might not get a hug from Donnie but felt lucky because I did get a chocolate picture handed to me by him! The night was winding down and I needed to go rest my feet so I went to hang with Kim & Stacy in their little nook. All of a sudden, Donnie walks toward the podium just where I'm standing! He sees me & smiles...my heart just sang. We both cocked our heads to the side and then he put his arm out for a hug. My night was complete. Then he started to be goofy before he got on the podium and was starting to groove on. I couldn't resist swaying with him and putting my head on his shoulders...did I mention pure bliss!?
I couldn't have asked for a better night - I got to celebrate Donnie's birthday, Donnie handed me chocolate (that's like mecca), I got a Donnie hug & a smile! Pure bliss!

Stacy, Stacey, Kim, Me & Kim hanging out at the end of the night! It's always great to see these girls!

Donnie's New Deal...

Donnie Wahlberg Signs Exclusive Licensing Deal With Universal Music Canada

http://getmusic.ca/detail.aspx?nid=250

‘I Got It’ at Radio and iTunes® Now

Toronto, ON. (27 October, 2009) – Universal Music Canada (UMC), the country’s leading music company, are delighted to announce that they have signed Donnie Wahlberg, star of New Kids On The Block (NKOTB) and the ‘Big Screen’ to an exclusive licensing agreement for Canada. ‘I Got It’, the debut single from Wahlberg, features Aubrey O’Day and is at radio and iTunes® now.

Wahlberg says of the partnership, “Canadian fans have championed the return of New Kids from the start... This solo song and deal are simply an extension of their loyalty and energy.”

“Donnie is an international star and we’re delighted to be furthering our successful relationship with him in Canada,” commented Jeremy Summers, Vice President, Marketing, UMC. “‘I Got It’ is already one of the biggest reaction songs of the fall.”

NKOTB returned to the top of the charts last year with the release of The Block, the band’s first album in almost fifteen years. The corresponding 140-date tour launched with a sold-out three-night stand in Canada, at Toronto’s Air Canada Centre, before going on to thrill over a million fans worldwide.

Back in the late ’80s and early ’90s, NKOTB established what the modern boy band would sound and look like, and became a phenomenon by selling more than 80 million albums worldwide -- including back-to-back international #1 albums, 1988’s Hangin’ Tough and 1990’s Step By Step -- and a series of crossover smash R&B, pop hits like “You Got It (The Right Stuff)”, “Cover Girl”, “Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time)”, “Hangin’ Tough”, “I’ll Be Loving You”, “Step By Step”, and “Tonight”. The group shattered concert box office records playing an estimated 200 concerts a year, in sold out stadiums throughout the world. They were Forbes’ highest paid entertainers of 1990, beating out Michael Jackson and Madonna. The band boasted an extensive and highly profitable merchandise line which included everything from lunch boxes and sleeping bags to comic books, marbles and dolls.

A phenomenal fan base has always been one of the cornerstones of the group’s success and NKOTB's Canadian fans will be thrilled that Donnie Wahlberg is back.

WOW...

That's all I can say.

WOW.

What a way to end my Full Service tour but with a BANG! I went to the Mohegan Sun show on Thursday, June 18th & then the hometown show in Mansfield, MA on June 19th.

Stacey & I went together and did the 5* Meet & Greet because there really is no other way to experience them then through 5*!

Between the two shows I took about 1,500 pictures! 1,500. Crazy! I'm currently in the process of cropping & uploading them now so once they're good to go, I'll definitely post them.

I plan on doing a recap of both shows including the Meet & Greet's but let's just say that I couldn't have asked for anything better! Both Meet & Greet's & concerts were phenomenal! I got some major facetime with Donnie at the Mohegan M&G that the security called it a "lovefest". I managed to get him to sign my soldier tag at Mansfield.

Joe was so sweet to me both nights and he looked hot rocking the new "rocksicle" hair do!

There were so many amazing moments that I'm going to do my best to recount them all because it would be a shame to forget one second. So before I do the actual recap, here's a quick snapshot of what's in my brain that I don't want to forget

Mohegan Moments

• Rain
• M&G with Stacey - had fun despite the disorganization, hung out with "normal" girls & our photo group was cool
• Lovefest with Donnie at Mohegan (talking about my tag, he said he loves me and that I was cute)
• Thanking Joe for selecting me for the bookdrive for Mansfield even though I couldn't participate
• Didn't get to hug Danny during M&G - he didn't get a lot of lovin' from our group
• Our seats were 2nd row center
• missed Donnie introducing Jabbas
• Jabbas throwing their hanky at me for chatting with Stacey
• The Show!

Mansfield Moments

• Rain in the AM but then the sun came out
• M&G with Stacey - a bit more organized but this one had a weird vibe. It was as if everyone wanted to come to the hometown show and everyone seemed to be a Donnie girl
• M&G photo was great - Donnie signed my tag & gave me a hug/kiss thanking me for coming back
• Talked to Joe about bookdrive, and how I brought a lot of books - he was very appreciative
• Asked Jon about my uncles and he didn't really seem to care
• Hugged Danny this time
• Went to hug Jordan but he had a spider on his shoulder so I picked it off and he called me the "spider saver" - he was in a good mood
• Seats were 3rd row center!
• Donnie & Jordan brought Elijah, Dante, Chance & Rob Jr out to introduce Jabbas
• Got lots of face time DURING the show from Donnie - so much so that I thought I was imagining it until Stacey confirmed it
• Hometown show was incredible - very emotional for me
• Cried/teared up several times (opening, IBLYF, One Song, Games, Donnie's talk, Hangin' Tough, and end) and then driving home - 20 years, same venue between shows

DDub Soldier...

Donnie has been asking his loyal fans (who he nicknamed soldiers) to show they're true soldiers when they see him. I tried to think of something clever and came up with a dog tag inspired theme but similar to a M&G laminate.

He was so touched by it at the Mohegan show that he held it and kept saying thank you. I was so excited for the lovefest that I forgot to ask him to sign it. So I knew that at the Mansfield M&G I had a very small window for operation autograph!

As soon as my group walked in, I made a beeline to him. We had a small chat, he said it was nice to see me again and I asked if he could sign my tag since I now had one for both Mohegan & Mansfield. He said sure and signed it. And just as he finished security walked over and asked what I was doing.

I played stupid and headed over to Joe...what? what autograph??

That's right - Operation Autograph Complete!

Donnie comes Home...

Article from boston.com about Donnie's weekend in Boston (referencing the Celtics game, Launch Party, and a visit to a Dorchester School):

Wahlberg on the C's bandwagon
Is Donnie Wahlberg psychic? We'll find out as the Celtics make a run for banner 18. Wahlberg's prediction: "First of all, they're gonna beat Orlando in five or six. Then we're gonna hope that K.G. comes back, and even if he does, Cleveland is gonna be really overconfident. . . . We're gonna steal one of the first two in Cleveland, then LeBron's gonna sprain his ankle and the Celtics are gonna beat them in five. . . . Then we gotta see if we can beat the Lakers. We gotta get me back in LA and have me like, uh, take Phil Jackson's hearing aid so he can't coach the Lakers properly. Then we can win the whole series. I think we can do it." So do we, Donnie, so do we. . . . Wahlberg has been pitching positivity all over town these past few days. He spent Saturday at the Garden rooting on the gang in green. Sunday, he hosted a party at the Hard Rock Cafe for local hip-hop artist Jimmy Marsh, the first artist signed to Wahlberg's Donnie D record label. Guests at the party included fellow New Kid Jordan Knight, UFC pinup Rachelle Leah, who told us she's been friends with Wahlberg since the two met in Vegas a few years ago. Wahlberg finished the good-will tour by surprising all 63 students at the Mother Caroline Academy in Dorchester with tickets to the New Kids on the Block show in June. "There was a lot of screaming. I've had a headache all day," joked Beth Griffin, the school's director of development. Wahlberg was connected to the school through hedge fund hotshot (and Celtics co-owner) Jim Pallota, an academy donor.

Donnie D Productions Launch Party...

Last night, Stacey & I went to the Launch Party for Donnie D Productions. He's producing a new artist, Jimmy Marsh for his record label. Jimmy Marsh is a member of the NorthSide Boys from back in the day so of course I had to go to support my Dorchester boys. The show was good, better than I anticipated.

Stacey & I met up for dinner at Ned Devine's around 6pm (but we're both always early) and we met in the exact same spot where we had our original private facetime moments back in September. We had dinner, hung out and joked about the weather and if it would rain or not. We decided to head over to the Hard Rock Cafe (HRC) to see if there was a line or not...

We got a tweet from Donnie that they just finished up soundcheck so we figured missed them. So we dropped stuff off at our cars and waited for what seemed like forever for the elevator - but as we'll come to find out that was important to do! Heading to the HRC, we were about to turn the corner to the front door and we hear girls clammering and I see flashes going off. My stomach flips thinking that maybe just maybe...and no sooner do I look thru the doors but Donnie comes out wearing a black shirt & his green Boston Hat. There was a small group of girls before us who he nodded and gave one of them a high five. He walked towards us and I wasn't letting him go with just a high five. I said Hi Donnie and he stopped, grabbed my hand, gave me a hug and we gave each other cheek kisses (honestly these are my FAVORITE kind from him). He stopped and gave Stacey a hug & kiss too. He was so sweet and happy. I barely had time to realize that I had my camera in the other hand but then his buddy pointed him in the direction of the hotel.

AHHHHHH - he made my 2008 and he made my 2009! At that moment, I didn't care how the party went I got my facetime moment.

Stacey & I went in the HRC to wait/hang out. There were plenty of other girls in there too doing the same thing. We sat at the bar and checked out the scene because a HRC hostess told us that we would be able to stay inside and then at 10pm just go over to be checked in. We asked if we would have to line up or go outside and she said no, so we were pretty excited.
She was wrong. At about 9pm, they told us to go outside to line up. More waiting. But at least it wasn't raining! But to be consistent - it was a Donnie Wahlberg event as opposed to a NKOTB event and there was small amounts of sprinkling vs rain. We stood outside with everyone else, including VIPs (who were told on the confirmation they would not have to be in line). Donnie & crew arrived right around 10pm, and finally at about 10:20pm they let people in and we made our way to the stage. We actually ended up getting a pretty decent position at the stage area, only 2 people in front of us most of the time. However, we did seem to have amazon women all around us who got mad at us for just standing there when they were a good foot taller than both of us! HELLO, we're not tall!

There was a dance group before Jimmy Marsh and they were pretty good, and then all of a sudden I look around to check out the crowd and Jordan walks by. I guess he had issues getting past HRC staff (oh lord). The pic I took of Jordan is great because a girl's expression is PRICELESS...look at the picture to see for yourself! There was a M&G, on the stage, for folks who bought VIP. I'm 75/25 glad I didn't do VIP because you paid more and besides a picture, didn't get a better spot at the stage, etc. But the 25% of me is mad because you got the group photo and if you brought up your own camera, Donnie took individual pics with everyone. Crowds were manageable and there was no one pushing people off. It seemed to work well and we watched all of it.

Then it was showtime - there was a great video of Donnie D Productions that I believe Stacey got...in the meantime here's a copy I found on youtube:


Donnie introduced Jimmy Marsh and came right out to the center stage, right in front of us. He even leaned in and let folks get at him. I got stepped on and smooshed by a few amazon women, but I did have my hand on his hand while he was holding the mic. I even was able to take a moment, look at my hand on his while on the mic - it was pretty damn cool.Love this grin...Donnie seemed incredibly happy all night as well he should be. He & Jimmy did some great stuff and the party went very well (except for the line part). Then for the encore, if you will, Donnie came on stage and sang the latest song they did call "I don't give a F*ck". The crowd loved it... Donnie rocked his shades for this performance and the actual song is pretty damn catchy. I just cannot listen to it at work or around my son, for obvious reasons. Overall, it was a fun night and I'm incredibly happy that I went. I'm also incredibly happy that I got more facetime! Bring on 2009!!

And here's a link to all of the pics I took last night: Donnie D Production Launch Party

Boston Film Festival...

“What Doesn’t Kill You,” a feature film written by locals-gone-Hollywood Donnie Wahlberg and Brian Goodman and shot in Boston, will be the opening-night feature at the Boston International Film Festival April 17 at the AMC Loews on Tremont Street.

Twittering...

Guess who's twittering??

My Man, Donnie! You should check him out: twitter.com/DonnieWahlberg

His tweet posts are funny/entertaining/interesting/pure enjoyment. Obviously, you have to know him to understand some of them...but it works for me!

At first folks weren't sure if he was *the* Donnie but lo & behold it is him...his list of followers has grown to almost 4,000 followers in just a week. In fact, his list of followers has almost doubled in 24 hours as he was at ~2,100 yesterday morning.

It's amazing how much influence this man has on so many - me included!

I've sent a few tweets his way and we'll see if he ever replies to me/others. I'll be waiting to see what happens next...all I know is that this is fun to have this connection with him. He's definitely gone out of his way to make himself accessible to fans and you gotta respect that!

Color Me Shocked...

I just found out that ILAA (company hosting the VIP Meet & Greets) has already uploaded the 5* pictures from last night's show in Greenville. LAST NIGHT! AMAZING!

When we went to our 5*, we had to wait almost 2 weeks in some cases. Looks like ILAA has gotten their act together...round of applause.

However, I will say that the quality still isn't the best.

Here are a couple pictures from last night's 5*...I don't know any of the girls, but I just wanted to post them because I thought Joe's outfit was cute & appropriate for St. Patrick's Day.

Plus, Donnie looks hot...no surprise there.

Because He Is...

This video makes me laugh/smile/chuckle...however in my case, I didn't forget him over the years. I don't think anyone could say I forgot him or replaced him over the years since I would celebrate his birthday every year and made sure others knew what August 17th was!

But this video is cute! She uses a dirty word, so be careful when listening!

Bunker Hill...

Donnie is in Boston the next two weeks filming the pilot for his next tv series, "Bunker Hill". It's about a cop who returns to his childhood neighborhood as the cop. Donnie does very well in cop shows/movies - just as long as he's on the good side of the law. Whenever he's on the bad side, he gets shot in the head! We can't have that, now can we!

Monday he was filming at the Union Oyster House down in Fanueil Hall. It's times like this I wish I still lived in Boston &/or Southie so I could pop down.

And to show that I can be objective ... I'm not digging the hair 'do' they got going on on him.

Article in the Boston Herald & the Boston Globe

Boston Music Awards...

This year, the 21st Boston Music Awards (BMAs) were held on Sunday, December 7th. They did it a bit differently this year where it was invite/industry only with a few VIP tickets available for purchase.

New Kids On The Block were up for National Act of The Year. I have gone to the award show several times back in the 90s but stopped going when I didn't necessarily have a vested interest. While I do enjoy the thought of supporting local music, there just happened to be nothing that interested me personally.

I did not attend this year as I am being responsible and not spending money on another "show". Not because I'm a 'grown - up', but because I'm saving up for shows next year!


Anyway, I digress...

I'm happy to report that New Kids won their award! How exciting - I'm quite proud of what they achieved when so many said this was a cheesy marketing ploy - "to all you non-believers I say 'peace', you suckers"... (sorry I felt a specific song lyric was appropriate)

Some articles about the show:
Boston Herald & Boston Globe

Recap: Mohegan Sun/CT Show 11/8/08...

I'm sad. My Fall 2008 NKOTB mini-tour is over. I went to 5 shows for 5 guys from the Beantown land... But what a way to go out...5* at Mohegan!

M&G was cool, a different vibe from the first 5* Mohegan, more amped up I think. It was in a different location than before - this time the ballroom as opposed to the Cabaret Theatre. The line was crazy long but it was fun to watch people look for their different groups and then say "oh you look nothing like your picture". It seemed to take a long time to check people in than it has in other M&Gs. The nice woman from ILAA was getting really annoyed with people coming up saying we have 7 in our group/8 in our group because we were making the process longer for her. She even made a comment to us so we promised to make it very easy and not argue with her as some girls in front of us were. We got in (I was with my sister, Stacey & Kelley) and we met 2 girls from NY. (Who later got caught taking video of the show)

We were group J (For Joe/Jon/Jordan). Once in the ballroom they had curtains set up in the back to partion off a secluded section for the group photos which helped make it more private. Good thing was that it was better for your specific group shot to keep it personal but you don't get to catch glimpses of them throughout the time there. We sat at the table and waited for our turn. Robo came in, gave the speech about sitting, cameras, phones etc. People were still using phones but cameras remainded hidden. Then the screaming began as the guys came into the room and poked their heads thru the curtains. Donnie came in, stood on a chair and 'asked' for the screams. He said a few things in the bullhorn but couldn't really hear him. Then they did the photos.

When it was our turn, we got in line and got ready. And for some reason I had huge butterflies in my stomach. I was wearing a "Dot Rat" shirt in the hopes to have a good Donnie conversation. And afterall, I am a true, original Dot Rat. I walked in the curtain and was first in my group. Danny yelled out "DOT RAT" and he held his arms out for a hug. So I hugged him, then hugged Jordan as I wanted to get to Donnie who was next. I went over to Donnie and he gave me a huge hug. He asked how I was doing and said good I see. He winked at me and said that he appreciated the shirt. I told him that back at the Boston CD Signing I told him that from one Dot Rat to another I was proud of him and he said I know (which got me confused) and then he said, because of you I got my own Dot Rat shirt, did you see? I said yes which is why I have mine. He kept saying I got it because of you and that you told me that. I wore it to the show, did you see? At this point I was so confused because I couldn't really believe that he got & wore the shirt because I told him that a fellow Dot Rat was proud. So I hugged him again and he grabbed my hand so hard and tried to put me next to him but I was twarted by another girl! DAMMIT!

SO I went to hug Joe & Jon and then I heard Robo say picture time. I, again, was not standing next to a guy. I panicked. I went to look for Joe because I saw Donnie had two girl clinging on to either side. Then I saw Stacey standing next to Jon who had no one else with him, so I jumped at the end next to Jon. Who by the way smells very clean and his sweater was very cozy to hug.

The picture was over and I saw Stacey telling Jon about the twix gift she left for them and he said "oh thank you so much". Then Joe goofily collapsed on the floor. I asked Jon if he was going to make it to the show and he said "yeah, he's just being a goof". Then you heard Jordan on the bullhorn "And ladies if you look to your left you will see Joe McIntyre passed out on the floor". So I went over to Joe to help him up. I gave him my hand and said I'd help him up, but he pulled me down on the floor next to him. WELL HELL YEAH! I wasn't going to pass this up. I laid down next to him and put my head on his shoulder a bit and said 'well this is comfy'. And he said "I never laid down with a Dot Rat before". And then the ILAA photographer came over and took our picture from up above. It was quite fun & cute!

Then all the groups when through and Joe & Donnie poked through the curtain and thanked everyone. They used the bullhorn and thanked us as they know a lot of us have come to multiple shows/M&Gs and that they appreciate it. Then Joe said it was time for them to 'blow our asses up'.

And that was it- no mingling, individual pics, etc. They were running really late so we figured that there wouldn't be any of that. And that was the M&G...fun, entertaining, confusing, quick

The show was of course fantastic...We had 7th row and despite being behind a jerk-off and a hoochie-mama it was so much fun! However, the security in the arena really is pretty bad. They gave me a hard time for having the bottow piece of my ticket missing that says 'no cameras' and almost wouldn't let me to my seat but then they'll let EVERYONE and their Mother's down to front row and just stand in the aisles and try to get in your seat.

I've decided that I've already recapped the show and know just how great it is that I'm not going to recap to discuss the annoyances of the night. No need to ruin such a perfectly good memory/evening with them! Plus, I got to hang out with friends during the night and also meet up with new friends, Megan & Mel! You can't beat a night out with friends who all enjoy the men from The Block just as much as you do... It was a great night!

I took a lot of pics so I'll post those when I get them up. Summer '09 can't come fast enough...

Dot Rat...

It's official...I have my outfit for Saturday all set!

Does it look at all familiar to you???

I ordered my very own Dot Rat shirt and now have the perfect, and new conversation piece with Donnie!

My Mom picked it up for me today so I didn't have to worry about shipping. She's good like that!

I'm so FREAKIN' excited!

Face Time...

What a very lucky group of ladies to be able to hang out with Donnie himself in a Waffle House at 3am...I'm jealous (in a good way)

Courtesy of NKTV...

Drop 'em...

Courtesty of NKluvr4eva via nkotbfans.com

Just Because...

(Photo by Scott Gries/Getty Images North America)

Face Time...

After years of obsession, love, & pure adoration, I got my quality facetime with Donnie Wahlberg. He even signed my DOT sticker!

Details in the Mohegan Sun Meet & Greet.