Happy New Year Everyone! Celebrate With Our Wonderful Cast In My Fanvid of the Week!

As we welcome in 2014, I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who made my 2013 better than I thought it could be.

Actually, it was a fangirl kind of year!

I got to go to Vegascon. I had lunch with the wonderful Rick Worthy in Santa Monica. I went to the All Hell Breaks Loose convention in Sydney and Misha and Seb randomly came to my work! I met Lauren Tom at Supernova. I started the way-too-much-fun-to-be-legal Women of Letters Podcast with the fabulous Jules from Superwiki. I went to Dallascon and had a Texan adventure with my sister from another mister, Hazel (which included grabbing John Barrowman's ass). I went to Armageddon in Melbourne and got to hangout with Kim Rhodes, Ty and Rick as well as the awesome Shelley, Kim, Jules and Karen. I did two meet and greets with Jensen, one with Jared and one with Richard. I met loads of fans and made lots of new friends and got to hang out with all my convention buddies from all over the world and fangirl in convention heaven!

It was a hell of a year and I want to thank you all for being a part of it, for all your warm wishes, your friendship, your support and for always having my back.

And I want to thank the Supernatural cast and crew for being the awesome bunch of people that they are. Because without them, none of the above would have happened.

So let's celebrate them all with my Fanvid of the week!

Here's to an spectaculacular 2014 and here's to the beautiful cast of the best show ever.

They really do make my heart beat faster...

Cheers and Happy New Year, everyone! May 2014 be as awesome as the show we love!
xxx

-sweetondean

Retro Report - Jensen and Jason's Jam Session - LACon 2011

Photo credit - sweetondean: Jensen Ackles Vegascon 2013

In 2011 I did my first Creation convention. It was the first time I met Jensen and Jared and somehow, it changed everything.

I can't even express how excited I was about meeting the Js, especially Jensen. Man, I was excited about meeting Jensen. I had decided I wanted to do his meet and greet so I bid - and lost... by $1. My heart broke into a thousand pieces. 

But luck and the convention Gods were on my side, when a special event was announced... Jensen was going to do a jam session with his friend Jason Manns. He'd never done anything like this before. It was going to be him and Jason and just 40 fans. It was going to be a 45 minute informal jam. 

I had to go. 

If I'd won the meet and greet, I could never have bid on the jam session, so it was kismet in someway that I missed out on Jensen's meet and greet, because on Sunday February 13 at 5.00pm, I found myself sitting in a small room awaiting Jensen and Jason and their guitars.

A few days after the event, I managed to put my feelings, my overwhelming feelings in to words. I was still on holidays, I was at San Diego Zoo, it started to rain, so I went to the coffee shop with a hastily bought giraffe shaped notebook and wrote.

This is my report. I know many have read it already, but many haven't. It's a report that I've read back over and over, because I am still blown away by the fact that I got to experience this. I still remember it so clearly, the feeling in the room, my feelings, the rush of emotion, Jensen's awkward nervousness, the laughter and the tears. It was something I will never, ever forget. It was probably the best thing I've ever done. 

Be warned, my report is a bit on the gushy side! Remember, this was only a few days later, after my first convention, after my first meeting with Jensen, where he exceeded any and all of my fangirl expectations with his grace and sweet nature.

So here it is - a look back...nearly 3 years now (and 6 Creation cons later), to the day my world somehow changed and to Jensen and Jason's Jam Session.

~~~

First things first, this may get quite personal also, I don’t think I’ll be able to capture the raw emotion that I felt throughout this jam session with Jensen and Jason Manns, no way and I can’t give a blow by blow account with song lists and what-not, the only thing I can do is try to explain just how wonderful this experience was, I’ll try…..here goes.

So after a FANTASTIC day snuggling and cuddling Jensen and Jared I just had the jam session left. I felt so lucky. I was one of the 30 people who won a ticket in the auction. Creation sold another 10 tickets at the convention, less than I was expecting, so the audience was only going to be 40 people. 40 people, Jensen and Jason.

I was also lucky that Hazel, who I had shared a couple of fun photo ops with, had a ticket to the jam session too. It was due to kick off at 5, so we went back to our rooms to get rid of our bags, cameras and phones as requested and then came back downstairs about 4.30 to wait. There were already a few people queued up so we fell in line out in the hall and wondered how the seats would be allocated. A couple of Creation representatives turned up and explained that the seats would be allocated via a lucky dip draw because we’d all paid the same amount and this seemed like the fairest way. On one hand Hazel and I agreed that this was a great way to do it but on the other hand we were kind of bummed out because we really wanted to sit together.

So I went up and pulled my seat number and it was 22, not bad I thought, then Hazel pulled her seat number and she pulled 21! We couldn’t believe it! It just seemed to be the perfect way to round off a perfect day. It was kismet.

We were ushered into this TINY room with 4 rows of chairs, which were quickly squished into 3 rows by Gary from Creation. Hazel and I were in the 2nd row pretty close to the centre. Now, for some people the way the setup laid out was not satisfactory. There was a little bit of bitching and griping about the fact that the guys were just going to sit on seats in front of us, not on a raised stage, people were complaining they wouldn’t be able to see them even before they sat down, they were saying for the money we paid blah blah blah….whatever people, seriously I couldn’t understand it! We were less than 2 metres from where they would be sitting, this was a jam session, a jam session not a concert and the first time Jensen had ever done anything like this, is that not special enough for ya? I was baffled. I felt so blessed, so blessed to be there, to be one of 40 people to experience this special moment, no-one’s moaning was going to spoil my glow that’s for sure.

Jensen and Jason came into the room all smiles and carrying their guitars. Jensen had changed out of his much fondled dark shirt into a pale blue one, he was also sporting a grey beanie and big glass of whiskey, both of which he joked were his attempt to look like a musician!

He was very nervous, very. He couldn’t believe the level of interest in hearing him sing. He was equal parts touched and surprised. He rang Jason in a panic when he saw how high the bidding was going. They both decided they better get together and practice a bit, work out a set but then they realised what they promised was a jam session, not a concert, it was supposed to be casual and impromptu, it was supposed to be two mates singing together like they do when they’re just hanging out so that’s what we got and by God it was wonderful.

I’m never going to be able to express to anyone who wasn’t there what the emotion in that room was like.

Jensen started with one of his favourites songs. Now we all know he can sing right? Wrong…the man can SING. His voice is just amazing! He has a seriously, seriously lovely voice. When he started singing that first song I found that I was gripping onto Hazel’s leg for dear life and she was holding onto me! We basically hung on to each other throughout the whole thing. Jensen had shifted his chair and we were right in his line of sight, we were literally looking right at him. As he looked skyward, closed his eyes and let it rip the emotion of the day and what I was now experiencing threatened to overwhelm me. A lump formed in my throat, my eyes filled and my breathing got pretty damn shaky and that is how I stayed throughout the whole thing, right on the verge, it was just that wonderful. Every so often an errant single tear would drip down my cheek and I’d quickly try to whisk it away without him seeing, just what he needs right? I’m pretty sure he caught me a couple of times, but I just felt so lucky, so very lucky to be sharing this with him and Jason.

There were lots of flubs, from both of them. Jensen blushed a couple of times, big red blushes bless him but we encouraged him on. Every time he made a mistake he gave himself away with laughter or a funny face, he’s so adorable. Many verses were mixed up, words inexplicably forgotten, parts of songs sung over again until the words came to him. Even Jason got struck with a case of the wobbles; Jensen said it was because the anxiety was coming off him in waves.

Jensen told stories about the music he loves, about how he first learnt to play on his dad’s guitar, which he now owns, about how he first met Jason and about how sometimes when he’s listening to music he gets very lonely, up there in Vancouver all by himself in his trailer. He spoke about how the other men on the crew often talk about their wives and girlfriends but Jensen says, “None are as fine as mine.”

Jensen and Jason shared a lot of the singing, but Jason tended to sit back and let Jensen take centre stage most of the time, much to Jason’s amusement and Jensen’s embarrassment. When they sung Hallelujah Jensen took a verse as Jason very quietly strummed. It was breathtaking, in fact the room was so still and silent I wondered if any us were actually breathing at all, all I could hear was the occasional sniffle and not just from me. It was so magical I got goosebumps all over and those errant single tears got a bit more flowy.

As his nerves started to settle Jensen’s voice got stronger and stronger, I kid you not, his voice is stunning.

Ok, I’m not capturing this.

This jam session felt like a very personal experience. It was so intimate, the stories, the blushing, the joking and the laughs. The songs he chose to sing, the way he sung them and what they meant to him. I got to experience something that will never happen again, because this was a first and even if Jensen and Jason decide to do a gig together at a future con it will never be the same, because it will never be like this. I doubt it would ever be so small, so unrehearsed, so raw or so beautiful.

My heart broke a thousand times over as I watched Jensen sing. The energy he gives out, his obvious beautiful spirit and gracious nature, the kindness and gentleness, all the things I'd experienced during the day seemed to pour out of him and fill the room and fill our hearts over and over. My happiness in this single moment was so acute I could barely speak! As Hazel and I clung to each other we both fought back tears and I just kept whispering “oh God” because the whole thing was so special. It felt so special to be there. It was a truly sublime moment.

At some point Jensen asked how long they had to go but they had already gone longer than promised. Our 45 minute jam session came in around 1 hr 15. I could have watched him and listened to him for hours, to both of them, because Jensen and Jason sound incredible together!

When Clif and Adam from Creation finally pulled the plug, Jensen tried to explain to us what we all mean to him, both individually and collectively. With his hand on his heart he thanked us for all the support we give him, thanked us for being a part of this and for allowing him to be a part of us. It was genuine and heartfelt and he looked like he was struggling to get it out without choking up.

That right there was the end of me. After they had left, Hazel, myself and another friend Terri all huddled in the vendor’s room and hugged each other sobbing. We weren’t the only ones though, there were plenty of teary moments and everyone who attended was totally blown away.

I know you may all think I sound crazytown but this is how raw and perfect the experience was for me. Sure, I’m a fangirl but I appreciate talent, I appreciate good people, people who are raised well, who are polite and generous natured. These things are rare. To say that the jam session topped off a day filled with perfection is an understatement!

I’m so lucky, this man who, let’s just say I respect so much, lived up to and exceeded every expectation I had of him. I totally get it, I totally get why all his cast mates past and present adore him, I totally get why everyone who works with him have only nice things to say, that his friends sing his praises, I totally get it, because in meeting him and in being lucky enough to experience him so unguarded as he told us stories and sang, I was offered a tiny glimpse of his spirit and it was so very beautiful.

I’m so lucky. I will cherish this day for the rest of my life.

Well that’s it…that’s the best I can do. I hope it gives you just the tiniest insight into this very special event. 

As always, thanks for reading.

Postscript: I sent a message to Jason to thank him and I got a lovely message back.

~~~

Of course, Jensen did do one more jam, this time with Steve Carlson, but this, this was his first and I was there. 

When I read this report it brings the memories flooding back of how moved I was by the whole weekend and by my first convention with Jensen and Jared. And as I start preparing for Vegascon 2014, which will be my 7th Creation convention, I realise nothing has changed. I still get this excited, I still get totally overwhelmed, I still get nervous and gushy and weird and I still want to jump up and down and clap my hands! The only difference now is, that these days I know so many people at the conventions that I'm not doing any of it alone!

At Dallascon this year, I ran into one of the fans who was also at the jam session.  Jessica. We went, "oh hi!" when we saw each other and then straight away started talking about this jam, this day and how we still relive this moment over and over.

Jensen and Jason's Jam Session will always be one of my most cherished memories and believe me, I know how lucky I am to have experienced it.

In case anyone is wondering, this was the song list - in order - that Jensen and Jason did for us, on that pre-Valentines day Valentine in February 2011...

Thanks for reading and indulging my reminiscing!

-sweetondean

Rock n Roll Radio - Ray LaMontagne.

Crazy Love - Jason Manns/Jensen Ackles

The Weight - Jason Manns/Jensen Ackles at Jus in Bello 2010 (also The Band)

If I Had a Million - Pat Green

She Talks to Angels - The Black Crows

Hallelujah - Jason Manns

Sweet Home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynyrd (special request from Clif!)

Your Song - Jason Manns

God Willin’ and the Creek Don’t Rise - Ray LaMontagne.

Free Fallin’ - Tom Petty (also John Mayer)

Walk Away - Ben Harper

Supernatural Season 9 So Far - A Recap of My Favourite Moments...In Pictures!

It's no secret I'm digging Season 9! There's not been an episode that has even left me, meh. Which I can't say about the last few seasons, where there was at least one episode in the first half of each season that was a teeny bit lack luster (though enjoyable...always enjoyable!) But not 9, at least not for me!

Now like every Supernatural season, 9 has been chocked full of angst. The mid-season finally was devastating, leaving us all in buckets of tears and breathlessly terrified about what's to come. But there were lots of moments in season 9 that didn't rip our hearts out, or at least, if they did, they were awesome as they did it. So here is a look at a few of my favourite moments from season 9...through pictures! And I'll admit right here, some of the pictures are purely for the pretty...because those Winchesters, well damn if they don't keep getting prettier!

9.01 I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here

Dean. Just Dean in this whole episode. So desperate and so scared and making a decision that he knew was wrong because he couldn't see any other way and he can't see a life without Sam in it. It was heartbreaking to watch him struggle.

Bobby! It was so great to see Bobby. Of course, we knew he was coming back, but this was in a such great way. I loved that for Sam, Bobby was the voice in Sam's head that said Sam had done enough and it was okay to let go (just like I loved that the part of Sam that wanted to fight was represented by Dean.) 

Bobby. ♥

Smarty pants Dean! I love it when the guys show their great big brains and I especially love it when Dean shows his...because it demonstrates how he's not just a grunt, but as smart as a whip. I love that he can draw all the anti-angel sigils from memory!

And this was an awesome smart move.

Sam and Death. This was a wonderful moment when Death said to Sam "Well played, my boy" and whether you believe it was actually Death or a creation of Death in Sam's mind, to have those words said to Sam and to have the possibility of Sam actually believing those words felt very good and very right.

"There ain't no me if there ain't no you"

Definition of how Dean feels about Sam and him....

Castiel's laundromat striptease and his pretty white boxers! I have nothing else to say here!

There should be a law against anyone looking this beautiful with this much blood on their face. But I'm so glad there's not.

Oh Dean, he didn't want to lie... Ack.

9.02 Devil May Care

Oh my gosh I loved this episode!

And this shot!

The resurrection of Abaddon was brilliant.

This demon nanna was awesome. Stupid. But awesome.

Kevin Freakin' Solo!

For freckles reasons.

It shouldn't have been as hot as it was, I'm sure. And part of me felt dirty afterwards.... but my oh my, Dean and Abaddon's face off was smokin'! Also, thanks for the flash of Dean's tatt!

I gasped. Literally. It was one of the most breathtaking images the show has given us. The angel within Sam firing up with the tattered and broken wings of the fallen. It was spectacular and hot and somehow, really suited Sam.

This face. Just for face reasons.

9.03 I'm No Angel

Cass' toothpaste fail was kind of adorable.

I for one, am glad Cass had a nice moment - even if it ended up being not so nice. (Hey, one night stands, Cass!) But in that moment, he didn't know and he had fun and felt good and that doesn't happen much for Cass. Plus he has a tatt and that's really rather awesome.

The moment when Cass blurted out that he'd had the sex with the reaper and the brother's faces. Gold. Bless. 

9.04 Slumber Party

Dean picking up a copy of Game of Thrones so that he and Sam can kick back and watch some TV together! 

Honestly, I could have a whole episode of them pottering around the bunker, cooking, watching TV, doing laundry, slothing around, lying on the couch...maybe in trackpants... Sorry. Distracted myself! (*swoon*)

Squee! Look at them hanging out in Sam's room. Also, Sam's room!

(also this tumblr version)

I loved the imagery of Oz created by the talented VFX team.

 And that Charlie got to go on her very own adventure.

And this shot... I love this shot. Look at them.

9.05 Dog Dean Afternoon

Squeeeeee! This episode!

I loved this moment between Sam and Dean.

And how wonderfully familiar this felt...

Then. THIS. Oh my gosh... this. I needed video for this. 

Then this...

And this...

And this!

Sam and the Yorkie!

And though this was not a happy moment, the way Jared was snapping between Ezekiel/Gadreel was amazing. It gave me whiplash. He did such a great job.

9.06 Heaven Can Wait

Every single moment between Sam and Crowley

This face, for face reasons.

 Cass and his baby date and singing the theme for Greatest American Hero. Awwww. 

Sam busting Crowley shooting up the blood - because, what does it mean?

9.07 Bad Boys

Another one I completely loved!

I loved Sam discovering things about Dean as we did. It made it all the more special to take that journey through an unknown part of Dean's history, with Sam,

Dean with kids. I love seeing Dean with kids. He's just great with them.

One of the best and most gruesome deaths for ages! The horror!

And I literally had to look away for this scene. I had my hands over my eyes! Lawnmowers. Eesh!

This moment... This moment. When young Dean looked out the window and saw his little brother outside in the Impala and a smile just spread across his face. In that moment, Dean knew the only place he wanted to be was by Sam's side. I loved this moment. I burst into tears.

Then we had the grown up version...

SAM: Dean ... Thank you.

DEAN: For what?

SAM: For always being there, for – having my back. Look, I know it always hasn't been easy …

DEAN: I don't know what the hell you're talking about.

♥

These brothers...

9.08 Rock and a Hard Place

Well...what do you think was a highlight of this episode for me? Huh?

But before I get to that... Jody Mills! I love Sheriff Mills. May she do many more episodes. She's plain awesome. Awesome.

Sam and Dean's faces when they realised they were about to enter the brave new world of rehymenation!

Then of course... there was this. Oh, yes. This. Once again...video is required!

Let's just look at Dean's speech, um, climax face one more time.

And Sam's...oh Dean face.

I love Sam and Jody. I love the relationship that has developed between them. There's a nice respect. There's a nice protective mum vibe from Jody. I like them together so much. I love that Sam has this friendship with Jody. I want more Sam and Jody moments.

Personally, I liked the moment when Dean told Suzie that she was the good dreams.

And personally I think Dean Winchester is the good dreams...

Once again, we finished on a terrifying moment with Ezekiel/Gadreel blocking Dean telling Sam the truth and the new knowledge that it looks like Sam's not being healed at all. And once again, Jared snapped in and out of the angel with amazing ease. I love this cap, because it captures a mixture of both the angel and Sam.

And Dean's face spoke for all of us...

9.09 Holy Terror

An episode that truly lived up to its title.

I adored the blood splattered church glee club. What a fantastic visual.

And another amazing set build by Jerry Wanek and his team.

I loved Cass trying to fit in with the guys. He's even more awkward as a human than he is as an angel hanging out with humans!

There was this moment where Sam was researching and Dean scooched his chair around to sit by Sam. I love little moments like that. They are small and sometimes go unnoticed, but I always think they mean a lot and say a lot about the bros.

Honestly, one of my favourite screencaps ever. Jared looks like a giant!

For face and hair reasons.

There's part of me that's disappointed we didn't get to see more of Castiel in his human form and part of me that's happy he's angeled back up. I'm not sure where human Cass could have gone. Of course, angel Cass will be off doing his own thing, because we know he can't be hanging out with the Winchesters solving all their problems. I liked Cass diving in and pinching someone's Grace. Last resort. Time of war. Go Castiel!

The moment when Dean discovered he had no clue who the angel was that he let inside his brother was both heartbreaking and breathtakingly beautiful.

I'm interested to see what the deal is with this Gadreel cat, because there was definitely a degree of conflict on his face over pretty much everything that Metatron threw at him.

I really wished this had happened and it hadn't been Gadreel faking being Sam. For a multitude of reasons. It was such a wonderful scene. Dean was torn apart as he told his "brother" the truth and Gadreel was horrifically perfect as Sam. It's scenes like these that reinforce how damn lucky we are to have a couple of actors the calibre of Jensen and Jared and who have the easy relationship that they have, delivering scenes like this. Powerful stuff. These guys rock.

Speaking of powerful stuff. The end of Holy Terror showcased Jensen's remarkable talents at showing raw emotion. The devastation on Dean's face in those final moments. He was broken. I was broken. We were all broken. Where we go next, can only hurt like hell. 

So there are just a few (yes this constitutes a few) of some of my favourite pictorial moments of season 9 so far.

What have been some of yours? Let me know in the comments.

Thanks so much for reading, looking, watching!

-sweetondean