May 6, 2017- The Mets and McCartney

It was raining so much yesterday that it didn’t seem as if there would even be a Mets game but luckily it stopped by around 4:15. There was only a spot of drizzle during it later on. They beat the Marlins 8-7. It hadn’t seemed like they were even going to win.

   I wish that I could be more descriptive about this but my mind is all jumbled. I mainly recall the rude people, particularly one guy, in front of us who often blocked our view. And the fact that neither my brother nor I were smart enough to realize that we could have moved over to avoid this until like the bottom of the 7^th inning.

   Mike was the one who said that we should do so. There wasn’t anyone else in our row so we went over to the end of it. I wish that we had done this much sooner.

    Syndergaard was supposed to be the pitcher but he is injured. This was disappointing. The free Thor t-shirt is kind of cheesy but I am glad that we got it.

   Don Mattingly, my 1980s crush, is the Marlins’ manager. It’s been nearly 30 years since I last saw him in person. I have been to more Mets games over the past 3 years than I was to Yankees games in the 1980s; 6- 2.

   Mike ate a chicken sandwich and fries from Blue Smoke. It was another chilly night, not as bad as the last time though. I was dressed warmer so this helped.

   The subway was extremely packed this time. I felt so anxious. Some music was playing in my head then, 2 songs apiece by McCartney and Spandau Ballet. This helped to calm me a bit as did some by Depeche Mode during the game.

   He wants to go to another game in 6 or 7 weeks. I sort of want to but mostly I am just feeling like this will be too tiring in every way as it has been these past 2 times.

   I ordered Paul McCartney tickets for Mike and me yesterday morning. Our seats could have been closer and also together if I had done the preorder on Thursday. The Prudential Center had sent me a code only part of me wasn’t so sure that I should make this purchase.

   It isn’t as if I am into his music that much anymore as I was in the late 80s and early 90s. At first, that internal voice won over the one that said that I shouldn’t pass up on this opportunity. I am just glad that I was able to reverse this in time to get these tickets. I probably will always be a bit mad at myself for not doing the presale.

   I was surprised that my brother actually wanted to go with me. He is always saying how over-rated that the Beatles (and each member) are. Yet he has their greatest hits. It is disappointing that we couldn’t get seats together but at least we will be in the same section (far from the stage), just 3 rows and one seat apart.

   That isn’t until September. We have the Lionel Richie concert before that in August. Both are at the same venue. Mike will be seeing Janet Jackson there in November; she finally rescheduled her tour dates. His Roger Waters show is also in September.

   He still is hoping that Bon Jovi will be at Met Life stadium this summer. I guess that I will go too. He had about 7 of their videos on yesterday before we left for the game. I am the one that got him into this group in the first place. He likes them more than I do now. I only listen to them when he does.

 

Later-

I read an article and watched some highlight clips of yesterday’s game. I did remember some of this, like how Granderson got a 2 run homerun, that Montero was the pitcher, and that they had 6 relievers. TJ Rivera did well but I only remember the homerun part of this. Their winning run was from a walk in the 8^th.

    There were a bunch of runs for each team in an inning- 6 for the Marlins in the 4th and 4 for the Mets in the 7^th. I think that this is right. Even after writing down these details, I am still doubting my memory. We were happy that Flores was in the line-up.

August 24, 2015

I watched Rob Thomas on the “Today Show” this morning. I was wishing that I had gone to the Plaza to see him. I doubt that I would have won the fan pass for this. I just remembered that I had tried to do so for Luke Bryan 2 years ago but wasn’t lucky then.

   I could have seen Wrangler too; they had him outside. I am pretty sure that Rob and his wife are into helping abused and neglected animals. And pet adoptions organizations also. I am doubting my memory again.

   I shouldn’t have gotten excited about seeing Rob because my brother started telling me to calm down and did some other teasing about him too. I had watched part of the show upstairs and the 9:00 hour downstairs.

   I am glad that I went to that Matchbox Twenty concert a couple of years ago. I would love to see just Rob in concert too but that just isn’t in my budget. I was a bad girl and dipped into my auto repair fund for that DD private concert. I will have to do this for the MSG one also.

   Sharon said that I wasn’t crazy for wanting to skip a day at the Open if I have to for the ordering of a good ticket to that concert. I sure hope that I won’t have to though. She told me that I could always tell Mike that I have woman’s problems. I was thinking of that too.

   I should have written about my dream first thing this morning. It was entirely gone by 8:30 a.m. I just have the memory that it was a good one. Some people might say that it is weird that I even want to write about my dreams. What is so wrong about enjoying doing so; it is like a form of entertainment to me.

   I saved the pictures of the DD show that Jenny posted on Facebook. She is in one of them near the advertisement for this event. I had thought about taking a picture of that but didn’t.

    It was a blue and white Planet Earth shirt that Jenny was wearing, not a gold and black one. The girl at the August 1^st show had that color combo in a different style. I think that she said that this was part of her fan club membership, so she obviously is in the gold level.

   I looked up the membership info; you are able to get VIP tickets in the regular level. I wasn’t too sure about that. Should I even try doing so for the MSG show? How does that even work? At the 2011 MSG show, I think that the members were in a standing section near the stage, or were there folding chairs there?

   I am so embarrassed to admit that I would want to be on a certain side of the stage again, or even center would be good if I had to be. I should not be thinking so much about this. It wasn’t as much on my mind earlier in the day but now it is. Maybe that is because I listened to a John Taylor interview on the fan site.

   I did cringe a bit when he mentioned the 2 upcoming Port Chester shows. This was from the middle of July. I was trying to tell myself that cute guy and even some others- but probably not many- also are sharing in my disappointment about the missed encore. That does help a bit.

   I saw on either Facebook or Tumblr that John is on the cover of Bass Player magazine; is that an October issue? I was a little ashamed that I was thinking that he has such a nice smile in that photo. Someone else made such a comment and I was laughing a little on the inside.

    I hate that a part of me wants to buy this. I didn’t get it the last time that he was cover boy (or was this the British version of it?)  I did the time before that though.  It is kind of twisted that I was willing to get over my driving anxiety to look for this at B&N but didn’t do so for Billboard mag when DD was on the cover recently.

   I just saved some more photos of DD two days ago. You would think that I’d be sick of seeing them by now but part of me isn’t. I feel ashamed to admit that looking at and saving photos of them makes me happy. Even after being a bit mad at them for that encore incident.

   Maybe they were having technical problems that night and this is why they didn’t come back onto the stage until much later. I really need to stop thinking about this. I have analyzed it to death. I do feel really embarrassed that I got so emotional about it.

  I mentioned the shame topic in regards to DD a lot in this entry. I guess that I am not entirely over that issue. I am much better than I used to be though.

   As I was watching “American Pickers” yesterday, I was thinking that although it is nice that Mike and Frank have such an enthusiasm for what they are doing, I couldn’t help feeling jealous of them. I don’t seem to have such a passion for anything anymore. I’m wondering if I ever really did anyhow- it seems as if that love of reading was that of another girl and not me.

    I also had the thought that those 2 guys really know their stuff- bicycles, motorcycles, signs and more- which makes me feel like such an idiot. I don’t even have much or any knowledge about my interests because my brain isn’t capable of retaining it.  I know a little about things like dog breeds but not enough to talk even semi-expertly about them.

   I should really try focusing on the Mets game now. deGrom is pitching. I was watching the tennis a lot last week so I didn’t really get to see them much then. I am already thinking about what outfits that I want to wear at the Open next week; I always pre-plan this. I might even wear my Planet Earth one. Mike will probably get annoyed that I have 3 DD shirts but I don’t care.

Matchbox Twenty

Jacob deGrom

 

Note-both photos are from the internet

 

June 27, 2015- Duran Duran Tickets

I had to drive my brother to the train station because of the rain. This and lots of traffic made the ride very scary. He is seeing Rush at the Prudential Center tonight. I wish that my Chris Young concert was next week and not in 19 days. That seems so far away even though it isn’t really.

   Well, I successfully ordered a ticket to the Duran Duran show in Bethlehem, PA. There was only a presale for the ArtsQuest members and the staff of the venue. I was having trouble getting through because the site was busy. When I finally did, I just grabbed the first seat that I could. I was afraid that if I went back to look for a better one, it would take too long to return to the sales page.

   Unfortunately, the whole first section was all sold out. I got a seat in row I of the center second level. I guess that seems okay. It said that the tickets didn’t go on sale to the general public until 10 a.m. but I got through by 9:55. I was worrying that I got the time wrong and it was really 9:00. I hope not; I will be very mad if I did and could have gotten a closer seat.

    I have maps of the SteelStacks area where there are also other music venues. This concert is part of the Musikfest that is taking place there. It’s an outdoor venue so I have to pray that there won’t be any rain that day.

    I also have the Trans-bridge bus schedule. I sent an email to the company asking if I can purchase the ticket in advance and a couple of other questions. They sent me a very informative reply. I probably will just get the ticket on the day of the event.

   I don’t want to get too hopeful about this concert because it’s best not to just in case something goes wrong and I won’t get to go or it will be cancelled. The only time that I was really hopeful and excited about a show was DD’s Atlantic City one in 2012 which wound up being cancelled due to Nick’s illness. Thank God I had gone to their Foxwoods show the night before that.

   There is one other concert that I have to go to before this one. I am not even telling Mom and Mike about it. Mike would just say that I am obsessed. I am not even sure that I want to mention it to Amy. I did tell Sharon that I am going to see Duran Duran in Port Chester, NY on Saturday, August 1, which is 5 days before the one in PA.

   This show is in the Capitol Theatre. I was able to do presale through the fan site for this one. I almost didn’t do so because I read things wrong and thought that only the $150.00 tickets went on sale that day. I didn’t realize that the general admission tickets were the $89.50 ones, not these.

   Luckily, I was on Tumblr and a DD fan that I follow did a post about this show that clarified the presale thing for me. I ordered my ticket shortly afterwards. It is a pick up at the will call desk only deal. I am not really fond of this; I would prefer having a ticket in my pocketbook before arriving at a venue.

   The box office will call window opens only an hour before the show which is when they open the doors. This will be a crazy scene. I am picturing the fans running into the theater in an attempt to grab a good spot near the stage and the employees telling them to slow down.

   But it isn’t fair that the people who got the general admission tickets on the regular sale days will get to go right into the theater because they will already have their tickets. The presale people should be allowed in there earlier. What is the point in paying a membership fee to have the privilege of presale when you don’t get the first dibs on getting close to the stage?

   I wrote an email to that theater asking if maybe I read their policy about this wrong; maybe they do let the presale people in a little earlier. I should have worded this email differently for it sort of sounds like I am an obsessive fan, which I am not.

   I am very worried about the train ride home. The Metro North schedule for Saturday says that the last train to NYC is at 11:17 p.m. I hope that the show starts relatively on time- 8:00 p.m. – and lasts until only 10:30. That would give me plenty of time to make the train. The station is not that far from the theater.

   I didn’t see an opening act listed. I hope that there isn’t any, for that surely would screw up the schedule. If there is one, the show usually starts at 7:00.

   I can’t help but think of all the things that could go wrong that would prevent me from going to my concerts. I am even more anxious about driving now because if I get in a bad accident and am seriously injured, I won’t be able to see my favorite group and possibly even my country boy Chris, depending on when this might happen.

   I also have grim thoughts that there could be a death in the family and this would prevent me from attending these fun events. I have a couple of others on the calendar for this summer too- the US Open and Luke Bryan. I can’t even think that far ahead to those; the former is August 31-September 3 and the latter is on September 11.

   Mike wants to go to a Mets game that weekend that I am going to see DD. I am telling him that I am going into the city that day to meet up with some DD fans at a 80s club. I will be in the city, but to take Metro North to NY State. Should I get my bus ticket for PA that day? I will be taking the 7 to get to Grand Central Station so I could stop at the bus terminal before getting on that subway.

   Sharon was encouraging me when I told her that I was not so sure that I wanted to get a ticket to the NY show because of my fear of missing the train home afterwards. She said not to worry about it and that I could always take a cab back to the city. That would be so expensive but if it comes to that, I will do so. I would not want to miss out on this show just for this reason.

   I am fantasizing that I will be fortunate enough to get a spot within the first 6 or 7 rows near the stage. I doubt that I will be as lucky as I was at their Wellmont Theater concert in 2008. I think I was within the first 4. I was even closer at the Central Park one- 3^rd row. I will just be happy to be there no matter where I wind up.