~~ "She has so many aliases, you'd think she was a spy!" ~~

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Hello again, Phoenix airport...


Hello, Phoenix airport, once again. This is the fourth time I’ve been here in, um, two weeks. Yeah, I’m kinda crazy. See, Styx was playing here, where my fantastic friend Sara lives, last weekend, so of course I had to come to visit her. But then Florence + the Machine announced a concert here this weekend…

Yes, yes, I know they played Santa Barbara, too. But while the Santa Barbara Bowl is a stunningly beautiful venue, not to mention only an hour away from home, they have a subscription series for tickets, which means the rest of us don’t get great seats. I’m spoiled when it comes to concert seating. I also have abysmal eyesight and if I’m not close to the stage, I can’t see squat. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.

Also, I didn’t know anybody who’d go with me to see Florence + the Machine locally, and Sara didn’t have anybody in her area to go, so…

The Styx show was, as usual, stellar. We had sixth-row seats but security had no problem with us standing at the barrier. (Shout-out to John, our fabby security guard!) That way, we didn’t block the people behind our seats because, as you know, sitting down at a Styx concert is like having sex with the lights off.

At one point, Ricky (Styx’s bassist, if you’re new here) tossed a pick in our general direction. Because it was windy, it fell in the grass between the barrier and the stage. John the fabby security guard picked it up and tried to toss it in our direction, but again, wind. This time it went sideways to someone standing sort of to the right of the stage (behind the barrier—they had a pass). That person didn’t want the pick and moved towards us, but I pointed him at a woman in a wheelchair next to me. She was thrilled and thanked me profusely.

Well, Ricky saw all that and gave me a thumbs-up. Then, at the end of the show, he tossed a rolled-up Styx tote bag my way.

Imagine any scene in any movie where someone fumbles a catch, and you’ve got the mental picture of what went down. I fumbled that balled-up bag like I was juggling it, and finally it popped sideways and Sara caught it. I looked up and Ricky had busted out laughing. Honestly? I found it hilarious, too.

My reaction to Florence + the Machine was much like my reaction to seeing Loreena McKennitt live: “She can’t sound that incredible live…holy crap yes she does.” Stunningly incredible. And yes, we got there several hours early so we could be up against the barrier for that show (we had GA pit tickets), too.

Photos for both shows are on my Facebook page; I’ll try to get them up at Flickr, too, when I get the chance.

One thing I’ve discovered during these travels (as well as the trip to Canada earlier this month—have I talked about that? Can’t remember.) is that I get a metric ton of work done in airports and on planes. Clearly I need to travel more.

Except for the fact that I’ve been (and will be) away every weekend this month, and will be every weekend except two next month (and one of those includes Darach Anniversary on Saturday). Next weekend Ken and I are running our first-ever motorcycle rally together! (an 8-hour rally) and the next day he’s taking an advanced rider’s course, during which I will be ensconced in a coffee shop or bookstore working. The weekend after that, we’re doing a 3-state (AZ,* NV, and then CA), 3-day Styx concert trip that will also include an SCA event (Baron’s Feast in Gyldenholt, for those of you who’re going). Then, at the end of May, we’re going back to Phoenix yet again for Phoenix Comicon.

Well, my flight’s boarding soon and I have a few other things to finish up, so time for me to post this….
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*Yes, I’m coming back to Phoenix. Except we’ll be driving this time. And, er, next time.

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