Sunday, July 17, 2011

Thoughts before I drift off to sleep...


*Today I met some amazing people. The dad and kids from Boise, Grandmother and grandchildren from Paige, Mom and daughter from Montana who came because the daughter worked hard all year and made it to the top of her class (congrats!), the girl standing next to me for most of the concert who got so excited when Adam came onstage, and jumped up and down screaming when she got a guitar pick after the show, the young lady who came with her friends that I tracked down napkins for before the show started, and the kind woman who helped get security for me when I nearly passed out.

It was a long, hot day, and an interesting night at In the Venue. I was there to see Unwed Sailor, Mat Kearney and Owl City. I was pretty excited about seeing Adam headlining as so far, I'd only caught two of his concerts opening for other people and I'd heard that his headlining show was much better and very good. I was also excited because I was hoping to finally meet Tyler Burkhum (even if it only ended up being a "hello" from the stage) and I was just happy to be there.

After a long wait (from 11:21 a.m. to a bit after 6 p.m.) the doors opened, and I made my way to the front of the barricade. I dearly hoped it would not the the usual "can of sardines" that often happens at shows since there were a lot of younger kids at the show. I secured my spot just a tad closer to center than normal, but a little to the left. Diana was next to me, and I'm sure I chatted her ear off. I do that sometimes. The venue was playing rap music, and having battled a headache a lot of the day, it wasn't helping. But I tried to make the best of it.

I spent some time trying to get my camera to take a photo that wasn't fuzzy. The lens clouded up on the outside in the heat. Finally after what seemed an eternity, the show started and Unwed Sailor took to the stage. They were musically very sound, although it took me a little getting used to the fact that were no vocals.


After Unwed Sailor, there was another wait that seemed to drag on while the stage was set for Mat Kearney. Once Tyler came onstage, I tried to take a few photos and had to work on getting a sharp pic again, and finally succeeded after too many tries. Then it was time for Mat to perform. I eyed the set list, being a fan adding to my set list collection, and tried to get a photo with enough depth of field to get a sneak peak. I managed to read all but part of two songs on the set list. LOL Nothing Left to Lose was the second song. Then it was time for Mat to sing, and I have to say that I really love his voice, and Tyler and Mat's voices are an awesome compliment to one another. A few times they tried to do some moves on stage and it would seem they weren't quite together and then they would laugh, and it was hard not to laugh along. Mat's 9 song set seemed to go by very quickly.



After Mat finished playing, my lower back was really hurting and I tried to squat down for a minute. I stood back up, changed camera batteries, etc. There was a long set up/break time, but about 9:05 or thereabouts, Owl City took to the stage. The lights were blinding. LOL But they were cool, also. The music was awesome, and Adam was a lot of fun. I had to admit that Owl City as a headliner is pretty amazing and Adam is so very talented. Just about the time Adam started to play Fireflies, I started to feel queasy. I had felt a little queasy the day before, but it passed before I left for work, so I didn't think much of it. I wondered if the bit of nausea I felt was related. I started sweating a lot. I didn't think I was that hot, as we weren't all crammed together, and I really did have some air. Still I thought I'd better sit down. I felt okay sitting down. About half way through the song, I really wanted to see, so I stood back up probably too quickly, and got very light headed. I stood up a few and then sat back down. This happened one more time and I thought I was going to pass out or be ill, so I sat down again. After a couple more songs the nausea got kinda bad, and I couldn't stand up, so I tried to get someone's attention for help. Eventually, security came and carried me out. Adam started playing Deer in the Headlights (which I wanted to hear "dearly") as I was taken outside, and lay down on the concrete steps. A few minutes later, I felt tired, but fine. The venue's medical person checked my pulse, I took the water and went to the side door to watch the rest of the show.



Apparently while I was being carried out, Adam dedicated the song to me. LOL I missed the dedication. He called me a girl. I don't normally get great thrills out of touching musicians, but I thought maybe I should kiss him? ;) Friends came down from the balcony and wanted to know if I was okay. I felt bad that they left their good spot to check on my. And I hope I didn't mess up Diana's enjoyment of the show.

Still - even with my grand exit, it was a fun show and good evening overall. I wouldn't mind doing the two or three songs over that I was sick, but the rest was great.

Afterwords I went to the merch table, then went back and talked to one of the venue guys I know and bought a Gatorade from him. Then I left the building and hung about with people at the buses to kill time so I could make sure I was safe to drive home. I met Daniel who was the Owl City drummer and connected with Derek whom I had met a few times when he worked with Relient K. And I talked a while to the Mom and daughter from Montana. I waited while they walked to their car with one of the security guys, and I chatted a few minutes before I headed off the two blocks to my own vehicle. I used the remote start - my new toy - just for the heck of it.

The drive was uneventful except for a police officer pulling someone over, I stopped at my P.O. Box, came home, showered, ate some garlic spring rolls and half a bowl of cereal, took a shower, and came downstairs to edit and upload pics.

And now, I should probably sleep. Good night.

*(Posted on Facebook a few days ago - the show was on July 13.)

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