Monday, June 12, 2006
Draft #113
Dazed and Confused
This weekend I had the privilege of enjoying my first ever Jimmy Buffett concert experience. Thanks to the efforts of the lovely Jenny Nygaard, her husband John, and Nate Filzen, about 40 of us were able to ride in the luxury of a coach bus over to East Troy, home of the Alpine Valley Music Theatre. I would just like to thank you guys for the work that went into planning this event. I had a blast and I appreciate your efforts.
I thought it was fitting that I found myself watching the movie Dazed and Confused on Sunday afternoon as I was recuperating from the previous day. I wasn't too hung over, just tired from the week as a whole. I was thinking back to Saturday in disbelief, as far as how fast the entire day had gone. Leading up to Saturday I was worried that cracking open a beer at 1:00pm and many more after, might lead to a long day. Anytime I reserve myself about 13 hours in a single day for alcohol consumption, I usually except the worst to happen (and by the worst, I figured I was going to be found passed out in a stranger's van sometime around 6pm with the term return to sender printed on my forehead and a puzzled look on my face). I don't remember much of what I said to anyone that day, conversation wise, but I remember pretty much everything I did.
Going into the weekend, the plan was to just go to Alpine Valley strictly for tailgating purposes because not too many of us had tickets to attend the actual concert. To preface things, I'd never been to a Jimmy Buffett concert, I've never owned of one his CD's, and I've never downloaded one his songs off of the internet whether it was free or not. Now I've heard of the guy, and most of my friends are huge fans of his work, but I never understood the phenomenon behind this guy's popularity. I guess I should say that I understand why the guy is popular, just not why he is "I own 20 of his cd's and I've been to 7 of his concerts" type popular. I've never even understood the concept of concerts. Why do people pay boatloads of money to watch a particular person or band perform live? To me, music was always something that was used to pump myself up before a sporting event, or keep me occupied during a car ride, or something to fill the silence before I went to sleep. I've never been able to identify what particular type of music I like, and I've never had a favorite band or anything like that, so I guess that helps explain why concerts in general confused me. I had the attitude of, why go someplace to just stand and watch an artist play an instrument or sing? It used to sound bizarre to me, but since the introduction of alcohol into my life, I can see why someone would want to go to a concert.
What made the day especially exciting for me was the fact that I'd have the opportunity to spend the day with a girl I'm particularly fond of, to say the least. Without going into much detail (since most of you know me and have been consequently informed about how much I like this person and for how long), I couldn't have been more pumped about this concert. I had the opportunity to spend the previous Saturday with said girl and it was so much fun, you don't even know! So I picked her up at her house and as usual, I was blown away. I don't know if I can accurately describe this feeling I get when I'm around her, but it's like she somehow becomes more beautiful from the previous time I'd seen her. Granted I don't get to see her that often, but it had only been a week in this instance and it was the same feeling, just WOW (I guess my memory doesn't do her proper justice).
We eventually make it to Alpine Valley and you can instantly see what all the buzz is about. Between the clear and sunny weather, the music being played, the beverages consumed, and the smell of the grills, it's hard not to have a smile on your face and a chilling mood to boot. Tailgating at the Buffett concert was a lot different than tailgating at Miller Park in that there is way more wondering around going on at the Buffet concert. Usually after a Miller Park tailgate I can remember what was talked about that day since you're surrounded by the same people who are all sitting in the relatively same area. But at the Buffett concert, everything was just a blur. I don't think I got too far from where the bus was parked and yet I don't remember sitting down much either, so I don't know what I was doing. As luck would have it, through a California couple on our bus who had flagged down a person looking to sell tickets, the date and I were now going to be attending the actual concert. She haggled the price down $10 from the original asking price, and the two of us were able to get in for under a hundo (she has excellent negotiating skills, after all, this is the same girl who once convinced the good people at Jimmy John's who normally sell day-old loaves of bread for 30 cents, to sell her one for 10 cents, she's a real shark I tell ya).
We ended up getting seperated from the others that were attending the concert thanks in part to a ticket stub discrepancy. Once we were finally let through the front gate, that girl took me by the hand and manuevered us all the way to the front of section 202 (the main middle section which is just a big grass hill). She was weaving through the crowd like a bat out of hell and I was pretty much the wake of destruction, bumping, kicking, and spilling everything in it's path. So we get to the front of section 202 and there's a railing and a pathway seperating us from section 102. I had no idea what this girl's final destination was as far as seating goes, but she managed to spot the California couple in the back end of section 102, and before I could blink, there she was in section 102 next to the couple waving me over while I was still leaning on the rail of section 202 wondering how the hell she got through without getting busted.
This was pretty much where the end of the night started for yours truely. I can't remember if the bars of the railing were seperated enough for me to fit through, but I decided to try and hop the whole damn thing. The only thing I calibrated was that the railing was short enough for me to hop (a manuever in which I grab the top bar of the railing, bend my knees, jump, and swing my legs and body up over the railing in one motion). I managed to get up over the railing, but upon my landing on the other side I noticed I should have calibrated how far the drop down was from the railing to the pathway. In any event I was planning on landing sooner than expected and the next thing I know, I'm on my stomach peeling myself off of the pathway, in a "I meant to do that" type fashion. I made my way over to where the date and California couple were sitting, but apparently my version of section skipping was so blatantly obvious, that an usher came over to investigate the matter. After trying to convince two to three ushers that we were indeed cool and worthy of not being kicked out of section 102, we were sent back to the rest of the humanoids in the grassy confines of section 202.
Once we found an open area on the grass, I began to notice that I may or may not have contracted a bit of the pneumonic plague. Things were fine for a few minutes, there was music, dancing, laughter, and then POOF, the date decided to maintain a healthy 15 foot distance from me at all times. I would try to work my way back over to her, and she would slide another 15 feet away. It got so ridiculous at one point, that some random lady came over and told me to go dance behind my date. She must have felt sorry for me standing all by myself looking pathetic. The random lady did everything but walk me over to her and force us to hold hands, it was really embarrassing. Before I could shimmy and/or shake, she was off again, so I watched the rest of the show standing by myself. Now I don't want to make her out to be some bad guy in this story because we both had a lot to drink and she never flat out ditched me. She was always within sight, but it seemed like there was just always something more interesting than me about 15 feet to the right. It didn't seem like she was trying to get to anyone in particular, it was all very random.
Once the awkwardness of standing alone and not knowing the words to most of the songs subsided, I started to observe my surroundings and tried to soak in some of the experience. And after awhile I started to form an hypothesis as to why people come to concerts. The only thing I can compare a concert to, from my point of view, is attending a baseball game. From the outside, baseball can appear to be a very simple game, not a lot of action, nothing about it seems too exciting. If you've never played the game, you can't really appreciate how difficult fielding a grounder or hitting a fastball can be. And as I watched one of the guitarists do a mini-solo jam to the applause of the entire house, it kind of hit me. I know I couldn't do that, and I know a lot of other people who can't do something like that, so maybe it's just a matter of me appreciating talent.Music also carries with it a lot of memories for some people. Some of the memories are good and some of the memories can be bad. There's a lot of facets to a ballgame that can trigger positive memories for a fan. The crack of the bat, the smell of the grass, and the sting of the sun, are all areas of the game that can take you back to a place and time where life was simple for you. It didn't matter if you went 0-4 or 4-4, just as long as you got some ice cream after the game. Baseball was just baseball. The ballpark can act as an escape from the hustle and bustle of the everyday grind. And in some ways, maybe that's why people keep coming back to see this old man named Jimmy. Like baseball, he embodies a slow, laid back, easy going atmosphere that can send you to a place where you want to be. And after one concert, he still doesn't do that for me, but I now have a better understanding, and with a little help and pratice, maybe some day he will.
At the end of the night, Haus wound up puking out the side of the bus before the thing ever left the lot and now he and bus driver Glenn are sworn enemies for life. Nate was given the microphone for most of the ride home and I guarantee nobody keeps a half-sleeping crowd more riveted than he. I enjoyed his musical renditions even if Ben has a differing opinion. And as for me, things didn't go exactly as planned, but I got to spend at least part of my day with an angel, even if I do have to apply the "a bad day fishing is better than a good day at the office" theory to help justify things.
# posted by hucklebuck @ 6:37 AM 
Comments:
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From my own experience, you are too good for that flusey. You shouldn't have to put up with her shit. I know it sucks, and you want to do everything right, but if she doesn't appreciate you, then tough.
One other person you should thank is Glenn, the driver. Talk about a guy putting up with a lot of shit.
Ben
One other person you should thank is Glenn, the driver. Talk about a guy putting up with a lot of shit.
Ben
# posted by 
: 5:13 AM
: 5:13 AM
Hey now, lets tone the foul language down in regards to the lady. She's not a bitch or a flusey. She may have just been over-served? Or maybe she fell victim to some potent 2nd-hand reefer?
She did take time out of her day to talk to Glenn and keep him company while he was regulating the urination levels on the bus commode.
She did take time out of her day to talk to Glenn and keep him company while he was regulating the urination levels on the bus commode.
Haus, I don't apologize for the punch, because you slapped me in the face and awoke me from my slumber, but do feel bad your jaw still hurts.
Ballbach, you never know, that day could have netted you a lady, just not the one you went with
Ballbach, you never know, that day could have netted you a lady, just not the one you went with
Nate do not feel bad for his glass jaw feeling a bit tender. That rascal hit me in the face too and I'm glad someone put that drunk in his place.
How cool would it have been if Glenn stopped the bus in its tracks and challenged Haus to a fist fight outside. I'd pay $29.99 for video footage of that exchange.
How cool would it have been if Glenn stopped the bus in its tracks and challenged Haus to a fist fight outside. I'd pay $29.99 for video footage of that exchange.
I don't know what Glenn was expecting when a young person put down the deposit on the bus, we were going to Jimmy Buffet and the bus was going to be full, but her certainly wasn't expecting loud noises and drinking.
He would have seconded any "No Hey-o" thrown out.
He would have seconded any "No Hey-o" thrown out.
I think Glenn suggested we leave Adam behind at almost every stop on the way home, and he even suggested the old tuck n'roll in a few places that could be best described as the middle of nowhere.
And as far as a group of "young adults" goes, we were a pretty tame bunch. I didn't notice a single needle, prostitute, liquor bottle, wild boar, air horn, trumpet, knife, gun, flame thrower on the whole damn bus. Now that I think of it, it's a miracle any of us even had fun. We didn't even set fire to anything for crying out loud.
Glenn was lucky to have a group as well behaved as us. If we kept Glenn out too late that night and he had to miss the Mama's Family marathon on Nickelodeon, then so be it.
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And as far as a group of "young adults" goes, we were a pretty tame bunch. I didn't notice a single needle, prostitute, liquor bottle, wild boar, air horn, trumpet, knife, gun, flame thrower on the whole damn bus. Now that I think of it, it's a miracle any of us even had fun. We didn't even set fire to anything for crying out loud.
Glenn was lucky to have a group as well behaved as us. If we kept Glenn out too late that night and he had to miss the Mama's Family marathon on Nickelodeon, then so be it.
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