We went to see Paul McCartney in concert last week with Jason’s parents. This was his first time performing in Utah. I anticipated that this would be a cool show but it blew away all my expectations.
There was a nice open area by the porta potties that was a pretty sweet place to hang out and enjoy the concert without having to worry about the giant sized man in front of you blocking your view.
Paul, though nearly 70, was just as energetic as he was in his younger days and definitely just as talented. His band played flawlessly together. They mostly performed Beatles songs but they threw in a few classics from his solo career as well. Paul also relayed some fascinating stories from his extraordinary life and sang heartfelt tributes to both George and John.
The performance of Live and Let Die, a song featured on the Bond flick with the same title, was accompanied with fireworks. Pretty dang cool!
Sir McCartney was a great performer and really connected with his audience but what impressed me most about him was his graciousness. Although this man is a legend and an idol he was the most obliging musician I have ever seen in concert. Someone in the audience had made a sign requesting a song and even though it wasn’t on the band’s playlist Paul said that since they took the time to make that poster the least he could do is take the time to play their request. I’ve never witnessed a performer accommodating a request from their audience in a large stadium like that before. Paul also autographed some items that people threw up on stage for him to sign without complaint. He genuinely seemed to appreciate his fans.
At the conclusion of the concert red, white, and blue confetti rained down on the audience. It was a festive ending to an outstanding evening. Paul was a cute, funny, quirky, and brilliant performer. His clothes almost looked like something he might have worn back in his Beatles days and he was so lively you could practically imagine yourself there.
Being in the presence of such a music icon was a privilege and it was very rewarding to see that he wasn’t just a superstar, he was actually a nice guy. The concert was fantastic and the man was fantastic. It was definitely one of the most memorable concerts I have ever been to and if he comes back to town I will gladly shell out the money to see him again.
Ah… the birthday: no other occurrence is first so loved and later so dreaded. As kids we just can’t wait for birthdays but as adults we loath them, avoid them, ignore them- whatever it takes to pretend to ourselves and others that our lives are suspended in a state of constancy.
It got a little cold outside at Log Haven once the sun went down so I used my napkin to keep me warm; it didn't work too well.
Luckily for me I don’t have issues with these annual events. Unlike many of my fellow adults, I see life as a blessing at any age and I don’t intend to waste any moments of it lamenting the end of another year, especially when I could be out doing something cool instead of pouting. Sure, I have a few more wrinkles now than I did a decade ago and they will only increase as time moves forward but I’ve enjoyed the years and smiles that brought me those lines so I have no regrets.
This fantastic cake was made by my friend Robyn. It depicts me gloriously conquering the half marathon I'm running next month.
Since I don’t view my birthdays as a curse, I have no problem celebrating them with gusto. Why squander a chance to get together with the people who have added love, meaning, and laughter to your life or eat yummy food until your stomach is ready to mutiny?
Robyn and her girls are some of my favorite ladies. Yes, they are her children. I know, I know- she looks way to young to have children that age. You'll just have to believe me.
Fortunately, I have a husband that doesn’t believe in skimping on the celebrating either. He made me a delicious Cabo style birthday breakfast, which took him so long to prepare that it turned into more of a late lunch. And then, as if I hadn’t already snarfed enough fresh salsa and grilled sausage, he took me to Log Haven for dinner. We ate our delicious meal out on their patio with the grandeur of the mountains all around us. It was lovely. The evening was completed by the lighting of a series of fireworks at my in-laws’ and dancing around their hypnotic glow like a bunch of deranged tribesmen.
Jeremy, Jason, and I barely pulled off the wallyball tournament victory. I am proud to say that my spike was involved in our winning point. It was probably the only useful thing I did for my team the whole time.
The next day Jason had planned a repeat of last year’s wallyball/ping pong/billiards extravaganza with all of our friends. This event was held in the same two rooms at Noah’s as last year and it was a lot of fun again the second time around. I lost miserably at pool to my friend Robyn and then lost miserably at ping pong to pretty much everyone. But my wallyball team pulled through, probably no thanks to my skills, and won the grand tournament finale. There were no broken fingers or other injuries to speak of this year so I guess things must have been a little tamer on the wallyball court this time.
This little guy was all ready to party.
Even after that wild wally get-together my birthday festivities were not over. A few days ago my family held their usual quadruple July birthdays spectacular. Since Jason and I have July birthdays, along with my sister and her husband, my family does one giant party every year for all four of us. It’s always a memorable experience and one that the nieces and nephews particularly seem to enjoy.
After we stuffed ourselves with pizza and cake my family walked to a nearby park so we could all spin on the playground until we puked, all part of the bulimia plan for the passive.
So now I’m another year older, maybe another year wiser, but definitely another year celebrated!
My family insisted that I take the entire chunk of cake that bore my name. Needless to say, I still haven't eaten all of that giant piece.
My father is in his 60’s but he definitely doesn’t have the mentality of the typical 60 year old. A few weeks ago he expressed interest in getting a longboard, which is basically a longer faster version of a skateboard that’s meant for speedy cruising rather than doing tricks. We were all a little surprised that my dad wanted a longboard but not too surprised. After all, he is into paragliding and long-distance running and he claims that he would get a tattoo and pierce his ears if he didn’t have to look presentable for clients.
Jas with his new Never Summer longboard, the board he finally FINALLY decided he wanted.
My family collectively decided that a longboard would be a great Father’s Day gift for my Daddy-O. Since Jason used to be into skateboarding when he was a young fry he was nominated to pick out this present. This afforded me the chance to scheme up a subplot of my own. For years Jason has said he would love to try longboarding if only he had someone to go cruising with. Now that my dad would have a board, and thus Jason would have a boarding buddy, I decided that it was time to get Jason his long-desired longboard. So when we arrived at Milo, our favorite board store, ready to shop for my dad I informed Jason that in addition to picking out a board for my father he would be picking out one for himself. He was surprised but very excited about this plan. We spent an hour and a half perusing Milo’s boards and changed our minds over and over again about which ones we liked best. But eventually we came to a decision… mostly because the store was closing so we had no choice.
Although I am still a very non-graceful learner, Jason is the one that has already taken a spill. I guess even the klutzy get lucky sometimes. Girl's rock! I've already named my board Blue Fin. It's an Arbor Fish Koa and it is awesome!
Despite how long it had taken Jason to choose a board for himself that night, by the next morning he already had plans to go back to Milo to exchange that board he had so laboriously selected. Yes, Jason’s decision making skills are on par with a politician’s. What I didn’t know was that Jason was not just vacillating, he was also scheming. He bought me an early birthday present when he went back to Milo to swap boards: a longboard of my own. He kept this board a secret for a few days until we were going to take his board out on its maiden voyage. That’s when he pulled my new board out of the dark recesses of his extremely chaotic closet. I was completely shocked! I’m pretty good at sniffing out Jason plots but I didn’t see this one coming.
All but one of my siblings came to my parent's house on Father's Day. We had a lot of fun riding around the neighborhood lake on our respective vehicles.My dad the sk8er boi
Jason and I have already taken out boards out a few times; they are a blast! We especially enjoyed going longboarding with my dad on Father’s day. Since all the members of my family were in on the gift many of them brought their own wheeled contraptions to my parent’s house knowing that my dad would probably want to try his new board out. My brother brought his waveboard, my sister and her fiancé brought their skateboards, and my nephew Jadon even brought his scooter. Another nephew, Miles, didn’t bring a traveling device of his own but he was fascinated by the longboards. He was very eager to ride them and we had a hard time getting him to get off even when he scraped up his knee and elbow.
Don't the boys look cool with their board props?
What a peculiar boarding gang we made! I’m sure we got some strange looks from the people walking by our odd group. It’s not every day you see a cluster of young kids riding scooters and scooting on boards alongside adults that look far too old for such hooligan activities.
Miles became an instant fan of the boards. He didn't even notice when he scraped up his knee a bunch while he was riding one. He was having too much fun to pay attention to a little bleeding. My sister Kristen and her fiance John held hands as they skateboarded. It was very cute but I am quite certain that if I tried to do something similar with Jason our romantic cruise would end abruptly when I fell off my board and onto the pavement.
I should warn the unsuspecting that the desire to longboard is like an insidious disease that spreads with shocking rapidity. My dad simply mentioned that he wanted a longboard and then all of a sudden Jason and I had one. And the boards continue to mysteriously mushroom among my family members; my sister’s fiancé John is now toying with the idea of getting one and I’m sure if Miles didn’t have a paranoid mother he would find some way to obtain one as well.
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