I was mulling over the last time I went to a big rock concert and I think it was in 1998, seeing R.E.M. in Atlanta. Oh sure, I saw Cher a few years ago but that qualifies under a different category: more like Cirque du Soleil or a traveling carnival. So this past weekend I drove to Dallas with my daughter to see Radiohead, her favorite band, and one of mine too. I've listened to their music for over a decade. They tend to be a bit melancholy/arty/angsty but they do it with soaring vocals and incredible musicianship, and besides, I've always favoured the melancholy/arty/angsty as opposed to the upbeat/cheerful/pop-y. It's good catharsis.
So, yes, a road trip. Down a lot of road. Down a road I have driven a few hundred times, I am sure. Highway 84 to Snyder then I-20 all the way to Dallas. Hasn't changed much over the years except for more roadside fast food and chain hotels, and this sight as you go from from Snyder to Sweetwater: about 25 miles of wind turbines. A forest on the open plains.
They were churning away as we passed, making good use of the incessant wind. The drive itself was uneventful (one stop for Dairy Queen milkshakes, another for Starbucks Vanilla Soy lattes), and I took us all the way into Dallas without *gasp*running into a major traffic gridlock. There's always that moment upon entering the big D freeway system when a dozen direction choices are suddenly flung at you. One wrong lane change and you are suddenly hurling south to Waco while cursing the gods. I kept my wits, or Naomi kept them for me, got onto hwy 75 north and pulled into my sister's driveway 15 minutes later.
My son had flown there from San Francisco the night before to join us at the concert, bringing with him some California disease that had him coughing and wheezing all over Andrea and Tina's Italian leather couch. He was referred to as Typhoid Mary and we all kept a wide berth and a can of Lysol at the ready.
Dolly, the cat, sidled up to the bar to hang out with us.
Later we visited my sister's veterinary clinic, had lunch at a cool little restaurant called Frankie's, then drove downtown to see the Dallas Aquarium. I know my kids are adults now but going to the aquarium with them and gazing at monkees, birds, snakes, spiders, sea turtles, sharks, and manatees made me feel like a "mom" again.
After that we ate dinner at Hofbrau's steak house (yes, it IS Texas), and thanks to my co-pilots and their GPS phones we maneuvered downtown, found our friend's apartment to park in right next to the American Airlines Center, and went to the concert. There were no real cameras allowed, nor videotaping, but my cell phone did the job just fine. Music levels did not destroy my hearing, and I wasn't the only 'old' person there. The show was sold out, and it was a great experience, both for me personally and seeing how happy it made my daughter. I won't bring up my whole I-almost-saw-the-Beatles tale of woe from 1965, (but ask me about it and I'll go on and on and on) but Naomi won't have to do that. She has checked off a big item from her bucket list.
For Judy in England, if you're reading this, here's the set list, and of course, I had to get a T-shirt (made from recycled plastic and soft as a feather).
Will this match my new red hair?
