Firsts - Heartbreak Hotel (aka Crushing Cancellations)

Urgh.  So yes, again, I'm a day behind.

But to be fair and in the spirit of 'keeping it real, yo', yesterday was an effing bear.

Ever have one of those days where almost nothing you touch goes right?  Yeah, yesterday was that day.

But, onto the topic at hand:  Firsts.

August 10th I was going to take our 14-year-old son to his first concert, ala Hot Chelle Rae.

Keyword:  Was.

We got the notification via Ticketfly (nice folks who kindly reimbursed all the fees for the tickets and everything) that afternoon.  But that, my pals, pretty much put the capper on my day.

I take that back.  When I got home and there was a small quart of bright rose colored paint spilled all over my laundry room floor, yeah, that was straw that broke the proverbial camel's back as it were.  Who wipes up paint while fighting back tears?  Me, that's who.

Okay, god, I need to quit veering offa the subject.  So, I had to tell Arik, bless his heart, that there wasn't to be a concert.  Arik's pretty good at hiding stuff.  It must be a guy thing.  Anyway, he just nodded.  But when he walked away with his shoulders sagging, I felt horrible.  (Also, later on that night, he came and sat by me and asked "Did they say why?"  No, kiddo.  Just a scheduling conflict but kill me why don't you?  Arik's sad face is like what a puppy looks like after someone has kicked them.  Ie.  It should never happen ever again.)

I mean, of course, there will be other concerts.   Of course there will be.

But will it be like this one?  Probably not.

Why you may ask yourselves....Well, I'll tell you:

It's one of those concerts where Arik and I would have both enjoyed.

Growing up, I was fortunate enough to have a really good friend whose momma - bless her heart, seriously - schlepped us all the way to the State Fair in Des Moines to see New Kids on the Block with Tiffany.  (God, I'm really aging myself here.  LOL And for the record, I was a Joey girl.)  It was awesome.  I can still remember standing under that scorching hot summer sun singing along, shoulder-to-shoulder, with some of my best pals.

For 14-year-old me, it was Heaven.

Fast forward a few months later and we got tickets to see them only this time at Carver-Hawkeye in Iowa City.  If memory serves it was to be January 6th (or 7th) of that next year, but at the last minute the concert got canceled (to be rescheduled in the middle of July...in Iowa. Oy vey)  Picture it:  Four or five very distraught and angsty teenagers sitting around watching VHS videos of their band over and over while making themselves sick on Coke Classic (what?  It was Joey's fave.) while lamenting their tiny heartbreak.

Source


God, it was the days before we fell in love for the first time, before that first real heartache...but I can still remember nothing hurting quite like that did at the time.   

And my friend's mom let us all stay there, in our jammies all day long and do nothing but watch those videos of 'our' boys being silly.  I can still remember - to this day - a moment from those tapes where Joey and Donnie are in the front of the bus and Joey or Donnie has something in their teeth and the one is saying to the other:  "Ovah, ovah, ovah" in their adorbs Bostonian accents. 

It's weird, the things that stay with you over the years.

I also remember my friend's mom taking us up to Carver-Hawkeye in July and cutting us loose to go and watch our guys when they finally came back.  Fourth row at a three-ring circus.  Keep in mind, this was during their hey day (which was no more evident than at the State Fair event as it was Tiffany opening for them instead of vice versa). 

Now, let's fast-forward a bajillion years to present day. 

These guys, Hot Chelle Rae, are on the verge.  In the few months since Arik and I have started listening to their music, we've noticed a huge upswing in their fanbase.  They're getting bigger and it's fun to watch. 

(Side Note:  Jude is dancing and singing along to the Nuh Uh Uh's as I've got this going in the background.  LOL!)

We, Arik & I, laugh along at their antics on twitter - especially, Nash, he's...something else - and watch their vids together laughing at what these boys get up to.  (Seriously, they're ridiculously hilarious, especially Jamie.  And Ian....okay, Ryan's a hoot, too)

And you know what?  Sometimes, these days, it's one of the few things Arik and I can talk about.

He's a teenager and growing up fast and doing his own thing and while I love watching him become who he's supposed to be, you almost feel like you - as the parent - are getting left behind.

Yeah, there's that.

I was looking forward to standing shoulder-to-shoulder with my kiddo screaming out lyrics that we both know and watching his face as he watched the fracas that is someone's first concert.  And walking out afterwards, barely being able to hear, with his ears ringing and watching that ear-to-ear smile that Arik gets when he's completely stoked about something. 

There's really nothing like it in the world.  


But, it'll keep until another day.  We'll get there.  Just not now.