Bouncin' Around the Room

I completely intended to post something before the Phish show, but that did not happen. Where to start, what to say? So it's Sunday now, Father's Day (Happy Father's Day, Dad! I love you!). I'm pretty sure my dad doesn't read my blog, but sometimes my mom does so I trust she will pass along the shout out. Anyway, I'm at work. Starting today, we are required to open the office on Sundays. I think this is they worst idea ever, but nobody asked me. They should have though. I've been here a lot longer than anyone else and I know how this is going to play out. We never get enough traffic to make up for the problems that are caused (today, I haven't seen anybody and the phone rang once but they hung up when I answered) It messes up the whole schedule and we're thin during the week and then someone has to work the whole weekend. That's my biggest problem with it - the actually being here on Sunday part. It's the Sabbath for goodness sake! I go through phases where I complain about my job, but the one redeeming quality that it had was that we were closed on Sundays so even when I had to work every Saturday, I knew I had Sunday off. Well, that's out the window now so I guess I need a new job. I just don't make enough money to deal with this. I don't really make enough even if I didn't have to deal with it, but whatever. Back to Phish...

So Phish was Friday night. It was my first Phish show. In fact, I wasn't even a fan until a couple of weeks ago. I was familiar with the band, but never really listened to their music. Robby's a big fan and he and Sara were planning on going. We discussed this a couple months ago and Ward and I thought it would be fun if we went, too (Two things here: 1. we thought this despite the fact that neither of us were really fans and 2. I can't say this with complete certainty having no evidence of the contrary, but I think it was way more fun for everyone involved with us being there. I am defining everyone as Karli, Ward, Robby, Sara, everybody in the lawn and the band - I can't really speak for the folks in the pavilion...) So, obviously, we went. In the weeks and months leading up to this event, Robby was concerned that we would not appreciate the show - the band, the music, the experience, etc. He also seemed concerned that if we were not enjoying ourselves we would blame him and in turn ruin his concert experience. This is real...he was seriously concerned about this. This idea was absurd for a couple of reasons. First of all, we wouldn't go if we didn't want to (nobody tied us up and threw us in a trunk) and so regardless of our opinions on the band, show, etc, we were going to enjoy it for what it was, and secondly, Even if we were having a miserable time, we would never take it out on Robby at the show, knowing how important it was to him. That being said, you should know why Robby may have been concerned. If we rewind about 10 months or so to last summer, Ward ended up with a couple of extra tickets to Buffett and Robby agreed to go, knowing good and well he wasn't really a fan. I won't drag this out, but he spent the majority of the concert complaining. I imagine this is why Robby was worried about our behavior. His worry was unnecessary...we rose above. Just the same, Robby wasn't taking any chances so he thought he would do some pre-concert preparation. This involved making us each Phish CDs personalized to our own musical taste (this was impressive) plenty of Phish trivia and a showing of Bittersweet Motel, a Phishumentary (haha, nobody calls it that so don't go around calling it that....it's a documentary about the band - the music, the culture, the followers, etc.) So I couldn't get enough. I know, it kind of took me by surprise as well. I enjoyed the music more than I ever have before. I've always skipped to the next track during the jamming parts of most songs. So I'm loving the music...can't get enough...I want everything I can get my hands on. Fortunately, Robby kept making me CDs to feed my cravings. I also read whatever I could about the band. I love the fans, the culture, the story. It's just very cool. Long story short-ish, I'm a phan - and have been throwing a "ph" in the place of an "f" whenever possible.

That being said, I would like to address something. Many of you know this about me, but some of you may not. From the time I was a small child, I have gone to bed very early. I have a hard time staying up late. Even in college, I would have to nap from 7-9 so I could go out at 10. For some reason, I just do not do well late in the evening. Most days I go to bed between 9 and 10. Usually closer to 10:00, but I've been known to turn in before 9 as well. There are times when I'm active and am able to stay awake later, but this is not always the case. Most of you, who do not have this affliction, do not realize the lack of control I have over my body when it wants to go to sleep. I've been known to fall asleep at parties, in movie theaters, there is really no place or event that is an exception. The fact that I fall asleep does not mean that I am bored, or not enjoying myself or wish I were somewhere else. I just can't help it. A good example of this occurred the summer of 2004. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was released in theaters and I was excited. I've read all the books and I couldn't wait to see the movie. Prisoner of Azkaban was one of my favorite books (maybe my favorite at the time) and I was pumped for the movie. We had purchased tickets ahead of time to see the first showing. I believe this was a midnight show, but I'm not positive. I go to the movie. I am so excited. It's going to be great. You can probably see where this is going....I fell asleep. Not only did I fall asleep, but I could not stay awake. It didn't matter what I did, I could not keep my eyes open. For you regular people, imagine taking a couple benadryl and trying to watch a movie. Nobody really noticed and I was able to play it off for the most part, but I was furious. This was a good movie. New director and a departure from the first two movies...it was really good. Everyone loved it. I ended up going to a matinee the next day so I could actively participate in discussions and loved the movie, of course. The reason I told this story is that towards the end of the amazing Phish show, which was delayed for a while by severe thunder and lightning, I was having a hard time staying awake. This is as frustrating for me as it is for the people I am with, and I wanted everyone to know that it is in no way a reflection of the anything that is going on around me. I hate that I wasn't fully engaged in that amazing second set, but I was there and mostly conscious and all in all thoroughly enjoyed my Phish experience! As I've mentioned before, I wish I could go back in time 15 years and discover the band then. Just think how different my life could be...