So worry not, all things are well.

It's time to take a wee break from all this Ireland chatter, as well as distract you from the fact that I have yet to upload those 7 billion photos from the trip I'm hoping to share. The thing is, I saw my favorite band play last night and I need to tell you about it.

I thought, when I saw The National last May, I'd caught the best show ever, one that could never be topped. That night had also been my first time heading to the newly re-opened House of Blues and I left ecstatic over a cool new venue find. Unfortunately, in the past year the House of Blues has had some...shall we say...growing pains. In just one year that venue slid from my favorite new concert spot to aachk the House of Blues?I hate that bloody place. They have all these ridiculous rules now, including one where they card you exactly 8 million times when you want to get a beer even though you've already been carded at the door and received a bright neon wrist band to prove it because you've already been carded. In short, the venue just plain wears on me.

Still, when I learned The National was coming into town again you can bet I bought my ticket at 10am the day they went on presale and you can also bet I was willing to head to my least favorite venue in the city to see them. True love can make us do crazy things.



Last night my friends and I convened on the early side of things - as far as rock and roll is considered - and got over to the HOB soon after the doors opened. For those of you that frequent concerts you know as well as I do that there is almost always a two hour difference between doors and the actual show, but my friends are great and indulge my bossy nature when it comes to The National musical whims. After getting ID'd 800 times in a row for one beer, our group began to stake out the best concert viewing position in our general admission section. Experience has taught me it's best to find a spot early and stick with it rather than move around throughout the show. I've also learned it helps if you and your friends form a wide circle with elbows out to avoid other fans crowding your space. Defense can be important in times like these. (Just in case some of you are taking notes.)

After weighing the pros and cons of a few spots, we settled on some prime real estate. And by that I mean I was standing at. the. front. of. the. stage.

Did I mention I was so close that my elbows were resting on the stage? Because they were.

I don't quite know how to explain why I love this band as much as I do. I'm not sure how they captured my heart as suddenly as they did or what made me fall head over heels for them more than other groups I adore. There's something about them though, and getting to watch them perform for two hours, standing less than a foot away? Well, I would have ended the night happy and content with just that.

Ha.

Like I'd stop there.

You know me better than that.

At the tail end of the show, just before the encore, the lead singer, Matt Berninger, finally made his way over to stage left where my friends and I stood. As he ended one song right above us who do you think touched his hand not once, but twice?


Twice.

I love that about life. When you think things can't possible get any better? Sometimes, they just do.