ARE YOU READY (for a really long post)?

SPOILER ALERT!
If you are going to see the New Kids concert and don't want to know what you're in for, please do not read this post!

Where to begin? Where to begin?

I guess at the beginning, right?

Way back in May when I first found out that this concert was going to happen, I knew that there was absolutely NO way that I was going to miss it. The problem was finding someone to go with me. I would love to have had the ability to fly my sister out here to come along, but sadly, I don't have that kind of cash...and I knew that she was going to be rather busy taking care of her newborn right about now.

So I asked around and a few people expressed an interest in joining me for my night of fun. My SIL Jessie said she was in for sure, and I had a friend from work who said she wanted a ticket as well. I discovered that there was going to be a "pre-sale" exclusively open to AmEx customers, and I was positive that I needed to be a part of it if I wanted to be sure of getting tickets. Fortunately my Mother freaking rocks, and she agreed to let me use her card...and told me to consider the tickets my birthday gift. (Seriously, how cool is my Mom?)

On the day of the pre-sale I got online and went through the whole ordeal of trying to pick the very best tickets that I could get my hands on without spending a small fortune. I find this a difficult process since you can't really tell how good the seats are just by looking at the seating charts that are provided. However, I managed to snag 3 seats together in a spot that looked like it should be pretty good.

I'm going to cut to this past Wednesday when both of my guests decided that they were going to try to bail on me on the exact same day...a mere 3 days before show time! I thought that I was going to have to hurt someone. Fortunately, my friend Jess agreed to take one of the tickets, and I was able to convince Jessie that she really didn't want to miss this. Order was restored, life was good.

After getting myself ready yesterday, I left early to go pick up my girls before heading to the Arena. Neither one of them has had the opportunity to listen to any of the new record, so we listened to a little bit of it in the car to help "get our heads right".

We arrived at the venue around 6:30pm. There was already quite a line forming. The people watching was unreal! The more people I saw, the more normal I felt. The outfits were absolutely hilarious! The crowd was made up almost entirely of women in their late 20's & early 30's.

The doors opened and we made our way to our seats. HOLY CRAP! I picked amazing seats! We were in the second row of the first tier of seats off the floor, directly across from the stage. The sound booth was just in front of us to the right. I was totally jazzed up when I saw our seats- but I had NO IDEA just how awesome they were going to turn out to be.

We chatted with the people in front of us while we waited for the show to start, and did a bit of people watching. I had to take a couple of photos to share with all of my bloggy buddies, because this shit just has to be shared...

These pics really don't do these outfits justice. I stupidly made the decision not to take my camera to the concert with me because I was afraid that someone would try to take it away, and so I was forced to use my cell, which doesn't take the best pictures in the world. Anyway, these shirts were so bright I thought that I might go blind.

This outfit had to be my favorite of the night though.

At 7:58 the lights went out and the screaming began.

The first opening act was a young Latino guy named Colby O'Donis.
I guess he has a song called "What You Got" featuring Akon.
I felt really bad for him, because he was trying his hardest to work the crowd, but no one was really paying any attention to him. He did get a lot of screams, but only because he said "New Kids On The Block" about 20 times. He seemed to be pretty talented and I'm sure in time he will do just fine. The most interesting thing about his short set was that he had 2 male backup dancers. It seemed like an odd choice to me. Particularly since the dancers weren't all that good. They weren't in sync with each other at all.

Next up was Natasha Bedingfield. She performed several songs and had a much warmer reception than Colby had. I only knew 2 of her songs personally, but the crowd seemed to be into her. She sounded good, and definitely knew how to work the audience. She was a great lead in to the main act.There was a 15 minute break, and then...

The crowd went absolutely insane! I thought that the screams when I was younger were ridiculous, but they were nothing compared to this.
Seriously INSANE.
Just to help you understand...there was actually music playing during that clip. Did you hear it? Yeah, didn't think so.

They performed 3 songs- Single, My Favorite Girl, and The Right Stuff (as seen on the VH1 Special the other day). Then the lights went out again and a few moments later the guys reappeared on the stage- dressed in suits with hats. They sang Didn't I Blow Your Mind and Please Don't Go Girl. Then Donnie worked the crowd while the rest of the guys went backstage to change outfits.
(I took more video, but since the audience was so loud that you can't even hear the music I decided not to bother with them.)

To be honest, I don't actually remember what they sang after that. I'm pretty sure that Danny did some break dancing during this portion, but it may have happened later in the show. I know that they performed several more songs, and then after a while the lights went out again. There was filler music for a few minutes, and the next thing I knew the crowd started going bonkers. It turned out that they guys were making their way through the audience to a small stage located just in front of the sound booth (HOW did I not notice that was there?!)
Holy Shit! I picked the perfect seats!

They did 2 in the Morning & Dirty Dancing, and I think one other song, but I can't remember which one.

They brought up one of their icky dancers for Dirty Dancing. Could have done without that.

Later on, Jordan got naked and performed Baby I Believe In You (I think) and Give It To You (From his own album) solo.

Then Joe came out and did Stay The Same

There was LOTS more after that. They were on stage for 2 hours total. Not one single second of it was a disappointment, and they could have gone for another 2 hours as far as the audience was concerned...though I'm sure they were exhausted.

They finished the show with 2 encores- Step By Step was part of the first encore, and then they came back out and did Hangin' Tough.

They really put on one hell of a show. They obviously know their fans and what we want! They had precisely the right mix of the old and the new. The show was choreographed beautifully.

To me the best part is seeing them really having fun with it. They are very obviously enjoying themselves quite thoroughly. You can see that they truly love their fans, and that they GET IT. They really understand how to bring the audience in and make them feel like part of the show. It felt like hanging out with old friends. They came back for all the right reasons, and they're doing it exactly the right way.

At one point during the show Donnie said that everywhere they go they always hear the same 2 words from everyone they meet- "Thank You". He thanked the fans in turn, and it was clear that he and the others are sincerely thankful for what they have.

I am truly thankful for having had the opportunity to be a part of it. I would have regretted it for the rest of my life if I hadn't gone to this show. It was an amazing experience, and a memory that I will cherish for years to come.

Thank you Joe, Jordan, Jon, Danny and Donnie for putting on an amazing show, and special thanks to Donnie for making it all happen. It was AWESOME! I can't wait to see what comes next.

La la la la la la Tonight

T- 5 hours!

I'm getting ready. As Donnie would say "Getting my head right".

Trying to remember what this felt like 19 years ago...

What went through my head? What did I wear? How did I prepare?

I can still tell you the exact date of the first New Kids concert I went to. It was August 10, 1989 @ Old Orchard Beach.

I went with my best friends Erin & Missy. Erin's family had a camp at OOB, and the three of us went there for the entire weekend. We walked the boardwalk, checked out the rides, and played some mini golf. Come to think of it, that may actually be the only game of mini golf I've ever played. I sucked...but it was fun.

We walked from Erin's cabin to the venue...all three of us giddy with anticipation. We fantasized about all of the different ways that we might meet the guys. Once there we met a variety of fellow fans and fell into easy conversations about the group and our lives.

There were two opening acts before the guys hit the stage.

First up was Tommy Page. He was brand spanking new and I don't think that I'd heard of him at that point. Of course all of the girls in the audience ate him up like a piece of death by chocolate.

Next up was Tiffany. Poor girl's star was beginning to fade already. The crowd tolerated her, but it was a long way from the adoration that I had witnessed (and been a part of) only a few short months before.

Finally, the New Kids hit the stage! I probably haven't heard so much screaming before or since...with the possible exceptions of the other New Kids shows I later attended. I really couldn't tell you anything about the show itself. I know they did their whole pelvic thrusting and grinding schtick which illicited a frenzy like few will ever witness, but that's about the extent of my recollections. It's not so much the show that I remember, as much as the giddy feelings and comraderie that I experienced with my fellow fans at each and every show.

I know that tonight I will have the opportunity to experience those feelings one more time.

I promise I'll come back and share soon, but for now...I'm off to get ready!

Meeting Joe Mac

I've been experiencing a bit of writer's block lately...hence the lack of posts.

Today I have been filling in for my boss in the office at work and I've had very little to keep me occupied. I've been trying not to be a total slacker, and actually do work related things...but there's only so much that I can do. So anyway, as I'm sure you can all understand, I eventually turned to blog surfing.

As I was surfing through the new posts on my blogroll, I came across this post by McMommy and was inspired to finally tell my own story. I have mentioned the experience a few times in past posts, but I've never actually told the whole story of what happened. (Huh, come to think of it, I'm not sure that I've ever told the whole story to ANYONE up until now)

So here it is... the story of how Joe McIntyre had to get his posse to tell me bug off...in all it's humiliating glory.

If you are one of my 3 regular readers, you obviously already know that I was a big fan of New Kids in my youth. I went to several concerts in my teens, and continued to be a fan right up until the end (Ok, well obviously not the end since they have now reunited, but whatever).
I was a freshman in college when Face The Music came out. I probably wouldn't have gone out to purchase the CD myself, but my Mom sent it to me in a care package and I did listen to it a couple of times. I still thought Joe was the hottest guy on the planet.

I didn't really pay a lot of attention to what was going on with them at that point, and didn't take much notice of the break up. I met my husband not that long after and had plenty of other things to keep my mind occupied.

Then in 1999 I discovered that Joe was releasing Stay the Same. Again, I am pretty sure that my Mom sent me the video or something along those lines. However it was that I found out, I was instantly sucked right back into lusting after him with everything I had in me (much to poor Kevin's dismay).

I found a bbs dedicated to all of the other maniacs like me out there through his website, and was soon spending hours and hours chatting about all things Joe with them. That is where I met my accomplice.

In May 0f 2001 Meet Joe Mac was released. When I learned that Joe was coming to the area for an in store appearance, my "friend" and I decided that we absolutely had to be there. She lived a few hours away in downstate Illinois, but was more than willing to make the drive up here to have the opportunity to actually "Meet Joe Mac". We had never even met each other. Our only contact had been online, and maybe we had a phone conversation or two.

We assured each other that neither one of us was a psycho (except in regards to Mr. McIntyre of course), and made the plans for her to come stay the night at our apartment so that we could go to the CD signing together.

The day of the signing arrived, and we were both giddy with anticipation. We arrived at the mall where the record store was located several hours early and got in line to receive our official numbers. We spent the next few hours wandering aimlessly through the mall, and chatting with fellow fans until the store told us that we were allowed to begin lining up.

The line was huge. It snaked all through the store and out into the hallway. We were somewhere in the middle. Everyone was given a yellow sticky note and told to write their first name on it, and have the CD insert opened to the page we wanted him to sign in order to help speed the process along. (Not that it really worked)

The wait seemed to last forever. Of course, all of the waiting left me with way too much time to think about what I wanted to say to him when we finally came face to face. Such a terrible idea!

I've never really been one to become starstruck. As far as I am concerned, people are people no matter how famous they may be. Why should I feel all nervous and goofy just because a lot of people happen to know who this one particular person is? Really, I'm totally calm and collected, and normal... unless of course that person happens to be Joey McIntyre.

I really thought that I was going to be fine. I mean, he's just a man, right? Just because I spent years of my life fantasizing about how fabulous our lives were going to be once our paths crossed and he fell hopelessly in love with me...that's no reason to think that I would behave in anything but the most dignified manner...right?

Yeah, that's what I thought.

The reality of this little tale is that I finally made it to the front of the line, and saw this...

(look at that freaking arm...seriously, I could just melt right here and now just looking at that bicep)

and then he looked at me kinda like this...

(alright, he may look a bit daft in this picture, but I'm sure he was just trying to be polite and pay attention to what this girl was saying to him)

and smiled sort of like this (except better) with those AMAZING blue eyes...

and my brain turned to complete mush.

He signed my CD liner


and my friend took this picture...

(my only proof that I was ever this close to him...and I'm totally cut off)

Then as I was walking away I realized that this was probably my one and only chance to actually speak to this man. I knew that I needed to say something fairly normal. I didn't want to scream or cry, or gush on and on about how much I love him...he gets that garbage all of the time, and come on, I am just way better than that.

So this was it, my one chance for him to see how cool and brilliant I am and it was slipping away. I was down to mere seconds before someone would come and push me along to keep the line moving and I knew I had to come up with something amazing to say.

So what did my brilliant mind come up with?

"Thanks for keeping it real Joe"

Seriously. That's what I said to him.

Brilliant right? Totally normal and not at all dorky.

(Please stop snickering)

Everything after that is sort of hazy.

I'm sure that we must have waited around for a bit, because I know that we were there to hear that he was going to be leaving. I remember walking out into the parking lot and seeing that his limo was right there...VERY close to where my car was parked. I remember seeing several other girls run to their cars to start following and thinking that it seemed like a good idea. I'd heard so many stories from other people on the bbs about how they met up with him and he was so cool and would just hang out and talk. So why not me?

I really wasn't trying to behave like a psycho...I just thought that we would follow the limo and see where he went. I wasn't going to harm anyone or drive dangerously or anything like that. I swear!

Anyway, I ended up being the first or second car in line behind his as we were waiting at a traffic light to get out of the mall. It is possible that I cut a car or two off slightly in order to make a light and not lose him...but I swear, it wasn't anything terrible. I wasn't even really speeding.

Shortly after leaving the mall, the limo pulled into a parking lot and brilliant girl that I am, I pulled in after it. I parked in a parking spot and my friend and I just sat there. Then the door to the limo opened, and a stocky gentleman got out and walked over to my window...and very calmly and politely (though very sternly) asked me to please give his client some space.

I apologized profusely for my behavior and promised to leave him alone. Then I put my car back in drive and got the heck out of dodge.

My friend and I made the mutual decision to keep the story of this little adventure to ourselves. I really didn't think that I was ever going to figure out how to stop blushing with shame.

I have never felt more like an idiot in my life. Well, except for maybe the time not that long after this story happened that my sister and I got in a fist fight in front of my entire family and I called her some very rude words right in front of my Grandmom. That may have been worse.

Not by much though.

I hope that I haven't lost whatever respect I may have had before telling this sordid tale...or any of the few faithful readers I may have had.

You still like me, right?

The magic that is YouTube

If you've been keeping up, by now you know all about my New Kids obsession.
This morning I was catching up on shows on my DVR and decided to re-watch the Today Show reunion from back in May. Ciara continues to ask to listen to "Don't go girl" and "Loving you Forever" every single time we are in the car, so I had her come and watch it with me. It was fun.

Anyway, as I was watching for the 4th time (at her request) I started thinking back to the very first time that I saw the boys from Beantown...way back in 1988 (oh my gosh, has it really been 20 years?! That just freaks me out every time I think about it). I've always been sad that I didn't know to record the tv show that I saw them on ahead of time, because even though I recorded just about every other performance that ever existed, I was never able to relive that first one. The one and only "Love at first sight" performance...lost forever. I could weep just thinking about it.

You know how there are snapshot moments in life? The ones where you remember everything like it was yesterday- where you were, what you were doing, etc? I don't have too many of those personally. Let's see, there's 9/11 of course, the Challenger explosion, The day Princess Diana died...and the day that I first saw New Kids on Don't Just Sit There. I remember that I was sitting in our living room with my little sister watching DJST on Nickelodeon as we often did. I remember seeing these boys in their baseball jerseys and making my sister shut up so that I could hear them. I distinctly remember thinking that Joe (I know he goes by Joey, but in my mind, he's always been Joe) was just too cute for words, and also wondering how old he was because I thought that I might be too old for him. I remember trying to find out just who this group was because I wanted MORE! Unfortunately, these were the days before you could find anything you wanted in 2 seconds just by typing a few words into a google search. Nobody in my tiny little town in Maine had ever heard of these guys before, so I was forced to just sit back and hope for another chance encounter. Of course in just a few short months everyone in the world knew who they were and I was overjoyed to have as many encounters with them as I wanted. But still, that very first glimpse was history. Something that would have to live on forever only in my memory (and the archives of Nickelodeon)...until today!

For as I was dancing with my daughter, I suddenly thought of the glorious marvel of technology that is YouTube! "Wait!" I said to myself..."You can find anything on YouTube! I bet I can find it in no time". And guess what? I WAS RIGHT!

Here, for your viewing pleasure...NKOTB on Don't Just Sit There circa 1988 (I think, it may have been '89)


The best part of finding this is laughing about how terrible they were! I still think that Joe looks adorable though.

The Highlight of my day

I'll start by flat out admitting that I am a dork.
Now...on to the story.

I was just driving home from work having a very pleasant conversation with Ciara. We were discussing how she had been such a great listener all afternoon and how nice it was that we could talk without "fighting" (her words). Then, seemingly out of nowhere she says...
"Mommy, I want to listen to your music." (the radio was turned off completely at the time)
"My music? Which music is that?"
"I want to listen to Don't Go Girl Mommy. It's my favorite."
"You want to listen to Please Don't Go Girl?"
"Yes, it's my favorite"

And I thought that I couldn't love her any more than I already did.

* I swear on Joey McIntyre's topless hat that I have not been brainwashing my child! I have played the CD for her maybe twice. I did tell her that it was one of My favorites, but I never once suggested that it should be hers.

Now please excuse me, I have to go buy my daughter a pony.

Yay!

Thanks to my wonderful mother I can officially say that this October 4th I will be thoroughly enjoying myself as I behave like a loopy, semi-psychotic 15 year old girl. For the sake of my child I will try to hang onto at least a tiny shred of dignity- but I can't make any promises. I do have a history of losing all composure when in close proximity to one Joseph McIntyre.
The prime example being the time I went to a CD signing with a near stranger and ended up chasing the poor man's limo out of the parking lot. His entourage actually had to tell me to stop acting like a psycho. Oops! Oh, and did I forget to mention the fact that I was in my late 20's at the time?
Here's to hoping that I don't end up with a restraining order against me anytime in the near future.

15 again

I just got an email that took me right back to my crazy obsessed teen years. I opened Outlook to discover that I had one message. I assumed it was just another one of my junk emails that I get every morning and immediately delete, but when I opened my inbox, I see that it is from nkotb.com and become immediately giddy with anticipation. Then I notice that the subject line says TOUR ANNOUNCEMENT! I barely scanned the beginning of the email because I was too busy scrolling down the list to see if they were coming here. Sure enough- NKOTB will be in Chicago on Oct. 4th! I feel so silly that I'm so excited! I'm already trying to figure out how much is too much, and worrying about whether or not I'll be able to snag tickets. I'm not sure that I've been this excited about something since Ciara was born. (Not that I'm comparing the two events)
So here's my question- do we ever REALLY grow up?