I’m back in Austin and back at work. I am having a difficult time getting motivated to be a productive worker bee even though I have a ton of work to do. I think I’m in mourning because I really had a great time over the past couple of days and it’s hard to believe that it’s over. Adam Ant needs to schedule some U.S. tour dates this year so I can plan another road trip…
Going back to Saturday morning, I woke up relatively refreshed despite the fact that I didn’t fall asleep until 2:30 a.m. I had spent some time before heading out to the concert rearranging the contents of my suitcase so I didn’t have to spend too much time repacking; although I had to accept the fact that I was going to need to check my suitcase because there was absolutely no way I was going to be able to get all of the clothes I bought during a short but frenzied morning in Clearwater trying to find cuter outfits than the ones I brought with me into my bag without expanding it. And as usual, I didn’t get out of my room in time to get breakfast but at least I got bonus hotel points instead.
Getting out of Jacksonville was no less easy than the drive into town was. The road construction made me cross my fingers that I was taking the correct lanes to get me on I-95 south. Fortunately, the first 6 songs on the radio were fun sing-alongs and I managed to correct guess my way onto the ramps that got me heading south. There was some more traffic on the freeway than there was previously, and I got to see some pretty terrible driving from some of the other vehicles. My favorite was the minivan with the Christ nativity sticker that repeatedly tailgated, cut off, swerved, and otherwise drove like an asshat. Not very Christian behavior if you ask me…
As usual, I had the radio cranked up and I vowed to try to listen to something other than the 80s music I had been gorging on. In fact, I got tired of hearing Naked Eyes’ Always Something There to Remind Me when it was played for the third time in 15 minutes across the radio stations I had on preset. So I ventured off into Today’s Hits. I don’t have a fancy digital display radio in my real-life car but the Mercedes did. I was horrified to discover that a song I know enough to sing along with is a song by 1 Direction. I had no idea… I also discovered that a song that I could really butt-dance to is by a former member of 1D. I’m a closet tween and I wasn’t even aware of this development… I also really was impacted by Kesha’s new song Praying – like I had to wipe away some tears because the emotion in that song got me in the feels. Shawn Mendes has a 40-something fan now too because I could not stop jamming to There’s Nothing Holding Me Back. I tried to salsa in the car to Camila Cabello’s Havana but had to stop when I was drifting out of my lane. For the most part, the ladies singing on today’s hits blow the dudes out of the water (except of course Ed Sheeran)…I rolled into Orlando about 20 minutes quicker than Google Maps thought I would (ahem, 85mph pretty much as soon as I got out of Jacksonville proper, thanks)…
The Sheraton Orlando North is a sprawling suburban hotel that was definitely built back when smoking in hotel rooms was allowed because my room still reeked of stale cigarette smoke. The furniture was that dark cherry wood that reminded me of the early 80s when people who thought they were fancy would select that color for their kitchen cabinets. Fortunately, the bed was pretty comfortable and the bathroom lighting made me look 10 years younger. But let’s just say that both Sheratons on my trip underwhelmed. It is located about 10 miles north of downtown Orlando and even factoring the cost of an Uber to and from the concert, it was still light years cheaper than any option within walking distance to the Beacham, where the final show took place.
My Uber dropped me off at 4:40pm and there was already a crazy line in front of the venue. The staff eventually tried to sort us into two lines, one for the VIP package holders who were supposed to get early entrance into the venue at 5pm and one for the general admission ticket holders. Because of my lack of height, I sprang for the VIP package specifically for that early entrance so I would have a snowball’s chance in hell of actually seeing the stage. I have to say the staff was horribly disorganized and it was 5:20pm before the VIP line even started moving. I was making friends in line, hoping that I would luck out and get someone to save my spot on the floor while I ran to grab my swag that was also part of the package. Fortunately, a husband and wife combo were sweet enough to hold my spot in the very front up against the barricades, right in front of the lead guitarist Will. Most of the other people clustered on the opposite side of the stage because it seems as if Adam Ant prefers to go to that side of the stage more often, so I really lucked out because I wanted to be up front to watch Will play guitar as well. Call it whatever you want, but as I mentioned in a previous post, for me watching someone play guitar is like watching someone perform magic.
I enjoyed the Glam Skanks’ set, although I might have been the only one in my immediate area that did. Whatever, I don’t care if someone is technically not a virtuoso. I just want fun music that I can bounce around to when I hear an opening act. Despite the fact that I was dehydrated, I refused to get a drink because I didn’t want to lose my primo spot (and heaven help me, but I probably would have needed to go to the bathroom because it’s like I have the prostate of a 72-year-old man… yes, I know I don’t even have a prostate but for god’s sake, give me some license with my metaphors…)
Then, Adam Ant and the band took the stage for my last leg of my midlife crisis concert tour… it was phenomenal. I realize I’m a completely biased source on this. But out of the shows I had seen in the past 12 months, this one was by far the most solid. It didn’t hurt that for whatever reason, Adam spent way more time on my side of the stage than normal (I’d love to say it was because he saw me having a great time singing along and I looked cute and he wanted to check me out some more, but I’m highly aware that he likely couldn’t even see me despite me being right at the front of stage because of the stage lights – but hey, a girl [or not so much a girl anymore] can dream). So I got some good photos when I remembered to think about pulling my phone out and I managed to capture video of two of my favorite live songs as well as the guitar solo by Will during the finale. (He even regrammed it on Instagram and you know that I got all giddy about that like an adolescent schoolgirl). I bounced around, I sang along, and couldn’t stop smiling like the village idiot.
Speaking of village idiot, I have to confess. After the show ended, I was hanging out chatting with the girl who had stood next to me during the show when I realized that Will, the lead guitarist, had made his way out into the dwindling crowd to glad hand the unwashed masses. Well, despite the fact that I had made an ass of myself in Ft. Lauderdale when I first got to say hello to him, I decided that it was the perfect time to say hello to him again. I know readers, I know. I’m awkward and fangirling and that was totally not a smart idea. Where were you on Saturday night to talk me out of this?
So I waited in line and of course, the people who cut in front of me gave him presents! I was like the Little Drummer Boy in that Christmas carol… I have no gift to bring pah rum pum pum pum… I seriously said, “well, I feel awkward, I didn’t bring you anything”. And then I got even more tongue-tied. Yes, I was as smooth as extra chunky peanut butter. I mumbled something along the lines of “I don’t want a photo or anything but just wanted to thank you for making me feel young again…mumble…I had been following y’all around Florida and having a great time but I’m done now” with him interjecting well, we’re done now, like duh, I didn’t know that… and then thanking him for regramming a photo I took. He was nice enough to tell me that I had been taking some great shots but at that point, I’m fairly certain I was blushing scarlet and unable to form a coherent sentence in English. I mumbled something else and then basically said, I’m done now…bye. And walked away…
And this is why I don’t speak in public to people I fangirl on!! I should have told him something along the lines of why this midlife crisis concert tour was important to me; how I battled against something and the music helps me to keep going even when I don’t want to fight; how singing my face off and dancing like a fool reconnects the young girl I used to be to this old lady I turned out to be; heck, even plug the blog and tell him to read it so he gets a sense of why this time meant so much to me… So if I had a do-over, this is what I wanted to convey:
Thanks for making music with one of my all-time favorite artists. Thanks for connecting me to a simpler time in my life. I know every fan here has a story on why they love Adam Ant. I’ve loved him since I was eight, but this music has meant so much more to me recently. Let me tell you my story. A few years ago, I was diagnosed with a rare, but aggressive variant of melanoma. For a few scary weeks, I didn’t know what the future held. So I listened to this music and tried to forget how scared I was, scared that I was never going to experience everything I wanted to, scared I was facing a death sentence. And when I learned I had somehow dodged a bullet, I wanted to drink in as much fun and joy as I could find in this life. And this music has continued to help me shake out of the doldrums and release some of the angst I carry, even if it’s just for a night. This music somehow helps remind me to just take in the moment and be grateful that I’m still here. I’m still freaking here to be awkward and silly and dance and sing and fangirl. I’m still here…I’m so eternally glad I have the opportunity, the time, the life to be here, in this moment. To travel to different cities, experience these concerts, and think to myself, I really had a blast doing that, didn’t I? I can’t wait to do that again! And realize that I’m so incredibly lucky to think about the future like this… and to keep making plans for the future because I’m so incredibly lucky to even have a future. So Will, thank you for making magic with your guitar, thank you for making music I love with an artist I have always loved, and thank you for listening to the ramblings of a woman who can’t convey what all of this means to her in a way that makes sense…
Will Crewdson, Adam Ant guitarist, Florida 2018
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