Thursday, May 20, 2010

More-Fun-than-Anyone-Should-Be-Allowed-to Have Day!!!

WOW. Wow. wow. WOW-FREAKING-Wow. I don't remember when I've had this much fun packed into one day. It's been a looooong time, that's for sure.

Right now it's 1 a.m. and I'm awake and wired and processing all that this day has been. It started with Chrissy making me wonderful coffee (very close to as good as Glenn's!!) and then we drove to Mesa and had afternoon tea for our lunch at the most wonderful little place called the Front Porch Tea Cafe (they have a group here on FB...I just became a fan!). This place isn't over-the-top frilly like some tea places, but girly enough for the two of us for our "getaway!" Lovely murals and trompe l'oeil paintings on the walls...will post pics soon. Fun little shop with all sorts of things. I bought a pair of earrings and Chrissy and I each bought new purses. I know...at a tea shop? Well, they had all kinds of cool stuff. I also got a little purple dish in the shape of a butterfly for which to put my tea bag when I make a cup of tea. It was so much fun to linger and not feel rushed. We had a blast. The women who run the place are so friendly and warm. Turns out they've only been open 6 months; we wish them all the success in the world. I hope I can come back soon.

We then drove to our hotel which is a Best Western/Innsuites. Unfortunately they did not have an elevator, so we gimpy gals with bad knees trudged up the stairs, with the help of one of the hotel staff, luggage in tow...only to find that our keys didn't work. After several tries, a maintenance person was called and he did a bunch of various maintenance-y things and finally fixed our door and lock. It had something to do with the adjacent window; at that point we didn't care, we were just glad to get it fixed as we were tired and hot and just wanted to get into our room!

It was well worth the wait as the suite is HUGE. It has a bedroom with two comfy queen-sized beds (the pillows are amazing, too...and are available for purchase, which is tempting), a TV, fridge and microwave, and a full bathroom...the other room is a living room with a pull-out couch and chair, desk, breakfast bar, TV, and ANOTHER full bathroom...so we each get our own bathroom and showerl Very cool. And a full breakfast is included. All this for $75 a night. I LOVE the summer deals in Phoenix.

We unpacked and relaxed for awhile before heading to dinner at Chino Bandido, a place I'd seen on "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives." Guy Fieri KNOWS...this place had incredible food. It was definitely on the "dive" side of things, but OMg...the FOOD! The "diablo chicken" was some of the best food I've eaten in ages. I will drive back to Phoenix with anyone to eat that again. I loved the mix of Chinese, Mexican and Caribbean cuisines. You can make your own combo plate out of the various dishes, so there are a zillion options. We both loved our dinners and had fun taking pictures next to the large autographed photo of Mr. Fieri himself.

The drive to the arena was easy as we were past the rush hour traffic. We got to the parking lot with 10 minutes to spare and started walking fast, as we were parked quite far from the entrance. About a minute into the walk, I gasped and realized I'd left the tickets in the car!!!! The adventure really began as we dashed (as much as I can dash these days) back to where we swore our car was parked...only it wasn't. And we couldn't even find the row number we had memorized in order to find our car after the concert. Suddenly we felt like we were in the middle of an episode of "The Twilight Zone" and kept racing around, trying to find the car, and the clock was ticking! FINALLY things became clear, we found the car and the tickets and then had to dash even faster. The adrenaline rush prevented my leg from hurting too much, and we made it to our seats at 7:40 p.m. Fortunately, they didn't start the concert until 7:45, so we breathed a huge sigh of relief, and relaxed and got ready for the show to begin. We kept laughing the whole time assuring ourselves that it didn't matter if we were late, it was all part of the adventure. But I was soooo glad we didn't miss a single note.

I don't even know what to say about the concert itself. I could use all sorts of superlatives, but they wouldn't begin to express what it was like. It was more than just loving the songs and the music. It was seeing 2 old-ish people (Carole is 68 and James is 62) doing what they absolutely love to do, with all the passion and gusto and joy that was humanly possible. I loved seeing the gifts God gave them displayed in so many ways. And it went deep into my soul that if they can do it, so can I. I don't have to give up just yet. I don't know what my future is going to hold regarding music, singing, worship-leading, etc...I just know, now more than ever, that it's not over, even if I only sing for myself and God. I had expressed that before, but it went deeper into me this evening, listening to Carole King belt things out from her gut, not always hitting the notes perfectly, but with a passion and joy that was far more important than perfection. That's what I've always loved about her -- her rawness and lack of shame or self-consciousness. It's what inspired me when I was 14, and it's obviously inspiring me still. And James!!! Oh what a gentle soul, and so talented...the music came out of him so easily, like breathing. While Carole had abundant energy, James was laid-back and his fingers did the talking on that guitar. And the two of them together balanced each other so beautifully, both musically and relationally. They are so obviously good friends, deep friends, after all these years. The love between them was so sweet.

The collaboration of the entire band/team was so wonderful, too...it brought tears to my eyes, remembering how I felt when the worship team and I were preparing for a special celebration service and I took a moment to thank them for making my dreams come true...to have a band that I'd worked with for awhile, to make music together, to front a "rock band"...to play and sing for Jesus with like-minded people. It was such a glorious experience for me (this was a little over a year ago) and I really really miss it. As I watched the band play tonight -- they're the original band/team from James and Carole's first concert together 40 years ago -- I felt a stirring and longing to be part of something like that again. Not sure of the context -- in the church or out (or both?!) -- but I do think I'm made to make music with people, to sing with others, to harmonize, and to laugh and create and relate with others who love to do what I do. I will continue to pray for guidance and clarity about when and where and how...it's all in His hands, and I trust Him.

So....obviously this concert went waayyyy beyond the singers and the songs for me. Though the songs were fabulous, of course. All of the hits and a few others. The entire evening ended with one of my very favorites...a "foundational" song for me as it was one of the very first songs I learned on the guitar..."Close Your Eyes." It's also a lullabye we sang to our boys when they were babies, so it's a very special song in many ways. What a way to end the evening.

Chrissy and I took some time to sit and let things sink in. Then we left, and managed to find the car (!!) and drove back to the hotel. I had to call Glenn and tell him all about it, and he then gave me the wonderful news that he'd bought tickets for us for the Anaheim concert in July! It's Carole and James's final show in the U.S. (on this tour, anyway). I am sooo excited to know I'll be seeing them again, and this time with my spouse. That's going to be so special. You could have knocked me over with a feather!!! My husband is the best!!!

When Chrissy and I got back to the hotel, we realized we were hungry so we ordered a pizza! Got in our jammies and ate pizza and talked and talked. I felt like I was in college again! So much fun to talk and laugh and share...fun things, serious things, fluffy things, deep things. I am so grateful for this wonderful friend who has walked with me through thick and thin, and who I know will be a friend for life....just like Carole and James. :)

So I am now ready to put my head on one of those comfy pillows and drift off to dreamland. We have no specific plans for tomorrow...truly a vacation day for me...to sleep in and just see how the day unfolds.

Thanks for going on this journey with me/us!

2 comments:

  1. Sorry about the extra line spaces between paragraphs. I couldn't fix it...might be a bug in the system, or a user error. Will have to investigate when it's not 2 in the morning!!

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  2. Sis - now you know why there were no words to express not only what I experienced at the concert but what I knew you would be experiencing - and everything I sensed you would - you did!

    Hooray!

    And "yes" - you are still young enough to pursue your dreams, in His time.

    Ahem - I think I loved the comment about "old-ish" people but love it or not, 'tis true.

    James and Carole are so compatible in all the ways one observes. Carole made a great comment on Ellen's show the other day. Ellen was expressing how wonderful it must be for them to be touring together and "back together" in this venue ( or words to that effect) and Carole said, "The only thing better is to "be us"!"

    And right she is!

    I am so grateful for your experience and it will be equally though differently wonderful when you and Glenn see them in Anaheim.

    Yeah!

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