I AM A RUBBISH BLOGGER!!!
WARNING : Sorry Dad, this is one of those "boring" posts with "too much writing"!
I have to be honest, I totally milked my 30th! as far as birthdays are concerned I genuinely never really expect much, its nice to mark them in some way but more often than not they pass quite easily with out too much attention. Anthony however is a massive birthday milker - and well maybe that influenced my 30th slightly!
So get ready for an ultimate Birthday Milk!…..
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| Andy and Rach at Rodizios |
The milking began Friday morning, my friend Ruth cooked me brunch, then my sister arrived into London and I met her at Westfields for a spot of shopping. Then home to pick up Anthony and head out to Rodizios to celebrate friend Andy's birthday. All of this kid freedom came courtesy of my dad who came down for a couple of days.
Then Saturday, The Killers at Wembley... I love small intimate gigs, but there is something quite fantastic about a gig in a massive arena with the crowd, the energy and the atmosphere on huge scale.... it kinda stops you in your tracks in awe. We got down there about 6.30ish during the support act, it turned out to be early enough to get quite close to the stage. So we chilled there and gradually everyone showed up making there way to us inside the growing crowd. All in all there were 18 of us!! I managed to find a spot behind a bunch of short people... it was perfect...like all the 5fters had just gravitated to the same place ! ha! Birds of a feather flock together!
Me and my sisters...ever the photogenic!
An excellent concert with best friends was just brilliant….. It was just brilliant and I thought you couldn't top it………but the night continued and here's the story………
Now, I need to precede the story with some background, please bare with me…. 10 years ago, at the killers first UK tour, my sisters and two of my friends (Helen and Hannah) went to their gig up in Leeds. A small venue…. Whilst waiting in line (a que they jumped as Chrissy got chatting to someone), the killers, followed by the Kaiser chiefs walked by. Christine had a mutual friend with one of the Kaiser chiefs and used this to her advantage… a long story short they got into the VIP area to watch the gig and then got invited back to the after show party. At this stage, my other sister Jo Ann split and decided to head home with a head ache…..which remained one of her great regrets. In the after show party Hannah goes to the bar to get a drink, then the guy turns round in front of her and its none other than Brandon Flowers…. for some reason they didn't anticipate the killers being there but as the night went they got chatting to the killers. Proper little groupies they where ha…. The next day in an interview on TV the killers made reference to the "fans" they'd met the night before…. They didn't invite me as I was studying in London at the time, so I too remained slightly bitter upon hearing about it with our Jo.
Ok….So here we are 10 years on…...
We are walking to find food after the concert, Helen receives a text from another friend who had been there who follows the killers on twitter… a proper fan. The said friend was on her way to a secret gig in east London (opposite side of the city from where we are). The killers had recently announced the gig on their twitter…an intimate venue - £10, first 400 there.
Helen, Huge "life to the max" liver, begins her campaign to get me to go. Chrissy joins her reminding me of 10 years ago. Jo Joins in too, she learnt her lesson to seize opportunities… But I felt like id had a brilliant night, I didn't need any more and it all feltlike too much hassle that I didnt really care for.
When they came back with "but its your 30th… what better way to keep the celebrations going?" I returned it with "exactly I'm 30, i don't need to be doing all nighters any more… those party days are gone." Plus I was thinking realistically. By the time we got there, the avid fans would have already filled the 400 places and it would be a wasted Journey. I was happy to just get a kebab, enjoy the after concert buzz with friends and go home. But they didn't let off….. and I will always thank them for it! Driving home, they are getting confirmation texts that its a legit gig, that said friend is in and that the killers come on stage at 1.45 am.
By the time we've driven home, some thing clicks in me. A sudden rush of adrenalin. "OK girls, let go for it." In my head I thought the chances are, we will be too late, but its not like we will be sleeping over the next hour, so we might as well chat and drive through London (driving through London at night is one of my favourite things to do). So at 1.15 am I chucked Anthony out the car, put Helen and Chrissy in and then we raced across London…….. Laughing all the way….
We got there, we were too late, just… by about 6 people too late…. all of which where still lingering with some hope that they'd allow just a few more in…. They didn't, they staunchly stood by their capacity policies, and no chatting/flirting(with a woman), or lingering was working. But we are not programmed to give up so easily…. Its never got us anywhere in the past…. So we went round the back. It was a small London venue, we wandered round the back street to find the exit. It was so simple. From the back door we could hear them clear and loud on stage, it must have been so close. And hanging out back where members of the bands management and family. We got chatting to them … we were unashamedly 30 year old groupies haha! there were no barriers, no security, and Ronnie's family where particularly friendly, in fact his mum kept calling us "her girls" and took a particular liking to our christine…. seriously don't know how she does it!!??
we were the only ones there… cant believe others didn't think of it.
I was a bit embarrassed to be asking/getting photos with the fam, but Helen was not in the slightest…. But thank Helen for her unabashed ways, if it weren't for them we may never have come.
Just before the last song the management cracked down and got the families in the cars. Then a load of security flooded out and groupies, leaving the venue early,
came round the back too… but we were right there up front. The band played the last song and left stage one at a time, came straight out the door and pretty much straight into their cars…. But we got a few hand shakes and this pic with the legend Dave…. my new fave for his willingness to stop for us! ;) I videoed the whole thing…but its so cringing…. hearing our desperate shouts for their attention haha….
Here is a photo and I will think about uploading the vid!
We wandered later why we accepted standing behind the secucurity on power trips. it was a public path, and we could have gone into the road and ignored them! It was so unlike us to comply so willingly like this ha!
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| Heading home on a high! |
When I got home, I went in to Anthony asleep. "So did you meet the band?" he asked sleepily… "yes I said, and I want you to know I have closure…. Brandon isn't the man for me, You are the man for me, I shook Brandon's hand and Guess what? He has soft baby hands!"
His reply "oh that's a relief", "I know I thought so too" I said.
I decided to join the girls in the lounge for an old school sleep over…
Anthony had laid out a bunch of presents and cards he hoarded from family and friends…. Seriously spoilt. We cracked open the shloer and gorged our selves on chocolates…
What a cracking night….
We fell asleep as the sun came up!
Moral of the story - "carpe diem", even when you are 30, actually especially when you are 30!
My not yet Brother in law Mike went all out with this thoughtful gift! Still it kept me going for the entire weekend!….
Fave cards… deepest sympathy from none other than Andy and of course Helens themed and kinda premonitional one!!
Birthday celebrations to be continued… in an OTT annoying way!
