Friday, June 23, 2023

random thoughts – Day 1,193 – (Friday) – entertained

It was a vacation day which, in the world of this solo adult, often means life maintenance activities and not leisure. Today, it was 2.5 hours in the waiting room of the local Jeep dealership while the driver side door speaker was replaced along with the sway bar links, and an add-on state car inspection. Thank goodness I bought the extended warranty plan and it was all covered except for the routine inspection.

At the dealership, there was a woman knitting a beautiful cream colored blanket in a fine gauge yarn while her two young children played on their tablets. Out of what seemed like nowhere, the daughter asked if they could say the "Pledge of Allegiance" when they got home, and all I could think was that is something you don’t hear kids ask for every day. Now I want to know what life is like at their house.

After the dealership, it was a trip to Andover Thrift Shop to check out their sale before they close for a month. Rolling into downtown Andover and seeing signs for free two-hour parking felt like winning the lottery. Well, except for the fact there were no parking spots available and two lots had construction equipment and cones occupying one-third of the lots. I looped the lots twice and then headed back home. My patience was exhausted. No sale was worth this crap.

During the evening, there was scheduled entertainment at the Hudson (MA) Elks Club with a local stop by Jason James. Decades ago, I knew of Jason James and his band The Baystate Houserockers, but never managed to see them. Meanwhile, my friends were seeing them regularly, and had stories about birthdays recognized at shows and New Years Eve after parties.  The closest I got to a show was a Nashville appearance when I lived 40 minutes away in Clarksville, but an ice storm and the treacherous conditions killed the plan.

Tonight, I finally saw Jason James. It was pretty awesome. I had somehow managed to forget how much fun it is to hear live music with friends. The sound was kind of awful in our corner of the room, but it was great on the dance floor. There were fun conversations with other attendees, including a younger local who delighted in telling me that he was from Berlin and a neighbor of the headliner, liked my saddle shoes, complimented my gray hair, and insisted on buying my beer.  Thank you for the ego boost young man. 

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