Weekending - November 17, 2017

Welcome to the short week of Thanksgiving!!  Traffic was light on my way to work this morning, so it seems some people may be taking off the whole week.  That makes it especially nice for those of us working because getting to and from is much smoother!  I'm working three days and then have four glorious days off -- I can't wait!!

This past weekend was definitely one we won't be forgetting any time soon.  Eric and I, along with our friends Debbie and Larry, headed to Nashville to try our luck again at getting in the late show at The Bluebird.  Sam Palladio (Gunnar for those of you who are Nashville fans) was playing in the round and we had our hearts set on hearing him play in real life.

Tickets for the Saturday night show went on sale Monday morning at 8:00 am.  If you've ever tried to get tickets, you know what a challenge it is.  We had nine computers all logged in and ready to purchase.  Not one of them got through in time to reserve seats. 

But we didn't let that stop us.  There are usually 10-12 seats available for those die-hard fans who wait in line.  This particular weekend, there was a private event for the 6:30 pm show so anyone waiting in line was there for the 9:30 pm gig.  We were willing to put in the time to get inside.  So Saturday morning we loaded up and headed to Nashville.  Drove straight to the Bluebird and arrived around 2:15 pm.  We set up camp and prepared ourselves for the seven hour wait.  We were the first four in line and felt fairly confident we would be seeing the inside of the Bluebird for the late show!

Everything was great for the first few hours.  The guys walked across the street to get appetizers and pizza from California Pizza Kitchen (YUM!).  The temperature was chilly, but not terribly cold. 

Somewhere around 4:00 pm things took a turn.  The wind began to whip and the sky took on a weird color.  Next we heard the tornado sirens begin making their shrill sound.  Did we leave?  Heck no!

As the evening went on, the weather continued in a downward spiral.  The temperatures began dropping, the rain picked up and the wind, oh my gosh THE WIND, gusted.  We hunkered down and waited it out.

About 8:30 pm, a Bluebird staff member updated us on the seating situation.  He said that they weren't sure anyone would be getting in, but probably no more than 5-6 people.  Thank heavens we were numbers 1-4! 

Our efforts paid off and around 9:15 pm we were given the green light to go on in!  Was it worth the wait?  Darn right it was!  Sam Palladio, Jaida Dreyer, Colin Linden and Lee HARVeY OsMOND  performed an amazing set and the experience is something we'll treasure forever.  I know some of you may think we were a bit crazy for waiting that long in those circumstances and you might be right.  But you know what, for me I like living a bit on the crazy side.  That's what makes life entertaining and I'm so glad I have friends that are willing to go on these crazy adventures with me!

Being the Nashville (hit TV show) fan that we are, it was super cool to see the Gunnar and music director Colin Linden in person.  Also Jaida Dreyer has written numerous songs for the show.  As an added bonus, we saw a new addition to the cast for Season Six.  If you watch the show, be on the lookout for this talent.

Debbie and I would have loved to get a picture with Sam Gunnar, but we just weren't brave enough to elbow our way in.  This is as close as we got ~

Sunday morning we brunched at Adele's.  This hot spot features an open kitchen with a large fireplace grill and wood burning oven.  The menu focuses on seasonal, accessible comfort food sourced from local farms.  It was fabulous! 

Before heading back to St. Louis, we made a quick stop at Draper James and got a few pictures by the Nashville sign. 

Now it's Monday and I'm roughing out what needs to happen to get ready for Thanksgiving.  We'll be having people at our house this year and I'm so thankful that my parents, Eric's mom, Ian and Kayla are able to join us! 

Pop back in tomorrow to see how I'm doing with my fall goals.  We still have a while to get them done, right?!?