Thinking Out Loud Thursday - The Bluebird Cafe

Welcome to Thinking Out Loud Thursday!  Hope you link up below and share what you are thinking out loud about today.

So, you know when your weekend was so good that you are still thinking it and it's Thursday already?!?  Well, that's me this week.  Last weekend was SOOOO much fun that I just can't stop thinking about it.  Today, specifically, I'm thinking out loud about part of our adventure - getting in The Bluebird Cafe.

This little 90 seat music club opened in 1982.  If you have watched a single episode of the show Nashville, you've heard of the Bluebird before.  I know this because after last weekend I came home and watched my first episode of the series.  That's right, I wanted to go to this tiny little listening room without having seen one minute of the show.  However, my friend Debbie who was with me on the trip is a big fan and getting in was on her bucket list.

Let me start at the beginning.  Getting tickets is no small achievement.  You can try to get reservations online for a given show about a week ahead of time.  For example, we were hoping for the Saturday night early show on October 7.  Reservations were accepted starting Monday, October 2, at 8:00 am Central time.  Debbie and  I were perched at our computers well in advance waiting for the clock to strike 8.  We both got in and we were so excited!!  But then we saw the below message ~

Admission Type	Price	Quantity
SOLD OUT! There will be around 10-12 church pew seats (ALL-AGES) that are first come, first served when doors open. There’s always a possibility of more seats becoming available at the door due to no shows or last-minute cancellations.

SOLD OUT!!  What the  heck!  My time in line was 8:02 and Debbie's was 8:03.  Yes, they sell out just that quick.  But we were determined.  See the little note that says 10-12 church pew seats would be available on a first come, first serve basis?  Well, we were going to do everything in our power to make sure we were sitting on those church pews!

We honestly had no idea what time the line would start forming, so we wanted to be there early.  The show started at 6:30 pm, so we figured we wanted to be in line by 1:30 pm to be assured we would get seats.  

When we arrived right around 1:30 pm, no one was in line.  We quickly claimed the number 1 and 2 spots!  We didn't want to get our hopes up too high, but were feeling pretty good about getting in.  It wasn't long after we were there that numbers 3 and 4 showed up.  They were an adorable couple, Josh and Erica, who were visiting Nashville from Canada.  So fun talking to them for hours!

Being prepared is in our nature, so we had lawn chairs, snacks, and drinks to make the wait a bit more comfortable.  Oh, and we also had our spirographs!  Who doesn't love an afternoon of spirographing?!?

Honestly, the time passed quickly and at 5:10 pm we were packing up our area and getting stuff put back in the car.  By this time, the line was quite lengthy and we knew not everyone in line would be getting a seat inside.  A Bluebird employee came out about 5:25 pm and told us the rules:  no cover, $10 minimum food and beverage purchase per person.  No problem - just let us in!

The people who had reservations were ushered in first.  We entered close to 6:30 pm - just  in time for the show - and were taken to our church pew made for two.  This particular night the show was in the round, which meant there were four performers all facing each other in the center of the room.

Each performer took a turn talking about their song and then singing it.  They went around the circle about five times.  While they put on their energetic show, we dined on Caviar of the South (pimento cheese and Ritz crackers) and chicken fingers.  It was a bit challenging to eat holding the food on our laps, but we managed.

Blake Chaffin, Adam James, Kelleigh Bannen and Clint Daniels sang away until around 8:30 pm.  We said goodbye to our new friends from Canada and exited the building.  But wait - the line for the second show that would be starting in just about an hour was not very long.  We immediately got back in line with our new friends from Canada and waited to  see if we could get in the second show.  We got in that one also!!

This go round was a $15 cover with the same $10 per person minimum food and beverage charge.  For show number two, which was also in the round, we had the opportunity to enjoy hearing Annie Mosher, Don Henry, Craig Carothers and Angela Kaset.

It was a great night and I'm so glad we can now proudly say we've been in The Bluebird!  Would I wait that long again to get in -- ABSOLUTELY!

Now it's your turn - what are you thinking out loud about today?  Link up and share ~

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