Running Margaritaville & NRDD (National Running Day, Duh)

I’ve been absent from these blog parts, but not by choice. As I often do, I wrote some posts & saved the drafts for future publishing. But when I logged in next, they were GONE! All that genius, lost forever. Sorry, world.

So lemme ketcheweup…Buffett Day was a wild success, like always.

Some of the SFW highlights.

This is my abfab fave day of the entire year. I try to explain it to people who’ve never been, but I’m learning that it’s indescribable. No matter how much I sell it, people who reluctantly finally show up to a tailgate always look around wide-eyed and say, “I had no idea it was like this! I wish I knew! This is awesome!!!”

We see Capn’ Jack Sparrow every single year.

Everyone seems to assume it’s a bunch of geriatrics sitting in lawn chairs drinking green tequila drinks. Everyone shouldn’t assume so much.

I almost wore this same thing.

Every year it’s like a competition to out-do everyone else creatively-tropically.

Mermaids get thirsty too.

And everybody is so chill – no politics, no drama, no greed…everyone shares everything (especially bevvies).

Shotski!

Making friends around a neon octopus.

This year got a bit cray cray. They stopped enforcing the strict parking rules – so anyone and everyone was setting up canopies, boats, etc. wherever they darn well pleased.This really condensed the space and it felt like one big back yard. Love it!

Caught taking a pirate lady selfie. I need that leg chalice.

Another thing that’s changed over the years is my Buffett crew. We had a huge regular group (not talking bathroom habits). But over the years most of them have faded away. Kind of sad, but c’est la vie dansante.

Buffett4Life friends and a svelte merman.

But like in regular life, most of these people have been replaced with runner friends. I still miss my old crew, but not much I can do if they don’t even respond to invites. It’s all good, runners be crazy, yo!

Runner friend unicorn and a zebra lady.

Someone let us drive their land boat.

Free lap dances from “pretty mike”.

I welcomed several runner friends to the Parrothead phlock.

And for those of you paying attention, why yes, that is my Key West Half Marathon race tech tee under my ultimate party Hawaiian shirt.

Perfect shirt for a perfect day.

And here’s a pro tip: Many people just come for the party, but for those of us who like his music and enjoy the concerts, don’t buy tickets in advance. You can always get some for free/cheap at the tailgate from other parrotheads. My dad and I got tickets for $10.

Boom-shaka-laka.

And I’ll leave it at this – one of the newbies who showed up posted this on her facebook page:

“Soooo…yesterday was my first time at a Jimmy Buffett tailgate party, and it’s taken a good 24 hours for me to mentally recover from what I witnessed there. There were things I simply cannot unsee. And I can’t wait until next year to do it all over again!”

OK, back to running. I’m sure everyone did something for National Running Day. Me was no different. I met up for a local running store’s social run followed by free breakfast tacos!!!

Miles and Smiles!

I got to see a lot of old running friends. It was great! And I’ve got some more good running news, but you’ll have to wait for tomorrow for that…I try to keep these posts more visual than wordy, and I see my word count is growing. Till next time!

How bout you? Anything special for NRD? Can you tell we had fun this week? Are you intrigued or frightened of Buffett tailgates based on my pics?

-Scott

Running Through Jimmy Buffett!!!

So I had to do my longish run on an odd day this weekend because I had to clear my sched for the most favoritest day of the year…the annual Jimmy Buffett Concert Tailgate!!!!

The costume options are endless.

I heart this so much. It’s like having a tropical vacation without the travel. Everyone is so chill…and most don’t even go to the concert. It’s all about the days long tailgate!

The concert isn’t until tomorrow, but I was able to meet up with my Chicago Marathon training buddy and we did a quick scout run of the parking lot. It’s filling up fast! Going to be as epic as always!

Just a couple of boobs.

If you’ve never been, you really should check it off your bucket list sometime. There are some really creative people out there and they come up with some crazy tailgating stations. In fact, each year it’s here there’s a big social run that goes to the parking lot just to run past all the crazy set-ups.

I’m off to get ready…Cannot Wait!

Fins Up, Parrotheads!!!

One question – Ever been to a Buffett tailgate party?

-Scott

Key West Half Marathon Recap

It’s a two sided medal, it’s a wine stopper, it’s fun and functional.

Ahh, the Florida Keys. Who doesn’t love em? Key West in particular, has always been a magnet to the funky-fresh folks.

Closer to Havana than to Miami.

If you haven’t been, well, it’s kind of like a tropical and clean New Orleans. If you haven’t been to New Orleans, well, it’s kind of like an anything-goes sort of haven – full of good food, strong drink, history, openness, tolerance, and zero inhibitions. Both cities were home to pirates, poets, performers, and parties. Needless to say, I love it!!!

Two similar cities. Only separated by 630 miles.

In case you get lost.

And I’m glad to report that the Key West Half Marathon & 5k had the same feel to it that the island has – laid back, scenic, inclusive & fun! Peeps could even register under a “walker division” – can’t get more inclusive than that.

The fun feel starts at the race expo, which was held at a seaside bar and oyster joint…DUH!

Ain’t I purdy?

I was so excited at the expo, because it meant we got our race shirts! They are so over-the-top amazesauce!!!

The shirts….I heart them! And check out those bibs!

And if you’re so inclined, there are plenty of shops next door to load up on souvenirs.

Yeeeeah buoy!

From there, there were plenty of good joints on the island to get your carbo-load on.

My sis with our sushi grade raw tuna “nachos”

The eggs in the restaurants were very fresh.

The artwork in the eateries was very high brow, as my sis and her bae recognized.

My sis with some key lime pie, natch.

The whole pie.

And of course, there were good bevvies to wash it down with…

Key West beer, why not?

My sis and a Moscow Mule at Louie’s Backyard.

Hog’s breath is better than no breath at all. So they say.

Anyway, on to the race! It started at 7am over by the boat docks. Very laid back – no formal corrals, no pre-race formalities…

Can you spot me? Hint – white Ohio University shirt. Photo courtesy of http://www.fotobyfreas.com

I was a little worried going into the race. I was in good shape, but I’d been training in Dallas in 20-30 degree temps. Race morning it was in the 70’s with 90% humidity – 90%!!!!!!!!! OUCH!

But it was time to race, and hahaha, there wasn’t even a race starting horn – Someone must’ve said, “Go.” cause all the sudden, we were off!

I started my gps about a 1/4 mile into the race. My bad.

The course took us down famous Duval St., past the Southernmost Point marker, then an out and back along the beach.

Our friend Carrie caught me on the course. Throwin Dueces! Or maybe quotation marks cause I was feeling “great” in the humidity.

I crossed the 10k mark at 48:34, but it was all I could do to maintain that pace in that humidity. Shortly after, the wheels fell off. I was taking walk breaks to dump cold water on my head at each aid station.

Anyway, on the way back we went past the Hemingway house, the lighthouse, the A1A Mile Marker 0, and through Mallory Square (where everyone goes to watch the sunsets).

Photo I took of one of their famous sunsets.

The race eventually ended at the boat docks. But I was really hurting in the humidity. However, I sucked it up the last couple miles to finish at 1:50:00. A full 5 minutes slower than the Dallas Half last month.

At the finish, smiling on the inside. Photo courtesy from video from http://www.wildsideonline.com

I was hoping to break 1:40 at this race, but with the humidity, it wasn’t meant to be. I really did push hard though – so much so that I was very sore the next day.

That said, it was the same for everybody out there, and so I was still able to finish 27th in my age group and 201st overall (out of 3-4000 runners)!!!

See, I told you the race ended at the boat docks. Sweat much?

Even though I didn’t have the race I hoped for, I still had an absolute BLAST! It was so SCENIC! The volunteers were WONDERFUL! And the post race party was OFF THE CHAIN!

Before we could really get turnt up, I had some other friends and family finishing the race that I went back to root for!

Some friends.

Some family – my ma.

Sister’s bae.

My dad’s first half marathon!

My sis also ran, but I didn’t get a pic of her finishing. But we did get a selfie with the race announcer. This guy was THE.BEST.MC.EVAH! He was cracking us up with gems like, “This is the best day of our lives!” And I think he called me “dude” when I crossed the finish line.

Michael the Boston radio DJ. Solid dude. Perfect match for the Key West laid back attitude.

With everyone finished, it was time to party!!!

We had fun.

Da Key West crew.

The post race concert was Howard Livingston & the Mile Marker 24 Band. I’ve heard him before on Jimmy Buffett’s Radio Margaritaville. Such a great performer!!! He even made us margaritas with a modified boat-motor-blender at one point.

Howard on stage.

Did I mention all the beer was FREE?!?! That probably led to us making some new friends. Like when I photobombed some stranger’s selfie because Howard had jumped off stage to be in it!!!

Selfie stick, Howard Livingston, PirateBobcat Photobomb. Love this pic! Thanks to Elizabeth T.F. for sending it my way.

Hahahaha, the race photog actually got a pic of us taking a pic of ourselves.

From there it was on to Duval St. where we could proudly display our medals and shirts.

Da Key West Crew all cleaned up.

Yet another patio bar to celebrate on. I figured I’d wear loud shorts with my screaming shirt.

The patio drinks led to even more selfies. Well, that and narcissism.

Look, a coconut tree and a coconut head.

And I even tried my best to copy RunColbyRun and her high angle, partially-obstructed-face selfies, but I couldn’t master the master.

So sexy.

So to sum up, it was a blasty blast!!! If you are ever thinking of running the Key West Half Marathon, I say DO IT!!!!

And besides, you can’t run all the miles until you run the first one…

Mile Marker 0. Yes, I was in Birkenstocks.

Good times people, good times all around!

How bout you? Ever run Key West…or do you want to? What do you think of the swag? Ever go on a runcation?

-Scott

2014 – Runs, PR’s, Celebs, Concerts, Tacos & Sexiness (Mostly in Photos)

Welp, we’ve dun it. Anuther trip around the sun. Looking back, 2014 was a pretty decent year. Let’s take a peek at a few hightlights, shall we?

It kicked off with a BANG! In January I ran the Disney World Dopey & Goofy Challenge. That’s 4 straight days, 4 straight races.

The 6 Dopey Challenge Medals.

Day 1 – Thursday – 5k (3.1 miles)

Medal 1/6 gotten!

Day 2 – Friday – 10k (6.2 miles)

Medal 2/6 got.

Day 3 – Saturday – Half Marathon (13.1 miles)

Medals 3/6 got.

Day 4 – Sunday – Full Marathon (26.2 miles)

Medals 6/6 (includes Dopey & Goofy bonus medals)

All in all, it was a magical 48.6 miles.

Running at Epcot, waving to my fans.

Included in the weekend was the Kids’ Race, where the soon to be 5 year old rocked it!

Medals for everyone!

Oh, and did I mention my sis and ma also did the Dopey?

At Magic Kingdom with our medals.

Shortly afterwards though, I was going for a run, tripped, felled, and Nancy Kerriganed my own knee.

Put me out of commission for a little while.

I was able to eventually get active again by doing a lot of yoga in a retail store.

Cat, cow, what difference does it make?

I really think yoga is important for everyone – including runners. So I do a lot of it. And besides…

#NotCreepyatAll

Another part of my cross training is lifting weights. And besides…

Dumbells make you smart…and sexy.

I also like to mix up my runs with track work. And besides…

Track work makes you sexy. Here’s the proof!

Trail runs are also great. And besides…

#truth #obviously

Eventually my knee felt better and I got back on the roads with some of my fave people. Like Thursday Night Social Runners.

TNSR, Representin

And also my crazy early morning elfen crew.

They like to run at like 5am. They cray cray.

I also made a few Luke’s Locker social trail runs.

Run trails, eat pancakes. Repeat.

And the White Rock Running Co-op, who really helped me to become a better runner this year.

WRRC. Good runners.

To help fuel my workouts, I ate lots of tacos. Lots.

Legit, son!

In between training, I also got to see some of my fave bands…like at this FREE concert – The Killers!

About 30 rows deep, my mouth a gasp with excitement.

And the Old 97’s.

Seen this band countless times.

And I was super thrilled to see the traveling Broadway show, based on the movie – Once!

And I got to make my annual Jimmy Buffett concert experience…TWICE!

JB concert #1. Just call me Front Row Joe.

JB concert #2. Things get wild at the tailgate parties…trust me!

I also got to hangout on stage during a Graceland Ninjaz concert.

On stage open mouth selfie.

As well as Pentatonix.

I liked to imagine they were all cheering for me (they may have been).

They were amongst the Celebs that got to hang out with me this year.

They asked me to join the group based on some of my youtube karaoke videos.

And my model friend Brooke Becker.

She’s kewl.

And long time friend, fashion blogger, and TV host, Hilary Kennedy.

We had to wear our shades because of the flashes from the paparazzi.

And all around media star, and long long time friend, Ashley Kamrath.

At the Emmy’s. We didn’t win this year, but we’ll get again next year!

And I made another video with friend & TV host, Emily Reppert.

On the set with my actor friends.

And I made a new BFF when I interviewed Olympic gold medalist, Jennie Finch.

See, told ya we were new BFF’s.

And my Dallas Half Marathon Champion friend, Logan Sherman.

Logan, Me, Patrick. Mustachioed.

And model/actor buddy, Shane Land.

We have played brothers in two movies. Can you see the resemblance?

And a Dallas Cowboy – Charles Haley.

A couple of legends.

Anyways, back to running. I ran a bunch of races. Starting with Abby’s Run 5k, where I won my age group!

Yay! I got a photo with Abby (who the race is named for) and her mom. Ann photobombed us.

Then came the Rock the Block 10k. New PR – 46:00!

And we’re off! -Photo from Dallasnews.com

During the months of Texas heat, it was really hot, so I only ran a few unofficial races. Like the Boston Marathon virtual run.

And the America, F**k Yeah 4th of July 10k.

Censored Bling

And the TNSR Beer Mile.

This was a bad idea.

Then came the Fall. Autumn is always a time of change. For us, a big change was the boy starting kindergarten. Where does the time go???

He’s grown about 5 times his size. Based on that growth rate, I figure he’ll be about 80 feet tall by his 20’s.

I even volunteered to coach his soccer team. That was a lot of fun!

Landsharks on three!

And the little girl just keeps growing too!

Stop looking at me swan.

Fall also saw a lot of PR changes. Starting with the Oktoberfest 5k – 21:33. When you PR, you have to celebrate…

They love me.

Next up was the Dallas Mavericks 5k. Another PR!

The Mavs Dancers asked to have their photo taken with me. I obliged.

Speaking of which, my brother ran his first half marathon this fall! And my dad is running his first half in January 2015!

Dad, Bro, Me at an FC Dallas game this fall.

The next PR to fall was at the Dallas 13.1 – 1:42:59!

Bottle opener medal.

Next was the annual Halloween fun run.

Our costumed group.

One sad change was that we lost our oldest doggy this fall. She was such a great pup.

sweet Bailey girl

But in happier times, I set another PR at the North Texas Turkey Trot 5k 20:04. Bummer was the course being .1 miles short.

Stop looking at me turkey.

Next up was the Rudolph Run 5k. And yet another PR – officially 21:29, but my watch had the course being long. According to it I came across at 20:50-something. Either way, I got 2nd in my age group!

Last year’s race was cancelled due to ice. So I got two medals!

The final race of 2014 was the Dallas Half marathon. No PR this day, but still got my 2nd fastest half – 1:45:01.

Big state, little medal.

And as part of the Dallas Marathon festivities, I got to meet MEB!!!!!!

Me n Meb

The end of the year was spent with friends and family for the holidays.

Looking back, it was a pretty good year. Lots of tacos, shows, good times, and running. In fact, I went over 1,200 miles on my feet. I even surpassed 5,000 miles total with my Nike+ watch – starting when I got it a few years ago.

5 g’s over the past few years.

Here’s hoping 2015 will be even better! Happy New Year, y’all!

Today’s only question: What’s your top 2014 highlight?

Lots of Christmas Runs, Stage Shows, Wild Yoga & Randomness Galore

It’s been non-stop gangbusters lately. Let me try and ketchup…

What am I up to? Oh, just making it rain, dear.

Of course, Christmas was upon us, and so the kiddos were amped.

1/3 of these folks had a wet diaper. Can you guess which one?

But the holidays don’t mean my legs get a break. And on Xmas Eve I met up with a big group of local runners for a morning run.

Getting my Zen on before the run.

Christmas morning I went on a solo run. I saw a surprising amount of people at the park.

For my long run this week, I got in a half marathon. It was really really windy.

At the last minute my run bud messaged me and said she’d run with me. So glad she did. It made the miles go by much faster. We didn’t take a pic, but here’s us at last month’s Thanksgiving Day race.

Such a pill…gram.

 

While we were at the show, the grandparents took the kids to the zoo…

Penguins is practically chickens.

Free turtle rides!

The next morning I met up with some more friends for a trail run. We got in 6+ miles, and even mixed in a little yoga…

Not sure if these are actual poses or not. But there’s no rules in yoga, right?

But it doesn’t stop there. Next we took the kiddos to see Disney Live…

Pirates vs Princesses. Guess which team I’m on.

Ha, I gotta say that it was drastically different than the ‘Once’ show – a lot less ‘F-bombs’.

Anywhoodle, that night my friends messaged me that they wanted to go on a second run for the day, but this time it was around a fancy neighborhood that is famous for their Christmas lights.

Tree Pose.

Look, it’s Santa flying! I know him!

I need to have these green spots checked out.

So there it is, kids. The reason for my blog-cation. It’s been a crazy train time around here. Hopefully things will relax just a bit, but it has been a fun ride!

How bout you? Crazy Holidaze? Gettin your workouts in? Any fun group runs?

-Scott

Hump Day & Newbie Runner Alert

Mike Mike Mike Mike Mike Mike Mike.  Guess what day it is? Huuump Dayyy!  (And f you’re fast you can make it a speed hump day)

The past few months, hump day has also been a track workout day.  Today was no different.  The last couple weeks I was doing 800’s, but today I wasn’t feelin it, so I did 400’s and 200’s.  It’s cool, I’m not really training for anything specific right now…just out there to maintain some fitness during the summer heat.

Yes, 400 will be better than 800 today.

Even though I wasn’t feelin this workout, I’m glad I got er done.  Ya always feel better after a workout, no matter how crummy you felt going into it.  I’ve never heard anyone say, “I really wish I hadn’t worked out today.”  That’s a dumb thing to waste a wish on.

Anyway, I got some other news.  My brother has decided to join us and become a runner.  My sis has been urging him the past few years to join his siblings in the running community, and now he’s in.

Pa, Bro, Me, Sis, Ma, Mumford, and his Sons.  Don’t ask about the alien eyes we have – it was some weird red-eye corrector in the camera.

He signed up for a half marathon this fall!  He didn’t give himself much time to train for it, but he should be all right.  After all, the goal of first race at any distance should be about finishing, and nothing more.

How bout you?  Recruited any new runners?  Having a good hump day? Ever wasted a wish? 

-Scott

Meeting Pentatonix, Yard Work Workout & 1st Bike Ride

So the other day I was working (I’m a TV Producer) all day at an early 4^th of July festival. It was pretty fun. The headlining music act was Pentatonix.

And being that I had an all access pass, I checked out a bit of their performance from the stage in front of an estimated 100,000 festival-goers!

Notice how the female band member is totally checking me out.

To be honest, I didn’t know much about them going into this event. But since we were interviewing them, I needed to research them. I came to find out that they are very popular and pretty talented. They were also super nice in person.

They asked me to join the group based on some of my sweet youtube karaoke videos.

And they put on a pretty good show to boot.

Front row Joe.

Between the festival and that morning’s run/boot camp, I was pretty exhausted. The next day I took a rare unscheduled ‘rest’ day. However, I ended up doing 5 hours of yard work. That is a workout in itself. I was left noodle-armed from all the mowing, edging, etc. Imagine how much more tired I’d be if I got around to the manscaping.

Later on we took a doggy walk and the boy was anxious to try his bike out sans assistance – I had taken off the training wheels earlier in the day.  I was shocked that the first ride without the training wheels, he did pretty good!  You can watch the video HERE.

So he can now bike.

He can run.

He gets it from me.

And he can swim.

He gets it from me.

We may have a budding triathlete on our hands!

 How bout you? Are you a fan of Pentatonix? Yard work ever double as a workout for ya? Anyone else see a lil triathlete?

-Scott

 

PS – Sorry I’ve been a little MIA – WordPress was giving me issues.

Run Thru a Party & Parrothead Craziness

(subtitle: Part 2 of why I’ve been MIA)

First off kids, let me say that I’ve had some kind of illness for over a week. I’ve been sexily coughing up mucous, and have general tiredness (do not salute General Tiredness). But I’ve been pushing through. I had to…

Saturday was a big day. It was Happy Jimmy Buffett Day! If you’ve never been to a Buffett experience, you don’t know what you’re missing.

Happy Jimmy Buffett Day!

To start the day, a group of friends actually meet each year to run around the tailgating grounds. I did the same thing. I got 5 miles in while I scouted out the best party set-ups. And yes, even at 7am they Parrotheads are at it. Grilling and drinking. And yes, they invite you to join them.

After my run, I showered and breakfasted and and collected my supplies and got dropped off at the tailgate. I met up with some friends and the day of adventure was on!

Some of my running friends!

We wandered all day long around the ‘sharking lot’ (sharking as in shark + parking, NOT the sharking they do in Japan)… The creativity that people have there is amazing!

Pirate ship in the parking lot? Yes, I will captain it.

Of course, people make some ‘creative’ outfit choices as well. But hey, we’re at ‘the beach’ right?!?

He wanted to get rid of his tan lines.

I almost wore the exact same thing. That would’ve been embarrassing for her.

I’m pretty sure Uncle is off his meds again.

The reason why I love this so much is it’s like you get a tropical vacation at home. Everyone is so chill and they give you free food and drinks everywhere! You could eat an entire meal of crawfish or BBQ, and some desert jell-o shots! Then have a dignified after dinner drink.

These drinks were ice cold!

Or if you like, you can relax in a lawn chair or pull up a hammock.

She looks relaxed.

In the end, I probably walked another 5 miles all over the tailgate, with the occasional dance break mixed in.  I was also happy that I got to spend another year with my favorite parrot drinking vessel.  My grandma gave it to me like 15 years ago and it hasn’t missed a Buffet since.  I’ve lost coolers, chairs, hats, etc. But this guy has stuck with me!

The backstage pass he’s holding didn’t work.

I stopped buying tickets a while back because you can usually find people stuck with extras at the show who will give them to you for free.  That happened again here too, but like I said, I was a bit ill, tired, and sore from running.  Plus I got to see Buffett play two days before, so I was good.  Also, things started to get out of control…

Busted at Buffett. (Fake btw)

I called the wife to pick me up.  And at home the boy and I watched the concert on-line and danced in our living room!  So it was another successful Buffett experience!!!

How bout you?  Ever have a run around a tailgate party?  Ever been to a Buffett tailgate or concert?  Should I have worn those green bottoms?

PS – This is part 2/3 of why I’ve been MIA.  If you missed part one, you can read it HERE.  Part I was pretty epic for me.  Part III is on the way!

-Scott

 

Big Secret Revealed, Quick Run, & Surprising Health Nuts

(subtitle – Part 1 of why I’ve been MIA recently)

Hello All! Apologies for being gone the past few days, but it’s been wacko around these parts! Lemme splain.

First off, I had a pretty cool opportunity the other day. I know I hinted at it on my post last week about having a big secret thing going down that I didn’t want to jinx. Well it did go down…kind of.

Here’s the dillyo: I’m a huge Jimmy Buffet fan. I’ve been going to his concerts for 20 years. I’ve probably seen him live over 25 times – everywhere from Ohio to Vegas to Dallas to Charlotte. I listen to his music, read his books, eat at his restaurants…the whole nine yards.

At one of my first Buffett shows back in the day.

So when a fellow TV producer friend called me and asked if I wanted to work behind the scenes on a broadcast of a history-making concert of his, I was like, fo shizzle.

Just a couple of melon heads at a Buffett show a couple years ago.

But runners – don’t worry, I still got in four sweaty quick miles before heading to the show.

Anyway, he was playing a groundbreaking concert at a local drive-in movie theater that was simulcast at other drive-ins around the country. My job was to help shoot and edit a pre-show video for the broadcast. To do this, I needed pretty much an all-access pass. Security was no joke, and so I had to wear credentials out the wazoo.

Credentials part 1.

Credentials part 2 (believe it or not, I had on more that I didn’t take photos of)

Now if you don’t know about Buffett concerts, here’s the thing – a big part of the experience is the pre-show tailgate party. These people go all out – you have no idea! The pre-show fest can last up to three days!!! In fact, many people just go to the party and don’t even make it in to the concert.

Some of the tailgaters – the fins light up at night.

I was going around getting footage of the tailgaters and met some cool peeps.  Not only the partiers, but I ran into a few other friends who were also working the concert – including model, actress, singer, and buddy of mine – Brooke Becker.

It had been a couple years since we last worked together.

One cool thing was that when Jimmy and the Coral Reefers came out to play their sound-check, they decided to play a mini-concert for the tailgaters there. That was cool of them, and I enjoyed it too!

Sound check 1-2 1-2

My big secret hope was that I would get to meet Jimmy. And I came so close. I was within about 10 feet of him, but his security was no joke (like I said). They weren’t having it.

I came close a 2^nd time when a person from Buffett’s inner circle said he’d take me to meet him, but again, security denied us. I understand they were just doing their job – in fact I chatted with his security later and they said they’d been working with him for 27 years. They have their system down!

This is NOT an uncommon sight at a JB concert.

However, during dinner I did get to eat with the Coral Reefers!!!! So cool! I spoke with a few of them and they were very cool. I thought it was bad form to ask for a picture, but I did sneak a pic of the food they had catered. It.was.so.amazing.

So so so so good!

Jimmy and the band are pretty healthy, if you can believe it. Steamed veggies, polenta lasagna, baked grouper, etc. So so good.   I also read that JB can be found doing yoga before his concerts in his dressing room…Probably why he is still able to play concerts all year long at his age.

VIP woot woot!

Anykitandkaboodle, we got the video done with minutes to spare (whew). And security allowed me to watch the first few songs with them up against the stage!

In front of front row baby!

After that I was done working and was able to relax and enjoy the show from the VIP section right in front of the stage. Dancing with strangers and loving life.

So that is Part 1 of why I’ve been MIA from here the last few days. Coming up tomorrow – Part 2 of where I’ve been.

SO, what have I missed? What’s everyone up to? Are you a huuuuge fan of anything – band, celeb, author, TV show, etc and how close have you come to meeting them?

-Scott

The Killers, Taxes & Open Mouthed Selfies

This was a pretty good weekend.

It started with a quick 10k run.  Then a homemade egg and turkey sausage sammich.  So far so good.  But then came the thing I dread all year – doing our taxes.  Ugh.  But I was able to fight through it and get em done.  My reward?  A free concert by a band I really enjoy – The Killers!!!

The Killers in koncert.

Why are they in Dallas?  Why was it free?  Lemme splain.  The NCAA Final Four (college basketball) is being played in town (the championship game is tonight).

Someone graffiti-ed on the Omni hotel.

As part of this tournament, they put on a bunch of fun events for the community – including a bunch of free concerts.  Over the weekend they also had some country music acts, LL Cool J, Fun, and even Bruce Springsteen!

The only show I was able to attend was the Killers, and I’m fine with that.  Like I said, I’m a fan.  They’re one of the few bands that I follow that I hadn’t seen in concert before.

Everything seemed to align for this concert.

First, I got downtown with no traffic, I found cheap parking, then walked toward the venue.

I always watch my back when passing the building where they say Lee Harvey Oswald shot JFK from (the square window on the 6th floor).

Also, the forecasted severe weather held off (that would’ve been bad at an outdoor event).

In the park! I’m not sure why every music festival has to have a ferris wheel, but whatevs.

And I was really happy this was FREE (their tickets normally start at $150 – ouch)!  Also, there were no annoying opening acts (they screened the basketball game, and as soon as it ended, the Killers started).

Watching some b-ball, waiting for the show to start, and tanning the inside of my mouth.

Also, since I’m old I have to get up early every day (for running and for kids), I was glad that this was an early show start with a fairly early end (the downbeat was at 7:30pm and the encore was over around 9ish).

The Killers were killin it.

It was first come (first serve).  Open seating (a field).  And I was lucky to get there early enough to snag a spot fairly close to the stage!

About 30 rows deep, my mouth agape with excitement.

The show did not disappoint!  The crowd was really into it, most of us singing along to each song.  The band was really into it – the lead singer even mentioned how they weren’t sure what to expect from the crowd (this was for a baskeball tourny after all), but they were really happy with our energy!  The only weird thing was that the cigarettes people around me were smoking smelled kind of ‘skunky’, I think their tobacco had gone bad.

I’m still not sure why I was taking photos when they’d play a song I liked.

And since it was an early start/finish, my old responsible self was home by 10 pm!

Post show walking. And no, I never did ride the ferris wheel.

That show was great, btw!  They were very energetic and made sure to play all their hits.  And since I was home at a reasonable hour, I was able to make it to yoga the next morning!  The whole experience more than made up for it also being my tax preparation weekend.

How bout  you?  How was your weekend (it was a big one for races – anyone race)?  Any good concerts lately?  Are your taxes done?  Do you watch the NCAA Basketball Tournament?  How many flies did I catch in my mouth?

PS – Today is the last day to vote for our video in the Earth Day contest.  Please vote “C”!!!! It’s the one with the little girl and a bag mobile.  Vote for “C” here: http://www.heb.com/page/offers-contests/earth-day-video-contest

-Scott