And you know
We're on the road to paradise
Here we go, here we go"
My wife and I love to travel. I
always feel grateful when I can spend time in a foreign place. A certain
energy courses through my blood and my senses are heightened. These new
experiences have helped broaden my horizons and open myself up to things I used
to be afraid of and reject. One city I've been fortunate to spend more time in
since moving back to Virginia is New York City. I've thought a lot about this
city and the people I've meet up there during this crisis. The picture to
the left is one I took outside the Hudson Theater on 2/13/20. Little did I know this would be one of the last trips my wife and I would take for a while. Or that we left the city just before all this madness started breaking out. Our main catalyst for going was to experience what at the time was
the last weekend of David Byrne's American Utopia run on Broadway (it was later
announced he would be returning this fall and I hope that this will be possible
by then and if I'm financially able I hope to be there)
The first time I saw David Byrne
live was actually back in May of 2019 when he did a duet with Mavis Staples at her 80th Birthday celebration at the Apollo Theater (I’ll save that story for a
later post) They performed the Talking Head's tune "Slippery People."
Something about his energy that night reminded me that I need to finally see a full
performance by this guy. Lucky for me, shortly after he announced bringing his
American Utopia album to Broadway. With agreement from my partner in crime we planned
to make it happen a few months later.
We arrived in the city a few hours
before the show. We checked into our hotel on the familiar block in the Lower
East Side of Manhattan, grabbed a slice at Scarr's pizza (pizza may be a running theme in this blog) sipped on a beer at Top Hops Beer Shop and then got ready for the show.
I was fortunate to get tickets which included entry to The Ambassador Lounge
at the theater an hour before the performance. We enjoyed the ambiance of the cozy
room (Where we were informed that Elvis and Jane Fonda (not together) had spent some time in) and sipped on a couple of Old Fashioneds. We then grabbed the elevator to
head down to our seats.
The show was a vision to the eyes,
inspiring, and of course rocking. His message throughout the show was one of
positivity. I gathered that his American Utopia was one with less divide and
kindness. His banter and songs were about a person constantly evolving and cautioned being
stuck in one’s ways. To keep learning and adapting at all ages.(at least that's what I got from it) This is a
message I try to practice in my own life but of course can be challenging at
times and I still have work to do. If you would have told me five years ago I would not only eat but crave brussel sprout tacos I would've said... "You Cray!" As mentioned earlier
the traveling and openness to new ideas and people has spearheaded this new way of experiencing life (plus a shout out to my wife for the extra inspiration)
Okay today's song is one
that's been running through my head the past few weeks. As I look out my
window while working or when I'm hitting the pavement to get some air it's interesting to know that nobody is going anywhere. We're just
walking to walk and then turning back around to our respective homes....basically (sing it) we're on a Road
To Nowhere
Hang in there everyone and if you want
to enjoy a concert over the weekend the amazing "Stop Making Sense" is currently streaming
on Amazon Prime (check out the below video for a taste or revisit) RIP Bill Withers.
