Live on Stage!

This past week Shawn and I had the opportunity to go to the Snow Patrol concert. I had bought Shawn tickets to the concert for his birthday in June. We were first introduced to Snow Patrol through Smallville. We are big Smallville fans and they have had a few of their songs played on the show. When I saw they were coming to Phoenix, I thought it would be fun to see them LIVE.

The evening started with dinner at our local Hard Rock Cafe. Our family makes it a tradition to go to the Hard Rock wherever we are on vacation. It isn't that we love the food or anything, but it is fun to see how unique each one is. We also buy their Guitar magnet/bottle opener as a souvenir. Each magnet is especially made for that location...there is no two alike. Since we were going to be downtown we thought we would eat there, and pick up our magnet.

The restaurant was pretty cool, but Shawn ended up leaving upset. When we ordered our meal, Shawn got their regular hamburger that was only about $9. Of course the waiter asked Shawn if he wanted grilled onions, mushrooms, and avacados with it. Shawn said...'ok'. When the waiter walked off, I told Shawn that those were probably extra, and tell him that he changed his mind...but he didn't. When we got our bill...we were shocked to find out that he $9 burger was now $14. Shawn just wanted to short the guy his tip, but I didn't feel that was fair to the waiter. He needed to complain or just pay him what he deserved. When Shawn went to see if we could get a magnet -which they were out of :( ...I filled out the receipt. I probably shouldn't have, but I did. Shawn was mad because he thought it was a rip off. I have to agree that I think it each of those additional items were over a dollar, but I also feel like it was our responsibility to know what we are paying. If Shawn would have complained about the charge, and then shorted him...fine...atleast the guy would know. I just didn't think it was fair to only give the guy $2 and walk away hoping he would understand that we stiffed him because we felt we were overcharged. I don't know...it is over now, but Shawn wasn't too happy about it! What would you do in that situation?

After we stuffed ourselves we headed over to the Dodge Theatre for the concert. On our way in we filled out one of those things to go to a presentation for a time share. They gave us a free nights stay, $50 Visa card, $25 for dinner and a 5 night stay in Kawauii. We go to the presentation later in August...we figured it was worth sitting through a 90 minute presentation only to say 'no' and then get all that free stuff.

We went inside and found our seats. We were on the main floor about 29 rows back. It really was a great view. From what I hear, there really isn't a bad seat in the house. I just liked the fact that it was air conditioned! We got a security guard to take a picture of us in front of the stage before the show started. The banner in the backround says "Hot Hot Heat". They were the band that opened for Snow Patrol. I hadn't ever heard them before. I thought they were ok, but definately not one of my favorite bands. Shawn said that the lead sounded like Dori from Finding Nemo when she tried to talk to the whales.

Once Hot Hot Heat performed there was a break as they got the stage ready for Snow Patrol. After what seemed like forever...they finally came out on stage. The band is originally from the UK -- I think most of the members are either from Ireland or Scotland. The lead singer has an amazing voice and didn't dissapoint. We thouroghly enjoyed the show. In between cuts, Gary Lightbody (the lead singer), talked to the audience. This is a clip on what he thought about his stay here in Arizona. They had never been here before, and I think that it was a shocker to be exposed to our July heat. It was hilarious!

If you can't get the video to play you can view it HERE... the picture quality is not good, but it is what he says that is funny.

This is actually an excerpt from his blog on what Gary thought about Phoenix...again...it had me laughing.

Leaving the bursting heat of Phoenix, Arizona on the tour bus. Even walking the 100 yards to the bus from the hotel felt like the journey to the centre of the earth. How people not only live here but function too, in the 115-degree heat, is a mystery. It’s eighty degrees at nighttime. Nighttime! That’s when the sun is on the other side of the planet. I’m Irish of course so it’s no surprise I’m not used to the heat but even so this seems ludicrous. The people are lovely though and have a natural serenity that I suppose comes with living their lives at a necessarily slower pace.

Overall, it was just fun to go and hang out with the man that I love. I hadn't been to a concert in quite a while. I had a great time, and I think that Shawn did too.