Twenty years. That's how long it had been since I last saw a particular band in concert. I wouldn't say they were ever my favorite band. In high school, that honor belonged to Nine Inch Nails, but this band was the very next set of CDs in my alphabetized wallet. (Nobody can ever say everything I listen to sounds exactly the same.) This band was up there, though, near the top of my favorites list. Way up there.

When I learned they were rolling through Pittsburgh, I figured what the hell? Tickets were only $10, so I could saunter in a little late, hang out for a few songs, and leave early without really wasting any money.

Yeah, right. I stayed for the whole show.

Anyhooooo, if you know the name of the band in the photos, that is in itself a confession of dorktitude. Recognition = knowledge = reason for mockery. So tread lightly when you mock me for going. Just sayin'.

Besides, at least I've changed clothes since the last time I saw them in concert.

Seriously. Where the hell do you find neon knee socks and leggings? There must be a whole generation of peeps who kept all their 80's stuff because that sort of thing was EVERYWHERE. I haven't seen so much neon, ripped denim, and side ponytails since Lisa Frank was adorning the front of my Trapper Keeper.

Some twitter friends and I met up at the show, and were sort of just standing around staring at the Fashion Crimes as we waited for The Band to hit the stage. We all had general admission tickets valid for sitting in the grass, but were in no hurry to find our way out there. Good thing, too, because all of a sudden security decided to open up the roof-covered pavilion to us cheap jerks.

There was a stampede.

*Insert really mean joke here. I totally admit, it's MEAN.*

We cautiously followed the herd of wild animals into the pavilion, and not a minute too soon. The skies opened up and IT POURED. We stayed dry because we are that kind of awesome.

As the skies cried over our collective dorktitude, the show finally started.

SQUEEEEE!

*ahem*

You gotta admit, some of the guys have held up pretty well over the years.

Shut up. I have to give bonus points because LET'S GO PENS!

Not long after the Beantown Boy made it clear that the Pens have the right stuff, Monkey Boy had a . . . uh . . . moment with the stage. It was AWKWARD.

But that was all forgotten the moment Blue Eyes popped up in the middle of the crowd. This is the moment when he saw me and realized the love of his life was still out there.

Coincidentally, that's the same moment when I realized that I REALLY need image stabilization on my 75-300mm lens so that I could have better photographic evidence that he still loves me best.

You should probably be grateful that I was too cheap to buy a lens with image stabilization. Otherwise, you'd be looking at a very clear photo of the Old Man's pooper.

It sucks that he's older than me. I can't really yell at my elders to pull up their pants, you know.

I can, however, use my Mom Powers to make note of something significant. There seems to be one member of The Band who is not all that cool with being there. I recognize the signs because my own dear sweet child does this same thing. You see, when Alexis finds herself in the midst of a crowd and gets uncomfortable, she tries to make herself invisible by hiding her face in her shoulder. It's as if she thinks that if she can manage to avoid making eye contact with anyone, it'll be like she isn't there.

Check this out:

"You can't make me look up."

"La, la, la. There are only four guys on stage because you can't see me if I don't look up."

"I'm still not here. Carry on."

I don't know. Maybe Jonathan has some sort of neck condition that causes his left ear to be permanently attached to his left shoulder? Either that, or he's trying REALLY hard to not make eye contact with anyone. If he doesn't see you, you can't see him. Just ask Alexis, she'll confirm that is how it works.

He could probably teach her how to hide in some fog, I suppose. He's got mad skills when it comes to that.

Overall, I have to admit it was a pretty good show. There were some minor-ish issues with the crowd (For example, there is a bounty out on the chick that was trying to get busy with my left leg and left arm. OMG, how hard is it to respect personal space? WTF? Do people really need to give me a lap dance at a concert?). The newer music from The Band kinda sucks because it's all pervy sounding (e.g. 40-somethings REALLY shouldn't be singing about giving a girl Full Service. I'M JUST SAYIN'.), but the old stuff? Just as good as ever.

Commence the mocking in 3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . .