tear the map and shoot the sign*

My trip to Pennsylvania sort of did a number on our finances. I helped pay for food and gas. And I bought lottery tickets in every place that sold them (we didn't win, obviously). To be honest, I didn't do much erroneous shopping. I bought a couple of $5 tops at Old Navy along with a couple of tank tops. That went on my Old Navy card and cost me a whopping $25. (I wound up with four shirts and three tanks.) At any rate, once we got back home I went into a sort of funk. I didn't feel like doing much of anything which included grocery shopping and cooking. We ate out a lot for the first couple of weeks after I returned. Money down the drain. I hate eating out!

I priced Metallica tickets after I got back and really wasn't sure if I should purchase them. The Monkey has been pretty wishy washy about it, too. So I left Well Enough alone and hadn't thought about it at all for a couple of weeks.

Then, the other night, I had a crazy vivid dream starring...ehem...James Hetfield -- lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for Metallica. It was an interesting dream. I'm not sure how my brain managed to concoct such vividry but the whole dream was full color, surround sound... the works. The best kind of dream.

When I woke up I immediately checked our bank account. We're not doing too shabby and The Monkey should get around a $200 bonus at the end of the month. I just can't see passing up this opportunity. I really can't. Metallica has been around for a long, long time. They've been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. They are well within my top five favorite bands and The Monkey's favorite band of all time.

So, after a look at our account, I began scouring the Internet for the cheapest tickets humanly possible. The cheapest I could find were around $80 a piece. But there were a couple of problems with these tickets. When I first found out that they'd be [semi] local I told myself that I didn't care how crappy the seats were, I just wanted to go to a concert and see them live! The Monkey agreed. But after much careful research, I learned that St. Pete Times Forum (Tampa, FL) is, primarily, a sports arena. They host mostly hockey games from what I gather. For whatever reason (perhaps Metallica's sheer popularity) they are hosting the concert as an "in the round" setup. Meaning the stage will be positioned in the center of the arena floor. The major problem with that is not knowing which side of the stadium the band will be facing. It would really suck to be looking at the back of their heads for the entire show. Further research brought me to a nifty site called SeatData. The site gives you an estimated view from any given section of the venue. The tickets I priced were for Section 311 (read: nosebleeds). As you can see from the photo, the view is less than desirable. Not to mention we're still unsure whether or not we'll be on the "right side" of the venue.

GRR.

The Monkey has been fairly adament about going to see them on Saturday in Tampa, FL vs. Sunday in Atlanta, GA. Despite the fact that we'd only have to stay overnight ONE night vs. TWO nights. Despite the fact that Tampa is almost twice as far from us as Atlanta. All because he doesn't want to ask for a day off, especially a Monday.

Well I say to HELL with that. We can spend less money, total, if we go see them in Atlanta and still get MUCH better seats! So now I'm talking to A (The Monkey's boss) about giving him October 5th off so we can go. He's giving plenty of notice so I don't see why it would be a problem. And he has the leave time also.

It's becoming harder and harder to resist the urge to purchase tickets. I just cannot see passing up, what may very well be, the opportunity of a lifetime. Who knows if they'll release another album. And, if they do, who knows if they'll go on tour again? I'm especially excited after seeing what they've been playing at previous shows on this tour. It doesn't seem to be favored much, but I'm crossing my fingers that they'll play Fade to Black.

So provided The Monkey is able to get October 5th off, I think we'll definitely be going. Yes. And I am muchly excited!



*Metallica - Carpe Diem Baby