Not those types of ends as shown in the title pic, although I guess those ends can start something, too. But(t) that’s a post for another day on another blog I run under the nom de plume of Lance Romance. For the purposes of this blog, lots of things are ending in my life right about now. This is a tough time of year for me mentally, but I have to force myself to not just look at what’s ending but also what’s beginning. For example, summer is definitely ending. The air is comfortably cooler and inconveniently wetter. So, what’s beginning? The painfully slow slide of autumn into three brutal months of winter. I really need to work on a more positive attitude. I guess I should look at the looming indoor winter months as an opportunity to get some writing done, like this blog more than once a month.

With the end of summer comes the end of outdoor summer concerts. I saw a few that I enjoyed this summer, but nothing was memorable. I had hoped I could squeeze in a couple more this summer. As I write this, I have free tickets tonight to a concert I thought I wanted to see, but instead I accompanied the family to Woodfield Mall, once the largest indoor mall in the USA when it opened. I was initially excited to score tickets to see Noel Gallagher of Oasis tonight in Chicago. I really like this recent song of his. But I got my n-names confused. It’s Neil Frances playing a free show in Chicago tonight. That’s what happens when you get old. Neil Frances becomes Noel Gallagher in my head but in reality is still Neil Frances, who is perfectly fine but not somebody I would make the effort to see.

I had a decision to make about seeing Blue Oyster Cult, the BoDeans, or REO Speedwagon recently for what most likely was to be the end of outdoor concerts for me in 2023. I was waffling (sans syrup) between BOC and REO. BOC would have required me to park elsewhere and take a shuttle bus to the concert grounds. That seemed like too much work, so I opted for REO which sold out a local 9000 seat facility right on the Fox River at $50 a head. I did the math and am amazed that 50+ year old REO Speedwagon still grossed almost half a million for the show! With the show sold out, parking was limited. So, I parked half a mile away (where’s a shuttle bus when I need one?), hiked to the river, and settled in across the river from the concert venue in my lawn chair to see (through a semi-obstructed view) and hear (nicely) REO’s full set for free. It was a mix of gritty 70’s bar band rockers and 80’s predictably pleasant arena anthems. But what was really fun to see was these three guys taking to the Fox River to get closer to the concert.