Sunday, May 20, 2007

Live - at the Lubbock County Line!!

Saturday found me at yet another charity shoot. There was one Friday, as well, but I just had to say no, stay in the office, and get some work done! The weather was cool, friendship was great, and it was awesome to just go out and shoot, be with my friends and peers and have a good day.

After the shoot, I came into town, picked up MLH, and we helped a friend move his daughter back home. Then, we rushed home, took showers, and headed to Lubbock to meet some dear friends at Rockfish for supper.

With our friends, we headed out towards Levelland to this little bar called the County Line. Yup, we went to a bar. Reason? To watch Elder Son and his band play and sing. (Younger Son would have loved to tag along, but he was on a mid-semester break and traveled to Atlanta to see friends he intially met at National and Global Youth Leadership Conference in Washington D.C. a couple of years ago.)

We drive up into a muddy parking lot. Great. Wonder what it looks like inside? I don’t miss my bar-hopping days.

At. All.

Ever.

We go in, the guys are already playing. We’re VIP’d at the door (for a second, I thought of people like, ummm, Paris Hilton – Nicole Richie – Lindsey Lohan.) I’m feeling pretty special.

And then the bouncer says , “Oh, I know you! Come on in! You’re ES’ mom!”

Back to reality.

Outside of staff, there are about 15 people there. It’s 10:00 o’clock. And that’s when they started playing. (I may be too old for this!) The inside is nice, with a great dance floor and plenty of space and ambiance. Just a good ol’ country bar, complete with a huge open garage door at the back. And it wasn’t smoky! (Okay, maybe I can do this.)

The guys sounded good. Every time we hear him, we continue to be amazed at how much Elder Son has improved in his playing and singing. Some of Elder Son’s roommates were there, and other friends, as well, including the young man whose life Elder Son rescued in March. As the night progressed, more people came in, and there was a large table of parents on one side of the dance floor. The music was great and the band interacted well with the audience. We were seated with Elder Son’s friends, and had a great time. His friends are so great – one of the girls graduated today from Texas Tech and will be going on to pursue her audiology degree. Lots of excellence in these young people – pursuing finance, nursing, law degrees, etc. These friends have continually surrounded him, follow him to every gig, and watch out for him.

I felt that was happening, but it was great to have it confirmed. I’m glad he’s surrounded and they care for him.

This was the first time the band had played this venue. The proprietors were well pleased with the band and the draw, and asked me to send pictures for their wall of fame.

And us old geezers? We got in way too late, but a great time was had by all.

5 comments:

Karen Townsend said...

I can't remember the last time I was in a bar and I like that just fine! Been there,done that.

Foo said...

That sounds really cool, Janie. Except for the muddy boots, I mean.

I'm with you in feeling old, but it recently dawned on me that it's not so much that I can't stay up past 10 any more as the fact that I have to get up at 5:20am. If I were still at a stage in my life when I could loll about in bed until 9 or 9:30 (or noon), then I guess I'd still be staying up late.

Would I still be bar hopping? Probably not, except for the periodic karaoke outing. My tinitis reminds me of the errors of my youth, and I even wear earplugs when doing yard work, now. And I have to watch my weight so as not to put undue strain on my bad back, so I can't be staying out late and drinking $5 beers any more. The motivation's not there either. All my friends have families and wouldn't be allowed out (even if they wanted to), and since I've already caught my limit, there's no honorable reason I should be out trolling.

Even if I weren't so old and funny-looking as to be of no interest.

It would have been cool to share your pride at seeing ES perform, though. Thanks for sharing.

That Janie Girl said...

Karen - It's not my usual hangout either, but you know you gotta follow your kiddos' dreams!;)

Foo - the sound wasn't loud, or anything. It was great! And I'm a big proponent of custom-fit hearing protection. I got into that shooting, and now the little stick-in hearing protection just doesn't do the trick for me. It's probably all a mind deal, but, you know.

And bars are for trolling? Surely you jest! ;)

Rae said...

You'll have to record them sometime on your camera. It would be like being there, without being there LOL.

That Janie Girl said...

Rach - actually, you'll be glad to know I got a new video camera. And I recorded them.

Now if I can just figure out how to download the darn thing! ;)