Jenna's House of Idiosyncrasies Version 10.0 [Focus.]

Note to self: buy earplugs for the Cotton Club. My ears are still ringing.

I have just returned from a Will Hoge show. I have the smell all over me, that wonderful club smell of cigarettes and alcohol and too many people in one room.

But to start from the beginning:

I almost did not get to go to this show. Maggie was to go with me but there was some unresolvable conflict and she couldn't anymore. I nearly cried, I bitched about it to Dad, I posted on Opium. At about 5:30 this afternoon, one of these things proved fruitful.

My mom called me when I was on a Wal-mart errand and basically said that she had heard about my predicament from Dad and since they were taking Sarah to Lilburn to see Shawn anyway that they could give me a ride. “You're personal friends with Will so you should be there.” (this made me laugh.)

YESSSSSSSS!!!

I hurried home and took a shower and soon we were on our way.

When I arrived the first of three openers-for-the-openers was playing. The first lead singer was way too fond of jumping up on the bass drum while he was singing to make himself taller... or something. Besides that they weren't too bad. The second band was way too heavy for this bill. The third was pretty cool, but, you must understand, by this time, I was so ready for Will Hoge.

One thing I must say about the Cotton Club: everyone was way. too. loud.

By the time they came on stage I had found several of “my people”, so I was not alone, and I had worked my way up to a spot that was fairly close, even if it was right next to a speaker. The sound was loud everywhere in the room, and standing right there almost made me dizzy.

Oh well. ROCK AND ROLL, right?

I have a signed setlist next to me with these songs:

Your Fool
Doesn't Have to Be That Way
Rock Star
Hey Tonite
Let Me Be Lonely
2nd Hand Heart
All Night Long

However the actual setlist went something like this:

Your Fool
Doesn't Have to Be That Way
Rock Star
Hey Tonite
She Don't Care
A Shame
2nd Hand Heart

Those boys never stick to the setlist.

Even with the loud loud sound and not being able to see Tres's face for the light right behind his head and the tragically short set it was awesome, because it is almost impossible for these guys to dissapoint me. And I was thrilled that “A Shame” was played because I love that song.

I tried to talk to them during Flickerstick, but as I said, um loud, so yeah, not much was said. I had to tell Tres something about how I work 14 hours a day, as if that means anything to him, but I had to recover from the “Stuff.” answer I gave to his “What's up?”

Forgive me.

Afterwards I did managed to get my setlist signed, and had nice, breezy conversations with all of them. Highlights:

Tres: “Are you leaving?”
Me: “Not yet, but soon.”
Tres: “Well let me know, because I have to give you a final hug, and there's no use wasting the final hug if you are not leaving yet.”

Awww.

Will: (points at my shirt) “I really like this, the white collar, the whole black and white thing.”
Me: “That's amazing, because I wore it just for you.” (this is only half-true. Or maybe completely true. But we will never know.)
Will: “That's good, that's good, you should wear that everytime from now on.”
Me: “Well I was wearing the Hokey Pokey shirt to every show and didn't even realize, and then my friend Maggie pointed it out and I was like ‘Jesus I've got to get more clothes!’” (he laughs)
Will: “You should have a shirt for each band, you know, a Will Hoge shirt, a Jump shirt... this'll be my shirt.”

OMG. Will Hoge likes my shirt.

::takes time to recover from teenybopper-like seizure::

I talked to Kirk about how niether of us could wait for them to get back on the road full-time. I talked to Brian about hearing how long his hair used to be. “I got rid of that fairly quickly.... Actually, I kept it for about 2 years. Why did I do that?... There are videos and everything.” I say “If that ever comes to light it will be the end of Will Hoge.” He laughs, “No just me. Will would kick me out.”

Yes, my friends, a good time was had by all, and I forgot all my problems, even if just for a little while.