Taylor Swift Concert!

Okay, peeps.

We’re back in San Antonio after an EPIC weekend in DFW to…

SEE TAYLOR SWIFT IN CONCERT!!!!!!

Gahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!

Okay.

To rewind…A WHOLE LOT (and, also, BLESS the massively long text I sent Godmother Lisa during the drive home from Dallas today, because I’m so ever-loving exhausted, I’m stealing most of this from what I’ve already typed once, to her, ha).

So…I know people have strong opinions about Taylor Swift. In fact, younger bro and I just kind of avoid the subject (why she comes up in conversation with us on frequent occasions, I’ll never know). And older bro pretty much rolls his eyes, like: pop music?? What is that? Give me an opera. (I LOVE them both and can type these things since neither of them EVER reads this here blog).

That said. 

Even the most hardened cynic, who might have heard only odds and ends about her recording contract feuds or celebrity spats has got to admit: the woman is a musical genius, and if you say otherwise, you just haven’t listened to her full catalogue of music.

It’s just that simple.

Plus: there are very few current artists with catalogues so vast and so distinctive by musical era that you can just pick an album, any album, based on your mood, and she’ll have something to accommodate.

THEREFORE, her music has always been a default for the kiddos and I in the car and at home (along with a diverse smattering of loads of other artists and genres). She’s pretty much our baseline.

Welp. 

Because she’s an artist the kiddos know SO MUCH OF, I’d long ago told the hubby that if she ever did another tour (it’s been, like…six years?) that it would be a given I’d try and get tickets. 

I mean…what better first concert experience, because we ALL know that sooooo much of the joy in these types of experiences is: a) the ENERGY of a crowd of that magnitude, and b) knowing the MUSIC and participating!!

Anywho.

Back in the Fall, when Taylor announced her upcoming tour, I was lucky enough to hear from a friend at my Pure Barre class the pro tip of pre-registering to try and snag an early access code (a foreign concept to me), as that would pretty much be the only way to even attempt to get tickets.

I followed instructions, waited a couple months, and…lo and behold, I was shocked when I actually scored an access code by e-mail!

First obstacle down, as that step right there culled a lot of people out of the chance. 

Fast forward another few weeks and the day/time the ticket sales would be made accessible to those with the early access code (like us), and it was INSANE to hear of all the anticipation (for anybody who cared to follow along with the process, ha).

And. Well. You might have heard smatterings about this, but the demand was so insane, and some snafu with bots through the Ticketmaster system pretty much imploded the whole thing, and all day long, Swifties the world over were in an UPROAR.

Access codes weren’t working.

The online queues weren’t working. Or weren’t progressing.

People were kicked out of their online place in line after hours and hours.

Oodles and gobs of DISTRESS.

Meanwhile, I’d quietly logged in at the designated time, and launched my virtual queue (hey, my access code worked! MAJOR victory!), and assumed that would be that, and no tickets would be had. Especially as the news just ratcheted up and up and UP as this was all unfolding.

Anywho.

Throughout the day, I just occasionally refreshed my queue on my phone browser, never saw it inch forward in progress, and occasionally saw it inch backwards (GASP! And DESPAIR!), and kept at this ALL THROUGHOUT the day. But in a chill way. Like: welp, I tried.

And then…lo and behold, we were at the dinner table that night, talking about how I tried, and I refreshed my browser and…

BOOM!!! TICKETS!!!

After nearly NINE HOURS in the online queue, it spit me into the ticket process and was offering up seats (that were affordable! And not great but not heinous!), and, of course, you didn’t even get a choice regarding the city (you had to list your two city preference options in the early access process), or even a choice of dates, you just SNAGGED THEM. 

AND SO I DID!!!!

And the kiddos were screaming and I felt like a ROCKSTAR myself, for being one out of millions and millions of upset fans who didn’t get the chance to snag tickets!

Anyway…for the next 48 hours, it all unfolded hilariously with Ticketmaster being roasted for their fail in this process, some sort of SEC (I think?) investigation being launched into the monopoly that exists regarding concert venues/sales, and even Taylor, herself, blasting the situation, adding additional concert dates in an attempt to help, and then…turns out, tickets never even went up for sale to the general public, as they all were all snagged in the presale process. NUTS. Something like 2.4 million tickets were sold that day, breaking all sorts or records.

Needless to say (after all that background information that NONE of you reading this here blog actually care to know, ha)…we felt like we’d WON THE LOTTERY that we managed to get tickets, and that ratcheted up our excitement ALL THE MORE!! 

Now.

Fast forward to the last couple of weeks since the tour began and word started coming out about Taylor’s THREE PLUS hour set list (44 songs!!!), plus more than an hour of not one, but two opening acts, and I was like: this will NEVER WORK!

I was basically gaming out all sorts of ways to have the hubby take Chicklet and Little Man to the car if need be, so Chica could stay and finish the show. I was stressed about all sorts of things, and at the end of the day, I DIDN’T NEED TO BE!!!!!!!

The kiddos were IN IT TO WIN IT. I mean, all in, and ENTRANCED from the get-go (only tricky part was occupying them during the opening acts, who meant less than zero to them).

Also: it was HYSTERICAL to learn of their concert personalities! Chica and Little Man were WILD and dancing and singing and jamming; Chicklet was stone cold sober (she rarely sings along to things), but was so plugged in, watching EVERY SINGLE DETAIL. And it was just…magical.

First time for them in a stadium.

First time in a crowd of that magnitude.

Obviously, first concert! I mean…MAJOR.

We were handed these electronic bracelets as we walked in that pulsed and lit up different colors along with the songs throughout the whole show, and it was just INCREDIBLE.

There were fireworks and pyrotechnics, and just the general kind of technology and costume changes and drama that BLEW THEIR MINDS.

And I was so, so, sooooooo HAPPY that it all worked out and totaled up to an INSANE family memory and massive success (and the hubby tolerated it all because he loves us.

On a personal note: I had a moment, when Taylor had been wheeled backstage in this giant box to assume her position but conceal her whereabouts, and the stadium went wild, and the first rumblings of the opening song were beginning, and I just…UGH. I was overcome with the emotional JOY of it all.

This isn’t necessarily unique for me. I’m often overcome in situations involving music; it’s just, sort of one of my overwhelmed-but-in-a-wonderful-way things.

But this experience basically took THAT feeling, and amplified it by a frenzied crowd of tens of thousands, and…I totally started crying! No shame in admitting the happy tears. :) It was wonderful.

I can only hope my kiddos maintain some incredible snippets and memories from this magical, musical night of ours, out as a family, and then the time and money and effort will TOTALLY have paid of, tenfold!

And, yes, I totally bought us matching family t-shirts for the shindig.

And, yes, we took a gazillion pics (posted below).

And, yes, we were irresponsible parents, who had to take our kiddos out of a day of school.

And, yes, we absolutely didn’t make it back to the hotel and in to bed until 1 a.m., and then some FOOL pulled the fire alarm in the hotel and we had to evacuate around 1:45 a.m.

So…YES, we are totally wrecked today and Little Man may or may not have fallen asleep on the couch at 7:40 p.m. (and I’m surprised he lasted that long).

But, YES, it was all SOOOOOO WORTH IT!

Okay. ENOUGH typing! Enjoy the pics (that are acting a bit weird in draft form, so hopefully, they’ll post correctly).

Happy Post-Taylor Monday, peeps!

Over and out!

P.S. One final thing: Taylor is a performance SUPERSTAR, and in case I haven’t made it clear: the show, and not just the general experience of a show, was AMAZEBALLS.

In fact, we might have ruined the kiddos for life. They might NEVER experience a show to top this one. And they certainly might never experience one where they know 99.99% of all the words and music and can sing along!

Okay…now, really: over and out. :)