The One With The Weekend

 

 

Tonight, we went to see the Weeknd in concert at Gillette Stadium. Now, truth be told, I like the Weeknd  and all, but he would not necessarily be the guy I'd plan to go out and see in concert. But, my expectations were truly blow away by his performance that night.

So a few things. First, we learned from seeing Ed Sheeran that it was best to get tickets for parking ahead of time...which we did. We were able to park outside of the stadium (which was awesome at the beginning, but led to an hour wait to get out at the end). We also learned that it is a good idea to stay over, so we did book a room at a nearby hotel.

We got there and got our bearings. Fortunately, there was no rush for seats. Doja Cat was supposed to be the opener, but she got sick, so they had a couple of DJs opening up. One of the DJs we missed while getting water and souvenirs - Emmie always has to do that. The second one was good with some 80s music mixed in, but the graphics in the background were a little wacky.

Once the Weeknd went on, it was clear that this was no ordinary concert. The Weeknd was a story teller. He shared a magnificent story about a city that seems to be under attack by some unseen force (in actuality, it is probably not that at all). He had dancers that seemed to mimic the Imperial Guard from Star Wars...if the guard had rhythm. And, he had a giant moon opposite the stage. It was IMPRESSIVE.

He shared one song after another - blending them melliflously (I've always wanted to use a variation of that word in print). Spectacular light shows and pyrotechnics helped tell his story. And the ending, with Blinding Lights, sealed the deal. It was one of the best concerts I had ever been to. WOW!

The One With Thor: Love and Thunder

 

Yesterday, we saw Thor Love and Thunder. To be honest, I wasn't too sure what to expect. Although Thor is always an amazing superhero in the Avengers movies, I am not always a big fan when it comes to the stand alone movies. I wasn't too enthused about the first Thor. Although the Dark World was okay, it was not my favorite. I liked Ragnarok, but wasn't a huge fan.

 

But, Love and Thunder was different. It was definitely my favorite Thor standalone movie. I have to admit that they have definitely made Thor more comic relief now, and that shown through definitely in this movie. In fact, I laughed out loud a lot - sometimes being the only one in the theater. The sound track with 80s metal rocked as well.

 

There were definitely cliffhangers left in this movie, too, which makes we wonder which direction it will go. Overall, a good experience and the last of my three summer movies that I wanted to see (Maverick and Jurassic World Dominion being the others, which we saw in June). It was crazy getting in and old because we saw it in Metheun in what happened to be Metheun days (the theater actually closed early because Metheun had fireworks last night. We didn't stay for those, but we were able to definitely enjoy the show!!!

The One With the Red Sox Game

 

 It is 11:08 PM and 15 minutes ago we got in from a Red Sox game. Although the Red Sox lost to the Rays 8-4, the game was perhaps the best I have been to for many reasons.

 

1. We realized if we left at 3:15 for a 7:10 game, we had plenty of time to get in. Traffic, though a little tough because of Rush Hour, was awesome! We were able to get through Kenmore Square rather easily and found a parking lot just past (and down in the back left) of where we normally park. So much easier to get out of.

2. We went to Cask and Flagon. It was the first time we had been there as a family. It was not too crowded when we got there (about 2 1/2 hours before the game, but was picking up by the time we left).

3. Emmie was very excited because this was PEANUTS Bobblehead Night. We were able to track down where to get them - which was cool - and now we all have a Linus Bobblehead.

4. We also learned that Emmie has to check prices on Red Sox apparel more carefully. WOW!!!

3. We took some pictures of different World Series tributes, including the tribute wall and the 2007 and 2004 championship. We choose 2007 because that was the year Bri was born and 2004 because that was the year we were married.

5. We got to our seats early and were able to see pregame festivities and even saw a 10 year old girl do an AMAZING job with the National Anthem.

6. The flag was blowing out - which meant it was going to be a hitter's game. We saw the Red Sox fall down 3-0 early, but they came back by hitting 2 home runs to tie the game. It was awesome to see two homers, one hit by Xander Bogearts and the other hit by Trevor Story.

7. We saw two spectacular catches on the wall, one by the Rays and one by the Sox (we saw the Sox one while getting ready to leave on the TV).

8. We saw a great stolen base by Jarren Duran.

10. The crowd did the wave in two directions and it actually went all the way around the park in one direction crossing over once.

11. One kid kept saying "I want a pitcher, not a belly itcher" which was hilarious. That kid will have no voice in the morning.

12. We saw people get kicked out of a section for drinking alcohol (we ended up in the CVS family section, which, apparently, has strict rules about that).

13. We saw Nick Pivetta hit Yandy Diaz with a pitch, which caused a quick shouting match and benches started to empty. It quickly got under control. However, the ensuing booing that happened introduced Kiff to booing at Fenway Park. The home plate umpire also got booed during the game for a really faulty strike zone. It stunk!!!

14. There was an awesome tribute to Luis Tiant - who was also there. We sent a pix to Mark because it was his birthday and also had Bri and Kiff look at his wind up.

15. We saw a marriage proposal on the Jumbotron, which I have never seen in person.

16. We did have rain fall several times throughout the course of the game.

17. Perhaps the most epic thing - of a great night at the park - was the fact that the ushers asked us if we wanted to move closer around the 6th inning. Though we had thought we would take off because of the approaching rain, we decided to go down and it did not disappoint. We were on the 3rd place side behind home plate, thirteen rows up...the best seats I ever sat in. It was amazing.

The One With the Fourth of July

 

This Fourth of July, some normalcy came back into our lives. After a two year COVID hiatus, the Highlands Horribles parade returned. It was a lot of fun to see the parade come back. Although it was only a handful of entries, and it passed by in five minutes, just having them on the street was amazing!!!

 We tried to check out to see if the Back Bay parade was up and running, but it seemed we had missed it. It looked similar to the Highlands parade...just a small group. But great to have back.

 Later, we went to an event I have always wanted to go to, but never went to - the noontime reading of the Declaration of Independence. Held at the library, we were surprised to find out his is an audience participation event. They actually ask people to come to the library pavillion to read. Some of the hosts saw Kiff and Bri and asked them to participate. Though Bri did not, Kiff did and he did a fine job. It turned out the Bri and Emmie and I eventually participated as part of the "group read" of the last part of the Declaration. It was a fun time. And, we had a nice picture captured by the Danvers Human Rights Committee.

We capped off the night by watching the Pops on TV...always fun!!!

The One With the Gloucester Fireworks

 

 

Earlier tonight, we headed over to the Gloucester Fireworks. We had learned last year that this display was one of the  most epic that we had ever seen - Disney excluded. So,we decided to go back and check them out again. And it did not disappoint.

The air was warm, with a slight breeze. which made it fun to watch. The display itself was extraordinary. There were several mini-conclusions with multiple explosions in them. And, there were a few drones that added some extra drama as they ventured closed to the explosions. Along with that, there were a few fireworks that did exploded low in the sky and drifted to the ground, which added heightened intensity. But, overall, it was an AWESOME show.

We did sit closer to the ocean this time than last year (where we were on top of the hill). While the hill goers get to see the fireworks right above them, I think we sat in a particularly good place where we could watch them explode in front of us instead of over us. Definitely something to do again.

A couple of things we learned:

1. Make sure to bring insect spray.

2. Make sure not to park in the lot...instead, park along the road heading out (which is where we parked last year). It makes it easier to get out.

3. Watch where Google Maps takes you...we went a wacky way out down a dark road with few street lights. But, it made for an interesting memory.

 Overall, another great fireworks display!!!