Looking At A Taylor Swift Concert Through 51 Year Old Eyes

Taylor Swift (Photo credit: jennnnnyf)

Today is the big day. Taylor Swift is coming to town for a concert. I’ll be there, working.

Here is a list of things I know about Ms. Swift:

• Swift is a cool name. I would like to see someone who weighs 500 lbs named Swift. Their life would be such a lie.
• Ms. Swift has that one song about the boy who lives next to the nerdy girl who likes him. She’s skipping the prom to study. Then she decides to take off her glasses, put on a dress and fall by the prom. Because she is radiant without her glasses, the boy digs her.
• This one isn’t about Taylor Swift: I, too, am radiant without my glasses.
• Whoever she dates becomes a matter of public record.
• The Vatican has said that each potential pope was asked if he had ever dated Taylor Swift. On the third vote, they found a candidate who said no…and there was much rejoicing.
• It is said that she is very nice and cares about her fans.
• Teenaged girls make up most of Ms. Swift’s fan base.

Most of my readers are not teenaged girls. I believe that few, if any of you, will ever see a Taylor Swift show. As a public service to you, I will be blogging my impressions of the event from inside the arena.

Yes, for as long as my phone battery lasts, I will add to this post from the concert. If you have questions you’d like me to answer, feel free to leave them here now. Check back throughout the evening for answers to your questions and my updates on the proceedings as they happen.

Update – just drove by the arena at 10am. There are already people at the loading dock. The show isn’t for nine hours.

Update – 1030. On my way out of downtown. This truck and 20 more just like it, plus a bunch of buses parked a few blocks away. Apparently this is not a “slip quietly into town” kind of thing.

Update – passed the arena one more time before regular shift ended. 75-100 people, mostly young, waiting at the loading dock. Two had some sort of fur apparatus on their head and back. I can’t account for that.

Update – 3:55 let’s get dressed and go to work, shall we?

4:08, on my way

Update – 4:40- I’m in. Wheeeee!

4:50 – working outside a bit. Uniform of the day seems to be a dress and cowboy boots. Who decides these things and does a memo go out?

5:00 – I see a man in the parking lot across the street. He is wearing a purple smock looking thing and something gold in his head. I ask about him. “Oh he is at the shows a lot. He’s dressed as Taylor’s perfume bottle.” Yeah, that’s not odd.

6:00. Back inside. Sales at the bars appear slow. There are not many men here. This is the house of estrogen.

6:30 – I forgot to bring my granola bar. If anyone has an extra and can bring it is appreciate it. I’m wearing blue. I’m radiant if I take my glasses off.

6:40- it’s a happy crowd. Everyone is nice.

6:50 – opening act starts ten minutes early. When has that happened before? Never.

Also, god bless whoever invented foam ear plugs. I’m going with orange and purple tonight because I’m funky like that. Everything I do gon’ be funky from now on.

7:10 – apparently the opening act has an opening act.

A lot of signs etc say 22. Are they all Emmet Smith fans?

8:00 – opening act over.

I see a few comments but can’t pull them up. Not ignoring anyone.

Men’s rooms converted to women’s. still big lines.

8:15. There is the guy dressed as the perfume bottle. There should be someone following him dressed as a restraining order.

8:26 – posed for a picture with one of the ushers. He doesn’t think I’m funny.

8:30 – show starting. There’s a little screaming.

I don’t know this song. Think she knows anything by The Band? Maybe “The Weight?” Come on, everyone can sing that.

8:36 there is a big video screen which mostly focuses on her head. She does this odd thing of looking at the crowd.

She has on red shoes. Please don’t sing angels wanna wear my red shoes.

8:50. She changes clothes? Who does that?

Crowd sings along. That’s always a happy sound. Happens a lot to me too.

One song, second clothes change. What the hell?

9- 4th outfit. Stop it.

Univ of Florida Gulf Coast upsets Georgetown in NCAA tournament. Gotta love ESPN score center app.

Hate Georgetown.

945- same clothes. At least five songs. So sloppy.

Now two outfits in one song. Happy crowd. That’s very cool, even when I don’t know any songs.

10:00. When is the Eric Clapton show? How many outfits will he wear?

I’m hungry.

10:07 tv in the hall has soccer game between USA and Costa Rica. It is snowing like hell. If you’re Costa Rica, why would you schedule a game where that can happen. Guy singing anthem. His nose is running.

Back inside. She’s changed clothes. I’ve lost track.
And again.

10:15- apparently she and someone are not ever ever ever getting back together. Please let her be talking to me.

Are sparks and confetti a good idea? It just seems to tempt fate, or fire or something.

Show ends without an encore. Whoa.

Everyone leaves happy. That’s a good night. Not what I’d like to see, but we don’t all like the same thing.

Ok. Going home. Going to change clothes 12 times and hit the sack.

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