Charlotte Checkers v Springfield Thunderbirds @ Bojangles Coloseum

Staying home for Memorial Day Weekend, we decided to cheer on the Checkers on our Saturday night.  Bought a Family 4 Pack of tickets, which put us up in the nose bleeds, close to halfway.

The Checkers started really well, and I thought the first goal for Springfield was against the run of play.  Once they scored, Springfield picked up the intensity and with a 2-0 lead in the series, they looked like they wanted this done in 3 games to get a rest before moving on.  The 2nd period was a little sloppy from both teams, but another goal from Springfield crushed the home town support's hope.  A positioning mistake from goalie, Joey Daccord, early in the 3rd period but the nail in the coffin for the Checkers.  Even when we got a goal with 6 minutes to go, we were already down 4-1, and the goal was a minor blight on Thunderbirds Goalie, Joel Hoffer's, excellent game.  Springfield finished the scoring with an open net, as the Checkers went searching for a comeback.  

I don't know if the boys are making me watch too much hockey on tv, or if tonight's game was played at a slower pace, but today's game is the first that I've been able to follow the puck quite easily.  Now I just got to understand the rules a little better.

Springfield Thunderbirds 5 (N. Alexandrov, H. McGing, J. Neal, D. Joshua, M. MacEachern) defeated Charlotte Checkers 1 (M. McCormick).

Crowd: 7,925

Paul McCartney @ Truist Field at Wake Forest

I have been so excited for this day for 11 years.  More so the last month when we bought tickets for the boys' birthday.  This is B&L's first concert, and if you're going to a first concert, you may as well start at the top.

We left the house at 4.30pm for the drive up to Winston-Salem, the plan being to stop for dinner and get to the venue with plenty of time for the 8pm start.  Not all went to plan.  About half way there the heavens opened up.  Not just rain, but drive-25-miles-an-hour-with-hazards-on rain.  It was still pouring when we reached Winston-Salem and not favorable to getting out of the car and into a restaurant, so we opted for Chick Fil A.  Problem Number 2:  For some reason our order took forever - the type of time that gives Dad anxiety cause we are going to be late.  It was 4 miles from there to the venue, but traffic was at a stop 2 miles out.  We spent the next 45 minutes crawling 1/2 a mile before deciding to park in a strip mall and walk the rest of the way.  It ended up being a good choice.  Crowds this big are obviously not that common here, because getting into the venue and then to our seat were just as big a nightmare.  

But we made it - right at 8pm, but because everyone was still getting in, McCartney didn't get on stage until 8.40pm.  By this point the boys were exhausted but still hyped.  They love the Beatles, it's their first show, the crowd was pumped.  They were running on pure adrenaline.

Can't Buy Me Love started the show and set high hopes for the evening.  While I loved Got To Get You Into My Like and Let Me Roll It, and A loved all of it, the boys didn't know much Wings or less popular Beatles songs and I thought we might be losing them.  The boys like seeing Johnny Depp and Natalie Portman signing My Valentine on video, but Love Me Do halfway through set saw their interest begin to peak again.  Blackbird was beautiful, Lady Madonna had us rocking again, and Paul on the George Harrison-gifted ukulele playing Something was a unique take on the song.  We called Robbie & Toby for Get Back, and then Nanny for Band On The Run (there were tears all round).  Let It Be was 3rd to last in the set.  Live and Let Die was as spectacular as you would expect, complete with fireworks.  Then to finish, the 31,000-odd-crowd singalong, Hey Jude.  The last 3 songs the same as when I saw him at Coachella in 2009.

I had been watching the setlist from his previous show and it had been the same, so when he came back for an encore, after a very brief break, we decided to see 3 songs before bailing before the crowd.  He played I've Got A Feeling, along with John from video footage taken from the Get Back documentary.  Birthday.  I told the boys I asked him to play this as this was their birthday present - they aren't as gullible as they used to be.  When Helter Skelter finished we headed for the exit and were out before the masses.  During The End fireworks were launched again, and we watched from the parking lot.

LDM&B at Paul McCartney

The boys were a little stoic afterwards and I was worried they hadn't enjoyed it, but both said they loved it.  That couldn't make me happier.  I don't remember much about the performance of my first concert - Abba in 1977 as a 4 year old - but I remember experiences.  Being with my mum and Trish.  Standing on my seat to see above everyone (it didn't help).  Wearing my Abba socks.  The pending doom of rain (the night before had been a monsoon) and bailing out at the end because I was scared of the fireworks.  I hope the boys remember more about Paul McCartney, and lead them to enjoying live music as much as I do.

Paul McCartney Setlist

The Crap Facts:
This is my 475th concert.
Truist Field at Wake Forest is the 130th venue I've seen a show at

Winston-Salem is the 54th city I've seen a show in.
This is my 109th show in North Carolina.
This is my 278th concert in the US.
This is my 2nd Paul McCartney Show.

Hamilton @ Belk Theatre

 

I'm ready!  After all the hype, we are finally getting to see Hamilton.  This is A's Xmas present and the first time we've been to a show since Come From Away 2 years ago.

After a quick bite at Rooster's, and some people watching out the front, we went into our seats at the back of the Orchestra level.  It's a full house (as I expected), but noticeably groups of women dominated the theatre.  But also thrown in with a good mix of couples and families.

An historical-politically-themed-rap-musical!  How was that initially pitched?  Because it's like nothing else I heard of in musicals.  

For me - I enjoyed it.  Great story, (even though it is not a history I know - I wonder how well this plays overseas?), great set and well performed by a great cast.  Though it had too much musical formula in it i.e., the old 3 people singing different songs at the same time and songs with the same melody you could sing to most other musicals I've seen.  Having said that, A loved it! (which is most important), as did the rest of the audience as a whole.

Very rarely is there such a thing as a bad night out, and we had fun tonight - which has been rare in the last 2 years.  Would I go and see it again?  If I had to.  Would A?  Probably tomorrow.

Gang Of Youths @ The Underground

So tonight I am getting my expat on.  I know nothing of the music of Gang of Youths, except that they're Aussies, so I'm gonna check them out.

A good size crowd at the Underground (shame it's a Live Nation venue, otherwise it'd be perfect).  I had no idea they had this good a following - but that's cause I'm old and not up to date with a lot of new music.  And people were into it!  From the first song the crowd was singing and dancing and hanging off every word.  Charismatic frontman, David Le'aupepe, has a great presence on stage, from rugby-player-confident-but-not-necessarily-good-dancer to great between song banter (Though what's this "We're from London" crap).  And his passion for the songs definitely show through in his performance.  "Brothers" - the solo song on the piano - was a standout for me.  Really personal outpouring on his and his family's life.  It was emotionally draining for the crowd - I'm not sure how he does it night after night in front of a bunch of strangers.  Two song later when "Unison" mentions North Carolina in the first line the status quo of rocking out resumes.  "Goal of the Century" finished the set, which had relied heavily on their latest album, Angel In Realtime.  

In short I had a great night.  The irony is Gang Of Youths would not be a band I'd normally listen to, but live, they were great  Had they not been Australian I would've missed this great show, same if I'd heard their music beforehand.  But I do love to see an Aussie band get some recognition around the world and while he claimed the show as a home town gig (cause his wife is from Wilmington, NC) it was also fun watching the crowd sing along word for word.

Gang of Youths setlist

The Crap Facts:

This is my 474th concert.
This is my 7th concert at The Underground.
This is my 92nd show in Charlotte.
This is my 108th show in North Carolina.
This is my 277th concert in the US.
Gang Of Youths are the 549th band I've seen.

The Darkness @ Neighborhood Theatre

So in complete contrast to last night, tonight the Neighborhood Theatre was packed.  I arrived during the first song and had problems finding a spot to watch the show.  I settled for a spot on the side of the stage.  I usually like to be in front, but there was no chance of that tonight.

I'll admit I was here for 1 song - the only one I knew - but The Darkness were a band well worth seeing.  Their showmanship was second to none.  From the cock rock moves (guitar solos walking to the front of the stage, strumming and pointing, the outfits) to the great banter with the crowd to the energy driving song after song performance, there was barely a still person in the house all night long.  

While I didn't know any songs, I really liked Friday Night and the show finishing Get Your Hands Off My Woman.  And of course the 1 song encore of I Believe In A Thing Called Love was what I was here for.  And it didn't disappoint!  Stopping the song early to encourage the crowd to put away their phones and cut loose - the audience willingly obliged, leaving everyone in a sweaty mess as they left the venue abuzz.  

I remember umming and ahhing about seeing the Darkness 4 years ago when they played the Underground.  For reasons I can't remember, I didn't go.  In hindsight that was probably a bad decision.  I read an article a couple of days ago quoting Gene Simmons saying that rock is dead.  He obviously hasn't seen a Darkness show lately.

The Darkness Setlist

The Crap Facts:
This is my 473rd concert.
This is my 9th concert at Neighborhood Theatre.
This is my 91st show in Charlotte.
This is my 107th show in North Carolina.
This is my 276th concert in the US.
The Darkness are the 548th band I've seen.

Cat Power & Arsun @ Neighborhood Theatre

Cat Power is back in Charlotte.  3 years after she killed it at the Underground, Power is at the half full  Neighborhood Theatre this time.

I got there early enough to walk in as the opener, Arsun, took the stage.  With so few people here I went and stood against the barrier just right of center as Arsun warmed up the crowd for 1/2 an hour.  Acoustic rhythm, electric lead and bass played southern folk music that is really prevalent around Charlotte (and the south in general).  Nothing jumped out at me, but I enjoyed it (considering this is not what I'd normally listen too).

We waited a good 45+ minutes for Cat Power to grace us, despite a quick turnaround by the stage crew.  But obviously it was well worth it!  Her band started a quiet jam before Power slinkily crept onto stage.  So quiet was the crowd in anticipation, I could here her footsteps on the stage as she approached the microphone.  Again Power used dimly lit backlight, added to the mystery of her songs and performance.  To see her close up again (though even closer this time) was mesmerizing.  Her voice is divine and her passion shows through in her voice and movement.  An all round performance.  I got the new Covers album last month for my birthday and most of the songs I recognized were off this album.  These Days, A Pair Of Brown Eyes and Here Comes A Regular were favorites of the night from that album.  (I was hoping for Nick Cave's I Had A Dream Joe, but I'll have to wait until she comes through again.  Hate is a favorite song of mine, and her reworking to Unhate is just as good.  The Greatest and The Moon were icing on the cake for me.

As the night went on Power loosened up.  Playing to the women dancing stage left, greeting an old friend and bumming a cigarette off the audience is her between song banter.  There is no better voice than Cat Power in my opinion.  Her songs and performance will take you away from day to day life and land you in a serene beauty.  I am already keen to see her again.

Cat Power Setlist

The Crap Facts:

This is my 472nd concert.
This is my 8th concert at Neighborhood Theatre.
This is my 90th show in Charlotte.
This is my 106th show in North Carolina.
This is my 275th concert in the US.
Arsun are the 547th band I've seen.

This is my 2nd Cat Power concert.

Emerald Isle, NC

In an effort to go somewhere different for Spring Break we took the boys out to Emerald Isle this year to have a look around.  We took the route via Wilmington, and stopped for lunch at Anne Bonny's, and a quick look around town before heading on to our Airbnb.  While the weather is not right, we are right on Emerald Isle Beach.  Good enough for the boys to get their feet wet in the windy weather.

On our first full day we drove up to New Bern to the Tryon Palace, NC's original Governor's home.  A guided tour through this 250 year old site shed light on things not even Amy knew about North Carolina.  The home was restored to its current form in 1945 and the gardens are beautiful to walk through.  A stop at MJ's Raw Bar for lunch took longer than to walk around town.  Though we did spend a bit of time in the Pepsi store - New Bern is the birth place of Pepsi.  Because lunch was so big, dinner was at the casual Fish Hut back on Emerald Isle.

DBA&L, Tryon Palace, New Bern, North Carolina

Day 2 is a cracker!  We head north on the isle to go and check out Fort Macon.  Before we go in we do a 3-mile hike in the marsh land and along the beach right near the fort.  It's a picturesque walk, but it's nice to get into the Fort and cool down and look around. Completed in 1834, Fort Macon was needed to protect the North Carolina inlet and was used by the Confederates in the Civil War before being bombarded and captured by the Union.  The fort only had 43 years of military use, and was completely abandoned by 1903.  In 1924 North Carolina claimed it to be a state park, and though leased by the army during World War II, the park was returned to the state in 1946.

To combat the seriousness of the morning we stopped at Professor Hacker's Mini Golf at Salters Beach on the way home.  The US Open it wasn't, but a fun afternoons golf for all.

We had at Surf's Up Grill tonight, sitting up at the bench looking out over the water.  The perfect spot!  Looking out over the Atlantic right next to the pier, where families strolled and fished.  It was just casual bar food, but a nice end to a fun day.

ML&B, Surf's Up Grill, Emerald Isle, NC

On our last day we drove around to Beaufort, where we jumped on a boat over to Shackleford Banks.  This barrier island has 100's of wild horses, believed to be ancestors of Spanish Mustangs dating back to the 1500's, roaming the island.  The ferry drops you on the beach at the north-western end of the island, about 45 minutes from Beaufort, with a good view of Fort Macon across the sound.  We were told a small pond a half a mile from the drop off might be a place where we'd see some of the wild horses.  We ventured down there, and sure enough we got to see a half dozen horses in the sand dunes.  We respectfully kept our distance (as we were warned) and continued through the dunes to the ocean side of the island.  We walked slowly back along the beach after B stepped on a huge sand spur, all the way around to the headland.  Back near the ferry's pick up spot, we encountered some more of the horses, who seemed quite at ease with so many people around (but then again people were keeping away as requested).  It was a pretty magic experience, topped off by some beautiful weather.  When we got back to Beaufort we went to Mezcalito for a late lunch (or dunch as the boys liked to call it).  This was easily the best meal we've had on the trip, or for a long time for that matter.  A great way to end a quick getaway.  Next time we'll have to head further up the Outer Banks to see what's up there.

LB&D, Shackleford Banks, North Carolina

Henry Rollins at Neighborhood Theatre

Shows are making a comeback.  And we're off to see my 10th Henry show on April Fools Day.  We got some great seats (6th row center) and are ready for some more Rollins stories.

In the past I've said that shows I've seen in Sydney are more travel orientated and US shows focus on politics.  Until last time, when Rollins did his slideshow and tonight, it's all about what has happened over the last 2 years of Covid-19.  I'm not sure Henry did the greatest during this time, especially for someone who likes the isolation.  Never the less he was able to spin many a funny story (though also somewhat scary at times - like his Finnish stalker).  It's not as easy to write about a spoken word or comedy show, because nothing I write could do justice to the stories told, needless to say A and I had another great night listening to Henry's life.

The Crap Facts:
This is my 471st concert.
This is my 7th concert at Neighborhood Theatre.
This is my 89th show in Charlotte.
This is my 105th show in North Carolina.
This is my 274th concert in the US.
This is my 10th Henry Rollins concert.

Tool & The Acid Helps @ Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse

So Erik and I try and catch up every once in a while to see a show somewhere, but it's been 3 years since I was in Vegas for Punk Rock Bowling, so when tour announced a tour in my birthday month, it was a matter of when and where. I was hoping for Minneapolis on my birthday, but we opted for Cleveland instead.   I've never been to Ohio before, so tickets, hotels and flights were booked.

I arrived Friday afternoon, and Erik got in in the early evening. Early enough that we could walk down to Noble Beast Brewery for dinner and a couple of drinks.

A lazy Saturday stroll after a pretty ordinary hotel breakfast, before we headed down to the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame at 10am to wander through the museum. I wasn't sure what to expect given the always controversy of who's in and who's not, but the museum is awesome.  We started on Level 0, where exhibits included the History of Rock n Roll, individual city contributions, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles - an awesome exhibit finishing with information on the recent Get Back documentary, the photography of Baron Wolman (an Ohio native who worked at Rolling Stone early on) and the music of Cleveland.  The next level was the Garage, an interactive exhibit where anyone could pick up an instrument and play, either to themselves or as part of an impromptu band.  The next level was the the Hall of Fame itself.  Plaqued autographs from all inductees and memorabilia from some on the more recent Hall of Famers. We also watched a movie presentation of some poignant moments in some of the past ceremonies.  None so great as the all star band (Tom Petty, Dhani Harrison, Jeff Lynn and Steve Winwood) get blown off stage by Prince playing While My Guitar Gently Weeps.  Finally the top floor had a great recreation of Pink Floyd's The Wall.  We ended up spending 4 hours here.  More than I imagined we would've.

Cleveland's Rock n Roll Hall Of Fame

The Cure - Rock n Roll Hall of Fame

Pink Floyd's The Wall - Rock n Roll Hall of Fame

We wandered back to the hotel and just hung out for the afternoon.  Later in the evening we ventured into downtown for dinner at Mabel's BBQ in an entertainment district of the city.  Dinner was good, but the night was cold, so an Uber back to the hotel ended the night.

Before I left the boys kept showing me a spoof video of Cleveland Tourism, so on Sunday Erik and I got up and went looking for some of these things and texted them back to the guys (who obviously weren't that impressed by dad trying to be funny.  So we did see the Claus Oldenberg Free Stamp as it was right near the hotel.  Found construction everywhere.  Saw the statue of Moses Cleveland.  And spent a good time with a great host in the Soldier's & Sailor's Monument.

When the time come to head to the show, we walked up to the venue hoping to get dinner.  Apparently a sold out show at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse is not enough to get a lot of restaurants to open on a Sunday, as most places were closed.  In the end we had to settle for a quick bite at the Shake Shack before heading to the venue.

The Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse is the home of the Cavaliers, so a big size venue.  We had seats at half court, 7 rows back - so a good line of sight.  The Acid Helps had the unenviable task of opening the night, and while they dis their thing, it wasn't for me or the thousand of DadRock Tool fans waiting.

The Acid Helps setlist

Someone recently pointed out to me that to be a Tool fan, you had to be a dad, and tonight this legend was confirmed because the place was filled with people like me and Erik, and some even actually ought their kids - though wives/girlfriends were few and far between.  I wonder what other bands I like fall into this category.  Anyway, just before 9pm Tool came out to a rousing reception and kicked of the night with Fear Innoculum from the new album with the same name.  I had been watching the previous setlists and new it would be heavy with new material, so it was a good chance to get a first listen.  Tool had been rotating Sober & Opiate as a 2nd song, but tonight, much to my pleasure, that opening bass riff over sober made this whole trip worthwhile.  Such a good song, and such a treat to hear them play something off Undertow.  I wish they would do more of that.  The Pot sounded incredible and The Grudge was another highlight.  Maynard finally came out of the shadows to do a Puscifer-ish act for a new song, Descending - it was weird - I had no idea what was going on.  And then they finished with Hooker With A Penis.  Again with the countdown clock before they came back for an encore.  The Danny Show of Chocolate Chip Trip kept all the drummers in the audience enthralled and then 2 more songs off the new album.

Another great Tool show on the books, though I wish I new more about the Fear Innoculum album.  Tool are a great band and a live show comparable to none, but as most shows nowadays for me, I'd like to hear a lot of other songs, but when it takes 2 hours to get through 12 songs it doesn't leave a lot for everyone's favorites.

Tool Setlist

It was great to see Erik again, we may do this again next year and see Rage Against The Machine in Phoenix.  Let's just hope it's not 3 years before we do it again.  Thanks Cleveland, it was great to meet you.

The Crap Facts:

This is my 470th concert.
Rocket Mortgage Field house is the 129th venue I've seen a concert in.
Cleveland is the 53rd city I've seen a concert in..
Ohio is the 16th state I've seen a concert in.
This is my 273rd concert in the US.
The Acid Helps are the 546th band I've seen.
This is my 7th Tool concert.

Charlotte FC v LA Galaxy @ Bank Of America Stadium

Charlotte FC - the newest MLS franchise - is having their first home match EVER on my birthday.  Was there ever a chance I wasn't going to go?  Thanks to A and the boys, who got me tickets, and boy was I stoked they did.

We got the Bank of America Stadium early in the hope of getting into some of the festivities, but the party started on the other side of the stadium as supporters groups marched in together.  We got into our seats well before kick off, even after trying to get food and into the merchandise store and the atmosphere was electric.  Charlotte has some shit sports fans.  Once things start to go south, season ticket holders don't bother to show and the atmosphere at some Panthers and Hornets games have been close to funeral-like.  Lets hope FC can keep the fans interested.  Though the thought of sitting in that stadium during the summer, and the high cost of tickets, is what stopped us becoming season ticket holders.

Just before kick off and sad but amazing moment happened.  The poor young lady who was to sing the national anthem had her mike cut out, but 74,000 people picked up the slack and gave a rousing rendition, the likes I've never heard at any sporting arena before.

There was no sitting down during any of the game, and Charlotte had a huge advantage of the home crowd.  I kept forgetting the kids were there and gave the referee and Chicharito plenty of stick when absolutely needed.  Play was even throughout the whole game, but nerves made Charlotte commit more small mistakes.  It was their 2nd game ever after all.  Ultimately the Galaxy's pressure paid off when a minute after Fuchs and Bender had chances in quick succession, the Galaxy moved the ball upfield for Alverez to perfectly drift one over Kahlina's head from a shot outside the box, giving us the only goal of the game.  Rios could have tied it up in ht e last minute of injury time but, alas, his headed from 6 years out went straight to the keeper.

Obviously the result was disappointing, and I'm sad that none of the Charlotte players got to score in front of that crowd, who has to be mentioned.  The stadium was full!  74, 479 people is a MLS record and not one of them was quiet for the whole 90 minutes.  Everyone was on their feet, willing the team on, and the supporters section behind the goal was absolutely rockin'!  Ma, we need to sit in that section for at least one game.

I hope Charlotte can get their first win soon, and that us locals keep interest and support this team, though I am skeptical (but more than happy to be proven wrong).

LA Galaxy 1 - E. Alvarez (77) defeated Charlotte FC 0

Attendance: 74,479

Charlotte FC: K Khalina, G. Corujo, C. Makon, C. Fuchs, J. Lindsay, A. Franco, B.Bronico (S. Ruiz), C. Ortiz (B. Bender), J. Mora (M. Gaines), K. Swiderski (D. Rios), Y. Reyna (C. Hegardt).

LA Galaxy: J. Bond, R. Edwards, N. DePuy, S. Coulibaly (D. Williams), J. Araujo, V. Vasquez (K. Kljestan), M. Delgado, R. Raveloson (E. Alverez), D. De Souza (J. Joveljic), K. Cabral (S. Grandsir), J. Hernandez

Nick Cave & Warren Ellis @ Thomas Wolfe Auditorium

I had tickets to Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds at the Grand Ol' Opry in October 2020.  That is until Covid happened.  And while not the same venue, I'll take any chance to see on of Australia's greatest performers.

I drove up to Asheville and decided to stay the night.  So after settling into the Hilton, I wandered through town until I came across The Lobster Trap, where I sat at the bar and ate Steam Bowl Mussels while enjoying a Highland Pilsner.

 

I actually had seen Cave do a show with Warren Ellis and Jim White, when Ellis and White were still the Dirty Three.  But that was 2000 - an awesome show I went to with Dad - so would things be much different.  Um, musically, yes!  In 2000 it was Cave playing Bad Seeds stuff with the others providing just a backing.  Since then Cave and Ellis have spent considerable time writing together, both for soundtracks as well as for the Bad Seeds.  I am in nearly the same seat as when I saw the Bad Seeds here in 2017.  A full band came out and Ellis perched to the side of the stage, seated to play mostly keyboards in his lap, while Cave was front and center.  The set consisted of mostly new Bad Seeds stuff as well as well as 4 tracks from their Cave & Ellis' latest release, Carnage.  None of it was familiar to me, but still great, until they did a cover of T-Rex's Cosmic Dancer.  The set continued in the same fashion - beautiful, unknown-to-me, Bad Seeds songs.  I was surprised that Ellis didn't play more violin.  His performances in The Dirty Three were frantic and mesmerizing.  This performance seemed more subdued than I expected.  2 Encores saw them dip into some old songs Into My Arms (one of my top 40 songs) and Henry Lee were icing on a cake.

Definitely worth the trip up to Asheville (that's 4 of the last 5 shows I've seen up here).  Lets hope we get to see the Bad Seeds again soon as well.

Nick Cave & Warren Ellis Setlist

The Crap Facts:
This is my 469th concert.
This is my 3rd concert at Thomas Wolfe Auditorium.
This is my 10th concert in Asheville.
This is my 104th concert in North Carolina.
This is my 272nd concert in the US.
Nick Cave & Warren Ellis are the 545th band I've seen.

Nick Cave & Warren Ellis are the 150th different band I've seen.

Las Vegas Golden Knights v Carolina Hurricanes @ PNC Arena

For Christmas we bought the boys tickets to their beloved Golden Knights, playing in Raleigh - it's as close as we can get.  And because it was Christmas, we went all out and bought seats in the 2nd row behind the Golden Knights bench.

Straight after school we left for Raleigh.  We are going to stay the night up here - and they get the next day off school - not a bad deal.  Once we had checked in it was out the door again and we headed to The Goat, a newly opened bar and grill for dinner.

PNC Arena is not much further down the road and when we got to our seats the boys were blown away.  Unfortunately, even covered head to toe in their Vegas gear, the boys couldn't get an acknowledgement from any of the players.  Regardless we settled in.  Screamed KNIGHT during the national anthem, in response to the loud RED! the Hurricane fans shouted.  And enjoyed the closeness of the action.  Actually the seats aren't that great for watching the game, with a lot of obstructions in front of us.  There were quite a lot of Vegas fans there, more than I expected, but the overwhelming support came for the high-flying Hurricanes.  A good match up that the Canes scored first and then kept a good control of the game.  At 3-1 with 10 minutes left the Canes were cruising, but 2 goals within 5 minutes by Howden and Hague sent the game into overtime.  It only took 4 more minutes for the Canes to kill it, and within seconds the Vegas bench cleared and were gone before we could show our appreciation.

This is our first NHL game and we had a blast, especially the Vegas-born boys.  Though I'm still not sure of all the rules (even after half a dozen Checkers games).  We might have to make this a seasonal event and give the Golden Knights some support on the road.  We didn't get the result we wanted but a fun family Knight was had by all.

L&B in the Good Seats - Vegas Golden Knights v Carolina Hurricanes

Carolina Hurricanes 4: N. Niederreiter (25), V. Trocheck (26), S. Aho (49, 64) defeated Las Vegas Golden Knights 3: N. Patrick (39), B. Howden (54), N. Hague (58)

Crowd: 15,228

T Shirt Retirement

A recent cleaning out saw the loss of a few old favorite t-shirts.  Some were so torn, thin, ripped and misshapen, that they could no longer live in the closet.  It's a little frightening how emotional it is to lose these T shirts, but there have been a lot of good memories attached.

I have had this t-shirt since I was 18 (1991).  It came with the Mixed Up CD when I purchased it.  It has travelled Europe & the US with me.  I actually wore it when I saw The Cure in Charlotte in 2016.  Alas it had so many holes it was hard to get in and out of.

I'm pretty sure this shirt came with the 7" single in Australia.  I've had it since 1992 - when everything was about Nirvana - I couldn't get enough.  Another shirt that was definitely value for money, even though I have no idea what I paid for it.  In the end in looked like a crop top on me.  And nobody needs to see that.

I remember taping "rage" back in the day and then playing it during the day, stopping when something came on I liked, but generally going about the weekend.  The moment I heard Fire In The Head, I dropped everything - then played video back over and over to hear the song again, until I could go and get some Tea Party.  I bought this the first time I saw them at The Metro in Sydney on 26 March 1996.  A jaw dropping show, and a band I still love today.  26 years is another good run for a t-shirt.

This one hurt A LOT!  This is a 23 year favorite.  Combining my 2 loves - music and travel.  From Festival Sudoeste in Portugal in August 1998.  It was never planned we go to this show, but after seeing billboards in Faro & Albufeira, we actually got tickets at a record store in Lagos (not to mention finding where Zambujeira do Mar was, and whether we could get a bus there).  The 4 nights of camping and 3 nights of music were amazing.  The Cure (my first show of theirs) were everything I ever dreamed of.  Everyone we saw we were seeing for the first time and they were all amazing, except Sonic Youth, who to this day were the worst show I've ever seen.  I bought this shirt outside the venue (not an official licensed shirt) and wore it out.  It left the house in tatters and off color.  A ton of great memories in that shirt.  (Actually couldn't bring myself to throw it out - so it's now with all the rags.)

The last misshapen shirt is from Me First & The Gimmes Gimmes show from the Manning Bar on 19 January 2008.  Took Regs & The Barneses for a fun night out while I was home.  A 14 year shirt which leaves behind some very happy memories from a riotous gig.

Charlotte Checkers v Syracuse Crunch @ Bojangles Arena

The boys love their hockey, so we try and get to a couple of Checkers games a year.  This one we think we did a good job on.  Not only did we not tell the boys we were going - they only found out that as we pulled into the parking lot, but we also arranged for 2 other families to come along - friends from school.

Not only that but this game is the Teddy Bear Toss game, where after the Checkers score their first goal, the crowd showers the rink with teddy bears, either bought from home or bought as part of a ticket package.  Even though the Checkers went down a goal early, it took less than 3 minutes for them to score, and stuffed bears rained down from the crowd.  From Row U, I didn't have the arm so we sent all the boys closer down to the rink to make their donations.  In all about 4000 stuffed animals were collected to donate to local charities.

Also there was a hockey game.  The Checkers, in spite of their going behind early, played strong and skated away to a 5-2 win, much to the joy of the 8000 strong crowd.

This is a great family night of sport, not just because of the Teddy Bear Toss, but price wise.  So much cheaper than the Panthers, Hornets or the upcoming Charlotte FC.  And the team are good!   I don't think of us as a hockey family, but we'll keep coming back to see the Checkers.

Charlotte Checkers 5 (C. Fleury 2, C. Carrick, C. Schwindt, S. Wilson) defeated Syracuse Crunch 2 (G. Dumont, S. Ryfors).

Crowd: 8,080.

L, G, B, W & Q @ Bojangles Arena

Home Alone & Charlotte Symphony Orchestra @ Belk Theatre

Because where not going to watch every version a million times over the next month, we also head uptown to see Home Alone on the big screen, with the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra playing in the accompanying sound track.

We did this a while back with one of the Harry Potters, and it was a great night.  This would prove the same for Home Alone.  We had great seats on the main floor.  This was good for me, as the orchestra played directly under the screen, it the line of sight.  It was as good to see them perform as it was to see the movie.  At Harry Potter we were on the balcony, and I tended to forget the orchestra was playing because your first sights were the big screen.

I'm hoping they'll do this again with another movie next Christmas.  We'll be back for it for sure.

DLM&B, Home Alone at Belk Theatre, Charlotte