Days are long, but the years are short.

If I could have a super power, I would have the ability to be in two places at once. Most recently, this would have come in handy so I could enjoy my adventures in New Orleans for Jazz Fest while simultaneously being in Pittsburgh to cheer on my boys at their games that weekend. It was very bittersweet to read the texts from my wife about one son’s pick 6 and the other’s game-winning RBI double. But, if being in two states at the same time is too far-fetched, then I would still have longed for this same superpower while staying in New Orleans . You see, I learned very quickly that at Jazz Fest, there are too many great musicians and too little time. 

The closest I have ever come to being in two places at one time  was the unique instance when my friend Dan W. and I attended two (2) MLB games in the same day, but in different cities.  Game 1 was a matinee in Cleveland and Game 2 was a night game in Pittsburgh.  I recognize that one cannot get so lucky all the time and everything seemed to align that day.  This thought made me think of the phrase “Fear of missing out” or FoMO which according to Wikipedia is "a pervasive apprehension that others might be having rewarding experiences from which one is absent".  Although I do not believe that I have a clear-cut case of FoMO, there are a lot of things that I would like to do over the course of a month, week and even 24 hours.

Almost every day of the week my boys either have activities or there is a concert that I am interested in attending.  The low-tech part of me actually jots everything down by hand in a personal calendar.  If I am able to attend the event, it receives a check-mark and if not it receives an X.  With the boys’ schedules, work and life in general, I do not nearly place as many check marks as I did in previous chapters of my life.  My wife even pokes fun at me that I take so much pride in placing those check marks.  Bouncing around the city and making different plans is still feasible, but no longer ideal.

I know that when I was touring with bands, two shows in one day was not out of the norm.  A typical day on the road might include a record store promotional gig in the afternoon and then playing a club in that same city later that night.  The band never performed the same set, and I always hoped that fans would want to see both shows.  As the summer concert tours continue to get announced, I wonder if fans ever think about trying to attend multiple shows in one day.  For example, today - Friday, June 1 there are five heavyweight concerts in the greater Pittsburgh market:  Dave Matthews Band returns to KeyBank Pavilion, Justin Timberlake is performing at PPG Paints Arena; Frank Turner (along with The Menzingers) headlines at Stage AE; Mavis Staples opens the annual Three Rivers Arts Festival and local heroes Code Orange return for their show at Mr. Smalls Theatre.

It is still TBD as to which show that I will be in attendance for . . .

Thanks for reading.