Here We Go Again!!

So Ami has done it again... she has peer pressured me to do 31 (did you know May had 31 days Ami??) blogs a 31 days. But, she and I are not alone. Our friend Jen will also be joining us for the ride. ( I believe it may have been her idea.) My first response to Ami was, "I don't really have time to blog every day." Then I thought for a second and said, "Who am I kiddin?!? I don't even have a job!" Well actually I do, but it takes me all of one hour a day. More on that on a slow blog day.

So let's begin May with a Bang! Or Livin' La Vida Loca. Oh yes, Friends, Brian & I went to see my FAVORITE singer... Ricky Martin!!! Say what you will about him, but I love him. I've loved him since I was 6 and I will love him until I am 106. He is beautiful and has a beautiful voice. Love him!

Before I tell you about our concert, let's go down memory lane.

A few years ago, 6 years to be exact, the local radio station announced that Ricky would be coming to town and they were inviting listeners to come meet him. Well, you know who jumped on that bandwagon! I emailed the DJs, cute picture of me attached and everything, and crossed my fingers. Well, the next day they called me! In my classroom! Not exactly sure what they said, but I remember walking into Ami's classroom, which conviniently happened to be 1 step from mine and telling (shieking probably) her Johnjay and Rich were calling about my letter. I also remember we had to sing a little of Livin' La Vida Loca. On the radio. With EVERYONE listening. I don't even know how many phone calls Brian & I got wondering if it was me on the radio.

So the next day, my mom & I went to the radio station to meet the love of my life. Yes, I feel that strongly. :) Oh and did I mention it was my 27th birthday??? Best. Birthday. EVER!

So what do I do when I get close to Ricky? I start crying. Hysterically. Like those girls on the Ed Sullivan Show when The Beatles were on. Yeah. Well, my blubbering helped because he gave me extra kisses and called me linda (pretty in Spanish), at this point, we had told him that we were also from Puerto Rico and had been fans since Menudo and he signed my Coqui (Puerto Rican symbol). I was in heaven! I even was in the newspaper!

So fast forward 6 years several concerts later and he was back in Albuquerque! I bought us tickets back in January and then had to book flights for Brian & me once we found out we were moving. There was no way I was missing a chance to see Ricky, even if I have seen him 4 other times.

Before the show we met up with some of our friends at the hotel bar where he was performing.

Michelle, Me & Jana

When Brian & I drove up to the venue, we saw his tour buses and the band was rehearsing. I stopped to watch for a bit, hoping to get a glimpse of Ricky, but some security lady shooed me away. I mean what harm could I do just watching? I also saw his dancers in the lobby and was this close to stopping them, but what would I say, "Can you get me backstage? I LOVE him!" Weirdo.

The view from the 9th floor. Notice the tour buses?

Lynn, being, well, Lynn.
Flying my colors at the concert!
Can I tell how many people asked me where I got my flag, or if they were selling flags? Uh, I got it in PR. it's authentic. People were bummed. Waiting for the concert.

See the girl behind us? At some point during the show she starts SCREAMING at her boyfriend, "What the F is wrong with you?!?! What the F is wrong with you?!?! You promised me!!!" She was in his face YELLING. I kept looking back and poor thing was crying the rest of the show.

Let the show begin! He played for 1 1/2 hours straight. There was no talking, no lag time. It was song after song after song. Oh and the dancing. And oh how I danced! And yelled. And sang. I had a blast! Brian had a blast too. Even he said it was the best concert he had ever been too. I have never seen a crowd like this at an Albuquerque concert. We went to our fair share of concerts while we lived there and the audience, frankly, were duds. They sit the whole time and don't even fill the arena. Well, this time was different. The crowd was electric and the venue was packed! They still sat for a fair amount, but danced too. Which the sitting was good for me, because I stood the whole time and got a perfect view.

One for my many favorite things about Ricky, is how much he loves his little island. Every show I've ever been to, he always pays homage to Puerto Rico. This time was no different. He had a slide show of beautiful pictures from the island and invited everyone to visit one day. And throughout the show he would give a shout out to PR.

Dancing my ass off! I haven't danced like this is years!