BeatleBlog

It's time, already, to start thinking about Abbey Road on the River 2009. I know, can you believe it? Now, it is a bit early this time around. Normally, if I recall correctly, the tickets and hotel reservations haven't been available until the calendar year in which the event is held. But this year they decided to get started incredibly early -- which is fine by me. I have every intention of going again. It's pretty much carved in stone on my calendar, except for years when I have just had a baby, and, I can assure you, THAT will never be an issue again! This past year may have been my least favorite of the three trips I've made to AROTR, but that has absolutely no bearing on whether or not I'll go again. A so-so weekend surrounded by fellow Beatles fanatics and Beatles cover bands is still better than that same weekend spent at home, knowing the festivities are going on without you.

As an added bonus this year, I have decided to take Madalyn with me. She has wanted to go for a couple of years now but I have staved her off, partly because of her age and partly because I wasn't willing to relinquish my "me time." But after being lonely for the entire weekend this past trip, I realized that the novelty of attending alone may be wearing off and I may be ready for some company. She will be 8.5 by trip time, and acts older. She's also really good with staying up late, which is an essential part of the weekend. I think she'll enjoy a lot of it. And, being that I don't have my head completely in the clouds, I plan to procure some portable entertainment devices between now and then which she can bring with her in case she finds she simply can't listen to music for another minute. It never hurts to have backup.

At any rate, sometime in the next week or so I will be putting down a deposit for my weekend pass (Madalyn will be free). The deposit will enable me to then reserve our room at the special AROTR rate. Rooms are limited this year as there are other conventions going on in Louisville that weekend, so I plan to get this all locked in right away.

Only 9 months to go!

Posted by Mary at 11:44 PM | Permalink

Am I the only one who has picked up on the fact that this year will probably be the last Abbey Road on the River?

Last year, in emailing back and forth with (promoter) Gary Jacob, he made several comments that lead me to believe last year might be the end, including saying something along the lines of "IF we have one next year...." and a couple other things that made it clear he doubted there would be one. Then, when months and months went by with no update to the AROTR site (in previous years the following year's dates and info had been put up within a week of the festival ending) I thought, for sure, it was D.O.A. So I was pleasantly surprised and thrilled when I found it was going on this year, after all.

However, I've just been reading the guest book at the AROTR site and I have seen another not-so-veiled comment from Gary that makes it fairly clear (to me, anyway) that 2008 will be the final year for AROTR. What's strange is, conversation on the guest book has continued as though nobody has grasped the significance of Gary's response.

This is part of the initial comment, left by an AROTR attendee:

Here is something to ponder. What if it didn't come back? For instance what if next year there wasn't an AROTR in Louisvlle? As John Lennon said..."you don't know what you got until you lose it."

And here is Gary's editorial note, placed just below:

Editor: pretty intuitive post...I would enjoy the event this year, too.

Now, is it just me, or is is pretty bloody obvious he's sounding the death knell for the festival? I wonder if people really didn't catch the meaning behind it, or whether they are just in denial.

At any rate, it's very sad. It will be very much missed. I will have to find a new annual "me trip" and nothing is going to quite capture the flavor of AROTR.

Posted by Mary at 09:57 PM | Permalink

It's a done deal, folks: this May I am, once again, off to Louisville and Abbey Road on the River!

The last time I mentioned it on this blog it was still my intention to attend AROTR '07 with a then-eight-week-old Eliza in tow. Once she was born, though, and I realize she is demon spawn I decided that the trip most certainly fell under the category of "More Trouble Than it's Worth". So my plans were scrapped and I pinned my hopes on AROTR '08, and now my patience will be rewarded. Gary, the head of AROTR, has promised to exchange my unused '07 pass for an '08 pass and my hotel room is already reserved. All I'm lacking is my plane ticket, which shouldn't be a problem.

The only bummer is that Madalyn has asked to go with me and I'm going to have to turn her down, I think. I was considering it; I have always thought I might like to take her at some point in the future. I just don't think this is that point. As mature as she is, she's still only seven years old. It's not like I go there to party and raise hell and do things she shouldn't be allowed to see. But I do keep pretty late hours there (there's a midnight concert series, for example) and one of the perks of the trip is being able to sleep late every morning, which I couldn't do if she was along (the child is up by 8 a.m. no matter how late she goes to bed). Also, I know she loves the Beatles, but how much could a second-grader really take before she got antsy and wanted to do other things? There are no "other things" for me while I'm there. It's all Beatles, all the time, from Thursday afternoon through Monday morning. If I travel all that way I'm sure going to see as much of the festival as I can. It seems to me to defeat the purpose to go there if I'm going to be spending most of the day doing non-festival activities.

And then there's the fact that this trip has always been about "me time". On a practical level I have to admit that I go alone because I have no one to go with me, even if I wanted company. Robert isn't a huge fan of the Beatles and any friends who'd consider going can't afford to do so. But, on a more personal level, the truth is I LIKE going by myself. If I didn't I wouldn't have gone a second time and tried to go a third last year. It is damned near heavenly to get away for five days and do whatever I want, whenever I want, without having to think about anyone else. And the silence.....dear God, the silence.....I've never heard anything so lovely. I'm not just talking about escaping my kids, either. It's nice to be there without anyone else, big or small. I can come and go as I please without feeling like I have to spend X amount of time or see any concerts I don't really feel like seeing. I don't have to mesh my schedule or preferences with anyone else's. It's just a refreshing change of pace for me and will be doubly special this year as it will be my first getaway since Robert started being gone for work so much. Heck, I don't even mind the trip there when I'm by myself. I rather look forward to boarding the plane with my one little bag in hand and getting caught up on some reading.

Anyway, the bottom line is I just don't think this is Madalyn's year, partly for selfish reasons but partly for her own good. I don't think she'd have nearly as much fun as she thinks she'd have and would probably have had her fill by Friday night. I am thinking that 2010 is what I'll be shooting for in terms of taking her along. I really hope they are still having AROTR then because I do think it's something we could enjoy together if she were a bit older.

Posted by Mary at 12:54 AM | Permalink

The number two task on the AROTR list is complete. My room at the Galt House has been reserved. I already have my weekend pass (or will after they are mailed out April 1st). Now all that remains of the three major considerations is to book my/our plane tickets (haven't decided whether to be cheap and only get one seat or splurge and buy a half-price seat for the baby). This may occur as early as next week, though it's not guaranteed. Either way, though, we're doing well getting this arranged ahead of time. After the plane ticket we will probably pay at least part of the room charge in advance, which is what we did last year (I don't even have a credit card with a high enough limit to put on the entire hotel fee so it's kind of necessary) and then get spending money arranged, but those are things that can be done closer to time to go. The stuff that can potentially sell out and become unavailable is the stuff that we need to nail down first and we now have two of three handled. So, yay, us!

Also I have looked up the info on a Louisville car company. A week or two before I leave I am going to call and inquire about rates. If it's not too outrageous I may reserve a car to come and pick us up at the airport. Much cleaner and nicer to ride in than a crummy taxi and I will have baby girl's car seat to strap in and I think I'd have better luck in a Towncar or something than in a taxi. I may even really splurge and hire a limo. That will depend on pricing, though. It depends how much more it is than a cab. Mad had her first limo ride at a few months old and Johnny was only five weeks so the newbie will be about due for her first. ;)

Posted by Mary at 12:10 PM | Permalink

We have now come to the time of year when I usually start the countdown to Abbey Road on the River. One who doesn't know me very well might possibly think that, this year, there will be no countdown, being that I will have just had a baby eight weeks or so before AROTR. Like I said -- that person doesn't know me very well. The plan, as of right now, is for me to make the trip, infant in tow.

To some that might sound ill-advised or, at the very least, more trouble than it's worth. However, I should point out I do have experience traveling with infants. Madalyn's first plane trip was at 8 weeks. John-Zachary's? 5 weeks. I was accompanied by Robert both of those times but I have to say that after dealing with a six-year-old and a three-year-old all day, every day, having only a two-month-old to worry about will be like a walk in the park, by comparison.

As for the actual festival I think it's very conducive to bringing small children. A lot of the concerts are outdoors, which means a crying baby would be less noticeable and which also means you can remove yourself from the immediate area so as not to bother people, but still be within range to hear the music. The weather the past two years has been very mild. Heat shouldn't be a problem. There are indoor concerts, most of which I attend. These have assigned seating so leaving and returning mid-concert is simple. I won't lose my seat if I have to leave for a little while. Additionally the hotel is on the actual grounds of the festival. I simply ride the elevator downstairs and walk out the back door and I'm there. This makes it easy to take multiple breaks throughout the day. I think if the hotel was at another location I probably wouldn't consider going because it wouldn't be logistically feasible.

At the end of May the baby will still be in the "lump" stage and therefore will be very portable. I intend to take both the stroller and the sling; the stroller being for leaving the hotel area to go eat or shop and the sling being for wear at the festival. At eight weeks old she should still be content to spend most of her time in the sling and really all I will need to have on hand for her will be a few extra diapers thrown into my bag, as her meals will be "on tap", so to speak. I always take either a backpack or a large-ish bag with a long handle that I can hang on my person, anyway, and her itty-bitty diapers and maybe a burp cloth and a bib won't require much extra room.

So, as of right now, I am going to forge ahead with the plans on the assumption I will definitely be going. The first order of business is to buy my weekend pass, upon which I will be sent a special confirmation code to get the festival rate for the hotel room, which I will then book. Then all that will remain is to book the airline tickets. Depending on how finances look I will need to decide if I want to get only myself a ticket and hold her the whole way there or whether I want to splurge and buy her her own seat. That would be my preference. It is SO nice to have somewhere to set the baby down, especially if she actually falls asleep. Then mommy gets a little reading time or time for a snack. We'll just have to play it by ear, though. The ticket would be half-price so if I can book early enough to get a good deal it won't be totally outrageous. Also depending on finances I may hire a car to come get us at the airport rather than going the taxi cab route, but that's last on the priority list.

Four months to go!

Posted by Mary at 02:23 PM | Permalink

How am I supposed to wait till next year to see Love?? I want to go now, now, NOW! Beatles purists seem to be in agreement that it's a wonderful show and the teeny-tiny clips I've seen have given me goosebumps.

I pity the fool who sits next to me when I finally do see it. I will probably, and this is no exaggeration, bawl my head off at intervals throughout the show. Dave, do you hear that? When you book the tickets, you may want to ask for two in one section and two in an entirely different section, possibly the kitchen.

Posted by Mary at 12:07 AM | Permalink

1964 was fabbity-fab Friday night. They have two new members. The old "Ringo" and "George" left for other bands. I had heard about this at AROTR but wasn't sure when the change was going to take place, so I was mildly shocked when I quit staring at "John" long enough to realize there were two new guys. (I can't help it; he has John's mannerisms down pat and it fascinates me.)

I was a bit resentful at first of the new guys because, well, they aren't the old guys. But they both started to grow on me as the concert progressed and now I think they will fit in just fine. I'm looking forward to seeing them again; hopefully in both July and October, to continue getting used to seeing them.

The show was the same as it has been the other times I've seen them this year, which helped. If they'd come out with two new guys plus the show all tweaked and rearranged it would have been too much for me to process. It went off without a hitch. The new "George" is a really good guitar player. He kicked butt on the solo in "And Your Bird Can Sing".

All in all I'm most satisfied with their choice of new members! Can't wait to see them again.

Posted by Mary at 12:01 AM | Permalink

Off to see 1964 again tomorrow! Even the fact that it's my darling son's third birthday isn't deterring me. The concert, though it's a two-hour drive away, is not until 8 p.m. I'm going to spend most of the day with him doing presents and lunch and all that good stuff and then take off for my date with 1964. I'll be staying over in a hotel afterward.

I'm glad I get to see them again so soon. Due to a substantial rain delay their set at AROTR was abbreviated so I was a bit disappointed at not seeing the full routine. And, just so I don't sound terrible, it's not like we were having a party for JZ, anyway. We were just going to hang around home and do exactly the same thing we're going to be doing tomorrow. This way we both win.

Posted by Mary at 11:51 PM | Permalink

I'm back and I now present (because I know you all woke up this morning just HOPING someone would bore you to tears): a day-by-day account of the trip.

Continue reading "Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup" »

Posted by Mary at 06:56 PM | Permalink

Hello from Louisville, lovelies!

I made it safe and sound. Met a fab bunch of like-minded nutsos on the plane and chit-chatted with them a bit on the way up. Exchanged first names with the lady sitting just next to me and we've run into each other a couple times since arriving and have made small-talk. Have definitely been eating better this time than last time, when I was on a shoestring budget and trying to save all my cash for souvenirs and the like. My plan this time was to buy Beatle boots and bootleg CDs. Well, the bootleg CDs are not here this time BUT I have found an appropriate (if more expensive) substitute. For those who know me well all I need to say are these six words and you'll understand the enormity of the situation:

Purses. With the Beatles on them.

I will have pictures when I get home.

My dear friend Stacy is driving up to see me for a few hours this afternoon. I haven't seen her since she moved from OK to Kentucky, oh, I've blocked it from my memory.....a year ago, now? I'm very excited!

The money-grubbing bastards here at the otherwise-excellent hotel have changed the business center so I now have to pay to get online so I will save any further updating for another time. This may well be my only reporting from the field. I will do the full story when I return home Monday

Posted by Mary at 12:32 PM | Permalink

After a year of anticipation, the time has come. I'm off to the airport in the morning and will be in Louisville by 5 p.m., just in time to attend the preview concerts being held from 6-10 on the festival grounds.

I will be online once a day from the business center at the hotel -- I need to get away from the concerts and decompress a couple times a day and that's a good way to pass some quiet time. I will endeavor to do a little blogging if I can pull my head out of Strawberry Fields long enough to string a couple coherent sentences together. If not -- well, it will be Monday night or Tuesday before I pop up here again. It's about a 50/50 proposition.

Good holiday weekend to you all.

Posted by Mary at 09:53 PM | Permalink

Trip update:

Plane ticket purchased

Room reserved

Airport shuttle secured

New shirts and jammies arrived in mail

Ticket purchase info, hotel confirmation number and instructions for airport shuttle already printed out and in my "papers pouch" in my purse

Money due in at various times up till the day I leave

Robert calling today to pay part of hotel bill ahead of time

All in all I would say I'm 75% ready to go. All that's left is to pack, which I won't do until Wednesday, and possibly go shopping for a couple new pairs of pants.

I'm starting to get some pre-trip jitters, but that is completely de rigueur for me. Once I am dropped off at the airport and I walk through the doors the nervousness will vanish and I will be all about the fun.

The biggest dilemma I have right now is whether or not to take my camera. I did take some pictures last year but not a whole lot. Having pictures of the performers really doesn't interest me, for some reason, so the ones I did take were of the festival grounds, the view out my window, etc.

It's a pretty good position to be in, only having to worry about whether to take a camera or not. Last year at this time my worry was, "Am I going to have any spending money at all to do fancy things like, you know, eat?"

Posted by Mary at 12:19 PM | Permalink

And that liftoff will be at approximately 9:04 a.m.on the 25th. Yes, my plane ticket is booked!

Because we waited so long (as usual) the fares available weren't the greatest. It was cheapest to go from Tulsa, which, actually, was true of last year, as well. The least expensive fare from Tulsa left at 6:47 a.m. For those of you playing along at home, we live about 2 hours from Tulsa and I'd have had to have been there at 5:45 a.m. at the latest. Robert is dropping me off to avoid paying for parking for five days. In a simple equation: 5:45 a.m. - 2-hour drive - 1 hour to get ready to go x 2 kids =Oh, HELL no! So I paid an extra $20 for the 9:04 departure and it was still $40 less than the OKC fare -- which was also similarly early in the morning.

Illogically enough, I fly from Tulsa to Dallas, which means I will drive two hours north to fly back south, more than likely passing directly over my house in the process. Then I get to spend a lovely 3.5 hours in DFW, which, all things considered, is still better than getting up at 2:45 a.m. to drive to the airport. I will take the portable DVD player and a bunch to read and will be just fine. Arrival in Louisville is scheduled for 4:48 p.m. which will put me at the hotel just in time to go to the preview concert being held on the festival grounds from 6-10. This is a new addition for '06. Last year they only had one band play a few songs in the downtown area, which was a good ten minute walk from the hotel and festival grounds. Looks like they are going all out with the preview this year so that means four days of activities instead of three.

Coming back my flight leaves at 11:23, which is perfect. I don't have to get up too terribly early and yet I won't be stuck rattling around with nothing to do for half the day (some of the other return flights were not until 2:30 or later). I get back into Tulsa at 2:37, which is fab. Even if we decide to have a bite to eat before coming home we will still be back long before the kids' bedtimes (and ours) and will have time to sit and unwind for a while. I have no qualms about Robert making the drive with the kids in tow. Now that we have a t.v. in our vehicle we could drive all day and not hear a peep out of them, save for when it is time to change videos.

I am so darned excited....and, yet, as I may have mentioned before, kind of dreading it getting here because once it does it will speed by in the blink of an eye and then will be a whole year before I get to do it again! I do wonder if I will have as much difficulty reentering reality as I did last year. It was quite a bumpy transition, saturated as I was by all things Beatle-related. (Read about it here if you missed it when it was posted on my main blog last year.)

Posted by Mary at 11:00 PM | Permalink

Oh dear lord! I leave for Abbey Road on the River three weeks from tomorrow!!

Tonight I was reading the guestbook at the AROTR website. It's not just for signing your name; people have conversations there, ask questions, and the admins post answers. So there is all kinds of buzz about the upcoming festival. I am just beside myself with excitement. I cannot wait. On the other hand, though, I kind of don't want it to get here because it will fly by and then it will be another whole year till the next one. Not that I have a contradictory nature or anything. Heh.

I feel like I keep repeating the same things over and over again (probably because I am!) but I'm just downright giddy at the thought of AROTR. I have tried to convey how much I enjoyed last year's....but I don't know that I'm articulate enough to do it justice. You'll just have to take my word for it that I am overjoyed at the prospect of once again attending this festival a mere three weeks from now.

By the way, I have some thoughts about John that have been roiling around in my brain for a couple of days now and I intend to write them all out in at least semi-comprehensible form...just not now. It's 1:30 a.m. already and it's a good half-hour of writing, at the very least. I'm incorrigible.....but not THAT incorrigible. I'm off to bed now.

Posted by Mary at 01:19 AM | Permalink

Purchases necessary to my trip to Louisville, that is.

Earlier this week I was able to purchase the "Ultimate Ticket to Ride," which is the top shelf weekend pass to AROTR . With it I get admittance to 21 VIP concerts, preferred seating to the spotlight concerts (including my favorites, 1964: the Tribute), admittance to the midnight concert series in the hotel ballroom and access to a VIP room that will have art, additional vendors and other things. All that's left now is to book my hotel room (may or may not require the first night's payment as a deposit, so I'm waiting till later in the week to make sure we have money when I call) and get my plane ticket. This will all hopefully be done in the next ten days or so and then all I have to do is sit back, relax, work on losing some more weight, and watch the time fly by till the end of May.

When I went last year I was on a shoestring budget. I honestly don't know how we afforded for me to go at all. I had a limited amount of available funds and Robert couldn't really come up with anything more to put in the account. For meals I basically stuck to the Wendy's downtown, to which I could walk, and a few other cheap places within walking distance. I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on food and I sure as heck didn't want to waste a bunch taking a cab somewhere. This year, though, things have eased up a little. I can't go wild but I shouldn't have a problem getting spending money to take. So I think this year I will treat myself one night to a very nice dinner. I think there is a really nice restaurant within walking distance of the hotel but, if there isn't, I should be able to take a cab to one. Also on the agenda this year: Beatle boots! I gazed longingly at them last year, even tried some on, but the budget just couldn't stand it. I've given Robert notice, though, that those are first on my list this year, followed closely by more bootleg CDs. And, of course, more shirts for Madalyn. I brought her four shirts last year (two Beatles, two Paul McCartney) and she wears them all the time.

I have been to the AROTR website a number of times to look up various things. On the front page they have pictures from last year. Every time I see them I get downright giddy about going again. Have I mentioned I had fun last year? Just checking.

Posted by Mary at 02:11 PM | Permalink

I just realized there's only four more months until Abbey Road on the River. That blows my mind. I swear, it feels like I JUST got back from AROTR '05. Yet here it is coming up again fast. I cannot WAIT. I enjoyed myself so thoroughly last year that I have been looking forward to returning since, oh, the day I got home!

Posted by Mary at 01:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Because I am obsessed, I am off to Tulsa tomorrow evening to see 1964: the Tribute once again.

My favorite Beatles tribute band, I had seen them twice before this year. In February I saw them, once again, on their annual visit to OU. Then I saw them a second time in May, at Abbey Road on the River, and I enjoyed them so much I was bummed at the thought of having to wait until '06 to see them again (they always visit OU in late winter).

It occurred to me to check their website for show dates, though, and I discovered this Tulsa show was upcoming. I bought a ticket as soon as they went on sale. I'll be enjoying the show from the third row. I always have so much fun at their concerts and I'm really looking forward to this -- not to mention the fact that I will be going to dinner beforehand, and will be borrowing my father-in-law's cushy Lincoln to drive up, which doesn't suck.

Posted by Mary at 01:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

A few footnotes from the trip:

1) I am a freak. No, really. If you haven't figured it out already from all the entries filed under this category this will do it for you. Read on.

2) I bought a bootleg CD of unreleased material and I cried....yes, CRIED...over the stereo version of "I Should've Known Better" the first time I listened to it. In my defense, it really sounds so much better than the mono version, which is the only version I'd heard up till now. John's voice is so vibrant on this version I almost feel like I could reach out and touch it. And I can hear his little intake of breath before he sings each line which, for some reason, rips my heart out. With it being in stereo the vocal track is dead center when I listen to it on the headphones and it's like his voice is inside my head instead of just going in my ears from the sides. (I know that sounds weird but anyone who has listened to a really good stereo mix of a song on headphones will know what I'm talking about.)

3) 50 bands/artists performed at Abbey Road on the River this year. I did not see all of them but I saw/heard a good many of them. And, after all of that, my absolute favorite is STILL 1964: the Tribute -- whom I had seen three times already before seeing them at AROTR. They are just superior to anyone else I've seen so far. I look forward to seeing them again when they come back to OU (as they do every year).

4) On the subject of 1964: I am fascinated by the "John" in the group. It's not so much that he looks like John as he acts like John. He has John's mannerisms and speech patterns down pat. The other guys in the other tribute bands that I've seen come across as trying too hard. It's them doing a John Lennon impression. The 1964 guy seems natural when he's doing it. I usually end up spending 3/4 of the concert just staring at him because he seems like he's channeling John.

5) When one is traveling and is tempted into buying two new (enormous and hard-bound) atlases from Borders' markdown shelves, one should also take into consideration the considerable weight of said atlases and whether or not this will put one's luggage over the checked-baggage weight limit when returning home. Because, you know, it would totally nullify any savings one had secured if one had to pay an extra $25 to get the frigging bag on the plane. I'm just saying.

6) Ooh, just checked 1964's website and they'll be playing in Tulsa at the end of July and Ft. Worth at the beginning of August. Also they already have their dates for Norman scheduled for January '06 -- three nights in a row! Robert had better be prepared to come up with quite a bit of ticket money.

Posted by Mary at 03:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

When the wheels of the plane touched down in Tulsa this evening, it wasn't just my physical body that was returning to earth. At that same moment my mind -- my entire consciousness -- fell out of the Land of Beatles and back into the real world with an audible thud.

Continue reading "I live in another dimension but I have a summer home in reality" »

Posted by Mary at 01:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)