It was right after Steve's FTLOSM concert in Portland. I had second row, center seats thanks to SPIN (Steve Perry Information Network). I knew after I had seen him in San Francisco, I HAD to see him
again.
Portland was no different. I sat on the bed in the hotel room after the concert and told my sister, "I'm going to Puerto Rico." I was dead serious.
Now all I had to do was get my husband to say "yes". "Honey, I'm flying to Ft. Lauderdale and Puerto Rico to meet Steve Perry, I figure it will be about $3000 total."
"
HELL no!" was his answer.
And that stayed his answer! I tried everything from "this is a once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity" (little did I know!)" to "But I get to MEET him!!!!!!!" (said in my best whiny adolescent voice).
Drastic times called for drastic measures. This fan club trip was going to sell out if I didn't move FAST!
So... I put a non-refundable $200 deposit down to hold my place.
And one day, after days of pleading, whining, demanding and pleading some more, he said "Fine, go ahead!"
YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So I made my plans and paid the fee and prepared to meet da MAN himself.
But not without peril - Steve had been sick. Concerts had been rescheduled. In fact, I remember being called (I think it was Lora), and being told the Ft. Lauderdale concert was cancelled, but Puerto Rico was still on. She was letting folks know ahead of time.
No problemo!
Fast forward:
I got to Ft. Lauderdale around 9 pm or so on the first day and met the thirty (or so) folks who would be my BFFs for the next five days. We all stood on the beach until late into the night discussing how we found Steve, our Journey experiences - an absolute blast! I met my roommate Vanessa, a nurse from NJ, who would be my "official" Journey/Perry roommate for the rest of the decade!
The next day we could either take a day cruise or go to the beach (since we weren't going to the concert). I chose the "cruise". LOL! What a rickety old "ship"! We were howling with laughter - it looked like we had gotten on with the
Lawrence Welk Information Network! Too damn funny. Of course, we all had our FTLOSM T-shirts on. And the "show" was hysterical - look like something cooked up by Lucy Ricardo.
We were up early the following morning (VERY early) to fly to Puerto Rico. Imagine a plane full of Steve Perry fans. This was Loon-Air at its finest. There were men, women, and even a kid! I think the folks who came the farthest were from Belgium.
The big meet-and-greet will be in the next post. (Hey, gotta keep you waiting for more! I'm like Steve, I'm
thinking about writing....)
Posted: Fri Jul 25, 2008 9:08 am
