Gordon, Andy and Stewart: thanks for the memories!

As you may remember, Casey and I took our five-year anniversary trip last year to St. Louis, MO where we saw none other than The Police in concert (here is that fascinating story). I'd already seen Sting in concert five times, so why not see him reunited with his old band? When I found out early this year that they were returning to North America, to cities they hadn't visited, I thought to myself, "I've already seen Sting in concert five times plus seen him reunited with his old band once...why not see them again?" Obviously you can see how logical my thought process can be when it comes to Sting.

From what I've heard, this is it for them: no more reuniting, no more big tours and such, but even before I heard that I had my tickets. I just had to find someone to go with me, because yes, Casey loves me deeply -- he just doesn't love Sting or The Police enough to drive eight-plus hours to see them in concert. So I wrangled one of my girlfriends since one of her two kids would be out of town during that time and therefore she wouldn't feel so bad leaving her husband behind, and the two of us set off early in the morning this past week for good ol' Dallas, Texas.

Meagan is an awesome travel partner, I must say. I knew she and I would talk and talk and talk, but I really thought we'd rest more from the talking, that or run out of stuff to say at some point, but we didn't! Lots of laughs and a few missed turns later, we made it to the hotel to change and get to the show...although we missed some turns doing that as well, but fortunately we only missed the opener (Elvis Costello) and not the show.

Casey and I had thoroughly enjoyed the concert last July...only for me, the one little thing I would have changed was that dratted old wound. I still hadn't had my final abdominal surgery to fix all that craziness, so at the concert I was very aware of that discomfort. It didn't completely ruin the night by any means, but it was just a constant nagging reminder, something that I wished had been different so that my enjoyment might have been closer to 100 percent.

If you like concerts, if you have attended your favorite musician's or band's concerts, you recognize how fleeting that experience is. It is the kind of thing that you just can't hold onto, but it is a powerful few hours that sticks with you always -- again, I'm talking to people who enjoy concerts, because not everyone does. I think Casey is okay with them, but it's not something he will readily attend. He has enjoyed himself, but he was definitely there more for me. As I was saying, the live music experience to me is such a powerful thing, and if you aren't fully in the moment while it's going on, you might truly miss out. For me, I find that it's like a dream, or trying to remember one, and you are grasping at it but can't quite hold on. Then it's gone.

So, having said all of that, I have to tell you that of course this time around there was no wound (woohoo!) and I felt I could completely be tuned in with all that went on. And wow, was it ever an awesome thing. I could tell there were changes from last year, from the setup of the stage to the setlist itself -- and Sting was sporting a full beard! That was cool, but just different...I just kept marveling at the beard for some reason. Oh, and the music...never a disappointment. There were all my favorites, the top one being 'Every Little Thing She Does is Magic' and the lesser known 'Next to You' which they played on their third (?) encore. So awesome. It was all over much too soon, but as I sit here (wearing my new Police shirt) I know that the entire experience -- from my travels with Meagan and our growing friendship to the ultimate band reunion concert -- will circle its way through my memories for a very long time.