Tl;dr: The show was great, Janet was great, the city was interesting but smelled like pee and I needed all the help navigating it.
I have to write about going to Houston.
Ok, so first of all, since I'm unemployed, one of the only reasons I was able to see
Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso was because my friends, Janet and Jajuan, said I could stay with them. I consider them both to be my friends, even though Jajuan insists that Janet stole me from him. 😅
They live in a suburb of Houston, so that's nice. I like suburbs. I grew up in the woods, so suburbs are a comfortable medium for me in that things are close, but you still have space. I am NOT a city person. I don't think I could live in an actual big city, but I can go to them if I need to.
I invited Janet to the concert with me because I didn't want to go alone and Shaun wasn't coming. She's like me in that she's often up for whatever. I think we both like experiences.
One thing to know about Janet, though, is that she is a planner. I do not mean that in a casual sense. 😆 She even out-plans Shaun, which is saying a lot since he was an Eagle Scout and taught to always be prepared. Me, on the other hand... I didn't often have a lot of choices in life, so I'm good at rolling with whatever happens. So a Blu + Shaun combo or a Blu + Janet combo is a really great thing.
Days before I even headed to her house, Janet had scoured the parking situation at the venue, made travel plans, and also back-up travel plans. She had the train all figured out and everything. I am so grateful to her, because otherwise I would have just tried driving to the venue in my car (which turns out it would have been ok, but you never know). We ended up taking the train and that was pretty cool.
But let me tell you, I was LOST AS FUCK tryna get to that train. I was out there in the streets accidentally jaywalking and shit. I was a whole mess. She probably should've held my hand like a little kid. 😂 She was thoughtfully looking at the crossings and figuring things out and I was just melting in the heat AND INESCAPABLE HUMIDITY, trying not to die. She was a lifesaver for that city stuff.
So we got to the venue and found the line and the wait began. Then we got put into corrals and we could see the side of the stage. I could hear them doing soundcheck. I almost cried when I heard Paco's voice in real life, OMG. Ca7riel came out the back of the stage and took pictures or videos of us. We all started cheering and waving. I love how playful he is. I was so emotional, and the show hadn't even started!
When we were finally let in, I somehow made it to the front, which is fortunate because I'm short. We were there pretty early, so that helped. I've seen some pictures and I look like a puppy with my paws over a fence and only my head poking up. 😂 Janet was feeling uncomfortable in the crowd, so she went to the back and that was ok. I was paying attention to nothing but the guys once they got on stage. It's stupid because I feel like I only remember bits and pieces. From the heat and excitement, I was basically on another planet.
The show was great. I'd definitely see them again. I think Phoenix was rescheduled, and I'd totally take Shaun to that one if I could find tickets (it's sold out). I haven't been that lucky, though.
Anyway, before we headed to the show, we met up with Carla and Samuel for lunch. Me and Carla had nail stuff and animal stuff in common on Facebook, so when she found out I was coming near, we decided to meet up for realz. It was really fun! We all got along well and it made me super happy to be able to know more people in real life. We'll definitely have to get together again the next time I'm in town. I also got to stay a night with my friend Meia. I hadn't been able to spend much time with her since we both left Alabama and I missed her greatly, so that was nice.
There were a couple of other people that it would have been great to see, but the timing didn't work out. That's ok. I'll definitely be back. Me and Janet used to hang out frequently when we both lived in Alabama back in the day. She's been my friend for like, 20 years now! Then life happened and she moved a few times and then I moved, but we always kept in touch. Now that she's just a little 13-hour drive away, I can do that in one day. We're not going to go years without spending time together in real life anymore.
Actual footage of us walking back to the train after the show:
😂😂😂
Full video here. It's great. Watch it:
