keep on playing our favorite song

What should have been a short Saturday night trip to Columbus to see Queens of the Stone Age turned into a crazy weekend adventure for Daniel and I. Upon arriving in Columbus about half an hour before the doors opened, the parking lot attendant asked us what we were there for that night. When he informed him, he told us that show has been postponed, to which Daniel responded "You're joking, right?" He was not. It turned out that the show was to be delayed until Sunday night due to "illness." Needless to say, we were not too thrilled to hear this.

We quickly decided that we weren't going to let this trip go to waste and just go home, and since I knew Austin was in nearby Circleville for the annual Pumpkin Show, I decided to give him a call. After confirming that we could spend the night at Jon Brown's house there, we set off for Circleville. The problem was that the timing of our departure had us passing right down the center of Columbus at the same time that the Ohio State football game was ending, meaning that the streets were packed. What should have been a forty-five minute drive was doubled by all the traffic. It was nice to hang out with Austin, Dan Ebert, CJ, and Jon, but we were hardly in a mood to enjoy the Pumpkin Show after all the driving and the uncertainty over the concert's status. Jon's parents were very gracious in letting us stay over, and while the attic we slept in was actually fairly comfortable, I can't say I got much sleep that night.

Daniel and I headed back into Columbus on Sunday morning, but not before we had a brief scare leaving Circleville: when I got in my car, I realized that the headlights were still switched on from the previous night. The strange thing was that the headlights weren't visibly on from the outside and the car started just fine (I wonder if locking the car with my key chain remote turned the lights off, but I really don't know).

Not having eaten that morning, we decided to drive back into Columbus and eat there. Once again the trip was no where near as simple as it should have been. When we got back into town we discovered that there was a marathon being staged exactly where we needed to be. The entire downtown area that we were trying to get to was one huge cluster of traffic jams, cops poorly directing said traffic, and very slow runners. After spending over an hour literally going in circles around the same five-mile radius of town trying to get to the parking lot for the show, we finally found a way there. Once again, what should have been a simple trip ended up taking over two long, hungry hours.

Having finally parked, and after learning that the status of the show was still up in the air for the night, we decided to finally get something to eat. It just so happened that the cursed marathon would continue to haunt us, as the area we were in was serving as the finish line for the race, and thus was inundated with a flood of runners and their families. [On a side note, can someone tell me why runners wrap themselves in sheets of reflective tinfoil-looking stuff after they finish?] Nevertheless, we waded through the horde to the nearest restaurant, which was inexplicably closed at one o'clock on a Sunday. As was the next one. And the next. And the next (lousy Chipotle). Finally we found some German beer garden to collapse in (which actually turned out to be pretty good). We returned to the concert venue again, where they finally gave us confirmation that the band was on their way in. To make an already too long story a little shorter, we killed the next five or six hours walking around Columbus, exploring their children's museum, and watching football.

Since I'm getting tired of being so long-winded, and I need to catch up on some more lost sleep, I'll cut to the chase: in the end, the concert was still worth the hassle. It turned out to be a very good, solid show. We arrived in line early, and actually ended up in the front row on the left side (actually, Daniel was in the front on the rail and I was right behind him). I'm not sure what Josh Homme's "illness" was, but he seemed just fine. The band played a fantastic set. Even the two opening bands were pretty entertaining. They apologized for the delay and played a slightly longer set. The pit got a little rough, and there were some very annoying people in it, but nothing bad enough to detract from the overall experience. I wish I hadn't been so worn out by the time it started, but there was nothing to do about that. This was also the first concert I've worn earplugs at, and I think it is something I will continue to do. After it ended, we managed to make it home somehow, completely exhausted, smelly, dirty, and hungry. It felt great to get out of the same clothes I'd been wearing for two days, remove my contacts for the first time since Saturday morning, shower, and sleep. It was a very bizarre weekend, but we were treated to a great show.

(set)
Burn the Witch
Misfit Love
In My Head
Into The Hollow
Run Pig Run
Leg of Lamb
Little Sister
Battery Acid
In the Fade
Turning on the Screw
Make It Wit Chu
Sick Sick Sick
Do It Again
Avon
Mexicola
3s & 7s
Go With the Flow
(encore)
You Can't Quit Me, Baby
No One Knows
Infinity
No One Knows (reprise)
Song For the Dead