Lonely Chronicles: The New York Concert Experience

I've been to a couple of concerts in New York since my arrival here, but never on my own before last night.

A few months back I bought tickets to see one of my absolute favorite bands, First Aid Kit play at Webster Hall.  And last night I finally got to go.

After work I walked from my office down to Union Square.  I found an adorable little coffee shop, The Bean, per a suggestion, and parked myself there for two and a half hours, because to go to my apartment and back would take just as long if not longer.  Sometimes I hate living so far from everywhere I need and want to be.

Then, after hours of drinking chai, eating a delicious donut from Dough, reading and writing, I set off.  And immediately got lost and confused, even though my trip took me a mere three blocks.  I'm not used to the East side at all.

I got to the venue, was attacked by the bouncers requiring to see my ID about four different times, and finally I was allowed inside.  The building itself is beautiful, if just a little old and downtrodden.

To be honest, it was not the best concert I've ever been too.  The fans were awful and gross (the stench of BO and weed was too much for me, and being shoved around by a bunch of strangers who didn't bother to say "excuse me" or "I'm sorry" was not fun.)  But the music was AMAZING.

I'm not a concert reviewer, and I don't want to be.  So all I'm going to say is that they're even better live, their new album is at the top of my list, and First Aid Kit remains my favorite band.

At the end of the show, I was tired and sore from so much standing and wearing my backpack.  But I was also so happy to have gone and made the most of my otherwise uneventful Wednesday night.  Even if I went to the show all by myself and had to travel back home alone later than I'm comfortable, it's still going down in the books as one of my favorite nights this summer.

Alone may be lonely, but it's not always so bad.