Shedding Old Skin

In tight-spaced Barcelona flats, sometimes everything you own can't find suitable space. I recently embarked on a closet-cleanout mission. I was hoping to get rid of a lot of stuff, but was disappointed with myself when the final result of the raid was only about 8 pairs of clothes that came out as "good to be donated." At first I thought that I could give away my Dave Matthews t-shirts without thinking twice about it. And I even took them out and kept them aside, to be taken to the recycle bin. They were sitting outside in the corridor of my flat, in the most "discarded" location possible...when it suddenly hit me! I was about to throw away some of my most cherished memories. Those who knew me in college can vouch for the Dave Matthews fan I used to be.

The concerts weren't just about going and seeing a group perform.... they were a ceremony that you attended with like-minded souls, all too obsessed with the music, just like you. The t-shirts you would wear to the concert, the tailgating for hours in the parking lot listing to DMB music before, the meeting other obsessed DMB fans like you, the talks about a certain line in a certain song that just blew our minds...My partner in crime was Nathan Williams. For college students it was a BIG deal to buy a concert ticket that cost $60. Then, if the group wasn't playing in your hometown, people like us would try and go to nearby shows. I remember twice having driven up to Virginia and once to Alabama to see the band. One time was so special because DMB were playing in their hometown of Charlottsville after many many years. I drove 11 hours (alone!!!!) to and from the concert location in two days: 22 hours, because Nate, my dear friend had lost his drivers' license. How I wanted to strangle him then :) At the end of the day though, we were invincible DMB fans and nothing else mattered but the music.

Its kind of strange that the group stopped mattering to me. A look at those t-shirts which were bought at concerts, marking dates and locations of their summer tours (2000,2001, 2002)... it was finally too much. Therefore, like it or not, since I don't wear t-shirts anymore, someday my kids will : )