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concert in Akron. They're doing a very brief joint tour with a group called The Longest Johns, who are best known for folk songs and sea shanties, both traditional (they practically kicked off the "The Wellerman" trend a couple years ago) and original. At first, I was thinking I would NOT go. I spent (not a lot of) money going down to West Virginia to see them perform for free at the Freedom Festival back in June and I figured eh, I've seen them once this year so I should save my $$$ for other things I want to do. But HF released an album of sea shanties--also both covers and originals--last Friday, and I've watched several You Tube videos of their songs and really, really liked them. I always say it's ironic that my favorite band is a country western group considering I don't really like country western music <g>.

I was still debating yesterday morning if I should go to the show. Akron is an hour's drive away, and while I worked my (almost) "usual" Tuesday morning shift, I was also scheduled to work an hour longer than usual, which would give me *just* enough time to race home, shower (I can work up a sweat walking around the store when it's busy!), change, grab dinner somewhere and get to the show, which started promptly..ish at 7:30. I was going back and forth--it's a long drive! I'll get home late! I don't know this theater and the area around it...is it safe? But then I had a new customer who wanted to sign up for the loyalty program and when the name of her street was the same as the last name of my favorite band member, it felt like a sign to go <g>.

And I'm so glad I did...it was possibly the best concert I've ever attended. The energy was high and different than the usual HF concert, probably because of all the TLJ fans in attendance (some even dressed as pirates. Like, full on PIRATES). The groups did a few songs individually but also did a lot of songs together, songs like The Parting Glass and Northwest Passage, and while there was an occasional glitch, everyone just laughed it off and kept singing. One of TLJs was back home in England with his wife who just had a baby, but they cleverly covered for him by having him record his parts in advance and used a mannequin topped with a screen that projected his face and voice to complete the harmony. It was almost better than having him there in person <g>. Some songs were so lovely, I wiped away tears (HF just did an amazing cover of The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald). Overall, I had an amazing time and am SO glad I went...and by getting my ticket at the box office 30 minutes before the show, I not only was able to get a better seat for the amount of money I was willing to spend (no junk fees!), I also got an actual paper ticket, which I love. I used to save all my paper tickets from events I've attended, and I miss doing that even as I appreciate the convenience of having my ticket on my phone.

My one regret: I opted to stop for dinner at a small burger chain in Cuyahoga Falls, which is Akron-adjacent and was on my way. We used to have one in Mentor and not only did they have great burgers, they had "urban fries": fries smothered in garlic aioli, parmesan cheese and herbs. Unfortunately, the CF restaurant was...I'll be charitable and just say they're struggling, probably due to lack of help. The restaurant was a little dingy, and there was no toilet paper in the bathroom. There was only three people working--I got the impression it was a dad and his two adult kids--and it took a while both to simply order and to get my food. Due to either a cup shortage or a broken pop dispenser (I never found out which), I was unable to get my usual blend of half Coke/half Coke Zero with lime and had to settle for a can of Coke. The sauce on my burger was the traditional "house" burger sauce...but it was weirdly SPICY, which I don't remember it being previously. And worst of all, they forgot the aioli on my fries. I considered going back and asking them to correct that--it would've been a simple fix--but there was two people ahead of me also getting their orders fixed and a bunch of people waiting to order, and I didn't want to wait too long and risk being late to the concert. I should've just gone to the (country's only sit-down) Arthur Treacher's just down the road.