Going for broke...literally.

*This post is an add-on (or an expansion pack, if you will) to the post below, so please make sure you read that one as well.*

In the aftermath of the craziness that was this weekend, it was brought to my attention that many great events were happening in the next few months and tickets to those events were being snatched up at a rather rapid pace.

So always one to throw caution to the wind, I decided to pony up, max out my bank account, and secure tickets to these events and worry about how to pay for them later (man, I hope my parents don't read this post). That being said, if you are attending any of the events below, let me know so we can meet up before, during, or after.

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Jason Mraz @ The Metro - April 9

Finally returning from a year-long hiatus , Mr. A-Z is back touring to promote his upcoming album, We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things. He's releasing three EP's in advance of the album, which I've yet to get my hands on, but I heard some of the demos on iTunes and it sounds awesome. It also includes Steph's and my song, "I'm Yours." I surprised her with tickets the last time he came to Chicago and almost surprised her again with tickets to this show, but she eventually got it out of me.

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Kids In The Hall: As Live As We'll Ever Be @ Chicago Theatre - May 19

It's truly rare anymore that these legendary comedians go out on tour together as they each have so many individual projects going on. I was lucky enough to get tickets to their last Chicago show, Tour of Duty (which also produced a DVD), back in 2002 and it was this great mix of comedy, nostalgia, and a surprising amount of new material. That gets me excited to see what they'll unleash after six years. There are always rumors about an as yet untitled movie project that they're working on (according to the documentary Kids In The Hall: Same Guys, Different Dresses, was going to be titled, Not Brain Candy - a self-depricating reference to their cult classic, Brain Candy, which did poor at the box office, but found new life on VHS/DVD), but that project has yet to surface after all these years. So right now, it looks like seeing them live is the only way to relive getting your head crushed, seeing Gavin paint, and being taken away in one of those....oh, what are they called? .....With the flashing lights and the sirens? ....No, not an ambulance....

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Dave Matthews Band @ Toyota Park - June 6

I was extremely excited to see that my favorite band was going to be in Chicago the day before my birthday this year and, ironically enough, it will be my 32nd DMB show the day before my 32nd birthday. I'm not even going to begin to explain the connection I have to this band and their music as I'm sure you all have bands that you connect with on different levels as well, and I'm not going to bore you with my story. Needless to say, every concert of theirs I've been to is a re-energizing experience and I've always taken - and continue to get - something different from every show I've been to. It's been the posh thing to bash this band over the past few years and just write them off as "college rock," but they put on one of the best concerts you'll ever see and I can think of no other group that personifies the term "band" more than them.

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Boston Red Sox VS. Chicago White Sox
@ U.S. Celluar Field - August 10

After 22 years, I'm finally going to get to see the Red Sox play live. I can't tell you how excited that makes me. Steph said recently that she's always wanted to go to a MLB game and I couldn't think of a better way than to see my favorite team (and the best team in baseball right now) only a few hours away at The Cell. Granted, I like the Cubs and have seen them play numerous times and could've taken her to see a game at Wrigley Field (which I guarantee you we will do some day), but the timing just worked out perfectly to finally get to a Red Sox game. There weren't that many seats left and the ones that were weren't anything stellar, but it was just a matter of committing to it and finally having the time to get up there and see them. I went on a pilgrimage of sorts this summer with a good friend of mine to Boston (see earlier post) as he had a job interview and didn't want to fly, and I had always wanted to visit the town. While there, I took a tour of Fenway Park that was just incredible and it lit a fire in me to really make an effort to see them play. It just timed out so well in August that I couldn't pass it up. Now watch it get rained out...

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So that's the update as to where and what I'll be doing this summer. As I mentioned, let me know if any of you are attending any of these so we can meet up. I'm just trying to find something to go to in July now so I can do something every month (if that happens, I'll update this post). :-)

Take care of yourselves and each other.