Nate has always been a huge fan of renowned alternative punk band The Cure. He knows every single word to all of their songs, and has been known to dress up like the lead singer for the occasional 80’s party. So when they announced a worldwide tour in 2007, I immediately knew what to get Nate for his birthday. I paid a scalper some ridiculous amount for seats as close to the front as I could find. The concert was scheduled for a Saturday night in San Diego – only a couple hours away from where we lived (in LA) at the time – so we were going to make a weekend of it and stay with family in the area, try out a couple new restaurants, maybe check out SeaWorld. Nate was downright giddy.

Well, the concert ended up being pushed back by almost SIX MONTHS to a TUESDAY NIGHT! Which was a problem, since Nate was a scholarship athlete with practice every weekday until about 5pm and starting as early as 6am the next morning. I also worked at a demanding job (with a demanding boss) who didn’t take kindly to being told that I was going to take off early for a concert. But we begged, pleaded, and found a way to make it work.

Walking into a sea of goth-punk children of the eighties, I’ll admit I felt a LITTLE out  of place. Nate, on the other hand, felt like royalty. We got to bypass those mystical ropes guarding the coveted floor seats: a mere six rows stood between us and a legend. “I could toss a baby to Robert Smith, unharmed!” Nate exclaimed (don’t worry, there weren’t any infants nearby to test his theory). Over three hours – not including the opening act – the band played 35 songs and 3 encores. I truly have no idea how they did it. I was exhausted by the end of the night!

It was easily the best concert either of us has ever seen. And having lived in LA, we’ve seen A LOT of concerts. I’ve been in enough mosh pits and box seats for an entire lifetime. Once, I even met Roger Waters backstage (unfortunately I’d had so many rum and cokes that evening all I could think about was how desperately I needed to pee. He was kind enough to let me use his dressing room). But this was better. For me, The Cure was better than all of them if for no other reason than the look on Nate’s face. It was priceless. Magical.

I dare say, it was EPIC.