By Living Room Realty, August 9, 2023
I discovered the Grateful Dead in 1994 during my junior year of college. It was late at night and I was on the verge of what could have been a trip into a dark psychedelic experience. A friend of mine recognized my distress and said “oh, you need to listen to this.” The music pulled me back from the brink and opened my eyes to a different world on many levels. From there I was hooked. Jerry Garcia died just a year later in August of 1995. I was never able to make it to a show, but the music was still a big part of my coming of age.
At some point in my late 20’s to early 30’s, I kind of phased out of it. Sure, I still appreciated the sound when I encountered it, but I didn’t actively seek it out. Then in 2017, I watched the documentary by Martin Scorsese entitled “Long Strange Trip”. It is a 6-part series on Amazon, and I highly recommend it even if you are not a Dead fan. One of the interviewees puts it perfectly, “It is really hard to like the Grateful Dead unless you already like the Grateful Dead”. Everyone has a different access point to the music and there is no right or wrong way to get there. That series rekindled my interest, and I was back on a Dead kick. These days it is way more fun because all the live shows are just out there in the world to find. Back in the day you had a track down some dubbed tapes to get a glimpse of the live experience.
Then in 2018 I got a random Live Nation email that had a list of their upcoming summer shows, one of which was Dead & Company at Autzen Stadium in Eugene. How could I not go to that? The band currently is comprised of three of the original members with John Mayer on lead guitar along with a few other amazing players. I decided to go in totally cold. I didn’t listen to any of the current shows or watch any videos. Me and a few buddies ended up 20 rows back on the floor and experienced one of the most amazing shows of my life. The band sounded phenomenal and come to find out, that that show was in the top ten performances of this new ensemble. Totally hooked.
Nadya (my wife) and I went to two shows in Boulder, Colorado last summer and it was a highlight of the year. On the flight home she said, “if they come to the Gorge [Amphitheater] next Summer, we need to go as a family and take the boys”. Sure, I said (but thinking it unlikely).
Sure enough, on what was billed as the Final Tour, there was a two-night run at the Gorge at the end of their tour. We (barely) got tickets in February and started mentally planning the adventure. Give me a call if you want to hear the full story…but the highlights were: watching Tyler (12) sing along to Casey Jones & having Nathan (14) tell me his favorite part of night two was when they came out of Playing In The Band and went into The Wheel. He also really liked Drums/Space because it is kind of techno/hip-hop. With the long lines (for EVERYTHING) and the sweltering heat there were some low points. At the end of night one, we were concerned that there might be a full mutiny for night two. But when we woke up Saturday morning, the boys asked, “what do you think they’ll open with tonight?” I knew we were in!
Was this a good parenting decision to expose our kids to this psychedelic world? I’m going to go with “yes”. Nathan said that this is the coolest thing he has ever done, and he was stoked to tell his buddies about it. They witnessed balloon huffing and people partying hard at all hours of the day and night (which, let’s be honest, they were going to see at some point, and I’d rather have it be on my watch). My biggest takeaway for them was an opening in curiosity. They got to see people being a different way in the world even if it was just for a weekend.
What on God’s green earth does this have to do with Real Estate? Fair question ;-). In my practice, I get an intimate view into what is going on in people’s lives as it relates to their living situation. One theme that makes me kind of sad is to witness folks putting off happiness for another day because they are unwilling or unable to face a tough decision or make a big change. There is always an option, even it is inconvenient. Some options are WAY more inconvenient than others, but there is usually some variety of bliss on the other side of the pain.
As I approach 50 I realize more and more that life is short. Watching friends/family deal with health issues + dealing with a few of my own really helps me to focus on what it important in life. The music of the Grateful Dead can bring you into a “present” state and then transport your spirit to another dimension. Experiencing these shows with my family was a reminder that happiness and joy are always accessible if you are willing to make the journey. This is true when following the Dead or making that big move in your living situation. I am overjoyed to be your guide for either trip.
