OT - Grumpy Old Man Thread

[SFBadger96]

I looked it up and it should be about $158 in 2025 dollars.

Yeah, and it felt like a lot to pay. That was a really expensive ticket at the time. I feel like $158 is about average nowadays (for a major touring act).

[Riffraft]

I mean, the man was in his mid-70's when you saw him in concert...are you really surprised he was dead a few years later?  I remember thinking when he died amazing he lived that long. 

Saw Jeff Beck in phoenix a couple of months before he died, was still great. 

[Riffraft]

Guess I am getting old, going to get my ears checked for hearing aids today.  Probably too much loud rock music. 

[Cincydawg]

I'm having a decent day, so I'm not grumpy, not anything major, just routine and the weather is great.

I was over in the park working out some, a bit sore, not bad.  Wife is making a sandwich just now, she makes great sandwiches.

[Gigem]

I looked it up and it should be about $158 in 2025 dollars.

Well, to be fair, there is a fairly limited supply of Rush concerts, in my opinion.  Whereas, back in 1995, they probably had hundreds of shows left to play in their lifetime.  And they were already past their prime at that point.  In 1995, although Rush regularly received radio play, when was their last true hit?  I was never a big fan, so I really have no idea when their peak was, but it's my impression they were a 70's band, and never did much in the 80's. I could be wrong, I really didn't start listening to much rock music until the late 80's.  I was a big fan of Def Lepperd.  

To tell you the truth, I was a product of the MTV era, and I don't believe Rush ever did much, or anything at all, with MTV, so they were completely off the radar by the 90's.  Contrast that with somebody like Aerosmith and Tom Petty, who were big on MTV all through the 80's and 90's and were still hugely popular even though the band was first popularized in the 70's.  

So you combine the fact that there is probably a very limited supply of Rush concerts even left, and an aging but prosperous fan base, I'm not shocked at all the price was quite high.  

[Gigem]

Do any of you get into the situation where you want something, and you can afford it, but when you actually see the price tag you realize "no effing way" because you've anchored in very old ideas about what some things should cost?

I logged into the Rush ticket sale. I was pretty early in the queue and when I got in, there were a LOT of tickets available.

Prior to logging in, I thought, "$300 seems like a good upper limit" for tickets. Especially since I know we'd have to drive to LA, which is annoying, my wife doesn't even know/like Rush or their music, so although she'd be completely supportive and go with me, I know her ticket is a bit of a wasted expense, etc... So I figured $600 for the two of us for a night out was about as much as anyone should reasonably have to pay.

So... I get in and set the slider to a max of $300. And immediately every part of the Forum seating that isn't an absolute upper deck nosebleed disappears. So I set the slider to $350. No change. Slide it to $400. Ahh! Some things open up! I find two good tickets for a combined $790.

But... Do I really want to spend $800 on a concert? For a band I've actually seen once before (which I could somehow afford when I was a damn poor college student!), when one of the original band members isn't even alive? No! That's ridiculous!

And yet... I can afford it. I'm not saying $800 is nothing. I'm by no means "rich". But I've reached a point in my life and career, where I can treat myself to things... Especially since there are very few times that I actually spend a lot of money on myself. I could buy those tickets and feel not even the slightest twinge financially.

But $800 just seems like too much.

So I closed the browser window in disgust, went and mashed some pedals on the Peloton to get some frustration out, and I'm consigning myself to maybe checking out as we get closer to the date of the show if interest wanes and they get cheaper (unlikely, of course).

Last season, I really wanted to go to an A&M game where the outcome was important (news flash, it ended up not being important).  I had not been to an A&M game in several years, but the reality of it is that I only ever went to games that didn't matter, because I wanted cheap seats, didn't want to fight the excess crowds, and in general just apathy.  I hadn't been to a true "game that mattered" since I was a student.  In fact, I have only attended a few games at all in the last 25 years, like 10 total.  I really can't remember all of them, but it's been completely sporadic at best, with years sometimes between.  
Anyways, I bought some really expensive tickets to the LSU game last year, which we won.  It was a tight contest for 3/4 of the game, and we broke it open in the 4th Q.  I took my son, and we had great seats.  I think the tickets cost $1800.  It was one of the best experiences I ever had at a game, and I don't regret spending the money at all.  

All that to say, sometimes you just got to say fuck it and not worry about the money.  If you really want to see Rush, don't cheap out.  Find the best seats you can comfortably afford, and enjoy the show.  You'll probably never get the chance to see them again.  

[847badgerfan]

Rush achieved stardom in 1980 with the release of Permanent Waves which hit #4 in the US. 

That success continued with Moving Pictures (1981), Signals (1982), Grace Under Pressure (1984), Power Windows (1985), Hold Your Fire (1987), Presto (1989), Roll the Bones (1991), Counterparts (1993) and finally Test for Echo (1996)

Then they took 5 years off when Neil's wife and daughter died.

Vapor Trails (2002) reached #6 in the US. Snakes and Arrows (2007) reached #3. 

Clockwork Angels (2012) reached #2 and was the last studio album.

R40 (40 year anniversary tour) was 2015, and was the last effort before Neil died.

Yes, I did look some of this up (the charting stuff). They had a great run.

[FearlessF]

Huskers will be playin for a national tile before I'm willing to spend $1800

[Gigem]

Huskers will be playin for a national tile before I'm willing to spend $1800

I pretended like I was saving money since I haven’t been to a game in years. I think I’m going to “save money “ again this year. 

[FearlessF]

I paid $300 / seat for the 1994 season, 1995 Orange Bowl - Tom Osborne's first MNC vs Miami

not sure what that is figuring inflation but, it was worth it!  Great seats

[Cincydawg]

One of our two elevators is out since last Friday so I've been taking the stairs for some ups and downs.  Yesterday I misstepped on a stair and took a tumble, hit both knee caps on the concrete and twisted an ankle and scraped a finger.  I sat there a minute and it seemed it was not that bad, so I hobbled around to get the mail and whatnot.  Felt OK an hour later, nothing really amiss.  This morning however I was and am feeling it, obviously at my age stuff doesn't heal or resolve like it once did.  So, I'm taking it easy as we expect to walk quite a bit on the vacation.

It could have been worse, I need to be more careful.  I took my eye off the last step to check the door release button and didn't notice I was a step above where I thought.

[FearlessF]

you're right again...

be more careful