i have a dream – sleep when your dead – driving all night

26 Jul 2024

morning bigmoose friend.

as i pulled into my drive this morning i looked at the time on my car dashboard.

3.01

into bed.

3.15

alarm goes off.

5.30

i wake and realise what i did.

but first, rewind 40 years.

yes 40, the world was different then.

no internet, no mobile phones, no social media, no efficient timely way to communicate, and yet we came.

in the same way that nearly a quarter of a million people went to washington on august 28th 1963 to hear dr martin luther kings “i have a dream” speech.

they found a way to get there.

and similarly in june 1984, i bought my ticket for the show.

i have no recollection of how, but it wasn’t online, and there wasn’t a qr code to be scanned, that’s a fact.

that warm summer night in north london, i watched as the confident young man wearing jeans, boots, and a plaid shirt, sleeves ripped off, strode onto the wembley stage, and played his guitar, sang with gusto, and charmed the audience, regaling stories of growing up in working class usa.

we connected.

he spoke to me, with his emotional songwriting, his humour, his pathos, and his lens on my world.

and for over three hours bruce springsteen and the east street band entertained me, i had never seen such energy, passion, and tirelessness, a show crafted beautifully, with anthemic highs, and reflective lows, allowing his motley crew to lower their heart rates between fast paced classics like ‘born to run’.

last night i watched the same man, now 74.

yes 74.

he walked onto the new wembley stage, where very recently taylor swift walked creating her own blend of magic, but this was another era, and for over three hours he provided his 2024 version of the showman he is, with his brilliant backing musicians being allowed their own solos by the ringmaster, that didn’t disappoint.

i had been gifted the tickets by my mate kris, (thanks kris,) but as i set off from cardiff knowing a very long day was ahead, i’m ashamed to say, that just for a second i have to admit i thought about not going, but i soon shot that demon down, and headed east.

i have been trying recently to keep pushing, keep trying to live as normal a life as i can, and often quitting or taking the easier path can seem attractive, but i need to keep stepping out of my new comfort zone, and after singing and dancing along with the other 60k people that this septuagenarian entertained last night, my zest for life is still there, thankfully, and inspired by brucie boy, i ain’t quitting just yet, i can sleep when i’m dead

blue skies,

jeff

dream big – 73 – do one parkies

raising a million part one – eating elephants – the lone nut

1000% growth – is it a dream – big pressure