In keeping with my tradition, I’m officially inked to catch my favorite performing act twice again this summer. I was sorta bummed that the Dave Matthew Band was only perfoming one show in Pittsburgh, PA this time around, although because of the extensive spring World Tour, I assign no blame. So since I’m seeing the band once in Pittsburgh, I was thinking of where else I could see them without making a long drive just to see the show. Destination: Virginia Beach, VA.

On August 10 I’ll catch the show here, then on August 15 we’ll see them again in Virginia. It’s gonna be a great short vacation. I coaxed Kyle and his wife Amanda to join us that week, so it won’t just be me and Natalie. I met Kyle in college and we hit it off right away. We’ve been friends ever since. He married Amanda in September of ‘06 and they moved to Baltimore. Being that they’re both fans, and Virginia Beach isn’t all that far from Baltimore, they could use this as a quick little getaway. They agreed.

I’m not sure what to expect from the shows this summer. I think the band is a little tired but that’s never cost them a great show before. Every concert series the band debuts a few new songs, most of which I really like. Last summer we got some really good new stuff which I expect to find its way onto the new album in production. As with any jam band though, certain tunes just don’t fit the album mold, and should only be played live. Of course they’ll throw in the crowd favorites and mix it up with a cover song or two, so that’ll be cool too.

The best part this time around is that in Virginia, I won’t have to get into the car, drive the hour home while Natalie sleeps in the passenger seat, and kills the concert buzz. The Verizon Wireless Amphitheater isn’t far from the hotel I booked, and we’ll have friends in the car, not to mention that when the concert is over, we’re headed to the BEACH!!!! It’s gonna be the best concert experience I’ll ever have, no doubt about it.

We’ll leave the house here in Pittsburgh around 4:30am or so. We’ll get to the coast at about 2:30. That’s gives us time for lunch before we check in. We’ll wait for Kyle and Amanda (unless they get there first), and head out for the show. Maybe a little tailgating will be in order. After the kick-ass cocnert, (and I can’t speak for everyone else) it’s back to the hotel to change clothes, then I’m headed into the water! I can’t be on the beach in mid August for a single day without taking a swim.

If you can’t tell, I’m excited. I love the beach as much as I love life itself. Add some good music from the Dave Matthews Band, and some friends, and it’s bliss.

Oh…and I think we’ll do the waverunner stuff again; that was AWESOME!