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We interrupt this summer produce orgy to bring you something completely off subject, but on my mind.
Bruce Springsteen.
Bruce and I go waaaay back. Back to the 70's.
I'm not from New Jersey so I can't claim I ever saw him play in a bar.
But I did see him play several shows in Boston in the mid- 70's, around the time Born to Run came out.
Then he played at my college in 1978.
There was a boy who was looking to impress me at the time, so he camped out overnight to be one of the first to get tickets.
The tickets cost $7 and there we were in the 5th row.
Bruce and the E Street Band put on an unforgettable show, with energy like a match in a fireworks factory.
I fell in love that night - not with the boy who waited out in the cold but with the rocker in the black leather jacket.
I saw him again a few times after that, including a show in Zurich, Switzerland.
It didn't matter that the songs were in English.
Bruce is universal.
Do you remember when we all wanted to be Courtney Cox, plucked from the audience by Bruce, to dance with him in the Dancing in the Dark video? Why couldn't that have been us?
Last night, I saw my old flame again and friends, he was ON FIRE!
It's probably been 20 years or so since the last time Bruce and I got together.
He hasn't changed a bit.
He's aged so handsomely (60!). Abs still tight, biceps pumped and head of hair intact.
Sad to say, his audience has not.
We danced awkwardly next to our teenage kids, who were kind enough to accompany us, even though they only knew a few songs.
Looking around, there was much upper arm flab waving in the breeze, along with our fist pumps and overhead clapping. Receding hairlines and streaks of gray were abundant.
But we knew every word and sang along. Through three hours of Bruce's hard-rocking guitar and rough-edged voice. Bruce and The E Street band never sounded better.
I was sorry to see it end at 11 pm.
But it was past my bedtime.
And probably his too.
For those of you who come here just for the food, this is for you:
Shrimp shumai from Ming Tsai's Blue Ginger, where I had lunch with two old friends. Please note, none of us have jiggly arm flab.
