what do nkotb, donny osmond, and run dmc have in common?

I was talking with my friend the other day about concerts and shows we've been to, when it occurred to me that I've been to some interesting/weird shows in my lifetime. I've always had very eclectic music tastes and have always been into concert-going. Some of my fondest high school memories involve sitting in the study of my family home with my mom and simultaneously being on the computer and on the phone constantly hitting redial, trying to get Dave Matthews tickets.

Some of the randomest concerts/shows I've been to:

New Kids on the Block- My very first concert in second grade. I vividly remember the day my elementary school best friend came up to me on the playground and said "Guess what?! My mom got me NKOTB tickets!" She invited me along, and because her older brother had no one to bring, he invited my sister. The pictures from the concert and "tailgating" before are classic; me in my fannypack and visor, my sister in her over-sized NKOTB t-shirt; and my sister giving me bunny ears in every picture. The highlight of the show was when the screaming girl with horrible 80s hair who was sitting behind us, spit her gum in my friend's mother's hair. My friend's mother then ripped her brand new NKOTB poster.

Donny Osmond- I am not ashamed to admit that Donny Osmond is one of my favorite people in the entire world. I can't really explain it, but I have always been in love with him and fantasize about meeting him. When I heard he was going to be appearing with my favorite piano player, Jim Brickman, I made my mom get tickets and go with me...she fully supports my Donny obsession. It was an amazing show because Jim Brickman is a great performer anyway, but seeing Donny almost made my life complete (actually my second time seeing him, the first being in the front row at Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat). I was slightly uncomfortable with the fact that all kinds of women in their 40s and 50s were swooning over him as well, but whatever, I can take them on.

Ball in the House- My friends and I basically became groupies for this a cappella group called Ball in the House back when we were about 15 or 16. I don't really remember how it happened except that we met them at a free concert for 98 degrees. Anyway, we went to about 80 million of their shows and thought they were the coolest things in the world. Strangely, none of my friends will really admit to this and always seem to say "Oh, I went to a couple shows, but I wasn't one of the people who was really into them." Well, I know I didn't go to the shows alone, so clearly some of you were into it as much as I was. My favorite moment was when one of the guys called me to try to talk about playing at my school and when I came home, my dad exclaimed "Susie...the Backstreet Boys called!" Right, Dad. After Scott Harris left the group, I stopped caring. I occasionally see signs and ads for BITH, but sadly most of the original members are no longer in it (but they were semi-famous...they sang the Cool Whip jingle. ha.)

Ricky Martin- Another weird obsession of mine. Don't ask. I know he's probably gay and his music is less than stellar, but I went through a huge phase. So basically, I dragged Nina and Katie along with me and we sat in the worst seats in the world and watched Ricky shake his bon-bon. Life was good.

Run DMC- It may seem like an odd combination, but the Pat McGee Band was opening for Run DMC at Holy Cross my senior year of high school. I loved Pat McGee and my friend's sister went to Holy Cross so we skipped school for a day and went to the show. I guess I just never imagined I'd see Run DMC perform, so it was pretty cool to watch them do "It's Like That" and "It's Tricky," among others.

Nick Lachey- Sara will be mad that I'm putting this on the list, but the whole experience was a bit weird. Sara is in love/obsessed with Nick (I guess obsessing over Nick is slightly better than obsessing over Donny Osmond), so I agreed to go to his concert with her. It wasn't the concert that was weird, it was the fact that we were pretty much the oldest people there (besides parents with their children) and everyone was screaming, crying, and going crazy. Definitely went out for drinks after that one. And I'm still mad Sara didn't buy the Nick Lachey underwear.

I'm sure I've forgotten or blocked out more completely ridiculous shows I've been to, but I swear I've been to lots of "normal" concerts as well. And I'm sure I'll go to many more weird and not-so-weird shows in the future. Hopefully, more of them will involve Donny Osmond.