2004-03-07
9:31 p.m.

BEVR: Donna in Philly/ Philadelphia 3/02/04

Where to start, where to start�Kwell, sometime back in January, there was a posting on the white pages that no one had volunteered to organize a BroadFest for Philly. I thought to myself, ��I��m definitely going to see Clay, no question. And, I definitely want to meet some Broads, so what the heck, why not!�� Once I was able to get a list of Broads together, my next step was finding a place to eat. Easier said than done! After making reservations, and having them broken or turned away by the restaurants because too many Clay fans were going to be there at one time, Filly Sue was able to secure reservations for us. YAY!!!! Thank you Sue. Meanwhile, during my fits of frustration, Irene became the voice of reason, telling me, ��This will all work out. I Will Carry You��. Sniff, Sniff�KI love you Irene!

Concert day �V Quite frankly, before about 3:30 pm, I have little recollection of my day. I somehow, drove to work, stayed there until about 12:30 pm, drove home, showered, dressed, and have no idea how any of that happened. I had so many butterflies. It felt like I was going on my first date �V ever! However, I must admit, sometime mid-morning, I was jolted out of my fog by an e-mail from Filly Sue telling the Philly Broads that floor seats close to the stage were available. Thanks to Sue, I was able to upgrade to the 9th row, center!

Broadfest �V Once hubby and I arrived at the restaurant, hubby immediately spotted a big purple heart-shaped balloon(Thanks Mary!), and he said, ��There��s your girls!�� Well, I was trying to be all cool and calm. What I really wanted to do was squeal like a piggy, and run and hug everybody. But I refrained. I can��t express how special it was to meet the Broads. I had never been to a BroadFest before, and it was beyond words. Irene, I love you. You are a beautiful Broad, and your spirit is golden. Ruth, I know you��re out there. Come out, come out wherever you are! You know you are officially a Broad now! Sue, your enthusiasm is contagious. You are loved. Mary, what a thrill to meet the force behind all of the voting I��ve been doing! You are the best! Pat, please come out of lurkdom. You would no doubt be among friends�� Suz, thank you for the ��Delusion�� candle. I am still huffing it daily - mmmmm. Dotty B. and Wendy, you both are two of the sweetest gurrls I ever met. Anyone who loves Neil Diamond and sings BeeGees tunes is top notch in my book! Cindy, thank you so much for the autism awareness pin. I will wear it proudly as a constant reminder of the beauty that is Clay, and that beauty which has bought us all together. Cheyanne, your commitment to Clay and the Broads is awesome. I want to let everyone know right here, Cheyanne has traveled far and wide to see our Clayton �V without ever getting on a plane! Clayton and the Broads are lucky to have her!

Concert time!!! EEEEE- Hubby and I walked to the concert hall a bit with Dotty B. and Wendy. Once we got there, hubby stayed outside to sell our first set of tix. I found my seat and met 2 lovely Clay fans, Lisa and Sam. Hi guys!! We laughed and had a great time. Once I told them I was a Broad, they laughed and said, ��You guys have the best pictures!�� A lovely woman sat next to me with her 10 year old daughter. They had just been to a meet and greet, and were showing us signed photos, and were excited. They told me that Clay was yawning a bit. Poor baby. Sam spotted Jerome, and approached him with a book for Clay and asked Jerome to have a CD signed for her. Jerome told Sam to consider it done. All this transpired before the lights went down!

The Beu Sisters come on. They have good harmony, are very perky, but I lost interest quickly. Then�Kthe lights went down�Keveryone turned to the back of the venue and waited for the man of the evening. He was hard to see at first, but you could certainly hear him! He was wearing his purple tie and shirt �V in honor of his Broads, of course. I won��t pontificate on how glorious he was. But, his interactions with his audience were just so warm and genuine. At one point, he had a young girl join him on stage. He just held her hand, sang to her, and smiled the whole time. How she made it though that experience without losing it, I��ll never know. Then, he wished someone a happy birthday, and talked with her briefly. His presence is just amazing. This man emits light! After Clay left the stage, I stood there and thought, ��That��s it!! Already!! I want more!!�� I always want MORE.

While the stage was being set up for Kelly, Jerome came out to meet my new concert buddy, Sam who was sitting right behind me. Jerome returned her CD, signed by Clay. Jerome forwarded a message from Clay thanking her for the book she forwarded to him. Sam was then able to have her picture taken with Jerome. It was a very sweet moment to see.

Once Kelly came on, I was still feeling a little down from missing my Clay. My hubby decided that he was going to make the best of the rest of the evening. He made a bet with me, that he could get Kelly to wave at him before the night was done. I said, ��Yea, right. Whatever twirls you beanie Romeo��. So, he decided to leap to his feet and wave to Kelly. In row 9, at 6��2�� towering over all of the young girls, he was hard to miss! I even saw his long flailing arms on the Jumbotron a few times. He was on his feet the entire time she was on stage. Finally, he received his own personal EF from Kelly �V more than once! Well, hubby thought it was an EF. I think Kelly was just revolted by him and glared. But hey, if I can live in delusion so can he.

Once the concert was over, I left the venue thinking, how glad I was to have gone, and to have had the opportunity to meet so many Broads. This sounds silly, but it ranks up there with one of the best nights I��ve ever had. Broads, new friends, Clay, hubby �V all in one place. I could not ask for more.

-Written by Donna in Philly