NKOTBSB 2011

NKOTBSB.....I'll be the first to admit I wasn't thrilled about BSB joing NKOTB on this tour. Although I didn't get into the 90's boyband scene, if I had to pic a fave band from that "era" it would've been N'Sync. When this wave of boybands came along, I remember that the interviews I saw, BSB didn't have much nice to say about NKOTB :/ But if this is what it would take to get our boys back out on tour then so be it. I figured the BSB stage time could be my bathroom & or tweeting breaks lol Then when I saw them perform together on DWTS, AMA's & New Years Eve in the back of my mind I started to think: shit, this is probably gonna be an awesome show & I'm gonna be kicking myself for only getting tickets for a cpl shows, none of which were floor seats! How could I expect NKOTB to put on anything less than an amazing show? They've had 25 years of learning just what to do to make us "WOO" everytime, why should I expect anything less this time around?

Chicago 5/25/11....I got free tickets to the opening show in Chicago from being on the cruise, so I called up Suzi & said let's go! We went a day early in hopes of catching the guys coming in or out of rehearsal at the arena, but no luck. The next morning we decided to see some sights in Chicago & took the trolley tour :) Saw Harpo Studios (on the last day her show aired), The Bean, The Magnificent Mile etc...Love it when I can fit some tourism fun into my NKOTB trips :D I was so excited that we got to be at the opening night show! Everything was a suprise, mostly the ripping off of the tank top by Mr. Donnie Wahlberg! I damn near dropped my camera! LOL Luckily I had Suzi w/ me to fill me in on some of the songs that BSB were singing. I knew the big hits of course & after the 1st show I'm thinking: ok so maybe they're not so bad? After the show we walked or actually ran to the car through the pouring rain- it was an important NKOTB performance, of course it rained! lol After waiting out the usual cpl hours til the crowd of stalkers thins out to just the die-hards we found Jon out behind the arena having a smoke. At first I just asked for a hug because he was heading back inside- but then as 25 more girls come walking up asking for pix he finally says "ok I'll make a deal w/ ya, have ur camera ready, make a line & we'll get everyone done quick. then all of u go home it's cold & raining!" So we did & everyone got their pic w/ Jon in record time! Thanks Jon!!!



Boston, MA 6/11/11....This was one show I didn't wanna miss, getting to watch NKOTB live out their dream of playing Fenway Park! I flew to Boston the day before the show to do some sightseeing since my last trip there was during a blizzard! I met up w/ my friend Jess at the airport & we got checked into the hotel then went out to see the city :) We did the famous Boston Duck Tour & I got to drive the duck around the harbor- so fun! The night before the show there was a "Pre-Party" at a club, Jess got us VIP tickets which turned out to include nothing more than the people who paid less for general admission. Oh well, live & learn, we did get to see Donnie's head popping up from the other end of the club when he made his appearance. Anyway, when we got back to the hotel we ran into Jon Knight & Harley coming out for a late night smoke :) (Yes we stayed at the same hotel as the guys, but unless u camp out by the door 24/7 chances of seeing them are slim) The next morning we went over to Fenway to take the tour & ended up getting an early view of the stage set up & the 5*/4* gifts :) When they took us up on The Green Monster I took a pic of myself & tweeted it to Donnie sayin we "Woo'd" for him from The Green Monster (we could see him out on the field) Shortly after that Jess tells me that Donnie RT'd my tweet to him :) Yeah, it's the little things! lol After the tour we went back to the hotel to get warmed up/dried off (it rained all morning- typical nkotb weather lol) After :waterproofing" our cameras we headed back to Fenway! Jess had an Ultimate 5* & I had a 4* for the show. While waiting for ILAA to let us in I ran into a bh who I'd seen several times already in Boston, it seemed as if we were destined to become friends lol We started talking again & ended up spending the afternoon together. So much fun meeting new people! I now have a cool new friend from New Zealand :) During our 4* party we got to watch the guys rehearse how they would be appearing at the show that night, introduced by the announcer, coming out of the dugout :) The show that night was... LEGENDARY! I'm so glad I got to be there to experience FENWAY! Hoping it will someday be released on dvd! The rain, the slippy slide, naughty by nature & half naked New Kids....EPIC! After the show, we went back to our hotel, using the lobby computer to order pizza when Joe walked past me carrying Griffen up to their room :) We hung out in the lobby with 10-15 other bh's, eating pizza & looking at our concert pix. Around 2am we gave up on a nkotb sighting & went to bed. The next day a friend of Jess & the other girls I was staying with came to pick us up to drive to Donnie's brother's restraunt "Alma Nove" for lunch. It was delicious! After lunch is was time to head for the airport. Unfortunately the storms delayed one of my flights, missing my connection, so I was stuck in Boston another night. Thankfully I had new BH friends who were staying that night & let me crash with them- Thanks again girls!!! :D


Pittsburgh, PA 6/15/11.....I had extra tickets because 2 of my kids couldn't go so I invited the fiance of a friend of John's. Kerri is a BSB fan & was so excited to see them :) The day before the show Danny tweeted that they had arrived in Pittsburgh so we decided to go that afternoon instead of the next morning in hopes of finding them. Our hotel parking lot overlooked where the buses were but that's as close as we could get :-\ we met up w/ a couple bh friends at a nearby bar for a drink & also met Thomas who works for ILAA. Had a fun & interesting conversation to say the least! Lol the next day we tried some bus stalking but all we could do was peek thru the fence. Jon somehow found my tweet about his smoke break beside the bus... who's the stalker now? At the show that night when bsb comes down through the crowd Howie was coming down the aisle right beside us, Kerri goes over to see him & when he got to her he stopped & said "you are beautiful" - she was in shock at first then totally freaked out! After the show we went to Waffle House in hopes of joining Donnie for some post- show waffles that he loves but shortly after we got there he tweeted saying the bus driver wouldn't bring him because it wasn't on the way. We were starving, so we ate anyway since the place cleared out in about 15min of that text going out.

Louisville, KY 7/20/11.... This show wasn't in my original plans but all the kids were gone & John was working so why not, it's only 4hrs away :) i got there around lunch & was able to get a ticket at the box office, 2nd row of the lower bowl which was really more like 10th row floor the way the arena was set up :) I had a few hrs to kill so I went looking around, first i just had to go see the infamous Seelbach Hotel lol Then i took a look around the arena, finding that once again the buses were unreachable (in a garage below the arena) There were only a few girls waiting around by the entrance. I had a few hrs til my friends got into town so I waited... It was unbelieveably hot, like around 100 degrees w/ the humidity. Around 3pm the garage door opens & once he came out into the sun we could see it was JOE! As he came across the street, about 15 girls came out of the building we were standing infront of. They had been "hiding out" in the air conditioning, we didn't even know they were there lol Joe says to them "oh no,no,no....them 1st, they've been waiting in the heat, you cheated!" hahaha Gotta love Joe & his bluntness! (no worries, it was all said in fun) He took pix with everyone then went back into the garage. The arena security guard then says "are ya'll happy now?!" We replied w/ a unanimous YES!!! I wonder if the guys draw straws to see who has to go out to greet the fans? lol different cities, different New Kids make bus appearances, however it comes about, I'm glad they do! I've met them numerous times, but I still get nervous/excited/fangirl....that's why we keep coming back for more :) After meeting up w/ Steph & friends we got dinner then headed to the show! During "Tonight" when the NK's come out into the crowd, Joe was right infront of me! he winked when he saw me, assuming he remembered me from earlier that day? When he saw security holding back a bunch of fans, he told them to let them all come over :) See Joe can be a good egg when he wants to lol Louisville (prnounced Lool-vulle!) was definitely BSB territory! Not suprising after I found out a cpl of the BSB guys are from that area. That night, as I'm taking pix & videos of bsb "For Suzi", I started thinking, if I'm gonna go to 4 more shows, I might as well enjoy the whole show & not just the NK part. Embrace the fun to be had & just go with it :) It's better to love & enjoy than hate & complain ;) I decided to go w/ Howie: Nick was taken by Suzi (lol), Brian is a lil too religious for me & I already have 1 badboy to love. Plus Howie had been to "Boyband Charm School" according to my friend Jenn, winking at everyone, lots of crowd interaction, ya know, eyesex LOL

Columbus, OH 7/24/11....Finally my hometown show! No traveling this time! The day of the show Jordan did a CD signing for his snew solo album at Best Buy. We (Suzi & Katie) got there at 8am to get in line, since i had 5 hours to kill I brought a pillowcase & markers to make a sign for Howie in hopes of getting picked to be serenaded to during "I'll Never Break Your Heart". If I'm gonna join the backstreet club why not go all the way? My sign said "Howie: Don't Break My Heart! Pick ME!" The Jordan encounter was short & sweet but I did get a pic w/ him & was able to complete my NKOTB photo that the other 4 had signed already :D We went back to my house to pick up my other step dtr Kimmy & my friend Erin who drove over from Pittsburgh for the show. We went to the venue to check out the bus situation but once again they were unreachable. Our seats that night we on the floor at the tip but row L, so Howie couldn't see my sign :/ BUT the show was awesome! Happy to finally see it from the front! Plus they just love the O-H chant & the Buckeye spirit in general! Donnie wore a Buckeye necklace the entire show & they even played the fight song at one point in the show causing the crowd to just EXPLODE w/ excitement! After the show we ran into Thomas in the parking lot who told us that Donnie & Jordan were already headed to the airport catching a private jet to NYC for Donnie to film BlueBloods the next day & for the Stingy release party. no after show fun going on so we just went home. Suzi & I spent the day off between shows relaxin in my pool, good thing because the next couple days were pretty busy!

Indianapolis 7/26/11.... Suzi & I left first thing that morning & got to Indy around 1pm to check out the bus situation, again underground/unreachable. After getting ready in the car for our 5* M&G we headed into the arena! When it was our groups turn to go into the room to meet the guys Donnie recognized Suzi right away sayin "Suzi Q!" when she walked in! I was the last one in, standing next to Danny for the pic (completing my pic w/ each guy on this tour/cruise yr) When we went to our seats we found that we were front & center at the tip! Front row is...amazing! But it also spoils you into not wanting anything but front row for all following shows lol When the time came for BSB to pick their girls I held up my sign & didn't take my eyes off Howie! When he looked at me & motioned for me to come up on stage I squealed like I was 12yrs old! OMG I still can't believe he picked me!!! I ran over to the gate being guarded by Victor who verified I was the one Howie wanted then let me in. Howie took my hand to help me up the stairs, I hugged him saying thatnk you so much for picking me! He said "Your sign caught my eye right away, I had to pick you!" I told him that I was a new BSB fan since that tour, he said that's awesome, so you've seen the show? Me: um yeah like 6 times! Howie: that's great! so you know how this works? Me: yep! He asked where I was from, when I told him Columbus, OH he said he had a lot of fun at that show & that he'd bought an OSU jersey for his son there. I told him his little boy was so cute & looked just like him :) I pointed out my friend Nicole who was sitting pretty much right beside us along the shaft so she could take our picture :D Let me just say that sitting on that stool, being sung to infront of 20,000 people is just as amazingly dreamy as it looks! I couldn't do anything but stare at him & try to soak it all in! The crowd kept going crazy like something was going on, Howie kept looking over his shoulder said he was afraid the crowd screams were because Nick was gonna grab his butt or something LOL Turns out the crowd screams were because Nick was really puttin on a show for the girl behind us, on the floor, his knees etc Unfortunately this showboating kept all the cameras on them, & I have yet to find any decent video of me on stage, but I did have a few friends who got some good pix :) At the end of the song they walk us up to the end of the stage & all 4 BSB's get down on 1 knee infront of us to sing the last line acapella.... OMG it was almost too much to take in! WOW.....I was pretty much a hot mess by the time I got off the stage! Then Joe singing PDGG...how will I make it thru this show without passing out?! Then Donnie comes out to sing Cover Girl, I only took ONE video clip that night, right when I knew the ripping of the tank was about to happen. He rips it off, wipes it down his chest etc as he's coming up towards us then he throws it like a bowling ball right at Suzi! Some other girl jumped 4 seats & grabbed it also, Suzi goes flyin as she tried to rip it from her hands but of course Suzi's not gonna let go, luckily Victor & his scissors came to the rescue cutting it in half. Needless to say we had an EPIC night! After the show everyone kept stopping me to say hi, I'm so jealous, what did your sign say, how did u get picked? Can I hug u since u hugged Howie? etc After the show our plan was to leave asap to get home for a few hrs of sleep before driving to Cleveland but a text from a friend kept us hanging around a little longer. Spent a little while talking to Thomas & his "tour husband" Dove who was the photographer for ILAA & also the producer/director of Jordan & Donnie's new video for "Stingy" :) We finally headed home around 1am, home by 5am for a few hours sleep. Suzi had to leave the next morning to go home for work.

Cleveland, OH 7/27/11..... I left at 9am for Cleveland so I could pick up my friend Jen at the airport by 11, she flew in from Baltimore so we could go to a show together, we had 4* seats (4th row along the shaft) No luck even finding the buses here, they have underground tunnel/batcave lol Cleveland does rock though, another amazing show! No aftershow fun in Cleveland, maybe by the end of the tour everyone was just too pooped to party? The next day Jen & I went to Cedar Point, she had never been but loves coasters. I told her you haven't been to an amausement park til you've done Cedar Point! We had a blast! SO much fun! Laughing, screaming & making funny faces for the coaster cams :D Unfortunately the coaster screaming was the last straw for my voice, I woke up the next morning only able to whisper. Those who know me, know this was torture not being able to talk, especially with such fun & exciting news to share! I sadly said goodbye to Jen the next morning at the airport & headed home. I really wish we lived closer :(

Hershey, PA 7/30/11.... This was a last minute trip decision, put together while in Cleveland, mainly because my husband said why not go it's only 6hrs away? He was going to be working on his race car all weekend & the kids were at their dad's...umm ok! My friend Nicole drove here from Indy friday night, then we left early saturday morning, picking up Suzi on our way :) We went to the box office 1st & scored floor seats near the tip, not bad for last minute :D We had some time to kill before the show so we took the Chocolate World Tour (the concert was at Hershey amusement park)When we came out, (thanks to Suzi) we just happened to see Donnie, Danny & kids walking through the gift shop below :) #goodtiming The concert was outdoors this time, and although many were hoping for a repeat of the slippy slide/half-naked new kids fun of Fenway in the rain, it was instead a perfect summer night! :)During "Tonight" Jordan was literally right next to us, but we saw more of his ass than anything else as he was mainly singing to the other side of the crowd... no complaints on the view though! With the end of this show, came the end of my "Summer of NKOTBSB" one I will never forget (thanks to typing this all out lol) I'm so glad I decided to embrace all the fun to be had, not just half of it. If I had held my grudge from a few comments made almost 20yrs ago I never would've had this much fun! Thank you Donnie, your master plan worked...on me at least! :D
Love,
A New "BlockStreet Girl"
PS:
All my videos can be found here
I'm currently uploading my concert photos to a Flickr account & will update this with that link once they're all up :)