NKOTB and Amish country

My first weekend since returning from my 'out west fest' was amazing!  It had everything I possibly could have wanted: good company, good food, an NKOTB concert (the good goes without saying) and a good dose of information about being Amish.

Along with Bryan McCree, I performed at Rulli's Italian Restaurant in Middlebury, Indiana.  Before the show, the owner treated us to a meal, and it was fantastic!  In my experience, it's really hard to get good Italian food in the Midwest, but Rulli's pasta/bread bowl combination had me quite impressed.

Middlebury is right in the middle of Amish country, so there were a lot of formerly Amish people at our show. I had so many questions!  Thankfully, they were kind enough to answer all of them.  I heard all kinds of accounts of secret electricity and parents looking the other way during their children's rumspringa (turns out, it's quite easy to ignore your sixteen-year-old's car that suddenly shows up when s/he is helping support the family financially). 

We also got to hang out with this great cover band called Full Circle.  Their lead singer was one of the best I've ever seen, and his energy was nothing short of fantastic!  Plus, I take my hat off to any man who can pull off 4 Non-Blonde's "What's Up?"

Our hotel (allegedly) featured authentic Amish furniture.  Strangely enough, it looked exactly like the furniture at every Super 8 where I've stayed.

Drew was more impressed by the free oranges (which, apparently, double as head wear) in the lobby than the "hand-crafted" dressers.

In the morning, we packed up and headed to Cleveland, Ohio, where we saw the center of my universe (AKA New Kids on the Block).  Drew had never been to an NKOTB concert and had been promising since 2010 that he'd join me for one.

We made a quick pit stop at Meijer for the essentials.

And we reviewed Danish notecards for our upcoming trip to Denmark.

My ears got ready for the show, too.

And eventually we made it to Cleveland!  We looked for a parking spot for nearly an hour, did a few shots of the aforementioned essentials (note: after we found a parking spot), and headed into the arena. 

This is what a feminist being dragged to an NKOTB concert looks like.

Trust me, those little blobs are actually them.  We were seated in the last row at the venue.  Hey, being a comic/full-time student doesn't pay what it used to.

The New Kids played for over two hours straight and blew me away!  I've stalked them for years been to tons of their concerts, and this show was one of the best.  

Unfortunately, Drew was not nearly as impressed and didn't become the instant mega-fan I had hoped he would.  But, he powered through, and actually managed to name his favorite song ("Hangin' Tough") and remember all five of their names on the ride home.

He might have a way to go, and it might take me another three years to get him to another concert, but I'm convinced he will eventually see them for the awesomeness that they are.