Willie Nelson & a melt down in Flagstaff

Nik LOVES Willie Nelson. LOVES him. So a few years back, for Nik's birthday, I decided to surprise him with front row tickets to Willie at an outdoor amphitheater in Flagstaff, AZ.

I told Nik we had to leave about 10:00 am from San Diego, that I had a surprise for him. He said he had some things to do that morning. I said, we gotta leave for your surprise.

So we piled the dogs in the back of the truck and started driving. It was an awesome start and the clock was ticking. The trip was a 7 hour drive, and the concert started at 8 pm, plenty of time!

We had fun, road trips are always fun to start. Playing music as the miles roll away, stopping for snacks and coffee, chit-chatting and laughing. It’s lovely also to see a change of scenery; road trips slowly unravel the mind a way that flights can't.

As the day wore on and the miles wore on, we had two problems come up: The trip was taking longer than we thought, and Nik was getting hungry.

Now. In any normal situation, you would pull over to a Cracker Barrel and feast, but we had some place to be, and only I knew what it was or the importance of being on time. Nik was oblivious to anything but his hunger. Nik was not enjoying his surprise anymore. Matter of fact, he said he was through with the surprise.

Again, being trapped for hours in a 42 square foot cab with someone who doesn’t want to be surprised any more is a different road trip experience. Time. Just. Stops. Miles become drawn out like red hot pokers in the eyes. Sedona? Completely missed it. Red cliffs? Nope. Didn’t see it.

We pulled into our hotel, which was a GREAT, LEED certified hotel in Flagstaff. Nik said great! Now let’s go get a nice dinner. I said, nope, we couldn’t, let’s go.

We had an hour and half before the concert started at this point. Nik pitched a fit. He didn’t want the surprise anymore, he was over it, he didn’t care. We were heading for a meltdown, fast.

We pulled into a Sizzler. I got a steak and veggies in a styrofoam to-go container and we ate it with plastic knives and forks. It took the edge off but Nik was still not making a comeback.

Picture driving through beautiful woods, with a huge sign that says “Welcome to Pepsi Amphitheater- Willie Nelson”, you would think that would give something away. Nik was fiddling in the foot box for something and didn’t see the sign.

We pulled the truck into parking, and it was beautiful! Fresh, clean mountain air. Nik finally realized what we were doing when a couple trucks parked next to us had their cabs open playing Willie Nelson music. That was the final clue, he cottoned on and he was stoked.

He was especially stoked when we walked up front and sat RIGHT. IN. FRONT. The concert was amazing! Nik was happy as a CLAM!

If you have never seen Willie Nelson, GO. He is small, and comes walking out on stage in little New Balance tennies. His voice is HUGE. And dreamy and all the things that make life worth living. Besides the dude smoking a ton of pot and getting crazy behind us like he never got out much, it was a great time!

I went up front after the concert and Willie grabbed my hand and held it and looked me in the eye. He signed his name on my hand with a sharpie. What a night!

Moral of the story: Keep chargin’ but feed the beast.