Neon Heart, Day-glow Eyes

voltee ♦ October 6, 2010 ♦ 7 Comments

Item: Camisole Color/Fabric: Copper and gold, Rayon/Nylon Designer: Express Years Owned: 8
In keeping with my Week of Endless Smiling, here is one cheerful little cami. This is a piece that vanished for at least a year or two, and I had convinced myself that I must have bagged it in an over-zealous closet purge, that it was lost to me for all time.
And then a few weeks ago, I found it on my closet floor, beneath a suitcase and a little hanger graveyard. Hoorah!
I’d missed it. Plus, lace is making a big comeback this season.
Together again, Lace Cami and I. I am fond of it, and my reasons are three-fold.
One, it is versatile and charming and looks completely vintage.
Two, I wore this out dancing at the Steelhouse in Kingston on the very first night I hung out with the cast of Chicago. I don’t remember much of the actual evening, except a great deal of smirking at a go-go dancer in a cage who could not actually dance, and a great deal of totally awesome dancing with my new friends, who could.
And Three, I wore this to my first (and only) Secret Show in New York City.
I have always been fascinated by the concept of a Secret Show. A Secret Show is when a band decides to play at a small club, or some non-traditional location. Except that only a few people are told, there are no tickets sold, and those who are lucky enough to be in the know are treated to a free concert. And sometimes they are the stuff of legends, like when the Beatles played for the last time as a band, on a rooftop in London.
It seems like, historically, most Secret Shows occur in cities like New York, and not often in locations like Lansing, Michigan, or Bowling Green, Ohio. So when I moved out where, I was certain that I would one day attend a Secret Show.
And wouldn’t you know it, I did! And not just any Secret Show; it was U2, my favorite band in the world since I was 12.
Late one night in early November in 2004, I received a cryptic email stating that if I wanted to see an awesome concert for free by a legendary band, I should print the page and take it to the Brooklyn Bridge the following day. Like a scavenger hunt! How mysterious. Since U2 was due to have an album out that week, and I love mysteries, my heart just about exploded. I was certain that U2 would be the ‘secret’ band. I had nary a doubt.
So I made Nate take off work, on a whim and a hope, and we headed to the City on a gorgeous day. He is an amazing man, for doing these crazy things that he has absolutely no interest in whatsoever. He does them solely to make me happy. I adore that. How blessed I am.
Even though it was November, I felt comfortable in my lace cami and a sweater. And by the time we made it down to the Brooklyn Bridge, I was actually sweating. We had never walked over the bridge before, and it’s actually a bit of a workout- the sweater came off about a quarter of the way over! But oh, the view. It was spectacular. My heart was full and shining and so happy, even if the concert didn’t actually happen.
Because there was much uncertainty. We were herded into a waiting area with a mass of people with printed emails like mine, and no one was entirely sure what we were there for. Many people were convinced the ‘secret’ was Bon Jovi. And someone actually said “Nickleback.” I choked down a tiny bit of vomit, and told myself that no matter what, it was a perfect day for a show, and in a breath-taking location, and that I would have a great time. But I have to admit that I did whisper a very quick little prayer that it would not be Nickleback.
After hours of waiting and hoping and fearing, finally my Irish boys did come and play for us. By that time everyone was allowed to come into the park, and there ended up being around 10,000 people there. Here’s what it looked like:
Sorry you can’t see the lace cami. It’s in there somewhere… New York City is mesmerizing- what a backdrop for a concert! I will never forget the sparkle and shimmer of the city lights as I listened to the music I so loved.
And although my Secret Show may not have been all that historic, it did make the news- my parents even saw it in Ohio. And I had an honestly perfect evening.

**I definitely want to keep this.  But it’s disappeared again!  I can’t understand it.  When I find it I will wear the crap out of it!