Dancing On the Ceiling

I don’t mind telling you: I am a big Lionel Richie fan. Not because he is a judge on American Idol, no, no, I have loved “L-Train” much longer than that. It may have started back in the ‘80s—how can you not be in some awe of the man who co-wrote We Are the World? So I have always liked his music, and then his daughter, Nicole, had her moments in reality television hilarity and I became familiar with her as well. On her show Candidly Nicole, Lionel and Nicole appeared together and I simply fell in love. Lionel seems to be where Nicole gets her dry sense of humor and her amazing sense of well, FUN. Sign me up.

Imagine my surprise and delight when I got an email that the man himself was coming to one of my most favorite places on earth (no, not Clemson, stay with me here) this very December. Lionel Richie is performing in concert at the Atlantis resort in the Bahamas on mine and Clint’s anniversary weekend the first of December. It’s meant to be, right? Right? Not exactly.

You see, I found out about the concert exactly one day after we booked our summer vacation to Turks and Caicos. A vacation that we probably do not necessarily need to take given that we are building an outdoor bar/kitchen by our pool in the same month, and as you can probably imagine, Turks and Caicos trips and poolside kitchens are not exactly things which build up one’s saving account. But I begged and pleaded for some kind of beach getaway—we didn’t take a vacation last summer because I didn’t feel great—and so we booked our hotel and airfare and were ready to do something nice for ourselves. And then I got an email from Atlantis about Lionel. And I really, really wanted to go.

Oh, my heart. I pointed out that Lionel Richie does not tour often and this was probably my only chance to see him in concert in my lifetime (a bit dramatic since he is only 70 years old, but I have never been known to shy away from that tactic and I make no apologies, especially when we are talking about Lio). My poor, doting husband really does try to keep me content—happy wife, happy life and all that, so he looked into getting tickets.

Y’all. The tickets were only being sold as part of an extravagant package—the “Dancing on the Sand” weekend, to be exact—with Sheryl Crow, Vanessa Carlton, and some very I-am-sure-lovely other people we had never, ever heard of that commanded an astronomical price tag. The lowest priced package was $2,000 per person, not including airfare. Say You, Say Me: say it together: that’s way too much money! I was crushed, but I could not justify that cost.

Ah, but they say the Lord works in mysterious ways. I don’t usually have Sirius radio, but it came as a free trial with my new car back in April and the hubs decided to keep it. I was listening to the Blend or Yacht Rock or one of my other guilty pleasures when the DJ announced to be sure to go to the station’s website to enter to win—wait for it—LIONEL RICHIE concert tickets! I almost ran off the road. Apparently, I have somehow managed to miss the news that Mr. Richie is in fact doing a nationwide tour at this very moment.

I did not even attempt to win tickets. That is simply not how Stancil luck happens. Instead, I came home, pitched another mini-tantrum about absolutely, positively, having a need to go to a Lionel Richie concert as soon as humanly possible, and we took a look at the tour dates. Using airlines miles and hotel reward points, we were able to score ourselves reservations, and most importantly, tickets (!) to see the man himself performing at the Encore Theatre at the Wynn in Las Vegas in October. It’s really happening!

As my friend Robin so eloquently put it, “Wanted it, needed it, threw a hissy fit, got it.” And I am positively Dancing On The Ceiling!

The countdown is on (three months and getting closer by the day), and I am forcing Clint to listen to Lionel playlists every single chance we get in preparation. I even got a kitchen towel to help set the mood for such an auspicious occasion.

I’m Stuck On You, Lionel, and I’ve got the tea towel to prove it.

I could go on and on with punny song references, telling you I’ll be up All Night Long in anticipation, that this is no fad but an Endless Love, I promise to act like Three Times a Lady no matter how excited I get come concert time…well, you get my drift. I did tell Clint he gets to choose another show for us to see while we are there in the spirit of sharing and caring. We also have lots of fabulous restaurants to choose from, and from what I have heard, some spectacular people watching to do as well. Neither of us are big gamblers, but since it will technically be an anniversary trip, let me go ahead and say we have floated about the notion of a vow renewal at one of those very charming little wedding chapels they have scattered all along the Las Vegas strip. What a Christmas card picture that could make! (Stay tuned).

I promise to update with you all the details of our no-doubt-memorable trip and what I know will be a fantastic concert. I am already giddy with excitement and I hope Lionel is ready for the crazed fan in row S. Until then, I’ll be planning my trip, singing those songs, and driving Clint crazy by asking him every chance I get, “Hello? Is it me you’re looking for?” Truly.