Grief, Love, and Loud Music: Why Iโ€™m Chasing a Ghost at a Rock Show

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I feel the need to revisit a topic I wrote about a couple months ago, because Iโ€™ve since had a lot of thoughts floating around my head.

I wrote then about my friend who felt that he was in love with me; and as much as I absolutely loved the shit out of him, I never wanted more than a friendship.

We havenโ€™t seen or talked to each other in over a decade.

But heโ€™s been on my mind quite a bit lately. To the point where Iโ€™m going alone to a concert heโ€™ll probably be at (if he even still lives around here) – not just to see if I can pull anything from the ashes, but also so I can get the fuck away from screaming children & feel like a human for a few hours LOL. (Iโ€™m literally trying to write this right now with screaming children running around because I havenโ€™t had time to work on anything. I can practically feel the smoke coming out of my ears.)

The Past

Over the last couple months, a ton of old memories have been flooding back. And there was a lot of love there. Like, a LOT. I never even realized a lot of the things I do now because I was so young (in my 20โ€™s), and always so scared of losing him.

I always worried so much about him cuz he was always dealing with so much stress, and I wanted to be there for him as much as I possibly could. I still do.

He had such an adorable smile, and he gave great hugs. I loved talking to him because he was so different from me, yet still so similar. He was encouraging, flattering, and really really sweet. Not to mention resilient as fuck, and I admired the hell out of that. He’s always been one of my absolute favorite people I’ve ever known.

He was also pretty brutal at times. (Though, isnโ€™t everyone?) I loved him too much for that to scare me offโ€ฆuntil he blatantly told me to fuck off. Soโ€ฆthat sucked.

The Present

Iโ€™ve moved on with my life. I hardly thought about him for a long time – Just fleeting thoughts, wondering how heโ€™s doing, wishing he were around to share bits of my life with. Overall, I was too busy living.

I donโ€™t know what sparked him back in my mind. I really donโ€™t.

Iโ€™ve noticed that grief works in cycles, at least for me. Part of me thinks this might just be my brain still grieving the relationship we had. Especially since I never fully understood why we donโ€™t still have that.

Little random things keep happening too, that remind me of him. Which makes me wonder if the universe is trying to tell me something. Which might be silly. But it also might not.

The Future

So, Iโ€™m going to see Reverend Horton Heat. He introduced me to them a million years ago, and theyโ€™ve since become my favorite driving tunes.

I wonโ€™t get my hopes up about him being there. But they kinda are, I’m not gonna lie. lol

I wonโ€™t get my hopes up about him being happy to see me. But I donโ€™t really care (not gonna lie). If heโ€™s not, Iโ€™ll still enjoy the show. And a couple beers. And no screaming children.

I just donโ€™t want to waste any more time. I hate wasting time, cuz tomorrow is never promised and the โ€œALS gene time bombโ€ ticks louder in my ear every year.

If thereโ€™s ever anything I can do about anything, I always want to do it now.

And itโ€™s so hard to connect with people these days, especially since COVID – Iโ€™d rather hold onto those I know I love, while I can.


Lifeโ€™s too damn short to wonder what if forever.

If youโ€™ve got someone on your mind lately โ€” a friend, a flame, or even a ghost โ€” maybe this is your nudge to reach out.

โœจ Drop a comment if youโ€™ve ever chased closure, connection, or just needed a night to feel alive again. Iโ€™m listening.

And hey, wish me luck. Either way. ๐Ÿป