Missed a gig

I had planned to go to a gig last night. I was procrastinating a little about going but it was certainly a gig I would have liked to attend. Even though I got myself dressed up and managed to dash out of the house with everything I needed—iPod for the journey, a hat in case it rained, ER20 ear plugs for the gig—I was still trying to decide whether I would actually make the journey. I ended up loitering just inside the train station for only a minute, but saw the train arrive as I did so and couldn't even run to catch it, so I quietly turned around and came home again.

I was disappointed, with getting caught up with something on the computer that made time tighter than it should have been, with myself for lingering instead of being decisive, and for admitting defeat rather quickly. I could psychologically punish myself for being rubbish about what happened, but that is not a constructive attitude and will only cause harm. Instead, I will be positive and look for the true cause of last night's dithering in an attempt to prevent any reoccurrence.

I know that I am struggling with particularly late nights these days, or rather the days after particularly late nights, but the gig was on a Friday night and I had a weekend to recover, so that is not the reason. Nor is it that the train line is having major works on it and I would have to take a more circuitous route to my destination, as it is straightforward to divert and the extra time is not significant. It wasn't the weather that was stopping me, as I would be inside most of the time, either in trains or the venue, and could suitably protect myself from anything other than floods. And it wasn't that the quality of the band was questionable, as I have seen them many times before and I was quite looking forward to the gig.

The problem was that I didn't have a ticket. I was having to go a bit earlier than normal because I would have to get a ticket from the box office. This led to some uncertainty about whether I would be making a long journey in to town only to have to turn around and come back again if the gig had sold out. Not that I expected the gig to sell out, at least not early, although the venue is quite popular and it was a Friday night. When I missed the train the extra delay of waiting for the next one or using an alternative route only heightened my uncertainty about getting admission on the door.

I had tried to get a ticket for the gig, popping in to my usual ticket agency a few weeks back, but they didn't have it listed. I assumed at the time that this wouldn't be a problem and I could turn up early on the night and gain admission, which didn't seem like a poor assumption to make at the time. After all, I wanted to go to the gig so I didn't think anything would stop me. What I have learnt is that by not getting a ticket I was jeopardising my chances of even going. Had I thought about it more, and realised that I don't question going to a gig if I have a ticket but pause for thought without one, I would have got a ticket from a different agent ahead of time.

It's important to learn the right lesson. I could have made myself feel guilty, stupid and indecisive for missing out last night, but that would have served no purpose and I would have not been able to prevent future occurrences. Instead, I can focus on why I was indecisive and strive to make changes so that it doesn't happen again, leading to an overall positive experience. Luckily, the same band is playing in a couple of weeks, and this time I will make sure I get a ticket for the gig.

Posted in Personal |
Tags: gig