Tonight, I’m going to a concert. I was supposed to see Joel Plaskett in April 2020. It was rescheduled for November 2020, then held in pandemic limbo until I got an email notification last week.

This is the last piece of the beforetimes. The last bridge between then and now. The album being promoted is more than two years old now. It was the first vinyl I bought during my year of music, the year that forced me to buy a turntable just to bring more voices into my quarantine life.

I’m gonna go downtown, I’m gonna hear some music, I might even buy a tour T-shirt. It might be nice to get a little bit of normal back, even if I’ll be wearing a mask the whole time. I never stopped working in person, so I never stopped wearing my mask. I don’t know what it will feel like when I finally do. But I know I’m not ready yet.

Another concert happened last week. Foo Fighters hosted a Taylor Hawkins Tribute, and Dave Grohl opened their set with a slowed-down version of “Times Like These.” It’s affecting and haunting, with a church-like organ as accompaniment. I didn’t know until this weekend that Dave also lost his mother this month. If you’ve watched any of his documentaries, you know how close he and his mother were.

I couldn’t watch the whole concert. Queen joined them with Justin Hawkins (no relation) and did “Under Pressure,” which only reminded me of the Freddy Mercury Tribute. He was the first artist I lost.

There were a lot of ghosts on that stage.

There are going to be a lot of ghosts on the stage tonight, too, I think. This concert is 2020 come back to remind me how we used to be. I hope I’m ready to move forward and move on.

❤️‍🔥 Jess