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Thursday, December 31, 1998

Viewing 1998 from 2014

January 22, 2014

As I've been pulling out these old tales of my early Journey adventures from back in 1998, I've had a big smile on my face remembering those times. All of those events are burned on my memory so clearly that even now, nearly 16 years after they occurred, I can remember the look, feel, and emotion of it all. 1998 was a huge year for me and kicked off a decade of amazing times and the start of many dear friendships.  

In 1998, I had no idea that it was just the beginning of what would become a massive roller coaster ride and an adventure of a life time. I probably wouldn't have believed it if anyone had told me about what was to come. Friends and family who knew me prior to these events can attest -- jumping on a plane to travel 2,000 miles to attend a concert by myself and then later driving up and down California to take in 6 shows in two weeks was a radical departure from my usual self. Heck, I barely mentioned any of these events to my co-workers at the time because they were so out of the ordinary for me and even I thought I was a little nuts. Things changed dramatically for me after that year. (I still think I was a little nuts and I know my old friends and family think I was a lot nuts!)

Still, with all the things that happened after 1998, I have consistently said that one show of Jon's at his church in Petaluma would have been enough. Since that night in March, I've seen Journey nearly 70 times in places all over the US (plus Canada and the Carribean Ocean), met all the significant members of the band save two (Steve Perry and Arnel Pineda), organized five fan conventions, and met hundreds of fans from around the world. Even with all of that, the feeling I carried around with me for days after that show in Petaluma was amazing and would have been enough. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't trade all the adventures I had over those 10 years for anything in the world, but that night will live forever in my memory as nothing short of magical.