Opportunities are (still) Meant for Taking

 

Opportunities are meant for taking.

That was the title of my first ever post on this blog two years ago.

Guess what? Opportunities are still meant for taking. Let me tell you why.

 

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

9:30 a.m. arrive at beach

12:50 p.m. purchase concert tickets and leave beach

3:45 p.m. leave for New York City

5:15 p.m. walk into concert venue

8:15 p.m. witness Carrie Underwood belt out beautiful lyrics from six feet away

 

My split life between New York and New Jersey has its perks and drawbacks, but something I really had no clue what to do about was Independence Day. Every year for as long as I can remember (besides when I studied in Rome) I was in Pine Beach participating in or watching my community’s Fourth of July parade and then sitting on my street at night “oohing” and “aahing” at the fireworks over the river. However, this year, I was scheduled to be on Long Island with a blank canvas for America’s birthday.

Long story short, one of my bosses lent me her beach badge for her private cabana on a nearby beach for the day. It was super relaxing because it was not overly crowded like a public beach would be, and it was nice as always to spend time with two of my closest friends.

That’s just where the day began, though. The prior night, someone I was with showed me Carrie Underwood tickets he found in NYC for a cheap price. My friend Jenn and I decided we should jump on those, but by the next day, the prices had doubled and our dream of seeing one of my favorite singers was crushed. However, I had Jenn check the tickets while at the beach, and she was happy to have found tickets just above face value.

We debated about the tickets for too long, and someone else got their hands on them. Then we found another pair for a few dollars more, and debated too long, yet again. Should we spend the money we didn’t plan on spending? Would we even get a good spot on the standing-room rooftop venue? Once we lost two pairs of tickets and basically decided we were not going, we spotted a pair two dollars above face value (after fees the tickets were only $54!) and that sparked something in me that told Jenn, “Get them now. We’re going.”

Just like that, we were running off the beach to catch a train to NYC. We arrived at South Street Seaport’s Pier 17 at 4:15 p.m. and by 6:00 p.m., I was standing third row from the stage where I would witness rising country star Filmore, popular band Dan + Shay and finally the country queen herself, Carrie Underwood.

And that is how my Fourth of July went. That’s not the point of this recap, though. The argument here is to show that if you see a really great deal for an experience that you know will give you the time of your life, do it. Jenn and I spent so much time debating if it would be worth it, and before Carrie even got on the stage we wondered why we debated so long about it at all.  Nothing beats experiences that will have you smiling every time you think about them, especially at a steal of a price.

I went from the big blue to the concrete jungle, two of my favorite places. I took advantage of an unbeatable opportunity that fell into my lap. I will never have to wonder what the show would have been like, because I was there taking it all in.

Who else has had an unbeatable opportunity randomly appear and got to take advantage of it? I would love to hear your stories!

Whitmanythought 1: This is another example of why I love where I live. Beach by day, city by night. You just can’t beat it.

 Whitmanythought 2: I cannot believe I was feet away from Carrie Underwood!