Carol and I went to the movies this afternoon. Upon walking into the lobby we were immediately greeted by the twin aromas of melting butter and popping popcorn. We took our seats among the twenty or so other people inside the dimly lit theater. The only sounds were the soft hum of whispered conversation and the rustling of hands reaching into popcorn boxes. The lights were turned all the way down and the big screen lit up with previews, followed by the feature film. We settled into a wonderful documentary about a music festival in Harlem in the summer of 1969. People sharing the theater with us clapped, laughed or commented at various times throughout the film. As soon as the film ended people began to file out but I always stay until the screen goes white and the house lights are turned back up. The film was joyous and life affirming. Smiles and nods of acknowledgement  were shared as we and our fellow movie goers exited the theater.

This was the first movie theater that I’d been to in nearly a year and a half. I’m hearing a lot of this nowadays: “This is the first (fill in the blanks) that I’ve…”. My favorite part about going to a movie in a theater is the shared experience in the dark with a roomful of strangers. The aroma of popcorn, the big screen and surround sound all make a “Netflix and chill” evening pale in comparison. I savored every moment of my movie experience today and I know that the people inside the theater with us felt exactly the same way. There was a palatable sigh of relief and grattitude among all of us inside the Summerfield Cinemas on this sunny Saturday afternoon. Joy no longer needs to be postponed. Fifteen months of pent up frustration is gradually being released. The dreaded face masks are going, going and nearly gone. The twin vibes of fear and dread are being replaced by hope and positivity. Seeing peoples’ smiles again fills my heart to bursting. The vaccine is setting us all free.

Carol and I were on a roll. After a brief stop at home to refuel we headed out “for the first time in…” to hear live music. Our destination was a funky one-off restaurant and music venue on the banks of the Russian River. The Rio Nido Roadhouse has a small bar and covered pation but the majority of seating and the stage are outdoors. Pairs of Adirondak chairs with a small table between them and several aged wooden picnic tables are arrainged on an expansive lawn ringed by towering redwood trees. A cement dance floor and small stage sit at one end. A sign above the stage spells out the venues’ name in faded, delaminating plywood letters. Long strings of white lights criss cross the lawn above us, lending a magical quality to the scene. We settled into our seats with food and cold microbrews waiting for the show to begin and watching the evening sky turn from deep blue to indigo to black. 

Tonights’ band is The Sun Kings, a top notch Beatles tribute band. What better music to celebrate the emergence from our long covid winter than that of the Beatles. There were perhaps 150 people at the show. No masks, no social distancing, just happy smiling humans rejoicing in the freedom and beauty of this very special evening. The band kicked off the show with Sargent Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and we immediately hit the dance floor. The crowd was predominantly aging Baby Boomers for whom the Beatles music is part of our DNA. However I was surprised and delighted to see an energetic group of roughly a dozen men and women in their early 20’s join us at the front of the stage. They danced harder and sang louder than anyone, belting out the words to each and every song. For three hours and nearly 50 songs, Carol and I twirled, smiled and sang ourselves hoarse.

The final song of the night was fittingly Hey Jude. Boomers and twentysomethings alike linked arms on the dance floor in a collective embrace as we filled our lungs and sang the songs’ coda…together.