13 Again -- Eve

Back in the 80's, my girlfriends and I were huge Duran Duran fans. Now, when I say "huge fans" I mean we were the fans. Crazy. Nutty. Obsessed. Kid you not, Maril, Kelly, Christy, my sister Amy and I owned every album, European remix single, poster, button, and T-shirt available on the planet. Whenever a new piece of DD paraphernalia became available, we acquired it. We screamed and cried (literally) every time a DD video played on MTV (this was pre-video recorders, pre-TiVo). Everything we did revolved around the band. When other kids were out drinking, smoking, partying, and taking Tomfoolery to new heights, our group was lying around Maril's living room, rewinding and replaying our DD tapes bit by bit so we could memorize every word to every song. No joke, I still know them all (but, of course, I couldn't recite state capitals or even tell you what I had for breakfast today to save my life...funny how memory works, isn't it?).

Every birthday that Simon, John, Andy, Nick and Roger had, we celebrated with a party, a cake, and a stand-in poster of the absent birthday boy. When the band started touring in the US for the first time, our parents styled us with 6th row center tickets at the L.A. Forum (purchased for a lot of money through a scalping agency...did we have the greatest parents or what??), a limousine, and a pre-party (with a DD themed cake) at my house. We spent months planning our outfits, our make-up colors and deciding what gifts to toss on stage. I settled on a stuffed elephant that I had been sewing in 7th grade Home Ec. class just for the occasion. I attached a (scary, stalker-fan) note to the elephant and hurled him to the middle of the stage, where it poofed against Simon's foot. I had written my phone number on the note. They never called.

About six months later, the band scheduled a second show in San Diego, and Maril's mom schlepped us all down there. She sat in her car in the parking lot during the three hour show, then suggested we stake out the backstage door afterward so we could hopefully meet the band. We camped out all night in the back of Mrs. Manning's El Camino. No luck. They never came out. Probably got airlifted out by helicopter the minute the show ended to avoid shrieking fans accosting them.

Our goal in life was to meet Duran Duran in person. We knew once they met us, they'd fall madly in love and simply have to whisk us off to England and marry us. Maril would marry Simon, Amy would marry John, Christy and I would both marry Nick (I spent the entirety of my junior high years writing "Eve Rhodes" on every paper I turned in!). Over the years, Duran Duran has broken up and reunited a number of times, but every time they play a concert together with the original 5 members, we're there. In the last 10 years, I've seen them in Florida, Vegas, L.A. and the O.C. But, alas, have never had the coveted opportunity to meet them in person. Certainly not for lack of trying!

So, my sister is flying out here from Florida as we speak so we can once again relive our youth this Saturday when we attend the Duran Duran concert at the Santa Barbara Bowl. But this time we're doing it right. We decided to throw caution (and several hundreds of dollars) to the wind and purchased two very special DD VIP packages, which include...Pre-party reception with food and drink, "special" gifts from the band, front row center tickets, and...drumroll...

POST-CONCERT BACKSTAGE PASSES!!!

I'm expecting one of two things to happen. Either the band will be too exhausted to meet us, and they'll ditch us, forever shattering my dream of a lifetime. Or, if you never hear from me again, you can assume I'm lounging around a mansion somewhere in the English countryside, under the name Mrs. Eve Rhodes!

- Eve