Two, no make that three, VIP Experiences Within a Week

After our recent VIP experience at Bridgestone Arena with the Pink concert, we had a few other chances to be sort-of snooty:.

Thursday, March 14:

We grabbed two VIP tickets  for one of our favorite 90's bands, Better Than Ezra, at one of our favorite Nashville music venues, The Cannery.  One hundred percent of the funds went to The Montessori School of Franklin where BTE lead singer (and now Nashville native), Kevin Griffin, has his twin sons enrolled.  The openers were former American Idol winner, David Cook, who has a great voice, and another of our favs from the 90's, Emerson Hart, lead singer and founder of the band, Tonic.  Emerson is also a local now with a home down in Leiper's Fork.

Besides the ultra-cool side-stage viewing platform (this is where the stage is for most performances), the SOLD OUT VIP section gave us access to some tasty food and a great open bar.

Friday, March 15 thru Monday, March 18:  We celebrated St. Patty's Day weekend down in Chattanooga and it started off with a bang as Ashlee's mom, Evelyn, (our favorite VIP) finally got to leave the hospital after six tough months of recovery from an aortic tear and several complications afterward.  Welcome home, Mrs. Carroll!!!

Sunday, March 17:  Thanks to Groupon.com, we were able to snag a fancy Victorian-era rail-car room at the famous Chattanooga Choo-Choo for an affordable price.  We stayed in the last one on the left in the photo above.

The room consists of half of a converted passenger rail car and had a ton of room.  In the photo above, our niece, Ella, checks out the TV in the room while Ashlee and Mrs. Carroll (balled up under the blanket) check out the comfy bed.  The full bathroom is behind me and was quite roomy as well.  We really enjoyed our brief stay in here.

Our final VIP situation came on Sunday night at Chattanooga's Tivoli Theater as we enjoyed front row seats and a backstage meet-n-greet for our favorite comedian, Jim Gaffigan.

This photo of Jim Gaffigan performing at The Tivoli Theater is kind of a goof in terms of photography, but it couldn't really be more accurate in terms of Jim's persona as a very "pale fellow."

Here's the pale one himself, mugging it up with us after the show.  The really funny thing about this weekend is that we stayed at the Chattanooga Choo Choo all weekend (just one night in the fancy rail car) and SO DID JIM AND HIS HUGE FAMILY! (5 kids...Catholic!)  We just keep seeing them and bumping into them and they couldn't have seen more nice and down-to-earth.  Thanks for all the fun, Jim!