Later on we went out to the city centre for shopping, including birthday present for Natalie and some clothes for my wife. And I also bought a present for myself - Special Editions of the first 6 albums. They are not available in Poland at all so this was the best chance to get them and I just couldn’t resist it.

Unlike the day before, I was so relaxed before the second show. All the pressure was finally off me. The mission was completed already and they could play basically anything, although I felt the second night will be a treat for die-hards. And I wasn’t too far away from the truth. We reached RDS at about 7pm but still managed to get the spot as good as the day before, just few meters from the catwalk. There were only 3 songs left from my TOP10– BPL, STBI and HN and if they would play any of them I would be delighted. But anyway this was my first BJ show where I really had no high expectations and I went there just to enjoy it no matter what they play.
The weather on that day was great . There were no clouds above RDS at all. Again they started in full sunlight and when they started with Bounce I already knew we’re gonna have few more surprises. And even though we had amazing rarities during the show, for me the biggest reward of the night was Happy Now. This is my second fav song of TC, just right after BPL, and it’s the one I’ve been listening to the most for the last couple of weeks. Apart from being a great rocker, the lyrics are basically about my present life and keep reminding me that I have made the right decisions in the last couple of years that helped me become a person I am today. That includes decision about leaving Dublin and getting back to much poorer Poland, setting up my own company with 2 of my friends and taking that steering wheel into my hands. Sure the responsibility is great, but I am in a place where I feel good. And even though money would be better in Dublin, still I choose to stay here. I can’t afford everything, but still somehow I managed to afford to go to 6 BJ shows, which for Polish standards is expensive as hell. HN reminds me of it every single day. If I could compare KTF album to TC, BPL is my second DC, while HN is my second KTF. So when Jon said they will play it, I shouted just like I did for DC, only this time there were no tears, just pure joy, pure happiness. People behind me realized this song is important for me I think, as they gave me some more space to jump freely to it. I really appreciated that. My wife was recording the song for me. That song made the second show amazing already. Here it is:

HAPPY NOW -
Damned was great. At that point of the show it was my TD song No 6, that I managed to get on all of my shows. I can’t believe I was lucky to hear so many songs of that amazing album. Another highlight for me was MAM. I know some of you hate it, but I got this for the first time ever. The only bad note about it were 2 chicks that sat on shoulders of their boyfriends and blocked the view for some of the people, including us. You will be able to see it on the video. Thank God, security guy showed up in few minutes and told them either to go down or go out of the stadium. It worked. Of course Irish fans were given a huge surprise when they played Vertigo. Everybody went nuts. Never Say Goodbye was great too. It is not my fav but I am aware that it’s a huge rarity and I am glad I heard it live. Jon played few notes from it before IBTFY, while he was checking his guitar so I kind of felt it will go that night. And finally after NSG, we could see the whole band on the circle again. It was great. Maybe Squeezebox was not the best song selection but the band really had a great time and just wanted to have fun and it clearly showed. LFS was nice too, again with the famous finish by Tico. Again SIBSN electric went amazing with the crowd. And BOB was great too, with funny lines made by Jon in the lyrics making fun of themselves. I got it all taped so you will see it. With HG they gave me another song of TD – my No 7. Unbelievable. It was an amazing performance. Of course Jon would not be himself I he didn’t “reward” the crowd with ILTT, but honestly, even though I hate this song, I didn’t mind it, and actually the crowd loved it. Oh yes, the crowd again. They were absolutely out of this world for the second straight night. Now I know why Jon loves to play in Ireland so much. The crowd loves him and sings with him, so he loves them back. And they truly deserve it. And just when they rocked the house with Prayer again, people did not want it to be finished. They screamed “we want more, we want more…” And Jon was touched again by this reaction and decided to give us 2 more songs. First it was Always again, just like the night before. For the last time we could see Richie showing us what a great shape he’s in right now. He’s the master of guitar for me. And then for the last song of the night I personally think Jon has made the best choice by picking LTOR. Like I said before, the world today needs those kind of songs. With all that crap music we are being fed with on the radio and TV nowadays, this song actually says about the most important thing in the world. Some of you can take Jon as an arrogant evil money driven greedy CEO, but I see a father of a great family, that has seen and experienced everything in his life, to find out that in the end the only thing that matters in this world is love. No matter how cheesy this may sound, I personally fully agree with this statement. Out of all the songs, he chose the one of TC, the album which is so underrated by the fans and by the critics, while in my opinion is a true masterpiece, not only musically but also lyrically. And even though it seemed the band dropped it completely, with this decision it made me realize that Jon still believes in it, just as I do. When the song finished he just went off the stage without goodbyes. He just left everyone with that line “Love is the only rule” on the big screen. Perfect finish. I loved it and I wish he would do that more often. Here it is:

LOVE'S THE ONLY RULE -
Again, the show was almost 3 hours long. Unbelievable. In general the band was on fire in Dublin on both shows. Happy as little kids on the playground, enjoying every second of those shows. Richie was the man of both nights for me. Back in top form, the way we always want to see him. Jon’s vocals in top form as in 2010 and even though his knee was giving him a lot of pain he did not show it at all and gave us all that he had. I did not see CEO with his employees. I saw a group of close friends that love music and love to share it with their fans and sing about important things. “Have fun but also learn from it” kind of attitude. I saw a band I have fallen in love with almost 20 years ago. And when it comes to live shows, no one can beat them. No one.

Those were two most amazing performances of the European leg for sure, so far at least. I personally received 5 of the 10 songs I had on my request list before the shows, including the most important one, so I really can’t complain at all. There are only 2 songs left now from my TOP10 I haven’t heard live – BPL and STBI, which now I know was very close too (it was going to be either HG or STBI, and fans at Q&A chose HG). And still I hope to get TIMS, LTL and NA someday. But I have to keep some dreams left for me. Since my biggest dreams are done, I have to find myself a new goal. Maybe something like meeting any of the band members personally and having a picture with them? Maybe my show #7 will take place in Poland and maybe even in my hometown? Who knows? Only time will tell. But if I set a new goal, I will make sure to do everything to accomplish it. And if I make it again, I will let you all know about it for sure.

As our plane was leaving Dublin on Friday afternoon, I looked out of the window and thought: “ Well Dublin, for sure you paid back for all the things you screwed up years ago. All your sins are forgiven. Instead of being my personal Dry County or BrokenPromiseland, from now on I will remember you more like a Bed of Roses. Peace and see you next time”.

But there was only one more thing to make this whole trip complete - getting back safe to our little Natalie. We got home at about 1am at night so obviously she was sleeping so we just kissed her good night and anxiously were waiting for the morning when she wakes up. And when she did, at first she seemed to be confused who we are, but after few seconds she put a huge smile and hugged my wife really hard. She needed more time to get closer to me, but few moments later, she gave me a big kiss and screamed “Daddyyyyyy”, and that’s when my heart went back to its place for the first time since Tuesday afternoon. Today, on Sunday, we threw a birthday party for her and our whole family showed up. She was so happy , she received lots of presents and she had a cake with her fav Teletubbies. It was great. All the time she was calling either for me or my wife and was giving us hugs very often. It is the greatest feeling on earth. Finally we are back together – The Three Musketeers. I am in a place where I belong. With the people I care about and love the most. And where there’s love, there’s peace and happiness. There’s magic. And I wish that magic to all of you. Remember - Love’s the only rule

I’m truly happy now, I can let my breath out
Let me confirm, I’ve just caught my dream, you’ll never drag me down
I just want to scream out loud, I’m truly happy now
Been down on my knees, I learned how to bleed, I’ve just turned my world around
I’m truly happy now

THE END