New Order & Red River Rivalry (Dallas, TX)

Last weekend was memorable... but not the way I would've liked to remember it. It all started in July when I came across a random article that said "New Order to Tour North America for the First Time in Seven Years". New Order was one of my favorite groups when growing up and I've never seen them before. I must go! Coincidentally, it was the same weekend as the Red River Rivalry. We'll be without kids and this opportunity won't ever present itself again so yes, I must go to that too!

After picking up the boys from school and dropping them off, we headed to Dallas for our kids-free, crossing-things-from-our-bucket-list trip. We went straight to downtown where the venue was and ate a quick dinner at Fuel City Tacos. Nothing says good eats like cheap tacos from a gas station. No seriously, it was good.

After a quick wardrobe change from the trunk of my car in the parking lot, it was time to see New Order. This place was filled with old, white hipsters and it was jammed packed. I could smell the cheap cologne from that fat guy trying to impress his date. On my other side, I can feel the sweat from a guy whose "dancing" consist of jumping up and down. And I'm only 5'5" so my view was obstructed by those taller people in front of me. To make matters worse, those motherfuckers were holding up their cell phones to take pictures and video. For what? Are you really going to watch that poor quality video at a later time? Are you only doing this to brag on Facebook? Put that shit away, no one really cares.

As for the concert itself, it was eh. Maybe it was because of my surroundings. Maybe I was exhausted from the long day and drive. Maybe the sound was horrible and I couldn't make out anything Bernard Sumner was singing. It was probably a combination of them all but at least I can finally say I saw New Order.

My one and only cell phone picture.

Saturday, the Red River Rivalry. UT vs OU football game. Compared to the concert, this mass of humanity was much worse. It took over an hour just to drive to the Cotton Bowl. It required crazy walking skills to navigate through the sea of burnt orange and red but we did finally make it to our seats with time to spare. The weather was cooperating. The crowd was loud. You could feel the excitement. It was going to be a good game... or so I thought.

This was a crazy game... but not in a good way. First, OU scores a TD. Oh well. Then UT blocks the extra point kick and runs it back for two points. Wow! Everyone goes bananas! But it ends there. Anything that could go wrong did. UT's defense could not tackle anyone, which led to many big plays. Multiple drop passes. Fumble. A fucking safety. Oh, but UT got a pick-6 and scored their first TD... only to miss the subsequent extra point kick. This game was over by the first quarter. Many people left by halftime but I was willing to hold on to hope. Hope died in the middle of the third quarter.

We explored The State Fair of Texas and ate away our sorrows. But fried food probably isn't the best way to cheer anyone up. In fact, it makes you feel shitty-er. Wearing a burnt orange shirt around Fair Park just added to my discomfort. I couldn't wait to take my shirt off. Sure, UT got crushed but somehow OU sucks!

Deep fried chocolate covered strawberry waffle balls.

Deep fried brownies.