NKOTB Town Hall Los Angeles 4/14/12

Dear 12 year old Julie,

24 years from now, you will meet New Kids on the Block in the most unimaginable way ever. Sometimes you may think it may not happen and you will have to go through a lot of really hard stuff to get there. Don't give up because dreams really do come true. Love, your 35 year old self.

13 year old Julie. Yes, its the worst picture ever posted on Facebook! courtesty Jackie  Moulton

A week ago, I wrote Andrea a email telling her we wouldn't give up our dream of meeting Joe together. On Thursday via the kindness of the Twitter Blockheads our dream was suddenly a reality once again. I left my home yesterday morning at 11 am and drove 220 miles to Andrea's house full of adrenaline and anxiety, would this really happen?





We quickly made a sign in hopes we could catch Joe's attention and set off to meet up with our hostesses for the night Andrea the second and Lindsay. Needless to say, our husband's were leery of us meeting strangers off twitter. We got to the hotel and my instincts were correct, these were great ladies. Andrea and I were immediately excited to find out Lindsey was English because we are both huge Anglophiles!

 We drove to Umami burger in Santa Monica for a quick dinner before hand. I highly suggest going there, the food is amazing!

Joe, There's always room for you in our  Full House...

front to back, left to right: Julie, Andrea, Lindsey and Andrea the second

We arrived at Santa Monica high school at a quarter to six and quickly lined up. This was when two things happened both Andrea's started getting swarmed and Lindsey and I became purse/picture takers.  Which was hilarious because Lindsey a Brit had no clue who Andrea was! Apparently, Andrea the second is very well known in the Blockhead Nation and we had absolutely no clue. We couldn't have been more fortunate in who picked us to go with them. You know when you meet someone and just click? The four of us clicked immediately.

 We had fun meeting some new people in line ( Hey, mswrightstuff) and had fun people watching. We were let in at 6 pm and quickly found aisle seats on the rightside in the center aisle. It was held in the Santa Monica High School auditorium which  holds 550 people. Andrea the second told us where to sit and why. We also had been given great tips by KTsummer via her blog on the Greenwich Town Hall. After sitting down, Lindsey and I quickly realized we picked the wrong seats, the two Andrea's kept having people come up and want to talk with them! We met a lady from Andrea B and I's hometown which was really cool. During our wait, they handed out posters, buttons and large signs

Yes, it got trampled

The nervous wait began. Finally around 8 pm, Joey Mac took the stage as Campaign manager. This event was held for the Block Nation members, it was a thank you and a way to hear feedback on what these ladies would like to see at concerts and events. Joe immediately informed everyone that he had two margaritas and was a bit tipsy. He introduced Jordan as ambassdor, Donnie as candiate for president, Jon as secretary of housing and development and I can't remember what he said about Danny because there was so much going on at that point! Each one gave a speech before sitting down.

They next fielded questions from the audience. Lots of questions about different topics ranging from lots of cruise related questions to a cute 13 year old boy asking them for tips on picking up girls! Our friend Andrea asked for more events like Brunch with Jordan on the cruise. When she asked her question, Jordan said, " Hey, I know you, your my mistletoe girl. Hey guys, do you know who this girl is?" and then leaned down to give her a hug then Donnie said, "Yeah, I know who she is!" Apparently, even the band knows her!  As they were fielding questions they were hugging the fans and signing various items. One fan asked for more fan interaction on stage during the concert and Jordan called her up and broke out in a  "I'll Be Loving You" duet with her. It was so sweet! The lines were pretty long and I was a bit sad we didn't try to go up and felt like we may not meet them. These Blockhead ladies spend lots of money and travel all over the world to see them. So nice the band respects that and wants their input.

Next they said they had something special and started playing the Fenway concert video. They started up the aisle to the left of us. Joe started heading our way and we were waving him down. He pointed to his friends waiting and went down the aisle in front of ours. I literally shoved Lindsey and Andrea, " GO!! GO!! Let's GO down there." as the seats were empty. We ran/walked and immediately he saw us! I smiled and stuck out my hand and said, " This is my first time meeting you, a twenty four year old dream come true." Then he hugged me and I said, " I haven't seen you since 1990" and he said, "Wow, that's cool" and then proceeded to hug Lindsey who had never met him either and Andrea. We sat down right behind him and started watching the video. Andrea the second stayed in our seats with our stuff which was trampled in my mad dash for Joe!

Andrea and I were hugging, overjoyed our dream had come true. We met Joe together!! It really happened!! Then out of the corner of our eye, Jon Knight walked up behind us, sat down long wise across the arms of the chairs and started talking to a couple of fans. He talked to them for about twenty minutes with us anxiously peeking back to make sure he didn't leave before we talked to him. I had fans crowding me on the left trying to get a glimpse of Joe in front of me and Jon behind me. We sat and watched Joe watch himself on screen. It took every ounce of energy we all had to not reach out and touch him, for some reason we all felt compelled to do so but didn't want to lose our sense of decorum. He didn't move or interact with any other fans for the entire video. We sat and watched him watch it the whole time. In fact, two fans came in front of him and he wouldn't even speak to them. He had people he knew with him and was enjoying watching!

Jon eventually turned my way and I stuck out my hand and said, " Hi, this is my first time getting to meet you" and he shook my hand and leaned forward to hear me. He flashed a huge grin and listened to me tell him how I hadn't seen them since Dodgers Stadium 1990 which he said "Wow. That's crazy. Next year is your turn!" and then I told him he should meet my sister Andrea. He said to her, " Where do I know you from?" and she proceeded to explain. He was so excited to meet her and asked her what she had been up to which led to a conversation on college and he discussed the weather in London with Lindsey. We have always been strict Joey girls but Jon stole our hearts with his kind, intelligent, caring personality. One of those people who is just good people.

After that we saw Donnie quickly going up the aisle, I called out "Hey Donnie, I've never met you!" and he stopped and shook my hand then the other girls hands. He said, " I would stay but you are surrounded by New Kids and I am going to talk to other ladies." Then Andrea the second came and sat down by us and we watched the video.

10 minutes later, Jordan comes and sits right next to Andrea. So we had Jon behind us, Joe directly in front of us and Jordan at the end of our aisle. Jordan waved to us and we waved back. Then we finally settled in to enjoying the Fenway concert video. Watching Joe watch himself sing "Please Don't Go Girl" was really touching and I was starting to get emotional.

In the video when Jordan sings "I'll Be Loving You" I looked down the row. He is singing out loud, Andrea the second is beaming and I lost it. I started bawling and clearly heard, " Remember all those times you had to say "No" you couldn't go see New Kids and your heart was broken? You did the right thing and took care of your husband and this is your blessing" Dreams really do come true and sometimes your wildest dreams come true. Lindsey saw me crying and she started crying, I hugged her and told her, "Thank you, I am remembering all the times I said no" Andrea asked if I was okay and I told her I was so happy.  It was a beautiful moment, I will remember forever.

Andrea the second motioned for me to come over. I then proceeded to throw caution to the wind and crawled over my friends Andrea and Lindsey. I had my posterior in their faces as I shook Jordan's hand and he turned his head for me to talk to whisper in his ear. I told him this was a dream come true and thanked him for this night as I was talking he was holding my hand tightly. I crawled back over Lindsey and Andrea, groping my way back to my seat ( sorry ladies) and literally was in a daze. I don't remember them meeting Jordan which they later assured me they did. The video ended and I dragged Lindsey down the aisle trying to reach Danny. We got about two feet from him when their bodyguard said they had to leave.

We made our way out of the theater with more Andrea and Andrea mobbing. Then we happenstance walked into the area the boys were getting into their cars. Donnie drove by and called out, "Goodbye Mistletoe girl" to Andrea the second and waved to us. Then Joe walked right by us and got into his car. We then floated back to our car and drove off. We spent some time over coffee discussing the evening with huge smiles. We parted, forever friends bonded together by a truly magical experience.

I am proof, dreams really do come true. When you do the right thing, you reap what you sow and blessings abound. Meeting Joe was the cake and meeting the other three was the icing. I never imagined meeting them, let alone sitting in a dark theater watching them watch themselves sing. It's hard to believe it truly happened!

Thank you Lori for tweeting Andrea. Thank you Andrea and Lindsey for the kind gesture of letting us be your plus one's. Thank you Andrea for saying you wouldn't go without me. Thanks Marty and the kids for letting mom go out! Thanks NKOTB for putting on such a wonderful event for your fans!

four very happy, excited women, forever friends!

A/N NKOTB fans, if you would like more details leave a comment and I will answer back. Or find me on Twitter @MomCycFan.
*I've been asked Why I said "no" all these years to the reunion? My husband had renal failure and was on the transplant wait list since the reunion began. Thanks to a our donor Jerry and his mother Debbie, I am now able to say "yes" once again! Donate life and be a hero!