Songs That Take You Places: Use Somebody

For our nine year wedding anniversary, I wanted to do something big, something special. Kings of Leon were performing in Dallas on our big day and I decided to splurge and surprise Shawn with a super secret weekend away.  I ordered tickets, booked a hotel room, made dinner reservations, and instructed my man to hold on tight: we were going on an adventure.

This was a big year for us: I was starting a new job at the hospital, Shawn had just gotten a promotion at work, we bought our house, renovated it and moved in.  It was a time of transition for us and we were excited and encouraged and full of energy.  All of those changes brought stress and anxiety right along with them, though, and we spent many nights up late plugging in numbers and figuring things out.  The new responsibilities that accompany growing careers and home ownership sometimes left us feeling like we were going through some kind of an identity crisis.  Who were we now with our professional titles and bills and expectations?  Not the wandering, wild, and free Shawn and Liv of the past, that was for sure.  We were putting down roots and making a new life for our family, we were diving into something that went a little deeper into our commitment to each other.  It was scary and exciting all at the same time.

I wanted our weekend in Dallas to be an escape from all that.  I wanted us to just run away for a while and be spontaneous, to forget about our to do lists and schedules and just be Shawn and Liv for a few days.  I didn't tell Shawn where we were going, I simply plugged the address of our hotel into the GPS and told him to drive.  What a good sport he was, following along like that.  

We took our time driving, stopping along the way as much as we felt like it.  He didn't know what we were doing in Dallas but he was excited nonetheless.  We lounged around our hotel room, taking our first nap in months.  There's something so lux about staying in a hotel and taking naps when you are away from your kids, it feels so indulgent. We went out for a big Texas style steak dinner, holding hands and hiding away in a booth in the back.

I was so nervous during dinner, knowing that we were headed to the show soon.  The secret was almost too much to contain and I ALMOST told him where we were going next, almost.  I held it in, though, looking forward to the look on his face when I handed him his ticket.  I love surprising the people I love.

"Where are we headed next, babe?", he asked, so patient and down for anything.  

"Drive to this address", I replied, my excitement and nervous jitters so strong I could barely sit still.  

As we made our way to the theater where KOL was playing, "Use Somebody" came on the radio.  He reached over and turned the volume up, took my hand and winked.  We loved that song from the first time we heard it.  

I've been roaming around,
always looking down and all I see
Painted faces fill the places I can't reach
You know that I could use somebody
Someone like you

We were so deep in the moment, that beautiful song playing so loudly mixed with the sounds of our voices singing along, Shawn didn't even notice that we were pulling up to the venue where the Kings Of Leon were playing.  The parking attendant asked for his ticket and he just looked over at me, completely confused.  I turned the music down, handed him his ticket, and watched as he read over it, still perplexed.

"Babe, what are we doing?  What is this?  Are we?  Wait.. This is.."

"Yes!!  YES!!  We're going inside to see KOL!!  Let's go!!"

It was the best night, the best surprise.  He was completely knocked off his feet and never suspected a thing.  We parked the car and literally ran hand in hand all the way to our seats, giggling like two kids without a care in the world.  The show was amazing and we were up on our feet the whole time, dancing and swaying to that beautiful music. During "Use Somebody", the crowd sang along so loudly that the band actually stood back and let us take over.  The energy was palpable.  I remember his arms wrapped around me so tightly that I could barely breath, I remember him whispering the words "thank you" to me at least a hundred times.  

Every time I hear that song, I think of that weekend, the weekend I pulled off the best surprise ever.  It was our time to live it up and be free, to feel spontaneous again. After nine years of marriage, sometimes you need a little adventure to remind yourself of how lucky you are to have a partner in crime, to have someone who trusts you enough to drive six hours without a clue of where he is going.  

You know that I could use somebody
Someone like you