An adventure in ticket buying... (long)

...or how we finally got Wilco tickets for both shows.

So, there's this great venue in St. Louis called The Pageant. The Pageant generally sells two types of tickets for each show. Floor-Limited Seating-General Admission tickets and Balcony-Reserved Seating tickets. We prefer to get balcony seats if possible since I am short and I know I can see there and you can show up whenever and your seat is waiting for you.

Wilco tickets for 5-15 and 5-16 went on sale today. Our strategy was to purchase tickets for both shows. I was going to try for one set of three online and my fiance was going to try for another set of 3 on the phone.

I got asked to stay at work until 5. I said, okay, I can stay until 4:45... but I have to get downstairs to the computer lounge so I can buy tickets at 5. They said okay. 4:45pm, I leave my floor and head downstairs to secure a computer. I log into my ticketmaster account and open a page for both shows. I reload each page periodically until 4:49. At 5:00 I click in and get tickets loaded for the 5-16 show. Yes! I click back to complete the order for the 5-16 show and back again to complete the order for the 5-15 show. At some point, ticketmaster must have merged the two pages somehow because I only ended up with tickets to the 5-15 show. Phooey. Okay, well my fiance was trying too. I go to where I get cell service and call. Nope. He didn't buy any tickets because there was only GA. New plan: he'll call and get GA tickets.

I got back to my floor to get my stuff and head out. By the time I look at my phone again, he has called 4 times without leaving a message. I got back to the computer and try to order GA tickets for 5-16, assuming he was unsuccessful on the phone. Too late! 5-16 was sold out!

The worst part? We had two opportunities to order GA tickets in a presale and decided to hold out for balcony tickets. AHHHH *slaps forehead*

So... my work is not far from The Pageant, but I don't drive to work, I take the metrolink. But don't despair! The metrolink takes me almost right to The Pageant and it's only 2 stops away from where I am. What have I got to lose? Maybe... just maybe they still have tickets at the box office. So, off I go, dragging my big rolling backpack down the Delmar Loop in a desperate attempt to maybe, somehow, get Wilco tickets for 5-16.

I get to the box office... there's about 12-15 people in line ahead of me. I ask a guy walking out if they still have tickets for Friday. He says no, but he somehow got some. Okay. I wait. I get to the ticket window, having now decided to buy another set of tickets for Thursday if they still have them. And maybe I could trade for Friday tickets.

"No more tickets for Friday," the guy tells me. "Ticketmaster sucks. Blame Canada." But he adds "Euclid Records has them for $75." Hmmm... okay.

I go ahead and ask for my 3 additional Thursday tickets. And guess what? He has balcony tickets better than the ones I got online an hour later!? Yes, score! But still... how do I get Friday tickets???

I call my fiance. He calls Euclid Records to confirm. He calls me back, "I'm leaving now. We still have a chance." I am now on my way home from St. Louis on the train, while he is driving toward St. Louis in my car.

The ending? He got 3 GA tickets there for actual face value price. Hooray! Success! A happy ending... I get to spend three days in May seeing Radiohead, Wilco and Wilco right after my final exams!

The moral of the story: When one of your favorite bands has a presale, buy tickets, even if they are not ideal tickets.

Moral #2: Box office ticket buying is better than online ticket buying. And cheaper too!