Good Grief

Stage One: Springsteen played here in Oakland last week. We've been so busy with so many things and our finances have been so screwy, it really wasn't the foremost thing on my mind. After all, I've seen The Boss plenty of times. He's not the Boss of Me.
Stage Two: Wait a minute. I have seen Bruce Springsteen on almost every single tour that I could. Why should I have to give up this one? It was just down the street, after all. It's not like I had to schlep all the way down to San Jose or up to Sacramento. This show was essentially in my own back yard. What could I have been thinking?
Stage Three: Okay. Maybe this is what I get for not planning ahead. In the future, if this is really important to me, I will put money aside in advance. I can make a contingency Bruce Plan that will allow me to get to any show in my area, even if it means having to pay scalper's prices.
Stage Four: Forget it. I missed it. I missed hearing him do "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town." I've been waiting for thirty years to hear that one. "Kitty's Back?" Are you kidding me? He played that back in '75, right? I'm sure that if I wait another thirty years, I'll get a chance to see both of those in the same show. Never mind.
Stage Five: I missed it. It will be okay. I have forgotten more shows than I have missed, and I am certain that I will have another opportunity to see Bruce Springsteen play live. I can accept that there are certain things that are beyond my control.
But it doesn't keep me from grieving.