Sometimes you don't feel like such a stranger or weirdo

It's just funny-sad I have been a fan since that day I was at Tia Julia's home browsing through records (yeah records) my cousin Rey brought back from the USA, I came accross this particular one called "Born in the USA" I really like the title and I put it on the record player, I remember I love it from the beginning (played it a lot of times and it had lyrics in it so it made it fun to try to follow along) that was june of '85, by December of that year I asked my mom to buy my that record and (because she was so nice) she did, I remember playing it over and over until I learned every single song (yeah I was able to repeat every word out of that album, pretty good for a non-english speaker) I ended up scratching it and had to replace it the next year.

In 1987 the "Tunnel of Love" song started playing on the radio and there was a video with it as well, I remember I wrote Rey and I asked him if he could send it to me and being the cousin he is, he did. I was so excited the day it came (I kept the wrapping and everything, he also sent the police "greatest hits", you know the one you heard in the car that time I took you to your mom's). This was a different Bruce but I listen to every single song and learned it as well.

By 1988 I have become quite the fan I found a book on Bruce that I wanted but could not afford and it had all his records all the way to BoTUSA, which I was surprised because I thought BoTUSA was his only record. So I gave myself the task to find this records. One time hanging out with Freddie in Downtown Mexico city, I saw a Bruce record on the window. We stepped in and it was called "The River". I saved so many weeks to purchase this album, I remember Freddie making fun of it, saying is probably going to be trashy and you are going to be dissapointed. I was rushing home and when I made it, I placed the record on the turntable and drop the needle and it was just like that moment in "Almost Famous" I was so excited, I love it, the sad part is that this album did not have any lyrics (you know cheap mexican version, hehe)

By 1989 I remember I found the "Live 75-85" album but I had zero money to buy it, so I told my mom about it, I never got an answer. I also remember we went into a supermarket (you know in Mexico they have all kinds of stuff) I found the "Greeting from Asbury Park" album, but I also had zero money to buy it, funny thing was later down the road I found it from a street vendor off the subway, but on my 18th b-day my mome handled me the money for Live 75-85, I was so excited! we went to 3 record stores and we finally found it on tape. I got home and I was so excited, my mom had made my favorite dish (one I have not had ever since, she took that recipe with her).

After that I remember I found a used Born to Run, and the digital era came when Rey gave me a present a cd player, with it came BoTUSA and Nebraska, later on I found Tunnel of Love. Hehe the CD thing was still new I remember if I cranked the volume too high the thing will skip. I remember I worked with my dad at the time and I remember I saved just enough to buy the video anthology.

Afte that life became very hard and I remember Bruce's music was my refugee, Rey sent me "The wild, the innocent and the e street shuffle" a used record but I was very happy with it. By then I have asked my uncle Alejandro to help me come to the USA, I had this dream of making enough money to fix our house of buy a new house, put my brother and sister through college and maybe if I was lucky enough find a cute blondie and go to school as well. The day I got my tickets I was so nervous, I canceled my trip, I went to visit Freddie and told him I was leaving. He was a bit sad yet excited because he knew my whole life I wanted to live in the States (Unlucky enough I was born in Mexico, missed for a few miles).

I was working in the kitchen at Zach's and Earth Wind and Flour (Encino and Santa Monica), but when I had that free time I used to go to the record stores (Sam Goody, Tower, The Wherehouse) and look for Bruce Albums, It took me a while to complete my collection but I did, then I remember in 1991 rumors start circulating that a new album was coming out (We did not have the internet yet).

I remember I went to Tower on Westwood, I rode the bus back and forth, bought the albums and went home, it was plain magic a new Bruce album in my new struggling life. I learned all the songs again. when the tour was announced and the date for Los Angeles posted, I could not believe it, I went in line to Tower on Van Nuys and formed the good old line, I think I was the only mexican there. I bought my ticket (just one show).


It took me a few hours to get to the Sports Arena that day of the concert, I remember getting in, the only time i had been to such a giant place was when I took the admission test for high school, I bought a t-shirt some buttons, found my seat, took a look at the stage and I started crying, this tour was not with the E street band, but heck it was Bruce, at the end of the concert I was so nervous (not the safest neighborhood) I walked to a co-workers house in fear of being shot at, fresh out of the riots.

It was a few years until anything new Bruce had to emerge, Greatest Hits, Secret Garden, Streets of Philadelphia, Ghost of Tom Joad, I had made it back to Mexico I was there for a month and even though all my dreams for my family and things were not even close to be completed, I had a blast!.

I had a hard time getting back, an experience that put a lot of things in perspective, I went to see the Tom Joad tour and it was like a reflection of the times things were harder, reality had sinked in and the dreams were fading, I did not know what was in for me in life. A nice cute girl dropped a letter. Things took a turn for good, I was happy, I had somebody, a very special person of my own for the first time.

Anyway, back in 1999 the reunion tour ocurred, got to see it and had a blast the legendary E Street band was back where it belonged. Unfortunately in 2001 we had those terrorist attacks and thing changed once again, I remember the Rising album was my first Internet purchased Album, but the music even though fast paced it was sad.

Took the little boy with me to see Bruce, I think that was so cool, felt like passing the flag. I did cry a bit because it was amazing to be a fan and now I had a tiny fan of my own.

He released Devils and Dust and The Seeger sessions, albums I like them a bit, but I could not identify much myself with.

Now 6 years later things are rough-good-rough and just a rollercoaster, I get scared I am messing everything up and then a new album of Bruce comes along, I am excited but things seem so out of reach, I would love to make it a family outing to see Bruce, but not sure if that will be possible for different reasons, but it feels good to see him playing being creative, and he has been such a good company of mine for so long.

That is my Bruce story and I am sticking to it.