There are two things that have been dominant in my life for as long as I can remember, music and sports. I will never forget the first 45 I bought using my entire weekly one dollar allowance…”Day Tripper” by The Beatles. Ironically, the flip side was “We Can Work it Out” which my dad and I did after the spanking I received for “wasting” my money that way. Oh, by the way, if you don’t know what a 45 is look it up. I have played sports my whole life and still love to hit the tennis courts as much as possible. All this leads up to how lucky we are, and how particularly lucky I am, to live in Jacksonville with world class facilities for music and sports. The extra-lucky part for me is that I work for SMG, the facilities management company contracted by the city. Having an office in the Arena is something I thought about for several years before it actually happened. I visited the Veterans Memorial Arena in Downtown Jacksonville countless times for some of the greatest shows I have ever seen and I’ve seen a bunch all over the country. In the last year alone, we have hosted Kenny Chesney, Taylor Swift, Kid Rock, Jimmy Buffett, Bob Seger and many more. I do love all types of music but, I must admit, I am a bit partial to country having grown up within 50 miles of Nashville. So, imagine my excitement as I await a sold out Jason Aldean/Luke Bryan show less than two weeks away! And, if that isn’t great enough, I get to soothe my sports fix on Saturday by watching the Jacksonville Sharks begin their playoff run in this very building. And very soon we will have another new sports franchise in town when the Jacksonville Bullies begin indoor lacrosse play. How lucky I am and how lucky we all are to have such a fantastic venue in Downtown Jacksonville to enjoy these events!