August 22, 2003 -
Getting lost at Konocti
with Don Dokken

There's so much that's happened in the past several months! Seeing as how this is my first
entry in the diary, I'll have to play "catch up".

Let me backtrack a little and start with an interesting story that happened a few
months back when I went to Konocti to see Whitesnake, Y&T and Dokken.

As great as the show was, the weather was NOT! You know what I mean if you
were there. Clear Lake gave Antartica a run for its money! I held out as long as I could but
decided to head back to the lounge a few songs into Whitesnake's set.

I wasn't able to get a room before the show so I was planning on driving back to
Sacramento that night. Nevertheless, as I made my way to the lounge, I asked the
lady at the front desk if there were any rooms available. Much to my surprise she
said there was one left. Great! My friends and I pitched in for the coveted
"apartment".

We went to the lounge, rocked out and even rubbed elbows with Don Dokken.
(Side note: if you ever go to a show at Konocti, try to hit the lounge afterward
because the bands tend to hang out there and you can meet some really cool people.)

Don was having a good time and, despite what many have said about him in the past,
he was being very friendly with the fans and taking time to talk to everyone. After chatting with
him for awhile I headed to the room of some of my friends for an "after party".

At about 3am, one of my "roommates" for the evening wanted to go to sleep. We
hadn't been to our "apartment" yet so we decided to jump in my car and try to find it together.
(Another side note: Konocti is quite the maze and it is best to locate your
room long before you locate the lounge and any adult beverages!)

Ultimately, we got lost. It was 3:30am and we were still driving around in circles trying to
locate our room. At one point, thinking we were close, I parked my car and
we got out to investigate.

It was dark, cold, late and we soon discovered we were nowhere near our room. As we
headed back to my car to continue our pursuit, we noticed a man across the parking lot
in the shadows.

"Do you know where room &%$ is?" he shouted. Big surprise. He was lost, too.

Now normally, being a cop's daughter, I wouldn't have done what I was about to do. But
again, it was cold and late so I yelled back "No, but it sounds like it might be close to ours. If
you want, we'll drive you there."

I started to regret my offer as he approached but my concern soon turned to surprise.
As he came toward us and the light hit him, I realized we were about to rescue Don Dokken.

I immediately started to worry about the condition of my car - dog hair and all! My friend didn't
seem to be worried about anything, as she had quite enjoyed herself in the lounge (if you
know what I mean). Don just seemed grateful not to have to wander the parking lot alone.

"Hi, Don. Hop in."

I expected that my friend would get in the back seat so that Don could ride shotgun
but apparently this thought didn't cross her mind. She opened the passenger side door, lifted
the seat and motioned for him to get in the back of my little Ford ZX2.  He willingly obliged.

I started the car and as luck would have it, the old compilation tape I had made in
high school and had been listening to on the drive up started playing "Just Got
Lucky".  I smiled.  Don giggled and said "The lead singer in this band sucks.
My band is MUCH better."

As Don and I shared a laugh, my friend bursted out with "Oh? What's the name
of your band?" She had no idea Don Dokken was in the backseat of my car. That's when Don
and I really began to laugh.

We drove around a bit more and got even more lost and frustrated. As we came to a
stop sign some lights flashed upon us. The Konocti Cops! From their vehicle, they shouted
"What's going on here?". As the only sober one in the car, I explained that
we were trying to locate our rooms.

We gave them our room numbers and they attempted to tell us where to go - with quite the
attitude. This didn't sit very well with Don. He got out of my car, walked over to the KCs and
started complaining about how f$%^ed up this place was.

The discussion began to get a bit heated so I got out of the car and went to smooth out
the situation. I quietly explained to the KCs that Don was the lead singer of one of
the evening's featured bands and that we would greatly appreciate their assistance.
The KCs cooled off and said they would lead us to our rooms.

They lead us first to my "apartment" and we let my friend out of the car. Don
thanked me for my "help", said he didn't want to put me out and that he could ride the rest of
the way with the KCs. He started to get out when the KCs informed him that their backseat
was full and he'd have to continue to ride with me. Oh well. At least
he finally had shotgun.

Apparently, the KCs had enough of us at that point so they gave us directions to
Don's room and left. Thus began a memorable journey with just me and Don. We
took a few wrong turns, stopped to watch some deer cross our path and talked about
life, love and relationships. He even gave me kudos for remaining single. He
appreciated my motto about marriage - "I'm going to do it once and do it right".

We started discussing my job and I thanked him for having been so kind on the few previous
occasions we had met. Then, miraculously, we found his room. He sat in the
car a moment longer, thanked me and then said "If you're ever in L.A. give me a call and I'll
take you for a ride on my bike."

Yeah sure, I thought. But he was serious and wrote down his number for me.  I
laughed, telling him he'd never remember who I was. "Just tell me you're the one I
got lost with at Konocti and I'll know," Don said with a smile. He gave me a kiss
on the cheek, said farewell and stumbled off to his room.

Normally I don't become awed by musicians. Of course, I get a kick out of meeting
them. These are people I've admired for years. However, I've also come to see them as
people, just like anyone else.

Yet this was the most "up close and personal" I had ever been with one of them. It
was so coincidental and humorous that I couldn't help but be amazed at what had transpired. I
still have the phone number - not that I'll ever use it. I know I won't.
But I'll always enjoy the memory of getting lost at Konocti and pondering life with Don Dokken.

Next time, I'll have to tell you about my "Poison" experience.