How I Changed Direction Anonymous

We were nervous. The breeze of early morning stung our bare arms with cold. I complained, out of my own bitter hatred for the cold, and in hopes of quieting the spinning butterflies in my stomach. Doubts floated through my head as I acknowledged that we were three hours from home on a side of the state we had never known. Would they ever come? Eastern Washington, vastly different from our side of the Cascades, seemed a whole new world. Katie held my arm to warm me up and, I think, comfort herself, too. It was an explosion of firsts for us: first time alone far from home, first time at Warped Tour, first time representing an animal rights organization called PETA2. We were going to run a table for PETA2 at Warped Tour and, little did I know, change our lives.

Every summer, Warped Tour returns to Washington's Gorge Arena in George, Washington, bringing more and more bands of the "I've been dying to see them!" variety each time. For years, Katie and I had excitedly highlighted the list of performers at Warped Tour, imagining who we'd see and how great it would be. At over $100 total for tickets, merchandise, food, and board, Warped Tour was much more than we could ever afford. The 100 mile distance for two...