Celine Dion, Las Vegas 2.0

On March 15, 2011, Celine Dion launches a new three-year residency in Las Vegas—following her triumphant run at the 4,000-seat Colosseum at Caesars Palace that opened March 25, 2003 and ran for five years. That show came to a close Dec. 15, 2007, after more than 700 shows and 3 million spectators. It resulted in one of the highest concert grosses in music history: $400 million. I had the pleasure of being there opening night and each March 25 anniversary, as well as closing night.

You might imagine that having the opportunity to be present for the launch of Celine's new show is pretty much the greatest gift I could imagine... When the phone rang Friday, I immediately recognized Celine's husband Rene's voice. We had a lovely chat, and discussed a business proposition I had presented to him before the holidays. I was determined to not bring up whether we might garner an invite to the premiere this March, hoping that Rene would ask... and by golly, he did!

My response: "As you know, I was there for the opening of the last show, present for each anniversary, and had the pleasure to attend closing night. I am thrilled for the invite. Of course... of course... yes, we would love to be there."

And so a month from now, Ayhan, meese, my pals Fredly and Leonard will have the honor of attending opening night for Celine's new show. My god, that's enough to push unemployment, monetary crises and the occasional downtrodden disposition to the side for a good spell. "A new day has come," indeed! Life is grand.