#1398, Friday, April 3: See the man with the stage fright...

Post 1398, Day 93 of 2015
- 1,554 days since I started this blog -

Daily Comment

The pic above was taken right before I started my set - my first ever appearance at an open mic as a singer/guitarist.

If there were ever any question of my impulse control, this should answer it: I have little-to-none. 

A friend of mine was starting a new open mic, about twelve minutes from my apartment, in a club I knew with new ownership. In support, I went there with bass guitar in hand, looking to see if anybody would have a need for me, or, at worst, accommodate me on their set.

About halfway there, I decided that if I could borrow a guitar, I'd play a few songs. I came up with a short list that I could sing and remember the chords to (which meant the entire repertoire was limited to tunes from the mid-to-late sixties).

My friend and host was delighted to loan me his guitar.

I was a little nervous. Playing guitar and singing is nothing new to me, but has been a very rare part of my musical experience for the last thirty-five years or so.

Then the performers started. A very impressive group. All excellent guitarists and singers. Some performed all original material. I began feeling something I hadn't felt in a musical environment in a very long time: Performance jitters.

As accomplished performer followed accomplished performer, my nervousness increased, until I had full-blown stagefright.

Then something kind of cool happened. I thought about how I was feeling, and where it was coming from; I realized I was doing things I don't usually do: Compare myself to other performers, worry about other people's opinions of me, and, most of all, fear of a truly unknown near-term future, that might just hold shame and embarassment.

I got on the stage and told the story of why Roy Orbison wore sunglasses when he performed, as though I had suggested the idea to him, and put on some shades (you can see them in my shirt pocket above). Nobody gave me much of a response. Then I tuned up. And by the time I had finished, I was in that music-performance zone I am so addicted to.

My set list consisted of Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (Nina Simone; the Animals), Travellin' Light (Herman's Hermits), Reason to Believe (Tim Hardin). It seemed to be going well, because I was asked for an encore (!). I played No Expectations (the Rolling Stones) and We Gotta Get Outa This Place (the Animals - again).

I knew being afraid of it had made it the right thing to do.

Food and Diet Section

Today's Weight:                   209.6 lbs

Previous Weight (4/2):            210.6 lbs

Day Net Loss/Gain:                - 1.0 lbs

Diet Comment

My weight loss continues apace. I'm going to try to be very good this weekend, and come back a pound or two lighter on Monday.
 

Food Log

Breakfast
Skipped.

Lunch
A cocoa-hemp-berries-and-kale protein shake (almond-coconut milk, kefir, kale, frozen mixed strawberries, blueberries and raspberries, large organic egg, whey powder (36g protein), hemp seeds, hemp protein (7g protein), celery, raw organic cacao powder, fermented coconut water, chia gel, moringa leaf powder, cinnamon and stevia-inulin blend.

Dinner
Pepperoni, cole slaw and cheese.

Snack
Cheese, celery and home-made spicy mayonnaise.

Liquid Intake
   Coffee:  24 oz.   Water: 76+ oz. 

Please leave a comment if you visit my blog. Thank you!