My dad always said...

My dad always said/says, "You could have played the flute."

This, of course, is his response to seeing or hearing about me moving percussion equipment 3 or 4 or 20 times the amount of time I actually spend playing said equipment. And he's right. I could have played the flute, but then I would have to play the flute! Just kidding, just kidding. It's a joke.

In all seriousness, a huge part of being a percussionist is the responsibility of moving, setting up, tearing down, and maintaining our gear. And today was another wonderful reminder of that fact.

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I had the opportunity to do a brief interview and partial performance for one of Indy's local TV news stations at the Palladium in Carmel. Along with about 35 other acts, I will be performing in the brand new Palladium concert hall as part of its Take Center Stage event on Saturday, January 22. The Palladium, a $150 million venue, opens to the public on the 22nd, and is stirring up a buzz through many local and regional news outlets.

I got to be a small part of one of those stirrings this morning. As did my 225-pound marimba, which had to be moved and assembled by myself. A total of about 1hr 20min was spent packing and moving the instrument throughout the day (excluding driving) all for about 2-3 minutes of playing. (The man who coordinated this interview saw me tearing down and said, "Gosh, maybe you could have played the flute." True story.) I almost backed out of the interview simply because I didn't want to lug the marimba up there for such a short time. I know it probably seems crazy that I went for it anyway, but I do think it's worth it. Otherwise I wouldn't do it, would I? I may have the opportunity to show people a marimba that have never seen or heard one before. I may encourage someone to come to the event at the Palladium next week who might not have otherwise come. Who knows what may come of it? Maybe nothing much. If nothing else, I got a good workout in!

Please understand, I don't share this to complain or to gain your sympathy. Rather, I hope you might consider some of the decisions you face and what might be holding you back from taking a step forward. I too easily and too often allow inconveniences to stop me from doing what I know ought to be done. In fact, I can be pretty darn lazy and spoiled at times. But when I get up off my butt, and do what needs to be done, I never seem to regret that. I might be exhausted, and maybe the outcome isn't the greatest thing ever, but I did what I knew I should do. I hope you'll do the same: exactly what you know you should do.


(By the way, the piece on the news will air Sunday morning around 7:15AM on WISH-TV.)