Maiden Voyage

Our portuguese dinghy is finally complete!  Here is the footage from the maiden voyage.

Some shout-outs:

• The music is original score by Dan.
• Thanks Andrew for letting us borrow the drill and the saw!
• Thanks Mrs. Polk for the paddle (not oar, as she corrected me)!

Links to related posts:

• Part 1: Moby Dick

Unhinged Melody

This month’s dare is to sing at a street corner and have people pay me to stop singing. Yes, I’m that bad. Whenever I so much as hum a tune, those around would beg me to stop. I’m routinely told that I’m the worst singer in the world. I remember once as a kid, my Dad caught me belting out a pop song in the yard. He was so tickled by my horrible howling that it’s become one of those family lore that gets retold every holiday season. Over the years, I have somehow grown attached to that identity and started taking pride in my utter lack of ability to sing. This month’s challenge is a perfect way to leverage that self delusion.

How to execute this one, hmm…  I thought I could stand near a busy street in my neighborhood and hold a sign. But then I realized that there is fatal flaw to that scheme. People are likely to pass me by with some curious looks and then hurry away without stopping to donate. Alternatively, I could go to downtown Boston and try to rustle up a crowd, street-performer style. But, that’s also hard because I doubt that I would be entertaining enough to draw an audience. What to do, what to do. Well, what I need is a captive audience, one that is held in place, unable to escape from my caterwaul. The Department of Motor Vehicles waiting area would be perfect if it weren’t for the fact that I might get arrested for public disturbance.

I’ve been mulling over the venue in the background for the past week. Then, last Thursday, I went to Shakespeare On the Common and saw the perfect opportunity. The Commonwealth Shakespeare Company is performing Twelfth Night on the Boston Common. It’s a free outdoor performance that draws a crowd of several hundred every night. The show starts at 8pm but people camp out there several hours in advance in order to stake out prime location on the lawn. Besides the fact that they are captive, this audience also has the advantage of being a relaxed crowd out to have some fun. If any audience can be receptive to some shenanigans, this would be it.

When it comes to the actual songs to sing. I considered the fact that the Shakespeare crowd mainly ranges from 30s to 60s in age so I figured I should cater to what this audience is familiar with. Here is the playlist I put on my iPod:

• Unchained Melody (the Movie Ghost’s theme song)
• I still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For (U2)
• Nothing Compares to You (Sinead O’Connor)
• Wish you Were Here (Pink Floyd)
• Sweet Child O’ Mine (Guns N’ Roses)

My friend Cecelia volunteered to be the videographer. It was a beautiful Saturday evening. I have to say that I’d been feeling unsettled and on the edge all day. I haven’t sang to an audience since I was in kindergarten! My bravado about my terrible singing aside, I had no idea how my “performance” would be received. What if people boo me? Worst yet, what if they ignore me altogether? I have to say, it’s not easy to walk up in front of several hundred people and make a complete fool of your self.

We arrived at the park around 7pm, an hour before show time. I was horrified to find that there was a classical music performance going on. What?!? Apparently, on weekends there is a orchestra for pre-show entertainment. I was crushed. After all the build up, I was so nervous that I was dying to get it over with. This is the last weekend of the performance for the season, and the prospect of having to find another venue was too much to bear.

I sat fuming, not knowing what to do.  Then, in about ten minutes or so, to my surprise and amazement, they wrapped up. Damn! Be careful what you wish for because I had no excuse now to delay the inevitable.

Cecelia was all ready to go with the filming. We first stepped aside and practiced once what I was going to say to the audience. Then, I paced back and forth a little in order to get myself psyched up and calmed down enough to get on with the show. Whenever Cecelia asked me, are you ready to go? I would say, give me a few more minutes. I would pace around some more while inhaling deeply. Time ticked away. Next thing you know, it was 7:30pm. It was now or never. I gritted my teeth. Let’s get it on!

We walk to the front center of the seating area, in the focal point of an audience of several hundred. To be fair, only people sitting within earshot would get to enjoy my howling since I don’t have a microphone nor an amplifier. I did bring along a small wireless speaker, plugged my iPod into it and I’m ready to go.

My goal was to raise $50 for the American Cancer Society. To make it easier, I got the text-to-donate number from their website. Each text message of “HOPE” to 20222 makes a $5 donation. That way, people wouldn’t have to hand me cash. I mean, I’m just some random person, why would they trust me not to pocket it?   I figured I’d shoot for getting 10 people to text and donate.

I was a nervous wreck. You can’t see from the video but my hand was shaking when I went to turn the music on. Are you ready? Without further ado…

Some cool people in the front row were very supportive. They even held up my signs unprompted, for which I will be forever grateful. The audience’s reaction was better than I could have hoped for. I even got some laughs. In the end, I only sang one and half songs before the event staff politely asked me to move on. Hey, sometimes it’s better to ask for forgiveness than permission. I figured I won’t get into too much trouble if it’s for charity.

In those five short minutes, I was able to raise a total of $35! I couldn’t have asked for a nicer and more supportive audience.

Sometimes in life, when you really want something, you’ve just gotta feel the fear and do it anyway.   Sure, I’ve had my share of rejections and things not panning out, but then at least I know, rather than always wondering what if. When I put myself out there, I feel so alive. That, in and of itself, is a reward, regardless of the outcome. And when people do respond in kind, when that happens, it’s allllll sooooo worth it.

So, what are you waiting for?

Edit: I just reached my $50 goal!  Some friends just read this and texted the number 3 times.  Thanks Jeffrey et al!