8:57 a.m. - 2006-04-22
Spontaneous!
Don�t be dismayed by my previous entry. I�m doing well, just extremely busy, and I so miss writing here. I haven�t been able to find the path to make the time to write. That�s all.
But to recap a little � a week ago I didn�t something totally unexpected, totally spontaneous, and totally adventuresome (at least in my books).
Late last Thursday afternoon my phone rings at my desk. My girlfriend C tells me that she has a meeting up-island � would I like to tag along � that night? The ultimate in spontaneity for me.
When you live at the southern most tip of a 450 Km (300 miles) long island � the term �travel up-island� can mean a variety of destinations. In this case, although I didn�t understand her request at the time, it meant Nanaimo. This is approximately an hour and a half travels on the only highway that runs (all the way) up. This is also an extremely busy stretch of highway at 5pm on the Thursday of a four day weekend � in the rain.
I digress �
My friend C and her husband do a lot of work with World Vision. You know � the organization that runs ads on TV to give monthly support for children in 3rd world countries. Always pulling at your heart strings to give the price of a coffee a day to a child that needs medicines and support to survive. I�m sure you know the ones I�m talking about. Many musician celebrities support them at their concerts.
I digress � slightly �
She needed to be on hand at a concert in Nanaimo and man the �World Vision� table for the musician that was playing. A brilliant Mediterranean style guitarist named Pavlo, and I didn�t realize it until I saw his CD�s that I already owned one. I was impressed with my blessing.
I stood behind the table with C as the people came in for their �theatre evening� out. I am a people watcher, but not in �that� kind of way. I just enjoy seeing how people are dressed, how they interact, and what kind of demographics they fit into. I recognized that I wasn�t in Kansas anymore Toto. This was not the big city of Victoria, but the smaller more central city of Nanaimo. What I noted the most was the ratio of man / woman, and younger / older � Basically � I could have been at an Engelbert Humperdinck concert. These woman (average age of 50 plus) were ripe to rip off their knickers and throw them at Pavlo. You could sense it in the air.
And that was before the concert even started.
As volunteers for the World Vision table we were allowed to take in the concert � from the nose bleed seating way up in the highest balconies. This actually turned out to be great. We got a bird�s eye view of all the panty slinging ladies, and the men who looked like they�d rather be anywhere else. That is until the belly dancer came out �
But I digress �
It was very clear to me early in the game that this was a performer who played for the crowd. His guitar skills were absolutely amazing, and the passion that he brought to life through the Mediterranean / sultry Latin music was in the air tangible. He flirted with his guitar. He flirted with the women in the audience.
At one point he gave a vague invitation to the crowd that he had been know to allow women to come up on the stage and dance with him. It did not take long for a woman to answer the call � of the wild. Front row and center, decked out in her best bib and tucker. She really did look nice � in that older lady kind of way. Never-the-less, undaunted, she wends her way up on to the stage and dances for/with Pavlo. You could tell (even from our distant seating) that this was a highlight to her week. And Pavlo, being an obvious consummate entertainer, did not disappoint her.
At intermission C and I went back to our table. From our vantage point we could tell that the bar was a popular place to visit. This proved to be very entertaining during the second half of the show.
C hadn�t done a World Vision table at this kind of concert before. We discussed the generational differences in attitudes to world problems. The younger generation is much more globally aware than the older (than me) generation that was the majority of attendees this evening. The late boomers (50-60�s) tend to give more locally, or nationally, but tend to disregard the needs in other countries. Even though the problems that exist in third world countries today were often brought on by this same boomer generation. (Some of you may very well disagree with me on that point)
As it stood, we only had three children sponsored that evening when concerts that are held by younger or trendier musicians the children fly off the table.
The second half started and we took the long hike and stairwell to our aerial pew. As I suggested earlier the people who had visited the bar were in very good spirits. From our vantage point looking down on the crowds there seemed to be a whole lot more bosoms being jovially displayed, and all the more jiggly as the lusty Latin music resonated.
At one point Pavlo introduced a belly dancer (local paid performer) to come out and dance to their music. She was amazing! I turned to C and said � we should take belly dancing lessons next year. (Seriously � don�t hold your breath to read entries on that). While this lovely danced and gyrated her way around the stage she came down and danced through the isles as well. This is were the seeming apathetic men attempted to perk up (no pun intended) and yet not appear to entertained so that they would end up sleeping on the couch that evening.
We found this almost as entertaining as watching the audience participation from the more buxumed of the sexes. But just wait � the ladies audience participation was truly yet to come.
I truly believe that we should never give in to age. That we always need to keep a young and vibrant spirit about us - young at hear, as it were. But there is also an age when we must fact the facts that there are some things we just can�t do publicly. Getting pie-eyed and crawling onto the stage, trying to dance like you were 20 again, with the real performer � the buck should have stopped several years ago. Two such women where present and accounted for. Both of which would have/should have had the hook off the stage, or a �Gong� loudly sounded to end their interpretive dance.
When the audience stops laughing at you, and begins to cringe � this would be the good indicator that it was time to get off of the stage. Bring back Pavlo!! We want Pavlo!!
What a way to end our evening. We laughed until we cringed cried �
Our trip back down island to home was uneventful. C and I found much to talk about � life � ministry �. marriage �. men �. And bountiful over sexed women at the Pavlo concert. I highly recommend his CD�s if you enjoy guitar � regardless of your age.
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Considering I haven't had the time to write an entry here in over a week - I believe I made up for it. I hope you stayed along for the ride.
Blessings,
LJ
