CALLER PRACTICE WITHN THE GUINEA PIGS...

First caller practice last night with my “troupe” of live dancers. I thought they did well (and they thought I did well). We’ll do it again next Wednesday—it’s probably possible to do it three times a month, if everybody’s available and willing.

The little PA system does exactly what I want it to: I can play a track off the laptop and sing (or talk) on top of it, and control the two volumes separately. Still haven’t retrieved my Professional Square Dance Caller’s Microphone Holder, with its built-in on/off switch and volume control, so I’ve got my singing mike in a mike stand—I’m more comfortable with it that way, anyway. And I’m using a music stand to hold my notes. Ultimately I won’t need those props (and technically I’m not supposed to be using them).

Had to adjust two of my singing calls (I didn’t try the third) to reduce the number of movements. One of the things I was hoping to get out of my practice “troupe” was an opportunity to see how long it actually took actual dancers to work through these “figures,” and I got that. One of the things I’ve learned in caller class is “equivalent modules,” which will put your dancers in the same place (position is important) but take either more or less moves to do it (in my case I’m after the “less”). I can adjust tempo, too, with my recording software, and I talked to the “troupe” about doing that with the Hee-Haw theme, “Gloom, Despair and Agony on Me”—it’s pretty fast. Slowed it by 10% and we’ll see how well that works.

I haven’t practiced the other use for the little PA system—musical performance (specifically, performance by the band—I know it’ll work for a solo performance just fine). PA-ing the band entails using my ancient 6-channel mixer (5 of the 6 channels work); I think it’s possible to use the amp’s two inputs as well as the five from the mixer. That’d be seven—exactly what I need (four instrument inputs—two guitars, fiddle and standup bass—and three microphone inputs for me, Ken, and Clint).

I have acquired The Cold Everybody Else Got (by wandering around in the snow in sandals Monday night), so I’m going nowhere—I’ll stay home today, read a lot (if I have the energy) and sneeze a lot. I’d like to have the cold burned out by tomorrow, because there are some things I’d like to do: practice with Denise for the Thirsty Lion show, see the Ocean Bottom Blues Band perform at the 2nd Street Market, and play at the jam session in downtown Tillamook (assuming it’s happening). Got invited to be part of a comedy show at the North Coast Recreation District; they want two songs—“family-friendly,” they said—and I can probably deliver.

And while I’m struggling with my zero-energy illness I at least get to work on the New Joe Songbook. 42 songs done now (and we’re up through “O”). And I have found five more songs where I didn’t have lyrics posted, and will have to re-type them.

And I got to finish re-reading Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged—all 1,082 fine-print pages of it. Rand’s characterizations are rather cartoonish, but she is consistent—her good guys are totally good, and her bad guys totally evil. The view of government as a gaggle of predators whose sole purpose is to take things from people and give them to “favorites” is particularly poignant these days. In fact, a recent survey suggested the main difference between today’s Depression and the one in the 1930s is back then government was considered part of the solution to the economic problems while today there’s a widespread perception that government is part of the problem.

Joe