Keith at Jolly Trolley -- 13&14Dec2013

I got volunteered to play for the reception (i.e., waiting room party) for the busses that take people around to look at the Mission Viejo Christmas Lights winners. I did it last year and the year before, so they just kind of expect me now. Made the papers, though...

And it's pretty fun. They have fire rings set up and let the kids roast marshmallows, but mostly it's older people so I get to sing the old sentimental ones, unlike the Santa line gigs where it's almost all "Jingle Bells", "Frosty", and "Rudolph".

But it's a little tough to get anything going. The receptions are from 5 to 6 when the first bus leaves, and then 7 to 8 when the second one does. I start playing when the first people wander in, but it's weird to play directly to just one couple, so I start off quiet. Then more people wander in, and just walk past me, and after a while there are lots of people, but there was no "start up", so it's hard to stop being Background Music and become Entertainment.

So the first three were kind of boring, so when a little girl walked by me on her way to get more cookies during the fourth one, I snagged her in to play some jingle bells, and so her little brother had to come over too, which brought their parents, of course. And then other kids saw something happening, and it turned into Big Fun all around.

You'd think that after 12 years of doing this, I'd learn that the passive approach just doesn't cut it. I'm just still too shy, I guess.