Discovered in Costco: my first "gig?"

Sorry I haven’t written in such a long time. Music has occupied almost every space in my head while the days have been winding down to the start of school – like counting down the beads of a rosary while singing a cheerless holy tune. The rest of the space is filled with errands and tennis. Tennis!

Music on my mind, piano on my hands, drums in the future – hopefully.

I know I don’t play the piano that well, but I like the feeling of playing a song that I really know and playing each note solidly and deliberately. I like the sound of bass notes played an octave apart. I like the feeling that I can make a song out of the creative templates of my head’s slide show. And sometimes I don’t mind sharing this feeling in Costco.

Let me explain.

As I said earlier, if I’m not occupied with music, I’m busy with running errands or playing tennis. The other day, I was in Costco with my mom, off to buy milk and bananas. But really, I just wanted to play on the piano that they had on display there. It was a casio compact digital piano; here's the link: http://reviews.costco.ca/2070-en_ca/10317830/reviews.htm. You'll have to copy and paste it, sorry! I’m fond of pianos just as others are fond of car shows. Anyway, I played my usual round of songs, songs that I’m working on – either learning or making. I must have stayed on that piano for some time because I started to garner an amused crowd of three shoppers, their shopping carts surrounding me. The piano was set up so that it faced cardboard boxes containing replicas of that piano. If for example the piano was on the shelf, like cans in a grocery store, then I would be facing the shelf, not the aisle. Some people watched from a far and some watched over my shoulder. I naturally got nervous and sweaty. But when I was finished with a song, I looked up and said, “oh . . . hello.” I didn’t know what else to say.

One lady asked me how I learned – “piano lessons or by ear?” Well, I never took piano lessons, so I chose “by ear” as my answer. But in all honesty, I just applied what I learned in chorus and music theory class and put them together. I don’t know if that’s by ear though. I’m not able to recognize a chord just by hearing it, but I can by seeing it on the piano. I can however hear individual notes and guess which note it is on the piano by trial and error. Then I’d create chords out of that. I can read music, but I can’t play it fluently; I’d have to figure out the notes step by step, familiarize myself with the rhythm and then play it on the piano – it’s a long process, I tried it once.

I got a couple of compliments, but I guess it’s because they thought I was some kid prodigy. I never told them my 21st birthday would come next November though. I just took the compliments and ran away smiling. Don’t blame me for enjoying some stage time, shall I call it that. It was fun being in the spotlight for a little bit, just like my musical idols – both sung and unsung (Ryan Jones you are awesome!).

Later on my mom and I were joking around about what happened in Costco. I wished that the manager would see me and offer to give me the piano for free, since I was (in my wish) influencing other people to buy the piano. My mom imagined that a spotter was in Costco and saw me and signed me to a record label, and then I'd be on the Ellen DeGeneres show and she'd (Ellen) ask me how I got to be where I was, and I'd say I was "discovered in Costco." Our imaginations are endless!

But, unfortunately I feel I am far from that colorful thought.

Anyway, so that’s what happened in Costco and that’s what I talked about for the rest of that day. A highlight it had become to my humble status!