Playin' for the kiddies. Eating waffles.

Well this weekend, Jeff and i played at GCC inthe Heir Force room. this is the 4th and 5th graders and they bring down another room that is all 2nd and 3rd graders. this is always a long weekend because you only play 2 songs and it is about 10 minutes into each service but for 5 services. normally you practice the weekend before but we had a good crew and so we met at 3 on Saturday. practice went well. Jeff had an "on the spot surprise" that he had to learn a new guitar part right then and there. as always he pulled it off quite well. now he just need to buy a mandolin and all problems will be solved. we always do 2 songs. sometimes it is stuff that they play upstairs in big people church, maybe just a different arrangment, but 9 times out of 10, it is a pretty good song selection. we were doing 1 song that we have done a million times that is actually a pretty good little ditty. the new one was a song that most people would have at least heard, a song by Bethany Dillion called "All I Need". it's one of those songs that sounds nice to listen to, but to play, it's a little pokey and dull.

first service (Sat, 5:30) went very well. good crowd. kids get into the music and there is a group of youth, the Outloud Team (which i all to frequently refer to as the "Dancing Girls") adds to the kids involvment. they have all sorts of fancy dance moves that the kids already typically know. after we get done playing you have some options, you could leave, or there is a room that you can go hang out in. kind of a cool place to be. the hub of hip. other musicians that play on the main stage or other musicians that might be off that week but there offices are right in this area. nice kitchette. plenty of dated Rolling Stones to pass the time. the 5:30 service is the one that i have always attended so i headed up stairs for some enlighting. Dr. Bob is one of those cool guys that you enjoy listening to because he gets so excited about Christ. Very good service.

second service (Sat, 7:30) we switched the order of the songs to finish on a more energetic song, not the new one. i did botch the ending of the new one by finishing a measure early but as always, we give each other a couple of odd stares and it ends. most people don't know a thing happend. it was better to finish with the faster song. leave the kids on a high not lingering cause you just simmered them down with a dull song. 7:30 can be a little tough. not as many kids and it's getting late so they are a little sleepier after dinner is settling in.

Sunday we start practice at 8 (8:15 for Rosy the singer who can knock your socks off vocally but can't seem to get to practice any where NEAR on time) then service starts at 8:30. this is always a tough one because all these kids and musicians are still waking up. this service is always tough and it the smallest crowd also of all five.

todays surprise was after the 8:30, Jeff and i worked our way into the Artist Lounge and while we were sitting, reading or what ever, this lady that is performing on the main stage starts whipping up waffles. WAFFLES MAN!!!!! now these were not a so so frozen waffle. this was thng that required INGREDIENTS!!! ohh. and delightful. mmm. good. fluffy. cinamminy. mmm.

so then the 10:30 service kicked off badly. i don't start the song but i do give the count off. somewhere along the line "1" was not good. there was about a 6 beat period that NO ONE knew where "1" was. LeRoy, the band leader, had to stop us. this one was obvious but as always, you get back on the horse and things went fine after that. this is the service that you get real excited about. there has to be well over 100 kids in this service and they have had their coffee and Cap'n Crunch so everyone is feeling alive.

after the 10:30 service Jeff and i went into Dan's office to watch a DVD of Branford Marsalis doing John Coltrane's A Love Supreme. it's a lot more swingin' than the original and really takes a minute to get used to, but over all, on a 14" laptop moniter, quite good.

the last service, 12:00, is always tough because you know it's coming to and end and you have to stay focused. it was probably our best service overall. so after it was all said and done, we served a couple hundred kids for a good reason.

i then left church and headed over to pick up my new tires. the old Conti's on the G6 had met there match. the road. the original drive tires were balding like Rob's head and needed to be replaced badly. Elizabeth's cousin's husband works at Tirerack so i was able to swing out and pick up my new tires. NOT THE ONE'S SHOWN. it's sad how cool tire tread patterns can look. it makes you want to buy tires. really. it does. so i think that is about all i have to say about the weekend. yep.