What's been going on...

Well, a little catch-up here.

Thursday night we went up to the Groves, our usual haunt on that night. It's a golf-course community with the usual clubhouse - and a restaurant. They have a good buffet -- and it has just changed hands and the food and presentation has GREATLY improved. This is a community that is a no-kids place, but (from what I understand) is NOT a 55+ community. Anyway... We have been going there almost since we got here into this area. On Thursdays they also have a DJ - for dancing and for karaoke. As with most karaoke places, there are good singers and those who cannot sing. Those who cannot sing do NOT let this lack of talent stop them from performing (and for some of those non-blessed singers, this means multiple songs every Thursday night).

So, I am kinda settin' the stage (no pun intended) for my story. I think I have an okay voice, and others in our group have encouraged me to sing at the karaoke night. I am afraid to force my talents (or lack of them) on the world. One of our party, J (Significant Other of E, a sweet lady) asked me what song I would sing. He took this info up to the DJ and returned to tell me that I would need to let the DJ know WHEN I was ready to sing. We were eating our buffet meal and having some drinks and I figured that I could put this off for the rest of the night.

But I was forced .. er drafted, people. After finishing my meal, dancing a few dances and consuming not quite a glass-and-a-half of wine, a chant went up: Jessica, Jessica, JESSICA! I cringed.

J was so great... he walked me up onstage AND stayed right by my side while I sang. I was unfamiliar with the mike and so did not know that I needed to position it RIGHT NEXT to my mouth, so I am told that the first several lines were really not audible. (A blessing for the audience.) I got thru the song, shaking like a leaf the entire time. But I did not stumble over the words and I think I carried the tune pretty well. Sigh... I sang For the Longest Time, a Billy Joel song that I am very familiar with. It was not so easy to get up in front of all those folks, and I welcomed the end of the song. Some did come up to me afterward and were very encouraging, telling me that I had a good voice and ought to sing more. We'll see...