The Day Of...

Eleven o'clock. Friday. I'm still in bed, but I'll be getting up shortly. I'm starving and I've rested enough. Big night coming up! It's the Garage to Glory Finals.

Truth be told, I'm nervous/anxious/etc. Actually, I'm not sure if it's an anxious feeling or an excited feeling... maybe it's both with some nervousness added in.

Tonight is going to be wild... the event itself is going to be full of much more than just songs. There is a host who will be chatting with people on stage. There is a person doing interviews after performances. A TV crew. Multiple cameras. It's going to be wild.

Part of my nervousness is coming from all of the production. I've been telling myself that I just have to focus on me and doing what I do, which is playing my songs. If I can convince my body to stop freaking out about everything else, I'll have no problem.

I've played for big crowds before. And I've played in new/unfamiliar places. I've played A LOT for people that I don't know and in doing so, I've learned how my body reacts to these types of situations.

I've successfully gotten rid of nervousness in the past by shaking out my arms/hands and legs/feet, jumping up and down a little bit, and stretching before going on. The worst that can happen to me on stage is that my left leg will start shaking. (It happens a lot when I'm playing a new song that I haven't learned quite yet). When that happens, I shift my weight to my other leg, which isn't as comfortable, so I shift back. This draws my attention away from my song... which isn't good. I'm used to this happening. All I have to do is keep my attention on my performance.

One other thing that makes me nervous about playing in a new place is I never know what type of sound I'm going to hear. I like to have a monitor that is full with reverb. That way, when I sing, I hear myself singing. If there is no reverb in the monitor, I don't hear myself singing and -- in fact -- the monitor ends up canceling out (in my ears) what I am singing... so, I lose my spot in the song. It's like singing and not hearing what you are singing. Does that make sense? This happened to me last night at open mic and caused to flub up a few parts.

Tonight, there will be a souncheck before hand. I'm going to make sure I like what I hear and if I have to be a dick about it, I will.

I will be arriving by 6. The show starts at 8. I won't be playing for at least an hour after that as I'm the 7th or 8th (I can't remember) person to perform. That gives me a good solid two hours (after sound check) to hang out in the green room and freak out. I'll do my arm and leg shakes. I'll run through my songs a few times.

I have to leave at 5 to get there at 6. From now until then, I'll be doing some laundry to keep me busy. Having some food. If there is time, I may clean out my car... it's a disaster...

I have quite a few friends who have said they'll be watching the event online tonight. A few people will be attending in person.

If you are one of those, or you are unable to watch, keep your fingers crossed for me!

Woooooo!