One of my favorite things to do here in Los Angeles in the summer time, is get a big group of people together to go to the KCRW sponsored shows at the Hollywood Bowl. For those of you who don't know, The Hollywood Bowl is a gorgeous outdoor amphitheater right in the middle of Hollywood that brings in some incredible bands. They also have the LA Philharmonic there, do sing along's (which I've never done but would probably LOVE) and sometimes even have musicals! I've had the privilege of seeing Adele, Feist, Royksopp, Chromeo, The Chemical Brothers, and many others. But my most memorable show definitely has to be from last night.
I have a bunch of friends with September birthdays, including my BFF Kasey, and LadyPantz member Dede, so as a birthday present, my boyfriend and I got 12 tickets to see Hot Chip, Passion Pit, and a very interesting Syrian musician named Omar Souleyman....
I have a bunch of friends with September birthdays, including my BFF Kasey, and LadyPantz member Dede, so as a birthday present, my boyfriend and I got 12 tickets to see Hot Chip, Passion Pit, and a very interesting Syrian musician named Omar Souleyman....
Doin it right
When we go to the Hollywood Bowl, we do it right. We only go to the shows put on by KCRW because A) they bring the bands that put on the best dance parties, and B) you can bring your own alcohol into the amphitheater. So we always pack a gigantic picnic with wine and cheese and fruit etc and just luxuriate in the summer air, then dance the night away. In this particular group of friends that we brought, only 5 of them had ever been to the Bowl before, so it was a totally fun and new experience for them. We took the subway with all our loot, drank, ate, responsibly used medicinal marijuana prescribed by our doctors, danced, and all around had a blast.
On the way back to the subway after the show was over, our merry bunch of dancing friends encountered a street musician playing the saxophone. He was about 50, tall and black, with long dreadlocks and an open sax case laying on the ground in front of him with a few coins and wadded up dollars in it. I was grooving out to what he was playing as we walked by. He continued to play, and I continued to dance, and suddenly it felt like he was playing along to my every move. I continued to groove, with the music punctuating my every move, for two whole city blocks. I decided to turn around, just to see if this was all in my head or if he was also feeling the connection I was feeling. When I turned, he was facing directly at me and PLAYING his heart out, like Lisa Simpson in a solo. I cheered and ran all the way back up the hill, propelled by some need to tell him that I loved what had just happened.
When I got to him, to high five him, he was grinning from ear to ear and laughing. He had felt the same thing I had felt. I know I sound like a huge hippie right now, but we had shared an experience that was filled with love, and we both knew it. A moment of two human beings connecting. I asked him his name and told him mine, then told him how awesome that was. He matched my every move with a beautiful note from his saxophone, and I mirrored his music with my movements. He called me sister, and thanked me for even noticing him. So many people walk by without even glancing up, he said. I told him he just made my night, and he said I had just made his, and I realized I wanted to tip him. Somehow, those moments of connectedness that I felt to this stranger, that my body felt to his music, and that he felt in return made me reach for a $20 bill.
I pulled it out of my wallet and dropped it in his case, so he couldn't see what I was giving him. I wanted him to find it later and be surprised, maybe wonder if it had been me. As I turned to leave, he said "Sister, you dropped some money out of your wallet." I turned and saw another $20 crumpled behind me. I thanked him, snatched it up and then turned back to him. I held it in my hand, knowing full well he had seen the denomination, and I asked him which he would rather have; the money I had already placed in his case, or the $20 he had just prevented me from losing. He hesitated, and I encouraged him.
"Come on! Which do you want? What's in my hand, or what's in your case?"
He looked right into my eyes, and said with such intense honesty, "What's in your hand. I'd like what's in your hand."
I asked him if he was sure. He said yes, he was sure. I reached down into his case, pulled the original $20 out and showed him, shouting "SAME THING!!!!!!" then dropped the $20 he chose into his case.
He got tears in his eyes and just started saying thank you, thank you. Thank you so much.
I love honesty. And I love to support artists. I don't have a lot of money, but giving that musician $20, when he obviously really needed it, was worth it. Money comes and money goes, but human connection is what I live for.
I loved last night, and I love today!
When I got to him, to high five him, he was grinning from ear to ear and laughing. He had felt the same thing I had felt. I know I sound like a huge hippie right now, but we had shared an experience that was filled with love, and we both knew it. A moment of two human beings connecting. I asked him his name and told him mine, then told him how awesome that was. He matched my every move with a beautiful note from his saxophone, and I mirrored his music with my movements. He called me sister, and thanked me for even noticing him. So many people walk by without even glancing up, he said. I told him he just made my night, and he said I had just made his, and I realized I wanted to tip him. Somehow, those moments of connectedness that I felt to this stranger, that my body felt to his music, and that he felt in return made me reach for a $20 bill.
I pulled it out of my wallet and dropped it in his case, so he couldn't see what I was giving him. I wanted him to find it later and be surprised, maybe wonder if it had been me. As I turned to leave, he said "Sister, you dropped some money out of your wallet." I turned and saw another $20 crumpled behind me. I thanked him, snatched it up and then turned back to him. I held it in my hand, knowing full well he had seen the denomination, and I asked him which he would rather have; the money I had already placed in his case, or the $20 he had just prevented me from losing. He hesitated, and I encouraged him.
"Come on! Which do you want? What's in my hand, or what's in your case?"
He looked right into my eyes, and said with such intense honesty, "What's in your hand. I'd like what's in your hand."
I asked him if he was sure. He said yes, he was sure. I reached down into his case, pulled the original $20 out and showed him, shouting "SAME THING!!!!!!" then dropped the $20 he chose into his case.
He got tears in his eyes and just started saying thank you, thank you. Thank you so much.
I love honesty. And I love to support artists. I don't have a lot of money, but giving that musician $20, when he obviously really needed it, was worth it. Money comes and money goes, but human connection is what I live for.
I loved last night, and I love today!
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