I Am An Utter Moron

[bjarvis]

kent4str and I were supposed to be calling for Chesapeake Squares tonight. Kent, however, was suffering from a low grade migraine and intestinal issues, so I packed up to head to Baltimore for a solo performance.

This was our first calling gig since the pride day events in mid-June, and the first since the IAGSDC convention. When we were calling for Baltimore Pride, we had scavenged all of our equipment for a variety of plugs & cables so that we'd have spares in case anyone else on site had odd equipment to connect together. I was therefore very conscientious tonight about selecting precisely which cables I would require for tonight's work, and ensuring I had the right numbers of each. I was concentrating so hard on the cables, however, that I entirely neglected one key component.

When I arrived in Baltimore 15 minutes before show time, I set up the speakers on the speaker stand, unpacked the computer and my microphone, laid out the extension cord and-- oh, crap. I suddenly realized I had left the Hilton turntable/mixer/amp in the computer room at home. Damn!

I immediately called Kent and he graciously agreed to hop in the minivan to deliver the Hilton to Baltimore. In any case, the show must go on: when 8 PM rolled around, I simply turned up the sound on the computer, aimed it at the square of dancers and shouted the calls. It wasn't elegant, but it worked.

Kent arrived after the first tip: I grabbed the Hilton from the car and he drove for home. The rest of the evening was relatively uneventful, but then again, what wouldn't after a panic like that?

We didn't have enough advanced dancers for an A2 tip so we alternated MS & Plus all night. It was extremely warm & muggy tonight and the air conditioning was having difficulty keeping up so the officers decided to knock off a little early. I closed with two back-to-back singers and was on the road by 9:45 PM.

My bout of Alzheimer's was profoundly embarrassing, but I'm taking some consolation from knowing that's one mistake I will never make again.