Panic Not

A few things to reflect upon after this week's events.

Panic is an option, but not a good one.

This little expression of mine is something I tell myself when performing before a live audience. I try to make light of what is essentially hilarious: me in the spotlight for one and how freakin nervous I get.

 I got to MC before a sold-out crowd at an annual holiday event. Everybody backstage was so relaxed and down-to-earth, but these people had done this thousands of times before. I was the new boy. I was watching my pulse hover between 94 and 104. That's like a mild treadmill pace for me, but generally my pulse runs a lot lower than that. Panic is an option....

I kept hoping to find a way to slow myself down inside, but nothing worked. When this happens, I know that the only thing that will bring some relief is walking out on that stage.

Thank mercy for the soundcheck. At first, I felt a little winded and thought, "This will never work. Calm the fuck down." After facing an empty hall and bantering with the invisible sound engineer, this "first blood" was what I needed.

Still, being on a stage, even just reading from a piece of paper, takes practice. The band performs all the time-sometimes as much as three times or more a week. Plus, with the chops they possess, it flows out of them like water. They had their game down ten-fold.

In the end, things went well and everybody had nice things to say.

So kids: panic is an option,

but tell panic to go outside and wait in the car.

 You'll be out after the show.