Early Is On Time

This is a mobile post if it shows up a bit differently than normal. This night has just given me another reason to stick to my convictions about being on time. In this crazy and definitely unpredictable world, anything can happen on your way to any destination.
Tonight I am performing in an old school chateau in New Jersey. The theme is gothic, so we are all in black with just a tinge of color. I am blessed beyond belief to be a working professional musician and I truly do not take it for granted. One of my favorite parts of my livelihood is that the lessons just keep on coming.
Our dressing rooms are basically bedrooms and bathrooms that are above the actual performance area. I was just speaking with some of the people that are doing character work this evening. They are painted from head to toe and do not speak once they get out into the party. What a way to make some money. I love it.
The concentration of this posting is what happens when someone is late. 3 instrumentalists were speaking when I arrived. They are also playing tonight. Their job is to welcome the guests with their trumpets and their gothic costumes. The issue was, there were actually supposed to be 4 of them. I did not know this into the fourth one came barreling in about 20 minutes ago.
He was obviously late. He had to change, tune up, grab a quick bite, and make it outside. Well, 3 out of 4 isn't bad right? He will have to play hungry I guess. The energy from his body was obviously a bit tense. Who knows why he was late, he just was. I have no reason to judge him, I am just commenting on what is. I was him once maybe twice in my 10 years doing what I do. I now make it a point to be anything else but any where close to late.
As a musician, there is a good 20 minutes to 30 minutes of prep no matter what your instrument is. When you are late, it hurts the team. In many cases, you will lose money as well. Some people are just fine with being late because they think it doesn't matter at all. Others do it because people in their lives always show up late for them. Everyone has an underlying story behind their actions right?
I learned a long time ago that early is on time and on time is late. When I first heard that, it confused me. However, once it hit home, it was solid. The look on this guys face tonight was not a comfortable one to look at. I sent him my best vibes as he whisked by me.
You just don't know what people are dealing with or what is going in in their heads. We can only learn from the outer world and deal with our own inner world. As I sit here 2 hours early, I had the time to write this. It's time for me to get a small bite to eat before hitting the stage. Thank you for being here. It means so
 much to me..


Stay positive


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