Wow. - 7/24/2006 in 2005 - 2007: High School

Internet! I just got my first paid gig!

My dad took a message while I was at the dentist getting my wisdom teeth stitches out. Some guy called the house and asked if he could hire me to play in the pit of some children's theatre show in August. My dad called my mom's cell phone to tell me because he figured I would get wicked excited. And I did. I got wicked excited.

I called back immediately after I got home. I got the answering machine. I did it a couple more times. Finally, I left a message - you know, one of those kind of awkward "I'm returning your call" messages. Then I called maybe a couple more times. Finally, at four or five, he called back.

Him: Hi, this is [name] from the Williams center. Is this Aidan?

Me: Yeah, hi.

Him: Yeah, so, I got your call, and I'm glad you're interested. Jeff Thomas gave me your name - he said you play the trombone, and you also do reeds?

Me: Uh, actually, just the flute.

Him: Oh. Well we can definately use you on flute... You don't play any keyboards, do you?

Me: No.

Him: Oh. Well we can still definately use you on flute. So are you home from college right now?

Me: No, I'm actually going to be a senior this year.

Him: A senior... In high school?

Me: Yes?

Him: Oh. Uh, well, in terms of pay... I mean, it depends on how many musicians we end up hiring, but somewhere between two twenty five and three seventy five. You should be making at least two twenty five whatever happens...

Internal Voice: Wait, what? $2.25?

Other Internal Voice: He means two hundred and twenty five, dimwit.

Me: Oh. Well I mean, that's fine - that's great...

Him: (laughs) Yeah, you're probably happy to be getting anything, right? You're like, "how many movie tickets is that?" (laughs again.) "How many frappuchinos?"

I laughed too, kind of weakly.

Internal Voice: Shit, this is not going to be a bunch of teenagers. This is going to be a bunch of professional musicians, and me.

Then he told me all of the dates and times. There is one orchestra rehearsal, and one dress rehearsal, and then the show, three times. That's it. I'm picking up the score tomorrow morning. I have to be able to play it by next Wednesday.

Overall, I am very excited, but also considerably nervous. We are most definately not in Kansas anymore. Even though the gig is kind of lame, it's the real thing. They're not treating me like a high school music student. They're giving me the score, and I'd better learn it on my own, in a week, and I'd better play it well, because they're paying me to play it well. It's just expected.

I'm pretty flattered that Mr. Thomas recommended me. I mean, there were a bunch of other people he could have recommended too, but the guy made it sound like this is not a mostly-students thing, so I'm guessing that he didn't. I'm pretty sure it's at least partially because I talked to him about being a music major - he's giving me the oppurtunity to try the kind of thing that I might end up doing for the rest of my life. Of course, part of me wonders whether it's a "let's see how well she'll hold up" rather than an "I'm sure she'll be able to do it." Part of me also wonders whether he's making a conscious effort to appease me after not making me drum major. But those are small, paranoid parts of me. Mostly, I'm just thrilled, and determined to knock the socks off of the audience and the other pit people and that guy.

(Also, my dad sounded really excited for me when he called to tell me about what happened. This is one of those things that makes me feel guilty for being such an ungrateful emo kid and never wanting to be around him.)