Weird facts

For our orchestra concert today I asked all the performers to write down on a cue-card one unusual fact or anecdote about themselves. I then read them aloud in the breaks between numbers and asked people to guess who they belonged to. I like to do something fun like this at all our orchestra concerts because what I love about this group of people is its heterogeneity. For example my mom, a former professional violinist and a teacher of violin teachers sits between an 80-something lady who began fiddling in her 70's and her own 6-year-old grand-daughter. I like to give the audience an invitation to appreciate all the diversity and quirkyness that comes together to have fun making music together.

The "weird facts" were great. Among them:

• When I was young I bet my cousin I would never like pink or boys. Now I owe him 10 bucks.
• I was almost arrested by Thai police in a Bangkok hotel.
• I once sang in a vocal quartet with three males that was called (to my shame and embarrassment) "Three Guys A Broad."
• While touring Universal Studios in LA I was stopped and asked for an autograph by someone who thought I was a famous actress.
• I have a tendency to randomly fall off chairs. (Sophie)
• I once shot my mother between the eyes with a home-made bow and arrow. (Noah)
• I have an irrational fear of CBC broadcaster Rex Murphy. (Fiona)
• I mysteriously attract airborne lizards. (Erin)
• My first-year university transcript contains 5 F's, four of them in music. (Me)
• I was Canadian Junior Formula Racing Champion.
• My first (roundly unsuccessful) experience driving a car came at the age of three.

The music was pretty good too. We put a blurb in the local events newsletter, put up a few posters and had a full house of enthusiastic audience members. And then the lady who is in charge of renting out the community hall called me to say she'd enjoyed the concert so much, and she would like us to have the hall for free. How sweet and small-town-ish is that? I've insisted on paying the rental because our donations collected at the door were generous as usual and the hall is in desperate need of a bunch of renovations and restoration that I want to support. But it was sweet and small-town-ish anyway.