To provide some contrast to my day-to-day posts, I figured I might spend some time answering a handful of questions people ask me from time to time about the daredevil realm of busking. Consider this entry an Official Busker's FAQ.
Do you get tired?
Ah, good 'ole fatigue. It's tiring to do anything for three hours at a time, but when there are sharp strings and soft fingers involved, fatigue tends to lead to a fair bit of abrasion and eventually some nasty strumming wounds. I'm often seen sporting some fashionable Rocko's Modern Life band-aids as a result. Maybe it gives me some indie cred or a streetwise appearance. Probably not, unless it's still 1996.
Don't people steal from you?
Yes, there's the ever-present danger of having someone steal from the veritable cornucopia of cash that is my beat-up guitar case (I should point out the intended sarcasm in that sentence so as to avoid any mistaken "cocky" labeling). I've actually never had a problem with this yet, but there have been a few instances when a couple of thuggy kids (it's aaaalways kids) have eyed my property and I had to go all Conan the Barbarian on them (because no one deserves Conan the Destroyer), which for me means puffing myself up like a blowfish and trying to look intimidating. For proof of the existence of God, I'd cite that this tactic of mine has miraculously worked and none of my earning have ever been ganked by a lowlife. Then again, maybe I just didn't see it happen.
What about your voice, dude?
Yeah, it's pretty rough singing nonstop for three hours or more while trains whizz around and people bark at each other and the smart ones just keep listening to their headphones in order to stay sane. There have been a few instances when my voice started feeling pretty ragged from being pushed too much, forcing me to call it a night. This past Friday evening, my voice completely bottomed out in the middle of "Eve of Destruction" (a P.F. Sloan tune that the Turtles covered). It wasn't a good feeling, and I've been resting my voice ever since (it's fine now). I went to school for musical theatre, so I know how to take care of my voice...sometimes I'm a bit too stubborn to take the proper measures.
Are you homeless? Can I like...give you food?
Yes, I'll totally take your food. I'm usually hungry. One kind lady gave me a water bottle the other day. No, I'm not homeless. Interestingly enough, one homeless fellow gave me a bag of chips once. I would have counted that as more of a favor if he hadn't already opened it and ate half of them.
Can I get change for a five from your money if I leave you the five?
This happens a lot, actually. Passersby would like to leave some money for me but only have a five dollar bill. It's fine and I let them change it out in my case. Sometimes I get weird looks from other folks who didn't see the whole transaction and must think the person is stealing from me and I'm just standing idly by. But whatev.
Do you take requests?
I can try to! I'm not quite up to human-Wikipedia skills yet, but I know a fair amount of bands and songs. And I like to make people happy. So go ahead and try me (if you want definite results, it's best to stick to Neil Young, the Beatles and Weezer).
Well, I think that's all for now, but I'll be happy to answer more questions in the future. Feel free to contact me through this blog if you have any other questions about the wide world of Busking.
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