So What Now?

This week, there should have been three new shows for me to reminisce about.

Art Garfunkel was supposed to kick it all off on March 14 at the Bilheimer Capitol. The day after, Simple Plan should have been rocking EPCOT for the fourth March in a row. And Thursday night, Graham Nash was scheduled to tell stories and perform deep cuts and hits, also at the Bilheimer Capitol. But thanks to you-know-what, everybody either cancelled or postponed. Nash has already rescheduled to November 10. Garfunkel hasn’t yet, and Simple Plan will probably be back to EPCOT next year, or maybe for the Food and Wine Festival later this year. Who knows?

The next few months are going to cause so much demolition to the concert industry, both economically and in terms of timing. Babysitters are having to cancel, there are parking passes are now invalid, and of course, you have to cancel hotels and flights by sitting on hold for hours at a time. It’s not just a few shows, either: The New Orleans Jazz And Heritage Festival was postponed to a later date. Freakin’ Jazz Fest! Thousands of roadies, drivers, cleaning crews, light and sound people, and stage managers are going to temporarily be out of a job. Just imagine what people who work for The Rolling Stones are feeling right now. They had a massive US summer tour ahead of them, (with a stop in Tampa) and the whole thing has already been postponed to a later time.

It won’t be easy on the artists, either. David Crosby has said that he may lose his house, should he lose his live shows. A ton of artists live out of a suitcase these days, and it’s a key way that they keep the lights on and keep food going into their family’s fridges. It’s tough to get paid for touring your fame around when you can hardly set foot outside your own neighborhood, you know? Though it’s hard for the journalists, too. The concert halls and hockey arenas are barren, and it’s going to stay that way for a few months at least. Obviously, we all know that once this pandemic calms down a great deal, we’ll be back stronger and better rested than ever to experience new shows, new music, and new life.

But in the meantime, what do we do?

Well, I mentioned “new life” for a reason. Think of this quarantine as an opportunity to improve upon whatever you currently do. If you’re a writer, go back to a middle school state of mind and learn some new vocabulary, or check out other writing styles you’re not familiar with. If you’re a chef or cook, make something new, or try to make a home-sized version of what you have to whip together at work, just to keep the mind sharp for when you get back to work.

Don’t only let the new things be related to your current occupation, either. There are a billion and one things you could be doing besides your current occupation. Perfect example. My mom, who has been working for a doctor’s office for just over ten years now, recently became a sales rep for Touchstone Crystal Jewelry on the side. She’s made quite a bit of money, and also gets all sorts of complimentary bracelets and necklaces for her exceptional work. So there’s no way that your only interest is your occupation and nothing else. Everyone has interests. If you’re a car salesman who is passionate about football, dig deeper into football history during this time. Perhaps a player you don’t know much about, or a historic Super Bowl that came before your time.

That’s a big reason I began to write about music. My income comes from being a sous pastry chef, but I needed something that kept my undying love of music in the rotation. I’m not really that stellar of a musician, nor do I know nearly enough about technology to become a sound engineer or anything. But I’ve loved writing from the very beginning. So I chose that.

Just keep all that in mind during this stressful time in our world. Be open to new ideas, and remember: No matter how professional or experienced you may be, there’s never need for an excuse as to why you should better yourself.