Ask a simple question...

[dianec42]

So at the party Friday night, one of the random hotel guys asked if this was the only gig the band plays. I said yes, this is the only thing we do together... some of the guys have other things they do, but this is the only thing we do as a group.

So I started thinking... right now, this is the only thing I'm doing. Which is ridiculous, once I start thinking about it. It's an insane amount of effort and stress, for the meager output of 1 hour of live music per year.

So... I don't know what I want to do, other than that I want to do SOMETHING. I want to play with other people, maybe even in front of other people, more often. I want to visit my musical Happy Place more than once annually.

Hence the social engineering question. If you found yourself in a strange place, knowing almost nobody, and wanted to play rock or blues music with like-minded people, where would you start looking for them?

I'm repeating the question 'cause I *know* I must know SOMEBODY who's better at meeting people than I am, besides just gvdub (who has made a number of helpful suggestions).

Comments

[dieppe.livejournal.com]

Well I wouldn't know about the rock and blues aspect, but from a social engineering aspect I've been happy with the local SCA group thus far. Lots of nice people, and I've gotten together with a few of them to jam. Well, I play accordion and other play guitar, cello, flute, and other things as well. (A large number of the local folks play instruments or sing. The local "baron" is a bard, and sings and plays guitar and other instruments as well.)


I guess if playing the bass or WoW is the only thing ya do... then I got nothin'. :) Well you go to cons, right? What about doing a gig at one?

[dianec42.livejournal.com]

I have been known to play in the SCA in the past, in Boston and again in Scotland.

However, for some reason, here in LA I find myself inordinately terrified of the locals. Which is ridiculous, if you and usqueba are at all typical, because you two are perfectly nice.

It is certainly true that getting back into the SCA would be a good way to meet people, and participate a bit more in this "life" thing I've heard so much about. I must ponder that some more.

[dieppe.livejournal.com]

Yeah I know we've had this conversation before. Terrified of the local SCA folks? So far 75% of the people I've met seem to be nice people. The others that I wouldn't necessarily want to be close friends with tend to be of the "okay but a little odd" kind of folks. Hell, in a few months they might be saying that about me anyway! But because most events are public it's not like you have to worry about them hanging out at your house and never leaving!

Also, the archers tend to be pretty friendly and that's mostly who we hang out with. I'm planning on going to archery early tonight (hope to be there by 6pm) and I'm taking my accordion and another archer will be there with his guitar. It might get chilly but I hope not. (It's at Rancho Park at Motor and Pico.)

Of course I have to say I'd be terrified to jam with you, since I'm pretty amateur player and just starting to play with others. From what I've read you're an expert of some sort and actually PLAY in front of people! Oy!

The SCA encourages active participation and of course performance arts. I still get a little queasy thinking of performing in front of more than single digits of groups of people who don't also have instruments in their hands. *shiver*

[dianec42.livejournal.com]

Of course I have to say I'd be terrified to jam with you, since I'm pretty amateur player and just starting to play with others. From what I've read you're an expert of some sort and actually PLAY in front of people! Oy!

Hee hee! You just made my day. (-:

Ahh, perspective...

*wanders off to peruse SCA web pages & find out what the local activities are*

[dieppe.livejournal.com]

Well... You know there are people out there with an axe to grind with just about any group and sadly I know people who HATE the SCA because they had a bad experience with one or two people in some group in some kingdom somewhere so they have nothing but bad things to say. I'm of the theory that any group is what you make of it, and at the very least this introvert has seemed to have made friends with some decent people.

So until they kick me out (which could come any day now I'm sure since some of them know my LJ account heh) I'm at least enjoying having a nice group of people to hang out with.

The most consistent local activities are Tue/Thursday nights from 7-9 archery at Rancho Park archery range at Pico/Motor. (Might be close for you.) But if you're not into bows & arrows. Well, some people do clothing things or embroidery. The music thing, there's people who sing and usually monthly there's a bardic thing. http://www.lyondemere.org is one of the local baronies for you. The Barony of Angels might be close for you too.
(http://www.sca-caid.org is a good place to look as well.)

Not really anything major going on until 12th Knight down in Orange County on January 6th though. (Well, except archery practice. Also we usually go out and grab a bite to eat afterwards. So it's like music before, shooting in the middle, and food afterwards. :)

[dianec42.livejournal.com]

Yeah I know we've had this conversation before. Terrified of the local SCA folks? ...

I tend to be terrified of folks in general, as a rule. Local SCA is worse because (a) the SCA was invented here, so I'm afraid of "doing it wrong"; also I've just come from a place (Scotland) that has Actual History, SCA events in real castles etc, so I'm afraid I'll be disappointed with events here. However, that doesn't begin to cover the extent of my avoidance.

It turns out I've been having (um) social issues lately. For embarrassingly large values of "lately". I'll post more about these once I actually discuss them with my husband.

[dieppe.livejournal.com]

Oh.. nonono... the SCA was invented in the West Kingdom, or the Mists? Or something up north like San Francisco area. A far of the original people are still up there, back when they used carpet armor and garbage can lid shields. (They don't now days.) Consider that I knew nothing coming in my fear of "doing it wrong" has got to be greater than yours by a little bit! :) usqueba has been kind enough to make me two T-tunics, which I wear with my less than period foot wear (sandals with hidden velcro) which nobody says anything about.

If you played in Scotland, hellsbells, you've GOT to have quite a few legs up on me as far as clothing goes! Sure there are people in the Greater Los Angeles Area who are professional costumers and who have very nice clothes, but...

But... I suspect it's not just about the clothes, huh? Camping events are camping events no matter where ya go, I suspect.. even if you hasn't a castle in the background.

So.... good luck with your, uhm, social issues. Are you going to the New Years Day party in the Valley by any chance?

Hey, did you see the SCA table at LosCon? Hey, were you even at LosCon? I don't think I saw ya there anywhere.

[dianec42.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I've got some clothes. Most of my good ones are from my Boston days, when I had housemates with mad sewing skillz. Most of the ones from Scotland, I'd probably cook to death in here. At least the weather is nicer here for camping events!

Not sure if we'll be at the New Year's gaming party this time. It's a hell of a drive, and the husband didn't have a brilliant time last year. I am now considering going without him. :-P

We didn't make it to LosCon at all. We were pre-registered and everything, but we were both a bit sick and had had too much turkey, so lameness won. (I am starting to think I might be living with a hermit enabler. I wonder if he's reading these comments?)

[dieppe.livejournal.com]

Unless there's something stellar happening that night, I suspect we're going to be going. If you want a ride up we'd be happy to carpool (pending usqueba approval of course). I had the most fun, personally, when we did the more adults playing the smaller games aspect.

This year I'd like to get there early, bring a few games I never get a chance to play because we don't have enough smart people to play with (like Munchkin), and just have a good time.

Is WoW a hermit enabler? ;)

[dianec42.livejournal.com]

Hmm, you're talking me into this party thing. I'll have a word with The Man and see if he wants to go / minds if I go without him / whatever. (-:

Is WoW a hermit enabler? ;)

OMG yes. It sucks away hours of your time, you feel like you're actually accomplishing something, and you can pretend you're hanging out with real people. It's like all the TV series you've ever been hooked on, times about a bajillion.

[dianec42.livejournal.com]

Is WoW a hermit enabler? ;)

For the record, I was actually talking about my husband. Stupid short attention span!

[dieppe.livejournal.com]

Well, SilkRoadOnline is a hermit enabler too and being free makes it even more appealing.

And tisk, here I am telling you about the SCA. I suspect you probably could tell me more about the SCA than I've ever learned.

So get the husband outta the house sometime! :)

[dianec42.livejournal.com]

Well, the local SCA that I know nothing about. So you've been providing some extremely useful information for this socially inept introvert.

Also, apparently I've been using the husband as Yet Another Excuse to hide in the house and not do anything. I raised the topics of general socialness, and the New Year's party, last night, and he was quite enthused about both. Oops.

(It turns out, by the way, that I've been in somewhat of a snit for a while and have been refusing to participate in this whole LA thing. Which pretty much amounts to not participating in life, except on the extremely rare occasions when life has grabbed me and dragged me along in spite of myself. D'oh. Gonna see what I can do about that one now.)

[dieppe.livejournal.com]

Well, introverts need to stick together, right? It is much nicer going to a new thing with new people you've never met if you know at least one (or two) people there! That's all I'm saying.

And using the husband as YAE? We'll be going to the NYE thing if we're not out of town so... maybe we'll see you both there? :)

And the whole LA thing? Which part would that be?

[dianec42.livejournal.com]

"The whole LA thing" is basically some internal BS I have about not wanting to be here.

I was going to say it's a long story and probably worthy of its own post; but it's BS and it's really not worth even having in my head any more, much less immortalizing in LJ.

I can tell you all about it in person if you're still interested, the next time I run into you. (It really does require hand-waving and ironic expressions. If I wrote it in LJ, god help me, someone might actually take it seriously.)