Seven System stole the show

I went to hear some friends known as Seven System tonight and I was in for a treat. First of all, there was another group that brought in a good crowd for a Wednesday night the week before Christmas. After the first group got through with their set, they debuted a music video of the group to follow Seven System. (I will keep the band nameless because I am about to tell about how Seven System stole the show) After the music video, Seven System ROCKED THE HOUSE. It was awesome. Hardly anybody in the room had heard of them since they just moved here from California and this was their first night playing in Nashville. Ten seconds into the first song they had everybody's heads bobbin'.

Matt, the lead singer, encouraged us to stand so up I stood. The only problem is, well there were two problems. First, no one else in my section decided to stand. So now I'm standing all by myself feeling very self conscious. The second problem is, I don't have any moves, aka skillz, aka rhythm. So, I sat my white self back down and continued to bob my head. I wanted to do more but I just don't have anything to give. I tapped my foot until my shin got sore. Does that count? Anyways, it was a good night. After Seven System finished, most of the crowd left! It was neat to see them gain a quick audience. I felt bad for the next group for a few minutes but got over it pretty quick. It wasn't my fault.

The Homeless Guy and Beer

I was in downtown Nashville tonight to hear some friends play (see earlier post) when a homeless guy comes up and says he's starving and asks for some money. I told him I'd be glad to walk with him and buy him something to eat. He said that was great and told me there was a Taco Bell down the street. About five steps later he gets honest with me and says, "Honestly, what I really wanted was to go and buy beer with the money. Thanks anyway." Sad. I used to run into this all the time in New Orleans but I hardly ever get into the city where I get a chance to talk to people on the street. It never ceases to amaze me how many people tell me they're hungry but when you don't give them money and actually offer to bring them food they get upset. Even better is when I go down the street, buy them some food and bring it back to them. That really makes some people mad. Then there's people I know like Harold (homeless guy in New Orleans that I'll probably never see again this side of eternity now) who always thanked me graciously. I finally got smart in New Orleans and kept gift certificates to McDonald's in my glove compartment. That way, even if they weren't hungry they could buy something later and the worst thing they could get with a gift certificate was an ice cream sundae. I wish I had more encounters like the one tonight. I wish I had more encounters with people who really needed help. I think I'm going to go hang out in Nashville more often.

Birthday Bags

Last night, some of the folks from our community group went to Grace Works to help with their food distribution. They receive donations this time of year and they need to sort them by food type (i.e. green beans with green beans, soups with soups, etc.). One of the interesting things was that they had recently received a large number of birthday bags with everything included in them to throw a birthday party for a child. Wow. Talk about hitting home. One of the other guys was really moved at the thought of someone not being able to throw their child a birthday party. It is always interesting to me what moves different people. I have worked in food places like this (Nashville Rescue Mission, Second Harvest, Feed the Children) in the past and what seems to get me the most is that what many would consider just a can of beans, some consider a precious resource. It makes you think twice before you waste food at the house.