A new record

 131st day sober. I was up at a quarter to 3, washed hair and shaved, enough of my freshly washed clothes were dry to have a set to change into, polished shoes, etc. and was headed downtown at about 10 after 4. 

First stop was the bank, naturally, and this is one of those weeks where my balance matches my calculations exactly. Next I went to Dai Thanh for a few things and then Da Kao for a cup of chow mein that had pork and a bunch of goodies in it. I went over to the little park and the guys I'd talked with so much the time before were there, but besides saying Hi I didn't bother them and they were busy talking about stuff on their own. I just wanted a peaceful place to eat my noodles. 

I swung by the Amazon place and got a few bubble mailers and my Blessing 5C mouthpiece which is close as I think I'd want to come to a "cheater" to make high notes easier. I'd practiced last night and I think the feel of the free buzzing is helping me a lot because it seems I carry over a little of that feel to my playing. 

I rode over to Whole Foods and got a little bottle of coffee and drank that and read the Metro and got ready for my playing tonight. It was a quarter after 6 when I started in. "I'll play until a quarter after 8" I thought to myself. The playing went pretty well in that the higher notes gave me less trouble than they've been, and while I'm not sure how successful I was, I tried to sound as good as possible as I played. A skinny black guy tipped me $5 to watch his bike, which I did, and after he'd done his shopping and collected his bike and rode off there was another guy futzing around with his bike, and a drab-looking lady had dropped a tip, just dashed by, and I looked in the box expecting it to be another $1 but it was a $100. 

I took it out and wondered at it then put it in my wallet and the guy futzing with his bike and I got talking. He was homeless and living in the crash zone by Hedding and Spring Street, and since they want them to move out they've shut off their electricity and water. I said if he has any interesting in learning an instrument I have a few different ones and could give him one, but he said he's just not talented that way. But I think I gave him some ideas about starting up something detailing cars or something. And he said Safeway hires felons and he's got a friend who might get him in. (This does not surprise me about Safeway by the way.)

Besides the $100 I had made $30 or so, so I thought, I wonder how well the tips will go besides this one stray data point? So I played on and a guy came up and said he'd come over just to hear me and Sorry he didn't have anything to give; he'd just gotten out of the "joint" etc. and then he wanted me to play the riff from "Sunshine Of Your Love" by Cream, which I could do, then he said we'll play a duet of some sort, I guess he'd sing? He had my time all planned out. So I pulled out my flip phone and looked at the time and said, "Oh wow, it's my break time.. yeah I always take a break at the top of the hour...." and packed up, grabbed a cart, and went into Whole Foods and bought the vitamins and nuts I'd been planning to buy anyway, and even ended up in a super-slow line to pay, so by the time I got back out there he was long gone. 

So I played until 8:30, and as always it felt slow, but I was out there for the practice and to build my stamina etc. so I just kept on, and finally it was time to go, I played the "Goodnight" song and packed up. I had made $179.06. This is a new record for a session for me, although I'm not sure if I beat my 1-hour record of $132 or so, that I set the first time I played at Whole Foods. 

I rode through San Pedro Square on my way home and man, was it dead. Long ago, Paseo de San Antonio used to be one of "the" busking spots along with San Pedro Square. The Paseo's dead now with all the businesses closed and the theater all walled off, and now for some reason San Pedro Square has died. There were *some* people eating outdoors, in ribboned-off enclosures, but not the kind of foot traffic that makes busking possible.  Leroy's not even playing there any more. He might be going up to San Francisco because he's mentioned doing that before, and I've heard it's hopping up there. 

I think the reason "my" spot there at Whole Foods isn't being mobbed is that during the day there's almost always a booth there with some scam like Save The Children, plus it's actually a rather exposed place. There's sun and wind, and most buskers want to be sheltered from those. But I guess having grown up in Hawaii, I was always used to the trade winds so I don't find a little wind to be too bothersome, unless it's cold and then it's just a matter of dressing warmer. Plus it takes more than a little wind to "blow away" the sound of a trumpet.