Turned down a gig for tomorrow night...

[Roger Rettig]

That's a thought-provoking post, Bill. Happiness, I guess, is often to be found where you might least expect it.

I'm encouraged by your words.

[b0b]

Thanks for that long, insightful post, Bill McCloskey. Food for thought.

[Bryan Staddon]

My Pink Floyd tribute band,The Floyd Concept got a gig at the Transit Drive In In Lockport NY in July. Back in Feb we were booked till Halloween! All gone now! The drive in is doing a whole summer of concerts with a Movie after. Of course we will be followed by The Wall film. I think it’s gonna be a blast. Anyway I’m not going anywhere except the Van and the stage. Unless they got Milk Duds at the snack bar! Stay safe,Stay alive!
“No more turning away “
P.s. Bill, I loved your positive post, thanks for some optimism and thoughtfulness. It give me hope!

[K Maul]

It looks like drive-ins will make a comeback! Too bad they tore so many down to put up storage units and condos!

[Jim Fogarty]

It looks like drive-ins will make a comeback! Too bad they tore so many down to put up storage units and condos!

I talked to a friend who's one of the biggest concert promoters here in the Philly area, and he's finding it impossible to find drive-ins.....even closed ones.....willing to rent their space. And when they do, neighbors are putting up a stink about having concerts there.

Some of the places where it's working out already have large, open parking lots or some other kind of space they can use.

[Tony Prior]

while I certainly agree wholeheartedly with Bills comments and others, as I am also retired. The bigger picture is millions upon millions of artists, performers and musicians are NOT retired and not even close to retirement age. In a year the risk is there will be no more Performing Arts if we can't find a way for the next generations to perform. Retirement aged geezers like us is one thing, we've been there done that, we can decide to hang it up. But we are not the future. Its entirely possibly that in some area's, we hang it up , move to the mountains and it all comes to an abrupt halt. Who replaces us at the Dance Halls in a year ? We are on the verge of not being replaced without a crisis.

I have no words for watching the Downtown Charlotte Performing Arts Centers , 5 Stage Theaters with shows 3 or 4 times each week, come to a complete STOP. All shows cancelled for the remainder of this year. Bye Bye Miss American Pie is reality now. And not just for Charlotte. There is no recovery from this.

I'm not arguing being safe etc, so please don't assume I am . Many of our so called health experts are changing and adding positions weekly now. Politicians are making decisions now based on what ?

A week back I went to the hardware store, they wouldn't let me in without a mask, they offered to sell me one for $2. The mask was more expensive than the 4 screws I needed. I declined and went to Lowes.

We can now legally get a haircut with no distancing and no mask, but we can't sit and drink a beer or eat a burger, at a table inside, by ourselves, thats against the law.

[Bill McCloskey]

If at this point you are not wearing a mask when you go out...well you are part of the problem. Around here everyone wears a mask when the go out, particularly at Lowes. And our numbers are going down. i always keep a mask in the car. Countries where everyone wears a mask, no exceptions and no excuses are fairing infinitely better than the US.

[Tony Prior]

If at this point you are not wearing a mask when you go out...well you are part of the problem. .

Really Bill, part of the problem ? If you are not cleaning or replacing a mask after each use you are creating an entirely new problem, a cesspool of germs. You make many valid points but this is not one of them, you lose me on this one. An N95 is 3 Micron, a Bandana is NO micron, nobody even knows what Micron Level Covid is. Its a guess.

Surgical N95 respirators, now often called masks, are designed to reduce but cannot eliminate the wearer’s exposure to airborne biological contaminants. They do not eliminate the risk of illness, disease, or death.

https://ohsonline.com/articles/2014/05/ ... atory.aspx


tp

[K Maul]

Bill, masks limit YOUR field of spraying droplets when you breathe and talk, not just cough or sneeze. That makes enclosed public space more safe. When I wear a mask it’s not for me, but for YOU. Why don’t people get this?

[Bill McCloskey]

And Tony, you lose me when you refuse to wear a mask. Doctors and nurses need to replace their masks due to the shear concentration of contamination they deal with on a daily basis. And when ppe was short, they reused their masks, which better than not wearing a mask. I rarely go out and I have seen zero evidence that regular use of a mask creates any kind a germ problem. And i have seen a ton of evidence that populations who wear masks with no excuses and no exceptions have a much lower rate of infection, up to 90% lower. I will say the same to you. You’ve made a lot of good points, but this isn’t one of them. And deciding not to wear a mask because you are worried about germs in the mask is absurd.

[Len Amaral]

For quite some time I was looking for a group that would fit many components. Music that I liked, players in my age group, logistics for rehearsals were 15 minutes away on a Wednesday night 5:00pm-8:00pm. I was playing bass and was able to leave my equipment at rehearsal. The first 1/2 hour at rehearsal was wine and
pizza. Played one private party and had a few more on the books to play and then the virus hit.

After a meeting of the minds we decided to put everything on the back burner with the probability we would not regroup. That was my swan song for playing in a live situation. No regrets, I has a good long run.

[Tony Prior]

Ok Bill we can agree to disagree. I have no problem with anyone wearing masks, and I have no problem with those NOT wearing them.

[Bill McCloskey]

I have a huge problem with people not wearing them. Not wearing masks and not social distancing is one of the reasons North Carolina now has the 8th highest rate of infection in the country and rising. Science doesn't lie.

That said, this will be my last post in this thread.

[b0b]

I don't think that The Steel Guitar Forum is the right place for a discussion about the pros and cons of masks. We've all heard those talking points many times on other social media.

As for my dilemma this weekend - the band has agreed that another musician and I can make a limited appearance. We'll play one set and then leave. No need to hang out and socialize with strangers, eat, listen to the other band, etc.. This is satisfactory as far as I'm concerned.

[Barry Blackwood]

If you are not cleaning or replacing a mask after each use you are creating an entirely new problem, a cesspool of germs.

Yes, but by and large they're your germs....

[Brooks Montgomery]

In Idaho, we're back to closing bars. Huge spread re-boot due to sloppy bar protocols.

Be careful guys and gals.

[Tony Prior]

I don't think that The Steel Guitar Forum is the right place for a discussion about the pros and cons of masks. We've all heard those talking points many times on other social media.

As for my dilemma this weekend - the band has agreed that another musician and I can make a limited appearance. We'll play one set and then leave. No need to hang out and socialize with strangers, eat, listen to the other band, etc.. This is satisfactory as far as I'm concerned.

+1 .

[Dave Hopping]

b0b's right-The SGF does better when we focus on steel guitar and people who play it. It bears repeating, though, that society in general was badly stressed even before covid-19 caused government to push the panic button and lock everything down. Now the stress level is much higher and people are as likely to come down with zealotry as they are the coronavirus. We should expect zealots to pop up now and again, even in groups as enlightened as ourselves.

[K Maul]

Then this topic should not have been allowed to exist in the first place.
Definition of a zealot: one who, upon forgetting the original mission, redoubles their efforts.
Adios amigos.

[David Ball]

Seems to me that the SGF exists as a place to bring people together with a shared love of the steel guitar. Bravo! There are a million places to go on the Internet to widen the ever growing political/social divide we have these days.

I have friends with whom I disagree politically and/or socially, but we steer clear of the topics we disagree on and we get along great.

Yep, this is a place for sharing our common interest and not a good place for drifting off into subjects which are likely to provoke. I'd say if we can keep our disagreements to mean vs. just intonation, we'll probably be fine.

[b0b]

It turns out that I wasn't the only one who was concerned.
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BTW, Court 'N Disaster is a band of lawyers and judges.

[Jim Fogarty]

BTW, Court 'N Disaster is a band of lawyers and judges.