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"The Latex Cafe"
» Listen to the Audio Story
It is Wednesday May 16th, at approximately 8:50 am, and I am awaiting the final boarding call at Toronto's Pearson
International Airport. As I am on my way to Calgary, Alberta to be in a wedding party for my friend Tomko Lamb and his wife
to be Laura.
I am not a fan of sitting and waiting on planes so I try to be one of the last to board, and to pass the time I often have my
yo-yo. This specific time was no exception. Finally, I boarded and got settled in. I pulled my seatbelt tight, stowed my
carry-on bag and put on my headphones to relax and possibly get some sleep before I arrived. Then about a half an hour through
the in flight movie (which by the way I had already seen), a man approached me from the front of the plane and knelt down
beside my seat. He mentions that he was
He continued by saying "the reason for the questions is that I work for the CBC. I do a show called The Vinyl Cafe."
Instantly, I recognized the show and tried to spit out his name. "Stuart...(long pause)", I said slightly embarrassed. "Stuart
McLean" he replied, and shook my hand. Still crouched in the isle of the plane, he looked into the thin air, and said, "I will
be right back." He quickly returned from where he came and I put back on my headphones. Less than a minute later, he returned
once again with his laptop computer, and sat in the empty seat beside me. He asked me a few more question and told me that he
had just spoken to his producer and they wanted me to meet them in Banff and perform live for the taping of the Vinyl Cafe.
Not for a second did I think about it.
How cool is this, I though to myself, last month performing on stage with Matchbox Twenty, and this month The Vinyl Cafe with
Stuart McLean.
The next morning Stuart called me on my cell phone and gave me the run down. So I rented a car and drove up the Trans-Canada
Highway towards Banff. When I arrived at the Eric Harvey Theatre at the Banff Centre for the Performing Arts, I really didn't
know what to expect. So I waited for someone to take me in for the afternoon rehearsal. The stage was set and everyone went
through their parts while the guys in the truck were checking all the mics for quality sound. I kept forgetting that even
though the show was being taped in front of a live audience, really it was a show for the radio. So as I was going through my
yo-yo routine Stuart had to keep mentioning that I must explain what I was doing, not just do it. I had never had to really
explain yo-yo tricks before because it traditionally is a visual tool. This was the hardest thing, as I wasn't really nervous
to perform, but I didn't want to sound like a complete idiot on national radio. So I just stepped up to the mic and rambled.
Both Stuart and the producer David said that it sounded ok, so this put me at ease. That night, I changed back into the red
t-shirt, which had initially caught their eye the day before at the airport, I put a brand new string on my yo-yo and started
warming up back stage. When the show started the crowd erupted in applause for Stuart, and I waited in the wings for my cue.
Stuart started recapping the events leading up to our meeting in a story format, and made the crowd laugh and cheer. Then when
he introduced me, I walked on stage doing loops with my yo-yo and the crowd went wild. I think that they only assumed he was
telling another story, and the fact that Stuart actually got me to come to Banff impressed them the most.
So, there I was standing along side Stuart McLean on his show in front of a thousand people cheering me on. It was amazing! I
demonstrated the first five tricks from the yo-yo trick book and then I needed to perform a trick called the creeper, which
was the premise for Stuart's story. Needless to say I eventually made it and the sold out attendance clapped and cheered again
as Stuart thanked me and shook my hand before I left the stage. Stuart continued by telling everyone about The Silly People
and where we were going to be this summer.
I wish I could have stayed to see the remainder of the show and properly thank Stuart and David once again but I had an
obligation back in Calgary. Tomko's stag party had already been underway and since I flew four hours to be in his wedding
party I felt guilty for not being there for him. So I jumped back into the rental car and went flying back down the
Trans-Canada Highway. Although the route back was the same, instead of thinking of what was to come once I hit Banff, now all
I could think about was what a cool story I have to tell everyone.
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