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A few Years ago when I sported a manly beard

     Well,  I have been pursuaded to continue the Adventures blog sight.  I suppose it is appropriate since I am once again playing my pipes to provide a meager income.  I have decided to chronicle some of the more interesting events that happen while I ply my trade.
     Ah the end of another holiday season.  I must admit, this has been the most enjoyable Christmas season in memory.  The weather remained at a balmy 45 degrees for the most part and there were tons of people crowding around temple square.  There are so many great memories, for example:  The time was around 7:00 and a cute little family came by to listen to the pipes.  As I played an adorable little girl, probably around 3 years old, came walking up and put a dollar into my bear's basket.  She then promptly started taking money out and sauntered off as if this was how things are always done.  I had to stop piping, it made me laugh so hard.

Later that same year, playing my Naills (Bagpipes)  They took a beating
 and had to be sent back to Scotland to be refurbished.
Since then I have purchased a much cheaper set that
 I play downtown and Llieam (my bagpipes)
 are now resting in my home office, enjoying a well deserved retirement. 

     This is actually the second time this has happened.  I find it so amusing to watch the little toddlers.  One little fellow stood next to Angus (Angus is the stuffed Gorilla I use to collect tips) with a perplexed look on his face.  He looked at the pink basket held by Angus and then at his parents, who were offering encouragement to the young man.  "Come on, just drop it in the basket", they called.  The boy defiantly shook his head.  Finally, the father came over and tried to help the lad.  It became apparent that the problem was not a lack of knowledge about how to do such things.  He simply had other things he thought should be done with that dollar, like buying him a treat.
     The Father began to shake the tiny hand holding the dollar bill and reluctantly, the boy released his deathlike grip and let the bill float into the waiting pink basket.  With a look of complete disgust, they boy walked off while his father simply shrugged his shoulders and smiled.  I totally understood the look, having had five children myself.  I smiled and thanked him and continued playing my pipes with yet another amusing tale tucked away in the recesses of my memory.
     My favorite memory from this past Christmas was when an elderly woman came walking up and requested a tune.  She asked to hear the Sky Boat Song.  She was from Scotland and loved the pipes.  She talked about her time there and we shared experiences from when I was able to visit the motherland some three years ago.  I even got a compliment on my adopted Scottish accent.  I told her that I had learned it from a friend of mine in Glasgow and she indicated that she could tell it was from Glasgow, (Still not sure what that meant.)  She was in her eighties and still as spry and quick as could be.
     I am always amazed at the number of people taking my picture while I pipe.  I am sure they will look at the photo and say to themselves, "Now who was that guy in a skirt again?"
     Well, that's a good start to some of my experiences and I will be updating this as the days and months go by.  Oh, one last memory to share.  I was playing away and noticed a younger man approaching.  He wore military casual dress and walked up and said,
     "Can you play (can't remember what now) but I agreed and also played my military tribute set, which consists of The Marines hymn, The Army tune (Not sure the real name of it) and ending with America The Beautiful.  As I played the tunes I looked at the young man out of the corner of my eye.  He stood erect as if at attention and had a misty glaze to his eye.  It somehow touched me deeply.  I suddenly felt a surge of respect and love for this young man, willing to lay aside his own desires to serve his country.
     As I ended the set there was a moment of silence, as there always is with this set and then he gave me a nod of his head.  Those out there who know me, know that I am a very emotional person.  I reached out and gave the young man a hug and thanked him for his service.  I am sure it took him by surprise and probably was a bit over bearing on my part but I felt a deep sense of gratitude and it was an honor to play for this modern day warrior.  These are the moments I truly cherish as I play the pipes downtown.  I feel truly blessed to be able to hoist the drones to my shoulder and will ever be thankful for the many years I struggled trying to gain some sense of mastery over this daunting instrument.  I'm no where near being the best piper around, some might even say that I'm far from being mediocre, but regardless, I play on, resolute in my right to share my ancestry.  Scots wa hay!