A simple story is sometimes the best pain relief for anyone who suddenly gets a “bomb” dropped on them. A story that will show that you have gone through the same experience, and you were able to just put it aside and try again.
What I’m talking about happened at the Dilworth Loco Daze Karaoke contest. By the way, this contest had a category for kids under 16 which you don’t see very often because most of these are in a bar type setting. I got there a little late but as usual a nice crowd had gathered underneath the big top circus tent to hear the competition.
Solo acts, duets, trios, quartets, they all hopped on stage to do their best in front of a very appreciative crowd. The contest was finished at 5 pm and the judges then tallied up the scores. 16 and under was the first to be awarded. This young girl waited with great anticipation. 3rd place….not her…2nd place…not her and the winner is….not her. The tears began to flow. She had tried so hard and felt so positive about her performance. Well, it was time for me to step in and try to put a little spin on this heartbreaking loss.
I caught up to her and a couple of her friends and told them about the time I lost a karaoke contest. My vocal partner and I practiced our song for a couple of weeks. We had props and we dressed the part and when we finished our duet the crowd broke into a huge round of applause. We not only sang but we got the folks laughing as well. When we were done, people patted us on the back telling us “great job.”
After the competition, we all waited to find out who the winner was and you know what? We got beat! Beat by two guys who came sliding out in their socks and underwear doing a Bob Seger song from the movie “Risky Business.”
“In their underwear?” she asked me.
Her frown immediately turned into a smile.
“And that’s all they had on?”
“Well they had shirts and socks on too.” She started to giggle! The whole group of girls started to giggle. So I guess the moral of the story is: You did your best. And sometimes the judges can be swayed by the smallest part of a performance. You’ll get them next time.
With that, the youngsters skipped away and headed for more fun and games.
Now will I ever enter another karaoke contest in the future? Maybe, but no matter how bad I wanted to win, I can guarantee you that I’ll perform in more than just my underwear.