[Dixielandjazz] Talking to fans

[Elazar Brandt]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: LARRY'S Signs and Large Format Printing [mailto:sign.guy at charter.net]
> Sent: Sunday, December 19, 2004 8:29 PM
> To: jazzmin at actcom.net.il; dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com
> Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Talking to fans
>
>
> Unfortunately here they arrest street musicians.


Larry,

Where is "here"? I've heard of licensing them, which may be almost as bad, but
arresting? Who does that?

Then again, there was the time I was going to visit Jordan with my parents for 3
days, and I considered taking my banjo, which I usually manage to find some
situation to play it in. But a few days before our trip, the Mossad tried to
assassinate a Hamas leader in Amman by posing as street performers, only the
operation didn't work, and they got caught. So upon second thought, I, probably
wisely, decided, "I think I'll leave the banjo at home this time."

Or once I was visiting Hebron, a rather volatile but important historical and
religious site where among other things, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are said to be
buried, and David began his tenure as King of Israel. There is a tiny Jewish
community there, surrounded by billions of Arabs. My friends and I were walking
from one historic site to another, up a rather steep hill, when we passed some
Arab kids coming home from school. I pulled out my balloons and started
inflating (we don't "blow up" things in Israel) some to give the kids. But most
of the kids wouldn't take them, so I ended up trying to handle 2 or 3 inflated
round balloons and it was quite windy. The wind caught one balloon, swept it out
of my hand, and directly underneath the car of an Arab fellow driving down the
hill. The balloon popped under his engine, and he jammed on the brakes, causing
the car to skid down the hill, making a loud screeching noise. An Israeli
soldier at the bottom of the hill, maybe 100 feet away, jumps to his feet and
cocks his Uzi, pointing it in our direction. I quickly put my hands up in the
air, with the balloons, so he and the driver could see what popped, and I smiled
and said nice and loud, "Uh, I think I'll put the balloons away now."

So I suppose there are some conditions that can get a little hairy. Who ever
thought playing the banjo or giving balloons to kids would become hazardous
duty?

Musical reference: "I'm the Sheik of Araby"

Elazar
Assault Banjoist
Doctor Jazz Band
Jerusalem, Israel
<www.israel.net/ministry-of-jazz>
Tel: +972-2-679-2537