'Tis the season!
Let's spread some cheer ...
Where did the time go? It’s (almost) December. We have a lot of fun stuff on the horizon, so let’s get to it!
Tuesday, November 29, 7 p.m. Holiday Jam at Pelagic, 300 Pace Street, Raleigh. Indoors. It’ll be a great warmup for the dates to come. The songs should be in a Dropbox folder. We’ll jump around the list. Remember, the rules don’t apply at Pelagic!
Thursday, December 1, 7 p.m. Christmas/Holiday Recording Session for TLC Centers, Church of the Nativity, 8849 Ray Road, Raleigh. *Please dress in festive attire and, if you have them, bring a tabletop decoration or a garland or something fun to add extra spirit to our setting!* Since we don’t have access to all the centers for an in-person play, once again we’ll record our set, post it to YouTube, and share it with the centers and anyone else who drops by our social media outlets. We’ll work from the “Christmas Playlist 2021.2” file from the Dropbox folder. Since it’s on video, if we make any major mistakes or want to rearrange the order, the Magic of Video Editing© is our friend. Let me know if you have any questions!
Saturday, December 10, 4-6 p.m., Holiday Songs at the Food Hall! Old North State Food Hall, I-95 and U.S. 70, Selma. It’s a joint venture led by the NC Ukulele Collective (our Whirligig Festival pals). We’re probably playing in the pub. Arrive around 4, figure out where we’re playing, set up, and we’ll start around 4:30. After it’s over, we’ll get free (and delicious) food! We’re cheap dates! The songs are in a Dropbox folder, “NCUC 2022 Christmas” and we’ll have a playlist before the event. The only new song for us is “Dominick the Donkey,” and the Fayetteville Ukulele Club recorded it here, so you can rehearse at home based on the video (we also may run through it off-camera on the 1st). After dinner, go shopping at the outlet mall!
Monday, December 12, 10:30 a.m., Holiday Songs at TLC Bond Park, 110 Maury O’Dell, Cary. We have permission to play indoors at the Bond Park Total Life Center. We’ll work from the standard playlist. Maybe we’ll mix it up just a bit to add some variety. Or stick with the classics!
Thursday, December 15, 7 p.m., Final ‘Normal’ Jam of 2022, Church of the Nativity, 8849 Ray Road, Raleigh. Seasonal songs, other songs, a kazoo chorus, who knows? It’ll be a fun time for all. Suggestion: Why don’t we try “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?” I’ll find a chord sheet.
Monday, December 19, 2-4 p.m., Songs of the Season at Woodland Terrace, 300 Kildaire Woods Drive, Cary. We’re playing two sets: From 2-3 at the memory care center and 304 at the independent living area (where we played before, I believe). Arrive early to park and to check the locations on the property. We’ll have these numbers memorized by the end of the day, and …
Tuesday, December 20, 2 p.m. Songs of the Season at Waltonwood Lake Boone, 3550 Horton Street, Raleigh (inside the I-440 beltline near Rex Hospital). We’ll share the spirit at a new (for us) assisted living facility. Bring your holiday best!
Tuesday, December 27, 7 p.m. Pelagic Jam, 300 Pace Street, Raleigh. Besides “Auld Lang Syne” and “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?”, we could attempt other tangentially appropriate songs. Or just drink beer. It’s all good in the ‘hood at Pelagic.
Thursday, December 29, 7 p.m. Open Mic at the Church, 8849 Ray Road, Raleigh. Our final FINAL scheduled gathering of the year. Bring a song or two. Because the September Open Mic was so successful, I’ll set up a sign-in sheet. Let’s make sure everyone gets an opportunity to play one song before we give folks a chance to do a second or third number. We can discuss refreshments beforehand.
If I missed anything, let me know …
We really found a different gear in 2022. Thank you, everyone, for making it such a blast. There’s quite a bit in store for 2023, including, of course, our 10th Anniversary in October. I hope we can spread things out so the events aren’t packed so tightly. As always, come when you can, share our wonderful Raleigh Uke Jam community, and keep on strumming!
Grateful Rick