Jake!

I'm trying to get Sera to snuggle next to me so that the Hubster can do his homework. Sera is one of our two cats, and the Hubster is her designated human. No matter how she positions herself, she manages to rest her head against his leg. The only time Sera is quiet is when she gets to sit next to her designated human on the couch.

Last night, we went to see Jake Shimabukuro in concert. As always, he gave an awesome show! I can't remember how I got hooked (it must have been during his Pure Heart days), but I do remember when the Hubster and I went to see him for the first time in November 2005. He was part of the "International Guitar Night" concert as the only ukulele player amongst about five world-renowned guitarists. The venue was fairly small in size, and Jake had a small following. It was so small that he hung outside the venue unnoticed. He was mingling with a couple of people. The Hubster and I went back to the car to grab Jake's latest CD and the Hubster's ukulele for Jake to sign. He is the friendliest, most down-to-earth guy!

Every year since then, Jake would come back to San Francisco, and we'd go. Every year, his venues got bigger and he was no longer opening for anyone else. Every year, his fan base got bigger and bigger. Last night's concert was no exception. After the concert, my brother-in-law, his girlfriend, and my father-in-law stood in line to get Jake's autograph. My mother-in-law and I stood right behind him, poised to take pictures once the family was up. We were told that since we weren't in the line, Jake wasn't going to talk to us. Yeah, we understood that. The lobby of Davies Symphony Hall was sheer madness! Kids were in line playing their ukuleles. A middle aged woman was practically elbowing my MIL to get a photo of Jake with her old school flip phone, "Jake! Look here, Jake!" I can't forget the two ladies behind us who were so star-struck, like REALLY star-struck, I thought they were going to jump him. It was rather irritating, actually, when they were strategizing how they were going to get to him. Then one of them said, "We have to get aggressive and push our way to the front." When she said "push our way", she was talking about pushing their way through my MIL and I. Oh, hell no. So, I turned around and said, "If you guys really want Jake's attention, then you better get in line waaaaaaay over there," as I pointed across the length of the lobby. That kept them quiet. I kind of wish I let them get in front of us to attack Jake just to see his manager and the usher pull them away.

Anyway, I'd recommend seeing him in concert. It's unbelievable what he can do with a 4-string instrument! He's just awesome.