I'm going to sound like an asshole at worst, and condescending at best, but I don't mean to be either. These guys were at the level of a great bar band, or the local openers for a regional tour. The frontman looked like Taika Watiti, the drummer looked like Tommy Chong, and their venue—the garage—had all the trappings of a "real show": lights, soundboard, a video visualization of the band's name. It was high energy rock 'n' roll, a little Perry Farrell, a little Steven Tyler. It was legit, and there were a maximum of nineteen people in the garage at any given time, along with a sliding compound mitre saw. No matter. They served the crowd what we wanted to hear, which inevitably turned out to be Danzig's "Mother."
Those guys in the band really struck a chord (sorry). It wasn't about being good—they were good—but about being perceived. The point of this performance was not the audience; it was the performance. I got the sense that they would have put the same energy, spirit, and professionalism into the gig if it was for a thousand people, but the fact that it was nineteen didn't faze them. The audience wasn't the main attraction; the music was. Doing the thing, and doing it well, was the point.
When I was younger, the reason I did many things was so that other people could see me doing them: writing, dating, outfits, scholastic achievements, the jobs I got, whatever. To this day, I still put a lot of myself out into the world. I'm an inveterate over-sharer, a steady social media poster, and a person who will generally show up to the party, the picnic, the parade. I enjoy other people's karaoke performances because this is the same energy: watch me do this thing! I'm good at it!
Like pretty much everyone, I like being seen as competent, and like many women and femmes, I've been socialized to have a complicated relationship with achievement. Do the thing—of course—but make it seem natural, modest, easy. A compliment? Oh, you shouldn't have! (but say it again) Part of this might just be hunger for connection: is what I'm putting out in the world resonating with people? Do they—gulp—like it? Do they—yikes— like me?
What does it mean if they do? Or if they don't?
Is it enough to know that I'm good at something, even if no one is watching? Even if no one else really cares?
At this point at the party, I was hyperventilating a little, because I was in my own head about being in wannabe-poser-energy vampire territory, a place that is uncomfy for most of us. As you can imagine, I am very successful in social settings.
What saved me from spiralling was actually remembering this blog. I'll tell you a secret: this is not a highly-trafficked corner of the internet. I don't care about SEO, and it shows. I'll get between 1500 to 3000 hits each month, but I also have a back catalogue that stretches to 2009, with nearly 600 published posts. I sometimes get a weird blip—in August 2023 I had more than 33,000 hits, and I'm unsure why—but I often feel like I'm just writing into the void.
Why not just journal? I can hear you asking, and the truth is, I like this little project. I like knowing my mom reads it. I like having an archive. For me, it's not about the readership or the critical response (also known as: the comments); it's about committing to creating a piece of writing every month, of my own flavour and choosing, and making it happen.
And then I realized that knitting is like this, in some ways. Sure, I post pictures of my projects, but the real sense of accomplishment comes from turning a ball of yarn into a garment. Cooking dinner for my parents is like this, too. I cook better when I'm making a meal for someone else. Alone, I would cheerfully eat gyoza and frozen peas until my inevitable cardiac arrest; with someone, I make an effort and the occasional stir-fry. Parenting is like this. Friendship is like this. The audience, such as it is, is small; the impact, the feeling, the sense of stepping into myself when I do it, is not.
And this is what I admire about people in their lives, too. I love my friends who do community theatre—again, not a knock on community theatre, just that it's not the Great White Way, you know? And the folks who make their own clothes, or who make 'zines, or who have painted thousands of Warhammer miniatures. The people who have interesting hobbies and pastimes that are just for them, but also with people, because sometimes the other people amplify the fun in strange and delightful ways. It's a variation of letting your freak flag fly: it's letting our creative juices run together.
I left that party feeling energized and effervescent. I went home thinking
about all the ways I hunger for recognition in my life, and the places
where I've let that go. It's liberating, in some ways, to know that I'm probably not going to be a famous writer in my lifetime—although, you know, never say never—but I still have a body of creative work that I'm proud of. This is not me saying "there's no point!" or "give up!" but me saying, what if this is enough? What if I can be proud of myself at this level? What if all I get is nineteen people in a garage? Will I still put on a hell of a show?