What's Your Scene?

A friend mentioned the drum circle tonight. I thought we were both done with that scene. Whenever it is drum circle night, however, inevitably, one of us mentions it. What if we go? Maybe it'll be cool. Maybe.

I have met interesting people at drum circles. That's where I met the above mentioned friend (one of the two friends that I currently have, ha, aside from work friends...but that's different and highly conditional...). I started going to drum circles here in Florida about a year ago. When I lived in DC, I used to walk by them a lot and wonder what they were all about. It didn't look like my kind of thing, drum circles...I was too busy looking for a pick-up soccer game or a bar -- or a bar with a poetry reading/spoken word type thing. Or an indie rock show. Or a pool table. Or a bookstore. Or: I was going to meet my girlfriend (who is now my ex-wife).

But. Now I'm in Florida. Single. Bored...when I'm not working that is...bored. I was going to drum circles regularly, like I say, last year...I'm still not sure if it's my thing...I started to doubt it though. I'm still trying to figure out what my thing is, I guess. My latest thing, I mean. I have to face the fact that I'm a khaki clad, short hair, half ass i.t. dude who eats meat and smokes cigarettes. I mean: I do drive a Corolla and listen to NPR (whatever that means)...I'm into Buddhist writings and Vedanta (at least I think it's Vedanta...or at least...that's what some people call it). I don't know. I'm not religious, but I kind of piece together bits and pieces of various religions...as a hobby. That kind of identifies me...lack of a concrete identity, just a hodge podge of this and that. I'm a little sporty, a little drunky, a tiny bit hippie, a tiny bit techie (that's my job anyway). Most of the clothes I have - people bought them for me for Christmas or my birthday - - because they thought it was something that I would wear -which happened to come true. I did wear it. It's what I wear. I buy at thrift stores too though see. Rambling here. But that's what blogs are for, right? How did I get on this subject -or this hodge podge of subjects? Oh yeah, I was talking about drum circles, and drum circle people. Some of them seem to be real deal gone granola tye dye twenty-first century hippies. Some of them are burning man types. Some of them are elderly folks lookin for exercise and community. Some of them are college stoner kids. One, two or a few of them look like scary karate champ types with big guns (muscular arms I mean) who look like they'd pulverize you if you spilled their herbal tea.

I haven't even defined for you (if you're still reading) what a drum circle is. But surely you must know already. So I won't. Google it if you want. Or go ask a social anthropologist. Or better yet, check your local listings and just show up at one.

So, what's my scene? I know some scenes I used to be into...scenes that I should probably get back into: Poetry readings were my thing for five or six years in DC. There was a whole gang of regulars I knew at DC poetry readings. Get drunk and grab the mic and read your scribblings to the people. Pick-up soccer, for a long-ass time, was my thing -- but I have since picked smoking back up. Cough. Now? I don't know.

So tell me. What's your scene?