Visiting with the Man (Pianoman that is!)

New Year's Eve, 2006. My plans, decided months ago, are to do the same thing we (the family) do each year. Stay home & enjoy calm times that are welcome after the Christmas Holiday "Hurry, Hurry, Hurry, there's so much to do before we can rest!" fiasco.

But, back in November, during the planning for a Rocket Captain gathering, Pianoman stated he was to do a gig at the Casino here in St. Joe, Missouri. He asked if his directions to the Casino (given by someone) were "the best for mileage & time". I informed him that he was right on track, and I asked if I might come & visit the evening of his shindig, & as you would expect from the big guy with a great nature, his response was "Sure, come on down! It's only a 7:00 to 8:30 show". We made plans to meet & have a bite to eat & visit for a short time.

So, last evening I broke the family tradition & took off for a time to meet Pianoman at the Casino. His entertainment Mecca in the ballroom (the stage with keyboard, mic & speakers) was already set up for him so his early arrival meant he had some extra time on his hands. I gather that Pianoman travels with his own equipment & was surprised at finding things already prepared.

I did not follow the escort & PM up to the ballroom but when he returned to go park his "cage", he handed me a dinner pass (for 2) and stated that I was his sound man (or something to that nature) so they (the Casino) were going to cover both our meals.

Now, this is the real meat of this thread (I just had to paint the picture leading up my reasons for posting). Meeting a fellow captain on the road with Rockets under both (or all) of your butts is really fun. Most of the gatherings between Captains (except for Bart & Flip) is just for that reason, to enjoy some "throttle whackin' thrills" together. That's great, but to be able to sit & enjoy another Captain share little tidbits of their life's story with you, without the pressure of "getting back on the bikes" is also Great. We had the better part of an hour & a-half to visit & enjoy dinner (and a few beers, ingested by me only). Lots of subjects came up during that time, lots of questions, lots of wisdom shared, lots of Rocket talk, etc. And our waitress was a real doll. She could have stopped by many more times than she did & I would not have minded at all. Pianoman is a real, how can I say it, "Visiting with everyone" kind of guy. Most of his comments (as with most of his posts on this forum) are an effort to make people smile and feel good. I could have spent more time visiting with him but duty called & we headed up to the ballroom for a sound check. After a little "Fly me to the Moon" as a warm up for PM, and a few stage adjustments, the sound check was complete & I had to go, as the quests were rolling in. According to PM's comment, this was a private "High Roller" party of sorts.

I'm really looking forward to getting together with many of you this coming season & I hope there are lots of times to sit & visit over lunch. Happy New Year to all of you & your families. My wife is beginning to "not like" you great bunch of guys, she says I'd rather sit at the computer & visit with all of you than spend time with her. Geeeeese, I'd already spent 10 years with her "before" & asked that stupid "life altering" question, & that was 18 years ago. It's just as they say, you can never make 'em happy.

"Just wait til the weather turns warm & Rockety hon, than you'll like these guys even less."

See ya.

Wait until you hang out with Pat..

Good post Rusty. It should be a good year!! Here's to warm weather and no rain.

Rusty:

That is a GREAT post. I take it our PianoMan is a respected musician. Like my brother-in-law is a respected musical instrument maker. It's all very interesting to me, the parallels between them. Bart will never fess up as to his fame. He always downplays what he does for a living...sometimes I want to punch him. I won't though. His wife is really into martial arts and would promptly whoop my butt. How many guys do you know that are successful making works of art in wood, instruments of music and make a good living at it. I'm honored to be part of Bart's family

PianoMan is always upbeat in everyone of his posts. I always enjoy reading them. Bart and I both have the wifey problem though Bart's sister Amy is pretty low key about it. We've been together for many years and she has her own thing and I have mine. When we have a together thing, we are there for each other, 100%.

I had the R3 first. Bart is play'in follow the leader this time.

Again, a great post about someone I've never met but have a lot of respect for nonetheless.

Having the pleasure of riding and dining with the P-Man myself, I agree wholeheartedly.

:bch:

Pianoman is one of the nicest persons I have met in my life! I enjoyed our little run down whatever highway that was when we left the BBQ joint.

Here is to a great 2007!

Agree! Pman is a great guy, great musician, good rider, has more bells and whistles on his R3 than our new members F4, very genuine and the salt of the earth. Too bad he rides one of the slower RED r3's. My bad, love ya Pman! :flame: