rolling and frying And she said that stuff was more American than anything Pinky eventually got on Tia made her sit closer to the front but she kept turning around to flap that piece of paper at me pointing at it excitedly I wondered wondered what was so interesting I was thinking that it looked like some kind of pamphlet as Tia done with lording over the rest of us made her way to the back of the bus She was hunched over her phone not at all looking where she was going when she tripped over my big old size nine which was poking into the aisle She didn’t fall or anything but that didn’t stop her from lighting into me Look what you did The bright orangey lipstick lipstick she wore made her mouth look like a stretchy rubber band as she screamed at me You almost made me drop my phone Why are your gorilla feet sticking out in the aisle Sorry I tried to pull my foot back under me I didn’t do it on purpose The bus doors slapped shut which was the signal that everyone’s bottom had to be sitting Tia kept walking toward her seat muttering You better not be messing with me 4
Meanwhile Pinky was still trying to show me that piece of paper but I couldn’t even think about moving up until Tia got off at her stop Only then was I able to dart into the vacant seat behind Pinky Look at this Pinky said as she thrust the brochure brochure at me Just look It’s the most amazing thing BAND AND JAM MUSIC SCHOOL The quintessential music collaboration camp The words jumped out at me just before Pinky snatched the pamphlet back She shook it open and started jabbing her finger at points of interest It’s the most amazing music camp you ever heard of They have all kinds of music lessons not just classical classical They teach you how to play in a band any kind of band you want even pop rock or rap Pinky and I both played piano Her lessons were classical but she always wanted to play modern stuff My repertoire was well let’s just say even more limited You even get to record an EP or make a video And the best thing is that it’s overnight for two weeks at a college in Atlanta She was still pointing at the photos but she fluttered the paper so hard I couldn’t see a thing Two weeks You get to stay in the dorm 5
and eat in the cafeteria which means we can eat hot dogs and pizza every day if we want And sodas All the sodas we want for breakfast lunch and dinner Take it Take it She shoved the brochure at me again impatiently I finally got hold of it and leaned back in my seat so she wouldn’t be tempted to grab it again before I could look at it for myself On the cover a teenager clutched a mic eyes closed and mouth fully open as if he was really belting out a lyric Stage lights sparkled all around him It’s absolutely perfect for both of us Pinky said My mom signed me up last night You have to come My mouth twitched from side to side I had never been to an overnight camp before Usually Mom forced me to go to City Recreation Camp at the community center where we had to make dry pasta necklaces and paint pet rocks We can form our own band if we want Mom said that I could finally start the guitar while I’m there Pinky knelt backward on the seat but crouched down so Ms Screws wouldn’t notice We both can if you’re ready to try something besides the piano She screwed up her face And maybe you can break away from those uh how should I put it those 6
chirpy songs you play I mean Danny Boy and What a Friend We Have in Jesus are catchy tunes and all but dude unless you want Danny and Jesus to be your only friends something’s gotta change Ha ha I said I’d been playing piano for only a couple of years My lessons were with Ms Maisie who lived in the senior housing building where my mom used to work but she wasn’t a professional piano teacher or musician And yes I wanted to learn to read sheet music and to play Bohemian Rhapsody Rhapsody and the theme from Star Wars but mostly Ms Maisie taught me church songs and old show tunes she knew She was kind of set in her ways Anyway I want to stay with the piano I murmured murmured as I studied the brochure The photographs of kids behind drum sets keyboards and sound equipment equipment jumped out at me Form a band and develop practice skills with other musicians with similar experience and style Hone your skills with musical instruction from professionals and practice stage performance in concerts 7
