Yep, I'm an Antique

Okay, so I went to Christmas Eve service tonight and they had this kid do a folk interpretation of 'Do You See What I See?'

And he was very good. Played a ukulele (looked to be a nice one, at that) as accompaniment.

That mood-casting ability the greats have, this kid has a bit of that. The ukulele is such a simple instrument, most people think of it as a toy, but he had the audience eating out of his hand.

Anyways, when I saw him take the stage, I wondered, 'Does Arlo Guthrie know you raid his wardrobe?'

That, by the way, is a reference to a movie I would bet $50 the kid has never seen.

And speaking of references the kid wouldn't get, I approached him after the service. I figured the Arlo impersonation was intentional. He kind of looks like a young Arlo Guthrie, and there was a time when I'd have tried to affect the exact same mode of dress if I could have gotten away with it.

'Arlo Guthrie called, he wants his hat back,' I told him as I shook his hand. He said something like 'that's what I hear.' An older guy (which is to say someone approximately my age) said something like 'that's what I've been telling him.'

I told him I seriously enjoyed what he did and then thought to ask, 'You do know who Arlo Guthrie is, right?' I might as well have asked him how many Gerald Ford albums he owned. Hadn't heard of Woody Guthrie, either, though he recognized 'This Land is Our Land' from grade school. They taught the song to me in grade school, too: they gave up on repressing it by persecuting the pinkos who would sing such a thing because it's so much more effective to make it the kind of thing you'd be embarrassed to know.

I tried Googling to show you a picture of the hat in question, first on Arlo, then just in general. I think I must be mis-remembering the Arlo shot, the one I thought would have it, he's wearing a derby. His dad wore a similar hat, I think. Kind of like a felt rangers cap, but not quite. Probably has a fancy name I'm not finding.

As I told him he ought to check out Arlo, he'd probably like it given what he seems to be into, and while he's at it, Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Utah Philips, etc., I recognized a look on the kid's face. Not because I'd ever seen it, but because I'd put that face on myself. When I was a teenager. When some old fart would suggest things I might dig...

Damn. I am truly old now.