Yorkdale

I made it to Yorkdale as planned.

I ended up parking miles and miles away from the subway stop, because the mall is under construction and the most convenient parking lot was out-of-service. So, hefting my guitar and amplifier-laden backpack, I hiked my way through the mall.

Yorkdale is the kind of mall I can't afford to shop at. Since I decided to become a mother and singer-songwriter simultaneously, I've been a devoted Value Village shopper. Today I was sporting an Italian-made asymmetrical tapestry-quilted jacket for which I paid $14.99. I'm so accustomed to paying second-hand prices for clothes, I can't imagine paying "real" prices for anything, not even that beautiful floral leather-and-shearling jacket in Calla's size in the Gap Kids window... I was tempted to go into the store, not to actually buy it, but just to see how much it cost.

But when you're barging through a mall with an amplifier on your back, you have a certain momentum. So I kept on walking.

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When I arrived at the busking stop, another musician was already playing, so I let him know that I was scheduled there and offered to come back in fifteen minutes. That would give me time to find the Lewiscraft hobby supply store and hopefully the pillow-stuffing materials for Calla's class.

Fortunately, the store was right next to the subway entrance and it had exactly what I was looking for.

The only problem was, after I finished busking I'd have to walk all the way back through the mall with my guitar, my amp and a five-pound bag of Fibrefill.

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When I returned to the busking post, the other musician started packing up and was eager to give me advice, like all the other musicians were when I saw them. I realized then, for the first time, that it must be somehow obvious that I'm brand new to subway busking.

"You'll think that you're not getting anything," he advised, "but don't give up. It'll come."

I nodded.

As he packed up his stuff, he loaded it onto a compact little baggage cart. "You need to get one of these," he said. "Ten bucks at Honest Ed's." Good advice, I thought, remembering the five-pound bag of fibrefill.

He also urged me to come back on Saturday "and stay right 'til 9:00 o'clock!" when the stores close. I hadn't planned on doing that, but I realized he was probably right. It would be one of the first big shopping Saturdays before Christmas. He seemed very tuned in to the holiday season and its potential for busking.

"What stop do you have at Christmas?" he asked.

I looked at him blankly.

Hmm...I guess it IS obvious that I'm a beginner.