Saturday night, I took Tim to see the 77-year-old storyteller perform at the
Sidney Goldstein Theater in SF.
Garrison Keillor came from a small farming town in Minnesota and a strong
Lutheran community. He became a writer making a living as a radio show host.
His style was light-hearted and humorous. Internationally syndicated, "A Prairie
Home Companion (APHC)," his weekly live radio show, reached me when I was
studying on the Canadian prairie. It was immediately appealing and over time
I became a fan. To me, the show had been a cultrual induction to the West.
Amazingly, Tim, at a young age, shared the same taste and even this day, we
listen to archived APHC often on commute.
GK officially retired from radio in 2016 after 40+ years of APHC but kept on
writing. He emailed his posts every week. From time to time, he would
poll to find the next city to do another show and when I received the email
earlier this year, I voted for SF. And here we were.
It was already dark when we came out of the BART station at Montgonmery. Tim
loved the vibe of the bustling city night life and we had a nice walk toward Civic
Center along Market Street. Approaching city hall, a drizzle started and quickly
became annoying. We crossed Van Ness and hurriedly ducked into a restaurant,
called The Grove, next to the theater, and after waiting for 20 min, had a good
meal before following the crowd to the event. It was nearly sold out and there
must be over 1500 people that night. As for the demographics, I'd say 80% were
older folks, and there were nearly no Asians except for us.
Not particularly fit, GK looked nonetheless full of life and was able to perform
energetically for 2+ hours. His mind was nimble and memory spactacular. His
crew, much smaller compared to the show's heydays, consisted of the radio cast
(Sue Scott, Tim Russell and Fred Newman), the musicians including the pianist
(Richard Dworsky), a guitarist, a violinst, and a cellist, and the beautiful singer
Heather Masse. The theme was the same with a lot of (too many, I thought)
seasonal Christmas songs. The comedy skits Guy Noir and The Life of the
Cowboys, felt just like they did in the past. GK's monologues were witty all the
same and the "News from Lake Wobegon" was still my favorite.
Tim thanked me again as we strolled out three hours later. He had enjoyed the
whole experience. (Earlier, he asked if Fred Newman, the sound-effect man, would
be there. I didn't know but said yes.) It was the first time for both of us.
"What do you like the most about the show, Tim?"
"Oh. GK's reciting the names of the 87 counties of Minnesota, the Lake Wobegon
story, and Rich Dworsky's 30 Christmas songs played in three minutes. What about
you?"
"What he said about finding meaning in your life." I replied. "He actually was
advising young people wearing earbuds and listening to music all the time. 'You
cannot find the meaning of your life in others' music.' he said. 'You have to
find and do your own work.'"
And this remark stuck with me in the following days and to the point that I stopped
watching the videos from my tribe, those made by Web personalities in north-east (农民王小, e.g.)
and SiChuan provinces in China. Yes. They were idyllic and nostalgic and I was drawn
to them like a baby to mom. But I am an adult and those were others' lives, not mine.
