Today’s Co–Star said:
Keep your heart open.
And underneath that:
“That wall you built after getting burned? It’s keeping out more than just pain. When someone reaches for you today, notice your instinct to pull back. Then do the opposite. The risk is worth it.”
Which is… annoyingly specific.
Yesterday was “Talk to people.”
Today is basically:
good, now stop hiding when they talk back.
Fair enough.
I woke up around 6 in the morning.
Again.
Still tired.
Still opening.
And unfortunately, I know myself well enough to understand that going fully back to sleep is dangerous when I have somewhere to be.
But I also really did not want to be awake.
So I negotiated with myself.
A little nap here.
Wake up.
Another little nap there.
What we would call chicken sleep.
Barely asleep.
Waking up every so often just to make sure I haven’t accidentally ruined my entire morning.
Responsible?
Technically.
Restful?
Debatable.
Eventually I properly woke up again around 9:30.
And because apparently Pokémon has become part of my morning schedule now, I had already planned to stop by Vagabond before work to buy something else.
The actual purchase probably belongs in the Pokémon Journey.
Whether I have the energy to write that entry immediately is another question.
[COMING SOON:LINK TO POKÉMON JOURNEY ENTRY]
But something happened afterwards that definitely belongs here too.
I went to Starbucks for my daily coffee fix.
While I was waiting for my drink, I sat down at a table where another guy was already sitting.
I didn’t know whether he had friends coming, so I asked if it was okay for me to sit there.
He said yes.
So I sat down and started opening the packs I had just bought.
And of course, he noticed.
Then we started talking.
Pokémon.
Cards.
Collecting.
I asked if he collected too.
He said he used to, but stopped because of scalpers.
Then I asked about his favourite Pokémon.
One of them was Bisharp, which apparently sounded similar to his name.
And somehow, despite having an entire conversation with this person…
I never asked his name.
I never told him mine either.
Amazing.
To be fair, I was already late for work and getting slightly stressed about the time.
So before I left, I basically told him:
if you ever start collecting Pokémon cards again, come find me at Rosie’s.
And then I ran off to work.
Now that I think about it, I kind of wish I stayed a little longer.
Or at least exchanged contact details.
Because it was cool.
Pokémon gave two complete strangers something to talk about.
No awkward introduction.
No trying to invent a reason to speak.
Just:
you like this too?
And suddenly there was a conversation.
Maybe I’ll see him again.
Maybe I won’t.
But I like that I’m becoming the kind of person who can have moments like that now.
I got to work and Mariele was opening with me.
Which was honestly nice because I didn’t have to worry about the floor opening.
She is one of those people I can rely on to just get things done.
And that takes a lot of pressure off me.
Lunch was easy.
Lots of happy people.
Lots of birthdays.
The whole place felt cheerful.
Then I noticed some kids who were into Pokémon too.
Immediately:
my people.
Except, of course, today was the one day I didn’t bring my binder or any duplicate cards with me.
Brilliant.
But I had bought some new packs earlier that morning.
So I gave the kids some cards from those instead.
Then basically told them to come back again sometime so we can trade.
HAHAHAHAHA.
Apparently I am now recruiting trading partners from the dining room.
I’ll tell the full story in the Pokémon Journey.
[COMING SOON:LINK TO POKÉMON JOURNEY ENTRY]
But I want to keep this part here too.
Pokémon really does cross ages.
Kids.
Adults.
People who have been collecting forever.
People who have only just started.
If somebody lights up when you mention Pokémon, suddenly you already have something in common.
It’s such an easy doorway into talking to people.
And somehow, that had already happened twice today.
First at Starbucks.
Then at Rosie’s.
Today’s Co–Star said keep your heart open.
Apparently Pokémon has decided to help.
Later, we had two people coming in for practical interviews.
Apparently that is what we call them now instead of trials.
Legal wording.
Very glamorous.
James was busy with the other venues, so the responsibility of handling them landed on me.
I won’t write too much about the people themselves because that isn’t really my story to tell.
But after working with them, I told James and Steve that I thought both of them were good.
For me, the bigger question is not whether somebody walks through the door already knowing everything.
It is how much potential they have.
How willing they are to learn.
How willing they are to listen.
How much effort I am willing to put into helping them become great.
And honestly?
If somebody is willing to learn,
I am willing to teach them.
That is probably one of the clearest things I know about myself as a manager now.
In the evening, Ari, one of my favourite people ever, came over and asked if I could cover her set for about fifteen minutes.
She was supposed to play until 10, but she had another event starting at 10 somewhere else.
I looked around.
Dinner was calm.
We had enough people to cover everything.
So:
yeah.
Of course.
Around 9, another manager asked if I wanted to finish early.
Absolutely.
I actually needed to run home and pack because I’m sleeping at Dylan’s tonight.
I’m opening in Takapuna tomorrow, and his place is much closer than mine.
Future-me deserves an easier morning.
Except I had forgotten one small thing.
Ari had already asked me to cover her transition.
And then she asked if I could jump on even earlier because she wanted to eat and rest before heading to the next venue.
Fair.
One problem:
I didn’t have my gear with me.
Luckily, I always carry my USB.
Always.
Hehe.
Apparently preparedness sometimes looks like carrying an emergency DJ set around in your bag.
Ari even handed me $50 for covering her.
Which was sweet, but honestly I would have done it anyway.
DJing is something I actually love.
Half the time I’m on the decks, I’m basically just having fun.
So getting paid to help someone I care about while doing something I already enjoy?
Not exactly a difficult decision.
I ended up having about 45 minutes on the decks.
Just playing songs I actually like.
I did have to hold myself back from going too hard, though.
Because I was only the transition.
The DJ after me still needed somewhere to take the room.
So my extremely scientific structure became:
two bangers.
one boring song.
Repeat.
Honestly, it worked.
A nightclub DJ should be the headliner.
The transition DJ’s job is not to burn through every weapon in the first half hour and leave the next person with nothing to build toward.
I understand that enough now.
After handing over to the next DJ, I sat in the office for a while and talked with some people.
Then I Ubered home just to pack my things.
And after that, I headed back out to hang out with one of my current best friends.
And this is where I’m going to stop writing.
Not because nothing else is going to happen.
But because I actually want to be there for it.
I’ve been writing so much lately about learning to be present.
About not turning every moment into something I need to capture, post, explain, or preserve while it is still happening.
So maybe this is me actually practising it.
Today started with:
Keep your heart open.
And maybe I did.
I talked to a stranger because of Pokémon.
I gave cards to kids and told them to come back and trade with me.
I trusted Mariele to do what she does well.
I spent time thinking about how I want to teach people instead of judging whether they already know everything.
I said yes when Ari asked me for help.
And now I’m going to spend the rest of the night with someone I care about.
No documenting.
No trying to turn the night into a paragraph while I’m still living it.
Just enjoy it.
Maybe keeping your heart open is not always some huge emotional act.
Sometimes it is much smaller.
Sit at the table.
Start the conversation.
Give the kid the card.
Teach the person who wants to learn.
Say yes when somebody you care about asks for help.
And when someone gives you their time,
actually be there for it.