An Experiment -- featuring Steve Clarke and the Working Stiffs

I'm deaf. For some reason I feel I should point that out. That wasn't always the case. In fact, until three weeks ago I considered myself a functionally hearing person. Others, particularly those closest to me, who have dealt with my spiral into deafness for years, may have other opinions about how "functional" my hearing has been, but I think we can all agree that it's worthless for everyday purposes now.

But there will be plenty of time to talk about all that later... Tonight, right now, I am doing something that might be considered odd for a deaf person. At least, I would have considered it odd a month ago if someone had told me that a deaf person were doing it. I'm enjoying... a musical performance. It's a local jazz band, The Working Stiffs, led by my buddy Steve Clarke. They're playing at a small, local restaurant to a small but enthusiastic audience.