I joined a choir on Wednesday! (14/5/2025)

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After I'd come home from shopping at the big Tesco, and after I'd had my dinner, I set of to join the Lichfield Tuneless Choir. I walked it there, and the weather was lovely, so I did not wear a coat. The Tuneless Choir meets at Wade Street Church, so I walked round Stowe Pool and up into town like I would on a Friday shopping. I walked through The Three Spires shopping centre and up passed the Garrick Theatre, and then I went to the back door of Wade Street Church. A lady with blue hair was there getting some equipment out of a car, and she showed me the way in. I was a bit early and there were a few ladies there who were also early. A lady asked me if I was a new lady here to join the choir, and I said yes. The lady got me to sit down and wait and then a chap came up to explain about the choir and how it works and I filled out a form. When they were ready for us, we went to the front desk to pay. Other people came in through the front door, so next time I'll go in that way! When you first join it's £12 for registration and the first session. Every week thereafter it's £9 or you can pay for 5 weeks for £35. Everybody had name tags, except me because I was new. The lady asked me what I would like to drink at half time and I asked her if she had any green tea. She said no, so I said Is it OK to use my own T-bag? and she said yes, so she just put me down for hot water and took my T-bag off me. Then we went to sit down again, and I went to sit where I'd previously been sitting, bit then one of the ladies came over and said she only got me to sit there while they were getting everything ready, and then she sat me by a lady called Joanne and she told her to look after me! When we started we did some warm-ups first. Then we sang a song that was not on our list, to warm up our vocals! Then we sang the songs on that weeks playlist which were:- Amarillo by Tony Christie Hi Ho Silver Lining by Jeff Beck Best Day Of My Life by American Authors Human by Rag'n'Bone Man Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley Mamma Mia by ABBA Budapest by George Ezra Cold Heart by Elton John and Dua Lipa Mambo Italiano by Bette Midler Twist And Shout by The Beatles Somebody To Love by Queen Top Of The World by The Carpenters Everlasting Love by The Love Affair When we were half way through, they played the Woah, Half way there..... bit of Bon Jovi's song Living On A Prayer So then we stopped and had a cup of tea and a chocolate. I choose a four finger Kit-Kat! The ladies were passing the drinks out to people, we didn't have to get up to fetch it! When my drink came round, they'd left the T-bag in, and it was very hard to drink the tea with the T-bag in it! After I'd drunk.my tea, I went to the toilet. I'd heard people saying before they were going to the toilet and I'd seen where they went, so I headed in that direction and through the door that they'd gone through. I found out the toilet was straight on passed the vestry! When I came back from the toilet the lady with blue hair who was leading us did a little quiz and asked us if we could think of any songs connected with hands or fingers. I couldn't think of any but everybody else seemed to know one! A few people asked me how I found out about Tuneless Choir, and I said I googled it! I googled "Choirs in Lichfield" and it came up! They were passing round a book so we could put our names down if we wanted to go and sing at an event at Christ Church or the Fuse Festival in June and July respectively, but I didn't know if I'd be able to get a lift so I haven't put my name down for now. I'll see how I feel later. We commenced the second half and when it came to Somebody To Love by Queen it was a right mess! But that's why it's called Tuneless Choir! When we finished at 8:30pm, I went out through the front door. This one lady walked with me for a bit. She also asked me how I'd heard about Tuneless Choir, and I told her I'd googled it. I told her I'd googled Choirs in Lichfield, and I said ah, Tuneless Choir, perfect! She asked me if I could sing and I said well my Mum says I can't when I'm singing along to my CDs in the kitchen! I told her I'm a big fan of Wynne Evans, and that he's the President of the Welsh Association of Male Voice Choirs! And she said, Ah, Wynne Evans! He's good, he is! Then she went to go into the down town Tesco, she we said goodbye and see you next week. Then I continued on my way home. When I got home my Mum still wasn't back from the house group. When my Mum got home she asked me how I'd got on, and I said it was brilliant. But when I told her a few of the songs we'd been singing she said, why were you singing that, I thought it was a choir?! She put a dampner on it. She didn't know why I wanted to go in the first place. She thinks singing in the congregation at Church would be enough. Wynne Evans, on his Instagram, had put up a video talking about mental health, and he said he was available by DM if we needed him. So I thought I'd send a message. I told him that I'd joined a choir and that I'd really enjoyed it and I'd felt uplifted. But then I said my problem was my mother. I said she'd put a dampner on It. I told him that she didn't know why I wanted to join it in the first place and that she thought singing in the congregation at Church would be enough. Then I told him she always does this when I want to do anything. It's like she doesn't want me to have a life of my own. Then I said sorry for my rant. You did say your DMs were open! I wasn't expecting anything, but then on Thursday morning when I went on my Instagram I saw I'd got a message! Wynne said he knew where I was coming from. He had a difficult mother. Just keep going and do it for yourself, he said. It was lovely to get a message from Wynne. What have you lot been getting up to? I hope you are all well. Have a nice day.