I sang publicly for the first time in about a year last night...it was a fundraiser for a childrens playground and this is a small community....I wasn't nervous....or anything like that...but the atmosphere was so awkward...I felt like a new species of bacteria or something....folks were "examining" me and wanting to ask me personal questions about my personal problems....you could just see it in their eyes...some had already made up their minds and kept their distance...some made an inordinant attempt to get closer and show their support...all of it made me so uncomfortable....This is my community..the place I grew up in.....why can't I just get past this...? But the singing part felt fine....It was when the performance was over that I felt the awkwardness.....When the emcee of the event asked for an encore....then I truly felt sick....I didn't want to go before these ppl again....I felt naked....(emotionally of course)...How long does it take for folks to lose interest in our personal lives...How long?