A friend of mine once called me a wizard because of my knack for finding fun things to do in the Capital Region. I don’t know that I do anything particularly wizardly, other than read the newspaper and scan Metroland, but every once in a while I like to give myself a pat on the back for finding an especially memorable event to go to. Such was the case Wednesday, when I attended a free concert at The College of St. Rose by local jazz pianist Lee Shaw, who plays regularly at Justin’s on Lark and other venues throughout the area. I’d never seen Shaw play before, but I’d heard good things about her, and you can’t beat free.

The concert, featuring Shaw, bassist Rich Syracuse and drummer Jeff Siegel, was held in the Picotte Recital Hall at the Massry Center for the Arts. RPI’s brand new Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center has received a ton of publicity — justifiably so — but the Massry Center, which opened just over a month ago, is also an excellent new space for music and art. Shaw, a diminutive octogenarian, played the piano while seated on a telephone book. And to say she played the piano doesn’t really do justice to her style. “She plays with a propulsive energy,” my friend Jack observed. “She seems to attack the keys.” He then declared, “I think playing the piano keeps people young.”

I am not a doctor, and so I have no idea whether playing the piano keeps people young. But then Jack mentioned the elderly piano player in the “Buena Vista Social Club,” the 1999 documentary about the traditional Cuban folk ensemble, and I remembered the time I saw jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis perform in college, and I couldn’t help but wonder whether maybe he had a point. In any case, the whole thing made me feel like maybe I should go home and play the piano. You can find out more about Lee Shaw at www.leeshaw.org.

Recently I’ve been perusing the popular blog Stuff White People Like, which is a humorous look at, yes, the stuff white people like. And not just any white people. White people who are kind of like me — college educated, somewhat urban, literary, blah blah blah. It’s an interesting experience, reading this blog, which you can find here, because I often recognize myself and many of my friends in the descriptions, and until I read this blog I had no idea how easy it was to gently mock us. But I can’t deny that I like Oscar parties, micro breweries, “The Wire,” bad memories of high school and irony. As well as the Sunday New York Times and bicycles.

Of course, there are plenty of things on the list of stuff white people like that I don’t really like, such as coffee and pea coats, but overall the blog does a fairly good job of capturing and describing the quirks of my demographic. This is, if you want to know the truth, a little embarrassing, because I like to think of myself as a unique individual, rather than a type, and sometimes when I read the blog I wince at the ridiculousness of myself. “Yes,” I thought, as I read the post detailing white people’s love of outdoor performance gear. “I do like a good fleece. And I did splurge last year and buy those fancy sneakers made out of renewable materials.” I do love those sneakers. But now I can see that they’re a little ridiculous, too.

There’s a pretty interesting essay, which you can find here, that takes a more serious look at Stuff White People Like and how this goofy blog is actually stimulating a broader discussion about race and class. The author of the site, Christian Lander, scored a book deal, and is currently on tour, promoting the book, called — you got it — “Stuff White People Like.” The subtitle: “The Definitive Guide to the Unique Taste of Millions.”

FINAL BASEBALL THOUGHT: Will the Rays beat the Red Sox tonight? Ummmm, it’s certainly possible. The fact is, the Rays are a very good baseball team. Normally, they’re the sort of sports story I love — the scrappy underdog who fearlessly take out the mighty Goliath. But the Red Sox are my team, and so of course I want this scrappy underdog to lose. I’m not sure they will, though. The whole thing has a different feel from the Red Sox comeback in 2004 against the Yankees, or the team’s comeback last year against the Indians. For one thing, those teams featured a certain left-fielder named Manny Ramirez. I hate to say it, but right now I kind of miss that guy.