The Creator in Art: Part II

    You would think that the summer is a blank page when it comes to musical goals. In some ways it is. Practice time is unscheduled, lesson times change at random, camp may or may not be an option,  and unless you have an audition to prepare, you can run wild and free. Shake off the sometimes-shackles of ensemble music and delve into a new genre. For the classical musician, this can be the most exhilarating season. 

    

    Or not. 

    Last week I reached the over-saturation point. Music held no energy, my instruments seemed tired. I didn’t want to practice and I didn’t want to listen to music. After 6 performances of different types over 2 1/2 weeks, I needed a break. But, being what my teachers think is perfectionist, I didn’t want to waste the time. The only musical performance group I’m involved in this summer is opera. However, there is an hour and a half of music in The Magic Flute, and it won’t practice itself! Thankfully, I was forced to take a break while we traveled for our family reunion. What blessed vacation from music it was. I left my viola at home. I left my piano at home. (Not much chance of getting to take that anyway). I took my iPod, but not once did I use it. It stayed sequestered away in my pack. When we returned, I found a renewed vigor for “imposing my will upon unsuspecting air molecules”, as the famous quote says. Enthusiasm regained!

    And as always, God knew how beneficial it is to take breaks. He actually commanded it to be every seventh day. In our world few people really rest one day a week, and it makes me wonder how much more healthy our society might be if we did take the time to rest. Unfortunately the way certain professions are set up, it is impossible to someone to rest one day and not get dreadfully behind in their work. I think this is especially true for teachers, as well as physicians. In order to keep up, the teachers have to grade work and prepare for the next week. Most physicians and surgeons, in order to be able to refer their patients to a hospital, are required to spend an unhealthy amount of time on call at the hospital. 

    I feel for the people in those professions that drain the life out of people instead of invigorate them. Some rearrangement would help so much. The good news is that in music therapy I’ll be able to set up my own schedule, and it’s a highly interactive, non-office job. Can I hear a hallelujah?

    Amen!

Coordinates Requested and Received. Halifirien72 is Ready for Takeoff.

    I’m just making up my own cockpit dialog, so don’t judge me on accuracy. The only flight dialog I’ve heard/seen is from Star Wars, The Hunt for Red October, or Going Solo, which makes me a non-expert. And now I’m way off topic. *screech of brakes as train of thought prepares to reroute*

    

    This week marked the second most momentous step toward college: orientation. I woke up ten minutes before my alarm clock was set to go off, so I must have been excited. That’s something funny I’ve noticed about myself: people will ask me if I’m excited, and I just won’t know. There’s either a disconnect in my neural network, or I just don’t work myself up for things, but I rarely get noticeably excited about anything that a) I’ve never done, or b) involves unknown people. But that is one of the goals of orientation, and this one was successful. Now I know two more kids that will be in my music therapy classes, have seen the backs of about a quarter of my fellow class of ‘14, and decided that I would much rather be given a suite-style room than a quad. Or it might be the other way around, but the point is that I don’t want to share a bathroom with the entire hall. Stay tuned. I also bought a sweatshirt and Dad got me a license plate holder with the school’s logo. Very exciting.

    That was seven hours plus one and a half of driving. It was a very, VERY hot day, and I was exhausted when I got home. I touched ground for about an hour, long enough to eat something and get an ibuprofen for my achin’ noggin, and then I was off again for three hours of orchestra rehearsal. It was okay, because my energy went up a little before we got there, and the ibuprofen worked, thank You Lord.

    It’s been a fun week so far. On Saturday I went to Mattea’s graduation, which was well worth the trip. I’m so glad I could go, and that we didn’t schedule my party to be that day.  It was quite a contrast to my graduation, which I think is totally due to region and people involved. It was kind of funny to see how much culture varies state to state. My ceremony was shorter and a little more conventional , but it didn’t give as much of a glance into the family’s lives that I got to see at the PHAA’s.  I really enjoyed the ceremony and getting to see Mattea and her family. Let’s celebrate! WE MADE IT!!!!!

Taxiing for Takeoff

Here I am, taking my plane down the runway that is graduation. How do you say goodbye, politely, to your childhood?

I've decided to post a collection of thoughts and things going on recently.

1~   A big thank you to everyone who contributed to and came to my party. It was a blast. I want to have all of you come back, one at a time, so I can actually talk to you!

2~ Though we did not win the concerto competition, it was an educational experience and I'm glad we did it.

3~ Learning bar chords is not something you can do overnight, even if you have strong hands. I do love a musical challenge.

4~ This background does not quite capture my day, as I paddled up and down a rather small stretch of a rather slow river.

5~ I wonder what the movie The Brothers Bloom is like.

6~ I hope whatever is hitting its head against the window behind me does not hurt itself.

7~ I am excited about the new Chopin preludes book I've been told to buy. I'll have all of them, right at my fingertips, just waiting for me to play them! Joy! Alas, I have to decide which edition to get; the untried-yet-scholarly edition which contains stories behind the songs, the favored-yet-expensive, or the cheap-o?

8~ Have you ever had a staycation, where you take a week off and go sight-seeing close to home? That's what I'm doing right now, starting today, and I'm not sure I'm going to get to all the places I want to see. But hey, it's day one and I already have a sunburn. I must be on vacation.

9~ First goal for the summer: work on pushups.

10~ Thought: the zombie voice for alerts on Macs is quite creepy at 10:40pm, even when you're expecting it to say "you're now running on reserve battery power". *shivers*

11~ Second summer goal: work on guitar.

12~ I have to choose: iPod touch, iPhone, or iPad? Tough one.

13~ Poison ivy, be gone! Rats. It's still there. Ugh.

14~ Now the thing on the window is playing a drumroll. o_O

15~ I like green.

16~ I miss the loons in Maine.

17~ Arrivederci