Wednesday was longer than usual today.
I made it through being not nearly as productive as yesterday, but it still has left me feeling ugh.
SO, I said NO to homework and instead wrote a letter, and am now listening to "Ludwig Van Beethoven Superhits."
This was the first CD I ever owned. My mom bought it for me and I listened non-stop. I even recorded the Morris family answering machine greeting over "Ode to Joy."
Once when I was in elementary school, I wanted to prove to my friend Dylan that classical music is not boring. I even tried to be sly and said, "Why don't you like classical music?" Hoping he'd say that it was boring, which he did, and then I played Turkish March from the Ruins of Athens on by great big pink boom box, "Can you say THIS is boring?" ... He didn't appreciate it...
Ode to Joy just played, and it still gives me goosebumps.
No matter what kind of mood I am in, Beethoven always manages to bring me up a couple notches.
... I wonder if I could get Bob to let us play the Ruins of Athens... Hmmm... That and Valdres and I would be forever contented.
I guess that's all I have to say about that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwxZoq8xuHA
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
One of the longest Tuesdays ever... and no classes!
As if I have time to sit down and blog.
What has happened is that I opened my computer to "clean up" (and eventually rewrite) my History paper, but it's easy to be distracted when you have a computer open...
I want to say that I have plunged into chaos, yet for some reason, in spite of my impending doom, I am not freaking out, and I don't even feel inspired enough to whine about how stressed I am.
Today I:
Woke up early and used the light box on the third floor to combat this icky darkness while reading Latin American History text, and "Inside the Cuban Revolution" (Yum). Then I Skyped with Colin, and even though the conversation wasn't that long, that wedge of time turned into at least 3 hours. That included lunch with Kathleen though.
While sitting on the couch reading, I had a shocking realization: I can't be in Vespers because not only do I have class on Thursday during rehearsal, I have class on Friday! At this time I did feel a little bit of doom, especially since I had already been finagling with Doug to get out of History on Thursday (even though I have my presentation and didn't want to). I pushed the Doom aside and met with Professor Lansing about the Chrislock Grant.
I REALLY love the History department. I love the hallway of Memorial where everyone is. I love each professor's office. I love all the books that take up at least one whole wall of their spaces. Today I got to love looking at all of Lansing's books and wondering if he's read them all, and then I saw a little end of a shelf with the books that he assigned last year, and some of the books from 350 this year, and I realized that I already had that little bit of shelf for myself!
After discussing technicalities, and being assured of my intellectual growth (which I really needed) I then made the walk of shame to Bob's office. I knew that Bob would not be too angry, but I still didn't want to have to tell him of my failure. It was rough, but I am no longer in the Vespers Orchestra which has two emotions: Sadness because I had been really excited to play at such a big event, and relief in knowing that I could be sitting through a ridiculously long rehearsal at this very moment, but instead I can blog and get things done.
Tomorrow I will have to tell Steve that I can't do Chamber on Friday. This could be bad.
To make myself feel better-and also to make progress- I spent an hour in a practice room with my beautiful trumpet and Concert Etude. *profanity*
Luckily, I am STARTING to be able to double tongue and not sound awful, but that's after slowing the tempo WAY down from the really cool fast one I start at. Exactly two weeks until my Jury. Can I pull it together???
Sporting my trumpet ring, I went to the library and typed up my very first grant request. I had entirely too much fun, and had to fight the urge to change my facebook status accordingly. Should writing grant requests be fun?
Visser visited after her shift at Open Arms, and that was delightful. I even found the thumbtack she gave me to defend myself last year in my winter coat pocket. Lovely indeed.
From there, I finally got the paper money I needed to FINALLY do laundry-a sorely needed task. And then I ran across the parking lot and up all the Old Main stairs to find "treasurer" Aidan to sign the grant form. I didn't know that Lansing's American West class was so small! There were just about 10 people sitting around pushed together tables ready to discuss their reading! I wished I could have joined. A student questioned my presence, and Lansing told them that I was one of them. I am still smiling.
By this time it was after six, and I realized that I had time to eat dinner, and even though I wasn't hungry, it would probably be wise, so I did. While eating, Matt joined me and we talked enthusiastically about the Movement of the 26th of July, and Fidel Castro, and research, and FRANK PAIS, and History Honors, and so many wonderful things.
Jacqui told us in 280, (or maybe it was in a reading, or it could have been someone from the center for service work and learning) that a lot of finding your place in the "right" major has to do with finding the right people. If you don't like "your" people, that could be a problem. I LOVE my history people. My experiences today are just a couple examples of how GREAT I feel to be part of this "community" (cliche...). Ah...
But this is all part of another blog I plan to write about just how frighteningly beautiful the field of history is! (MY field!)
*deep breath
Well, I have CLEAN dry clothes for tomorrow, only two more chapters to read (3 if I am awake) and some editing to do (a whole new rough draft if I have enough motivation... which won't happen) and I am going to get on that.
What has happened is that I opened my computer to "clean up" (and eventually rewrite) my History paper, but it's easy to be distracted when you have a computer open...
I want to say that I have plunged into chaos, yet for some reason, in spite of my impending doom, I am not freaking out, and I don't even feel inspired enough to whine about how stressed I am.
Today I:
Woke up early and used the light box on the third floor to combat this icky darkness while reading Latin American History text, and "Inside the Cuban Revolution" (Yum). Then I Skyped with Colin, and even though the conversation wasn't that long, that wedge of time turned into at least 3 hours. That included lunch with Kathleen though.
While sitting on the couch reading, I had a shocking realization: I can't be in Vespers because not only do I have class on Thursday during rehearsal, I have class on Friday! At this time I did feel a little bit of doom, especially since I had already been finagling with Doug to get out of History on Thursday (even though I have my presentation and didn't want to). I pushed the Doom aside and met with Professor Lansing about the Chrislock Grant.
I REALLY love the History department. I love the hallway of Memorial where everyone is. I love each professor's office. I love all the books that take up at least one whole wall of their spaces. Today I got to love looking at all of Lansing's books and wondering if he's read them all, and then I saw a little end of a shelf with the books that he assigned last year, and some of the books from 350 this year, and I realized that I already had that little bit of shelf for myself!
After discussing technicalities, and being assured of my intellectual growth (which I really needed) I then made the walk of shame to Bob's office. I knew that Bob would not be too angry, but I still didn't want to have to tell him of my failure. It was rough, but I am no longer in the Vespers Orchestra which has two emotions: Sadness because I had been really excited to play at such a big event, and relief in knowing that I could be sitting through a ridiculously long rehearsal at this very moment, but instead I can blog and get things done.
Tomorrow I will have to tell Steve that I can't do Chamber on Friday. This could be bad.
To make myself feel better-and also to make progress- I spent an hour in a practice room with my beautiful trumpet and Concert Etude. *profanity*
Luckily, I am STARTING to be able to double tongue and not sound awful, but that's after slowing the tempo WAY down from the really cool fast one I start at. Exactly two weeks until my Jury. Can I pull it together???
Sporting my trumpet ring, I went to the library and typed up my very first grant request. I had entirely too much fun, and had to fight the urge to change my facebook status accordingly. Should writing grant requests be fun?
Visser visited after her shift at Open Arms, and that was delightful. I even found the thumbtack she gave me to defend myself last year in my winter coat pocket. Lovely indeed.
From there, I finally got the paper money I needed to FINALLY do laundry-a sorely needed task. And then I ran across the parking lot and up all the Old Main stairs to find "treasurer" Aidan to sign the grant form. I didn't know that Lansing's American West class was so small! There were just about 10 people sitting around pushed together tables ready to discuss their reading! I wished I could have joined. A student questioned my presence, and Lansing told them that I was one of them. I am still smiling.
By this time it was after six, and I realized that I had time to eat dinner, and even though I wasn't hungry, it would probably be wise, so I did. While eating, Matt joined me and we talked enthusiastically about the Movement of the 26th of July, and Fidel Castro, and research, and FRANK PAIS, and History Honors, and so many wonderful things.
Jacqui told us in 280, (or maybe it was in a reading, or it could have been someone from the center for service work and learning) that a lot of finding your place in the "right" major has to do with finding the right people. If you don't like "your" people, that could be a problem. I LOVE my history people. My experiences today are just a couple examples of how GREAT I feel to be part of this "community" (cliche...). Ah...
But this is all part of another blog I plan to write about just how frighteningly beautiful the field of history is! (MY field!)
*deep breath
Well, I have CLEAN dry clothes for tomorrow, only two more chapters to read (3 if I am awake) and some editing to do (a whole new rough draft if I have enough motivation... which won't happen) and I am going to get on that.
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