I CAN'T BELIEVE I GET TO DO THIS!

I am in the middle of a mountaintop experience!  And before I go a step further in describing it, I have to shout out two huge thank you's.


First to my dad who is not alive to hear this.   Many years ago, when I was a junior in high school and had dreamed of becoming a nurse my whole life, he took me aside and told me that I would make a lousy nurse.  I guess as a surgeon with a vast experience of nurses in hospitals, he just could not see someone like me, with all my struggles to keep things picked up, as being an asset to the profession.  This was a little hard to hear.  But his second statement was that maybe I should go and study something I loved. . . .like music.  It's interesting that at that point I never considered music necessarily as something I loved.  It was just something that I enjoyed and that came easy to me.   I didn't even know that you could go to college and study music!   But that is what I did.   And if I had never done that, I would never have ended up having the musical experiences that I have had throughout my life.


And then there's Dave.   Without his generous offering of a free place to stay each and every week that I have to be up here to sing in the choir, none of this would be possible for me.  I would have never sung in London with the London Symphony.  I would have never sung in Carnegie Hall.  I would have never sung any of the concerts of the past 5 years without the gift of this place to stay.


So thank you to Daddy for the suggestion (no offense taken).  And huge thanks  to Dave for the support.  


So here's how my week is going, musically.  On Monday night we met for the first time with Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos.  Be still my heart.  I could just weep when I realize how fortunate I have been in my life to perform with the great conductors of the world.  Yes. . . .the WORLD!  Beginning with Leonard Bernstein when I was a mere 23 years old.  Then there was Lorin Maazel, Pablo Casals (in his 90's at the time, but still able to wave his cello-playing arms!), Antal Dorati, Robert Shaw (OMG, Robert Shaw!), Leonard Slatkin, Christoph Eschenbach, Valery Gergiev, and now Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos. 


Once I decided to be a music major, I began collecting classical music on record albums (I smile just writing that).   I didn't know one orchestra from another, or one conductor from another.  But I know that there were a whole bunch of recordings with Fruhbeck conducting.  Turns out he KNEW Carl Orff, made suggestions to him for phrasing, and thus is one of the world experts on Carmina Burana. . . our piece for our three-night run with the National Symphony this week.


Okay, so it's Monday night.  We get to the Unitarian Church where we will meet the maestro for the first time.  I am front row center, by assignment, a mere couple of feet from the podium.   As I'm waiting, a fellow chorister comes up.  He was with the choir when they sang with Fruhbeck previously.   "How is he?" I asked.   "Well," answered my friend Joe,  "he can be quite brusque and has no sense of humor. . . .all business!   And he has no problem if the choir cannot do what he is asking saying 'Well, apparently this is just not a good enough choir to sing it right.' "   GULP!   GULP AGAIN!  I think we are prepared for this rehearsal, but I personally had to miss two rehearsals for the bike trip last week.  I'm a little apprehensive.


Fruhbeck arrives in a flurry of activity.  He steps to the podium.  This imposing 78 year old man is all business, but polite.  He wastes no time striking the first beat which brings on the opening "O FORTUNA!" out of our mouths.   He has suggestions immediately.  He is interpreting this piece in a completely new way for us.  But he KNEW Carl Orff and we feel we are going to be doing it the RIGHT way in every respect.  Yes he was demanding.  Yes he was intense.  But he was also cute in a teddy bear sort of way, lovely, and very very complimentary of the choir.  We rehearsed that night with no break.  No bathroom time.  No cookies during halftime.  And nobody noticed.  And the best part was that throughout the rehearsal and again at the end, Fruhbeck stated that the choir was outstanding and very well prepared!  Dynamic does not even begin to describe this experience.  I floated out of that rehearsal and, for the umpteen-billionth time in my life, was heard to mutter,  "I can't believe I get to do this."


Last night was the first orchestra rehearsal on stage at the Kennedy Center with a very large National Symphony Orchestra.  And the brilliant Washington Children's Chorus.   It was fun and very hard.  The orchestra had the same challenges as we did to hold this monster piece together through all the fast tempi and changing moods.  Fruhbeck knows this piece so well (including knowing every word of text from memory!) that he does not use the score.  The most challenging thing for him was when we had to stop and he had to consult the score to determine where to tell us to begin from.  All of the musicians are torn between needing to watch these frenetic words and notes, and watching Fruhbeck in order to conform to his tempi.   YIKES!   And the men in the chorus have parts 100 times more difficult than the women.  For anyone who thinks this piece is an old war horse and cliche, they have not done it in this context.   It is scary, and virtuosic and utterly, utterly thrilling.  We will not be "phoning in" this concert.  Plus, I'm guessing we're all burning a bunch of calories!


So I'm preparing myself for the 2nd and last orchestra rehearsal tonight.  But not before I stop blogging, whip out my score, and try to memorize as many tricky German/Latin (as opposed to Italian/Latin which we more frequently sing) phrases as I can so that I can look up as much as possible.  


How do you get to the stage of the Kennedy Center?    Much like you get to Carnegie Hall.   PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!


I can't believe I get to do this!

BUT WAIT. . . . . .THERE'S MORE!

I just hate to do this again.  But I can't help it!


To begin with. . . I made a quick overnight trip to DC for the rehearsal this morning.   I left yesterday in torrential rain.  Was lucky enough to be at Dave's when he was there so we had a really nice dinner out last night.   I got to the rehearsal early this morning, since the whole National Cathedral grounds is still blockaded due to not only the earthquake damage on the spires, but also the big crane which fell into the Herb Cottage.  Parking is iffy, so getting to rehearsal early is a must.   Loved the rehearsal.  This rendition of Carmina Burana is going to be really special.  I know a lot of choral people consider it an old war horse of a piece, but only the notes are fairly simple.  The texts and nuances of getting the piece right are excruciatingly difficult.  And Norman wants to be sure that we are fully prepared for our rehearsal on Monday night with none other than Raphael Fruhbeck de Burgos.   I am really looking forward to that.


Took my dress in to my friend Kathy Marchetti from back in my Orange Hunt teaching days.  She was hands down the best substitute teacher on the planet.  As a teacher if you were going to be gone, you had to get your request in for her months in advance.  And if you were lucky enough to get her, there were no worries about leaving the class.   A treasure in the teaching profession.  But Kathy is also an expert seamstress.   So this year I took her my blasted blue Choral Arts dress which is designed in such a way that even if it fits you, you can't breathe.  I've had enough of that.  So I took it to Kathy and said,  "Do whatever you have to do to make this roomy enough that I can breathe.  There's a little jacket that covers up the top of the dress.  Go to it!"   And she is going to!  This year I will not have to dread the moment when I put that dress on and wonder if the extra helping at dinner will make it impossible for me to perform!   YEA!!!!!!


So in a related story, and to solve the mystery of my first sentence. .  let me say that two days ago I bit the bullet and joined Weight Watchers Online.   It's taken me a couple of days to get it up and running.  But the best part is (here we go again) is that I downloaded an APP for my iPhone.   And now I can keep track of my eating wherever I go.  Last night Dave and I ate at Uno's.   I just downloaded the restaurant and picked off the menu a dish that fell within my points!  In about 30 seconds!   Today as I stopped by Whole Foods in Charlottesville on the way home, I was able to check out all the foods on my iPhone before I bought.  This is a fricken miracle!  This is so easy!   Who knew?


Tonight Jean and I watched 3 more episodes of Mad Men.  She has gotten the programs through Netflix.   We are watching the last 7 episodes of the most recent season:  #4.   So there are some things we don't know about previous situations.  No problem:  I get on my iPhone an bring up all the synopses of any episode I want, or a list of the characters and their backgrounds, and within about 5 minutes we are up to date.


Well it just keeps on going.   But everything everyone said about this gizmo was right.  However, I still am not tethered to it 24/7 like some people. And I'm going to resist.  But in the meantime I'm discovering daily how nice it is to have information at your fingertips.   I never realized how many things I wanted to know before.    So there you have it.   iPhone. . . still good.

BIKE ADVENTURE REDUX

  First of all an apology. . . . to the hordes of people who follow my blog:   I hope that both of you can forgive me for neglecting to post daily.  Actually, I did not neglect this.  I really tried both nights we were out.   I failed for a couple of reasons.   1.  Evenings after a biking day is a free-for-all which takes place in adjoining motel rooms.  Snacks are consumed, stories shared, wine imbibed and then dinner is sought. . .usually after 8:00.  Upon returning from said dinner, more wine is imbibed, more stories shared and finally the collapse into oblivion.  2.  When I did find time and quiet to try to blog, I struggled mightily trying to get the pictures to post.  Still haven't figured it out.  So I was frustrated and frankly. . . poopy.   


So a summary will have to suffice.    This was a great trip.  Perfect weather was predicted for this time up to a day before we left and then that all changed.   The bikers had the option of bailing on the whole trip based on the weather forecast, but decided to give it a shot anyway.   And so we did.


Day 1 - Monday. . we left around 8:00 in the morning and drove until noonish to the starting point right around the North Carolina border.  This was the starting point because that is where the girls stopped last year.   Sandy and I dropped them off (I have a great picture of the 4 of them just before they took off.  . . .you'll have to use your imagination) and we headed south on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Jackie's truck and my car.   The 4 Biker Babes: Jackie, Mary Dudley, Beth and Annie took off with gusto as well.  The goal for the day was to ride approximately 32 miles to Blowing Rock, NC.  where our pre-arranged rooms awaited us  Sandy and I, who were dubbed the "sherpants" for the trip, drove to the inn and unpacked all the luggage into the two rooms.  Then we headed into the little town of Blowing Rock for a lovely lunch.  Meanwhile, back on the Parkway, the bikers were downing the peanut butter sandwiches they had packed.  Sandy and I had time to go to the actual Blowing Rock and check it out. Again. . . I have great pictures.   It is a rock formation which is interesting but underwhelming.  Still it was a fun event.   In the end there was little rain and the bikers arrived close to the exit to Blowing Rock around 6:00 where we were waiting for them.   They were tired for sure, but happy.    It is really a challenge to negotiate the ups and downs of the parkway on a bike.  I'm not sure how (or why) they do it, but I'm pretty impressed.


Day 2 arrived wet and foggy.   We took our time with breakfast and hoped for the best.  Eventually they decided to try leg #2 of the trip from Blowing Rock to Little Switzerland. . . a distance of about 42 miles.  Sandy and I, after seeing them off, spent some time in Boone, NC where we had lunch.  Then we drove to Grandfather Mountain where we drove up to the top.   Sandy managed to make it across the mile high swinging bridge.  I managed to walk about half way across and then back up to the start.    Heights aren't my thing.  And Sandy's neither. Across that spans you could tell she was less than enthusiastic about coming back, but what choice did she have?   Precisely why I chickened out.   Grandfather Mountain is a great place to visit and we took a great half mile hike to the bridge. It was pretty much straight up on rocks, and then we walked it back down.  So we did get some exercise on day 2, but nothing to compare with the bikers.  Sandy and I got to the inn at Little Switzerland an hour in advance of the team.  We unloaded all the bags into the rooms.   They arrived sweaty, tired and happy and the after ride party commenced.   


This morning it was pouring rain, so we bagged the rest of the trip.   Little Switzerland is where we will all start next year.   After packing up, Sandy and I left ahead of them to come home.  We were nearly to Asheville, NC so the ride home was not short.  We stopped in Mt. Airy for lunch.  I always have wanted to stop and see "Mayberry", the birth place of Andy Griffith and model for Mt. Pilot in the Andy Griffith Show.  Apparently Thelma Lou still lives there.  They were getting  ready for their big Mayberry Reunion weekend coming up in two days.   We ate lunch at "Barney's Cafe".   Of course we ordered the $5.00 special:  chicken and dumplings, deviled eggs and spiced apples.  Just like Aunt Bea used to make, I'm sure.  Then we actually indulged in some shopping at several really great shops on the main street.  A consignment shop yielded an outfit and another blouse for me, and a couple of outfits for Sandy.   Then in another shop I found a pair of the very New Balance shoes that I wear for working out, in my size (the only pair left) marked down from $106 to $29.99.   This is a sweet deal!  We loved Mayberry and didn't leave until almost 4:00.   We were unloading the girls' stuff at Jackie's by 7:30.  I was back at Jean's by 8:30.


It was a great two days and I have nothing but admiration to these friends of mine who train for months and then accomplish this feat of athleticism and endurance.  I wish I could say it made me determined to join them on a bike next year. . . but nothing could be farther from the truth.


It was great traveling with Sandy and creating adventures.  The Blue Ridge Parkway is truly a gift of nature and it was a joy to be on those segments of that beautiful thoroughfare.   I look forward to traveling and being a "sherpant" for these four bitchin' biker babes again next year!

BIKING ADVENTURE

Let's make one thing clear.  I am NOT going to be one of the bikers in this adventure.  Biking for me is jumping on my bike with the basket on the front up at Chautauqua.  Helmet-free, I cruise the streets of the grounds, sitting straight up with my retro handlebars, my little bell ready to jingle at anyone who may need warning that I am coming up behind them.   My rides are 10 minutes at best.  Biking in this part of the world is not for me.

But it is for my friends Mary Dudley, Jackie, Annie and Beth.  They ride the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Skyline Drive on a regular basis.  And over the past few years they have been methodically ticking off the entire distance of the Blue Ridge Parkway. . . . . one segment at a time.  I think this year will be the second to last segment for them before they have done the whole way.   The ride this year starts in North Carolina and lasts for 4 days.  And Sandy and I have been drafted to be the drivers.  Our job, as I see it, is to each drive one of the two vehicles (my Honda Civic and Jackie's truck. . . which holds the bikes).  While the 4 Biker Babes are doing their thing, Sandy and I will be bravely staying close to our phones and the vehicles in case anyone has an emergency or spell of exhaustion.  Other than that, we are free to create whatever activities we want.

Sandy, my hiker fanatic, will want to hike the trails in spite of the fact that she was recently attacked by a swarm of hornets while hiking.  She has been on Prednizone (sp?) ever since.   Now here's how Sandy and I are different.  Sandy, will go out hiking again in a heartbeat in spite of this set back.  Her hornet attack has spooked me enough to never want to hike again. . . especially at this time of year when the hornets are particularly angry about something.

So we have made a pact. . . neither will require the other to do that which is uncomfortable for her.   This is friendship at its best.  So we'll just have to see how the days unfold.  I will take MacAIR with me and record what happens.  I can't wait to see what I write. I plan to include pictures if I can get my IPhone and my MacAir to play nice.

We leave at dawn on Monday.  Tomorrow I pack and sleep at Sandy's so we can get an early start.  Never did anything like this before!  Stay tuned.  

Writing on Air!!!

No, literally!  I'm writing on Air.  Capital A!


Okay. that was with the big font, but I think it's too much.  Already I have options I don't think I had before.


Geez. . . .I've digressed before I even started.


So today I wake up and really there's nothing solid on my calendar except that I have concerns.   They are:  1. I have not made contact with Duncan, my builder who returned from Alaska yesterday.  Don't want to be pushy. . . allow him to ease back into work, but really. . . . I need to know about this house project.  2. I have to venture into the depths of my storage areas to find my Choral Arts bag and black performing folder.  Doesn't sound hard, but last time I was in the storage area a saw a mouse.   Now it's a crisis.  I have to solve it.  3.  I don't have my MacAir set up because Dave the computer guy forgot it was Labor Day ad didn't come.  So still no internet access for blogging, etc.  4.  I have made yet another major error in bill paying because my lovely IPhone is actually pretty small for doing banking.  Must get the errors cleaned up.  5. The hair cut I got at Chautauqua is not growing out well, and I'll be out of town most of the rest of the month, and it's hard to get an appointment with Kathleen.  


I know. . . nothing really earth shaking.  In the scheme of life. . .easy issues.  And yet this is what was on my mind when I started my day.


Woke up 15 minutes before the start of my cardio class, and made it there only 5 minutes late. Afterwards,  I decided to just drive to the hair cut place to see what Kathleen's schedule might be between now and the end of the month.   Walked in, she has a color lady in the middle of her waiting time, and she cuts my hair right on the spot.    Concern #5 is history.   This is a good start.


Call Duncan the builder and Dave the computer guy.   No return calls.  I decide to go to the coffee shop for lunch to try to do my blog.  No luck connecting there.   Drive by Duncan's house on the way to the coffee shop. . he's not home.   Drive back by Duncan's house on the way back. . .he's in his office.   We spend a fun 2 hours discussing house plans.  He will rework the plans I have based on our conversation today and my wishes and dreams.  By the time I am back in the fold here on Oct. 2 he should have 3 choices of plans for me.   Given time to get permits, construction should begin mid-October.  Concern #1 is taken care of.


I take myself and my rat poison to my storage areas.  One in the back yard of my crappy little house and one at the Afton Storage facility.  I gingerly open my backyard area.   I have visions of snakes and mice.    Nothing.   All seems as I have left it.  My Choral Arts stuff is not there, so now I venture to storage area #2.  Open it gingerly, lay some mice traps with bait, and immediately spy the bag I'm looking for way in the back.  I bravely climb up over the furniture and rescue the bag.  I get out with what I came for.  Not a mouse in sight.  Another over-reaction on my part?  I think so.   Concern #2 is no more.


Back at Jean's where I'm staying,  I walk ALL THE WAY ACROSS THE STREET to the credit union where they fix all my financial mistakes with smiles on their faces.  Actually those people always seem to break into laughter when I walk in the door. Glad I can be so entertaining.   Concern #4 is a thing of the past.


Buoyed up by the remarkable success of the day, I buck myself up and take the box with the MacAir off the closet shelf.  Within about 20 minutes I'm answering my first email.  And then the blog.   Concern #3. . . . gone.   Dave can help me input the stuff from my other computer at another time.  But here I am. . up and running.   Writing on Air!!!


It's been a very good day!

24 HOURS OF MAGIC!

But before I get to that. . . . . . When Patti and I were getting ready to tour the Screen Gems company, I looked at my phone and realized that the date was 9/10/11!!   So I calculated that at 12:13 pm it would be 9/10/11/12:13.   So I set the alarm on my phone to let me know when that happened.

Well, the tour started at noon, and we were asked to silence our phones.  Which I did.  It bears mentioning that the crowd that showed up to tour the television/movie studios was a decidedly different clientele than the ones that we had encountered at the historic mansions the day before.  As a matter of fact, at the mansions the word "crowd" would not have even applied.   Even "group" was stretching it.   So picture about 50 or more One Tree Hill fanatics (another reason why it is reasonable to assume that I was the oldest person on the tour) crowding behind the guide to try to be first to enter the set for this show.  Well, shortly after the group started forming outside the set, my alarm went off.   (Note to self:  putting the phone on "vibrate" does not silence the alarm.)  There were the prerequisite dirty looks from the others as I fumbled for my phone ("Oh yeah, like you young whippersnappers never had YOUR phone go off before!!!!").  So in an effort to justify my faux pas, I sheepishly announced:   "For the record, it is now 9/10/11 - 12:13!!!"  Everyone looked at me like I was demented (well, I WAS the oldest!).  Patti started to inch away from me so that people would not realize we were together.   NOBODY got it.   But Patti speculated that later in the day they would realize what I was saying and bemoan that they had not been more appreciative of the moment or my efforts. . . . .Or maybe that wouldn't have happend!


ANYHOO. . . . . . I left Patti's around 8:30 yesterday morning, and had a relatively uneventful drive to Dave's. . . . 7 hours almost exactly.   I saw Dave briefly, unloaded the car, and headed for Casey's house in Herndon.  The first Redskins game of the season was on, and there was no way Casey was going to leave for DC until the end of that game.   I arrived around half-time, and we had a great time watching the Redskins beat the Giants!   New players look great, Rex Grossman was impressive as the new starting quarterback. . . and the Giants went down.  Very satisfying!  

We decided to drive to DC instead of using Metro.   We parked at the hotel.  Casey had gotten us two rooms at the Crowne Plaza Hamilton. . . . only about 6-8 blocks from the Reagan Building where the lecture was going to be the next day.

We checked in and strolled the streets for awhile.  Then went back to the hotel and got a seat outside on the street to have a late dinner.   We shut that place down and then retired to the bar where the end of the Dallas game was on.    In what certainly was a Washington, DC miracle, Dallas lost to the Jets.  Greatest football night ever!   Casey and I talked and talked and laughed.  What good company he is!

We were up this morning in time to walk down to the Reagan Building and grab a quick breakfast in the food court before going to the amphitheater to see Paul Farmer speak about his work in Haiti, and his book Haiti After the Hurricane.  He was great.   I enjoyed seeing him so much at Chautauqua as the very first lecturer of the summer.  That Casey took my word about him, and got us the tickets and took time off work to go with me is the most gratifying part of all of this.

After the talk we went back and checked out of the hotel.   We had a wonderful lunch at a new restaurant in Herndon and then I drove him to Dulles to catch a flight for Colorado where he is working in Boulder for the next couple of days.

A glorious time with my son.   I'll hang out here tomorrow before my Choral Arts rehearsal.  Hope I can have lunch with Chad tomorrow.   Then I'm going home to hopefully meet with my builder.   I'm so anxious to get this house started!

THE OLDEST PERSON ON THE TOUR!

Oh yeah.  .. . .that's me.    Today Patti and I took the tour at Screen Gems studios where the show One Tree Hill is filmed, among others and lots of movies too.   It was a large tour group, but apparently I was the oldest person there.   I have never watched One Tree Hill which is the fictional name for the community but is really Wilmington.  But we got to go on several sets including the house of one of the couples in the series.  It was great seeing this completely non-functioning, yet beautiful house set, complete with patio and pool in the "back yard"  all inside the studio building.   I need to Netflix this show now since I've seen where it is filmed.

We saw three different sets for this show, and then went to the screening room to see a montage of all the things Screen Gems has produced.   Several people (all young) on the tour were fanatical fans of longstanding of this show, and just oooohhhhhed and ahhhhhhhed at the sets.

We ate lunch in the shadow of the Battleship North Carolina (not at the studio!) and then went to see the movie Sarah's Key which was excellent and fairly true to the book from what I remember of the book.

Dinner at one of the clubhouses of the St. James Plantation community where Patti and Larry live.  After dinner we went outside to sit by the firepit and drink kahlua and cream.  Such a lovely ending to a beautiful visit.  

Tomorrow I hit the road early (with half of a pizza left over from tonight to sustain me) and head back up to Casey's.   Hard to believe that tomorrow night I'll be in a hotel in DC awaiting the Paul Fisher lecture Monday morning.  

Loved hearing from Chautauqua friends today. .  Susan and Betty!   Miss you guys!    

THERE ARE PLACES I REMEMBER. . . . .

Back when Casey was in high school and our relationship was iffy at best,  Patti befriended me and got me through it.  We were band moms together.  Every Friday night I would go to her  house and we had the same routine.   Larry would bring home Chinese carry-out for dinner and then he would clean up the dishes.  Patti and I would dip our hands into hot wax, put plastic bags over our hands, and then watch Providence, drinking our Kendall Jackson Chardonnay with our hands in bags.   As the show came on each Friday evening, we would sing along to the theme:  In My Life. . .    There are places I remember all my life, though some have changed.  Some forever, not for better.  Some have gone, and some remain.  All these places have their moments, with lovers and friends I still can recall.  Some are dead and some are living.  In My Life,  I've loved them all. Sometime during the show we would peel the now cold wax off our hands and roll it into balls until we were tired of doing that.  Those were oases of fun and friendship during  a swath of weeks and months that for me were very painful.

And now I'm visiting Patti and Larry at their lovely home at St. James Plantation near Southport, North Carolina.  I drove down Wednesday morning after my first Choral Arts rehearsal on Tuesday night.  The significant thing about the journey is that I had to travel through huge bands of heavy rain and thunder and lightening.  Later that night we watched on tv as that same system created devastating floods in PA.   With my new IPhone I was able to keep track of the radar so that I knew when to pull off, and what routes to take to miss the worst weather.  As someone who has always been phobic about being on the road during severe storms, this one feature alone is worth the price of the phone!   I arrived safe and sound, and not the least bit rattled by my weather adventures.

And what greeted me here was low-humidity, warm sunny temps.  Sitting on Patti's deck drinking wine and looking through the southern pines to the golf course had the memory of the bad weather receding by the minute into my distant memory.

Today we did Wilmington, NC.   We toured two historical homes:  Poplar Grove Plantation and Bellamy Mansion.  Both about the same vintage  . . one a huge working peanut farm/plantation, the other an "in town" mansion.  Pre-civil war, but the war affected the lives of the people on the grounds of both places.  Fascinating tours.   It was fun to note the similarities and differences of the two homes.   In between these tours we ate lunch at a restaurant called Elijah's overlooking the Cape Fear river in Wilmington.  Of course the required wandering around the shops and drinking ice coffee followed before our second home tour.

Tomorrow: movie day.  In the morning we're going to take the movie studio tour in Wilmington to see behind the scenes of production.  MANY movies are made in Wilmington!  I absolutely LOVE anything that shows me the behind the scenes action so I'm really excited about this.  Then we're going to see the movie: Sarah's Key,  from the novel which both of us have read.

Good times at Patti's.  As usual.  I'm so blessed with wonderful friends.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN!

 I promise to have only passing references to my new technology today.   I'm in DC waiting for the first Choral Arts rehearsal.  I drove in lots of rain due to Tropical Storm Lee.  It's too bad that we're getting so much rain and Texas needs it so badly.

Tomorrow I head for Southport, NC  and 4 fun-filled days with Patti.   It's been too long since we goofed around down there and I'm looking forward to whatever we end up doing.

Then back to DC to meet Casey on Sunday.   We're going to stay at the Willard Hotel in DC on Sunday night so that we can walk to the Paul Farmer lecture on Monday morning.  I know that during the lecture I will start having guilt feelings for having splurged on the Willard when there is Aids medication needed so badly in Rwanda.   But I have always wanted to stay there, and Casey was all in when I mentioned it.  I'll be dropping him at the airport afterwards for another business trip.   I'll return to Nelson County after next week's Choral Arts rehearsal.

Such a lovely life full of family and friends.   I don't miss Chautauqua at all.   Also looking forward to meeting with my builder when I get home next week.  Would LOVE for this house project to get started.  Stay tuned. 

HOLY TECHNOLOGY, BATMAN!

Yesterday I left DC via I95 so that I could stop in Stafford, Va and pick up my new MAC AIR computer.  The model I wanted, which was on sale at Best Buy, was sold out all over the state except Stafford, which luckily is on my way home if I go that way.   When I went to customer service to pick it up, the woman comes up to me with one little box, the size of the boxes we used to use to wrap blouses or shirts as gifts.  I said,  "That's it?"  And she said,  "Yep!"   I remember days of yesteryear, computer-buying-wise, hauling out giant towers for the computer,  a huge box containing the monitor, a box with the keyboard, and a bag full of cords and plugs and flotsam and jetsam that went with the system.  Unpacking that behemoth at home was an unpackaging nightmare!  The room would end up full of cardboard and foam and boxes and stuff that got lost in the shuffle!   So how the HELL can this little box be the whole thing?????  And yet it is.   In the spirit of full disclosure, there was also a second, smallish box containing the Microsoft Office software that will be installed into the wafer thin computer.  Between this and my IPhone, my head is exploding with the wonder of it all.

I made it into the choir!  Norman told me on the spot.  It was a little odd in that two new auditioners, a young man and a young woman, were there. . . next in line, and listening to my audition.  Now that would have completely flummoxed me in the past, but armed with my new information about Mindfulness,  I just took a deep breath, reminded myself that I was already of the calibre to be in the choir, could only do as well as I could do, and that I was going to enjoy the audition.  And I really did.  And he not only told me that he was eager to see me on Tuesday, but went up to the two newbies and said that he does NOT tell people when they come in to audition if they are in the choir, but that I was a long time, loyal member of the choir and that is why he told me.  That felt pretty good.     Afterwards I met Dave at Cafe Deluxe for a wonderful dinner outside on Wisconsin Avenue.  After the quiet of Chautauqua it was a little unnerving having three different groups of police cars go screaming down the street, lights aflash.  But that's DC.

I had the opportunity to check out the earthquake damage to the National Cathedral.  And though you can definitely see the sheared-off spires in question, no longer pointed. . .still there was no major structural damage and what happened can be fixed.   But I love that building so much and I feel almost personally close to it since I get to walk in its shadow every week during the singing year.  So I was a little verklempt at seeing it with its boo-boos.   I snapped pics with my phone, but with no telephoto lens, it is hard to distinguish the damage from the pictures I got.  I bet the next generation of IPhones will have telephoto lenses!

Saw the movie The Help last night, and Sandy and I are going to another movie tonight. . . can't remember which one.  But you know me and my movies!    Stay tuned.

IPhone Fun!

Oh God. . . this is such a cool piece of technology!

Best part about it for me. . . . I can get in touch with my boys almost instantaneously.

I'm in DC for my audition tonight.   If I don't make the choir this year, I will have to completely reinvent this year.  Which I am willing to do!  On the other hand they have already called and asked me to be section leader.  Hope I don't blow it!

So. . . I had lunch with Chad at Wegman's in Fairfax. . . all arranged by text messaging!   We had a blast.  I had sushi. .. of course.   Chad showed me a new "app" called Hey Tell.  You can download it for free.  Then if you prearrange it with your contacts, you can then record your voice sending a short message through the phone line.  Then the person gets notification, and checks it just like you would check a text.  But they hear your voice.   And the best part  is. . .it's free.  Doesn't count towards messaging minutes.   Very cool.  Who knew????

Also. .  as I was preparing to leave this morning, I was thinking about a former teacher friend I need to get in touch with up here.  So my old-school brain was hoping I could find a phone book once I got up here.  But then I got on my IPhone, downloaded the free white pages app, then looked up my friend, then put her number into my contacts.  I'm going to call her the minute I finish here!

I'm still planning to not be connected all the time.  Wish me luck.   Now I'm going to go study my Mindfulness book until I no doubt fall asleep - not that it's not interesting.   I could be reading anything in the middle of the afternoon and fall asleep.  It's just how it is.

Home tomorrow, stopping in Stafford to pick up my new Mac Air, which is only available at the Stafford Best Buy. . having sold out everywhere else in the state!  Glad Stafford is on my way home!   Then I can trash my laptop once and for all.  I'm writing this from Dave's!    It will be good to be completely hooked up!