So today wasn't the best of days. Monday was great. It was my last Monday of school ever, and that prospect was just sooo exciting. Tuesday wasn't as good. Wednesday was better (Maria was back, and we went to the park and threw a frisbee at Mateo and company who doesn't have a codename...he can be Bama Boy), but today was teary. Part of the overflow of emotions might be due to my sleepiness. I stayed up a little later than usual the night before. And then there was a bunch of other random stuff and so I was pretty much Debbie Downer all day.
It didn't help at all that as I was coming home, I stopped to fill my dad's borrowed van up with gas. As I was pulling out, there was this nice thump and accompanying crunch: I hit something. And now there's this gorgeous red paint and scratches all on the driver's side of the vehicle. My parents are seriously unhappy with me right now. I got lectured on watching the mirrors and being aware of my surroundings (and the size of my vehicle). My mom said "What if that had been a little kid?"
And now I am going to subject myself to the second part of the math placement test for Auburn, even though I don't intend to take a math class (keep your fingers crossed!) and I already failed the algebra portion (I got a 68%....oops).
After the math test, I might play with my little sister or watch a movie or something. One redeeming factor about today: Chero signed my yearbook, and if Mateo followed through like he told me he would, then he signed it too. I also had my piano lesson and my teacher complimented the musicality of one of my pieces. :) YAY! I have a recital coming up and I'm excited. So there's some good news to counterbalance the less-pleasant aspects of today.
We graduate a week from today.
*The title of this post is a line from a song, "Breathe into Me" by Red. Good song. :) I also like their song "Already Over", if you wanna check it out.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Friday, May 14, 2010
(psst...this is my 50th post)
So last night was our school choir banquet. I was voted Teacher's Pet. Yay. Santa Maria was voted Helping Hands. My sister won Miss Sophomore and wasn't there to accept the award.
Anyway, so I think the banquet invaded my dreams. At least, memories of All-State with Santa Maria did. But instead of choir, we were in an All-State band (which doesn't make any sense because I can't play any band-like instruments).
I was late to rehearsal and didn't know the songs or what instrument I was expected to play. At first, no one that I knew was there. I was handed this large, white funnel with a motor at the base and ushered to the back row where a handful of other kids were wielding like devices. The band director began the song and I watched the other kids in my row out of the corner of my eye to see what I was supposed to be doing.
We didn't get very far in the song before the director stopped us. I quickly turned to the other kids for advice. "You have to flip the switch to turn it on," they said.
"Which switch? It's not labeled. Which way is on?"
"And you have to sway back and forth. That's how you get the vibrato."
I felt like a total idiot, pretending to play an instrument I didn't know the name of.
At some point, I became aware that Maria was there, and she knew what she was doing. I resolved to ask her for help later. Then Mito showed up and informed me that I wasn't wearing the proper garb. I had to buy one of the uniforms or I wouldn't be allowed to perform with the orchestra. So I looked around and everybody was wearing these muddy orange tunics. I asked where I could get one, and they told me to follow Mateo, who apparently had just left to buy his. But he wouldn't wait for me when I shouted to him, and then I lost him in the crowd. Then I couldn't find Maria or Mito to ask for directions.
Anyway, that was my dream! It wasn't quite a nightmare, but it was definitely an anxiety dream. I hate the idea of an unprepared performance, but I have lived this fear many times.
Choir concerts. Taking AP Tests. My Auburn music audition.
I hate feeling like a fraud.
So I'm going to go study for biology now, so hopefully I won't have yet another failed performance.
Ooh, by the way, I got my yearbook! I'm on the bottom corner of the back cover! I look all stoney-faced and serious, haha.
Anyway, so I think the banquet invaded my dreams. At least, memories of All-State with Santa Maria did. But instead of choir, we were in an All-State band (which doesn't make any sense because I can't play any band-like instruments).
I was late to rehearsal and didn't know the songs or what instrument I was expected to play. At first, no one that I knew was there. I was handed this large, white funnel with a motor at the base and ushered to the back row where a handful of other kids were wielding like devices. The band director began the song and I watched the other kids in my row out of the corner of my eye to see what I was supposed to be doing.
We didn't get very far in the song before the director stopped us. I quickly turned to the other kids for advice. "You have to flip the switch to turn it on," they said.
"Which switch? It's not labeled. Which way is on?"
"And you have to sway back and forth. That's how you get the vibrato."
I felt like a total idiot, pretending to play an instrument I didn't know the name of.
At some point, I became aware that Maria was there, and she knew what she was doing. I resolved to ask her for help later. Then Mito showed up and informed me that I wasn't wearing the proper garb. I had to buy one of the uniforms or I wouldn't be allowed to perform with the orchestra. So I looked around and everybody was wearing these muddy orange tunics. I asked where I could get one, and they told me to follow Mateo, who apparently had just left to buy his. But he wouldn't wait for me when I shouted to him, and then I lost him in the crowd. Then I couldn't find Maria or Mito to ask for directions.
Anyway, that was my dream! It wasn't quite a nightmare, but it was definitely an anxiety dream. I hate the idea of an unprepared performance, but I have lived this fear many times.
Choir concerts. Taking AP Tests. My Auburn music audition.
I hate feeling like a fraud.
So I'm going to go study for biology now, so hopefully I won't have yet another failed performance.
Ooh, by the way, I got my yearbook! I'm on the bottom corner of the back cover! I look all stoney-faced and serious, haha.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Ambitions
An Eclectic List of the things I want to accomplish in life:
1. Learn to play the guitar.
2. Compose a Sonata.
3. Perform a piano concerto (specifically Ravel's Piano Concerto in G Major).
4. Actually finish a story. Doesn't have to be long or published, just has to be finished.
5. Adopt.
6. Learn all of Schumann's "Scenes from Childhood".
7. Go on a mission trip to El Salvador.
8. Pay for a complete stranger's college.
9. Own a grand piano. Must be black and shiny.
10. Own a log cabin by a lake.
11. Watch snow fall from the warmth and comfort of a cafe in Canada.
12. Read a Spanish novel and comprehend most of it.
13. Learn to play the violin.
14. Temporarily dye my hair black, with dark dark purple streaks, and feathers woven in. :) But only temporarily!
15. Revisit this list one day and be able to check some items off.
1. Learn to play the guitar.
2. Compose a Sonata.
3. Perform a piano concerto (specifically Ravel's Piano Concerto in G Major).
4. Actually finish a story. Doesn't have to be long or published, just has to be finished.
5. Adopt.
6. Learn all of Schumann's "Scenes from Childhood".
7. Go on a mission trip to El Salvador.
8. Pay for a complete stranger's college.
9. Own a grand piano. Must be black and shiny.
10. Own a log cabin by a lake.
11. Watch snow fall from the warmth and comfort of a cafe in Canada.
12. Read a Spanish novel and comprehend most of it.
13. Learn to play the violin.
14. Temporarily dye my hair black, with dark dark purple streaks, and feathers woven in. :) But only temporarily!
15. Revisit this list one day and be able to check some items off.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
For the Record
We got our caps and gowns. We already had Senior Recognition this past week. It was an incredibly long ceremony.
Tomorrow is my last real day of school before our exams start in earnest. This week is English and Math. I'm not too worried about either one. I'm doomed to fail math anyway, so...
I have contacted two girls who will attend Auburn with me and both plan on studying music as well. They are very nice and we're currently sending messages back and forth on Facebook with random facts about ourselves. I'm sincerely hoping they'll become good friends. It's going to be incredibly hard going from being surrounded by a few, very close-knit friends to being engulfed in a swarm of strangers. It usually takes me a while to really consider someone a friend, anyway, so I'm trying to get a head start. We'll see if anything comes of it.
And, Winston, my beloved car, died. I forgot to blog about it. I miss him, yes, but it was his time. He lived a full and happy life of 15 years and is now out of his misery. You see, he'd been battling an oil leak for a long time now. Poor fellow. He died on the 21st of April, I believe.
I think I need to stop naming and personifying inanimate objects. My mother was relaying the tragedy over the phone to the mother of a friend of mine, who exclaimed in horror, "What? Who died?"
Tomorrow is my last real day of school before our exams start in earnest. This week is English and Math. I'm not too worried about either one. I'm doomed to fail math anyway, so...
I have contacted two girls who will attend Auburn with me and both plan on studying music as well. They are very nice and we're currently sending messages back and forth on Facebook with random facts about ourselves. I'm sincerely hoping they'll become good friends. It's going to be incredibly hard going from being surrounded by a few, very close-knit friends to being engulfed in a swarm of strangers. It usually takes me a while to really consider someone a friend, anyway, so I'm trying to get a head start. We'll see if anything comes of it.
And, Winston, my beloved car, died. I forgot to blog about it. I miss him, yes, but it was his time. He lived a full and happy life of 15 years and is now out of his misery. You see, he'd been battling an oil leak for a long time now. Poor fellow. He died on the 21st of April, I believe.
I think I need to stop naming and personifying inanimate objects. My mother was relaying the tragedy over the phone to the mother of a friend of mine, who exclaimed in horror, "What? Who died?"
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
"Miss Nina"
I haven't honestly had too much experience babysitting, but I have tested Murphy's Law time and again: if anything can go wrong, it will. So, here are some of my babysitting horror stories.
I was watching four little boys. Two of them, I'd babysat before and they were very well-behaved children. The other two...not so much. The mother had barely left when all four of them charged into the master bedroom and began jumping up and down on the bed. I rushed in and shooed them off. I was replacing pillows when I heard the crash. They'd broken a vase. Her grandmother had given it to her.
On another day, the same four boys decided to play in the backyard. I'd been with them up until I offered to fetch Popsicles for everyone. I didn't make it to the fridge before they burst in the door after me, the youngest boy screaming. All four of them were yelling hysterically and I had no idea what had happened until I looked out the window and saw the swing set on it's side. His brother had been pushing him in the swing and had somehow managed to tip it, dumping the youngest into a thorny rosebush. The poor little boy had thorns all in his arm. Eventually, we patched him up and I placated them with the previously promised Popsicles. I still had to explain to the parents why his Green Goblin suit was mangled and torn.
Once, my sister and I offered to babysit four children for free, to give their parents a night off. They were adorable and we had so much fun watching them. However, as we were reading a bedtime story, Will tugged on my sleeve and pointed to the fireplace, whispering, "Can I go get a baggie to put that in?" "That" was a hairy juicy spider clinging to the bricks at about eye level. My sister and I armed ourself with a tennis shoe and a broom, debating who should take the first swing. Just as I summoned my courage, let out a war cry, and whacked at the beast, their parents walked in. What they saw were their four children rooting us on from the couch as the babysitters they had hired attacked their fireplace. It turns out, they do not kill bugs found in their house. They calmly and humanely catch them to be returned to their natural habitat outside.
My co-pastor hired me once. His wife was singing in a concert that night, and he'd been called on last minute to preach and so was preparing his sermon. Their children were fun and well behaved. The older sister helped me out a lot. After bath time, though, the three-year-old little boy ventured on down the hall while I drained the tub and put the bath toys away. I had forgotten to dry his feet; the hall was tile. A wail filled the house. His sister and I were by his side in seconds. He'd slipped and hit his chin on the corner of the baseboard. I told his sister to go call their dad. While I mopped his chin, I kept telling the whimpering little boy "You're doing so great. Look at you! You're so brave." I didn't know what else to say. He had to get 6 stitches. His mom was alerted that her son was in the emergency room during intermission; her solo was next. The following Sunday, the whole ordeal found it's way into the sermon. Our co-pastor started tearing up. Kindly, the family omitted my name from any public accounts of the accident.
Finally, while I was babysitting for another family, I was bored. The two little girls were asleep already and I hadn't brought anything to do. Since I couldn't figure out how to shut the tv off anyway, I decided to channel surf. I happened across a movie we'd watched in my English class, Shakespeare's "Love's Labour's Lost". And what is on the tv when their mother gets home? Steamy music while the camera pans up a fishnet-clad leg, red skirt swirling. "Uh...hi... How do you turn this off?"
It really was Shakespeare, I promise!
I was watching four little boys. Two of them, I'd babysat before and they were very well-behaved children. The other two...not so much. The mother had barely left when all four of them charged into the master bedroom and began jumping up and down on the bed. I rushed in and shooed them off. I was replacing pillows when I heard the crash. They'd broken a vase. Her grandmother had given it to her.
On another day, the same four boys decided to play in the backyard. I'd been with them up until I offered to fetch Popsicles for everyone. I didn't make it to the fridge before they burst in the door after me, the youngest boy screaming. All four of them were yelling hysterically and I had no idea what had happened until I looked out the window and saw the swing set on it's side. His brother had been pushing him in the swing and had somehow managed to tip it, dumping the youngest into a thorny rosebush. The poor little boy had thorns all in his arm. Eventually, we patched him up and I placated them with the previously promised Popsicles. I still had to explain to the parents why his Green Goblin suit was mangled and torn.
Once, my sister and I offered to babysit four children for free, to give their parents a night off. They were adorable and we had so much fun watching them. However, as we were reading a bedtime story, Will tugged on my sleeve and pointed to the fireplace, whispering, "Can I go get a baggie to put that in?" "That" was a hairy juicy spider clinging to the bricks at about eye level. My sister and I armed ourself with a tennis shoe and a broom, debating who should take the first swing. Just as I summoned my courage, let out a war cry, and whacked at the beast, their parents walked in. What they saw were their four children rooting us on from the couch as the babysitters they had hired attacked their fireplace. It turns out, they do not kill bugs found in their house. They calmly and humanely catch them to be returned to their natural habitat outside.
My co-pastor hired me once. His wife was singing in a concert that night, and he'd been called on last minute to preach and so was preparing his sermon. Their children were fun and well behaved. The older sister helped me out a lot. After bath time, though, the three-year-old little boy ventured on down the hall while I drained the tub and put the bath toys away. I had forgotten to dry his feet; the hall was tile. A wail filled the house. His sister and I were by his side in seconds. He'd slipped and hit his chin on the corner of the baseboard. I told his sister to go call their dad. While I mopped his chin, I kept telling the whimpering little boy "You're doing so great. Look at you! You're so brave." I didn't know what else to say. He had to get 6 stitches. His mom was alerted that her son was in the emergency room during intermission; her solo was next. The following Sunday, the whole ordeal found it's way into the sermon. Our co-pastor started tearing up. Kindly, the family omitted my name from any public accounts of the accident.
Finally, while I was babysitting for another family, I was bored. The two little girls were asleep already and I hadn't brought anything to do. Since I couldn't figure out how to shut the tv off anyway, I decided to channel surf. I happened across a movie we'd watched in my English class, Shakespeare's "Love's Labour's Lost". And what is on the tv when their mother gets home? Steamy music while the camera pans up a fishnet-clad leg, red skirt swirling. "Uh...hi... How do you turn this off?"
It really was Shakespeare, I promise!
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Ah, rainy days...
Well, I decided to be lazy today. I haven't done any homework. I slept in. I sort've worked on some musical stuff and piddled around on the piano but I didn't get much done.
I did, however, read this morning.
That is right, I read a book! For fun! It was wonderful! My mom had the back door open even though it was raining, and so I had the wonderful soundtrack of a storm to accompany the moment. I was able to completely eliminate reality for a few hours. Absolutely blissful feeling.
I want to write now, but I'm uninspired, so I comprised and blogged instead. This is writing, right? It doesn't require the same degree of creativity, but it counts.
Ooh, and I saw my great-grandmother this past weekend. She is settled in the nursing home. I'm not sure she knows where she is. I'm not sure she's aware of much of anything. She seems to spend most of her time babbling happily. My grandma brought her chocolate. I played some hymns for her, but I don't think she really noticed. She claps her hands when she's happy and chants "sweet sweet sweet!"
Sweet sweet sweet.
I did, however, read this morning.
That is right, I read a book! For fun! It was wonderful! My mom had the back door open even though it was raining, and so I had the wonderful soundtrack of a storm to accompany the moment. I was able to completely eliminate reality for a few hours. Absolutely blissful feeling.
I want to write now, but I'm uninspired, so I comprised and blogged instead. This is writing, right? It doesn't require the same degree of creativity, but it counts.
Ooh, and I saw my great-grandmother this past weekend. She is settled in the nursing home. I'm not sure she knows where she is. I'm not sure she's aware of much of anything. She seems to spend most of her time babbling happily. My grandma brought her chocolate. I played some hymns for her, but I don't think she really noticed. She claps her hands when she's happy and chants "sweet sweet sweet!"
Sweet sweet sweet.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
Well, it is spring break. I am swamped with homework. Blegh.
Right now it looks like I will not be able to sing in what would have been my last concert with my church choir. Some relatives from afar are going to be in Florida, so I think we're going to congregate with the rest of the family in Orlando to see them. This troubles me slightly, because our exams pick up the next week, but the first few exams are not as intimidating as later exams.
I would rather be selfish and demand we stay home so I can study. And sing.
I also want to be selfish and say, forget homework. Forget responsibilities and promises. Why should I keep my end of the bargain if the vast majority of the rest of the world hasn't kept theirs? My teacher was supposed to help me with this paper.
I'm supposed to be studying for my exams right now, not being consumed with other work. Grr.
I can't wait for the summer.
Right now it looks like I will not be able to sing in what would have been my last concert with my church choir. Some relatives from afar are going to be in Florida, so I think we're going to congregate with the rest of the family in Orlando to see them. This troubles me slightly, because our exams pick up the next week, but the first few exams are not as intimidating as later exams.
I would rather be selfish and demand we stay home so I can study. And sing.
I also want to be selfish and say, forget homework. Forget responsibilities and promises. Why should I keep my end of the bargain if the vast majority of the rest of the world hasn't kept theirs? My teacher was supposed to help me with this paper.
I'm supposed to be studying for my exams right now, not being consumed with other work. Grr.
I can't wait for the summer.
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