You Know You're in a Pit Orchestra When...

As most of the people who know me already know, SUU Opera is performing the Mikado this week and we've had a couple of rehearsals in the last few days to prepare for it.


"The flowers that bloom in the spring tra-la!" has been stuck in my head since Saturday. Along with my part from "Our Great Mikado, Virtuous Man." 

Yeah...


Here are the five things I have issues with in a pit orchestra:


1. My butt and back kill after the first rehearsal and every time I sit down for more than twenty minutes after then I feel it! This lasts until a day or two after closing night...
2. Sunlight anyone? I can only take so many hours in the "pit." Hello? I'm DOWN HERE!!!!
3. I feel like fresh air is the only thing that can save me from the almost tangible aura of sweat, breath and other bodily functions. 
4. Watching various string players play with their mouths slightly agape, looking everywhere but at the conductor and playing everything too long and half a beat late.
5. The rehearsal schedule ruins my evening social life. If I had one, anyway... :)


Here are the five things I love about pit orchestra:
1. (This is really cheesy) Being an important part of a major production.
2. Looking across the orchestra and seeing at least five or six close friends. Many opportunities to have silent conversations in between playing about making a silly mistake or how awesome something sounded.
3. Knowing that the French Horn player chuckling at the third time I've botched a passage is actually laughing at my facial reaction because she's sitting that close to me.
4. The look on Gerry's face when something is going wrong... and when something goes right.
5. Occassionally glancing back at the Trombone and Tuba player, both of whom are doubled over in silent laughter about... drool....


Anyway -- COME TO THE OPERA!


You know you're part of a pit when you fall asleep with the music still stuck in your head...

We're Not Married

Before I begin, I would like to apologize for the length of my last blog post. I was bored, and I got going on flute/piccolo playing. My bad...

So - it all started when at some point last semester Brandon and I needed to go over to the Education Department and talk about setting up his placement at Barstow High School.

We had just turned in graduation paperwork, and block application, and in my case education department application, and we were tired of being treated like crap. So on the way over to Old Main, Brandon was like "If we run into any problems, I think I'm going to lose it!"

Now... let's be honest here. That's not a good idea, so I tried to keep the reign of Brandon's temper. We approach Dr. Bowler's office a few minutes later and he's busy, so we wait, somewhat awkwardly, in the hall. He noticed our presence and barks, "What do you need?"

And it's at this point that Brandon starts losing it. But instead of exploding, he can't really form a coherent sentence - so I talk for him. The information is communicated that it's about student teaching placement in California. And Dr. Bowler gets slightly grumpy and says, "Ooo, California isn't good."

Brandon starts to get all puffed up, and I have to calm him down before we were actually invited into Dr. Bowler's office. I calm him down by rubbing his arm, telling him everything's going to be okay.

And we walked in. One thing led to another and it slips out that Brandon would be student teaching with my dad. It is at this point that Dr. Bowler says "Well, you can't do that. It's a conflict of interest."

Then we all stand there, with our mouths slightly agape. Then... it dawns on Brandon.

"We're not married!"

Then Dr. Bowler looks surprised as he says, "Well, that's not what you gave me..."

So - ever since then, everybody thinks that Brandon and I are either related, dating, or married. None of them are true.

He's just the big brother I wish I never had...

The Case of the Sore Buttocks

If a kid asks where rain comes from, I think a cute thing to tell him is "God is crying." And if he asks why God is crying, another cute thing to tell him is "probably because of something you did."


I have a theory -- I must make God laugh. For yesterday morning He was the only person who saw what happened to me! 


What kind of weather would that translate to, by the way? Cedar City weather? When it snows in the morning and warms up by Noon? If that's not showing a sense of humor I don't know what does...


BUT - back to yesterday morning.... I work at Cedar Middle School three mornings a week this semester with Allan Lee and David Palmer. I help out the Varsity Band and get great experience as a future music educator. I also realize things like the fact that I kind of have issues with the age 6th graders are. And maybe this issues are kind of severe and I need to work them out before I accept a Middle School gig which is probably looming sometime in my future...


Anyway! I need to wear professional attire, which includes dress shoes. Dress shoes have AWFUL traction. Horrendous. Almost non-existent.  - But these dress shoes I have, as far as dress shoes are concerned, are not too bad in the traction department. So, I sign out at the front office and I'm thinking about what I need to do back on SUU Campus and I'm in the parking lot in approximately 15 seconds....


Then I have one of those experiences where time slows down. It's probably more like my mind had red warning flags blasting, but for the sake of the story -- time slowed down... 


My right foot slipped out from under me... and in my effort to regain my balance I try to catch myself with my left foot. But, alas, my left foot slipped on the very same icy patch of doom! I had a very clear moment of thinking "I'm going to fall!"


And then I fell... right on my butt. Like, I'm not kidding. Directly on my butt! My butt came in contact with the icy asphalt and the impact must have traveled from my tail bone, through my spine and out the top of my head. I say out through the top of my head because the top of my head hurt. 


I sat there, stunned, thinking, "Oh my gosh - that really hurt!" And, after looking around to see if anyone saw me, I started laughing. In amongst said laughing were repeated "Owe"s and "Holy crap"s. I eventually got up and, really, by the time I got to the Rotunda for breakfast and time with some friends I didn't hurt anymore.


Cue this morning -- I slept really well last night and I woke up to my alarm and when I turned to turn it off, something was off.... I was a little sore from conducting the pep band at last night's basketball game, but the twisting of my hips caught my attention.


My butt... is so sore! It's not my tail bone, like it probably should be! It's the place just below my lower back, on both sides a little closer to where my hips are. And - I found out in the Block - when I laugh too hard the top of my head kills. 


That's right, ladies and gentlemen - the reason for my discomfort during walking, shifting in a chair, and the effort it takes to stand up and sit down, is because I'm pretty sure I have two pretty epic bruises forming just below my back... 


Thank heavens it doesn't hurt once I'm sitting down....

The First of the Lasts

So - Pep Band. I don't remember a time when I didn't have to be at every home sporting event on campus! My friend, Tiana, said the other day "Look at how excited the freshmen are. They cheer and scream and clap. You know the upper-classmen because we're all sitting around bored out of our minds!"

She's right, you know. I'm bored out of my mind most of the time... except for when the percussionists are being funny.

... but my point is: This is the last pep band responsibility I have - and, please, I KNOW I will have to run who knows how many years of a HS or MS pep band. Let me bask in the glory for a moment!

My undergraduate experience is coming to a close. You know, I never thought I'd get here. Ever. It's been one of my goals, but so long-term that I can't believe I'm standing here. At the end.

... but the most exciting thing? Life is next.