it's like gravity

why is it that the people i cherish the most are the ones i never get to spend enough time with?

i went to see benford today at prospect. first time in two months. he split up the group into woodwinds and brass, and i was in charge of the brass... god it was awful. we were in the gym which is naturally loud, and when you've got about 15 flutes/clarinets competing with 10 trombones/trumpets - it really never ends up well. i could tell they really wanted to learn and play, but it was just hard with the other group trying to do their own thing too. after prospect we went to hazel's for lunch. we talked about how elyria is changing, and some about the budget cuts at the schools. what i like most about talking to benford is that even though things are sometimes really rough and kind of shitty, he can always find something positive. so after lunch, we went over to oakwood. i was really impressed. those kids are actually really great players. first we saw these two flute players who wanted to just play play play the whole time - they kept asking if they could do another song. then we met with a kid who just started playing trumpet about a month ago. when he hit a note successfully, it was some really great tone. he actually had trouble hitting lower notes, which in my opinion is better than struggling to hit high notes. he had no trouble playing higher. then two boys who played trombone; this one kid was totally rockin' it and he actually grasped the concept of a decsending scale. then were two drummers who were totally hyper but they read along with the entire page of music for a piece they'll be playing in their may concert. and then there was one lone clarinet player who actually was really good, though quiet. he could read the song and play it without much difficulty or having to start over. i was honestly amazed at how good some of them were, for being fifth graders. after we were done teaching, benford and i hung out outside waiting for jessica at oakwood. we just had a really random talk as is usual with him. then jess showed up and we all chatted for a while. after that, i helped take jessica's cat to the vet to get his stitches out of a big gash on his side. the poor kitty was crying in the car the whole time, darn near broke my heart. wendy's for dinner and then to plato's closet where none of us really found any clothes.

i just wanted to update a little since i did something out in the world today. probably going to the high school tomorrow to see a few teachers, since i haven't seen them since december or before. ugh, that means i have to get up semi-early. what happened to catching up on sleep over break?!