the impaler

so. it's now june 12th. it feels like a ton of things are happening, but at the same time i feel like nothing is happening. i guess i'll highlight some of the bigger events...

well memorial day weekend was obviously the memorial day parade. i marched in my first parade ever without my trumpet. it was a completely different experience, but still fun. i got to look around more and see people. i felt pretty comfortable with the cadences we played, and i really only screwed up once. i almost passed out at the end, though, because i'm just not used to carrying sixty pounds for that long.

the tuesday of that week, i went to visit benford and spent most of the day with him. we didn't do much teaching wise, since he was trying to collect instruments for the end of the school year. we went to the gyro house for lunch and had a really good discussion about teaching and the future and what music education might turn into over the coming years. i told him that i was just really scared, because with budget cuts happening everywhere, our jobs are disappearing. he keeps telling me that i'll find a job, it'll come. he's retiring in three years and shepka is soon after that, so i'm crossing my fingers that there might be some kind of opening here. if not... i'm moving somewhere. ugh.

on the 7th, we had a drum sectional at oakwood elementary. it was more of a quad sectional, since we recieved a lot of new music and the others basically went through and showed us all of them. we ended up having our first drummer fight. well, it wasn't really a fight, but there were some tempers and very annoyed people. basically, there were different versions of one cadence being played at the same time, and it was frustrating because not everyone was playing 'as written', which is what the alumni drum section is aiming for. except - not everyone learned it that way. so there were frustrated people. we left and i know that i was kind of weary, as was heather... but i think things have been resolved with the help of ice cream and some pep talks.

a few times this week heather and i have gotten together to practice the cadences, and we've ended up having a really good time. i've also gotten to spend some time with her daughter, baylee, who's now three years old. i always enjoy young kids and she is no exception. i find that instead of my patience level going down, as is usually happens when people spend time with little ones, my patience actually goes up. wierd. anyway, yesterday, we were practicing for a while at her house and boy it turned into a day for the ages. we ran over a chipmunk, did a drive-by of both mike and benford's house, and failed in being sneaky at either of them! (it was mostly my fault...) i then spent some time with jessica, and went to a mini-lock-in at the library. they had video games and stuff out, but we played apples to apples with some people for the entire four hours we were there. i really love that game. jessica and i ended up staying to help clean up, and we got to leave the library with the librarians after closing up for the night. it was really cool to see the back-office inner workings of the library, heehee. yeah, we're nerds.

oh! i got a package this week. from w. he sent me two pictures he took of me the last day i was on campus this year. he also wrote me a letter, so now i'm in the process of writing one back. it was really surprising to get something in the mail from him. it made me realize how much i miss him and the rest of witt. i love being home, don't get me wrong, but i can only take hanging out and not doing anything for so long. at school i was always so busy, and here it's almost the opposite. i am anti-busy. and it's getting to the point where i really just want to pack up my stuff and go back to school. i am taking some really cool classes, so i'm looking forward to them a lot. and i can't wait to move into my apartment with sav! we were at walmart looking at house stuff and oh man, i really want to have a place of my own.

so yeah, that's it i suppose. monday we're having pizza and movies at payler's house. and thursday we're getting together with benford at shed west (which is a major big deal when you think about it, because the only people he invites are family or close friends. so we've risen in the ranks!)

other than that, i've just been reading and watching movies and practicing various instruments. soon i'll be starting lessons, so that'll be something to keep me occupied.

anyway, i'll write sometime next week i guess.

until then...