Where Have I been?

Where have I been, you may be asking. Well, let me tell you what's been shaking:
October was crazy, to put it mildly. To be put in three orchestral cycles simultaneously, all why trying to play the Debussy quartet somewhat in tune, and occasionally practicing my own repertoire...just didn't work out all that well. On the optimistic side, I could say, "Hey!  At least you're playing with people and making a miniscule amount of money to be playing your instrument."  Yes, this is true.  And I am somewhat grateful for that.  But in the more blunt side of things, it means that I'm overextended, and that yes, there are still boxes in my room that haven't been unpacked.  And there are pictures that haven't been hung on the walls.  And I only can go to yoga once a week, in terms of time and schedule management.  It's kind of unfortunate, and I'm working on that.  It definitely makes me appreciate my limited time in Rochester, in which there simply wasn't enough to do, in comparison to here, where there's just too much to do.  It's a tricky balance, I suppose, and I'm definitely not balanced.  I have, however, been doing some running, with a medium amount of knee discomfort, and I don't suck at running as much as I used to, which is pretty darn exciting.  I bought some of those silly "Five Fingers" shoes, which were really helping with my knee issues, but now it's acting up again, and I'm not sure what to do except not run as much and make an acupuncture appointment.  We'll see.
I'm also a little overwhelmed in working to make Kim's concert series a success.  The way it is now, I'm having to answer to tons of different people in order to get anything done, and it mostly doesn't accomplish anything.  With that in mind, I'm starting to rely on other people less and less, and I'm trying to eliminate the weaker aspects of this partnership.  I think, at the end of the day, I just hate doing "group" projects when everyone isn't equally committed to getting things done.  I've always been a bit of a lone ranger-between the whole music thing, the single thing, the tennis/yoga/running, and my earlier-in-life-lack-of-friends, I've always just preferred going it alone, i.e. getting things done on my own, and telling someone else what needs to get done.  I don't mind team projects in principal, it's just that people often suck at taking initiative, doing what you agree needs to get done, or trusting in your contributions.  With that said, I've made some awesome progress with this whole "Music For Food For Music" endeavor, and I'm learning the ropes at wordpress to make our own website musicfoodmusic.com  (It won't show up yet-it's still adjusting to it's new domain!)  It's not fancy, I don't love the fonts, and I'm not paying for the subscription with the fancy CSS stuff yet, until I have someone who can help me, but it has all of the information on it, and I'm getting the gist of what I'm doing.  And most of all, it's useful to my life and career, but it's teaching me website design on a very basic level.  So ha.  Take that, world!

On an optimistic end, I'm playing some cool repertoire now, if I get around to practicing, and I'm feeling like I don't totally suck at the viola, which is awesome.  I'm also looking forward to playing with a Kirtan singer in Boston.

Bring back the viewmaster!

There were some amazing quotes the other day from Glee.


"I don't like people using J-Money to cramp everyone else's style... I see God every time I make out with a chick."

"Sorry, if I wanted to sing about Jesus, I'd go to church.  And the reason I don't go to church is because they don't think very much about gay people.  Or women.  Or science."

They just sort of made my day when I saw the episode last week.  It of course was touching on a much bigger issue about spirituality, and accepting different people's views, in a mostly protestant/Christian country.  There were a couple other good lines, like when the Principal said "Sue, children should be allowed to profess whatever faith they choose." And the coach, Sue said, "At the BET awards, but not in a public school."  That also made me chuckle.

On a less related note, sometimes I'd like to get rid of my computer, and unpack an early 90's green screen mac or a typewriter, and do all of my press and communication that way.  And I'd like to distribute photos as slides to be put in one a slide machine, or as those little pictures in a viewmaster.  (Which I loved, by the way.)  Or even better, on of those projectors we had in the pre-VHS era that probably had something to do with discussing puberty in a terribly awkward cartoon way.  I definitely remember an awkward screen thing with a giant reel-to-reel of female parts in a cartoonish display of eggs and sperm, all advertising "always" sanitary napkins.

Also, love this hysterical review of the Dirty Projectors.

Youtube Orchestra Returns?!

I don't know if this is a good or bad thing, but the YouTube Orchestra Returns.  Here are some of the salient points about the issue, from a slightly cynical viewpoint.
I have to agree with some of the author's points-global changes?  International diplomacy, my ass!  It definitely got some amateurs amazing opportunities, but I don't think it changed the world.  On one had, it's great to bring people together who are not professional musicians, but it seems like it's at a high enough level that people are very experienced, and I don't know if it's successful in its aims.  I may still apply though-Australia definitely has its appeal.

Come out, come out, wherever you are?

Today is nat'l coming out, and seeing that I never have time these days to do much of anything, I thought it would be a nice time to offer solidarity for those who suffer for their sexual orientation, whether privately, spiritually, or publicly.  I am so fortunate to be surrounded by mostly open-minded people who think no less of a person no matter their gender preference, and I'm lucky that I was born into a family that shared that view.  (In other words, a pack of liberals).  So many people suffer for their sexual orientation, and today is just another opportunity to honor all people, remember those who have unfortunately died, and hope that we can all change the culture that we live in to allow all people to feel safe and empowered.  In a very jucispeak moment, I read this letter from a decade ago towards homosexuality, and I thought it was rather lovely.  My interest in Mormon gender and sexuality politics is unusual, to say the least, for a non-Christian semi-Buddhist, but this goes beyond Mormonism and into all spiritual practices which condemn homosexuality.
Here are some of my favorite paragraph:

As the Church "progresses" on this issue, what we are hearing more and more from Priesthood leaders today is the idea that our son is acceptable so long as he practices life-long chastity.  That is, of course, actually called celibacy, and while it's a convenient idea to advance, in practice it is virtually impossible to live.  The distinction between chastity and celibacy seems always to be overlooked by Church leaders.  You may recall that in his somewhat recent newspaper interview in California, President Hinkley compared the plight of homosexuals to that of the single sisters in the Church.  To paraphrase, he said that the Church doesn't ask homosexuals to do anything it doesn't also ask of its other single adult members - to live chaste lives. But this simply isn't true.  As a former bishop I have firsthand experience.  We openly love and support our single brothers and sisters.  We give them important callings - especially with out youth and children.  We urge them to date, to flirt, to get crushes, to fall in love, to marry.  We sponsor Ward and Stake activities and dances to get them together to accomplish this.  We ask them to be chaste - until they find someone to share their life and intimacy with.  We go out of our way to give them something of immeasurable value in the struggle to keep the law of chastity - hope - hope that no matter how difficult this emotional and physical loneliness is, it is temporary.  For those with the least control over their situation, our single sisters, we give special encouragement and hope that they will find love, emotional intimacy and fulfillment in this life - and if not, certainly in the next.
We do not knowingly give homosexuals important callings - especially not with our youth or children who would be at risk of being infected and recruited. We forbid them ever to flirt, to date, to get crushes, to fall in love, to have a legally-recognized monogamous relationship.  The image of a Tri-Stake Gay and Lesbian Gold-and-Green Ball is amusing.  We ask them to be chaste - forever. No hope at all.  The question of sexual intimacy aside - can you imagine having being denied the ability to become attracted to, flirt with, get a crush on, hold hands with, steal a kiss from, or fall in love with you wife?  With all trace of romantic love and emotional intimacy denied you, with what would you fill the void to hold at bay a life of loneliness, emptiness, and despair.


Now, this is not an entirely flawless letter by any means, and I don't agree with all points, but it does add to my belief that all religions, including LDS, have the opportunity for change and growth when conflict arises, and that we all as freethinking individuals have to challenge our social constructs to meet our beliefs and needs.

On that note, I'm so happy for all of my friends, no matter their spiritual background, for being able to be who they are, and for being able to be loved by friends, colleagues, and hopefully their families for who they are.

Wowzers

http://pitchfork.com/news/40295-campaign-to-pay-weezer-10-million-to-break-up/

I knew Weezer was bad, but not this bad!