I come home on Tuesdays at around 8pm after teaching a full day of back to back lessons. Physically and mentally tired from the day, (and getting over my stupid cold), I refused to eat dinner and just plopped myself on the couch. I turned on the television and flipped through 80 channels of crap. Nothing is on. Determined to find something, I keep flipping through the 80 channels hoping that something would pop up. Something did.

On PBS last night, there was a live show on called “Blast.” It features a cast of around 70 playing percussion and brass instruments. All of this is choreographed with dance moves and freakishly buff musicians. Even freakier, was the audience. But I can’t go into that without offending the Mormon population.

I watched for 25 minutes. This was a TRAIN WRECK that I could not peel my eyes away from. An over emotional bald dude leading the group and dance numbers that reminded me of the hand movements I learned when I was a kid in Sunday school. And this my friends, won an Emmy. AYA! Maybe if I take music less seriously, I can be a train wreck monkey on stage and make lots of money.

As D’s boyfriend, JP always says, “So much hate.”

So, B got the new iphone last week and it totally messed up our family plan.  Since he was upgrading, I had to upgrade as well or wait for the 2 year contract to end for me to upgrade.  In true phone company fashion, I was thoroughly confused with the rules, regulations, contracts, that I finally gave in to upgrading my phone.  I upgraded to an iPhone as well.  Yup, I sold out. But there are some cool things you can do with the phone, I guess. My friend C took this picture of us in Portland with her new iPhone and it’s the only picture we have since we didn’t bring a camera.  Plus, I can look up email, get directions, finally have a calendar so I don’t go crazy trying to remember everything in my head.  I’m keeping my old phone anyway because I like it so much and it has an awesome battery life. That way, I can switch it up from time to time.  Well I don’t like it, but I secretly like it as well. shhhhhhhhhh……

On Wednesday, I think I’m going to run my butt over to Amoeba in Berkeley to get some music. I am in need and have to go raid the used classical music section.  I usually buy things off iTunes or online, but it’s definitely time to go physically look through the music.  Pick up the cd’s, look at the back, and hear the slamming of the plastic covers as you flip through. Anything new? Anything exciting? that’s good?  Let me know… please.

What a fast, fast, month.  It’s not over yet, but it may as well be September in my book.  Remember when you were a kid and the summers were long, lazy, and at times… boring? Take it all in kids, ’cause it ain’t gonna be like that forever.

Last week, B and I went to go see Chorus Line at the Curran Theater.  It was our date day before B started his new job. The musical was fantastic and we sat front row center. We peeked our heads into the orchestra pit and saw our friend Jeanne (who was playing in the show), and chatted for a bit.  It was really cool to see a musical with a full orchestra.  The last one we went to was just a guy playing a synthesizer.  The show is almost over, but if you get a chance, go see it!  My favorite number was from the gal whose voice reminded me of Bernadette Peters. But she really made it her own thing and she was excellent.  

I also went to Portland last weekend to help my friend Meg at her Modern Economy sale at the Ace Hotel. We stayed in the Ace Hotel as well and it was the most hip hotel I’ve ever stayed at. I was definitely in “hipster” land when we were in Portland. But it was uber cool and I love Portland. The people are friendly, the city is beautiful, the city is clean, it feels safe, the property is affordable, and the houses are adorable. I can definitely live there for a couple years, but would eventually have to come back to the Bay Area. Although Portland is great, there was one thing missing that the Bay Area offers. ….DIVERSITY. When I talked to my friend J about it, (she lived in Portland for years), she said that the only thing that really got to her was how homogenous the people were. She couldn’t have been more right. It was even funnier that about 55% of the people we met, were all hipsters from San Francisco. So, it just felt like the Mission times 100. I like the Mission in SF, but I also like other people and places as well.

Another highlight for me in Portland was our waiter at the Thai restaurant we went to for lunch. We first stopped in at this one place where all the hipsters were. One look at the menu and we bolted out of there. They had lots of things made of tofu…. but it was “white” tofu. Sorry, but I hate white tofu dishes. Don’t get me wrong, tofu is one of my faaaaavorite foods, but I like it cooked the way it was meant to be cooked. Yes, I’m biased… so sue me. Anyway, so we left and went to this Thai place. The waiter there had this crazy, fried, orange, receding hair, and puffy cheeks. After staring at him for a while, I finally got it! He was the Asian-Bizarro-Bill Murray! So awesome. Ok, I know that that must be the crappiest highlight for most of you folks, but I totally got a kick out of it.

4th of July weekend was spent in my good old hometown, Santa Rosa, (Rosetown).  It started off with a 70th birthday celebration for my uncle on Friday, and while driving to Rosetown, we saw two different firework shows from the freeway.  

Saturday was another BBQ Day at an old friend’s house… but get this! She rented a jumpy house for her son, but really I think it was for us. Five grown adults took over the Scooby Doo castle and were so excited they tipped it over not once, not twice, but three times.  And why oh why does the power of the jumpy house make you laugh so much when you jump? We were intense jumpers as well, as B lost a button off his shorts, and friend Bolestinaka lost two buttons off her capris. 

After BBQ, we went to Sebastopol to go see Realistic Orchestra perform at Hopmonk Brewery. B, Bolestinaka, and T-Dawg had never seen them, and I think they were as impressed as I was. I heard of this group because my friend, master’s partner, and trombonist extraordinaire, Jeanne Geiger, plays with them. Since we were all up in Rosetown, it was 20 minutes to “lopostsabes” to see a refreshing jazz group. Expect something new with this group.  Expect to not hear the old jazz tunes with this group.  Expect to be impressed, happy that something new yet relatable is feeding your ears.

The audience at first did not know what to do at first. They lined up at the back half of the room like school dance party separated with boys to the left and girls to the right. The music began and heads started bobbing. They then started to get the “feel” and understand the situation presented to them during the second number. A few just went all out and used the front room to dance. It wasn’t until the third number when the gap between the band and the audience filled with dancers. This, is what happens with Realistic Orchestra. You can’t help it even if you try. And I’m not that big of a dancer either… just happens.

:: SIDE NOTE ::

I just uploaded the performance of my trio, Constancy, under the Works page. This performance is from the  Composers Inc. Glenn Glasow Memorial concert back in May. I was very happy with the 2nd and most of all the third movement. Check it.

My iTunes brain is a little confused. I went to my computer to turn on some music this morning and found myself feeling indifferent about what to put on. So, I saw the icon on the left called, “Party Shuffle,” and clicked on it to see what it would come up with. Ha. Well, if I played this set list at my party, then at the end of the night, people would go home either paranoid, confused, loopy, crying, or all of the above. I guess the “party shuffle” function does not work so well with the songs in my iTunes.

Here’s what the iTunes brain came up with for my “party shuffle” :

1. Rock your Body - Justin Timberlake
2. Credo, Aria Et in Spiritum Sanctum - J.S. Bach (mass in b-minor)
3. Knee Play 3 - Philip Glass
4. Symphonie no.9, Adagio - Dvorak
5. Nails in the Road - The Pretenders
6. Jamie’s Cryin’ - Van Halen
7. Pagliacci: Intermezzo - Leoncavallo
8. Sonata in A Major - C.P.E. Bach
9. 30 Century Man - Scott Walker
10. Concerto Grosso - Zwilich
11. Ma Vlast - Smetana
12. Requiem et Kyrie - Berlioz
13. Red Dragon Tattoo - Fountains of Wayne
14. Five Fathoms - Everything but the Girl
15. The Three of Us - Louis Armstrong
16. Piano Sonata no.21 - Beethoven
17. Dead Duck - Badly Drawn Boy

haha. Half of which I haven’t listened to in ages.