brrrrr

dang it's cold right now. i'm beginning to wonder how i grew up in duluth where weather like this is considered warm. i'll never forget those 20 below mornings delivering newspapers for the duluth news tribune at 5am. those were the days. really...they were. i didn't have to think about grad school. i didn't really have to think that much about money. i didn't have to think about girls. all i had to do was deliver the papers, go to school, go to practice, do my homework, and go to sleep. life was definitely good.

mmea convention performance with trombone choir was really rewarding. the group played well, and the audience loved us. i've never seen a trombone choir receive a standing ovation before. that was a nice gesture. it was also rewarding being able to play for my high school trombone teacher who hadn't heard me play since i left high school. i was actually nervous for the first time in a while. that took me by surprise. my old band director was there too. i talked to them for a while after the concert and they made me feel really good about the progress i've made since i left. we got back to eau claire just before they locked the building so i got a good 1.5 hours of practice in afterwards too.

speaking of practicing, i just got done for the night. i feel like i was really productive in my practice, but i still don't feel like i'm 100% focused yet. i'm probably at about 88%. i recorded myself tonight with my mini-disc player and learned a lot about the way i am playing. whoops. that always happens though. stupid recording equipment....doesn't it know that ignorance is bliss? the bach sarabande is slooowly becoming acceptable. the other stuff is okay too. okay isn't where i need to be for these auditions, though. so, tomorrow will be more practicing.

not much else to say right now i guess. i'll probably be ready for some good old fashioned ranting by monday though.

what do you call a cow that plays the trombone?

a mooo-sician

-james