Stuck in an airport with delays. Not so fun. Hope to get moving soon!

It's August!   Stacy is getting married this week. The summer is flying by. Wow - where does the time go?  I wish July lasted longer.

Sitting in my window with a cup of coffee watching the sudden rainstorm. The wind is blowing. The thunder crashing. All umbrellas seem to be a joke against the sheets of rain coming down. I think I'll stay here a while.

Zoo Opera

Over the weekend I had a chance to play bass clarinet for an exciting new opera company, On Site Opera.  Their concept is that opera can be performed in non-traditional places and doesn't always have to be in a "stuffy" opera house.  I was able to be a part of their very first production, The Tale of the Silly Baby Mouse.  It is a very short (about 13 minutes) opera by Shostakovich about a little baby mouse who won't go to sleep.  It was performed by a small group of singers with animal puppets and 7 instruments for the orchestra.  We played 4 performances over the weekend at the Bronx Zoo in a little outdoor space.  Each performance was filled with children, in full attention (which I now know is a rare thing!).  In a day where the arts are having such a hard time, it's nice to see a company thinking outside the box and reaching audiences in new and creative ways.  Here is a picture from the show. Clink on it to go read the great review we got in the New York Times today!

Check it off the list!

I finished my first year back in school!!!!

It was kind of crazy crazy and there were moments I didn't think I was going to make it, but I did!  

Whooohooooo!!!!

Living in the hub

Sometimes it can be great to live in a place that people happen to stop by or pass through.  With a couple of big airports around, it's not strange for someone to be around for a quick stop.  It doesn't always work out that I get to meet up with people, like when Stacy was stuck overnight at Newark. Newark was just a bit too far and my schedule was just a bit too tight for us to get together. That stunk because she was so close, but we just couldn't make it happen. Today was nice because Dad and Mom happened to have a layover for several hours at JFK.  And I happened to be on the train back from Long Island this afternoon which passed right by JFK.  So I was able to meet up with them and have coffee for an hour or so before they had to go on their way. It was great!

"You know those days when you get the mean reds?....The blues are because you're getting fat and maybe it's been raining too long, you're just sad that's all. The mean reds are horrible. Suddenly you're afraid and you don't know what you're afraid of....Well, when I get it the only thing that does any good is to jump in a cab and go to Tiffany's. Calms me down right away. The quietness and the proud look of it; nothing very bad could happen to you there. If I could find a real-life place that'd make me feel like Tiffany's, then - then I'd buy some furniture and give the cat a name!" - Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's

I'm excited about my new mug.  I got it for the office.  I haven't been feeling that great in the office lately, so I thought this mug would be a nice picker-upper with it's bright, happy, spring-like orange color and polka dots.  Plus it comes with it's own little coaster!  All wrapped up in a nice bow, which I'll wait to undo when I get there.  It should help put a smile across my face at work.  I'm actually looking forward to going to work so I can use it!

Time in Port Jeff

I had a concert at Stony Brook with the orchestra on Saturday.  I had some free time between the afternoon rehearsal and the evening concert and a friend went out to Long Island with me, so we went into the neighboring town for dinner.  Port Jefferson is a small port village.  There is a little lighthouse and a ferry to Connecticut and lots of sailboats, since it is on the north shore of Long Island.  All the houses and shops are cute and look historic.  Very cute.  It's also the last stop on the Long Island Railroad line that I ride.  So if I ever fall asleep on the train and miss my stop, that is where I will end up. I liked the old clock in the town square.  It seems like it would fit in a movie. Here it is:

Breakfast

Sometimes I like to make omelettes for breakfast...or for dinner.  They usually don't turn out looking all that great.  Often one piece of it gets stuck and when I try to do the fold it crumbles.  Or when I try to slid it onto the plate it folds or falls apart.  All kinds of things can go wrong.  My "omelette" is normally something between an omelette and a scramble. But this morning... this morning was different.  I made a personal record best-looking omelette.  So I thought I would share.  Filled with spinach, mushrooms, and feta cheese, the ingredients were spread out perfectly and tasted delicious.  Slightly crisp on the outside, nice and smooth on the inside.  The mushrooms and spinach were cooked to just the right texture.  And that baby folded right over and slid out of the skillet and onto my plate with no hangups.  Doesn't get much better than this. Woohoo!

I always liked this quote.

what a mess