Let Us Float Down the River

Last week was one of the most amazing performance experiences I have ever had. Sound Circle was invited to offer two of the shows we have put together over the past four years (since the last GALA Festival in Miami), and we contributed to two other collaborative efforts. This past year has been a very long and sometimes arduous experience for me, because I had to independently learn repertoire that the group had been performing for years together. But every second of the time and energy expended was more than worth it! It was a week surrounded by so much love and acceptance and appreciation, that I literally had to re-integrate into the real world when my time there was over and I had to go back to work. One of the evenings we performed to a general admission audience at the Temple Buell Theater in the Denver Performing Arts Complex, and a half hour before the show, the Buell was full. They scrambled to put together a simulcast next door at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, which was full a half hour after the show started! That's definitely the largest audience I have ever performed in front of, and it was exhilarating. Music has always had a huge impact on my heart, and has profoundly influenced the way that I process the world around me. I very much enjoyed experiencing and sharing that with so many people who appreciate the same things, and have their own processes to share. Our Path of Beauty concert was very well received. Chris' Grand Canyon photographs were projected in hi-def against an enormous screen the entire length of the Buell stage, which was quite a feat to tech, but breathtaking from the balconies. The reactions from the audience were so moving, with one lady apologizing for her lack of articulation because she "Had not yet returned from the amazing place we took her to." After spending at least three days a week with the group over the past few months, it is going to be weird to not see them until the end of September. I need a break and will definitely enjoy having more free time, but I will look forward to the start of a fresh season in the fall.

I Once Was Blind

I have officially joined the ranks of glasses wearers. I have noticed myself squinting at signs and screens and things not-too-far-away that just seemed blury. So, especially in light of my new industry, I decided to get that regular eye exam a couple of months early.

My eyes are healthy, but I have developed a hint of an astigmatism. That means that when I look at things, my vertical and horizontal focal points don't match up quite in the center of my eye, and the farther away something is the wider apart those points get. Hence the difficulty reading signs running through the airport and while driving at night.

Ho. Ly. Cow. I had no idea how much I couldn't see! It's been less than 2 years since my last exam, but the changes that have developed are pretty dramatic. Dr. Adler fit me with a new prescription, and I can see things I never knew I couldn't see! It's not as dramatic a transformation as some friends I know, who talk about getting glasses when they were younger and realizing that trees have several individual leaves instead of one big connected mass. But now I can read the score on the bottom of the tv screen from all the way in the kitchen - without squinting or wondering what my husband is going on about! Lights outside at night don't have weird halos anymore, they are crystal clear. Also, I can read what's on tap without having to cross the room and stare at the draught labels up close. It's amazing!

In all seriousness, when was the last time you visited your local OD? I am a huge proponent of preventative health care and generally don't mess around with regular check-ups. But to have noticed such a big change in less than two years really surprised me. I highly encourage you to stop procrastinating and schedule an exam!

As a soap box side note, the past six months have taught me that there is a huge difference between the quality of care you receive in a franchised retail outlet and a professional independent ECP's office. I know I am biased because I work with these doctors every day, but please - for the sake of your eye health - DON'T WASTE MONEY AT A LENS CRAFTER'S, PEARLE VISION, OR AN OPTICAL OFFICE IN THE CORNER OF A BIG BOX STORE. Find a local eye doctor who is a part of the community, has quality equipment and a personal interest in making sure your eyes are healthy. They might be a bit more expensive because they have higher overhead costs, but the end result will be a relationship with somebody who cares about the continued support of your vision, and savings long-term because they provide and support quality care and eyewear that is sustainable.

Trust me, it is well worth the investment!

In the Bleak Midwinter

I love January. I love the holidays, and all of the music and lights and social obligations that go along with them, but there is a meditative calm after the storm that I have developed a deep appreciation for.

I love the freshness of a new calendar, with it's blank pages and it's motivation to stay more organized. I love the vibes in the house after the pretty holiday clutter gets boxed up again and everything gets cleaned off. I love the hearty soups and winter veggies that take over the kitchen, after eating or purging feast leftovers and heavy Christmas sweets.

I love my updated address book and my renewed commitment to try and keep in touch with friends and family after exchanging holiday greetings and catching up at the end of the year. It is also a relief to return to some semblance of a routine that supports healthy habits and clothes that don't fit quite so snugly.

Happy 2012, wherever you may be. I hope it brings you peace, good health, and lots of happy memories!

Christmas Quotes of the Day

#5: "More than sometimes I feel like we should live in an HBO show."

#4: "It's the chimley, what would you call it?"
"A chimney."
"That's what I said, the chimley."

#3: "Last night I had my phone in one pocket, my camera in the other, and my wine opener in my back pocket."
"They should make a belt for all that!"

#2: *ring ring* "Hello... Merry Christmas to you too... Oh, we're just sitting here fighting with each other."

#1: "Don't mess with him, he went to the hard school of knocks."

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve Quotes of the Day

#3: "Ooooooh, you got some coconut boobs!"

#2: "She's a hillbilly, but she's a smart hillbilly."

#1: (grown daughter to dad)"Why do you always make me do things I don't want to do?"
(step-mom to daughter) "I'm always saying that to him!"

Hope Santa brings you something that makes you smile:)

Quotes of the day

Part posterity and part mutual amusement, here are the best lines overheard today from our family to yours:

#3:  "It's Christmas, don't start any shit."

#2:  "My kids got three different daddy's, but at least they're spread out. I got friends with kids 1, 2, and 3 or 4, with all different dads."

#1:  "I don't know you very well, but Merry Christmas anyway."

Cheers!

Saturday, What a Day!

Today I am thankful for all of the elements of the beautiful holiday season that make the beginning of winter so festive. Preparing to kick off Advent tomorrow made me wonder at the impact a few pine boughs and some glittery ornaments have. (For the record, I'm not talking about the tinsel-strewn plastic decorations that festoon retail stores this time of year.)

After Thanksgiving, I give myself full liberty to deck the halls and break out the box of holiday music. The moments that make me the happiest are on quiet evenings when the lights on the tree are sparkling, and the flames from lit candles are reflected in all of the glass surfaces in the room. Theoretically in these moments, James Taylor is crooning carols in the background and snow is drifting outside, but that level of perfection is rare.

Regardless, I am grateful for this season that celebrates anticipation, and I look forward to cherishing many moments with friends and family as we ring out 2011 and prepare for 2012.